Jump to content

Which Next Pen? Aurora 88 Or Sailor 1911 Large?


gguthrie

Recommended Posts

I am considering a couple of pens for my next purchase. My favorite pen to date is a Pelikan m800 with a cursive ital. nib. That pen is about the right size for me. I have never had an Aurora 88 and have heard good things. There is one for sale in classified with the "long tines" for $280 (if I remember correctly). The owner says it has a bit of flex in the Medium nib, which I would prefer. My understanding is that the Medium will be somewhat comparable to the US Fine? Are these generally smooth writers?

 

The other pen I am considering is a Sailor 1911 Large. I know the Japanese nibs also run with a "M" being more comparable to a US Fine.

 

Any thoughts between these two pens. Another other suggestions? My priority is on a great writing pen with a smooth nib.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

George

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 9
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • gguthrie

    2

  • bizhe

    1

  • KBeezie

    1

  • Inky.Fingers

    1

To each his own:

Every pen is to the hand: comfort, weight, and balance

How it writes is to the nib. When unsure of how it writes, send it to a nibmeister.

I prefer it to be a smooth but scratchy for feedback. Too smooth and I have to restrain myself on flow. Like a sport car, feel everything or a Cadillac feel nothing.

 

23956034165_702c99dbe0_c.jpg

 

Comparison of size between Aurora 88 (Large) vs MontBlanc 146 vs Sailor 1911 (Large)

23329153773_ef220f55dc_c.jpg

 

Top down comparison: Chinese Made Skeleton Pen, Aurora Optima (same girth as an Aurora 88 Large, interchangeable caps), Aurora 88 Large, Pelikan M800, MontBlanc 146 and 149.

23847625802_e9c4cb657b_c.jpg

23588031079_cb94be87a4_c.jpg

23847632322_b9bf9a3516_c.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have both... sort of, the Aurora 88 (modern) is larger than my Aurora Afrika LE (Which is basically a fancy Optima) as well as a 1911L with a 21K H-MF. Between the two I much preferred the Aurora for comfort/performance/etc.

 

Though between the two the 1911L is going to be much more affordable especially if ordered directly from Japan.

 

The 1911L with a 21K nib is probably going to be smoother in terms of texture/feedback at an M size than an Aurora 18K at a Fine size. Just based on how it felt between my 18K M (which wrote like a western EF to me) and my 21K H-MF (which was right in the middle of a western EF and F for me). My aurora has a sort of hard pencil feedback but it's not unpleasant to me.

Edited by KBeezie
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am considering a couple of pens for my next purchase. My favorite pen to date is a Pelikan m800 with a cursive ital. nib. That pen is about the right size for me. I have never had an Aurora 88 and have heard good things. There is one for sale in classified with the "long tines" for $280 (if I remember correctly). The owner says it has a bit of flex in the Medium nib, which I would prefer. My understanding is that the Medium will be somewhat comparable to the US Fine? Are these generally smooth writers?

 

The other pen I am considering is a Sailor 1911 Large. I know the Japanese nibs also run with a "M" being more comparable to a US Fine.

 

Any thoughts between these two pens. Another other suggestions? My priority is on a great writing pen with a smooth nib.

 

Thanks for your help!

 

George

 

Both pens are pretty similar - the nibs tending to be narrower than average. I would go for the Aurora simply because it's a little more unusual and a piston filler. Aurora pens are generally very underrated as they are quite conservative in styling.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have only Sailor 1911L also with MF nib. Writes like a liquid dream, although with a wet ink it will write more as western F, especially comparing for Sapporo's F nib (14K). Have a classic look, based on the past few weeks since I use it.. I highly recommend. Importing from Japan will keep the price low.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Aurora 88 is a much fancier pen, piston filler and with nice gold trimmings. The 1911L is more plain, a simple classical writing instrument. Both nibs offer feedback with the Sailor being usually the smoother. One thing you might like to consider is the availability of specialty nibs for the Sailor. Having both I seem to like the '88 better, though I enjoy my Naginata Togi nib, YMMV though.

Gistar

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43844
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      33494
    3. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    4. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      26627
    5. jar
      jar
      26101
  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Shanghai Knife Dude
      I have the Sailor Naginata and some fancy blade nibs coming after 2022 by a number of new workshop from China.  With all my respect, IMHO, they are all (bleep) in doing chinese characters.  Go use a bush, or at least a bush pen. 
    • A Smug Dill
      It is the reason why I'm so keen on the idea of a personal library — of pens, nibs, inks, paper products, etc. — and spent so much money, as well as time and effort, to “build” it for myself (because I can't simply remember everything, especially as I'm getting older fast) and my wife, so that we can “know”; and, instead of just disposing of what displeased us, or even just not good enough to be “given the time of day” against competition from >500 other pens and >500 other inks for our at
    • adamselene
      Agreed.  And I think it’s good to be aware of this early on and think about at the point of buying rather than rationalizing a purchase..
    • A Smug Dill
      Alas, one cannot know “good” without some idea of “bad” against which to contrast; and, as one of my former bosses (back when I was in my twenties) used to say, “on the scale of good to bad…”, it's a spectrum, not a dichotomy. Whereas subjectively acceptable (or tolerable) and unacceptable may well be a dichotomy to someone, and finding whether the threshold or cusp between them lies takes experiencing many degrees of less-than-ideal, especially if the decision is somehow influenced by factors o
    • adamselene
      I got my first real fountain pen on my 60th birthday and many hundreds of pens later I’ve often thought of what I should’ve known in the beginning. I have many pens, the majority of which have some objectionable feature. If they are too delicate, or can’t be posted, or they are too precious to face losing , still they are users, but only in very limited environments..  I have a big disliking for pens that have the cap jump into the air and fly off. I object to Pens that dry out, or leave blobs o
  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More
  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...