Twsbi Diamond 530, Medium Nib

[joaogmoreira]

Otto,

 

Thanks a lot for the explanation about the origin of this company name. I hope my pen doesn´t take too long to be in my hands...

 

Greetings from Brazil.

Joao

Edited October 27, 2010 by joaogmoreira

[alvinlum]

any idea where can i get this Twsbi in UK? Because the only place i can find it is in ebay which i heard some people had to pay custom fees and vat because its from USA. So.....

[saskia_madding]

I just got my medium yesterday, as I was enabled by the other TWSBI thread a few weeks ago. I'm having a small problem with the nib skipping, but I think it might be the ink I'm using. The nib only skips if I've left it uncapped and unused for about 10 seconds. I'll try and different ink and see what happens.

 

BUT ... I love it. Seriously, this pen rocks.

 

I was worried about it being the same size a the M800, which is too big to fit comfortably in my hands. But it is actually slightly smaller than the M800, which makes it the perfect size to hold. So for everyone worried about it being too big, if you're comfortable with the M600 Pelikans, this is every so slightly bigger but still extremely comfortable to hold!

[dnb]

Just got mine yesterday. I flushed and flossed before inking. Filled it and it works beautifully. The nib I got is an EF. I do believe it is a western EF. It is about the same as my Pilot F, and finer than Omas F. It is about right in the middle of the dry-wet range. It does not feel like a nail. It is just a bit narrow for my big hands, but the length is very good. Thus far, for me, because the nib is small (I have all large nibbed pens) my fingers are not quite not comfortable yet because they are too close to the paper. Bringing them up hasn't quite done the trick yet, but pens do take time to break us in. :-)

Yes, it is a good value. My starter pen was a Pilot Knight. I also have 2 Lamys. I think this is a better choice than those in the same price range. Yes, you can tell visually that it is not an expensive pen because it has a shiny, plasticy look to it. But what we are paying for is the mechanism. And it, and nib seem to work fine, so, Speedy's concept is very good. My tines and feed were both perfectly aligned.

I look forward to 1/16th" more girth in the section (I know no one has asked for this to my knowledge), a larger nib (this one is good enough and I don't personally feel that gold or Ti necessary until the body materials are changed) and perhaps an opaque color so it doesn't have such a plasticy shiny look to it. I think the other thing that gives me the feeling of inexpensive is the faceted barrel. There is too much reflectivity going on. I'd prefer a simple, cylindrical pen.

So, don't let any of my thoughts deter you from buying one. It is a pen you can take anywhere. Speaking of which, anyone flown with one yet?

Edited October 28, 2010 by dnb

[saskia_madding]

I was really skeptical about the faceted barrel too, and I really wished it were a smooth cylinder. But now that I've got it in my hands, I'm really happy about the facets because it sits easily on any surface without rolling off. As a student who uses my fountain pen for note taking, I find this (and therefore the facets) a feature, not a bug in the system, even though I was initially against it.

[Federerfan]

Received mine last week and I'm impressed with the heft and quality of this pen. Normally, I'm not a fan of demonstrator pens but this one looks great! Then again, I must admit a natural affinity for "cheap" fountain pens. The medium nib produces a consistent wet line and I've had no leakage thus far. However, I don't agree that the nib is superior to a Levenger TW in terms of "write-ability". But, it's well-worth $40.

[dnb]

Oh, I forgot to mention -for those of you who go both ways - it writes decently inverted. And, for a steel nib, it has a small amount of flex which is why it doesn't feel like a nail, but I guess you knew that! :clap1:

Edited October 29, 2010 by dnb

[MVice78]

I just recieved my EF TWSBI today and have to say it's amazing. The ink flow with J. Herbin Poussiere de Lune seems to be right where I want it! I get a line slightly thicker than my Sailor fine produces.

[GavH]

any idea where can i get this Twsbi in UK? Because the only place i can find it is in ebay which i heard some people had to pay custom fees and vat because its from USA. So.....

 

I'm pretty sure they're NOT available anywhere else. I ordered mine ( F nib) from Speedy's ebay store on Fri morning and had a message from him early that evening saying it had been posted along with a tracking number. I'll be sure to post back if I get hit with a customs bill but from experience (a Suunto Core bought from the States) it runds at about 20% of the value, which is at most a fiver. Small price in the grand scheme of things...

[drgoretex]

Got mine this past week, and instantly loved it. Everything from packaging to presentation spoke of care to detail and quality. Picking the pen up the first time, impressed by the quality feel of it. First fill, like magic (Iroshizuku Ku-Jaku) and first few lines of writing, a pure pleasure. I am about to put his pen to the test over the next couple weeks with many, many pages of writing each day. I suspect it will do very well indeed.

 

Thanks to Speedy.

 

Ken

[Oranges and Apples]

By the way, does anyone know what TWSBI stand for?

 

It sounds like one of the Chinese languages for "fountain pen" because "TWS" pronounced "sui" and "bi" pronounced "bi" meaning "writing instrument" actually equates to "fountain pen" in Chinese. So you get "sui-bi" or "fountain pen" for a rough translation, but a literal translation would be "water pen."

 

I'm not really sure if this is pure coincidence or it was chosen to be this way.

[nicholasyeo]

A very interesting review of an interesting pen!

Ever so popular with FPN users... It seems they

have made their impression on us.

[saskia_madding]

Quick question - are the nib/grip sections interchangeable to different TWSBI barrels? have one Diamond in medium and want to get another one in fine. Can I change which of the two diamonds uses the fine or medium? I want to dedicate one to highly saturated and staining inks, which the other barrel I'll work harder and keeping unstained. So, can I swap the nibs between barrels?

 

ETA: I bet this is better to ask in a different thread. Never mind!

Edited November 2, 2010 by simonerodrigue

[WRob]

any idea where can i get this Twsbi in UK? Because the only place i can find it is in ebay which i heard some people had to pay custom fees and vat because its from USA. So.....

 

Yep - just saw it this morning on The Writing Desk, here.

[speedy]

Quick question - are the nib/grip sections interchangeable to different TWSBI barrels? have one Diamond in medium and want to get another one in fine. Can I change which of the two diamonds uses the fine or medium? I want to dedicate one to highly saturated and staining inks, which the other barrel I'll work harder and keeping unstained. So, can I swap the nibs between barrels?

 

ETA: I bet this is better to ask in a different thread. Never mind!

 

yes, you can change any parts between any two twsbi diamond 530

[TallNHairyDave]

Thank you dizzypen for your review.

 

On the strength of your write-up I have just ordered one in a medium nib from TWSBI on ebay direct with the new 1.5 piston fitted.

 

Can't wait!

Edited December 31, 2010 by TallNHairyDave

[Jimmy James]

This seems to be a good place to add a small note about the 530 series. I love my original, ordered in the first batch from eBay, pre-1.5 piston TWSBI. I have not yet had to install the new seal, but I do have a leak between the two seals. On that basis, I bought the red and blue versions that were offered starting on Christmas Day. If anything, they seem to be better performers than my original pen.

 

The true value here is my opinion of the colors. The red is to my eye a dead on red. I could not ask for a more perfect translucent red pen. The blue is a nice medium blue. I would prefer a darker color, but I bought the pen knowing it wouldn't be my exact ideal. The colors to my eye are true on the eBay listings. My guess is that I'll wait for the Bock nib switchover and the broad nibs before buying green and orange models. I love these pens.

Edited January 1, 2011 by Jimmy James

[kaputt]

Thanks for posting the side by side nib comparison. It shows them well enough that I won't be afraid to try the EF.

[pouce]

Thank you everyone in this thread. With your information and comparison, I think I'll go for 530 with EF nib.

[jlepens]

Great review. I am on my second Twsbi. My first was a fine nib that a co-worker bought off me two days after I got it. I replaced it with a medium nib, that I filled with Stipula Moss Green. It is very smooth from the beginning.