I've tried a whole lot of fountain pens lately, and my favorite so far for my writing style is the Dupont Olympio/Orpheo in a medium nib. The only other pen I've tried that might be as smooth is the Sailor 1911 in a broad nib. Does anyone own or have you tried both pen models (not necessarily those nib sizes), and if so how would you compare their smoothness? I like a pen as smooth as possible with very little tooth. I'm hoping that those with more experience than I will be able to enlighten me. Thanks.

Hi Green piece and Welcome!

Having tried the Dupont a while ago, I believe I remember it being smooth and weighty- perhaps I am wrong, but I think it is a heavier pen than the 1911-
Since I own a 1911 (togi) I can say nothing but wonderful things about it and its nib.

Tony

I have two Sailor 1911s (well, one is a 1911M) and one Dupont Orpheo. Both are extremely smooth writers but Tony is right about the weight. I carry the Orpheo most of the time but I don't write long articles with it. I think it would be too heavy for more than short notes, but since that's what I usually do I tend to favor it because it's such a lovely pen. The Sailor is quite a light pen and would be great for a serious writing task; you wouldn't be nearly as likely to cramp your hand. I think the nib is just as good, the pen just isn't as showy.

Bill, if you had to say which nib is smoother (less tooth), which one would you choose? Thanks.

Greenpiece,
I'd have to say the Dupont is a little smoother. But they're awfully close! If I assigned a smoothness rating of 10.00 to the Dupont, the Sailor might rate a 9.98.
Bill

Bill, is there any other pen you'd put ahead of the Sailor or the Olympio in terms of smoothness? Thanks for your help.

I'm not Bill, and I don't have experience with the Sailor 1911, but I do have a Olympio I love dearly, as well as a Caran d'Ache Ivanhoe that is comparably smooth.

It doesn't seem like Caran d'Ache gets much attention on this forum, but they are awesome pens if you don't mind a narrower barrel. They make their own nibs and the pens are made in Switzerland. The quality control seems to be top-notch and the nibs are known for being very, very smooth. I'm not sure my Ivanhoe is smoother than my Olympio, but its close.

Apparently Cartier makes very smooth writing pens, but I have no experience with them.

That's funny you mention Cartier. When I was at Joon Pens a few weeks ago, they mentioned Cartier as well for smooth nibs. But I don't particularly care for Cartier's look.

Other than the Diabolo, I'm not much interested in Cartier pens either. But then, the Diabolo is a little too much like the Olympio to make sense to me.

Hello Greenpiece,

I have played around with a fellow member's Orpheo, and have owned and played around with various Sailor pens. The Orpheo did have a smooth nib indeed, so based on that, I agree that the main difference between the Orpheo and the 1911 is their weight.

However, from my personal experience and based on a few people's sentiments, Sailor consistently makes super-smooth nibs - many would say they make one of, if not the, best nibs around - so if smoothness is your most important factor, and if you're not able to try the pens out before buying them, then I'd probably suggest going with the 1911.

On the other hand, if you prefer the looks of the Orpheo more, you could always get it and have the nib tuned to your liking by a nibmeister if you're not too happy with it. This would be the same for any pen really.

Hope this helps and good luck with your decision.


raf.

Now you want to open Pandora's box. There are all sorts of smooth pens, but not necessarily any guarantee that the next "identical" pen will be as good. I have a super smooth Parker Frontier, perfect when new out of the box. I have a Sheaffer Triumph Imperial with an inlaid steel nib that couldn't be smoother, fished out of eBay. I have a Parker 51 that was originally horribly scratchy but Richard Binder has made it smooth as glass. If you go out and buy any one of these pens can you expect outstanding smoothness? Probably not. Whereas Sailor and Dupont have reputations for smoothness.

I can't think of any brands I would put ahead of Dupont and Sailor, but Sheaffer, Parker and Pilot are all usually pretty smooth. (There are about a hundred brands that I haven't tried so if somebody thinks I've missed their favorite its because I don't happen to have one of that brand.) I think Raf is on the right track, buy the pen you like and it will likely be OK; if not a nibmeister can fine tune it for you.

Try a Waterman, especially the Edson but also the Exception. Excellent, very smooth nibs. The discontinued Man 100 also had ultra-smooth nibs. I rate Waterman ahead of both Sheaffer and Parker in smoothness.

I also suggest Omas and Stipula. Again, the nibs are super-smooth and the pens themselves are beautiful. Delta is another Italian brand with very good nibs.

As previously mentioned, Namiki/Pilot nibs are also known for their high quality and smoothness, though not quite to the level of Sailor.

Thanks everyone for the good advice. I went to Swisher today because the Dupont Orpheo came in, and I got to try it side-by-side with the Sailor 1911. I agree with Bill that if the Orpheo is 10.00, then the 1911 is a 9.98. They're are that close. It took me several lines of writing to notice a difference, but there is a very slight one. That's also a good point about the weight of the pens. The Orpheo is noticeably heavier, and that could make for a tiring experience after the first page. So I'm leaning towards a Sailor, probably a Professional Gear with platinum trim. I've tried a bunch of new models of Omas, Pelikan, MB, Parker, Sheaffer, Waterman (Exception, not Edson), Dunhill, Sailor and Dupont. For me, the Dupont and Sailor were the smoothest.

What nib widths did you try?

Medium in everything but the Sailor. The 1911 was broad since it's the same size as most other companies' mediums.

Probably the nib of any pen can be made as smooth as you want by a nib meister. I have a Parker duofold nib that is easily as smooth as any Dupont nib---and I have had four of them over the years---because Richard Binder made is that smooth.

As for an out of the box pen that is smooth and also tolerant of the angle at which it is held, and not all nibs are, I would say the Dupont has to be a favorite.

But if there is some other pen you love the looks of way more than the looks of the Dupont or the Sailor, you might want to consult with a professional nib person and see what they say.

Conway stewart makes a very smooth nib too, and I don't think they have been mentioned yet.

I envy your being close enough to Swisher to stop by and see all those pens in person and take a few out for a ride. Enjoy, j

Sailor and Dupont have both excellent nibs that rank among the very top nibs made today.
The Sailor 1911's body, however, is more pedestrian. Still elegant but in the end just normal plastic. Workmanship is excellent but the material isn't overly thrilling.
The DUpont is heavy! THat is true. But its workmanship does not only betray excellence but also style and class. In terms of looks I would definitely prefer the Dupont although the Sailor is much more easiy-going (Well, I guess if you drop the Sailor body you're not gonna be in as much pain as if you dropped the Dupont body). I have both pens and I love them dearly

Hmmm. In my opinion, Dupont nibs are very good, but very stiff and quite similar to those of the other French brands, namely Cartier and Waterman. If this is what you want, all well and good, but Sailor produce a much more interesting range of nibs, including such specialised ones as the Naginata Togi, the Cross Emperor and others. the key difference is that Sailor is a pen company for pen lovers, while Dupont is just another luxury brand for those with lots of money to spend.