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Graf von Faber Castell Guilloche


jandrese

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This is a review of the Graf von Faber-Castell Guilloche in Coral (red).

 

 

 

Compared to most pens the Graf is quite slim, perhaps as skinny as a Sheaffer’s Thin Model snorkel filler pens of the 1950’s. The Guilloche gets its name from the machining process used to make the pattern on the pen body, a type of engraving styled as grain guilloche. The labor-intensive method produces a handsome and subtly unique pen. After cutting the pattern, the plastic body is lacquered and polished. The endcap is polished metal with a ring of short cuts to give it some texture. The fluted cap is evidently rhodium-plated silver and features a large spring-loaded clip and a plastic liner. The shiny cap is hefty and makes the pen top heavy and the clip would be very nice if it was stronger. While it is somewhat unusual that the clip will accommodate thick shirt pockets, folders, or multiple sheets of paper the grip is not strong enough to keep the pen from slipping out of your pocket or off the sheets of paper. Once my pen fell out of my shirt pocket and onto concrete, but thankfully it was a short fall and the pen survived nearly unscathed.

 

 

 

The metal grip section is polished smooth but gently contoured for a more secure grip. The cap snaps onto the section with a satisfyingly strong click. Tolerances are very tight on this pen. The converter slips into the barrel like a piston fits into a cylinder; there is no play whatsoever. I can almost hear the air being pushed out of the pen body as the section/cartridge is being replaced after filling it with ink. The medium nib is rhodium-plated 18 ct. gold and, like the rest of the pen, appears well made.

 

 

 

Despite the lightweight, slim design the Guilloche is comfortable to write with although posting the cap unbalances the pen. Not a generous or wet writer the nib lays down a consistent line without hesitation or skipping. I tend to press kinda hard into paper anyway but for some reason this pen causes me to press harder than normal even though I don’t need to for it to write well. While it certainly lacks character, the nib on the Guilloche works reliably and the feed supplies just enough ink for happy writing. Even after days of sitting around unused the Guilloche fires up as if it was just filled with ink. Basically, I only wish the pen were fatter since I prefer bigger pens.

 

post-10928-1215569456_thumb.jpg

 

 

 

All the Guilloche colors are attractive although IMHO the Indigo (blue) and Coral are the best looking. Even the basic colored models are on the expensive side of reasonable, however, they can be had at a discount. I think I paid $220 for mine at Dromgoole’s in Houston, TX although it may have been less. For an old company famous for pencils it takes fountain pens very seriously, and if you try one out I think that you too will like it.

 

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Hello and thank you for the review.

 

Ever since trying one this pen is part of my "to buy" list. How is your nib? The two I tried were quite tactile reminded me of Aurora nibs, albeit stiffer.

Lamy AL-star - 1.1 (Omas Violet)

Nakaya Celluloid Mottishaw F Flex (PR Arabian Rose)

Omas Bologna - M (Noodler's Golden Brown)

Pelikan M620 Grand Place - Binder XF/XXF Flex (Noodler's Navajo Turquoise)

Stipula 22 - 0.9 (Waterman Florida Blue)

Waterman Patrician - M (Waterman Florida Blue)

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Not like Aurora nibs, in the sense that the Graf nib has no tooth like Aurora nibs. It is stiff but smooth.

 

 

Hello and thank you for the review.

 

Ever since trying one this pen is part of my "to buy" list. How is your nib? The two I tried were quite tactile reminded me of Aurora nibs, albeit stiffer.

 

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Great review with massive pictures! We don't have many Graf reviews around here, so good job! :thumbup:

If you want a larger Graf, you're going to have to look at their POY line :puddle: (the 2007 model is by far the best, in my opinion)

 

PRAG

Montblanc 145, F nib
Faber Castell E-Motion in Pearwood, F nib
Montblanc 149, F nib
Visconti Divina Proporzione 1618, S nib
Montblanc Cool Blue Starwalker, EF nib
Montblanc Solitaire Silver Barley BP
Montblanc Rouge et Noir Coral, M nib

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only reason i didn't go for this pen is its slenderness. it is a perfect woman's pen but not fat enough for my hand.

 

have to say though that the e-motion is my favourite modern pen. fat and writes pefectly. buy it- you will not regret it!

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A womans pen! What are you trying to say??? :D

 

Yeah, I have an e-motion too. It is nice but it's not my favorite modern pen....I don't know exactly what that would be.

 

 

only reason i didn't go for this pen is its slenderness. it is a perfect woman's pen but not fat enough for my hand.

 

have to say though that the e-motion is my favourite modern pen. fat and writes pefectly. buy it- you will not regret it!

 

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i have this guilloche in black and it's a wonderfully smooth writer. so is my e-motion, despite its steel nib. i like F-Cs so much i finally got one of my "grail" ones--a pernambuco classic. and by the way, did you know that you can order F-C parts (nibs, caps) online from http://www.faber-castellusa.com? the whole platinum section + gold nib and feed costs about $99. got me an OB ;)

Check out my blog and my pens

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i have this guilloche in black and it's a wonderfully smooth writer. so is my e-motion, despite its steel nib. i like F-Cs so much i finally got one of my "grail" ones--a pernambuco classic. and by the way, did you know that you can order F-C parts (nibs, caps) online from http://www.faber-castellusa.com? the whole platinum section + gold nib and feed costs about $99. got me an OB ;)

 

 

Thanks for the link.

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No offence intended. It is just far too slender for my hand and I don't have o/s hands either.

 

The e-motion is refreshingly fat and different and I love using it. Just wish its cap would stay posted then it would get a 9/10. It presently gets a starred 7/10.

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my e-motion cap does stay posted--mine's the brown wood version.

 

No offence intended. It is just far too slender for my hand and I don't have o/s hands either.

 

The e-motion is refreshingly fat and different and I love using it. Just wish its cap would stay posted then it would get a 9/10. It presently gets a starred 7/10.

 

Check out my blog and my pens

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my e-motion cap does stay posted--mine's the brown wood version.

 

No offence intended. It is just far too slender for my hand and I don't have o/s hands either.

 

The e-motion is refreshingly fat and different and I love using it. Just wish its cap would stay posted then it would get a 9/10. It presently gets a starred 7/10.

 

You have a rare bird indeed then - do not let it go!! Most I have seen do not post crisply, and drop off at the slightest suggestion...

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Is the barrel made of cellulose? If so, I imagine bulletproof inks may be a no-no.

 

Plastic barrel. Anyway, I don't think the bulletproof inks affect celluloid.

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Is the barrel made of cellulose? If so, I imagine bulletproof inks may be a no-no.

 

Plastic barrel. Anyway, I don't think the bulletproof inks affect celluloid.

 

What is bulletproof inks? Can you give an example?

 

Cheers

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Is the barrel made of cellulose? If so, I imagine bulletproof inks may be a no-no.

 

Plastic barrel. Anyway, I don't think the bulletproof inks affect celluloid.

 

What is bulletproof inks? Can you give an example?

 

Cheers

 

 

Bulletproof inks come from Noodler's. Some of their inks bind to cellulose in paper but not to plastic. Thus, they wash off your pens but not paper. Indeed some, like the basic black, are nearly totally solvent insensitive when dry. The permanence of the other colors varies but some component of the ink always refuses to wash off paper. The inks are also supposed to be UV light proof. This is somewhat of an overstatement. Also, most of Noodler's inks are not bulletproof, those that are are advertised that way.

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Is the barrel made of cellulose? If so, I imagine bulletproof inks may be a no-no.

 

Plastic barrel. Anyway, I don't think the bulletproof inks affect celluloid.

 

What is bulletproof inks? Can you give an example?

 

Cheers

 

 

Bulletproof inks come from Noodler's. Some of their inks bind to cellulose in paper but not to plastic. Thus, they wash off your pens but not paper. Indeed some, like the basic black, are nearly totally solvent insensitive when dry. The permanence of the other colors varies but some component of the ink always refuses to wash off paper. The inks are also supposed to be UV light proof. This is somewhat of an overstatement. Also, most of Noodler's inks are not bulletproof, those that are are advertised that way.

 

Thanks for your information with regards to bulletproof inks

 

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  • 7 months later...

Great choice, I bought the cognac. Because of the pull top, and its reliability it's one of the few pens I use as an everydayer.

I line up the clip when capping and I know which way the nib is when I pull it out. Nice and solid and kind of proud looking.

It's rather top heavy when posting, but I never bother anyway.

Thanks

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  • 6 months later...

I actually have the Coral Red in Rollerball and I love it. I received it as a gift and thought I wouldn't like it because it was so slim. But then I tried writing with it and it has some surprising heft to it as well as being well balanced. It's also a pen that attracts a lot of attention. I've had lots of people comment on it while journaling at a coffeehouse or some place.

 

Now I'm after the FP version - I'm looking for an Indigo Fountain Pen in a Medium Nib. Or Broad, if they have it, but I was led to believe that only F & M are/were available.

- OPG4711

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Research what nibs are available on the pen company websites. It's amazing how many stores will say F&M are all that's available, when the reality is, that's all they stock!

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