Namiki Urushi Royale – Black

This is my first pen review so I hope you will be both kind and understanding.

1. First Impressions - First off I apologize for not posting any pics…yet. I have a ways to go before I can do that.

This was a special purchase from a longtime friend and fountain pen mentor who suddenly took ill and passed away. The beauty of this pen is its sheer minimalist simplicity and elegance. From a distance your mind registers just enough visual cues to tell your brain that yes, you are looking at a pen, a large one.

The packaging of this piece is quite simple too, but with a Japanese sort of aesthetic. Here in order of approach is what you will find: (1) the outer box is covered with a textured paper patterned with gold/natural fiber finish. We all know its cardboard underneath, but it does cause one to focus on pattern, texture, and color; (2) lift the box cover and there is a wooden box made of a soft, pine-like wood. The cardboard box it is sitting in has a cutout flap allowing one to slide out the wood box and avoid having to flip the outer box upside down to remove the wood box; (3) underneath the wood box cover is the warranty and paper literature describing the treasure within. Also inside is a well wrapped bottle of Namiki Blue ink (a nice touch) and beside it the Urushi Royale. A cartridge sits beside the pen and looks most out of place, and was the only unaesthetic thing in this process of discovery.

2. Appearance & Finish - The appearance and finish are superb. Based on my limited understanding of the application of urushi by hand there is a high level of quality control. By extension, if you have ever painted anything with a brush you will know how difficult it is to achieve a perfect and consistent finish.

What limited hardware this pen has is well implemented. Everything is of a precise fit including the clip and small cap band. The nib, section, and barrel threads are well finished and there is a good consistency of finish between the cap, barrel, and section.

3. Design/ Size/Weight - The Urushi Royale is a big pen that is only marginally longer than a MB 149. Its design at first appears to be very simple and most of us would not think a thing more about it. In researching this piece I found John Mottishaw who describes it in www.nibs.com, "As an object held in the fingers, this fountain pen expresses the beauty of the French curve in three dimensions." I am not familiar with the French curve, but can say that in comparison to MB 149, its dimensions give a feeling of being less tight and compact, and more voluptuous, owing to more rounded and less sharply curved contours. And, the absence of rings about the body also causes one to focus without visual interruption on the shape.

The clip is a classical ball clip and is executed perfectly. Ordinarily, the cap top on most rounded pens is a separate piece (perhaps to allow the insertion of the clip or it might be to allow for a simpler manufacturing process). On the Royale the cap is in one piece and the clip is inserted in a cut out. It makes for a simpler and in my opinion more elegant presentation because of the continuity of line.

As noted by Mottishaw the lip of the cap consists of a thin band of polished metal. I think this is probably gold plated and probably would help with protecting the rest of the cap body from accidental dings and chips. Let us all pray that no one will ever have to find out.

The body shell appears to be of brass and very well shaped, meaning that there are no imperfections, or dents or dings that would show through to the urushi surface (which it seems would amply such imperfections).

This pen is on the heavy side somewhere in between a big Dupont (heavier) and MB 149 (lighter). It is however, quite manageable without posting the cap which is not something I'd recommend on any urushi pen.

4. Nib Design & Performance- This pen came in only a medium, single color 18k nib. It is about a MB 146 size and much smaller than a MB 149 or Pelikan 1000. There is a fair amount of springiness and good feel to it. The point is very smooth and lays down a wet and consistent line. Start up is even, with no skipping even after days spent without use. The feed is plastic and works quite well. I cannot tell if the nib is a screw in or friction mounted unit.

The point is on the thin side of medium. The nib will also sing on fast and long cross-strokes leaving behind a spattering of miniscule ink droplets. I love this characteristic that seems to show up once in a while with some pens and hope to see responses from others about whether they like it or not.

5. The Filling System- Once upon a time I disdained pens that were cartridge converter filled and was a stupid pen snob. Ten years later I've changed and can see that great engineering is great engineering, e.g., you see this in the tiny spring that MB puts in the F. Kafka filler and in the rubber bobber that Namiki has placed in the very advanced push button converter to deal with surface tension.

The converter is push button and I am not aware of any other pen that has this type. Quite simply it is good and it rocks. There is decent ink capacity that will last me about a week with moderate to heavy use. With the section in place the converter sits exactly in the middle of the barrel without making contact with the sides. Why do I think this? Because you can feel the vibration of the converter siting in the section when you tap the barrel. I admit I may be wrong on this so I’d like some confirmation from others.

Side Note: About that convertor. Years ago I purchased a Pilot Custom 73 (?) while on business in Japan in the early 90s. It was about the size of a MB 146 and had this very same converter type. Over a long period of trial and error I’ve found the best way to use this unit is a slow down stroke followed by a rapid release of the spring loaded unit to allow for the suction of ink. Namiki should include such instructions with their pens. After all, what good is a better mousetrap if you don’t know how to properly use it.

6. Cost/Value- At retail this beautiful accompaniment goes for $1,400 (purchased for less). At this price point there are many competitors that start to include higher end Montblanc, OMAS, Stipula, and other brands I am for sure ignorant about.

Within the category of urushi pens the competition would include Nakaya, Sailor, and Dani. I am not too familiar with these other brands so cannot provide a direct value comparison. However, having said that the Urushi Royale is an extremely well made and beautiful instrument on its own merit. I highly recommend it to anyone in the market for this type of pen.

7. Overall Opinion/Conclusion – There is a Montegrappa ad line that goes, “the privilege of a lifetime.” Well, here is a pen worthy of that statement. It is a beautiful, elegant, and superb writer. It carries no pretense or extra adornment and it is all of one piece and heart, and a joy to use. I could not be more pleased.

Thanks for reading.

Brian, this is a well organized, articulate review that is full of useful insights and intelligent perceptions. I look forward to your future reviews.

I was wondering about this pen. It is a pen I shall never own because of the price, but it looks great. I am a complete sucker for Japanese minimalist design and this pen's pictures just exude that minimalist concept. I was unaware of its size, though. It sounds like a pen I would love as I am a fan of large pens. As a Namiki, I made the assumption it would write well, and I appreciate having that assumption affirmed.

I am sorry for the loss of your pen mentor. I think his Namiki Royale has found a good, and appropriate, home.

Sorry to hear about the loss of our friend, but it's great that you have the pen as a keepsake. Thanks for sharing. And by the way, the review is very well done.

I have seen this pen for sale by Ujuku and it is very impressive!!! It reminds me of a Parker Duofold Centennial because of the flattop and also the shape. I have been really tempted to buy this pen, the urushi looks really nice and as you said, it is simple looking but yet very impressive. This pen uses the #15 nib which is the same on the Custom 823 but this nib is a 2 tone color unlike the 823.

Great review!!!!

TNS

Unfortunately this pen is way out of my budget. Very nice writer for sure but one regret is that it is not a piston filler.

I agree!!! Imagine if it was a vacuum filler like the 823, then that would be super cool!!! OTOH, the converter on this pen is actually pretty nice!! The same converter is on the 732, Bexley Celebration and a few other pens. It holds quite a bit of ink too, so it isnt your standard converter, thats for sure!!!

TNS

Thanks to everyone for the kind words. To clarify, this pen is not the flat-top model. It is the torpedo shape (although the flat top model on Ujuku sure looks nice). The nib is also monotone and with a nice degree of springiness.

Hi Brian, very very nice review. I know that the Urushi has a brass body with lacquer on it. What is the material of the grip?

Thanks

Funny that I posted this review about a year ago. The grip or section as I am holding it now looks to be of an urushi finish as well. This section (grip) in particular has retained the sheen and brilliance of polished urushi since the day I got it and does not tend to dull (as would plastic) over time. The base material beneath the urushi appears to be plastic, but I am not certain.

Thanks