Cheap Calligraphy Set

[Sailor Kenshin]

OK, so I know I've budgeted myself way low for the year, even though I'm drawn mostly to cheap pens. But with one nervous eye on my bank account, I spared a glance for this little kit and said WANT.

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/ProfessorBunky/Pens%20etc/CheapCalligraphySet.jpg

 

Here's the handwritten tale:

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v474/ProfessorBunky/Pens%20etc/CheapCalligPenReview.jpg

 

There is zero info on manufacturer, not a name printed anywhere, but, you guessed it: Made in China!

 

The carts are in-between length: shorter than a long standard international, longer than a short. Looks like standard internationals will fit. Carts themselves are bent a bit. This did not hinder their performance.

 

 

Six nibs/sections, ranging in size from ultrafine to Signpost Broad---two translucent pens---all for the grand sum of about eleven bucks.

 

Available at AC Moore Craft Supplies. The cheapness and finish of the pens may bug you, or it may not.

 

Is this the bargain of the century or a monumental mistake?

 

We report, you decide.

 

Me, I'm going with 'bargain.' The #2 nib is nicely wet and smooth, and the next day started right up with no problems.

 

I figure I can always give one of the pens as a gift or keep them all for ink testing and Franken-penning.

[lovemy51]

thx, SK!

 

for a buck more, i got myself a sheaffer classic set with 3 diff color pens and a bunch of cartridges about a year ago! :embarrassed_smile:

 

your no name is a nice finding, nevertheless!

Edited August 31, 2010 by lovemy51

[brunico]

Thanks, Sailor Kenshin!

 

You wuz robbed - I got a similar set in the UK store Poundland for, well, a pound. I wanted to do a review but hadn't got macro set up at the time. Ideal for testing ink colours, but a really cheap finish: the clip would snap off if you looked at it funny, and I couldn't imagine writing pages at a time with the thin, sharp-edged section.

 

Still, the italic wasn't too bad. Didn't write enough with it to check flow - but I love cheap stuff, it can be great fun.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Thanks, Sailor Kenshin!

 

You wuz robbed - I got a similar set in the UK store Poundland for, well, a pound. I wanted to do a review but hadn't got macro set up at the time. Ideal for testing ink colours, but a really cheap finish: the clip would snap off if you looked at it funny, and I couldn't imagine writing pages at a time with the thin, sharp-edged section.

 

Still, the italic wasn't too bad. Didn't write enough with it to check flow - but I love cheap stuff, it can be great fun.

 

 

Did yours have a knurled section?

 

That would probably be a pain for long writing sessions.

 

Forgot to add that the kit is, well, in the calligraphy section of the store...

[brunico]

No, the sections look much thinner than yours, with three 'ergonomic' rubbery pads in them. Just too thin for me to grip comfortably. The clip is different, too, going in at the top before flaring out again (like a necktie), and made of silver plastic. But the nibs, feeds, barrel and cap are the same design - though silver nibs and black plastic on mine. I've seen the same basic pen in a few guises, often marketed as a cheap pen for schoolchildren. The brand name is different each time.

[kwpalzang]

The sections remind me of my Manuscripts. Also cheap calligraphy pens. Does this indicate something? Hmmmm...

[Sailor Kenshin]

Update: Though the nib wrote well (even with the cheap and iffy materials of the body/section), I returned the set.

 

It leaked.

 

Not once. But every time I used it.

 

I was tempted to remove the still-full cart, because I liked the green ink color, but told myself it would be stealing. So I boxed the set and returned it with the partly-used cart inside the pen.

 

But the checkout clerk ended up removing the cart anyway because of some idiotic store policy/rule, and got green ink all over herself.