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The Hemisphere Dilemma


rochester21

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I have always had a love-hate relationship with waterman fountain pens, both new and old. Now, as i`m getting older and wiser, i have come to the permanent conclusion that the best fountain pens from waterman are not their top of the line models like the case of other companies, but their entry level pens.

 

Case in point, the Hemisphere. I currently have two of these around, an older marbled one with F nib and gold trim and a modern, plain metal version with M nib and chrome trims. The writing perfomance is flawless, i simply cannot fault them. Didn`t even need to flush mine when i got them, perfect performance from the first try.

 

There are few discussions over this model, and i get it. They have a simple design and they are cheap. It is difficult to get excited over a fountain pen that just writes well and nothing else, but i am so impressed with the quality and the understated design of the Hemisphere, i have become an instant admirer of the line.

 

I have hated all the expensive watermans i have had so far(the gentleman, carene, carene deluxe, le man 100, le man 200, charleston, l`etalon etc) but the ones that stuck around were the CF and now, the Hemishpere. I love them because they are good writers, dependable, and easy to come by. The last CF i bought was a sterling version for which i paid 50 dollars, both of the Hemisphere pens were 12 bucks each, brand new without a box. That`s value for money right there.

 

Before getting my first Hemishpere i swore i will never buy a waterman again, because their expensive models are just so....let`s say quirky and unreliable, they suck the life out of me. Even models that are better designed and otherwise good writers(l`etalon comes to mind) felt so badly proportioned in my hand that i just could not love them no matter how hard i tried.

 

Anyway, this post is meant to encourage new users to buy the cheaper Hemisphere pens and totally forget about paying big bucks to get one of the more expensive models. They are way better than people say they are, and that`s the reason i was so late at buying one for myself until recently.

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I would concur, with a minor caveat: Pre-1950s Waterman pens are great (pretty much the entire line), while the post 1950s pens are not.

 

Enjoy your Hemispheres!

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I am coming to that same conclusiones as I try pens.

 

Waterman entry and mid level pens, specially from the 80s and 90s, are among the greatest performers of all time. When a newbie asks for recommedation, I always suggest one of these.

 

Same happens with Lamys, but that's other subforum.

 

I would be perfectly happy limiting myself to this type of pens, IF (and yes, it is a big if) they would come with the full assortment of nibs, mainly stubs and obliques. This is not the case, however.

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  • 6 months later...

I recently bought a Sheaffer Prelude and was so impressed with it that I was wondering if I was missing something in the Waterman offerings. I do have a Waterman Carene and like it. It writes well. 

 

I decided to try the hemisphere. Although it writes, the tip of the nib is an unsightly (for me) blob that makes for a boring writing experience to boot. What I mean by boring is that a roller ball would work as well. Out of interest I tilted and rotated this nib in all ways and it wrote just the same. I tried reverse writing but it was scratchy. I was surprised since the blob of tipping is big and it’s round. 

 

waterman_hemisphere.jpg.7cc7b672039503cfb2419cdc7c522243.jpg

 

There are a lot of reliable writing experiences that are more interesting (IMO) and for a similar price. Of course, if you like the metal finish then the options are less, for sure. 

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It's an OK model, with an OK nib, I agree with you.

It writes alright, it's smooth (I assume you have the medium nib), it's reliable, but it's boring, yes.

It does what it's supposed to do, though: it lays down ink consistently.  I can't fault the pen for being bland, it is what it is. In fact, the writing experience matches the look of the pen, in my opinion.  I originally bought it because, if I remember correctly, I came upon a good deal and wanted to try out another modern Waterman model (this was many years ago). Would I buy it again? No.

 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...

I’m partial to the Waterman Perspective myself, among the recent models. But I do love my two Man 100 models (one Opera, one Patrician). I also have a Charleston, Carene, and Exception and they all write well but I find them boring. 

S.T. Dupont Ellipsis 18kt M nib

Opus 88 Flow steel M nib

Waterman Man 100 Patrician Coral Red 18kt factory stub nib

Franklin-Christoph Model 19 with Masuyama 0.7mm steel cursive italic nib

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Indeed, the writing performance of the Hemisphere is solid and reliable, I wrote a full book manuscript (22500 words) with my 2019 model. I dislike that Waterman did not polish the injection molding residues from the grip section - they let you feel what you get for the money.

As a daily writer I like my Carene with F nib way more, while the Perspective is (as long as it is closed) among the most beautiful pens I know. I would love to merge the best sides of them into one pen.

One life!

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  • 1 month later...

I have a hemisphere pen that I have not been using since may be 3- years as the clip part of the cap became loose. Anyone has any idea how to tighten it?

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