My wife and I just got back today from Somerville, MA Pen show just outside of Boston.

Special thanks to the people at Pear Tree Pens we got a good deal on both a Midi and Maxi today. With respect to them and their pen business, I will not discuss price but I will give them a plug for their business. If your are at a pen show and looking for a Bexley or a Visconti, see them.

We made the 2 hour trip from CT just to see if we could find my wife a Midi Van Gogh. My wife fell in love with the pen immediately with its lightweight and semi flexible nib.

When it came time to buy hers, I really got hooked on the Maxi size and said here we’ll take both!!! I was so impressed with this pen I could not go home empty handed.

The pix are somewhat dark but I was using light in a certain way to show the translucence of the Van Gogh, which is hard to see from pictures on other websites and brochures. The attention to detail is awesome and notice the engraving just on the converter itself!!!! A nice detail that is hidden inside the pen that you normally do not get to see!!!

I will post a short writing review and samples soon.

Scott.














































My wifes Midi Nib



[B]

Wow! Nice pics! For me, that's the best part of reading these reviews, so thanks for taking all of that time and effort to photograph those pens. They're beauties!

In regards to size, how would these pens (particularly the Midi) compare with the Pelikan m605 in the photo. How does it compare in terms of weight, and the width of the section?

TMann

Very nice photos and reviews!!! I had 2 Vangoghs in the Maxi (Large size) and I kept the Crystal and I gave the Sandlewood brown color (like yours) to my wife. She adors that pen too!!!

TNS

Thanks Apollo and TMann.

TMann,

I like seeing lots-o-pix in reviews also, that's why I do it and I love to do it....it's somewhat challenging which makes it fun. Thanks.

As for size comparison the Midi and M605 are pretty much similar in size and weight with the Midi just being a touch longer with the rounded ends at the body and cap.

I know this will make some people mad but the Visconti doesn't have that plastic feel I associate now with the Pelikan because I realize how well built and how much thought goes into the Van Gogh pen. When it comes down to it the Pelikan is more money by far and no better build quality at all.

AND..


TNS,

Thanks some day soon I hope to have a Crystal also!!!!

Nice pens! I like the way you showed their translucency, great job!

Thanks DrPJM1!!!

Coveting...neighbor's...pens...must resist...



I am very interested in your direct comparison of the writing feel especially between the two sizes (both with medium gold nibs? can't see the nib width on the midi...)

****UPDATE****

First off I will say this is an outstanding pen! I hope some people get to experience the smoothness of these pens. I write that because there are a lot of people like me who want the most for our money when you get at or above the $200 price point. A co-worker of mine stated after she tried it out, “ I never knew a fountain pen could feel smoother than a rollerball! ”

I have the biggest pet peeve in the world and that is, a F.P. that doesn’t start, even if it’s a small skip right from the beginning. I gave it the two day, vertical, nib pointed upward test and it started right from the first instance of a touch to the paper! Always nice thick wet lines!!!! I have read that some make this a complaint but I think this pen is absolutely perfect in laying out a line for a medium nib.

I am a big fan of Pelikan pens, both my wife and I own a few, but after buying this pen and using it daily for over two weeks I don’t see paying the xtra $100+ for the plastic feel of a Pelikan 800 series pen. I only write this because that was my next pen.
The material and workmanship of these Van Gogh’s is outstanding, especially when you enter the street price at around $225 for the Maxi. I bought this pen on a whim and kick myself for not getting one sooner. I will no doubt be buying a Crystal Maxi <F> this summer at the DC Pen Show. It’s going to be a long time till I buy another Pelikan.

I also discovered and learned from dealers about the innovation that Visconti uses in producing pens. This Italian company including Omas uses the latest technology in pen production. For one, Visconti produces their own feeds and prides it’s self on that. They have a tighter quality control and are also ISO 9001 registered in their production and management of their pen factory. They know that the feed is a live or die of a pen performing and they do not outsource the production of it. Visconti’s users manual also backs this info up. The manual also states the use of ebonite was ditched in 1994 because of the advancements in plastics; this also is their claim on why their pens are more stable with air travel. The Nibs, are not mentioned in the manual as “in house” so I am sure they are from one of two companys in Germany just like Pelikan and Bexley nibs are made by Bock. I am also sure Visconti has their own specs on the outsourced production of the nib. (On the net some say Bock nibs but I have no hard evidence of this. Also, if true, are Bock nibs just on one line of Visconti’s fountain pens or all of them.) Mated with Visconti’s own feed I believe the two working together is what makes these pens really smooth and very high performing.

Only one bad thing: The more I use a C/C pen the more I want a piston filler. More ink, more ink, more ink. I seriously see an Aurora 88 Large or Stipula Suprema in the near future for heavy note or letter writing on the job. I am a CAD/Draftsman.

I am by far not one to be typing a review of any means but take my somewhat biased review of this pen with a grain of salt like most reviews should be taken.
It’s all about judging for yourself what you like or don’t like. Never buy to impress others! I hope my review helps you in your decision making.

If you are looking for a nice Italian fountain pen in the sub $250 category this pen is definitely worth a look.


Scott.

Great review PinarelloOnly. I can echo your complaint about the c/c. My first Visconti was an Opera Club - I love it and still have it, but I wished it had a bigger ink capacity. I ended up buying the Wall Street LE, which holds over 3ml of ink and has a double reservoir system that allows you to lock out the ink when you fly.

Well, I got the Midi and I like it every bit as much and around $110 or so from Pear Tree Pens. I got Deb Kinney to make it an italic nib and I love it. So smooth. Medium puts out the ink. The quality and feel to it are top notch. I have a Bexley and it is a fun pen as well, but the two are very different

Sam

In terms of the midi, I understand the nib is steel. How do the two nibs compare? Do both pens start up just as well. Perhaps I could convert my wife to fp user with a Visconti.

rak,

Not all Midi's are steel nibs. My wife's Midi is 14k (see second to last pen pic) which puts the price to around $165+ on the street. Performance is identical to my <M> nib. She refuses to use any other pen.

Scott.

Very good review. I specially appreciate the pictures, and the writing sample--this is something that every review should have. Congratulations.

Great review!!! I now have two Visconti Van Gogh's. The red model and the musk midi.I adore both and have to say that other than my Signum,are the smoothest writing pens i have.

Handlebar Jim

Kick ass review! love the writing samples and beautiful pictures! I want a visconti now.

Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's pen
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's pen
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's pen...


Damn...I did it again...

Which model have two tone nibs for the van gogh serie?

I hate it when you do a review; it reminds me of how much higher I need to climb.

Great work.

Please work on your penmanship it's just this side of illegible.

I have now three Visconti van Goghs: a maxi, midi and mini.
The mini and midi write excellent.

The maxi however has a more flex nib in my opinion.
However the nib (F) tends to skip now and then...

The Legend

I have Visconti van Gogh Maxi with F nib.
The nib is really flex compared to my other pens. But for me it's a nice feature.
Zyg

I agree with the comments that the value for money factor is very high with the Van Gogh Maxi. I have one (in the Blue Ocean color) and I can't get over the high-quailty feel of the converter, the metal section, the metal-threaded cap lip, and the spring-loaded clip for that price.

Also, my Van Gogh was one of the first pens I ever got that wrote wonderfully right out of the box. Great flow, incredibly smooth, absolutely no skipping.

Mike

It's agood sign when these pen don't lastlong on the marketplace!

I can't seem to get a used one...

Fantastic photos. They really go a long way towards showcasing the various features and details of the pens.

Ok,now i'm up to three Van Gogh pens!!These are such a splendid pen for the price!!!

Here are my triplets:



JD

After waiting months and months for my Crystal to arrive - to no avail, I took another look at your review and changed my order to one of these tortoise shell demonstators, and joy, they are in stock and hopefully on the way even as I wrtite this.
Are you two still loving yours and what ink do you find yourself using in them the most?

I bought one recently, a musk-colored maxi. I'll echo the sentiments above. I love everything about this pen: the materials, the craftsmanship, and most of all the way it writes. Right now, I'm using PR Avocado in it, which matches the color of the body perfectly.

I'm jealous, Jon. Argh...I'm jealous of all of you Visconti owners! I had the chance to trade for a Pericle six months ago and didn't - now I regret it.

There's a bunch of Pericle on eBay right now, both new AND used. Price on the used B looks good...

I've got a few of the musk colored pens that have been moving a tad slowly. If anyone's interested, let me know and I'll quote a good price.

James

Excellent pen and photography!

Already have a musk Maxi. Excellent pen. The length, balance and nib are just one of those perfect proportion things.

My wife wants to buy me one of the Van Gogh Midi's for my birthday at the end of this month. I am going to try one out at the local Paradise Pen, but I wanted to get some input as to the nib sizing. I'm undecided on whether I should go with a F or M. Most of the pens I have are Parkers, and I've noticed that their nibs tend to run a bit wide, sometimes too wide for my tastes. How does a Van Gogh M compare with a Parker M? Are there any flow issues with this pen with a fine nib? How big is the Midi when posted, and size-wise, how much smaller is it than the Maxi?

I have a Van Gogh Maxi and a Parker Duofold Centennial, both with medium nibs. I'd say that the VG nib is a bit narrower than the Centennial nib, but not by much. Also, the VG nib feels to have more springiness or flex to it than the Centennial nib so you can get quite a bit of line variation if you want. As for size overall, capped the VG is longer, but uncapped the Centennial is about a quarter of an inch longer, while posted the Centennial is about three-eights of an inch longer. With respect to weight, the VG is heavier with the cap on, while they are about the same weight without the cap.