Moonman C1 - Scrivinor Review

[Billingsgate]

 

Having not done that yet, I figured I should try. It works.

 

I fit a Jowo 1.1 stub into a Moonman nib unit and swapped that into the C1. Writes very nicely.

 

Moonman #6 nibs are one size at this point so no finer versions available yet to the best of my knowledge.

Thank you for your daring experiment on my behalf. Sincerely appreciated. I'm certainly going to give the Moonman nib a try for a couple weeks, considering how well regarded it is. But it's quite nice to know what my alternatives are.

[Billingsgate]

I found this full replacement nib unit for the Moonman M2. They even throw in spare o-rings. I wonder whether the nibs and o-rings are compatible with the C1? Are Moonman nibs interchangeable?

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KR1HYS5

[Honeybadgers]

No, the M2's nib is a #5 and interchanges with other #5 nib moonman pens, but the C1 is a #6. You can exchange it with any #6 or another moonman #6 (the moonman #6 nibs all have that sorta monteverde-conklin look)

 

I adore my C1. the flat ground into it means that it fits right on my desk and won't roll away, and the quick capping, single start threads and perfect machining just make it feel awesome in the hand for writing absolutely forever, and the nib on it is absolutely without fault. Perfect feedback, perfect flow,

 

It can't post and it doesn't have a clip, so it's definitely a desk/drawer/purse pen, but I've had mine inked about two months now as an eyedropper and the acrylic is still crystal clear.

[JollyCynic]

I found this full replacement nib unit for the Moonman M2. They even throw in spare o-rings. I wonder whether the nibs and o-rings are compatible with the C1? Are Moonman nibs interchangeable?

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07KR1HYS5

 

They do make full replacement nib units for the C1/M600S/M6/other size 6 Moonman pens. If you want to search on eBay, they usually calll it a #35 nib after the length of the nib in millimetres, rather than the width of the feed it sits on. Searching for something like Moonman 35 nib should get you a few results. I even found some on Amazon using that search string.

[Billingsgate]

 

They do make full replacement nib units for the C1/M600S/M6/other size 6 Moonman pens. If you want to search on eBay, they usually calll it a #35 nib after the length of the nib in millimetres, rather than the width of the feed it sits on. Searching for something like Moonman 35 nib should get you a few results. I even found some on Amazon using that search string.

Thanks. I found the Ebay listing and wrote to the seller, who informed me the replacements are the same as those that ship with the pen, that is, a F/M nib.

 

Anyway, I'm talking hypothetically now. Waiting to get the pen. I may fall in love with the fine/medium nib and can drop the idea of swapping for a skinnier one.

 

My wife is looking forward to trying it too. She's the fluent Chinese-speaker, who placed the order for me on Taobao. She has caught the fountain pen bug from me, and now she is constantly showing me obscure, beautiful, and some simply weird pens from about a gazillion Chinese pen manufacturers, all costing pocket change. And has ordered a few truly nice ones for herself. If you want to go pen-lust crazy, hop onto Taobao!

[Honeybadgers]

I dunno why but the F/M in my C1 is just amazing. I don't normally love nibs in that mediumish size range, but it's juicy and smooth and never, EVER skips or hard starts.

 

The one in my M6 is a little less great, but just needed a hair of smoothing to make it so.

[Billingsgate]

Just got my Moonman C1 yesterday and filled it with juicy Monteverde Purple Reign, which is supposed to be formulated to prevent skips or hard starts. It is a very wet ink, and the nib is silky smooth, yet I get a hard start every time if I pause writing for more than 5 seconds. And it occasionally skips if the ink flow is not constant. That: if writing cursive with connected letters, no skip. But writing individual letters, which is my norm, it skips sometimes on the vertical.

 

I get the feeling the tines need adjustment, though my (inexperienced) eye sees nothing out of alignment. If I angle the nib the slightest bit to the left, it hardly writes, while if I angle it hard right, no problem. Writes much better holding the pen at a very high angle, then no skipping and fewer hard starts, but that is not natural for me. Fully vertical works best. Yes, I cleaned it with weak dish detergent and rinsed many times before filling. Flossed it with brass sheets too. I wonder if anyone else has this experience with the Moonman C1 nib. I have no idea how to adjust the tines, and returning it to a Taobao seller is a non-starter.

 

Any suggestions?

 

On the positive side, this could be the most comfortable pen to hold among all my pens, and it looks outstanding. It would be nice to use this as an EDC pen.

Edited August 7, 2019 by Billingsgate

[Honeybadgers]

Monteverde inks are psychotically smooth but can be prone to making pens hard start if they have the barest hint of baby's bottom.

 

First, clean the nib with soapy water (do this for all pens, even if the nib isn't removable, flush it several times with soapy water and then a lot of regular water. Do it for every pen, no matter what it cost)

 

If that doesn't help, change inks. I didn't really believe it for a while, but some pens just hate some inks. My waterman ideal superflex hates monteverde fireopal and diamine registrars, but everything else I've ever tried has been fine.

 

If that doesn't help, maybe you've got a tiny bit of baby's bottom. You can either get some micro mesh and take care of it yourself, or buy a new nib for a few bucks.

 

No pen maker is immune from occasional nib failures in QC. Not even pelikan or visconti.

Edited August 8, 2019 by Honeybadgers

[Billingsgate]

I finally performed my first ever nib swap, fitting a Jowo #6 EF, rhodium coated for good measure by FP Nibs, into my Moonman C1. Very easy, fits perfectly. I also switched to DeAtramentis Document Purple ink, which is just the right wetness for me. Solved the problem of hard starts and a line that was fatter than I like. Thank you for the advice from others in this thread.

 

Now everything is wonderful. This pen is extremely comfortable to write with, looks fabulous, and the Jowo EF has just the right hint of feedback for my tastes.

 

Now to get a few more of these Moonman C1's so I can have a rainbow assortment of different colour inks.

Edited September 11, 2019 by Billingsgate