Nakaya 17Mm Portable In Unpolished Shu + Family Portrait

[geoduc]

Red isn't normally my color, but a couple of years ago I had the opportunity to try a Portable Cigar in unpolished shu and fell in love with the finish. Determined to have one of my very own, I worked with Classic Fountain Pens and special ordered a 17mm Portable Cigar. After eight months of waiting, here is the result:

 

 

 

 

The nib is a double broad that John Mottishaw modified to a 0.8mm smooth cursive italic. The unpolished shu finish is difficult to capture in photographs. Under incandescent lighting the color is brick red with a tinge of orange. Under natural or fluorescent lighting it appears to be a pure deep red color. It has plenty of shine, but is a bit less glossy than the standard Nakaya finishes. This gives the pen a slightly more tactile feel and also makes it less prone to showing fingerprints than the other finishes. All in all, it is a simple and elegant pen that I like very much.

 

This pen completes the range of Nakaya finishes and nib sizes that I was seeking to acquire. At this point, I'm satisfied with my collection and don't plan to purchase any more pens for the foreseeable future. With that in mind, I thought I'd include a family portrait of all my Nakayas along with a sample from the various nibs. From left to right, the pens are:

 

Long Cigar - custom color (oitake iro - old bamboo) with ishime section and a 0.9mm smooth cursive italic

Neo Standard - heki tamenuri with a 0.7mm stub

Neo Standard - kuro tamenuri with a 0.6mm stub

Portable Writier - black with an unmodified soft medium

17mm Portable Cigar - aka tamenuri with a music nib modified to a smooth cursive italic

17mm Porrtable Cigar - unpolished shu with a 0.8mm smooth cursive italic

 

 

 

 

[teenytina]

Absolute pure beauty. I read once that the Japanese have a separate word for pure, simple beauty -- this has to qualify. Wish I remembered what the word was.

[hari317]

Lovely pen and nib! Congrats!

[quinden]

I am also a fan of the unpolished shu, and yours is a fantastic example. Congratulations, geoduc!

[Mastiff]

Congratulations!

 

You are an extremely lucky person to have all those beautiful pens.

+ your writing is just stunning. Exemplary.

[ethernautrix]

I LOVE the unpolished shu!

 

I was surprised that I loved it so much, given how much I love the solid black and the various tamenuri finishes.

 

I would LOVE to have the unpolished shu with the black matte texture -- a matte unpolished shu. I was thinking about contacting Nakaya to see if they can do it, but I'm not sure I should be ordering any more pens at the moment.

[dms525]

Another unpolished shu admirer checks in.

 

I'll take mine in a Naka-ai, please.

 

Lovely Nakaya family, Geoduc!

 

If I remember correctly, the "17 mm" refers to the the section diameter. Is that correct? That is something I would like to try, I think it would be comfortable for longer writing sessions and might discourage a "death grip."

 

David

[JLS1]

Congrats on the new addition, Geoduc...it's a beauty. Now all you need is a Ferrari to go with it!

[Joe in Seattle]

Sweet! I love my portable writer, too.

[trax]

Beautiful collection, and amazing new pen!

My only Nakaya so far (another one on order) is an unpolished shu Naka-ai with a BB stub (dms525, it is a lovely finish for a Naka-ai!)

I love the color too. Very earthy/organic/calming Congrats on reaching the collection you've aimed for!

[geoduc]

Thanks for all of the kind comments. I do indeed feel fortunate to have a nice group of Nakayas and I get a lot of enjoyment out of them. The rest of my small collection struggles to make it into the rotation these days. I just have to keep the oitake-iro and the unpolished shu separated - the colors are very nice on their own but the combination is pretty hideous.

 

Ether, I'm not sure how I'd feel about a matte shu (gesundheit!). One of the things I like about the unpolished shu is the subtle depth of the finish that allows you to see some of the layering underneath and I'm afraid that would be lost with the matte finish. I've actually wondered about the kikyo or midori color done in a matte finish; I think that could be interesting.

 

Another unpolished shu admirer checks in.

 

I'll take mine in a Naka-ai, please.

 

Lovely Nakaya family, Geoduc!

 

If I remember correctly, the "17 mm" refers to the the section diameter. Is that correct? That is something I would like to try, I think it would be comfortable for longer writing sessions and might discourage a "death grip."

 

David

 

Hi David,

 

The 17 mm is the diameter of the body (normal Portables are 15 mm). The section on the 17 mm pens is about a millimeter larger in diameter than the regular Nakayas - doesn't sound like much, but it's a very noticeable difference in the hand. You're exactly right in that I find the larger section more comfortable and I tend to grip it less tightly, thus the pen is very nice to use for long sessions.

[elderberry]

A beautiful flock of Nakayas! Also the group shot has helped me decide that most likely unpolished shu is not for me. The color strays into the direction of orange for quite a bit. That's good to know too.

 

Still I love your 17mm portables! My Negoro is a weird in-between size. It was sold as the usual portable size but it's definitely fatter than my other portables. 16 mm maybe. Also it doesn't have that nice elongated section.

[Pen Nut]

Great pen and love the writing samples !

 

Oh and I am always getting pulled about my unpolished shoes

[Painterspal]

Lovely pen and a great collection - you can add me to the chorus of admiration too!

 

I have two unpolished shu pens, a Nakaya Long Piccolo and a Danitrio Mae West. The red colour varies slightly between the two - both are lovely -but the added feeling of tactility in the hand is the same and make them among my favourite pens. There's something about the finish that really emphasisies their unfussy, unpretentious, day in, day out workhorse nature that I really love. I wish Nakaya made this finish for the Decapod Twist as I think the way the red breaks on the threads and edges is very subtle and would work beautifully.

 

I also think these 17mm portable cigars are a lovely design. I particularly like that they use the longer section which really balances the look of the pen and would, I'm sure, make them supremely comfortable to hold.

 

The only think I balk at is the 8 month wait!

[WOBentley]

_{Wonderful collection indeed! I love the unpolished shu and was thinking about a Naka-ai...hmmmmmm}

_{Congratulations of your wonderful collection. Next time I am up your way maybe I will have to arrange to make it to a Pen meeting and hope to get a look first hand!}

[Lady Spencerian]

A handsome and photogenic group indeed! Congratulations on the latest addition to the family! Are you sure that six is enough? Seven seems a more propitious number. I know I have been out of the loop, and a poor correspondent but, why did I think you also had a dorsal fin? Somehow I missed the arrival of the bamboo green (stunning color, BTW). Having gone more than a year and a half without ordering a new Nakaya, I am beginning to feel the itch again... It's hopeless.

[1962falcon]

Hi Geoduc.... Stunning collection, thanks for taking the time to make the post, providing such great photos and the writing sample.

 

Was particularly delighted to get eyes on a Shu unploshed as I decided, on an unseen basis, apart from the photos on John's site, to buy a Nakaya in this finish. I had a hunch I was going to like it and your photos have convinced me I made a good decsion!

 

I bought the Naka-ai Writer with one of John's custom grinds to give me 0.8-0.9 stub. My pen has now arrived in the UK and is awaiting customs clearance, hopefully, this will happen in the next few days. It will join a Dorsal Fin V2 in Aka-tamenuri which BTW is an absolute stunner in every sense.

 

Regards, Falcon

[ethernautrix]

Ether, I'm not sure how I'd feel about a matte shu (gesundheit!). One of the things I like about the unpolished shu is the subtle depth of the finish that allows you to see some of the layering underneath and I'm afraid that would be lost with the matte finish. I've actually wondered about the kikyo or midori color done in a matte finish; I think that could be interesting.

 

 

(Giggling at "gesundheit!")

 

Knowing that color variation is inevitable with handmade anything, I opened the Nakaya box with some trepidation when it arrived however long ago it was. I was so pleased when I saw this color (I am looking at my unpolished shu Piccolo now). It is perfect! And it exudes a... quintessential Oriental aesthetic. I might be reading into it, but... there it is.

 

I love the texture of the matte black. I am tempted to ask for a matte unpolished shu just to have my curiosity satisfied. You're right, though -- another color in the matte finish could be amazing. Would love to see it (with my hands, too).

[geoduc]

A beautiful flock of Nakayas! Also the group shot has helped me decide that most likely unpolished shu is not for me. The color strays into the direction of orange for quite a bit. That's good to know too.

 

Still I love your 17mm portables! My Negoro is a weird in-between size. It was sold as the usual portable size but it's definitely fatter than my other portables. 16 mm maybe. Also it doesn't have that nice elongated section.

 

elderberry, you have some beautiful pens as well (and your photography is much better than mine). I hope that you get to see an unpolished shu pen in person one of these days - the color is difficult to appreciate from pictures and the slight difference in feel from the glossy Nakaya finishes is very pleasant.

 

_{Wonderful collection indeed! I love the unpolished shu and was thinking about a Naka-ai...hmmmmmm}

_{Congratulations of your wonderful collection. Next time I am up your way maybe I will have to arrange to make it to a Pen meeting and hope to get a look first hand!}

 

I hope you make it up this direction sometime soon. You're welcome to try the pen any time and I think you'll enjoy a pen club meeting; it's a good group of people.

 

A handsome and photogenic group indeed! Congratulations on the latest addition to the family! Are you sure that six is enough? Seven seems a more propitious number. I know I have been out of the loop, and a poor correspondent but, why did I think you also had a dorsal fin? Somehow I missed the arrival of the bamboo green (stunning color, BTW). Having gone more than a year and a half without ordering a new Nakaya, I am beginning to feel the itch again... It's hopeless.

 

Nice to see you back on the forum, Lady S!

 

Six Nakayas are plenty for now. It's time to take a break from pen acquisition and appreciate what I have. I don't have a Dorsal Fin, but I'll admit that I'd like one. Of course, I'd also like an Ascending Dragon (in heki tamenuri), a Jidai Nuri (http://www.nakaya.org/en/review.aspx?id=22012&type=body), and a Togi Kuri Crab (http://www.nibs.com/NakayaMakieTogiKiriCrab.html). Especially that last one, on another 17mm Portable. Perhaps someday.

 

 

Hi Geoduc.... Stunning collection, thanks for taking the time to make the post, providing such great photos and the writing sample.

 

Was particularly delighted to get eyes on a Shu unploshed as I decided, on an unseen basis, apart from the photos on John's site, to buy a Nakaya in this finish. I had a hunch I was going to like it and your photos have convinced me I made a good decsion!

 

I bought the Naka-ai Writer with one of John's custom grinds to give me 0.8-0.9 stub. My pen has now arrived in the UK and is awaiting customs clearance, hopefully, this will happen in the next few days. It will join a Dorsal Fin V2 in Aka-tamenuri which BTW is an absolute stunner in every sense.

 

Regards, Falcon

 

Falcon, I hope that you enjoy your pen as much as I do mine. It goes nicely with the aka-tame finish and so should make a great combination with your Dorsal fin.

 

 

(Giggling at "gesundheit!")

 

Knowing that color variation is inevitable with handmade anything, I opened the Nakaya box with some trepidation when it arrived however long ago it was. I was so pleased when I saw this color (I am looking at my unpolished shu Piccolo now). It is perfect! And it exudes a... quintessential Oriental aesthetic. I might be reading into it, but... there it is.

 

I love the texture of the matte black. I am tempted to ask for a matte unpolished shu just to have my curiosity satisfied. You're right, though -- another color in the matte finish could be amazing. Would love to see it (with my hands, too).

 

I know exactly what you mean about the Oriental aesthetic. I get that feel from all of the Nakayas, but I think the unpolished shu exemplifies it.

[Leigh R]

Beautiful new pen, and it looks perfectly at home with its companions.