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The Best Among These Pens - Hero 616

chasy_price

By chasy_price
in Fountain Pen Reviews

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epic NOS (New Old Stock)

epic

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Aww... I've been wanting to get the Doctor's pens for a while. :) But there weren't many reviews on them, so I wasn't sure of how they were vs the regular 616's. :D Now that I know they're jumbos, I'll probably get a few after I get some spending money. :)

 

 

Sorry about the confusion! I went and checked the actual blister-pack to see if it was Doctor or Doctor's, and it was Doctor after all. It doesn't say "Jumbo" or "616" in English anywhere on the pack (I can't read Chinese), and on the pen itself there's a "616" on the cap plus more Chinese characters. The filler also has Chinese characters.

 

I don't have a regular 616 to compare to my Jumbo, but eyeballing it against a Parker 51, I'd say the Jumbo, without cap, is about 3mm shorter, but with slightly more girth at the section. The P51 is much heavier, with no rough edges.

 

fpn_1298612652__616_jumbo.jpg

 

 

I'm just a bit pressed for time at the moment, but if anyone is interested, I can post comparison photos of the Jumbo 616 and the P51 in a couple days.

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ThirdeYe Collectors Item

ThirdeYe

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Teri sent me a 616 with an order a few months ago, and I really like mine as well. I've had only one problem with it, sometimes it floods and gets ink into the cap and onto the section a little bit. It writes excellent though, one of my favorite writers.

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chasy_price NOS (New Old Stock)

chasy_price

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Wow I am so surprised to see this post generated so many replies! Thanks guys~

 

I got this specific 616 from Teri (just as ubuntu said, she threw it in as a complimentary gift) and yes this pen is a joy to write with. I am from Shanghai China where when I was little everybody wrote with fountain pens, and most of my classmates used Hero. Hero has many great lines of pens, however 616 has been regarded as a "classic" and "most bang-for-the-buck (or yuan, in our case....)."

 

I would definitely agree that a 10-pack is not the way to go for it. Because when you buy the pens individually, if you get a bad pen you can ask for an exchange (or refund if allowed); however if you buy a pack it is assumed that you take your own risk regarding to the quality of the pens (because you would not be allowed to test any of the pens due to the package).... Also in Shanghai it is not like in America where there are only a couple big stationary chain stores such as Office Depots and Staples, there is practically a stationary store (however small it might be) at the corner of every block...So you get all sorts of pens (mostly the not fancy, Asian made ones that cost about 2 to 3 dollars at most) if you hit a bunch of stores, and you can usually dip them in various kinds of ink then write with them before you make the purchase. One of my greatest joys when I was in middle school was to visit those stores one by one and test all the new pens... So I guess my point is in Shanghai if you get a Hero pen you know what you are getting into and the quality is usually superb.

 

Hero 616 uses the "hooded nib", and that was a very popular nib style among Chinese pens, probably due to the famous Parker 51. I did not know that when I was little, and I used to think that the "hooded nib" is what a fountain pen regularly should be like. Hero 616 nib is about the thickest I can take for a fountain pen to be used daily, so my review is inevitably biased towards thinner nib pens...

 

Also, update on the Pilot Prera: I changed the ink to Noodler's EEL blue ink and now this pen flows like a charm!! I wonder if I just did not flush the pen enough before, or maybe it is the miracle of the ink, no matter what now I am totally in love with the Prera. Plus the EEL blue ink has a beautiful color.

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mizcutiepielivzi Near Mint

mizcutiepielivzi

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I bought one of these just before Christmas. The only issue I have had with it ia that if you don't push that cap on extreemly tightly, the nib dries out. But if ypou push it on that tightly it can be stiff to get off.

 

Sammere! But it's with my 316 as well... but all in all, a good pen!! :rolleyes:

"I, the proud owner of a fountain pen!"

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mizcutiepielivzi Near Mint

mizcutiepielivzi

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The Best Among These Pens - Hero 616

 

Oh, and yeah, I won't say it was the best - for me it doesn't even compare to the Sheaffer Prelude or Parker Urban/Sonnet, but that's just for me. :thumbup:

 

~mcpl :cloud9:

"I, the proud owner of a fountain pen!"

- Anne Frank

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chasy_price NOS (New Old Stock)

chasy_price

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It is possible that I just got an exceptional one. However after talking to my friends in China (all of them have Hero 616) they all agree that the pen writes smoothly.

 

I don't like the Parker Sonnet for its thick nib.

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79spitfire Donor Pen

79spitfire

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I got one of these in an order from Teri as well, I love it! I filled it with the Whaleman's Sepia sample from the inkdrop this month, and it's such an awesome combo I ended up buying more ink! :headsmack: Just to keep in this pen!

 

:roflmho:

Increase your IQ, use Linux AND a Fountain pen!!http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk11/79spitfire/Neko_animated.gif
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chasy_price NOS (New Old Stock)

chasy_price

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Sepia ink.... Sounds very interesting!!!!!

I am still old-fashioned and love the Blue-Black color................

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amyx231 Extremely Rare

amyx231

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i thought sepia and black were the older colors - brown and black?

From inquisitive newbie coveter to utilitarian (ultra) fine point user to calligraphy flourisher. The life cycle of a fountain pen lover.

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adallak Rare

adallak

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I will certainly not try to argue your experiences, as I have been surprised by cheap pens and disappointed by more expensive ones. However, it should also be noted that almost any pen's nib can be "tuned" to be smoother. Also, I would suspect that in terms of longevity, a Prera, Sonnet or Sheaffer will be around and usable decades longer than the 616. Just a guess.

 

This is truly amazing and surprising --- that the free complimentary gift Teri (no affiliation) threw in with my ordered Sheaffer Imperial Deluxe II, a Hero 616 --- is actually the most pleasing pen to write with among all those other pens!!!

 

The nib on Hero 616 is just absolutely butter smooth --- it glides rather than writes. I recently received a Pilot Prera - one of those new clear body ones - and the nib cannot even compare to the Hero 616. The nib on Prera is dry and scratches sometimes. I have to say I am somewhat disappointed at the Prera's performance cause I have heard so many nice things about this pen, plus it is not cheap cheap. I almost cannot stand writing with the Prera after I touched the Hero 616... It is simply too different!

 

Penmanship is pretty much a worse version of Prera. I used to like that pen as well - when there was no comparison! Now unless I need extra fine lines or super tiny words, I don't even touch that pen anymore... I guess maybe one day I will feel about the same with the Hero 616, however it is hard to imagine a pen much much smoother than that fantastic nib!

 

And the expensive Parker Sonnet - I have to say I cannot love it too much due to the huge "fine" nib (spring nib) but even if it has a thinner nib I would still write with my Hero 616...Just love the feel of that nib!

 

And although Sheaffer Imperial Deluxe II is smooth too and feels much better on hand (and post much better than the Hero 616) but if we are only doing the "bang for the buck" comparison the Hero 616 is still a winner... In China it is less than 10 bucks for 10 of them. I am seriously thinking about purchasing mass quantity of those awesome pens next time I go back.

 

All in all, I guess the essence of this post is --- if you just want a really smooth pen that cost almost nothing to be around as a daily workhorse, choose Hero 616!!!!! I just absolutely adores it right now.

I had several Heroes 616 (or similar Chinese pens). They all were great writers. Nevertheless, the pen easily breaks if you put it in your back pocket. I agree that expensive pens are often overrated.

When it come to hooded versus open nib, IMHO the main advantage of a hooded nib is that you can leave it on the table for 15 minutes and it will write as if you never stopped using it.

Edited by adallak

“Be nice to people on your way up because you meet them on your way down.” Jimmy Durante quotes (American Comedian, Pianist and Singer, 1893-1980)

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J_Rock Mint

J_Rock

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Has anyone bought a Hero 616 from isellpens.com before?

 

 

Several.

 

Thanks! I see they have them listed as a M616. Is it the same pen?

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Sailor Kenshin Museum Piece

Sailor Kenshin

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Has anyone bought a Hero 616 from isellpens.com before?

 

 

Several.

 

Thanks! I see they have them listed as a M616. Is it the same pen?

 

 

I'm not certain. I know that I have regular 616s, but also the Jumbo version, which is somewhat larger but not much.

 

They're all pretty similar: hooded nib that's a smooth medium-fine, squeezy filling system that works a little better if you remove the metal tube.

My latest ebook.   And not just for Halloween!
 

My other pen is a Montblanc.

 

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amyx231 Extremely Rare

amyx231

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i think hooded nibs are also safer from damage, no? if you hit it on something, it has the plastic protecting it.

From inquisitive newbie coveter to utilitarian (ultra) fine point user to calligraphy flourisher. The life cycle of a fountain pen lover.

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