Nemosine Singularity Demonstrator

[requiescat]

Nemosine Singularity demonstrator

 

NOTE: My husband lost my camera, so there are no photos. You can see a reasonable photo of the pen on Amazon.com at this link:

http://www.amazon.com/Nemosine-Singularity-Demonstrator-Fountain-Pen/dp/B007L4Y8L0/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1339006820&sr=8-1

 

Introduction: I picked up one of these pens from Amazon.com after seeing Osmaroid's review (https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php?/topic/220978-nemosine-singularity/) as I was hoping that I could use it as an affordable ($15, not including shipping) eyedropper demonstrator. I liked it well enough to order two more, all of which I've used.

 

The pen arrives in a sturdy black box. There's a large sticker on top giving the pen's statistics (weight, length, nib, etc.), although the sticker's corners tended to peel off on two of the three boxes. I don't have any complaints about the box. There is also a small booklet explaining how to use and take care of the pen, which is a nice touch. I could have used something like this when I first got a fountain pen (a hand-me-down from a generous friend of a friend)!

 

The pen came with a piston converter as well as six cartridges labeled "infinite black"; the ink in the cartridges is reasonably dark and somewhat although not very water-resistant--you can still see the writing, but the dark wash makes it hard to read.

 

Appearance & Design (8) - The pen is reasonably attractive, a clear demonstrator with silver-colored trim and clean, utilitarian lines. The metal band around the bottom of the cap says NEMOSINE in pale engraved capital letters. The clip appears to be silver-colored plastic. No one is going to mistake this for a pricy pen, but on the other hand I'm not ashamed to be seen with it in public, either.

 

 

Construction & Quality (8) - I'm a little dubious about the plastic clip's durability, but everything else feels very sturdy. I've dropped the pen on a hardwood floor a few times and nothing disastrous has happened. You can't remove the nib easily (I borked the flow on one of the three pens by attempting to yank out the nib, which is NOT the fault of the pen--it was working fine before I messed with it), but things feel secure. The converter is probably not the best I've seen, it appears to be mostly plastic, but since I planned to use this as an eyedropper conversion or as a cartridge pen (I think it takes international standard, but I'm not up on cartridges), I'm not terribly bothered by this.

 

Weight & Dimensions (10) - I prefer smaller and lighter pens as I have small hands (6.5" from base of hand to tip of middle finger) and I find heavier pens fatiguing, so this is about perfect for me. The box claims the following:

 

weight: 16.236 grams (I assume without c/c or ink)

length capped: 137.5mm

length posted: 149.7mm

 

I use pens posted where possible, although this is long enough to be comfortable for me to use unposted. If you have larger hands, that may not be the case. If you prefer heavier/more substantial pens, this is also probably not for you.

 

Nib & Performance (8) - This is a steel fine nib and it is almost certainly a JoWo based on comparison to my Edison Pearl's steel nib. It writes reasonably smoothly, although it is not the smoothest writer in my collection (that distinction belongs to a wacky XF Webster). I hold the pen at a lowish angle, around 35 degrees to the plane of the paper, and at times this means the pen has trouble starting at the beginning of a stroke. Based on some experimentation, I *think* this is due to the angle and that the pen would behave better for someone who holds it at a higher angle. I haven't had issues with skipping. The line tends to be on the wet side, although it may be that Noodler's Midway Blue is just sort of wet to begin with.

 

Filling System & Maintenance (9) - I've used this pen three ways: cartridge, converter, and eyedropper conversion. I had no issues with it as a c/c pen, although I don't find it particularly interesting to stare at a cartridge or converter through a clear pen for some reason. The pen doesn't appear to be *intended* as an eyedropper, but it works beautifully as one. All I did was put silicone grease on the threads. It has been trouble-free as an eyedropper, no blobbing or spitting or weird ink flow issues all the way until the ink supply runs dry.

 

Cost & Value (9) - For $15, this pen does a lot of things that I like: it's a demonstrator, it can be used very easily as an eyedropper, it has a reasonably well-behaved nib. I would personally prefer an XF option because my handwriting is small, but on the other hand, at $15 I don't feel torn up about ruining one of these practicing nib grinding to get the nib to something I like better.

 

I also think it might be fun to paint little designs on these. For some reason it bothers me to have completely identical pens that I can't tell apart even if they behave the same way, and again, at $15 for current-production pens, I don't think anyone is going to cry if I make hash of the first few attempts.

 

Conclusion (Final score, 52/60) - This is a fun, affordable pen and I would buy more to play with. Except for the nib running a little wider than my preference, this is almost the perfect eyedropper for me--and for the price, I really don't expect perfection. (Sad to say, I tried converting a Platinum Preppy once and the thing hated me. Maybe I just had bad luck.) In the meantime, I am going back to watching Noodler's Midway Blue slosh around in the barrel--really beautiful.

[inkstainedruth]

I looked at the Amazon link -- it is being sold by Paramount Goods LLC. Looking up info on the company, it said they were in Pittsburgh, PA, and seeing the other listings on Amazon from this seller, I suspect that it's just another name for xfountainpens.com (they also seem to sell Chesterfield Ink, which is the rebranded Diamine ink that xfountainpens.com sells).

I just received a Platinum Preppy. So you think the Nemosine works better as an eyedropper than the Preppy? I'll keep that in mind, and may pick one up at some point.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[tspin46]

I have been very impressed with the Singularity. I have found it to be the easiest pen to swap nibs on that I have found. The section and feeder are keyed so that the feeder fits in the section in only one way and the feeder has a rear stop for the nib. A firm pull removes the nib and feeder from the section and the nib can then be replaced. The Knox 35 nibs from Xfountainpen fit perfectly as does the flex nib from a Noodler Ahab/Konrad. The feeder and nib can then be pushed back into the section and the pen reassembled.

 

What particular problem did you have in nib swapping?

Edited June 6, 2012 by tspin46

[requiescat]

I looked at the Amazon link -- it is being sold by Paramount Goods LLC. Looking up info on the company, it said they were in Pittsburgh, PA, and seeing the other listings on Amazon from this seller, I suspect that it's just another name for xfountainpens.com (they also seem to sell Chesterfield Ink, which is the rebranded Diamine ink that xfountainpens.com sells).

I just received a Platinum Preppy. So you think the Nemosine works better as an eyedropper than the Preppy? I'll keep that in mind, and may pick one up at some point.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

I think someone had mentioned that on Osmaroid's post, yes.

 

I actually wonder if I happened to get a bad Preppy--it must happen. I have a friend who has some dozen Preppies and has had excellent luck with all of them. I keep meaning to order a couple more (since they won't break the bank either!) and try again, as I liked the nib but couldn't deal with the pen (a) blobbing ink and ( leaking from the barrel.

 

tspin46, I'll have to try the nib thing again. I normally don't mess with nibs that are working, but I had this notion that if I could pull the nib then I could maybe replace it with an XF. I just yanked on it, which messed up the position enough that it stopped writing smoothly. Maybe I didn't pull hard enough? I've wanted to explore the Knox nibs so if I can get the Nemosine's nib to come out that might be an excellent way of getting an XF in.

 

EDITED: tspin46, you're a genius. This time I just yanked again and it came right out! I don't know why I couldn't do that before. Thank you! I must go order a Knox now...

Edited June 6, 2012 by requiescat

[tspin46]

I just received notification that I have a Velvet Black and and Ivory in the mailbox waiting for me when I get home. One will receive a Noodler flex nib and the other will receive an EF Knox nib. And I have a Noodler Konrad coming to receive the Jowo nib from one of the Singularities, and away we go...

Edited June 6, 2012 by tspin46

[danahn17]

I looked at the Amazon link -- it is being sold by Paramount Goods LLC. Looking up info on the company, it said they were in Pittsburgh, PA, and seeing the other listings on Amazon from this seller, I suspect that it's just another name for xfountainpens.com (they also seem to sell Chesterfield Ink, which is the rebranded Diamine ink that xfountainpens.com sells).

I just received a Platinum Preppy. So you think the Nemosine works better as an eyedropper than the Preppy? I'll keep that in mind, and may pick one up at some point.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

When I bought mine, it came with a little insert that said xfountainpens... so I'm guessing Paramount Goods and xfountainpens are the one and the same.

[Osmaroid]

Glad to see others are trying this pen out. I have bought 6 now (5 for me, one as a gift). Four had pretty perfect nibs to my taste - glass smooth. Two wrote well but were not quite glass smooth - something it was relatively easy to correct by adjusting the tines and smoothing and then polishing using 2500 grit film followed by 9000 grit. By the way, although only a few are on Amazon Prime (free shippiung as a member), I ordered two that were not Amazon Prime and got free shipping - apparently, you only pay shipping when ordering a single pen.

[amberleadavis]

THank you. I had seen the link and wondered about the pen.

[freddy77]

If you order directly from xfountianpens, shipping is free and there is a wide selection of nibs to choose from (XF, F, M, B, 6mm Calligraphy, and 8mm Calligraphy). Nibs may be purchased separately, as well.

[requiescat]

If you order directly from xfountianpens, shipping is free and there is a wide selection of nibs to choose from (XF, F, M, B, 6mm Calligraphy, and 8mm Calligraphy). Nibs may be purchased separately, as well.

I ordered separate XF nibs (should have gotten the 8mm calligraphy while I was at it, will remedy that sometime) and it was easy to swap in and writes beautifully, even at the weird low angle I hold my pens. Yay!

[avlisyar]

Received mine yesterday with the 8mm CI

and the I must say,it is a nice little pen. I filled it with

Omas Sepia and it wrote immediately. The pen has a nice feel

and the nib was surprisingly smooth and produced a fairly wet line.

Glad I ordered a spare 8mm CI nib. This one is a keeper.

[goldiesdad]

I have two and one on the way ... I am converting the fine nib to an oblique ... I like the line variation ...

 

Great pen for the buck ... mine writes great every time but I treaked it before i inked it ...

 

Great Review

[richardandtracy]

Shame about the postage to the UK. It doubles the price of the pen.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[51ISH]

Shame about the postage to the UK. It doubles the price of the pen.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

 

 

You just answered my question Richard......

[Saintpaulia]

Shame about the postage to the UK. It doubles the price of the pen.

Regards,Richard.

As much as I hesitate to say that some things are better in the USA, it is less expensive to live here than, say, the UK. Or the EU. I like y'all's cultural values better than those of my country but you've let those bureacrats stick it to ya in the tax department. (Not that our turn isn't coming I'll wager).

[alfredop]

When I read to the the thread title I immediately thought about a self-filling fountain pen with ink loading internally from a singularity in the space-time continuum

 

Alfredo

[pensivedoc]

Mine was on the front porch today when I got home. I'm a little disappointed that the grip section is opaque. Granted, I should have picked up on that in the pictures when I ordered it. Still, I feel like some of the most interesting parts of the 'demonstration' remain hidden.

[Pen_Noob]

Just got my Singularity but it is unusable.

I write one word, then I get a big blob of ink, one word again, big blob of ink etc.

 

Any ideas?

[Phonz]

I also got a Disappointment Singularity that spits ink like some baseball players spit chewing tobacco!

I'm using Diamine Kelly which s a very wet ink, maybe I should change it for something more dense

Nooo, not the tobacco saliva. Any suggestions?

[Bookman]

I would double-check to make sure the nib and feed were shoved all the way in and that the nib was resting flush against the top of the feed.