Nakaya Help

[tarheel1]

So I have been on the fence about the next pen I will purchase and think I have narrowed it down to Nakaya. My problem is I cant make up my mind what model or what nib to get. I love how the Piccolo Long portable looks as well as the Naka-ai. I dont care for the Neo standard and could tolerate the Portable cigar. Long cigar is probably too long. Now comes the finishes I like. I would love o get a blue dragon, but probably out of my price range. I think I like the Ao-tamenuri but wish it was a bit bluer. The Shobu looks nice but is a solid color as well as the Kikyo. So what is one to do? Now nibs. I love both flex nibs as well as stub, italic, and music nibs. There are just too many options. Maybe a medium to BB flex if it is an option. Maybe a flex music nib? I guess my dream Nakaya would be a Blue dragon Long piccolo with a medium to bb nib. Second would be the Naka-ai Blue dragon followed by the same order Ao tamenuri.

[sarahfar]

You need to go to the SF show and touch, feel and otherwise mutilate up close and personal. John will be there and I'm guessing a bunch of Nakaya lovers. Then it is simple buy the one that sings to you....

 

Best

[tarheel1]

Sf show is not possible. Only show I might be able to go to is the Dallas show.

[Baric]

Size, finish, color, nib, all VERY subjective and personal decisions. What I find perfect might be hideous to someone else. I spent a long time researching my first purchase going back and forth with the various options. I read many user reviews, noted the differences between models, etc. I settled on a Neo-standard in Kuro tamenuri with a medium left oblique nib and have been very happy with it. Based on previous experience, I went to nibs.com with my order, highly recommended.

 

If you are the kind of person who wants to see and feel in person before you order, how about an open dinner invitation to anyone in your area who owns a Nakaya for a show and tell over a nice bottle of wine? Maybe there is a fountain pen club in your area with meetings you can attend. The Dallas show seems like a good idea as well. Even if there is no authorized Nakaya dealer in attendance, there's a good chance some of the sellers will have used Nakayas for sale, even if not as common as other brands.

[brahe]

As Baric says: it is all very personal. I fully agree with him.

Last January I ordered my Neostandard in Shobu color with "M" nib. At that time I had the same questions you have. I realized I had to order the pen to find out. So I did. It arrived in June.

It turned out to be perfect for me. Really very happy with it and it is a true joy writing with it.

I had to choose between "M" and "F" nib, I decide to go for the "M". Now I'm wondering what an "F" nib feels like. Only one way to find out....

 

I'm living in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, and I do not have the time to visit a lot of penshows. There are some but small scale events. On these events, testing various Nakaya nibs? No way. There are two dealers of Nakaya nearby: One in Tilburg, very good shop but only a couple of Nakaya pens available and one in Paris. I either have to come to a US show, travel to Japan or to Paris to test nibs.

So when you can visit a show with a lot of Nakaya's present and you can test various nibs, that would be a great experience.

Unfortunately, time/work prevents me from visiting shows so I do not do that. Besides that, a show in the EU cost me 3 days and about € 500,--. This comes on top of the price of the pen. I rather spend that money on a pen directly and take a calculated risk.

 

Your dream is a Long Piccolo, Blue Dragon with a M to BB nib. Why don't you order it ? You only have to decide on the nib.

If for some reason the Nakaya is not as you want it to be, you can always sell it. I mean: it is a Nakaya, what are the odds of losing money on it ?

The only 'problem' you have, will be the waiting period for the new one.

Good luck

[Sketch and Doodle]

Tarheel1, I'm in the same boat as you are.

 

I'm on the look out for my next Nakaya pens. I know they have too many choices and their photos are not in scale and they are all separated from each other.

There is no way of knowing how big in related to others. Other than looking at the comparison specs. That kind of make you feel dizzy. It makes me measure up my portable with a ruler. Duh!

 

I have portable cigar in Heki in firm F and love it. I have Montegrappa Miya EF, MB M, F and EF, Duofold F etc. Nakaya is perfect for me. I've had Mb F nib grounded by Minuskin to 0.3mm EF and I still like Nakaya F nib better. Much smoother in crisp way. I had to readjust by Minuskin second time to smooth it out, still MB 0.3mm still feels a bit more scratchy than natural crispy Nakaya F.

 

It's like writing with 2H pencil. It kind of gives you some feedback.

MB Dumas M nib is glassy and wet. I love it for juicy glassy moves. Perfect for signatures or fast fluid writing.

Nakaya is perfect for small writing or sketching.

 

Nakaya F is finer than Western EF and western EF gives thin vertical stroke and thicker across.

 

I seem to like MB for thicker than M nib. In Nakaya, it would be B nib I guess.

 

I like Dorsal Fin V2 but pricey and I want two pens. So I'm torn between Neo Standard and Long Portable.

This time I will personalize with Kanji on mine.

 

Good luck with choosing the model and nib.

[RPB]

One of these

[mk2579]

Go with BB Blue Dragon for sure...

[mk2579]

As they say at Saddleback Leather "Buy nice or buy twice"

 

And also, "this pen will last you 100 years", or something to that effect...