This is a review of the Graf von Faber-Castell Guilloche in Coral (red).

Click to view attachment

Compared to most pens the Graf is quite slim, perhaps as skinny as a Sheaffer’s Thin Model snorkel filler pens of the 1950’s. The Guilloche gets its name from the machining process used to make the pattern on the pen body, a type of engraving styled as grain guilloche. The labor-intensive method produces a handsome and subtly unique pen. After cutting the pattern, the plastic body is lacquered and polished. The endcap is polished metal with a ring of short cuts to give it some texture. The fluted cap is evidently rhodium-plated silver and features a large spring-loaded clip and a plastic liner. The shiny cap is hefty and makes the pen top heavy and the clip would be very nice if it was stronger. While it is somewhat unusual that the clip will accommodate thick shirt pockets, folders, or multiple sheets of paper the grip is not strong enough to keep the pen from slipping out of your pocket or off the sheets of paper. Once my pen fell out of my shirt pocket and onto concrete, but thankfully it was a short fall and the pen survived nearly unscathed.

Click to view attachment

The metal grip section is polished smooth but gently contoured for a more secure grip. The cap snaps onto the section with a satisfyingly strong click. Tolerances are very tight on this pen. The converter slips into the barrel like a piston fits into a cylinder; there is no play whatsoever. I can almost hear the air being pushed out of the pen body as the section/cartridge is being replaced after filling it with ink. The medium nib is rhodium-plated 18 ct. gold and, like the rest of the pen, appears well made.

Click to view attachment

Despite the lightweight, slim design the Guilloche is comfortable to write with although posting the cap unbalances the pen. Not a generous or wet writer the nib lays down a consistent line without hesitation or skipping. I tend to press kinda hard into paper anyway but for some reason this pen causes me to press harder than normal even though I don’t need to for it to write well. While it certainly lacks character, the nib on the Guilloche works reliably and the feed supplies just enough ink for happy writing. Even after days of sitting around unused the Guilloche fires up as if it was just filled with ink. Basically, I only wish the pen were fatter since I prefer bigger pens.

Click to view attachment

Click to view attachment

All the Guilloche colors are attractive although IMHO the Indigo (blue) and Coral are the best looking. Even the basic colored models are on the expensive side of reasonable, however, they can be had at a discount. I think I paid $220 for mine at Dromgoole’s in Houston, TX although it may have been less. For an old company famous for pencils it takes fountain pens very seriously, and if you try one out I think that you too will like it.

Hello and thank you for the review.

Ever since trying one this pen is part of my "to buy" list. How is your nib? The two I tried were quite tactile reminded me of Aurora nibs, albeit stiffer.

Not like Aurora nibs, in the sense that the Graf nib has no tooth like Aurora nibs. It is stiff but smooth.

Great review with massive pictures! We don't have many Graf reviews around here, so good job!
If you want a larger Graf, you're going to have to look at their POY line (the 2007 model is by far the best, in my opinion)

PRAG

only reason i didn't go for this pen is its slenderness. it is a perfect woman's pen but not fat enough for my hand.

have to say though that the e-motion is my favourite modern pen. fat and writes pefectly. buy it- you will not regret it!

A womans pen! What are you trying to say???

Yeah, I have an e-motion too. It is nice but it's not my favorite modern pen....I don't know exactly what that would be.

i have this guilloche in black and it's a wonderfully smooth writer. so is my e-motion, despite its steel nib. i like F-Cs so much i finally got one of my "grail" ones--a pernambuco classic. and by the way, did you know that you can order F-C parts (nibs, caps) online from http://www.faber-castellusa.com? the whole platinum section + gold nib and feed costs about $99. got me an OB

Thanks for the link.

No offence intended. It is just far too slender for my hand and I don't have o/s hands either.

The e-motion is refreshingly fat and different and I love using it. Just wish its cap would stay posted then it would get a 9/10. It presently gets a starred 7/10.

my e-motion cap does stay posted--mine's the brown wood version.

You have a rare bird indeed then - do not let it go!! Most I have seen do not post crisply, and drop off at the slightest suggestion...

Is the barrel made of cellulose? If so, I imagine bulletproof inks may be a no-no.

Plastic barrel. Anyway, I don't think the bulletproof inks affect celluloid.

What is bulletproof inks? Can you give an example?

Cheers

Bulletproof inks come from Noodler's. Some of their inks bind to cellulose in paper but not to plastic. Thus, they wash off your pens but not paper. Indeed some, like the basic black, are nearly totally solvent insensitive when dry. The permanence of the other colors varies but some component of the ink always refuses to wash off paper. The inks are also supposed to be UV light proof. This is somewhat of an overstatement. Also, most of Noodler's inks are not bulletproof, those that are are advertised that way.

Thanks for your information with regards to bulletproof inks

Ah. In the Fahrney's catalog the barrel is said to be made of cellulose. I was confused. Thanks.