Twsbi Writing Performance?

[mr T.]

I can't imagine customs would go too crazy on a $40 though, no?

 

I can. I live in the Netherlands and a Twsbi Diamond costs more than € 22,- (with P&P). Imported goods from outside the EU that are (with P&P) less than € 22,- are exempt from taxes here. In the Netherlands, VAT on foutain pens is 19% and customs duty is 3,7% for imports from outside the EU. There will be also 19% VAT on the P&P (+ insurance). The current USD-EUR exchange rate is $ 1,- = € 0,76 or € 1,- = € 1,31. The Twsbi Diamond 530 costs € 39,99 (€ 30,60). P&P from California to The Netherlands (USPS First Class Mail International) is $ 8,28 (€ 6,35).

 

In total:

 

Twsbi Diamond 530: € 30,60

P&P € 6,35

VAT (19%) € 7,02 (19% over € 36,95)

customs duty (3,7%) € 1,62 (3,7% over € 43,97)

 

total: € 45,60 or $ 59,75.

[vincegrosso]

While I had the TWSBI apart today to install the version 1.5 piston, I also removed the nib and feed for a closer look. The nib looked to be the same size as a Pelikan M200 nib. I removed the nib and feed from a Pelikan M200 assembly and compared both the Pelikan nib and the TWSBI nib. They were virtually identical. I installed the Pelikan nib in the TWSBI, heat set the feed to the Pelikan nib and now the TWSBI has an 18K Pelikan nib in it that writes perfectly. The TWSBI nib wrote very well, but the Pelikan nib writes like ... well a Pelikan.

[duna]

I feel somewhat strange reading you sourced a 18k Pelikan nib out of a M200... was it already a replacement nib from some other model? But 18k..

[vincegrosso]

I had a number of spare Pelikan nibs in the parts box, collected over the years, and thought it would be an interesting experiment. Since it's a reversible experiment - I can always reconstitute the Pelikan nib/feed assembly for use in a Pelikan, I wanted to give it a try.

[ateebtk]

omg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wait are you serious.... so that means that my Pelikan M215 steel fine nib will fit the new TWSBI??????

 

thats crazy... I dont love the M215 b/c its soo small but if it can fit the TWSBI , I'll have a slightly larger pen that will fit my writing grip perfectly.

 

can someone confirm this ??????

 

thxxx

[ateebtk]

ooo just read "heat set the feed"... i think i wanna avoid that..

[vincegrosso]

Of course, in the end it's your pen. Something I do to my pen you may not want to do to yours and vice versa. Sometimes I find a pen body that I really like. It's comfortable, has a filling system I prefer, etc. but doesn't write the way I like. I don't hesitate to change it, if I can, to suit my preference better. I don't resell anything I modify in any way so I look at it as a pen I can try to improve for my own enjoyment. For example, I've replaced the Pilot nib in a Pilot Custom 823 with a Sailor zoom nib. It's a perfect fit and the vacuum fill 823 holds more than enough ink to feed the zoom nib for a lot of writing. The Sailor cartridge or converter just can't hold enough ink to fuel the zoom nib without constant refilling. The Pilot 823 body can. My pen, a good choice for me. Most other people might not make the same change as I did. I took the #15 size Pilot nib from the 823 and put it in a Bexley Ranger. I preferred the now available Pilot fine nib to the Bexley nib - again a better choice for me.

 

So, in summary, as usual your mileage may vary. If you don't feel comfortable with the idea, don't do it. Before I make a change I always think "the better may be the enemy of the good", and make sure I haven't done something that can't be reversed.

 

Cheers,

Vince

[khymeera]

for me, it was comparable to the LAMY safari. It has good ink flow, and the appropriate "feel" across the page.

 

I mention this because sometimes my cheap asian pens feel like they're almost too smooth...almost the feeling of ice skating with a dull blade...they don't glide across the page on the ink like they're supposed to....or something...does anyone else have a better description?

 

I digress.

 

Personally, my M twsbi had a very similar thickness to my F Lamy Safari. I have to mention though, my nib did come with a slight burr. A few strokes on sand paper fixed it completely and I wouldn't say it was a major flaw since it was easy to fix and most people don't experience it.

[duna]

I had a number of spare Pelikan nibs in the parts box, collected over the years, and thought it would be an interesting experiment. Since it's a reversible experiment - I can always reconstitute the Pelikan nib/feed assembly for use in a Pelikan, I wanted to give it a try.

 

Interesting indeed!! By using the body from Twsbi and a gold nib from Pelikan it's relatively easy to assembre a nice Frankenpen joining the strenghts of both - the great capacity, strong transparent material , very reasonable price and easy of maintenance of the Twsbi and the excellent gold nib, elegant look and exclusive price :ltcapd: of the Pelikan nib units. Great idea. Did you use the M200 nib because of size constraints of the inner cap? It's possible to imagine to fit, say, an M600 nib, discarding said inner cap (at the expense of air-tightness)? I'm very interested to replicate your experiment somehow, just for the sake of it.

[vincegrosso]

I did look for a nib the same size as the TWSBI nib with a curvature that provided a good fit to the TWSBI feed. The first one I picked out was the Pelikan assembly. I used a knock out block to remove the nib and feed and used just the nib. I had to heat set the TWSBI feed, though, to the Pelikan nib for a good fit. Since then I removed the Pelikan nib and replaced it with a matched 18k nib and feed from a Waterford pen which seems to be an exact fit (nib and feed both) for the TWSBI and writes very, very well. The Pelikan nib is back in the parts box for another time. The TWSBI nib is a common size so I'm sure there are multiple other choices to construct a Frankenpen with. As you point out, with a little work, other slightly different size replacements might be possible. One concern with a different size nib is a compatible feed to provide the desired writing performance.

 

There are a lot of pens that are virtually impossible to change because of a lack of options, or that I wouldn't change because I can't possible improve the performance. But there are some pens that provide a perfect base for a Frankenpen and those are really fun to work with ...

 

Vince