Clef, by Tryphon

[TMann]

One of the fun things about being a pen enthusiast is that there are so many different "flavors" of pens out there to try. There are pens with broad nibs, fine nibs, italic nibs, and flexible nibs. There are small pens, large oversized pens and everything in between. And for materials, there are metal pens, hard rubber pens, transparent pens, and --in the case of the pen being reviewed here-- pens made of marbled celluloid resin. The "Clef", made by Tryphon of Italy, arrived at my home a few days ago, and it has quickly become one of my favorites. The beautiful exterior is made up of rich combination of brown, red, and black. It is one of those materials whose appearance is almost impossible to capture adequately in a photograph. Trust me, though, it's beautiful!

 

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b143/TRM2005/Clef_3.jpg

 

The name Clef, as you might guess, comes from the musical notation. There is a small medallion that sits atop the cap of this pen that has an engraved treble clef sign. It's a stylish, but discreet touch.

 

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b143/TRM2005/Clef_5.jpg

 

The Clef is a mid-sized pen, being very similar in size to my Pelikan m605. It feels as though it weighs a bit more than the Pelikan, but it is in no way a heavy pen. It is feels "sturdy", but still retains that feeling of being light in the hand when you hold it. I rarely post my pens, but this pen feels good whether it's posted or not. The pen is 5 3/8 inches in length when capped, and 6 1/2 inches when posted.

 

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b143/TRM2005/Clef_2.jpg

 

I purchased this pen from Richard Binder's website, so I opted to have him grind the nib into a medium stub. (The standard nib size is a fine/medium.) Richard tweaks all of the pens that he sells so that they are writing smoothly when they arrive in your hands, and this one was no exception. There is just enough line variation with this stub nib to add some interest to your letters, but not so much that it slows down your writing. The nib has a pretty two-tone exterior and writes beautifully!. (The "stripes" that you see in the photo are reflections of other items in my office and aren't present on the actual nib. )

 

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b143/TRM2005/Clef_4.jpg

 

As I was finishing up this review, I just happened to read Tim Butterfield's excellent review of his Taccia Doric. The Doric and the Clef are similar pens in many ways. They're both great writing pens, they both have a striking appearance, and they are both great values. The Clef is priced at $75 at Richard Binder's site; it is also available at Parkville Pens for a similar amount.

 

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b143/TRM2005/Clef_1.jpg

 

I am very much smitten with my new pen. It has a beautiful finish that is unlike anything else that I own. It has a solid, balanced feel, and of course, the Binder stub writes beautifully. It's a great pen.

 

TMann

 

(Edit: I edited out my comment about Taccia being based in Italy. I must have been thinking of another company. )

Edited December 5, 2005 by TMann

[FLZapped]

Cool Pen, how does this puppy fill? Can you thow up a couple shots with the innards exposed?

 

Thanks,

 

-Bruce

[TMann]

Cool Pen, how does this puppy fill? Can you thow up a couple shots with the innards exposed?

 

Thanks,

 

-Bruce

Bruce,

 

It's a c/c filler. Nothing too exciting there.

 

TMann

[davyr]

that's a beauty, tmann! i have a soft spot for italian pens in general, and autumnal colors specifically. that's really a change in color for you, iirc, you were more into blues and blacks. i really dig the treble clef detail.

 

how do you like the pr copper burst, btw?

[southpaw]

TMann, great review! That's a beautiful pen. Liked the looks but wondered how it would drive. Thanks for shedding light on the subject. Too many great pens out there today. Or should I say far too little $ in my pen budget .

[Slush99]

Nice pen and review! I should get one... :ph34r:

[TMann]

that's a beauty, tmann!  i have a soft spot for italian pens in general, and autumnal colors specifically.  that's really a change in color for you, iirc, you were more into blues and blacks.   i really dig the treble clef detail.  

 

how do you like the pr copper burst, btw?

@ DavyR - Thanks for the nice words. I, too really like "autumnal" colors. For pens, though, I've always gravitated towards understated color schemes -- hence, the large amount of black and blue in my pen collection. I guess I need to get out of my rut a bit.

 

As for the Copper Burst ink...it's a nice color, but I think that I would get more use out of it if it wasn't quite so light. I tend to like darker, richer colors for my inks, so I'm most using black, and a few different shades of blue. I know that there are a TON of brown inks out there; I just need to go out and buy a bottle or two!

 

TMann, great review! That's a beautiful pen. Liked the looks but wondered how it would drive. Thanks for shedding light on the subject. Too many great pens out there today. Or should I say far too little $ in my pen budget sad.gif .

@ Southpaw - The Clef is my second "mid-range-Italian" pen, (the Filcao Columbia would be the other one,) and I must say that I've been very pleased with the way that these two pens write. I suppose that part of the credit must go to Mr. Binder's tweaking, since both pens originally came from his online store, but I understand that both of these pens write pretty well straight out of the box.

 

So many pens, and so little money...

 

TMann

[Maja]

Another great review and pictures, Ted! Thanks so much for posting this.

I too was a bit surprised at your acquisition of a non-blue/non-black pen

It's a lovely pattern (reminds me a bit of my Autumn Flake Laban Mento) and the stub nib looks like it lays down a very nice line (Bravo, Richard!) so I'm sure you'll get lots of happy writing experiences from it. Congratulations!!

[TMann]

I too was a bit surprised at your acquisition of a non-blue/non-black pen.

Wow...you're the second person to have mentioned that. I must be getting a bit predictable in my old age...

 

TMann

[TimButterfield]

TMann,

 

That's a nice review of a pretty pen, and one at a decent price, too. That color reminds me of my Aspen Grande, though at less than half the price. I keep thinking I need to put some brown toned ink in my Grande instead of the black ink it currently holds. Your sample furthers that thought. I guess I'll need to cave and buy some.

 

Are all Taccia pens made in Italy? I know the company name sounds Italian, though the name of the owner, Shu-Jen Lin, sounds more Chinese. The company is out of California and the only international distributer is in France. It would be nice to know where my Doric was made. Do you have any further insights?

 

Thanks.

[TMann]

Are all Taccia pens made in Italy?  I know the company name sounds Italian, though the name of the owner, Shu-Jen Lin, sounds more Chinese.  The company is out of California and the only international distributer is in France.

Tim,

 

Hey there! You know, I have to admit that I may have been wrong about Taccia. I was under the impression that it was based in Italy, but perhaps I was thinking of another company. Anyone out there know more about this?

 

TMann

 

(Maybe I need to edit my review. )

Edited December 5, 2005 by TMann

[emrecan]

Hi TMann

Nice looking pen and thanks for the review.

 

Take Care

Emrecan

[tryphon]

Are all Taccia pens made in Italy?  I know the company name sounds Italian, though the name of the owner, Shu-Jen Lin, sounds more Chinese.  The company is out of California and the only international distributer is in France.

Tim,

 

Hey there! You know, I have to admit that I may have been wrong about Taccia. I was under the impression that it was based in Italy, but perhaps I was thinking of another company. Anyone out there know more about this?

 

TMann

 

(Maybe I need to edit my review. )

Taccia pens are beautifully made in Taiwan. They are excellent value for money.

Tryphon is my company. I thank you for the great review of the Clef!

The Clef is made of italian resin, to our specifications in the Far East, not in Italy.

The finish is impeccable and let me assure you that the nibs are outstanding out of the box!

They constitute outstanding value for money. We are diversifying our product lineup and the Clef shows that pens of the highest standard can be sourced in the Far East. The Clef is probably my smoothest and most reliable pen.

[TMann]

Taccia pens are beautifully made in Taiwan. They are excellent value for money.

Tryphon is my company. I thank you for the great review of the Clef!

The Clef is made of italian resin, to our specifications in the Far East, not in Italy.

The finish is impeccable and let me assure you that the nibs are outstanding out of the box!

They constitute outstanding value for money. We are diversifying our product lineup and the Clef shows that pens of the highest standard can be sourced in the Far East. The Clef is probably my smoothest and most reliable pen.

 

Italian resin...Far East manufacturing...hmm...apparently I need to stop mentioning the "country of origin" when I'm doing my pen reviews. It's too confusing with this modern global economy!

 

It's a great pen, no matter WHERE it came from. Thanks for making it available!

 

TMann

[Ann Finley]

Beautiful pen, Ted. I'm surprised it was under $100. Thanks for cluing us in!

 

Best, Ann

[Yuri]

TMann,

 

great review and photos. Saliva dribbles out of my mouth.

Richard out of these pens

 

Does Clef come only with F/M nib or there are F or even EF?

Is it good starter after sitting unused for a while?

[tryphon]

TMann,

 

great review and photos. Saliva dribbles out of my mouth.

Richard out of these pens

 

Does Clef come only with F/M nib or there are F or even EF?

Is it good starter after sitting unused for a while?

The Clef comes with a very smooth M nib. It is one of the smoothest out-of-the-box nibs I have ever seen.

It is in stock at the distributor, so our retailers should have no trouble ordering it from us. Beautiful pen, great celluloid, impeccably finished.

[Guest Denis Richard]

Gio,

 

do you plan on releasing this model in different colours/patterns ?

Edited April 25, 2006 by Denis Richard

[Ruaidhri]

TMann, lovely pen. Even as an 'anti red' I like this one.

Too bad it doesn't have the solid weight and sheer size of the Kika, Gio :roflmho:

[DrPJM1]

Thanks for your nice review. Enjoy your new pen!