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This review and others can also be found at my website: www.pensinksandpaper.com At first glance, the Deli S677 might appear to be a cheap marker, a plasticky bit of mass-produced unpleasantness that has no place in the hand of a fountain pen user. One would be surprised, then, when removing the cap to find not a ballpoint tip or a marker’s felt but a nib. Appearance & Design (3/10) – I’m not entirely sure what the creators of this pen were trying to do in terms of visual appeal. They look rather unusual. The caps are a solid pastel color, with a white clip that says “deli” on it. The body of the pen is the same pastel color as the cap, but with small white hearts dotting the area. In the center of the bodies of the pens are cartoon animals, under which there is text that reads “Here is a More Lush Forest.” Your guess as to what they mean is as good as mine. Just before the section on the top of the body there is a white ring with an “inspirational” quote on it. The pink pen reads “I am to grow strong and tall”. The green pen reads “My skin is the most beautiful of all”. The most inspiring of all, though, is the blue pen, which gives us the truly beautiful line of “The squirrel is a typical arboreal mammal”. Running alongside the body of the pen is the model number of the pen and a barcode that my barcode scanning app did not recognize as a product available here in the states. Construction & Quality (6/10) – Compared to other pens of the same price level/target audience, the S677 isn’t terribly built. The plastic feels solid enough, and after some time using the pen and carrying it around in a messy backpack I have not experienced any paint chipping or scuffing. The cap posts very securely, and snaps back onto the body securely and satisfyingly. It actually feels excellent in the hand, if a bit light, as long as you don’t look down at it. The pen is about the length of a Lamy Safari, but a bit lighter and thinner, and if you removed the silly paint it looks and feels remarkably similar to a Pilot Varsity. Nib & Performance (6/10) – The nib us also suspiciously similar to that of a Pilot Varsity. Apart from the S677’s being stamped “Deli” rather than “Pilot”, the nibs are virtually indistinguishable in terms of design, size, and performance. It is smooth and reliable, but don’t expect anything except a nail. The pen writes a tad bit dry, but not dry enough to impede the smoothness or cause any skipping problems. The feed also differs from the Pilot Varsity, as I believe the S677 has a traditional plastic feed rather than a wick one like the Pilot. Filling System & Maintenance – There isn’t all too much to say here, the pen is a Cartridge/Convertor filler. The pen comes with some blue ink cartridges, which work nicely. One point of interest here: the pen does not accept international sized cartridges or convertors, but works perfectly Lamy’s alternatives. Cost & Value (8/10) – The pen was purchased from China for a mere dollar and eighty cents for a pack of three. At that price point, I think that these are a far better buy than Pilot Varsity’s if you can stand their design choices. I wouldn’t use these on a regular basis, because I have much more interesting and good-looking pens that I use and rely on. As pens to give away to people, or to lend as first fountain pens, though, they’re just about perfect. (Again, if the person receiving them can stand the design) Their nail of a nib is smooth and can withstand the pressure of a ballpoint user, and they accept cartridges, putting them a notch above the Pilot Varsity in my book. Conclusion (Final score, 5.75/10) – To be brutally honest, I will not be using these pens again for a while. I have, however, already given two of them away to first-time fountain pen users, both of whom love them dearly and are already looking at more expensive, better pens. As tools for someone who has many fountain pens already, I’d steer clear of these guys. But for a first fountain pen, or giveaway pens, at $1.80 for three these make a pretty great alternative to Pilot Varsity’s, Platinum Preppy’s, and the other cheap “disposables” on the market.

Here's a brief review of an ink from another Chinese manufacturer. Their inks are some of the most expensive Chinese-made inks in China, but this one is too dry for most of my pens. Please pardon any grammar mistakes or nonsensical remarks. I wrote this all at once without stopping to think. SDG

Penbbs is a Chinese online fountain pen community similar to FPN. They not only talk about inks but also produce their own inks every year. Each series consists of ten to fifteen inks and 2017 marks the release of Penbbs’ fifteenth ink series. Due to Chinese postal restrictions, these inks are virtually impossible to obtain outside of China. Within China they are extremely affordable (21 RMB or about US$3 per 60ml bottle) and can easily be purchased through the Chinese online shopping giant Taobao. This ink up for review is from Penbbs’ tenth series. It is named after the cornflower (centaurea cyanus) which can be various shades of blue or lavender. Personally, I think this ink is too dark and too purple to match the flower, but it’s a nice purple nonetheless. No. 116 is noticeably bluer than No. 95. It is very saturated (more so in person than in the photos) and has virtually no shading. This ink dries quickly and only shows a little feathering and bleed through with wet nibs. There is slight water resistance as well; the blue and purple components separate and leave a feint line. This is the best performing ink of the four Penbbs inks I’ve reviewed and is the only one I’d be comfortable using regularly on average paper. Penbbs No. 116 is a nice, vibrant blue-leaning purple that behaves itself, but doesn’t stand out as particularly interesting or exciting to me. Pens used (in order): 1. Pilot 78G Fine 2. Lamy Safari Broad 3. Pilot Plumix Italic 4. Noodler’s Nib Creaper Flex 5. Hero 5028 1.9mm Stub Swab Paper Towel Drop 80gsm Rhodia 73gsm Chinese Tomoe River Wannabe (brand unknown) 70gms Deli Copy Paper Moleskine Water Resistance Comparison Note: The comparison shows the ink's color more accurately than the other photos. It really is this dark. Here is Penbbs’ image of the bottle and label for reference: SDG

Penbbs is a Chinese online fountain pen community similar to FPN. They not only talk about inks but also produce their own inks every year. Each series consists of ten to fifteen inks and 2017 marks the release of Penbbs’ fifteenth ink series. Due to Chinese postal restrictions, these inks are virtually impossible to obtain outside of China. Within China they are extremely affordable (21 RMB or about US$3 per 60ml bottle) and can easily be purchased through the Chinese online shopping giant Taobao. This ink up for review is from Penbbs’ eighth series. It is named after Chinese architect Lin Huiyin (known as Phyllis Lin in the West). She is famous in China for being the first female architect in modern China and for her involvement in designing the flag and national emblem of the People’s Republic of China. You can read more about her here. I love my purples, and this one doesn’t disappoint. No. 95 is a deep purple very similar in color to Noodler’s La Reine Mauve but much better behaved. To my eye it looks like a pure purple, leaning neither red nor blue. It is quite saturated but does shade a tad with wet nibs on non-absorbent paper. This ink dries quickly, but also displays some feathering and bleed through. However, it doesn’t feather or bleed nearly as much as the other two Penbbs inks I’ve reviewed (Nos. 132 and 157). Also unlike those inks it has passable water resistance. Penbbs No. 95 could be someone’s perfect dark purple for daily use with a fine nib on regular paper. My conclusion is that this is a decent ink I can live without and we could all use a little more Waterman Tender Purple in our lives. Pens used (in order): 1. Pilot 78G Fine 2. Lamy Safari Broad 3. Pilot Plumix Italic 4. Noodler’s Nib Creaper Flex 5. Hero 5028 1.9mm Stub Swab Paper Towel Drop 80gsm Rhodia 73gsm Chinese Tomoe River Wannabe (brand unknown) 70gms Deli Copy Paper Moleskine Water Resistance Comparison Because I ordered so many samples, the Taobao seller kindly gave me a free empty ink bottle that just happened to be for this ink. Chinese inks bottles are usually quite ugly and impractical, but this one is neither. The octagonal shape and decent-sized opening allow for you to trap the last drop of ink in a corner to suck up with a pipette. The full color label is also a nice change from the typical boring design. You can tell these inks were made by and for fountain pen enthusiasts.

Penbbs is a Chinese online fountain pen community similar to FPN. They not only talk about inks but also produce their own inks every year. Each series consists of ten to fifteen inks and 2017 marks the release of Penbbs’ fifteenth ink series. Due to Chinese postal restrictions, these inks are virtually impossible to obtain outside of China. However, within China they are extremely affordable (21 RMB or about US$3 per 60ml bottle) and can easily be purchased through the Chinese online shopping giant Taobao. This ink up for review is from Penbbs’ twelfth series. It is named after the city of Hangzhou in eastern China. Hangzhou is famous for its beautiful scenery and is where longjing green tea is grown (a wonderful tea which I highly recommend). This tea is pan-roasted so the color is a little darker than some other green teas. I think the color of this ink is a good representation of the color of the tea leaves, although I don’t know if that’s what the ink makers were going for. What do you think? The color may just be a reference to the city’s natural scenery. The color is slightly darker and greener than the olive Penbbs ink No. 132 that I reviewed previously. This makes it more useful for daily writing. The color is certainly gentle on the eyes. This ink gives some shading on all papers with wider nibs. Its drying time is a little longer than No. 132, but it also feathers a little less. Bleed through was quite bad on Moleskine, but on other papers it was passable with wet nibs and non-existent with the Japanese fine nib. This ink is slightly water resistant as well. The darker green component remains to leave a barely legible line while the rest washes off. The interesting color and shading make this a nice ink, but as with ink No. 132, it feathers and bleeds too much for my taste. Pens used (in order): 1. Pilot 78G Fine 2. Lamy Safari Broad 3. Pilot Plumix Italic 4. Noodler’s Nib Creaper Flex 5. Hero 5028 1.9mm Stub Swab Paper Towel Drop 80gsm Rhodia 73gsm Chinese Tomoe River Wannabe (brand unknown) 70gms Deli Copy Paper Moleskine Water Resistance Mini-comparison (No. 157 is at the bottom) [My apologies that I don’t have any inks close to this color to do an adequate comparison. No. 157 mistakenly appears lighter than No. 132 on this image. ] SDG

Penbbs is a Chinese online fountain pen community similar to FPN. They not only talk about inks but also produce their own inks every year. Each series consists of ten to fifteen inks and 2017 marks the release of Penbbs’ fifteenth ink series. Due to Chinese postal restrictions, these inks are virtually impossible to obtain outside of China. However, within China they are extremely affordable (21 RMB or about US$3 per 60ml bottle) and can easily be purchased through the Chinese online shopping giant Taobao. This ink up for review is from Penbbs’ eleventh series. It is named after the group of American pilots who volunteered to help the Chinese Air Force fight the Japanese before the US officially entered World War II. The First AVG is popularly known as the "Flying Tigers” and Nathan Tardif pays homage to them in the artwork on the Noodler’s Ink Air Corps Blue Black bottles. You can read more about this group here. I’m a big fan of warm, brown-leaning sepias and all kinds of greens, but I never thought a color like this would catch my eye. Judging by the military-themed name, my guess is that the ink is supposed to be a military “olive drab” color. However, it’s quite light to my eyes so I like to think of it as “greepia”. This ink gives some shading on all papers with any nib. I really like the look and the quick drying time, but there are some problems with the ink’s behavior that keep me from buying a bottle. It bleeds through and feathers on anything other than expensive paper, severely limiting its use. It also has no water resistance whatsoever. All in all, I like this color and its nice shading, but its poor performance on regular paper makes it a no go for me. Pens used (in order): 1. Pilot 78G Fine 2. Lamy Safari Broad 3. Pilot Plumix Italic 4. Noodler’s Nib Creaper Flex 5. Hero 5028 1.9mm Stub Swab Paper Towel Drop 80gsm Rhodia 73gsm Chinese Tomoe River Wannabe (brand unknown) 70gms Deli Copy Paper Moleskine Water Resistance (Water drops and finger smear 30 minutes after writing) Mini-comparison (My apologies that I don’t have any inks close to this color to do an adequate comparison. The colors in this photo also don’t seem to be looking right on my monitor.) SDG

Just got the Jinhao 301 because of the way it looks sort of like a Parker 51. Here is a link. Any experiences with it? Thank in advance!

Greetings All, Winter break is here and as any self-respecting, FP-loving English teacher would do, I’d like to fill my free time by contributing to the FPN community. As has been mentioned in other posts on this board, Penbbs is a group of FP lovers that is like a Chinese version of FPN. Its owner has produced a lot of inks and cranks out as many as 15 new colors each year. Difficulty obtaining these inks in the West means there aren’t many reviews in English. Lgsoltek and visvamitra have gotten the ball rolling by reviewing some of them and I’d like to add some more. Here’s my proposal: Below are color samples of the inks available for the past 5 series of Penbbs inks. Based on all your requests, I’m going to choose between 10 and 20 of them to review. At a mere $0.30-50 per 5ml sample, this should be a lot of fun for little money. To request reviews of any of the colors, just reply to this post with the corresponding numbers of the inks you want reviewed. Thanks for your help!

This is the third part of a series of reviews I’m doing on Chinese Boss inks. So far I’ve found this brand of ink to be the most prevalent in China, but totally unknown in the West. They are great cheap inks and all are scented as well. Boss Enterprise “Laoban” ink (not to be confused with the Boss line of inks made by Ostrich in Tianjin) is produced in Guiyang by Guizhou Boss Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. More information about the company can be found here [http://www.made-in-china.com/showroom/gzboss/companyinfo/Guizhou-Boss-Enterprise-Guiyang-Boss-Chemical-Industry-Co-Ltd-.html] and their descriptions of their inks here [http://www.made-in-china.com/showroom/gzboss/product-detailsxmJCnEToQlW/China-Handwriting-Ink.html]. Boss inks are available in the following standard colors: 1. Black 2. Carbon Black 3. Blue-Black 4. Blue 5. Red Close up of ink comparisons taken in natural light: Close up comparing Boss Carbon Black and Noodler’s Black (B = Boss, N = Noodler’s): As you can see, it's completely waterproof: Boss Carbon Black is deep, dark and permanent. It also flows well and lays an excellent line. The only drawback to this ink what's typical for carbon pigmented inks: its ability to stain refilled cartridges or converters and potential clogging if left to dry in the pen. This ink requires regular use and cleaning of whatever pen it is in. If you need a decent permanent black and can find this ink for sale, it’s worth your consideration. Boss inks are only 4 RMB (US$0.62) per 52ml bottle in China. Thanks for reading!

Hello all, a quick question: I've just been to a calligraphy workshop where we have used Standardgraph China Inks in Pilot Parallel pens. Now the question: what is a china ink? According to google it's india ink so basically shellac with some pigments, which is definitely NOT supposed to be used in fountain pens, which, Parallel pens definitely are. According to Standardgraph's catalog: http://i64.tinypic.com/106lxl2.jpg It seems they don't recommend it to be used in FPs... so I'm puzzled... maybe a thorough rinse after each sessions might save the pens ad enable us to use those china/india inks in Pilot Parallels? Any ideas, experiences? Thanks!

My first review has to be handwritten, hasn't it? http://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8501/28971094030_76a56e0ff4_c.jpg This is the most unlikely pen in my collection. More than a year ago, at the very start of my pen craze, a friend gave it to me and said: "I'm sure it's no more than a novelty piece, but try it - maybe the funny thing can write". Well, it can! The fine hooded nib is smooth as glass. Inked with Parker Quink Black, this little croco wasn't funny at all. A serious writer. However, after the second filling the Caiman started to misbehave. There were problems with ink flow, and I had to "boost" it with the piston. http://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8538/28971103310_d6b1898236_c.jpg Besides, the pen proved itself unsuitable for long writing sessions. The section is too thin (for my hand at least). Of course, there's an ornamental band you can grip at, but after a page or two you begin to hate it all: the section, the crocodile ornament, your fingers. The shape of the pen, its dimensions - all seem fit for posting. Save the cap itself. It refuses to sit on the barrel, so you have to use the Caiman unposted, no matter you like it or not. Back to the appearance. The hooded nib is "guarded" by two little jewels. Putting some imagination into gear, we can suppose that together they represent the caiman's head (eyes, snout, open mouth with a nib protruding from it). OK, so we've got a zoomorph pen here! The barrel and the cap are metal, laquer-coated. The coating is rather thin and prone to scratches. The clip is stiff, and it's very hard to slip the slip-on cap off. VERDICT: hardly usable. Smooth nib doesn't justify an ugly design and uncomfortable body. For laughs I received it, for laughs I keep it. http://c4.staticflickr.com/9/8428/28643899243_e22f3a889a_c.jpg What a shame! I wrote "Cayman" (like Cayman Islands), and the little pet is called "caiman", yes, with an "i". Shame on me! A bit of trivia: Caimans live in Central and South America, rather far from the river Nile, so the choice of ink (in French, Eau de Nil means "Nile Water") is not SO obviousDo you know that Crocodile's flagship pen, a Duofold wannabe, is marketed as "Fierce Alligator", no less? http://c5.staticflickr.com/9/8602/29230639036_9b5a3a0928_c.jpg http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8075/29230625896_439455563b_c.jpg http://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8484/29164393702_38d1421763_c.jpg Specs: Length - Capped 5.375" - Uncapped 4.75" - Posted 5.875" Diameter - Grip .34" - Barrel .48" Weight - 22 g. (source: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/235187-chinese-pen-reviews-c215-y016-j163-j3000-specifications/) Another review, more positive: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/234955-chinese-pen-reviews-crocodile-215/ And one more, very positive: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/287824-crocodile-215/

Continued from Part 1. 700 No gold trim, slight tapering barrel,all steel construction. Satin finish except end piece of barrel which is polished steel. Also clip nand cap finial, which is flared upwards. Clip marked "Guanleming". Polished steel tapering section, steel nib marked with new round logo. C/C fill. 718 (Gold) A rather ornate pen in dark green marble with several wide gold bands. The wide gold bands in the middle of the barrel and cap have identical matt and polished rhomboid pattern, gold band at the opening end of cap is marked "Guanleming" in a blend of traditional and simplified Chinese and other markings. Step-down section is in green with gold band near the end. Regular pattern gold nib marked "GOLD NIB, GLM" without specific carat rating. 800 (12K) While the pen is marked to have a 14K nib in reality it is 12K. Large satin gold finial at end of barrel, satin gold secton with modern metal hooded nib, black pressbar sheath with "GLM" marked on the pressbar itself. Oval medallion at top of clip marked "GLM" as per 102, a band just behind it around the cap marked "Guanleming". Band around open end of cap marked "800 (14K)". Cap and barrel bodies finished in fine engravings like rows of chevrons. Known variants: in gold, and silver finish. 801 (12K) Black lacquer barrel and back half of section, barrel has slim gold ring at the open end finished in knurled pattern, barrel end cap is also gold with similarly finished portin. Front half of section in matt gold and of modern metal hooded nib design. Gold cap has slight taper towards the end resembling Cross, finished in wavy engine turned engraving, open end of cap has a band between knurled rings, marked in Chinese "Guanleming Gold Pen" etc. Top of clip has new round logo. C/C fill. 802 (14K) No gold trim, except for nib, finished in black lacquer. Cylindrical barrel and cap, barrel ends are silver, towards end of cap there is a silver ring with polished and satin striped portions, marked "Guanleming" in Chinese and "802". Nib is of regular pattern marked as a Jin Rong product, probably identical to that used on the 108. Satin silver finish section with oval shaped with parallel lines to offer grip. C/C fill. 902 A pen of regular pattern, cap and barrel in brown marbled lacquer. Gold finials at the ends of cap and barrel have a groove around each, gold ring at open end of barrel in the form of two rounded rings separated by a groove. Black section, nib with Hero flower logo and "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese. 904B A cylindrical pen with gold trim: barrel finial has groove at the end, and three raised rings towards the barrel, same raised rings at open end, and similar as cap finial. black section with gold ring at the front, dagger nib marked with Hero flower logo. Pressbar bulb fill with "Guanleming" on the sheath. Known variants: in satin steel finish with variety of decorations including mandarin ducks and lotus, stars. Also in brown and black marble lacquer. 905 When capped it has a torpedo shape, with black domed finials separated from cap and barrel end with slim gold rings. A wider bgold band with two grooves at the open end of cap marked "GUANLEMING 905". Black section with gold rings at each end, regular pattern nib marked with Hero flower logo and "GLM". Known variants: black, and white/blue/pink agate lacquer. 927 Steel pen, towards end of barrel is a step-down gold ring giving a smaller diameter end for posting. Clip marked with new round logo and "Guanleming", gold finial of the cap has markings in the middle. Polished steel section, Sheaffer-like conical nib finished in gold, marked with new logo and "GUANLEMING". Known variants: satin and polished steel finish. 951 A simple Parkeresque plastic hooded nib pen, with narrow ink window. Rounded end one-piece cap. Known variants: in black, grey and maroon. 953 Plastic cylindrical pen with steel cap, silver finial at the end of barrel. Black section, regular pattern gold-finished nib. Open end of cap marked "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese, and "953". Known variants: barrel in black, dark green, and maroon. 954 Accountant Cylindrical shape pen finished in two colours, between colour sections are slim gold rings. Conspicuously marked on cap is "GuanLeMing" and "Accountant's Pen" in Chinese. Classic style hooded nib section, pressbar bulb fill. Known variants: Green/black, black/maroon, maroon/grey. 954 Fude Styling of cap and barrel similar to previous entry, but with fude nib. Cap body and middle portion of barrel have the same fluting. Known variants: Black/white, maroon/gold, green/gold 956 A larger and classically style black plastic pen with gild trim, Regular pattern gold finished nib marked with new round logo and "GLM", pressnar bulb fill with "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese on pressbar sheath. 961 This pen resembles Sonnet a little, with gold finials at cap and barrel with a raised round insert in the middle. Wider dual-tone ring at the open end of cap marked "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese and "961". Black section, dual-tone nib marked with new round logo and "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese. A sphere at the tip of the clip, and at the top the new round logo. Known variants: matt painted finish in black, dark brown, blue, and white with engraved lines. In gold finish with carved dragon on cap and phoenix on barrel, gold with wavy engraved lines, satin gold with wide and narrow polished spiral bands, same in satin steel, gold with straight lines and round dots, satin steel, satin steel with raised gold decoration for new year 1996, ditto for the 1997 takeover of Hong Kong. 962 Pen with black barrel and section, gold finials on ends of cap and barrel. Dual-tone nib, steel cap in different finishes, gold Parkeresque clip. Known variants: cap in black and brown lacquer, satin steel with Chinese writings, satin steel with black printed dragon. 970 End of barrel has rather awkward gold finials with black insert, open end has gold ring with a dark middle portion. End of cap tapers slightly with gold finial with insert. Clip with sphere at the tip and the new round logo at the top. Near cylindrical nib with no breather hole. Known variants: solid colours on pen itself, with matching colours in marbled lacquer on cap: green, maroon and black, the marbling on cap can also show some fern patterns. 971 The barrel is approximately cylindrical with grooved flat finial, gold tapering section resembling that of the 103, dual-tone nib marked with new round logo and "GLM". Cap has gold band at the open end, with dark band in the middle marked "GUANLEMING" etc, with flat-topped dome finial. Pressbar bulb fill. Known variants: cap and barrel finished in black, polished steel, and dark grey with gold dust. 973 Cylindrical pen bearing a slight resemblance to the Vector. End of barrel has smaller black portions to facilitate posting, clip end with new round logo and spherical tip. Gold band against which the cap closes possibly marked "GUANLEMING CHINA". Black section with two gold rings at the front, with a nib somewhat like that on the Vector, marked with new round logo. Known variants: steel, and black-and-tan marbled lacquer. 978 Steel pen with gold trim, clip with spherical end and new logo at top. Black section with a gold ring and then a shaped hooded nib, pressbar fill sheath marked "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese. 984 A student pen with black trim, barrel finial has reduced diameter portion for posting. Open end of cap marked "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese and "984". Pressbar bulb filler sheath marked "Guanleming" in the same way. Matt finish on cap and barrel. Hooded nib with ribbed section. Known variants: barrel with two styles of markings to signify fude nib or regular fine nib; former in black, grey, and blue; latter in black, and green. 992 With Sheaffer-like steel nib same as 927 except finish. Black plastics section, steel caps. Known variants: black barrel version has flat finial separated by a gold ring, with black finial, brushed steel cap with black printed markings at open end, black finial at end of cap. Polished steel version has rounded barrel end, with matching cap and gold clip. 995 No gold trim, brushed steel finish, black section with small nib marked with new round logo, pressbar sheath marked "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese. 2000 (12K) Gold bullet-shaped finials on both ends of cap and barrel, black pressbar sheath, classic style hooded nib section. At open end of cap marked "Guanleming" in Chinse and "2000". When disassembled: finned collector integral with connector, nib marked with new round logo and "Gold" in Chinese, and "50%". Known variants: black with gild vine pattern, and steel with groups of wavy lines. 2001 A hooded nib style demonstrator. "Century" It is doubtful if it is the official appellation. When capped, no gild trim visible, black finish. Flat barrel end, domed finial at top of cap. Open end of barrel has wide silver band with colourful abalone shell inserts. Open end of cap has slim silver ring marked "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese etc. Satin gold section flanked with silver rings, dual-tone gold nib in regular pattern, with new round logo, "GUANLEMING, 22K GP". Unidentified model 1 (12K) Gently tapering in style, finished in black lacquer, cap and barrel have small flat gold finials. GOld tapering section for modern metal hooded nib style, clip marked "Guanleming", along with "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese at open end of cap. near the cap finial, under the top of the clip is another slim gold ring. Unidentified model 2 The most obvious characteristic is multifaceted barrel and cap with a left-handed twist. Black reduced diameter portion at end of barrel with gold finial for posting, cap finial with a groove around it. Clip bears a slight resemblance to Pelican, at the top is marked "GLM" and the new round logo. Black section with gold ring at the front end, Regular pattern nib finished in gold, marked with Hero's flower logo and "Guanleming" in simplified Chinese. Known variants: in gold, and tungsten-like dark metal finish. Unidentified model 3 No gold trim. The section appears to be the same as the 801, but with a simpler gently tapering barrel with slim finial plug. Cap decorated with a grid pattern, with an oval marked with something that is not legible in existing pictures; whether it is a Guanleming product still to be confirmed. Unidentified model 4 A cylindrical pen in brushed steel finish and raised gold decoration, and a well-known quartrain "Night docking at the Mable Bridge" by a Chinese poet. Black plug at the end of barrel with gold finial for posting, gold finial on cap. Section is the same as many Jin Rong models with nib resembling that on a Montblanc 22, marked "JR".

This is a review of a new pen I got recently, it was a complete impulse purchase but I was pleasantly surprised. First Impressions (6/10) This pen isn’t exactly a looker, but I wasn’t expecting that for $1.25. It came in a packaged envelope, and the pen was directly inside. (No box) It is made entirely of plastic (except the nib, obviously), and feels light in the hand. It did, however, come with a convertor, which helped my first impression of it. Appearance (4/10) Like I said before, the pen doesn’t look all that great (In my opinion). It is beige colored, and the cap has little golf ball-esque dimples on it. The cap and nib are steel colored, although the clip is made of plastic. The clip also has a small plastic red “gemstone” on it. The section of the pen is black, and has a subtle triangle grip. (Not as intense as a Lamy Safari, but it’s there). Design/Size/Weight (7/10) The pen is very light, being made out of plastic, and is fairly small. It is closest in size and weight to a Pilot 78g, but that is not to say that it’s design is remotely similar. Instead of the 78g’s simple elegance, the pen somehow manages to seem bland and gaudy at the same time, with a boring and flat beige section and a dimpled cap and fake gemstone bedazzled clip. The nib and section are plain black and silver, respectively, with “Domain Lion” printed on the steel nib. Nib (9/10) Looking at the past categories, I did not have high hopes for this nib. I was wrong. This is where the pen shines. The nib smoothly lays a fine line, and on a scale of 1-10 (1 being very dry, 10 being one of those nibs that is so wet can get your fingers inky just by writing a sentence with it), it is a 6-7 in terms of wetness. Unlike many of its Chinese brethren, it is not a complete nail, either. Although I did not fully push it to its limits, the nib gives a fair amount of spring to play around with. To be entirely honest, the pen I own which most accurately matches it’s writing characteristics is my 18k M Pilot Vanishing Point. Disclaimer on the nib portion of this review: On a lot of Cheap Chinese pens (I’m looking at you Hero 616), nib quality is inconsistent, so I may have just gotten really lucky with an awesome nib. Filling System (8/10) Not much to say here. It’s a simple cartridge convertor system. The pen came with a convertor. I inked it up with 1670 Emerald de Chivor, and have had no problems thus far. Cost and Value (10/10) I got this pen for $1.25 shipped, but they can be had now for $0.99 on Ebay. For a pen with a nib that feels like my vanishing point (At a dollar who cares if it retracts) it’s a complete steal, even if it is ugly. Conclusion (8/10) Yes, this is an ugly pen. But the nib is incredible, and it’s a dollar! I’ve used this pen daily for a week in prep for this review, and I have to say it’s really starting to grow on me. I never had a single issue with it, it always started up right away, and after a weekend of not being used I uncapped it and it started right back up again, even with Emerald de Chivor (which has given me trouble with those things in the past). Overall this is probably one of the best $1.25’s I’ve ever spent on a pen, and I would highly recommend it.

Hi, Has anyone reviewed Jinhao/Xinhao fountain pens? I have seen what appear to be some absolutely stunning examples recently. They're very cheap too (to my mind too cheap). Is this a brand to watch or to avoid? Danny

This is the second part of a series of reviews I’m doing on Chinese Boss inks. So far I’ve found this brand to be the most prevalent in China, but unknown in the West. They are great cheap inks and scented as well. Boss Enterprise “Laoban” ink (not to be confused with the Boss line of inks made by Ostrich in Tianjin) is produced in Guiyang by Guizhou Boss Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. More information about the company can be found here and their descriptions of their inks here. The scan of my review doesn’t capture the color properly, so I’ve also included some photos taken in natural light. Close up of ink comparisons taken in natural light: A writing sample comparing Boss Red and Platinum Pigment Rose Red (I didn’t have the Platinum ink when I wrote the review): Close ups comparing Boss Red and Platinum Pigment Rose Red (Boss on top and Platinum on bottom): Boss Red has a pinkish hue similar to Hero 201, but is more saturated than the Hero ink and Platinum Pigment Rose Red. Like Hero 201, it flees at the sight of water. It is very easy on the eyes and some might consider it less “offensive” than a screaming bright red for grading. I like it for quick editing of documents that will soon be thrown away because it is not only cheap, but behaves well, dries quickly, and stands out on the page more than Hero ink. If you need a decent non-permanent soft red and can find this ink for sale, it’s worth your consideration. Boss inks are only 4 RMB (US$0.62) per 52ml bottle in China. Thanks for reading!

Greetings from the Far East! This is my first ink review. As Chinese inks like Hero get more popular in the West, I wanted to introduce another brand of ink that is extremely popular in China and has popped up in a few posts on FPN. In the area of China I live in, Boss “Laoban” ink is much easier to find than Hero and can be found in every stationary store. Even most grocery stores carry it! Like most Chinese inks, Boss ink seems to only be available in the standard colors black (including carbon black), blue-black, blue, and red. However, these inks have been a delight to use and notably more vibrant than their Hero counterparts. All of them are scented as well. As time permits, I hope to post reviews for every Boss ink available. Boss Enterprise “Laoban” ink (not to be confused with the Boss line of inks made by Ostrich in Tianjin) is produced in Guiyang by Guizhou Boss Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. More information about the company can be found here and their descriptions of their inks here. The scan of my review doesn’t capture the color properly (it's much darker than the scan), so here is a close up of ink comparisons taken in natural light: A writing sample comparing Boss Blue-black and Hero Blue-black: Close ups to show the slight shading on a legal pad: This blue-black is much darker and more saturated than that of Hero 202. It has also worked really well with flex nibs. I wish I had more standard blue-blacks to compare it with. Noodler’s 54th Massachusetts is on the way, so I’ll post a comparison when possible. If you happen to drop by China sometime, I highly recommend you pick up some this ink. Boss inks are only 4 RMB (US$0.62) per 52ml bottle. The current bottle and packaging: Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!

Visited Parker's new version website for UK (USA site is same old one). On it, it seems that Parker is going to relaunch some more colors, both in bottle and cartridge, as earlier only washable blue, black and blue-black were mentioned (it is still same, there on USA-Shop Online site). Same has been changed for China and Japan as well.

Greetings everybody. Today found this youtube videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iL1KUD9P0nE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cuk1vPbYKA Guy writes beautifully. And line thickness varies pretty much. His pen looks to be either flex or italic. In comments he says that it is FuLin 812, but im not sure, because translated through google =) Do you know what pen he is using? And maybe where to gen one. Thanks.

Hi All! Here comes a new "ruthless review". My ruthless reviews have a few peculiar features: Concise;Very strict. If a pen costs hundred of euros, no faults are allowed. A good pen gets a 60/100, a great pen an 80/100, an almost perfect one a 90/100. Only a divine pen can have above 90. Don't care about the box,Add a few peculiar criteria:Nib appearance;Usability in shirt pockets;Out-of-the-boxness, meaning to what extent a nib was perfect right after leaving the seller. Jinhao 886 with M nib - red colour Fantastic pictures of this pen in this very same colour are available from Vaibav Mehandiratta's blog. His photos are far better than I'll ever manage to get, so... enjoy his effort! I bought this pen because it's one of the few Chinese ones with an original design (that is, it's not a copy of someone else's efforts). With this in mind, I thought it would be nice to encourage Jinhao's creative efforts, and I was not expecting much. Instead.... 1. Appearance and design: 10/10 This is really cool: the design is a sort of vintage/retro, reminds a bit of a FIAT 500 or a Smeg fridge. Very cute, absolutely awesome design work here! 2. Construction: 7/10 The metal looks sturdy, and tolerances are really tight. The section looks cheap, though, and so does the converter. 3. Quality of materials: 8/10 Everything looks OK, but the red and chrome coating is thin and seem likely to wear off very soon. I suggest to keep the pen in a pen holder. 4. Weight and dimensions: 7/10 Tiny, comfortable to use: the heft of the metal body makes the pen gravitate towards the paper. People with large hands will have issues, though. 5. Nib performance: 6/10 A no-nonsense M steel nib. Nothing special here: a bit of a hard starter and slightly on the dry side, and perhaps a bit "soulless", but it does its job. 6. Nib appearance: 7/10 Nice engravings, albeit banal. 7. "Out-of-the-boxness": 9/10 I expected much tweaking and fixing to get this to write: instead it wrote almost perfectly straight away! A little bit of tines spreading and it was good to go. 8. Filling system and maintenance: 2/10 Standard C/C system. The converter is a rip-off of a Lamy one, and this is unacceptable. Also, it leaks a tiny little bit... I guess I'll have to replace it soon. 9. Clip and usability with shirts: 8/10 The clip is maybe a bit too strong ( - 2 for this), but other than that, it's great, and the size makes it suitable for most shirt pockets. 10. Cost and value: 10/10 EUR 5 for the pen and shipping with registered mail?!?! This is incredible. If this is the "Chinese future", I'm very much looking forward to it! Final mark: 74/100 It was difficult to be ruthless with this: I highly recommend this pen to anyone who wants a nice, well-built, well-designed, tiny little pen For EUR 5 you get the pen shipped from China, inclusive of a converter, and it writes! That's more than you can say of some EUR 300 pens you get from Western manufacturers. I'm now officially a huge fan of Jinhao.

Hello Everyone, I found this reasonably priced pen case from China: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fountain-Pen-Roller-Pen-Brown-Coffee-Color-4-Pens-Case-Holder-/261419805754?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cddd5ac3a Has anyone tried buying similar cases (for similar prices) from Chinese sellers? I think it looks quite nice but I don't want it to break down in a few months, so any feedback would be great and any general comments/ suggestions for pen cases are welcome! Thanks!

First Impressions (8)For a dollar forty, I wasn’t expecting much, but this pen proved to be a great value for the price. It is a true fine nib, and I have not had any problems with it thusfar. Appearance (9)The design of this pen is a gold gridded body with a black cap, black section, and a steel hooded nib. The pen feels less wide in person than it appears in the photos. Construction (8)This pen has seemingly very good build quality for a Chinese pen. It is made of metal and is a little heavy, I don’t have an exact weight but it feels like it is about the same weight as my Jinhao x450. Nib (5)The nib on this pen is a fine hooded steel nib. It has no flex, and is a little bit scratchy, but it is still usable, and I was able to make it a little bit smoother after a bit of tweaking. (Brown paper bag). Although this is not very descriptive, this nib did not seem very wet or very dry, and is in the middle. If I had to pick one side I would say that it is just a little bit wet. Filling System (4)This pen takes standard international cartridges or a converter. It ships with a screw converter. I am not sure whether it is my pen or my converter, but I can never fill the converter more than about 2/3 full, which makes it a lot less practical as it needs to be filled much more often. I will update this once I get a chance to see whether it is the pen or just the converter. Cost and Value (10)This pen is about as good of a deal as you can get, I got mine for 1.40 USD shipped from EBay. The buy it now price is around $7, but you can easily get it for cheaper in in auction with patience. Conclusion (7)All in all, this is a great pen for the price. The nib is a little scratchy, but it is not that bad. The design is excellent and the build quality is great for a pen of its price. For $1.40, it is all you could want and more. Pictures Below (Sorry for small size) http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/ODU1WDEwMDA=/z/DPwAAOSw0vBUc1DN/$_14.JPGhttp://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/NzQ0WDEwMDA=/z/aEwAAOSw2XFUc1DK/$_14.JPGhttp://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAwMFgxMDAw/z/3asAAOSwj0NUc1DT/$_14.JPGhttp://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/OTE3WDEwMDA=/z/xCwAAOSwAL9Uc1DQ/$_14.JPGhttp://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAwMFgxMDAw/z/3hIAAOSwj0NUc1DW/$_14.JPG

Just put of curosity ... has anyone purchased a fountain pen from aliexpress in India? If yes , how was the experience and would you recommend buying the same... do we have to pay any custom charges or any forex conversion charges ??? Please help

Hello, So I was in China recently and I bought a new bottle of black "Parker Quink Ink" or at least that's what it says on the box. I bought it from a stationary store in Beijing that sold a lot of other pens and stuff by Chinese brands. The Parker Quink was the only foreign brand in the shop so I was surprised. The shop owner, though, did tell me that it was authentic when I asked him about it, but it being China it is hard to trust the word of someone selling you stuff. It costed about 8 US dollars and came in a box with a lot of Chinese characters on it (evidently this bottle was made in Shanghai according to the box). I don't know if people are going to try to fake an already inexpensive bottle of ink, but this thought has just been circulating in the back of my head since it was cheaper than usual. I've never had a bottle of Parker Quink so I have nothing to compare this to also. Thanks for the help! Here are some Pictures: The front and back of the box. The side of the box. Bottom of the box. The bottle itself. The inside of the bottle. A quick jot of what the ink looks like on standard college ruled looseleaf paper written with a M&G fountain pen. (The ink flows well and does not seem to clog any of the fountain pens that I have put it in)

There so many Chinese pens available in the market, but not any Eye Dropper pens. I wonder why they are not making any ED pens. Any thoughts ?

Sometime in 1986 or '87 my father gave me a Cross Century Classic set as a gift (black/ gold finish; fountain pen, ballpoint and mechanical pencil). Shortly thereafter, the fountain pen was damaged after falling from my shirt pocket and was never repaired (parts got lost along the way). As the years passed, I kept wanting to replace the pen with a similar one but for one reason or another, I never got to bought it back. Last week I finally went to a pen shop to look for it, but I came away empty handed and feeling sad for what was shown to me. A far cry from the great pen of my memories. The black finish had almost the same texture, but the pen felt noticeably lighter. Also, the blind cap was a gold-colored contraption about an inch in length, that look cheap and also made the pen IMHO, look like a pirated version of the original (mine had just a gold button up there). To make matters worst, I was told that Cross had moved their entire production to China, which kind of mooted the point of expending extra for the brand. I still own the pen and pencil, and they definitely feel much more solid and of better quality than the "new" fountain pen. Does anyone here has purchased this new version? How does it compare with a 30 year old model?