Another Pilot Custom 823 Review!

[Ytland]

This nib is not sourced from Bock, Schmidt, Jo-Wo or any other jo-blow nib manufacturer that pumps out little pointy steel bits by the hundreds.

 

I hope you don't mean to denigrate the quality of JoWo steel nibs, because I've found them quite good.

 

 

Pilot knows what they're doing, and it shows: smooth with slight feedback, even inkflow and a flexible, bouncy feel characterises this beauty. If you're expecting a wet noodle or even semi-flex, keep walking, but there is just enough expressiveness here to let any reader know you've been writing with something special. However, with this in mind, the nib is so bouncy it's almost like writing on a trampoline.

 

Bouncy? Really? I don't think I've heard that term applied to a nib before.

 

The nib on my VP was a bit soft, which is not something I particularly like. On the other hand, I think the VP is 18K gold and the 823 is 14K gold?

 

 

So I'll keep it short: easy to use, HUGE capacity, functional.

 

I wonder if somebody can put a number on the HUGE capacity for us?

 

Nope, not intending to denigrate the quality of any of the aforementioned companies, but the Pilot nib is just in a class of its own. If you haven't yet tried one, I recommend you do. The 'bouncy' feeling is truly unique, probably because nibs this size are usually made of less-flexible 18K gold (eg Pelikan, MB), whereas the Pilot has a 14K #15 nib, which has significant amounts of spring (not flex). You can actually observe the nib tip lifting from the feed with the slightest applied pressure (this is part of the charm and comfort, not a defect).

 

As for a number for "HUGE", I've measured the ink capacity, when using the double-fill method for a complete fill, to be hovering about 2.0mL. There's no way to be sure other than measuring the initial and final volumes of the ink bottle when filling, but my approximation using a measuring cylinder of the water expelled from the pen is around 2.0 mL. It may be as much as 2.2 considering the ink in the feed and the unavoidable drops clinging to the barrel walls.

[Gojira]

I can verify that the Pilot 823's nib definitely has a springy feel. It's best described as "not a nail". The size of the nib may play a part in this but it's one of the most comfortable nibs I've used. Very consistent line yet it doesn't feel boring.

 

It'd be nice if Pilot made the 823 with a rhodium trim, particularly for the clear version. IMHO, the gold trim detracts from the rest of the clear pen but it does suit the amber version fine. I don't quite like the ball clip....maybe something more plain or a roller clip would be better.

[tonybelding]

As for a number for "HUGE", I've measured the ink capacity, when using the double-fill method for a complete fill, to be hovering about 2.0mL.

 

How much for a normal fill with a single stroke of the piston, the way it's meant to be used?

[Ytland]

As for a number for "HUGE", I've measured the ink capacity, when using the double-fill method for a complete fill, to be hovering about 2.0mL.

 

How much for a normal fill with a single stroke of the piston, the way it's meant to be used?

 

I haven't measured and don't intend to, but I've read somewhere else that its 1.4 mL. A little research and the number should turn up (I just can't remember where I saw it...). It makes visual sense, since you get a 2/3 fill just the normal way. This is way more than most piston fillers take up.

Edited September 28, 2011 by Ytland

[crls145]

Your review is great, thank you. I have s Custom 74 which is a more economical Pilot model and yet is a great pen so I can see what a fantastic pen the 823 must be. Thank you so much!

 

Carlos

[Brian]

Nice review. I like this pen very much for its ink capacity and find the F point very well done. If I were to compare this point to, say, a stub, the difference between the two would be like comparing a finely balanced fencing foil compared to a broadsword. Not only is it harder to write well with a good fine point, but it is harder to cut one as well. Thanks.

[APHK]

I had one with fine nib, one of the best nibs in my collection for very precise writing. I plan to get the 845 with 18K version of the nib when the yen comes down (if).

[Pen2009]

My 823 F (smoke) has been in the daily rotation. Initially, I thought the F nib was a little bit scratchy; but, it settled nicely after a few hours of usage (or at least, that's what I felt). The 823 is well balanced and weighed and I can write by gliding the nib over the paper with the weight of the pen.

 

Also, I can feel the weight of the ink after a fresh refill.

 

When I travel overseas, the ink shut off feature comes in very handy.

 

I already have 3 823s. I am thinking about getting another 823 with an F nib.

[georges zaslavsky]

Tried several 823s but the nib was very stiff and I have also seen some examples developping cracks if you disassemble the whole pen for cleaning and maintening it. I would rather go with a sheaffer vac fill balance than with a 823.

Edited July 21, 2013 by georges zaslavsky

[GHigley]

I just received an amber 823 with a medium nib ordered after seeing Dan Smith's YouTube review. I've always loved Pilot nibs and this #15 size is another wonderful one. The pen body is on the large size for me, but the ink capacity is great. Pilot converters other than the Con-70 are minuscule, so I find this is a real plus. I look forward to trying more Pilot nibs, the Soft-Fine-Medium of the Falcon nib in particular. I wish the variety of #15 nibs available on the 743 were made so for the 823.

[Ecriveur]

I can see why the Pilot Custom 823 is a "grail" pen for more than a few people. My amber version with a F nib is among the smoothest writing pens I own in that nib size, and I have a lot of fountain pens.

[ItwasLuck]

Totally agree with the OP, I am loving my Pilot 823 in Black Demonstrator (Medium Nib)! Never had such a out of the box buttery smooth writing experience! With Iroshizuku Take-Sumi ofc!

Can easily declare it as my smoothest nib ever =)

 

Got mine for 200 bucks and Iroshizuku for 13 bucks

 

[ItwasLuck]

Notemaker.com.au is where I buy Rhodia pads from. I ended up taking notes on my netbook during Law lectures, since I just can't keep up if I write by hand...sadly. (< 50 wpm by hand, > 100wpm when typing...). https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/public/style_emoticons/#EMO_DIR#/rolleyes.gif

While I do agree with u, I type at 140WPM and around 60WPM while writing but I prefer writing when I take notes, it ends up sticking in my head better compared to typing the notes out. There was a study about this before, the simple act of writing things out, outways Modern techniques such as typing because it engages more areas in your brain compared to the latter.

 

I have definitely noticed the difference during my time in med school, there is a reason why doctors have horrible handwriting. 😛😛

[amateriat]

Whew...such a big fast-forward right here.

 

A little under two years before you wrote this review, I cobbled together enough coins (almost literally - this was anything but a casual purchase for me) to get my first Custom 823, in Smoke, with Medium nib. It was all but literally Kismet: it put everything I'd been using up to that point pretty much in the proverbial shade. Unfortunately, a little under three years later, that pen mysteriously vanished; to this day, I have no idea how or why.

 

It took a little while, but I eventually replaced it with another 823, identical to the first except for the nib, this time a Fine. The very first time I wrote with it, I thought I'd made a mistake going with the F nib: I noticed a good beal more tooth than anticipated, which was why I'd largely avoided Fine nibs up to this point (argh, pun, sorry). Funny thing was, as I continued writing with it, I had a revelation shortly thereafter: while there was more tooth, there was a true absence of the scratchiness (and this was where I understood the difference) that drove me up the wall with previous pens. The characteristic Pilot smoothness was somehow still there, and the more I wrote with the thing, the more apparent it was. Just how they manage to do this seems almost nothing short of witchcraft.

 

At any rate: I just got hold of a second 823, this time in amber with a Medium nib. My first time writing with it was comically the inverse of my first write with my F nib version: it seemed so smooth that I thought something was wrong with this pen. Of course, writing on a few different papers throughout the day, I recognized the signature feedback of my original 823, and I realized all was well.

 

Other than my matte-black Vanishing Point, and the occasional BP (when compelled/forced to), these are all I write with. The 823 isn't a Grail pen to me: it's a Kismet pen.

 

(Which reminds me: I need to change that avatar of mine soon...love the look, but that Lamy 2k's been gone a long time. Still love me that Clairefontaine Trimopmhe, though.)

[Bjeweled]

Can anyone compare the pilot 823 with the Pelikan M 600 or for that matter the M400 and m200? I’ve been thinking about getting a Pelikan pen and I really don’t know which to buy. I don’t have a lot of money to work with but I wanted just one either the top-of-the-line or near there. I have Pilot 74,91 and 92 and a few Deltas. But I’ve never spent more than $130 for a pen. Spending 200+ dollars just seems so excessive to me. Would anyone give me some advice and a evaluation of the Pelikans and the Pilot 823?

[jameswatts]

My "close personal" friend Neil Gaiman suggested I should get a Custom 823. He used one to sign copies of his book "The Ocean at the End Of Ocean Lane." I did and most of a serial novel with this pen. 35,000 words.

[hari317]

My "close personal" friend Neil Gaiman suggested I should get a Custom 823. He used one to sign copies of his book "The Ocean at the End Of Ocean Lane." I did and most of a serial novel with this pen. 35,000 words.

wow, did the nib wear/flatten out even a little? During my school and university days I have managed to wear out nibs, but those were the cheap steel ones on a parker 45.

[invisuu]

Can anyone compare the pilot 823 with the Pelikan M 600 or for that matter the M400 and m200? Ive been thinking about getting a Pelikan pen and I really dont know which to buy. I dont have a lot of money to work with but I wanted just one either the top-of-the-line or near there. I have Pilot 74,91 and 92 and a few Deltas. But Ive never spent more than $130 for a pen. Spending 200+ dollars just seems so excessive to me. Would anyone give me some advice and a evaluation of the Pelikans and the Pilot 823?

The 823 is nearly identical in dimensions and weight to M800, not M600/M400/M200.

 

wow, did the nib wear/flatten out even a little? During my school and university days I have managed to wear out nibs, but those were the cheap steel ones on a parker 45.

Id imagine this has a lot to do with paper and tipping, moreso than number of words written.

[hari317]

Id imagine this has a lot to do with paper and tipping, moreso than number of words written.

its easy to imagine that for a given paper, tipping material, ink and writing pressure, tip erosion will be directly proportional to the number of words written.

[invisuu]

Right, but you two used none of those criteria the same, so a comparison cant really be made...or perhaps I misunderstood and you were just interested in his tip and not a comparison.