Conklin - Which Model To Buy?

[Honeybadgers]

I'm going to be returning this garbage stipula passaporto for a pen that isn't a complete turd. I never really cared much about conklin, but they've been upping their game recently and are now offering a duraflex nib in everything they make, though for some reason it's not branded in the duragraph, though that doesn't bother me a ton.

 

I'm looking at the cheaper models, the duragraph and the herringbone, but would be willing to put down another $30 for the all american if those two are just not worth it.

 

Are there any problems with the duragraph or herringbone that would steer me away from one or the other? anyone have experience with both? The herringbone concerns me because I hate slippery metal sections a lot, and it doesn't look like posts super well. I tend to prefer thicker pens that are light and either large or post really well. Which I think points me towards the duragraph or the all american. I do really like the old glory color scheme, but both it and the amber duragraph are out of stock, so I'd have to wait until they came back in with the duraflex nibs to pick one up.

 

 

[jekostas]

Two suggestions:

 

The Duraflex nib is a POS. Skip it. When one out of every two reviews is negative, that's a pretty good sign that you should avoid the product. There is a five page thread in the reviews subforum and a lot of people have had serious problems with those nibs.

 

If you're going to buy Conklin/Monteverde, avoid pens with painted metal parts. The finishes chip off very easily, even if you think you're babying the pens. I found that out the hard way with both a Duragraph and an Intima.

[ian1964]

I have the Duragraph with a Stub nib and the performance is first class. However I do agree that the painted parts are sub standard.

[Uncial]

There's a thread here on the Duraflex nib and it's contents are enough to make me steer well clear. I actually liked some of the older Conklin models before the newer iteration. They were cheap pens probably priced a little too high. The old Herringbone model was actually very nice but it was a huge pen and very heavy, poorly balanced when posted and the silver had a tendency to wear through pretty quickly. But if you were after a rather standard unexciting nib in an otherwise nuclear proof pen, then this would work. I've held on to my old revival Mark Twain's and Endura, but I still think they are priced a little high for what they are. The nibs are very boring steel nibs and brutally firm, but they always wrote nicely enough and quite wet. I haven't tried the Duragraph but people who bought it seem to be happy with it and it seems priced right to me. The All American models (or whatever they're called) never floated my boat.

 

If you're interested in Conklin my advice would be to take a look at their vintage late models (Symetric possibly? Chicago era?). They are very light and the silver/gold furniture never stood up to the ravages of age well, but they are a comfortable size and shape, lovely balance when posted and some of them came with older stock nibs which are a pleasure to write with. You can still pick these up for a very reasonable price.

[akrohn2010]

I owned two Duragraphs and they were solid pens - both 1.1 stubs wrote well and I liked the finish of the pens as well as the screw-in converters, and taking a #6 nib makes them pretty versatile. No issues with chipping, scratching, or finish. I had a Forest Green which looked markedly "vintage-throwback" as well as the LE Merlot finish, but gave both as gifts to new fountain pen users - no issues with either, but they just didn't stick with me.

 

I wouldn't say the section is very thick though - maybe 10mm? Not thin but not too wide. Overall a good pen for the price, so if you like the flat-top design but don't want a vintage pen, not a bad buy. Can't speak to vintage Conklin.

Edited June 18, 2018 by flyingpenman

[fountainpen51]

Of the new models of Conklin I have a black Mark Twain with ornaments "rose gold" and an AllAmerican Yellowstone, the nibs they bring are very wet, both of # 6, so if you want you can put that flexible Jowo you have, I have that confoguración.

[sidthecat]

Some of my best pens are vintage Conklins, but of course that's a whole new can of worms.

[vojtahlad]

I own two Duragraphs and one All American (all are modern pens purchased this or last year). I expected some quality increase for the higher price of All American, but the manufacturing quality is comparable and the nibs are exactly the same. The All American is just a bigger pen.

 

Personally, I like the Duragraph more. It is a perfect size for my hand, roughly comparable to the Pelikan M600. Posting is awkward for both pens. It is quite shallow, insecure and shifts the balance significantly. I do not post my pens in general so I do not care.

 

All three of my nibs required some work. One was misaligned, two were very dry (the stub one barely wrote). But after fixing the nibs, they became great pens. I love them and keep them filled.

[southpaw]

I have several Duragraphs and chased Crescent fillers, along with a Word Gauge (most recent iteration). I also have a few more nibs, all either fines or stubs. All of mind except one fine nib have been problem free and good writers. The fine just needed a little nib tweak. The All-American design never floated my boat with its steel section drop off.

[markofp]

The All-American Sleeve-Filler is my favorite EDC pen of the moment, the black one with the duo-tone logo nib is just beautiful and fits so nicely in my hand, and the spring clip is great too. A fine point may take some smoothing and flow tweaking to get right. The medium point was great right out of the box. BUT: before filling it, unscrew the nib and put a dab of silicon on the threads, then screw it back in, makes the draw MUCH easier. Also note that the clear section you see is NOT an ink window, in fact, if you get ink in there it means that either you didn't seal the threads as above, or that the sac mechanism is coming unscrewed from the body of the pen.

Edited June 21, 2018 by markofp

[Honeybadgers]

Gotta keep suggestions to what Goulet has in stock. I guess I could ask them to special order, but I'm only planning on doing that when I order my pelikan M1000.

 

I think I'm settling on the old glory all american with an omniflex nib. I read the entire thread and really saw nothing damning. One person sprung it, a few people had to tune them.

 

unless anyone else can think of something at Goulet in the $40-100 range that I might want

Edited June 21, 2018 by Honeybadgers

[Wahl]

I would also recommend a vintage Conklin.

[JakobS]

Within what is offered by Goulet between $40-$100, I would go with a Opus 88...

 

But a part of me also wants to see you start a series of "Warning, Do Not Buy!" reviews....

 

So a modern Conklin will more likely provide that......

 

Tough decision to make really.....

[Otter1]

The Opus 88 would be my choice as well. I have driven a friend's and like it, but don't own it yet--nice fit and finish.

It is an interesting looking pen and has the novelty of being an eyedropper with a shutoff valve.

 

-otter1

[Karmachanic]

Reading Conklin reviews put me off Conklin pens. Koloro on the other hand .......

[Honeybadgers]

The opus 88 needs a #6 nib. it just doesn't look right with that #5... I might go for it, but I really want the 88 with a #6 nib that isn't that nasty looking clear acrylic,

[Karmachanic]

You"ll get used to it. After a while you won't notice.

[KellyMcJ]

I have a Conklin Duragraph (modern) with a fine nib. Here's the thing- having heard what I've heard about the Conklin nib QC, I never would have bought it for full price, but this was a discounted model and also came with a free bottle of ink (I think I wrote a review around here somewhere.) It takes a #6 nib and I was OK with the prospect of putting another nib in, if necessary, for the discounted price.

 

It turns out the nib had the worst baby's bottom I'd ever seen, but, I was able to work on the nib and save it (which I wanted to do if possible because I wanted the Conklin branding on the nib). It's now a decent writer and I must say, the pen body is gorgeous and extremely comfortable to hold and write with. So the pen body was worth the price I paid for it and then some, and now that I'm thinking about it, one of these days I might drop a Nemosine nib in there anyway.

 

So I'd recommend the Duragraph for being a gorgeous pen with a very comfortable feel with the caveat that the nib might suck but since they take #6 nibs that's not a problem so long as you're OK with shelling out $15 for a new nib, or doing a little work on it.

[akrohn2010]

I have a Conklin Duragraph (modern) with a fine nib. Here's the thing- having heard what I've heard about the Conklin nib QC, I never would have bought it for full price, but this was a discounted model and also came with a free bottle of ink (I think I wrote a review around here somewhere.) It takes a #6 nib and I was OK with the prospect of putting another nib in, if necessary, for the discounted price.

 

It turns out the nib had the worst baby's bottom I'd ever seen, but, I was able to work on the nib and save it (which I wanted to do if possible because I wanted the Conklin branding on the nib). It's now a decent writer and I must say, the pen body is gorgeous and extremely comfortable to hold and write with. So the pen body was worth the price I paid for it and then some, and now that I'm thinking about it, one of these days I might drop a Nemosine nib in there anyway.

 

So I'd recommend the Duragraph for being a gorgeous pen with a very comfortable feel with the caveat that the nib might suck but since they take #6 nibs that's not a problem so long as you're OK with shelling out $15 for a new nib, or doing a little work on it.

+1

 

I had Nemosine and Goulet nibs in my Duragraphs before I gave them as gifts to interested family members. Conklin nibs were just okay.

[Honeybadgers]

Went with the all American old glory with an omniflex nib. The all American's fit and finish is SUPERB. It feels amazing, the resin is amazing, I love every single part of it...

 

Except for the nib. It's got the flex, but it is made out of awful steel and springs immediately. You cannot flex it or it springs. You can get more safe line variation out of the regular conklin fine. It's a little softer than the noodlers #6 flex nib, I'd call it a very mushy semiflex, but the noodlers nib does not spring.

 

I put the noodlers nib into it and it writes well, I also tried my super flex #6 custom 14k jowo, the feed keeps up surprisingly well. But I think I decided that this pen just doesn't feel right as a flex nib. So I slapped a nemosine 0.6 stub in it and I'm very happy. For $75, avoid the omniflex nib and the all American is a well made, MASSIVE pen. I love the size, it's an alternative to my mont blanc 149. And that rocker clip is awesome. And the gaudy, over the top red, white, blue and gold acrylic has a stunning depth to it.