Platinum Vs Pilot

[Waltz For Zizi]

Between the Platinum 3776 and Pilot 74/92, which is better. Is one nib better then the other as smoothness, softness or wetness? Is the build quality of one better than the other?

I'm tempted to buy the Platinum nice Lavande. Is the build quality on the nice better than on the regular series?

Edited March 1, 2018 by Waltz For Zizi

[Bluey]

Build quality is about the same, although some people have reported weeping lines or something on the barrel of the 3776 although I've never seen any yet. I'vve not personally seen any reason to doubt the build quality of either.

 

The build quality on the Nice series is almost certainly the same because there's no reason for there to be any difference between the Nice series and the rest. I prefer the feeling of the Nice series with it's frosted matt appearance and feel to the regular 3776.

 

Pilot is slightly smoother and is noticeably softer, both in the soft and regular nibs.

[odd_soul]

I have a few Platinums and a Pilot 74 and 92. I like them all. Platinum's nibs are stiff and have a little bit of feedback. Pilot's nibs are smooth and a little springy (no line variation, just a slightly softer feel). The build quality on the Lavande is no different than the regular line, though the material does feel different, since it is frosted rather than polished. I think the Pilot build quality is slightly better, but they're all excellent pens!

[ParkerDuofold]

Hi Waltz, et al,

 

On my rating scale... I'd give the Pilot six points... and the Platinum, an even half-dozen.

 

That said, grab the 3776... you like the look of that limited model... AND you'll get the slip and seal cap... I've yet to un-cap a dry 3776.

 

Be well and enjoy life.

 

 

- Anthony

[Driften]

Both are good pens. Your experience may also depend on how fine a nib you like....

I like my 92 better then a 74 or 3776, but its mostly do to the piston filling.

[Runnin_Ute]

No experience with the Pilot you are inquiring about (only the Metropolitan), but I do have a 3776 (Bourgogne) , my favorite pen after my Pelikans.

[sandy101]

The slip & seal mechanism of the #3776 is worthwhile as you do not get many hard starts. The pen works closer to a biro than an FP. The nibs do give a bit of feedback - they are not buttery smooth - but I get the impression that they are not supposed to be.

 

I can't compare with the Pilot, but you are going to get the same nib & feed mechanism, no matter which #3776 you buy.

 

I would suggest you look at the Platinum pens that come with an 18K nib too. There's no slip & seal, but Platinum's 18K nibs are springy and very pleasant to use.

Edited March 2, 2018 by sandy101

[Drawing61]

The Platinum Lavande is an a good choice if you like the looks. Both Platinum and Pilot nibs are excellent.

[ENewton]

My Platinum 3776 is smooth and wet but certainly not soft.

 

My Platinum Balance is soft and somewhat wet, although not as wet as the 3776.

 

To me, the plastic on the Nice series (I have the Lavande) feels more substantial than the plastic of the regular series.

[ISW_Kaputnik]

I have the Platinum 3776 in both fine and medium. When I'm using either, I like them well enough, finding the nibs quite smooth although stiff. I can live with the cartridges or the Platinum converter, although they wouldn't be my first choice.

 

I prefer my Custom Heritage 92 and 91, both with FM nibs. The 91 is like a Custom 74 but with flattened ends on the cap and barrel. It's partly the filling systems. The 91 is another cartridge/converter pen, but I like Pilot cartridges better than the Platinum ones, and the CON-70 converter works quite well, with a high capacity, once you learn its quirks. The Custom Heritage 92 has a built in piston filler. The nibs, as others state above, are a bit softer feeling, which I like.

 

Can't give you an opinion on the differences between the "Nice" series and the regulars, but in any case, I doubt you'll be unhappy with either the Platinum or the Pilot. I just prefer the latter.

[Waltz For Zizi]

Wow! So many replies. Thanks everyone. Now I'm definitely thinking of getting a Platinum, since I already have Pilot 74 and 92.

[FountainClogger]

Between the Platinum 3776 and Pilot 74/92, which is better. Is one nib better then the other as smoothness, softness or wetness? Is the build quality of one better than the other?

I'm tempted to buy the Platinum nice Lavande. Is the build quality on the nice better than on the regular series?

 

I have both a Platinum 3776 Century SF and a Pilot Custom 74 SFM.

Smoothness: definitely the C74 nib is smoother than the 3776's. Even compared with other fine nibs the 3776 one is more scratchy: not unpleasant, but you'll definitely feel the tooth biting into the paper.

Softness: again the C74 nib is softer, it yields much more easily, even too much: the tines require a very small effort to open up compared to the 3776. The 3776 nib is stiffer and you'll find yourself pushing harder to achieve similar line variations, if that's your goal.

Wetness: once again the C74 is wetter, even too much for my tastes. My 3776 is rather dry.

As for build quality: they are on par, even though the C74 feels a bit cheaper.

 

I can't say anything about the build quality of the Nice Lavande since I've never seen one IRL.

 

One other thing you might want to consider is that the C74 comes with the CON 40 converter, whose ink capacity is rather limited. Add to this that the C74 is wetter, so the ink won't last for very long; so you'll find yourself filling up the pen more often than the 3776. Also, If you are oriented towards the "soft" nibs, it will make things worse.

Edited March 2, 2018 by FountainClogger

[Pichak]

I have both Platinum 3776 and Pilot Custom 74 and Custom Heritage 91 but different nib size so it may not fair comparison. My Platinum 3776 is Soft Fine nib, Pilot Custom 74 is Broad and Pilot Custom Heritage is Soft Fine Medium. For my taste I like the Pilot nib more. I feel the Pilot nib is smoother and wetter for the Soft nib also has better ink flow too.

[jar]

You will find the #3776 slightly wider than your Pilots and the nib much larger. Also, Platinum has an adapter that is about $1.00 that also allows you to use standard international cartridges as well as the proprietary Platinum ones.

 

http://www.fototime.com/1B3C251F4CFB161/standard.jpg

[Waltz For Zizi]

You will find the #3776 slightly wider than your Pilots and the nib much larger. Also, Platinum has an adapter that is about $1.00 that also allows you to use standard international cartridges as well as the proprietary Platinum ones.

 

 

http://www.fototime.com/1B3C251F4CFB161/standard.jpg

Hmm, until now everything I read said that platinum is finer thant pilot :-|

[almoore]

Hi

 

I have all three with Japanese medium nibs and they are all nice pens but I've found the Pilot Custom 74 to be the smoothest writer (but that can be ink dependent). It's a lovely pen and I would recommend it.

 

Al

[Bluey]

Hmm, until now everything I read said that platinum is finer thant pilot :-|

He means that the nib dimensions are wider

[minddance]

If you enjoy driving a car woth very good grip of the road, Platinum. You enjoy gliding and slightly hovering above the road, Pilot.

 

For me, my Platinum M and B are rather dry for heavier papers and Rhodia but great on thinner amd more absorbent papers. That's why despite not liking them, I still keep them and inked. They preserve ink very well with their capping system (though the capping system is not entirely responsible for preserving inks when capped).

 

My Pilots write rather dry but all smooth (after exchanging nib till I am satisfied). When done well, Pilot can be smooth. Custom 74 SFM for me is the sweet spot in the entire Pilot gold nib collection, with almost the correct wetness (I enjoy wet pens) and smoothness and practicality (just right line width for most of my writing tasks). I have a 74BB and Music nib too, they can be fun with the correct flowy inks but I don't use them everyday. But no problem, they seal inks very well too and always write when uncapped. I have a 912SM, smooth but writes way too dry for such a broad nib, pressure is always required for ink to be let out of the pen. Great control though.

[Lam1]

We've had a few Platinum 3776 and one Pilot CH92 (and several other models of Pilot) at home. In terms of your criteria "smoothness, softness or wetness" I would have to go with Pilot being much superior, in my experience.

 

In terms of construction, I think for these models they are about equal. But I must say that I had QC problems with Platinum and never had trouble with Pilot. One of the 3776 I bought came with a loose nib: it simply had no friction to hold the nib in the section. I also had a Nakaya (which is from Platinum) sent to me with a broken converter.

 

Another thing that you may want to consider is the filling system: in my opinion, Platinum and Sailor make the worse converters out there (I just had my Nakaya and a KoP inked and, nowadays, I inclined to give an edge to Platinum as the worst). On the other hand, the Pilot CH92 has a wonderful piston. In terms of converters, if you get a Pilot that takes the Con-70, then it is also a wonderful converter. Of course, YMMV.

 

Good luck with your choice.

[Waltz For Zizi]

Wow. So many replies. Thanks! I didn't expected this much. But now I'm gonna disappoint almost all of you....since I already have a Pilot 74 and 92, and I found a nice deal on a Visconti wall street limited edition new, 25$ cheaper than I would have to pay for the Platinum lavande, yes this pen is almost 300$ in my country, and also I've always wanted a parker vacumatic but couldn't find one here, and I don't use ebay to buy one from there.

..and let me tell you the nib on this visconti is in top 2 best nibs I ever used. I was a bit reticent if I should buy it or not, since me 2 other viscontis were not so good, but boy I'm glad I bought it.

Thanks again, and I will still consider the platinum for my future purchases since I like plastic, light pens, but for now I'm going to enjoy this italian nib.

Edited March 2, 2018 by Waltz For Zizi