Penbbs 471 - Eyedropper Pocket Pen

[taike]

 

There's a direction connection between the new PenBBS 471 pocket pen and the PenBBS 469 double-ended eyedropper.

 

 

Take a PenBBS 469, chop it in half, make a couple of changes and the PenbBBS 471 emerges:

• Add threads on the base and the top of the cap so the pieces go together.
• Add a connector ring that fits either end to open more configuration options.

 

The PenBBS 471 can be assembled in a couple different ways:

• No ring - the smallest & lightest option. The cap screws onto the base for a nice, small pen.

• Ring attached to base. The end of the cap screws into the ring for a longer, more stylish pen.

• Ring on end of cap. The fancy variation of the first option.

 

Of the three, the second it my favorite. I like the look of the pen with the ring in the middle. Unfortunately, this means that the back of the pen is open which can feel a bit like staring into the abyss when writing.

 

In a lot of ways, the ring is what makes this pen. It's cool! The flat spots along the edges are a great touch.

 

 

The pen feels light so it doesn't really matter where you have the ring, or if it's not there at all.

 

 

To me, the size difference with the ring also doesn't make much difference.

• 86mm closed with ring (82mm w/o ring)
• 132mm open with right (127mm w/o ring)
• 14mm barrel diameter

 

The ring does make a good base for standing the pen on end. Being metal, it's sturdy and the larger diameter keeps the pen stable. The ring also has flat spots along its edges (15 to my count)  so the pen doesn't tend to roll around when it's on its side.

 

The cap goes on and off off in 2¼ turns. It's kind of a lot, but given that getting the pen ready to write takes two steps, the pen isn't really designed for speedy deployment.

• With no ring, the cap fits on the base in a quick ¾ turn.
• With the ring, the caps goes onto the base 1¼ turns.

I found the cap goes on and off smoothly and isn't prone to cross threading.

 

Attaching the cap to the base, however, is a different story. With or without the ring, things didn't work particularly well when trying to get it on quickly. It requires some deliberate attention.

 

PenBBS Round F Nib

 

As delivered, the F nib was disappointing. Poor flow and not overly smooth. Writing with more pressure helped, but the nib needed attention. At first, I thought it might be the ink, but turns out not.

 

 

Flossing with a nib tool and a bit of micomesh time did the trick. After tuning, the nib writes nicely. Good flow, smooth and a comfortable line. I like it.

 

 

Quirky But Enchanting

 

Bottom line? the PenBBS 471 at first comes off as something of a bauble. At least when closed.

 

Surprisingly, assembled for writing it's as big as a PenBBS 355.  And less than two grams lighter.

 

 

If anything, the PenBBS 471 writes better than it should. The balance is comfortably forward, and while there's a bit of a step from the barrel to the section and the barrel is unergonomically straight, neither is really objectionable. Once it got some attention, the nib proved satisfying. No complaints at all.

 

And like the 469, it's my favorite kind of eyedropper: it's never burped.

 

I can honestly say I wasn't planning on adding a pink/purple pen to my collection. But it does fit my recent interest in purple inks. Plus I'd been avoiding the more exotic acrylics that so many people love about PenBBS and was feeling a little remiss. 

 

So the new release was a chance to splash out on one of premium colors without dropping a ton of cash. At a shade over US$20 plus shipping on the PenBBS taobao flagship store, the 471-39SF is an easy yes.

 

It also gave me a chance to try out the F version of the new PenBBS round nibs.

 

I can understand if folks will give this pen a miss but if you're looking for something a little different for yourself or a friend, the PenBBS 471 is the kind of pen that can keep things interesting.

 

More photos and comments here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Honeybadgers]

stacking two of these, posted, the pen's over 9 inches long

 

I personally don't like this one. The compromises made to give it the #6 nib just make it strictly inferior to the wancai mini in my opinion. The wancai also takes a kaweco clip.

 

nice acrylics as always, but unless you're DYING for a #6 pocket pen, stick with moonman

[Driften]

stacking two of these, posted, the pen's over 9 inches long

 

I personally don't like this one. The compromises made to give it the #6 nib just make it strictly inferior to the wancai mini in my opinion. The wancai also takes a kaweco clip.

 

nice acrylics as always, but unless you're DYING for a #6 pocket pen, stick with moonman

 

 

I like the 471 better then the Wancai mini. I think it being thinner and longer improve the pen. I do agree that stacking two 471's make it way too long of a pen and I don't see myself ever doing that. Of the two 471's I expect I will sell/give one away uninked. My Wancai is cleaned out right now and never really was put into use. I expect it will also go away at some point.

[truthpil]

I still need to get a Wancai to compare, but I've always found the standard Penbbs section to be the most comfortable for my hands. I really enjoy having the same section as on the 308 and 309 put on this little pocket pen because it just feels perfect in my hand. It's long enough that the step between barrel and section doesn't bother me the way it did on the Pilot Metropolitan.

[penzel_washinkton]

Questions for those that have used the Round nibs from PenBBS, what is different from it than regular tipping or the previously used slightly upturned nibs?

When I saw the pen description and the nib was RF, I thought it was a typo of some sorts.

 

stacking two of these, posted, the pen's over 9 inches long

 

I personally don't like this one. The compromises made to give it the #6 nib just make it strictly inferior to the wancai mini in my opinion. The wancai also takes a kaweco clip.

 

nice acrylics as always, but unless you're DYING for a #6 pocket pen, stick with moonman

 

Or the 471 might be interesting for people that want an affordable pocket pen and have a standard color (they have a plain black version that is quite simplistic)

[Driften]

The round nib is just a normal nib like most every brand has. Mine has worked nice.

[Honeybadgers]

Questions for those that have used the Round nibs from PenBBS, what is different from it than regular tipping or the previously used slightly upturned nibs?

When I saw the pen description and the nib was RF, I thought it was a typo of some sorts.

 

 

Or the 471 might be interesting for people that want an affordable pocket pen and have a standard color (they have a plain black version that is quite simplistic)

 

the old nibs had the most ever-so-slight architect effect.

 

The new nibs are insanely underwhelming to me. I don't like any of the 4-5 new F nibs I got, all were dry and overpolished to the point of being skippy and unpleasant on smooth paper, and both mediums write okay, but no better than the old model (which looks nicer too)

Edited February 5, 2019 by Honeybadgers

[truthpil]

I agree about the new rounded fine ones being skippy, I only have one so far and still haven't been able to get it to write properly. The medium nibs can be pretty good or at least a nice starting point with all that tipping.

 

However,almost all the original upturned nibs I got were totally unusable until I put a lot of work into spreading and aligning the tines. Several wouldn't write at all.

[penzel_washinkton]

 

the old nibs had the most ever-so-slight architect effect.

 

The new nibs are insanely underwhelming to me. I don't like any of the 4-5 new F nibs I got, all were dry and overpolished to the point of being skippy and unpleasant on smooth paper, and both mediums write okay, but no better than the old model (which looks nicer too)

 

 

So the rounded nibs is basically a standard Fine / Medium nib?

 

That is a bummer, so far I have no issues with my PenBBS pens, albeit the dryness. At least it's not Moonman 80s level dryness which is hard to tolerate for me.

[truthpil]

 

 

So the rounded nibs is basically a standard Fine / Medium nib?

 

That is a bummer, so far I have no issues with my PenBBS pens, albeit the dryness. At least it's not Moonman 80s level dryness which is hard to tolerate for me.

Yeah, "rounded" is Penbbs terminology for a standard nib without the upturned tipping.

 

For me at least, most of the old style stock Penbbs nibs were so dry ink wouldn't even make it to the paper or the tines were all out of whack when the pen arrived. Those few that were in good shape were just amazingly smooth and had that nice touch of archtitect grind line variation.

 

So far I've got three of the new rounded nibs, one fine and two mediums. The fine has alignment issues, but at the right angle is glassy smooth. The mediums are also just as smooth as the most expensive Western medium, but also needed some tine and flow adjustment out of the box. The work it takes to get many of them to work right is why I don't complain when Chinese penmakers use plain vanilla German nibs like Schmidt or JoWo.

[truthpil]

I just got my Moonman Wancai to compare with the 471 and I actually find the machining to be a little better and the pen is overall easier to use. After comparing both, I think the only advantages of the 471 over the Wancai are the mutlitude of beautiful acrylic options and the ability to use #6 nibs. Even the Wancai nib wrote smoother than the stock nibs on my 471s, but I may have just been lucky.

[taike]

I just got my Moonman Wancai to compare with the 471 and I actually find the machining to be a little better and the pen is overall easier to use. After comparing both, I think the only advantages of the 471 over the Wancai are the mutlitude of beautiful acrylic options and the ability to use #6 nibs. Even the Wancai nib wrote smoother than the stock nibs on my 471s, but I may have just been lucky.

 

I also got a Moonman Wancai to compare with the 471 and agree that they are very similar - with the Wancai winning the price battle by a mile.

 

The two areas where I prefer the 471 are: 1) being able to sit the pen on end and 2) the length when assembled for writing.

 

The rounded ends of the Wancai mean it will never sit upright, whereas the ring makes a solid base for the 471 to stand on end. I find I pose the pens that way much more than I expected. Perhaps because when they're on end they don't roll around.

 

Lengthwise, its the ring that again makes the difference. With the ring in the middle, the pen is quite a bit longer than the Wancai and fits in my hand better for writing.

 

The big bonus with the Wancai is the material. The transparent green has got to be the same material as PenBBS vermouth. Love it.

 

For me the nibs on both are fine. The PenBBS round F nibs have all needed work for me but after they are excellent. The round Ms have been great w/o needing attention. The stock Wancai nib writes very well but I am thinking the pen might be a candidate for one of the #5 stub nibs I have not yet pressed into service.

[truthpil]

Good point about the ring on the 471. The funny thing is, for me the ring is both a plus and a minus. I also tend to use it as a pen base and I appreciate how it adds weight to the pen, but I find the threading makes it much more difficult to post the 471 with the ring than without the ring or the Wancai. I can post the 471 without ring and the Wancai even with my eyes closed, but it always takes me several tries to successfully post with the ring.

 

After spending a couple days with the Wancai, I can say that the additional girth of the 471 is a huge plus for me. My thumb always starts to cramp after writing two pages on A5 paper with the Wancai due to the drastic step down to the section. The 471's wider girth thanks to the #6 nib makes a huge difference for me in writing comfort, despite the step being a little sharper than that of the Wancai. As a jotter for quick notes, the Wancai with its true fine or extra fine nib wins, but for writing anything more than a few lines the 471 takes the cake.

[taike]

snip

 

...but I find the threading makes it much more difficult to post the 471 with the ring than without the ring or the Wancai. I can post the 471 without ring and the Wancai even with my eyes closed, but it always takes me several tries to successfully post with the ring.

 

snip

 

++ Yup. Can't be in a hurry.