Hero 3266 360 Degree Fountain Pen

[zahiradil]

INTRODUCTION: I bought a 10 pack of the Model 3266 360 degree writer from eBay, shipped from China. The package arrived some 10 days later. It was in a sealed blister pack. Each pen was just simply placed in slots within the pack with no per-piece packaging. All in all, I think the packaging was adequate given the price that I paid for the pens. One piece was damaged with a noticeable dent in one of the pens.

 

Appearance & Design – These pens are actually very appealing to look at. They have an aluminum barrel and cap and the finish of the metallic paint on the aluminum is tops. I dont know how long the pain will last though. The cap is a snap-on and fits snug with a very re-assuring click! On removing the cap, the most striking feature is, of course, the construction of the nib and feed. I checked each pen for axial trueness of the nib and I did not notice any great variance from the axis which might make it feel a little unbalanced as you write.

 

Construction & Quality – Quality wise, I think this pen is of lower quality than my Hero 330, 329 or a recently acquired 9075. The Aerometric filler sleeve is of poor quality metal, and there are some sharp edges. The plastic retainer ring that holds the nib and feed assembly in place has a significant amount of fles. Having siad that, it is strong though, and I would not hesitate using the pen to fill out a multi-part carbon form.

 

Weight & Dimensions – The section on the pen has a recessed grip. The section itself is chrome plated, very shiny and smooth. The pen is a slim pen, and the recessed grip makes it slimmer in that area. I prefer pens with grips which are medium sized, such as the 329, and do not like very thick pens. This pen however, was narrow even for my hands, and writing with it is more tiring on my wrist and fingers than with other pens.

 

Nib & Performance – The nib is supposedly a 360 degree writer, but there are areas on the nib which simply cannot be used. I found it best to hold the pen so the feed black plastic is horizontal to the paper. This provides 2 writing areas, and each one is quite different than the other. ALl in all, the nib is scratchy, and there is some resistance in sliding on the paper. One of the pens made a very squeaky sound as it wrote. The feel is certainly not that of a fountain pen. I used Waterman Serenity Blue in testing the writing ability of the pen.

 

Filling System & Maintenance - The pen has an Aerometric system, but the quality of the metal sleeve is not very good. It is functional however and is easily used. It just looks flimsy in construction.

 

Conclusion - This pen is a novelty. I would not use this pen on an extended basis. The level of faigue is about the same as I have with a rollerball, and a rollerball is less finicky about how I hold it. This is not a 360 degree writer, but more a writer at each 90 degrees of the nib where the tines gap are on the nib.

 

Pictures:

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8459/7989618677_77430e0163_z.jpg

h360-3-1 by zahir_adil, on Flickr

 

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8181/7989618709_388911d958.jpg

h360-1-1 by zahir_adil, on Flickr

 

Edited September 16, 2012 by watch_art

[Fuzzyman]

Thanks for the review! I just got mine from China recently. My brief impressions:

 

I like the build quality, but that may be because the metal body is a nice change from my other pens. It gives it a feeling of solidity, except for the fact that the cap does post very securely. The posted cap isn't loose exacttly, it just doesn't feel like it is really on there tight.

 

The shiny metal grip is slippery and the diameter is a little small for my taste (comparable to a Pntel Slicci). I don't like a bulky pen, but the whole thing is undersized for me.

 

It's nothing terribly special to write with. I guess the theory was that you wouldn't have to watch which way the nib is facing. In practice if I didn't have one of the flat sides of the nib facing up it would skip or grab the paper on certain strokes.

 

From a purely aesthetic point of view it almost passes as a ballpoint pen. I guess part of the appeal of an FP to me is the classic / retro look, so I view this as a downside. Not that I'm slavish to that -- I love my Safari, maybe because it has a very distinctive design.

Edited September 17, 2012 by Fuzzyman

[ninobrn99]

I have the 360 and I opened up the nibs a little bit to get better flow and smoothed the nib. Mine too has some issues writing when the non-feed sides are parallel to the paper. It will write after priming it, but not right away with the feed parallel to the paper. I had it capped for a couple of weeks, when to use it and started right up.

I actually enjoy using this pen a lot.

 

Nino