Another Problem With Pilot Metropolitan

[LizEF]

 

Oh I'll be ordering another Metro over the weekend. But I would like to try others that are similar just to get different experience.

 

Thanks

 

Gotcha. Well, similar. Hmm. Thinking. OK, using Goulet Pens to find things similar in weight - depends on whether you use it posted. Doesn't look like there are that many pens as heavy, especially with a fine nib. Jinhao x750 or x450 might be to your liking, but they have medium nibs. TWSBI Eco is a great pen, well worth trying. Lamy Al-Star. Platinum Plaisir.

 

Lots of Chinese pens for the price of a Metro (though not as fine a nib), but otherwise, not a lot with the Metro's weight, quality, and price.

[Emt1581]

I've made a comparison of the nibs I have. (I have more than these, but they're just the same ones over and over.) If you're going to buy a Wing Sung pen to swipe the nib from, I recommend being extremely careful. There are two Wing Sung companies, and the nibs with the pen-in-circle logo in the Pilot form factor have proven quite problematic for me. But there are often great samples, too, in Chinese pens. The Wing Sung nibs that have WING S stamped on them have all been of a similar good quality.

 

In left-to-right, the left nib is the "EF" one I've stolen out of a Wing Sung 3001A (the bad kind of nib, I got the pen for the section only, and never intended to write with the nib), then a nib that I purchased as "EF" but was marked "F" and is a carbon copy of a Pilot "F", then a nib that I purchased as an "F" that is marked "F" and is a carbon copy of a Pilot "M", and finally my original Pilot "M" which is somehow the finest of the lot. Well, not any more. It was before I worked on it and spread the tines, because it was ridiculously tight before, quite akin to the OP in this thread. It's still satisfyingly fine for me, but possibly not for OP.

 

I also have a Kakuno sitting in a box unopened on top of my fridge with a Pilot "F" nib. I got it before I discovered the Wing Sung nibs, so I'm waiting to decide what to do with it.

 

Anyway, here are the nibs with brief writing samples. The squares on the graph are 2mm to help judge widths.

 

 

 

 

 

I appreciate you sharing but I'm confused. I see a clear difference in the writing on the far left, otherwise, the three nibs look like you write the same with them. When I write with my F nib it's thin and crisp which I love. But the M nib looks like a Sharpie.

 

Not sure how you are getting those results.

Thanks

[Emt1581]

 

Gotcha. Well, similar. Hmm. Thinking. OK, using Goulet Pens to find things similar in weight - depends on whether you use it posted. Doesn't look like there are that many pens as heavy, especially with a fine nib. Jinhao x750 or x450 might be to your liking, but they have medium nibs. TWSBI Eco is a great pen, well worth trying. Lamy Al-Star. Platinum Plaisir.

 

Lots of Chinese pens for the price of a Metro (though not as fine a nib), but otherwise, not a lot with the Metro's weight, quality, and price.

 

Yes, always posted. Always. Compared to a cheap clicky ballpoint it looks MUCH more sophisticated and feels amazing in the hand! I've received multiple compliments and observations on it.

 

So I'm limited to the Metro if I want weight to it instead of feather-weight plastic pens?

 

Thanks!

[LizEF]

So I'm limited to the Metro if I want weight to it instead of feather-weight plastic pens?

 

Well, that depends on how similar you want the weight. Not all plastic pens are as light as you may think. Some people are more sensitive in this area than others. The Goulet Pens website shows weights. Even if you don't want to buy from them, it's useful. Some weights, with cap:

• Metro is 26g
• Eco is 21g (EF nib would be awfully close to Metro F)
• Al-Star is 22g (EF nib will probably be wider than Metro F - this pen is Aluminum, not plastic - Safari is the plastic version)
• Plaisir is 19g (Japanese, so you'd want a F nib)
• 19g for the Online Switch and Slope (I know nothing about these)
• Conklin Victory weighs in around 28g - that might be a good option (I see it at Pen Chalet)
• Kakuno is only 11g (same nib)
• Jinhao x450 is 42g (you could put a Nemosine EF nib in and that would be about a Metro F - IMO, the Nemosine EF is narrower than the Goulet EF; I find the Nemosine EF to be a great nib)
• Jinhao x750 is 36g (same nib comments as x450)
• Jinhao 159 is 50g! (same nib comments)

I'm sure there are others, but not all pen stores show weight, and places like Amazon or eBay don't include weight either.

[TSherbs]

Just learn to be a little easier on your pens and you will be fine.

[penzel_washinkton]

If you want heft, I think Jinhaos (X450 & 750) are the way to go but they follow European nib sizes and they are significantly larger than the Metros

[Emt1581]

If you want heft, I think Jinhaos (X450 & 750) are the way to go but they follow European nib sizes and they are significantly larger than the Metros

 

Am I seeing this right?....They are $1.50-$3??

 

...and not a silver/stainless/chrome trim model in the bunch! Just the yellowist of yellow I've ever seen. I know I didn't mention color but the black and chrome of the Metro is just perfect for my style (matches wedding band, watch, belt buckle, pocket knife clip, etc...)

Edited September 22, 2018 by Emt1581

[DasKaltblut]

Am I seeing this right?....They are $1.50-$3??

 

...and not a silver/stainless/chrome trim model in the bunch! Just the yellowist of yellow I've ever seen. I know I didn't mention color but the black and chrome of the Metro is just perfect for my style (matches wedding band, watch, belt buckle, pocket knife clip, etc...)

Price = Correct. If you search for Jinhao 750 black on Ebay there are a TON of black and silver options. The x450 is usually back with gold colored metal, but there are a few other options.

[LizEF]

 

Am I seeing this right?....They are $1.50-$3??

 

...and not a silver/stainless/chrome trim model in the bunch! Just the yellowist of yellow I've ever seen. I know I didn't mention color but the black and chrome of the Metro is just perfect for my style (matches wedding band, watch, belt buckle, pocket knife clip, etc...)

 

There's a brushed chrome x750. And there are gloss and matte black ones. You might have to pay a little more than $3, but not much. And you'll want a different nib if you want fine.

[penzel_washinkton]

 

Am I seeing this right?....They are $1.50-$3??

 

...and not a silver/stainless/chrome trim model in the bunch! Just the yellowist of yellow I've ever seen. I know I didn't mention color but the black and chrome of the Metro is just perfect for my style (matches wedding band, watch, belt buckle, pocket knife clip, etc...)

 

Yup you're seeing it right, there are normal colored ones if you search on Feebay as the other posters said.

[TSherbs]

 

There's a brushed chrome x750. And there are gloss and matte black ones. You might have to pay a little more than $3, but not much. And you'll want a different nib if you want fine.

Yeah, these fines are wider than the Metro fine.

[Houston]

Emt1581: I hear you saying that your writing with the M nib looks like a Sharpie. ...but I'm under the impression that the only M nib you've used is that on the Pilot Varsity. Is that correct?

 

If so, I encourage you not to judge M nibs by the Varsity's M nib. The Varsity's nib and ink are very particular, and do not reflect the experience you'll have with any other fountain pen (except possibly with other disposables). The nib, specifically, is not at all representative of Pilot's normal M nibs -- other Japanese M nibs, for that matter. The standard Japanese M fountain pen nib is quite fine by European/American standards.

 

I'm not suggesting that you might want a normal Japanese M nib. I'm only saying that the vast majority of medium nibs, and especially Japanese mediums, do not write like the Varsity. The Varsity writes wetter and broader than the vast majority of M nibs.

 

I love the Varsity. It's great proof that you can have a great fountain pen experience without spending much. But it's not everyone's taste because it has quite distinctive writing characteristics, along with being super-light and disposable.

 

You may still want the finest line you can find. No problem. Just didn't want you thinking that your experience with a Varsity M nib could be generalised.

 

Happy writing!

[Brianm_14]

I cannot understand why no-one has suggested that you try a few Platinum Preppys at Amazon or JetPens (Jetpens also has information on their site which might be of interest to you).

 

The Preppy has a nib which is superior to the Varsity, and the pen can be reused. I get as much as one to two years of nearly daily use from my Preppys. You can also upgrade a Preppy to a Plaisir, which simply means it will have an aluminum body with more heft and better looks. A Preppy will start writing for you without any issues; indeed, that is a famed characteristic of the entire Platinum line.

 

Pick up a few Preppys, plus some extra ink cartridges, and see how you do!

 

I love my other Pilot pens in general, but have had feed issues with every one of the three Pilot Metros I have tried over the three or four years. And I am no novice: I have used fountain pens daily all of my life, first as a school boy, through grad school, and as a college professor, for a total of some 60 years. I just don't buy the line that Metros are automatically the "best buy" for a new user, as they are commonly touted to be. They need tweaking and/or a wet ink, in my experience.

 

The next step after that is to start refilling cartridges from bottled ink, using a syringe and needle (not a problem for you, I suspect), less to save money than to be able to pick exactly the ink you want to use. By this point, you'll be ready to upgrade your pen(s) as well. But I suspect you'll always have a Preppy handy.

 

You might then step up to a German Lamy Safari, a Faber-Castell Loom, TWSBI Eco, or similar pen, but stick with Preppys for now.

 

And treat them all with some gentleness. The bigest harm cheap ballpoints, cheap gel pens, etc. have done, is to train our hands to press harder if a pen is behaving in an irksome manner. With a fountain pen, we guide the pen, and the pen lays down the ink in it's interaction with the paper. Some pen-ink-paper combinations will demand that we slow down to lay down a satisfactory line. If that is a problem, and you need to write faster, then you must change something in the triad. Pressing harder -other than to a very mild degree- is not a solution.

[TSherbs]

I cannot understand why no-one has suggested that you try a few Platinum Preppys at Amazon or JetPens (Jetpens also has information on their site which might be of interest to you).

 

....

The Plaisir was recommended twice, but the poster responded that he/she wants closer to the weight of the Metro and not another "featherlight" plastic pen.

[Drone]

Keep buying really inexpensive pens until you get the hang of it! :-)

 

How to stop dropping fountain pens: Use only rare and expensive pens that you cherish.

Edited October 7, 2018 by Drone

[BaronWulfraed]

 

How to stop dropping fountain pens: Use only rare and expensive pens that you cherish.

 

Doesn't help... The gold nib that I need to send out for straightening is on a 2003 Conklin Nozac (pre-YAFA)... And that's the SECOND time that pen rolled off a table and fell nib-first -- it's been bent twice within a two year period.

[tamiya]

Love Metros (got a few in rotation, lost count of total owned) but they're desk bound; if you're wrecking nibs on the go I'd stick with rollerball Metro.

 

Big fan of Lamy AlStar too, they share desktop with my Metros.

 

Both come in so many colours, why waste time buying singly go 2-3 each shopping trip

[Brianm_14]

The OP is spending a lot of his -and others- time on debating the merits of various, very, very inexpensive pens. Overall, this seems to be going nowhere. It is growing wearisome.

 

Why not order a few, and see what experience teaches you? Also, you can learn, by using several inexpensive pens, how to be careful with fountain pens. Can someone post a list of, say, four or five pens for our friend to try? Please, only one Chinese pen on this list given the poor QC, unless you direct him to a seller such as His Nibs, who screens and adjusts such pens before sending them out (and Norman does a good job in my experince).

 

In my lifetime of buying and using FP, I've found that my criteria for what constitutes a "good pen" has broadened along with my experience. Imagine that! A few grams here or there now is meaningless, to me as I think in terms of an holistic writing experience.

 

So to the Original poster: can you spend a few bucks on learning? Some things can be learned, but Not taught. You have to try a few inexpensive pens for yourself before we can help you. You must show you value our time and experience, as well as your relatively few dollars invested in beginners pens. As was once said in another, quite different context, but which is nontheless applicable here, there is no royal road to gaining the experience you need.

[Brianm_14]

Well, that depends on how similar you want the weight. Not all plastic pens are as light as you may think. Some people are more sensitive in this area than others. The Goulet Pens website shows weights. Even if you don't want to buy from them, it's useful. Some weights, with cap:

 

• Metro is 26g
• Eco is 21g (EF nib would be awfully close to Metro F)
• Al-Star is 22g (EF nib will probably be wider than Metro F - this pen is Aluminum, not plastic - Safari is the plastic version)
• Plaisir is 19g (Japanese, so you'd want a F nib)
• 19g for the Online Switch and Slope (I know nothing about these)
• Conklin Victory weighs in around 28g - that might be a good option (I see it at Pen Chalet)
• Kakuno is only 11g (same nib)
• Jinhao x450 is 42g (you could put a Nemosine EF nib in and that would be about a Metro F - IMO, the Nemosine EF is narrower than the Goulet EF; I find the Nemosine EF to be a great nib)
• Jinhao x750 is 36g (same nib comments as x450)
• Jinhao 159 is 50g! (same nib comments)

I'm sure there are others, but not all pen stores show weight, and places like Amazon or eBay don't include weight either.

Maybe weight isn't always shown, because not everone treats it as the alpha and the omega of pen quality!

 

You are obsessing on this weight issue, down to the gram (!) when it will be beside the point if you find a pen or three you like. You are focussing on certain criteria based on almost no real experience. That is generally a total waste of time and money. Break open your wallet and try a few pens! Buy a few pens, some ink, and write -a lot!

 

Seriously, we've pretty much all been in similar spots such as you your are in right now. So take our advice. You are going to buy some good pens, some poor pens, some better and some worse pens, if you continue to struggle to seek the pens which fit you best. You'll waste some money. That is a certainty. But not a critical amount (or you should not be here). You'll ironically waste more money if you try to find the "right" pen immediately. Believe me, you can't get there from here. Not directly, at least!

[Brianm_14]

Am I seeing this right?....They are $1.50-$3??

 

...and not a silver/stainless/chrome trim model in the bunch! Just the yellowist of yellow I've ever seen. I know I didn't mention color but the black and chrome of the Metro is just perfect for my style (matches wedding band, watch, belt buckle, pocket knife clip, etc...)

And at $1.50 -$3 a shot, you cancafford to take this step-by-step: once you find one you like that writes dependably, you can worry about coordinating with your wardrobe. One thing at a time, my friend!