I Love Auroras

[WilsonCQB1911]

Aurora pens and I just seem to agree with each other. I am definitely a loyal follower at this point. I've never had a bad one out of the box. They all seemed to be tuned well and are reliable writers. The quality control on other aspects of the pens are very high as well, which isn't true of other Italian brands in my experience. Most of all though, I really like that I can purchase a pen and know that it'll just work well.

 

I've owned a ton of pens over the last few years, having "caught and released" many MANY of them. My current collection stands at 10 pens. An Omas Arte italiana with a beautiful EF "flessible" nib, a Montblanc 149 EF, a Pelikan M800 Burnt Orange with an EF, 3 Aurora 88 larges in EF, 2 Aurora Optima Auroraloides in F, 1 Aurora Optima in EF, and an Aurora Talentum in F.

 

So 7/10 of the pens I've chosen to keep are Auroras. I think that says something.

 

I probably should try an M nib again, huh? I've tried the larger nibs a few times and find them initially compel them but then send them back into the wild, as they are just a bit too big to be useable for me. Although my M800 EF would probably come pretty close to an Aurora M in sizing....

[masterguns]

Well, I have only one Aurora--an Optima. I think it is a fantastic pen, both in terms of looks and performance. There's just something about the ergonomics of the Optima that, for me, make it just about perfect when its posted. I also tend to agree with your M800 EF comparison to an Aurora M. I would say that my Optima M writes about the same line as my M800 EF pens, albeit not as wet.

[whichwatch]

I like them too. I currently have two, a Mare and a 365. I had an Africa, but recently sold it. I'd like to find a Sole and perhaps a red 75th Anniversary.

 

They write a bit fine and dry out of the box for my taste, but a few minutes with a nibmeister leaves me much happier. My 365 is a Broad and the Mare is an Italic. I think I'll have to try a stub or a BB if I can find them.

 

http://www.fototime.com/%7BCFE3EE7B-BA6E-4739-91C7-B105764BC480%7D/sspict/640/exp=f&modt=42308.7087109491&ssdyn=1/IMG_0361.JPG

 

http://www.fototime.com/%7BA5772EBC-8DB5-4C56-9815-DD4F92B557D8%7D/sspict/640/exp=f&modt=42308.7087456597&ssdyn=1/IMG_0362.JPG

[jar]

Tonight I'm using one of my 888s with the Platinum cartridge adapter to allow using International Standard cartridges. The Platinum converters also work with it. The one I'm using right now looks just like this one, gold with the red section.

[Calabria]

I am so glad to be among friends here. Aurora is a vaguely underrated brand, I find, mostly because there' not much to complain about their pens. They write well, don't leak or fall apart, sit well in the hand and have a in-house, distinctive nib. They also don't have vast quantities of questionable SEs.

 

I did notice, Mr/Ms WilsonCQB1911, that you have THREE 88s with EF nibs. Please explain.

[Precise]

I recently scored a good buy on an Aurora 88-800 ("big") with M nib on ebay. "Big" is overstated with a capped length of only 5.3 inches. It's my first Aurora and is indeed very nice. But only after I tuned the nib.

 

I've improved most of my pens, even the brand new ones, with nib tuning. This 88 was scratchy on lateral strokes. I first worked it only with mesh pads, but that wasn't enough. Next I slightly flattened it with about 5 inches of stroke on 1,000 grit paper. Followed by finer grits and buffing. It's a sweety now.

 

It also wrote too wet with Aurora and Duke blue inks. Now it's loaded with Pelikan blue, my driest ink, which is perfect for this pen.

 

I've flattened many nibs for smoother writing, even Italian nibs which are usually somewhat flat. More about this here:

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/297964-my-italian-nibs-are-my-smoothest/

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/298062-where-the-metal-meets-the-paper/

 

Alan

[aawhite]

I have Aurora Optimas, Ipsilon, Talentum and Alpha. Good writers except for one with some nib leakage. I need to have it repaired.

 

My number one pen is my Aurora Optima Blue Auroloide medium nib. Perfect size, balance and feed back for my manner of writing.

[redbike]

I have one - a '50's 88 that I purchased from Jon Rosenbaum ( ) a few years ago. It was a dry writer so I had it tuned by Mike Masuyama. It's a wonderful writer now and one of my favorite pens. The size is very comfortable in my medium-sized hands. I'm not very good with flexible nibs and this one flexes moderately, so my handwriting looks better. I keep an eye out for one with a Nikargenta cap.

[FriendAmos]

I've heard a lot about these pens, but most of the versions that cause excitement all seem to be small or medium sized pens. Does Aurora make any good large pens?

[aawhite]

I've heard a lot about these pens, but most of the versions that cause excitement all seem to be small or medium sized pens. Does Aurora make any good large pens?

 

The Aurora Talentum is a large pen with exactly the same nib and section as the Optima.

Edited December 2, 2015 by aawhite

[Garageboy]

I love them, I just hate how everytime I turn around, they bastardize the Optima further - down to only two celluloid colors

[dms525]

I've heard a lot about these pens, but most of the versions that cause excitement all seem to be small or medium sized pens. Does Aurora make any good large pens?

 

I don't know what you regard as "good large pens," but, while the Optima capped is quite a bit shorter than a Pelikan M800, un-capped it is maybe 1/4 inch shorter. The optima is quite good sized when posted. It is remarkable for being equally well-balenced posted or un-posted. And while many large pens are IMO impractical to carry in a shirt breast pocket, the Optima fits very well.

 

David

[WilsonCQB1911]

I am so glad to be among friends here. Aurora is a vaguely underrated brand, I find, mostly because there' not much to complain about their pens. They write well, don't leak or fall apart, sit well in the hand and have a in-house, distinctive nib. They also don't have vast quantities of questionable SEs.

 

I did notice, Mr/Ms WilsonCQB1911, that you have THREE 88s with EF nibs. Please explain.

 

Well, I have a gold capped, a chrome capped, and the demonstrator with black nib and black metal parts.

 

I love them, I just hate how everytime I turn around, they bastardize the Optima further - down to only two celluloid colors

 

Wait - what happened? What colors are they getting rid of? I need to get a red at some point to 'complete' my set of auroraloide optimas. I now have a green, nero perla, blue, and demonstrator (not auroraloide, I know).

[akustyk]

I have a modern 88 and an Optima 365. These are great, great pens. Perfect, for me, in every way. There's a sense of both beauty and engineering sophistication. The Optima is an excellent writer, much like the Sailor Realo. These pens never hesitate, always write consistently at the slightest pressure. There's something to be said about making a complete pen in house.

[whichwatch]

On November 12 I posted a photo of the two that I had. But then came

 

 

http://www.fototime.com/%7BCFE3EE7B-BA6E-4739-91C7-B105764BC480%7D/sspict/640/exp=f&modt=42308.7087109491&ssdyn=1/IMG_0361.JPG

 

 

the Ohio Pen Show. So roll ahead less than 1 month, and look at me now! I passed on a Primavera (green), but it sure would look good in here!

 

http://www.fototime.com/%7BCC479A38-5020-4E32-9511-A037C9AFA907%7D/origpict/Auroras.jpg

[masterguns]

 

 

 

http://www.fototime.com/%7BCC479A38-5020-4E32-9511-A037C9AFA907%7D/origpict/Auroras.jpg

 

Beautiful set of pens! Congrats.

 

I, too, added another Optima in the recent past. My newest is the red one. Its not an aurolide, but it does have a crisp italic broad nib.

 

Edited December 5, 2015 by masterguns

[bobje]

Jar, it's terrific to learn about the Aurora 888. Masterguns and whichwatch, those are gorgeous selections of Auroras. The burlap background provides nice contrast, whichwatch.

[tryphon]

There have been two versions of the 888. You can read about them in this article that I wrote some time ago:

 

http://www.newpentrace.net/articleGA01.html

[jar]

There have been two versions of the 888. You can read about them in this article that I wrote some time ago:

 

http://www.newpentrace.net/articleGA01.html

And the 888P IIRC.

[FriendAmos]

 

I don't know what you regard as "good large pens," but, while the Optima capped is quite a bit shorter than a Pelikan M800, un-capped it is maybe 1/4 inch shorter. The optima is quite good sized when posted. It is remarkable for being equally well-balenced posted or un-posted. And while many large pens are IMO impractical to carry in a shirt breast pocket, the Optima fits very well.

 

David

 

By large, I mean at least the size of the current OMAS Milord. People with large hands tend to prefer larger pens for comfort in writing. Given that writing is the main objective, fitting into a pocket is rarely the first thing that comes to mind for such people.