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First of all, I must thank Pradeep for getting me these pens from Rajahmundry. I actually got lot of pens from Ratnam, Ratnamson, and Guider who all are stationed at Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh state of India. So this, as in Ratnamson 302, is the first in line to be reviewed and this pen is one of the fast selling models of Ratnamson. Ratnamson 302 – Capped Ratnamson is a brand name of Ratnam Ball pen works. There is other brand by the name of Ratnam which is owned by Ratnam Pen Works. As far as I know Ratnam Pen works is an original parent company which got split into two and thus Ratnamson came into existence. And both the companies produce some good quality pens. which i will be reviewing it here one by one. Ratnamson 302 – Rose Pink Rippled and Blue Rippled Model DESIGN & BUILT : 3.5/05 Like I said earlier this pen is one of the fast selling model of Ratnamson’s and it is a very well designed and executed pen. Made of Ebonite this pen come in various regular ebonite colors like Rose Pink Ripple, Blue Ripple (Both shown in pic above), Black, Brown Ripple, Green Ripple and Dark Brown Ripple. Also mottled pattern is available but i believe that is on request. Ratnamson 302 – Beauty Shot The pen is cigar shaped design which tapers slightly just a bit towards the end to circular rounded bottom. The cap finial is also rounded similar to the barrel end. Ratnamson 302 – Capped The grip section is made of black color ebonite and their is a slight tapering towards the top of section from middle of barrel. The length of grip section is not that long. Actually it is short. But thats not a problem. Circular thread patterns do provide for grip and threads are not at all sharp. Ratnamson 302 – Uncapped View The picture below shows the rounded bottom and top of the pen. Ratnamson 302 – Rounded top and bottom The cap clip though is quite sturdy but I can see there is bit of uniformity in insertion of clip inside the cap, which is because of the reason these are all hand made. Ratnamson 302 – Cap Ratnamson 302 – Cap Top View You can see from the image above the difference of clip insert inside the cap. Nevertheless these are minor things and can be resolved easily. The cap has slim center band which seems to be a okay kind of job because i have seen many manufacturers not able to take care of bands properly. I love the pens with centre band. Though I am not happy with the centre band on the cap but the pen shape and finish is far above what i expected. Ratnamson 302 – Cap Side View Ratnamson 302 – Cap Clip View Ratnamson 302 – Cap Centerband Closeup Ratnamson 302 – Cap Internal View Like most of the Indian pens this also comes with breather hole which helps in tackling the vacuum created while opening the pen and thus preventing ink leakage. Below are the few images showing the pen comparison. Gama Kuyil vs Ratnamson 302 vs Pilot 78G vs Jinhao 886 – Capped Gama Kuyil vs Ratnamson 302 vs Pilot 78G vs Jinhao 886 – Uncapped and Posted Gama Kuyil vs Ratnamson 302 vs Pilot 78G vs Jinhao 886 – Side View The pen built quality barring just two areas with regards to centre band and clip insertion inside cap, is amazing. The material used is amazing. Handmade and overall well executed classic designed pen. Lastly one thing i wanted to mention is that cap threads are not that smooth as it should be and offer certain resistance while opening. BALANCE : 05/05 One good thing with the ebonite pens is that they are extremely well balanced weather cap is posted or not. The length of the pen is 145 mm when capped and 125 mm when uncapped including the nib. And when cap is posted it is approx 165 mm long. The cap is thickest near centre band at 14mm dia and the average barrel thickness is 13 mm and grip section thickness is 9 to 10 mm. Ratnamson 302 - Writing Unposted Ratnamson 302 - Writing Posted The pen is very well balanced with cap posted or not posted, though it becomes very long id the cap is posted. I personally prefer writing without posting cap. NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 2.5/05 Well this is one area where i was not that much happy. It gives you resistance on good quality paper (which in a way is good for handwriting) but writes scratchy on not so good quality paper and picks up paper fiber even. The nib is gold color monotone iridium tipped nib and it writes fine. I actually will end up changing the nib. But lately I have realised if you keep using this nib it will grow on you. Ratnamson 302 - Nib Unit Top View Ratnamson 302 - Nib Unit Side View Ratnamson 302 - Nib Unit Bottom View Ratnamson 302 - Nib Unit Angled View The feed is made of ebonite and the pen writes actually bit wet. I had to do certain smoothing on the nib. And still I am not happy. Ratnamson 302 - Ebonite Feed The ink filling mechanism is through eyedropper and it holds good amount of ink. Good thing about the pen is that it never burped on me while writing for a complete week. Ratnamson 302 - Ink Filling Through Eyedropper Below is the Link of my handwritten review which shows sample and ink dry test for your reference.Also are certain images. LINK CONCLUSION: I will buy this pen for its design and change its nib. This pen is not that expensive and retails around for 12 to 15 USD. And thats why i will buy this pen for its classic design and long history behind brand name. Ratnamson 302 - Saying Goodbye

Dear All After the successful group buy of RANGA BAMBOO MODEL & RANGA MODEL 4C & Model 3 & Model 5 This is a group buy effort for the Ranga ZEAL which will be available only till 18th March 2016 (i.e. Friday) Kindly register at the earliest. Minimum requirement is 10 nos. Details of the pen in Four options are as below: Ranga ZEAL (Eyedropper Version) The dimension is 5.75 inches length. the dia is 16 mm Finish - Polished or Matte (Bakul)Option - Flat end or Round endNib Option :Wality Gold Color - Fine NibDual Tone - Medium NibAmbitious 35 mm Fine Nib at extra US $ 1Ambitious 40 mm Gold Tone Nib at extra US $ 3Bock (With Conklin imprinted) M or B at extra US $ 8.Clip Option Finish : Gold Color or Chrome Silver ColorDefault settings: Wality Gold Colored Fine Nib with Gold Color ClipShipping: Included and is through Registered Post. Takes 2 - 4 weeks for delivery. Price includes shippingPayment: Via Paypal to paypal account mpkandan@gmail.com Colour Available : Regular Ebonite (as per 2 images below)​Brown - Black RippleReddish Brown - Black RippleBrown Mottled Black Matte / Black BakulYellow - Black RippleBlue - Black RippleParrot Bright Green - Black Ripple/MottledSolid BlackOlive - Black RippleGreen - Black RippleGreen - Orange Ripple with black specksBlue - Orange Ripple with black specksGreen - Pale Yellow Ripple with black specksRed - Yellow Ripple with black specksBlue - Yellow Ripple with black specksBurgundy/Pink - Black ripple and black specks Ranga ZEAL (Cartridge/Converter Version with German Nib Units) Finish - Polished or Matte (Bakul)Option - Flat end or Round endNib Option : JoWo Nibs ​​/ Schmidt NibsJoWo Nibs options : #6 SizeGold Color Mono tone F, M or B nibChrome (Silver) Mono Tone F, M, B NibSchmidt Nib options: #6 SizeGold Color monotone F, M, or BChrome (Silver) Finish Monotone F,M & B.Converter : Schmidt K5 ConverterDefault settings: Schmidt Gold Colored monotone F nibShipping: Included and is through Registered Post. Takes 2 - 4 weeks for delivery.Includes worldwide shippingPayment: Via Paypal to paypal account mpkandan@gmail.com Colour Available : Premium Ebonite (as per image below)​Solid Blue Blue/Green/Orange Swirls Solid Orange Blue/Pink Swirls Solid Pink Blue/White Swirls Solid Green Yellow/Green Swirls Red/Black Swirls Yellow/Black Swirls. Please note that the Group Buy (Discounted) International prices are as below: Eyedropper Normal ebonite - 31 USD (Regular Price is US $ 40) Eyedropper Premium Ebonite - 43 USD (Regular Price is US $ 55) German nib Normal ebonite - 61 USD (Regular Price is US $ 78) German nib Premium ebonite - 73 USD (Regular Price is US $ 93) All these pens are all handmade. And payments will be made only via paypal for international customers. In case of any query or pen related issue kindly PM me or MP Kandan FOR SHIPPING WITHIN INDIA, PLEASE PM ME

RATNAM TARPODA Ratnam Tarpoda Ratnam Tarpoda (Big Size) was one amongst my mass-order purchase through my dear friend Pradeep who was travelling to Rajahmundry last year. I have bought lot of pens from different manufacturers and I have varied experiences across the three brands of Rajahmundry. For those who don’t know, Rajahmundry is one of the major city of Andhra Pradesh in India. And city consists of few of the oldest fountain pen manufacturers in India like Ratnam, Ratnamson, and Guider. Ratnam Pen Works ( KV Brahmam & Brothers) is the first “Swadeshi” Fountain Pen Company of India and was established in 1932. It was started by Kosuri Venkat Ratnamand is currently being run by one of his two sons, Siva Ratnam. They also manufacture handmade gold nibs including conical shape gold nib. Most of their pens are made of ebonite, however they also make silver metal pens and also gold plated silver pens. I have yet to see acrylic pen from them. The review is about their big size ebonite pen , Ratnam Tarpoda. DESIGN : 3.5/5 Here the pen is in simple, classic shaped design with rounded finials. The pen tapers down down to rounded bottom, while the cap also tapers but just slightly to finial which is shaped like parabolic dome. It bears lot of resemblance to one of my previously reviewed pen Ratnamson 302, which is a pen from different manufacturer, though in this case the cap finials tapers more towards top. Ratnam Tarpoda – Uncapped Ratnam Tarpoda – Dome Shaped Top and Rounded Bottom The grip section is made in black ebonite unlike the body which is made in olive ripple ebonite which is famous by name of White Tiger because of the resemblance to skin of white tiger. Ratnam Tarpoda – Capped Ratnam Tarpoda – Uncapped and Unposted Ratnam Tarpoda – Uncapped and Posted The barrel is cylindrical and tapers both ways, towards the grip section and also towards the bottom end. The grip section in black ebonite gradually tapers towards the top with flared end at the top. The grip section is short and I end up gripping threads which actually are not sharp and rather they are smooth and provide good grip. The cap is adorned with dual bands and has a stiff ball end type clip. The trims used are gold and I believe they match with the ebonite. And it opens in 4 1/2 turns. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap with Ball end Clip and Dual Centerbands The barrel is engraved with the branding which reads “RATNAM PEN, MADE IN RJY, INDIA”. And it is filled some sort of gold paint which I believe is not neatly done as their is spillage of gold paint on barrel which eventually will wear off with time. Ratnam Tarpoda – Branding Overall it is a classic, no nonsense, elegant cigar shaped design and you cant go wrong with that. Ratnam Tarpoda – Classic Cigar Design Finishing can be improved a little. And most importantly the turns to open cap must be minimized. BUILT & CONSTRUCTION : 3/5 The quality of material used is good and is sturdy. There is no discolouration of material. The built quality is just at par with like of Ranga or Deccan pens if not better, especially finishing. I think Branding on barrel can still be improved. What I really liked was the alignment of cap with the barrel when it is closed in such a way that the ripple effect of ebonite carries to the cap from barrel. Ratnam Tarpoda – Ripple Pattern Continuation from Barrel to Cap Its a handmade pen and yes there are certain anomalies like cap finial doesn't align in line with the tapered profile of the cap. But again what do you expect from such an inexpensive pen. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap Finial not aligned with cap Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap inner View As far as the quality of band is considered they are better than what I had on Ratnamson 302. But yes they still need improvement. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap Center Bands One thing I really did not like was provision for 2 breather holes in the pen, otherwise it is well built HANDMADE pen at this price point. BALANCE & SIZE : 5/5 The pen is vary well balanced in both the scenarios when writing with cap posted or unposted. Yes, when cap is posted at back, the rear becomes heavy and will suit the one with large hands but it doesn’t becomes unbalanced at all. The cap posts securely and it post deep. Below are the 2 images showing the length till which the cap posts, outer limit shown by thumb. Ratnam Tarpoda – Cap Posts Deep Ratnam Tarpoda – Thumb shows the length till which the cap posts Below are the two images showing the length of pen when writing with cap posted and unposted. Ratnam Tarpoda – Writing Unposted Ratnam Tarpoda – Writing Posted Being ebonite it is light weigh and no metal is used here. Ratnam Tarpoda – Weight in gms including cap Ratnam Tarpoda – Weight in gms excluding cap Few Specifications are : Length of pen (closed) – 150 mmLength of pen (open and unposted) – 125 mm (including nib)Length of pen (open and posted) – 165 mm (including nib)Length of Grip Section – 15 mmMaximum Dia of Cap – 16 mmMaximum Dia of Barrel – 14 mmMaximum Dia of Grip Section – 12 mmMinimum Dia of Grip Section – 10 mmWeight of Pen with Cap – 28.24 gms (inked)Weight of Pen without Cap – 17.82 gms (inked) Below are the few images showing the comparison of pen with others: Ratnam Tarpoda vs Lamy Safari vs Pilot MR vs Jinhao X750 – Capped Ratnam Tarpoda vs Lamy Safari vs Pilot MR vs Jinhao X750 – Uncapped ans Posted Clearly it is not that much a big pen and hence it is comfortable for most of the users. NIB : 2.5/5 Nib used is #5 friction fit with ebonite feed. Nib is Dual tone and is well articulated with certain engraving which reads ” GENIUS IRIDIUM GERMANY”. The nib on this was better than what the Guider puts on their pens but yes not to my liking and thus I ended up grinding the nib to medium Italic and it was nib which got grind easily unlike Wality nibs. Ratnam Tarpoda – Nib unit View – Top Ratnam Tarpoda – Nib unit View – Side Ratnam Tarpoda – Nib unit View – Underside The problem is that the nib is available only in fine and no other choices. INK FILLING MECHANISM : 4/5 The ink filling mechanism is via an Eyedropper, well you can use syringe also. Ink capacity is around 3.5 ml which is substantial. Ratnam Tarpoda – Pen taken apart Ratnam Tarpoda – Eyedropper Filling Since its an ED pen, there is a noticeable increase in the inflow when the ink level goes below 3/4th and that is when you will have to refill otherwise it will burp. Its like it will gives you warning before it burps. This pen though has not burped on me at all and yeah I ensure when the ink level goes below I refill it. Below are the images of my handwritten review and the writing samples: Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 1 Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 2 Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 3 Ratnam Tarpoda – Handwritten Review – Page 4 CONCLUSION : 18/25 I recommend this pen to every collector. Its an handmade pen from first pen manufacturer of India. Also will recommend to the likes who love fiddling around with their pen and know how to live around and ED pen. I bought this pen for Rs. 1000 (approx US $16 ) which included shipping last year and I believe the price might have gone up. What I Like: Classic Cigar Design Handmade Very Good Quality Ebonite Good Balance and Size Good Ink Capacity A piece of History Value for MoneyWhat I don’t Like: Eyedropper only Only one nib option Branding HOW TO BUY: They can be easily approached via WhatsApp ( Mob No. +91 98489 18904). They will send you pics and prices and you can select whatever you like. Pay via bank transfer and they ship once the payment is received. You can also check out his Facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/Ratnam-pens-314421885386511/?fref=ts The review is simultaneously posted at my blog. For more reviews check my blog here : LINK

JK CEDAR - 100 GSM The search for that elusive paper which is good for fountain pen brought me to one of the paper which I was using to print handout for the design presentation, the paper was JK Cedar. While printing, I realised the quality of paper is good and its super white bright and then I decided to give it a shot with few of my fountain pen and inks. J.K. Paper is exporter of Branded Copier Paper to over 35 countries. They are the market leader in India in Branded Copier Paper segment. Apart from Office Paper, they also have manufacture in Packaging Boards, Printing and Writing Paper, and Speciality Paper like MICR Cheque Paper. They have two paper mill in India in Odisha and Gujarat. This review is about one of the copy paper from J.K. Paper Ltd. called J.K. Cedar. DESIGN & BUILD :Well there is nothing much to talk about as far as design or build is concerned as this is a copier paper which comes in Ream of 500 sheets. The paper is marketed for colour copying and printing purpose. JK Cedar – Premium Colour Copying and Printing Paper JK Cedars – Ream’s Rear Side The packaging is done in nice glossy coated paper which just serves the purpose right. As you can see the paper size is A4 and it is 100 gsm and the whole ream weighs around 3.12 kg. JK Cedar – A4 size – 500 Sheets Ream As far as packaging and cover is concerned it is how all the papers are packed in reams and supplied all over. So nothing much to say here. PERFORMANCE : As I have mentioned earlier and I believe most of us all know that the quality of paper as far as using with fountain pen is concerned is dependent on lot of parameters like ink resistance, shading, sheen, feathering, bleed-through, paper colour, smoothness or texture and few others. Few properties are also dependent with ink properties like shading and sheen. The paper is super bright white paper. And the quality of paper is 100 gsm. JK Cedar – Bright White Paper The paper is quite smooth and has no texture. The fountain pen actually glides over the paper. It is very smooth to write on and most of the Italic pens, which used to pick fibres in other low quality copier paper, also performed amazingly well. JK Cedar – Writing on it JK Cedar – Writing on it – Rear Side JK Cedar – Written Samples with Different Ink – Close-up 1 JK Cedar – Written Samples with Different Ink – Close-up 2 As visible from above samples and even the close-ups, it is clear that there is no feathering and bleed-through in most of the ink except the Chelpark Black which shows some bleed-through on rear side and I believe the ink is not good. The paper is quite good when it comes to resisting inks (non absorbing) and provides decent amount of shading also. I see some sheen (mostly with Iroshizuku and sailor inks) which was difficult to capture as the sheen was on lower side. It has performed extremely well with most of the inks. Performance summary is as follows: Ink Resistance : HighPaper Texture : Very SmoothFeathering : NoneBleed-through : Very LowShading : HighSheen : Low VALUE : This ream of 500 sheets was bought by me at discounted price at Rs. 250 ( US $3.75) The paper can be used to print different patterns like I do before start writing ans you can also get the paper notebook bind. JK CEDAR – Plain Paper, Grid Pattern, & Dott Pattern At Rs. 0.50 per sheet ( US $ 0.01 per sheet) and that too such an amazing performance its a steal. It has fabulous value for money. CONCLUSION : If someone asks me what is best paper for fountain pens manufactured in India, I would say JK Cedar. I recommend this to all the users of fountain pen community. Its easily available on Flipkart and Amazon.

KRISHNA MANGAL The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK Krishna Mangal – Ink Bottle (old style) In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. Now they come in new glass bottles. Krishna Ink – New Glass Bottle The inks that are being produced have now increased to 35 nos. and even certain names have changed. Krishna Inks – 35 Colors The new names are as follows: Pencil Neelambal Dark Chocolate Purple Lake Blue Vivid violet Sapphire Ruby Monsoon Sky Pink Barleria Summer Rain Silent Night Sky Bronze Leaf Wild Cherry Pumpkin Nilwanti Cool Breeze Gold Rush Orange Crush After Dark Yellow Valley Glory Vine Dark Rose Magic Blue Orchard Lily Writer’s Night Peacock Neelkurinhi Emerald Mangal Dew Leaf Njaval Meadow Green Ghat Green Officer’s Blue Black I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in seeing the limited resources at his disposal. This review is of Mangal ink which is very close to terracotta brick tiles used here in India for roofing. I am in love with this colour. It actually has grown on me. It is not that orangish that will make the ink bright but yes just gives you look of burnt brick. This did not gave me any nib creep problem like Diamine orange inks. INK SPLASH Krishna Mangal – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm I love Pastel orange colour ink. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Mangal – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOUR MATCH Krishna Mangal – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Mangal – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Mangal – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View The ink even shades in medium and fine nibs. Ink has got no sheen and does not feather. Flow is superb. INK SWABS Krishna Mangal – Ink Passes on JK Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Mangal – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Mangal –Scribble on JK Cedar -100 gsm WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Mangal – Waterproof Test Ink is not water resistant at all. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Mangal – Ink Drying Times Well surprisingly the ink drying times are quite low. Just around 20 seconds. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Mangal – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Mangal – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm - Angled View There is no feathering of this Ink as you can see from this close-up. CONCLUSION: Its a lovely colour and I can think of Diamine Ancient Copper to be of similar colour. The ink behaves very well with no crud or feathering or even staining. This ink flows really well and is moderately lubricated (of course not as great as sailor inks). However these are well worth the money. Kudos to Dr. Sreekumar. Beautiful ink which has lovely shading. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : Good amountLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : BadDrying Times : GoodNib Creep : NoClogging : NoneOdor : None Feedback and Comments are welcome. The ink can be bought from the ebay store of Krishna Pens. Link is given below. LINK TO EBAY STORE : KRISHNAPENS

This is the review of custom designed pen PORUS (caved in version) executed by ASA pens. The detailed review of the pen is done here : LINK ASA Porus (Customized Pen) There is a brief history about the pen that I am reviewing today. There was always an urge to design and get a customized pen and actually get executed. It all started whenPradeep from Mumbai took initiative to bring all like minded crazy people who just love fountain pen and actually are real serious about them. One fine day Sulagno (I hope i have spelled his name correctly) asked why cant we do a customized pen and seeing an opportunity i jumped in and gave certain design inputs and offered to do CAD drafting for the same. What came out is a series of design inputs by Me, Sulagno, Rakshit, Pradeep, Anirban Bhattacharya, Burhan (from Singapore) and not to miss out Mr. Subramaniam of ASA Pens, who was the guy who gave certain technical inputs and who in actual executed one more custom pen after the SNIPER. ASA Porus – Beauty So here we are with new pristine white pen PORUS (named after Great Indian King- Porus, who was well built and tall). ASA Porus DESIGN & BUILT: There were lot of iterations done for the design of the Pen. Pen had to be over sized, fat pen with long grip section that criteria was clear from the beginning. Three iteration were made, one flat top straight shaped, second stepped design and third the cigar shaped and lot of liking went for the cigar shaped and it was finalized for design. ASA Porus – Uncapped It is designed to be clip less pen to give it a minimalist look. This is a no fuss design with no metal parts except the nib. It is a pure beauty when kept on the table. Just so clean, simple and elegant. This is a pristine white pious pen. Sign of peace. ASA Porus – Photoshoot Made of out of high quality white acrylic this pen has thick acrylic section and has fantastic built quality. Seems well built. however i will be careful to use it as it is milky white and top of that it is acrylic and has a bit of heft. A fall here or there might give certain crack or damage the pen. So I take precaution while using it for sure. To add to this unlike other Indian acrylic cheap pens it has no Odor. ASA Porus – Close up Overall a well designed and executed pen which is equally well built. ASA Porus – Aptly named Now moving to certain details. The pen has rounded cap top and rounded barrel bottom which is quite evident in the pictures. ASA Porus – Rounded top and bottom The pen opens in 7 turns which i beleive is bit on higher side. Can certainly be reduced. But that doesn’t take way the credit of amazing built quality of pen. ASA Porus – Uncapped Cap has in built inner lining and has breather hole to avoid moist deposits inside the cap. So that nib can breathe. Images below might give clearer picture. ASA Porus Cap Closeup with breather hole ASA Porus – Cap inner view Porus comes in two versions one is flat flushed version and other is caved in flushed version. In both the cases cap is flushed with the barrel ASA Porus Flat Flushed Version vs ASA Porus Caved in Flushed version along side Gama Supreme (Pic Credits : ASA Pens) ASA Porus – Caving around meeting point of cap and barrel ASA Porus – Slightly Opened cap showing 2 mm caving in The pen is over sized jumbo pen which you can have an idea from few images below. ASA Porus vs Gama Kuyil vs Pilot Metropolitan vs ASA Rainbow vs Gama Airborne – Shot 1 The detailed review of the same can be found here : LINK

Dear All After the successful group buy of RANGA BAMBOO MODEL & RANGA MODEL 4C & Model 3 This is a group buy effort for the Ranga Model 5 (also famous by VARUNA GAJENDRA) which will be available only till 25th December. Kindly register at the earliest. Minimum requirement is 10 nos. Details of the pen in Four options are as below: Ranga Model 5 (Eyedropper Version) The dimension is 7 inches length. the dia is 17mm or 18.75mm dia Finish - Polished or Matte (Bakul)Option - flat end or Round endNib Option :Ambitious 35 mm Fine Nib, upgrade to Ambitious 40 mm Gold Tone Nib at extra US $ 3, or Bock (With Conklin imprinted) M or B at extra US $ 8.Default settings: Ambitious Gold Color monotone F nibShipping: Included and is through Registered Post. Takes 2 - 4 weeks for delivery. Price includes shippingPayment: Via Paypal to paypal account mpkandan@gmail.com Ranga Model 5 (Cartridge/Converter Version with German Nib Units) Finish - Polished or Matte (Bakul)Nib Option : JoWo Nibs ​​/ Schmidt NibsConverter : Schmidt K5 ConverterJoWo Nibs options : Gold Color Mono tone F, M or B nibDual Tone F, M, B, 1.5 Calligraphy NibChrome Mono Tone F, M, B NibSchmidt Nib options: Gold Color monotone F, M, or BChrome (Silver) Finish Monotone F,M & B.Default settings: Schmidt Gold Colored monotone F nibShipping: Included and is through Registered Post. Takes 2 - 4 weeks for delivery.Includes worldwide shippingPayment: Via Paypal to paypal account mpkandan@gmail.com Color Available : Regular Ebonite (as per images below)​Mottled BrownMottled GreenBlack PolishedBlack MatteClear acrylic / Matte Acrylic (Matte from internal side)Brown RippleGreen RippleOlive RippleYellow Ripple (Not Available)Pink or Burgundy RippleBlue Ripple (Not Available)Olive with pink ripple and black specs Premium Colors Available : Premium Ebonite (as per image below)​Solid BlueYellow/Black SwirlsBlue/Pink SwirlsSolid Green Blue/White SwirlsRed/Black SwirlsYellow/Green SwirlsSolid PinkBlue/Green/Orange SwirlsSolid Orange Please note that the Group Buy (Discounted) International prices are as below: Eyedropper Normal ebonite - 37 USD (Regular Price is US $ 50 to US $ 60) Eyedropper Premium Ebonite - 55 USD (Regular Price is US $ 70) German nib Normal ebonite - 65 USD (Regular Price is US $ 85 to US $ 93) German nib Premium ebonite - 85 USD (Regular Price is US $ 108) These are the great offers as compared to previous group buys. I have negotiated with Mr. Kandan for more discounts. Secondly these pens are all handmade. FOR SHIPPING WITHIN INDIA, PLEASE PM ME

KRISHNA YELLOW VALLEY The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK Krishna Yellow Valley In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. Now they come in new glass bottles. Krishna Ink – New Glass Bottle The inks that are being produced have now increased to 35 nos. and even certain names have changed. Krishna Inks – 35 Colors The new names are as follows: Pencil Neelambal Dark Chocolate Purple Lake Blue Vivid violet Sapphire Ruby Monsoon Sky Pink Barleria Summer Rain Silent Night Sky Bronze Leaf Wild Cherry Pumpkin Nilwanti Cool Breeze Gold Rush Orange Crush After Dark Yellow Valley Glory Vine Dark Rose Magic Blue Orchard Lily Writer’s Night Peacock Neelkurinhi Emerald Mangal Dew Leaf Njaval Meadow Green Ghat Green Officer’s Blue Black I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in seeing the limited resources at his disposal. This review is about YELLOW VALLEY ink from KRISHNA. The colour is really beautiful and I actually like these kind of greens. The ink drying are better than previous inks, it dries within 30 to 32 seconds and is to be note that bold point nib was used to check drying times. However one issue with this ink is that there is an issue with nib crud if left for longer period unattended for more than a week or so. INK SPLASH Krishna Yellow Valley – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm I love the colour of this ink. Its kinda murky green which I like. Ink has no sheen and does not feathers. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Yellow Valley – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOUR MATCH Krishna Yellow Valley – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Yellow Valley – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Yellow Valley– Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View As you can see from the above writing samples the ink has shading property and it shows most in stub nibs. And ink is very legible even in the fine Japanese nibs. INK SWABS & SCRIBBLE Krishna Yellow Valley– Ink Passes on JK Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Yellow Valley – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Yellow Valley –Scribble on JK Cedar -100 gsm WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Yellow Valley – Waterproof Test The ink leaves just a bit of colour when rubbed with water and you can see the that it is still very much legible after water rub test and thus I can say it is has water resistant properties. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Yellow Valley– Ink Drying Times BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Yellow Valley – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Yellow Valley – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm - Angled View COMPARATIVE WITH SIMILAR COLORS Bronze Leaf vs Yellow Valley vs Ghat Green vs Meadow Green vs Goldrush CONCLUSION: I like the colour. The ink has good flow and is nominally lubricated. Dry times are still high but please note that I used the Bold wet nib for drying test. The beauty of the ink is that it is water resistant. But yes there is a bit problem with nib Creep if not used for long. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : ModerateLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : GoodDrying Times : Little HighNib Creep : YesClogging : NoneOdor : None Feedback and Comments are welcome. The ink can be bought from the ebay store of Krishna Pens. Link is given below. LINK TO EBAY STORE : KRISHNAPENS

KRISHNA MONSOON SKY The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK Krishna Ink – Monsoon Sky In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. Now they come in new glass bottles. Krishna Ink – New Glass Bottle The inks that are being produced have now increased to 35 nos. and even certain names have changed. Krishna Inks – 35 Colors The new names are as follows: Pencil Neelambal Dark Chocolate Purple Lake Blue Vivid violet Sapphire Ruby Monsoon Sky Pink Barleria Summer Rain Silent Night Sky Bronze Leaf Wild Cherry Pumpkin Nilwanti Cool Breeze Gold Rush Orange Crush After Dark Yellow Valley Glory Vine Dark Rose Magic Blue Orchard Lily Writer’s Night Peacock Neelkurinhi Emerald Mangal Dew Leaf Njaval Meadow Green Ghat Green Officer’s Blue Black I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in seeing the limited resources at his disposal. This review is of Monsoon Sky which is the new introduction to old 28 colours and this colour is greyish blue-green. INK SPLASH Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOUR MATCH Krishna Monsoon Sky – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Monsoon Sky – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Monsoon Sky – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View This ink shades almost close to none. The ink flow is good. And has no feathering. INK SWABS & SCRIBBLE Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Passes on JK Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar - 100 gsm Krishna Monsoon Sky –Scribble on JK Cedar -100 gsm WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Monsoon Sky – Waterproof Test Ink after water rub test leaves behind certain traces thus making ink bit water resistant and even after water wash it is still readable. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Monsoon Sky – Ink Drying Times The ink drying times hover just around 25 to 26 seconds. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Monsoon Sky – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm CONCLUSION: The colour reminds me of Diamine Teal or Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo. But unlike Iroshizuku it has no shading or sheen. It has no feathering and has consistent flow. Its an okay ink for me because of the colour but I would any day prefer my Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo because of sheen and shading and amazing flow properties. However that comes at high price. This 30 ml bottle just costs less than Rs. 100. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : NoLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : GoodDrying Times : GoodNib Creep : NoClogging : NoneOdor : None Feedback and Comments are welcome. The ink can be bought from the ebay store of Krishna Pens. Link is given below. LINK TO EBAY STORE : KRISHNAPENS

DECCAN ADVOCATE The review is simultaneously at my blog here. Deccan Pens have been into existence since 1928 when they opened first outlet in Hyderabad at Abids and has been one of the oldest fountain pen manufacturing company in India. The firm was started by Sabih Akhter Siddiqui who used to sell fountain pens door to door with the help of DURO agency which used to produce fountain pens in 1920’s. Today Deccan Pens has 32 year old manufacturing unit and they only make fountain pens. The review is simultaneously at my blog here. They have now 3 stores at Secunderabad, Ameerpet, and oldest one at Abids. Deccan Pens have been covered and reviewed lot by HARI, SHRUJYA, & JAISIRI. And this particular review is about one of the largest selling pen from Deccan stable which is “DECCAN ADVOCATE". There have been lot of iterations of Deccan Advocate over many years. Deccan Advocate – In the Wild I must thank Rakshit who lives in Hyderabad and he helped me in getting this pen. He also is a fountain pen connoisseur and you can check his blog here. I got this pen almost 7-8 months back and have been using this only for past 2 months. So the review is about my experience with the pen for past 2 months. DESIGN & BUILT : 05/05 Deccan Pens are notable for impeccable built quality and this Deccan Advocate again stamps their authority of quality built pens. Advocate currently comes in two variants : Round End and Flat End. The model that I am reviewing is the Round end one in green ripple colour and I was told that it is difficult to get hold of the round end advocate and I was lucky enough to get this one. Deccan Advocate – In Broad Day Light The pen is made of high quality ebonite and is available in black, matte black , mottled brown, rippled brown and green ripple and also olive brown ripple. My pen is extremely well made though it was religiously inspected by Rakshit before he bought this one. The ebonite has no perforations its solid without any specks and perforations. The quality of rod is really great. Deccan Advocate The pen is a simple and elegant cigar shaped pen with slight tapering towards the bottom end. There are no bands or trims used on this pen. Only metal part or thing you will see on the pen is clip apart from the nib. The pen is very well executed and polished though you might see some marks just below the threads which is due to cap being capped and uncapped regularly and has not received thorough cleaning and polish from my side. The grip section is made of same ebonite material and is in concave shape. The length of grip section is 22 mm and this I beleive is quite good as it helps in good grip on the pen. Deccan Advocate – Capped Deccan Advocate – Uncapped Deccan Advocate – Round Ends The pen cap opens in 6 turns which I am not happy with but its still acceptable as most of the Indian pens take almost around 5 to 6 turns to open. The cap has chrome finish clip which gives you a look of look of something between matt and polished finish but it is not polished with some sorts of coating. Deccan Advocate – Cap Clip Deccan Advocate – Cap Clip Side View The cap clip narrows down to bottom and is quite sturdy and can easily fit in to shirt pocket firmly. Deccan Advocate – Inner View of Cap The thickness of ebonite is thinnest near the bottom of the cap or what we call as cap lip which you can see in above picture. As the cap tapers at the bottom but it is still sturdy. Below are the few images showing the comparison of pen with other pens: Deccan Advoate vs Lamy Safari vs Jinhao X750 – Capped Deccan Advoate vs Lamy Safari vs Jinhao X750 – Uncapped Deccan Advoate vs Lamy Safari vs Jinhao X750 – Capped (Lateral Side View) Overall, its a beautiful, cigar shaped elegant pen which has impeccable built quality. Its a quality finish from Hyderabad. Yeah I must tell you that there is no branding of any kind on pen anywhere be it clip or nib or even barrel. BALANCE & SIZE : 3.5/05 The pen is around 140 mm including the nib when uncapped and I don’t see any reason to post the cap at back and also I prefer to write with cap unposted. The pen is very much balanced when writing unposted but becomes bottom heavy when cap is posted at back, moreover it becomes uncomfortable at 184 mm when cap is posted at back, thus it is unbalanced. The pen length is 155 mm when it is capped. Below are the images showing the comparison when writing posted and unposted : Deccan Advocate – Writing Unposted Deccan Advocate – Writing Posted What I find most comfortable about the pen is the grip section which is at 9 mm and is in conical shape. It provides perfect grip. The length of grip section is also substantial at 22 mm. The pen weighs around 30 gm with cap and around 20 gm without cap (with ink filled). Deccan Advocate – Weight of pen with cap Deccan Advocate – Weight of pen without cap Few specifications are as follows: Length capped: 155 mmLength uncapped and posted : 184 mmLength uncapped and unposted : 140mmLength of grip section : 22 mmBarrel Dia Avg – 14 mmCap Dia – 16 mmSection Dia (Avg) : 9 mmWeight with cap : 30.4 gmWeight without cap : 20.53 gm NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM : 04/05 Nib currently being used on this pen is 35 mm (#6) Gold Finish Steel Nib and this is a stock nib and there was no other option of the nib on this pen. The nib is famous ambitious fine nib which is friction fit and it writes very well and is paired with good wet ebonite feed. Ink flow is quite good. Deccan Advocate – Nib Unit Top View Deccan Advocate – Nib Unit Side View Deccan Advocate – Nib Unit Underside View The nib is set just a bit inside more, thus what you see is less of 35 mm nib because the grip section is bit flared up as visible from image below. Deccan Advocate – Nib set inside deep The filling mechanism is via eyedropper and it holds approx 3 ml of ink. It has not burped on me even once. Deccan Advocate – Eyedropper Fill Mechanism Below are the images of my handwritten review which shows you the writing sample: Deccan Advocate – Handwritten Review – Page 01 Deccan Advocate – Handwritten Review – Page 02 Deccan Advocate – Handwritten Review – Page 03 CONCLUSION : 12.5/15 I recommend everyone to have at least one Deccan Pen and buying ADVOCATE is the best pen to get hold of at reasonable price of otherwise expensive Deccan Pens. Well yeah i did not like the combination of chrome clip with gold finish nib. I bought this pen for Rs. 1000 (approx 16 usd) which does not include shipping as it was bought by my friend who paid for Shipping. What I Like: Classic Cigar Design Well Finished Very Good Quality Ebonite Lot of Ink CapacityWhat I don’t Like: Eyedropper only Only one nib option Combination of Silver chrome clip with Gold color nib Deccan Advocate – Close Up Comments and feedback are welcome. Regards Vaibhav Mehandiratta

Walitys or Airmail are one of the most sought after Indian fountain pen manufacturers. Both brands are manufactured by AIRMAIL PEN COMPANY based out of Mumbai, India. And they have a good lineup of fountain pen and most of them are Eyedroppers and few of them are Piston fillers. My previous review of the two other Wality Pens I have reviewed are as follows: Wality 52 PD Wality 69 A The pen that I am reviewing or we will be discussing about is one of the sleeker version of the Wality/Airmail pens and is named as WALITY 70AM or AIRMAIL 70AM. (A = Acrylic and M = Medium). DESIGN & BUILT: 5/5 Made out of premium acrylic in brownish orange marbled and swirled finish, this is one of the best designed pen Wality pen. And it comes only in one color and that is orange brown swirls with pearlescent effect and in actual it feels really premium. The cap is made of metal in silver color and has guilloche design pattern in matte finish. The cap bottom or the lip has an extension which is made of the same acrylic material of which the pen is made of. Actually it seems the metal cap is bonded to the acrylic cap through some process. The cap top is in shiny chrome finish which is in dome shape. and even the clip is in shiny chrome finish. The pen clip is sturdy and stiff and will fit even shirt pockets and not slide. The section of the pen is small and when i try to hold the pen in my hands my fingers touches the threads which actually are smooth and not that sharp and they actually provide the grip to otherwise slippery hands. The pen easily opens in 1 and 1/2 turns which actually is not seen in Indian handmade ebonite pens. The pen actually tapers from lower half of the barrel towards the section gradually. Its slender well-built pen. The built quality of pen is far above acceptable, the only glitch remains is the Nib and the feed placement and alignment which we will be discussing later in “Nib and Ink Filling Mechanism” section later. As you can see in the image below the thickness of the acrylic in the barrel, its evident the quality is okay. Below are the few images which shows the comparison with few other pens to get the idea for size of pen. (From Left to Right ) ASA I.Can , Jinhao X750, Pilot MR, Wality 70 AM (From Left to Right ) ASA I.Can , Jinhao X750, Pilot MR, Wality 70 AM The pen is well built and well designed just one or two quality finishes you might encounter which are not noticeable to human naked eye. For Further detailed review including handwritten sample and review. Kindly visit my blog here : LINK

KRISHNA GHAT GREEN The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK Krishna Ghat Green In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold on eBay India Page for Rs. 550 (8 USD) each for 5 Nos. 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. NOTE THAT NEW GLASS BOTTLES HAVE ARRIVED AND THIS WILL RESULT IN BIT OF PRICE INCREASE. The inks that are being produced are currently limited to 28 nos. : GOLD RUSH MEADOW GREEN BLUE MAGIC AFTER DARK SAPPHIRE BLUE LAKE BLUE BRONZE LEAF ORANGE CRUSH AUTUMN SINDHOOR GLORY VINE DARK ROSE NJAVAL WILD CHERRY PURPLE PEACOCK YELLOW VALLEY MELLOW BLUE VIVID VIOLET ORCHARD LILY DARK CHOCOLATE COOL BREEZE SILENT NIGHT SKY FORGET ME NOT SKY BLUE GHAT GREEN PUMPKIN GIRL PINK / BARBIE PINK (discontinued) Krishna Inks – Color Chart 1 Krishna Inks – Color Chart 2 I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in. I will be reviewing all one by one. This review is about GHAT GREEN ink from KRISHNA. This is one of my favourite inks from the lot. Though Ink drying times were high, however new batch that he has release has massive improvement on ink drying times. Krishna Ink comes in plastic bottles in 30 ml quantity and new lot with INCREASED PRICES will come in glass bottles now. INK SPLASH Krishna Ghat Green – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm Oh man I love this colour. Its fantastic. Also it shades subtly, however there is no sheen. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Ghat Green – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOR MATCH Krishna Ghat Green – Color Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Ghat Green – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Ghat Green – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View The ink even shades in fine & medium nib also as good as in stub nibs. INK SWABS Krishna Ghat Green – Ink Passes on JK Cedar Krishna Ghat Green – Ink Swab on Jk Cedar Krishna Ghat Green –Scribble on Jk Cedar WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Ghat Green – Waterproof Test Ink when rubbed with water gives away the colour, however it leaves behind dark lines which are still legible. So I can say its moderately waterproof. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Ghat Green – Ink Drying Times Ink drying times are massive and I have informed the seller of the same. And he has confirmed me that the new current batch has less drying times of less than 30 sec. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Ghat Green – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm There is no feathering of this Ink as you can see from this close-up. CONCLUSION: I like the colour, this is absolute lovely colour. The closest ink with same colour that I can think of is R&K Alt-Goldgrun. The ink has amazing flow properties and is moderately lubricated as it writes amazing with my (bleep) nib of Guider Pen, its inexpensive, and yes it doesn't stain. Only hitch is Drying Times. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : ModerateLubrication : ModerateFlow : GoodWater Resistance : GoodDrying Times : Very HighNib Creep : NoneClogging : NoneOdor : None Ink can be bought from : LINK (Ebay India Store)

This is actually a group buy for the Ambitious nibs Below are the images of ambitious nibs Below are the images of the nibs on my pens that i have used 40 mm gold tone used with ASA Porus 35 mm chrome finish used with Wality 71 JT Below are the links to the review which shows you the writing sample also. ASA Porus Wality 71 JT And the prices are as follows: Flex #5 for 95 bucks FLEX #6 for 115 bucks Gold tone #8 medium nib for 85 bucks Chrome finish #6 fine medium nib for 65 bucks Dual tone #6 fine medium nib for 75 bucks

GUIDER MEDIUM ACRYLIC Guider Pen Company is one of the three fountain pen companies of Rajahmundry in Andhra Pradesh State of India. Other being Ratnam and Ratnamson. Guider Pen is owned by G. Lakshmana Rao currently. Guider Pen Company was started by G. Subbarao in 1946. And they manufacture the pens from various materials like ebonite, acrylic and also celluloid. This review is about one of the acrylic pen from their stable called “Acrylic Medium“. Quite an unusual name. Right ?? I thought so. This pen came in box with cardboard sleeve with no branding. The pen was purchased via discussion with him over whatsapp after he showed me the current stock and I selected few and ordered all in all 6 pens which was easy. However challenging part was asking names of each pen that I bought from him. Guider Acrylic Medium – In the Wild DESIGN & BUILT: 5/5 This is an exquisite looking pen from Guider. It come in various beautiful acrylic colours and I got two pens in different colours, one being green as shown in the picture and the other one being white pearl colour. This is a medium sized pen which is beautifully finished. Guider Acrylic Medium – Uncapped The pen is classic design with Parker style arrow clip and two centre bands. The trims used are golden colour and they beautifully complement with the green acrylic. The fit and finish of the pen is amazing with no visible lathe marks and even the two bands are equally placed. The pen is thickest at the centre of barrel apart from cap and tapers down to rounded bottom. Guider Acrylic Medium – Capped Guider Acrylic Medium – Uncapped The cap clip has conical dome shaped crown above the clip band in the same acrylic. Guider Acrylic Medium – Top Crown Shaped End and Rounded Bottom The cap has no breather hole like many Indian Pens. The pen opens in 2 & 1/2 turns which is unlike many ebonite pens made in India. I see the momentum going towards less threads now. Branding is only done on the clip and the nib. Guider Acrylic Medium – Uncapped : Close-up showing the clip in vintage Parker style Guider Acrylic Medium – Cap Top View Showing Branding on arrow clip Guider Acrylic Medium – Cap Side View showing the centre-bands Guider Acrylic Medium – Cap Inner View I really like the built quality of the pen, acrylic used is strong and it has taken one or two falls and yet nothing has happened, however I need to be more careful as it is acrylic. Beautiful product from Guider and full marks to Guider on turning this beauty. Below are few images showing the comparison between Guider Acrylic Medium with other pens: Guider Acrylic Medium vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari – Capped Guider Acrylic Medium vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari – Uncapped Pen is just slightly bigger than Lamy safari by almost 7 mm . Kudos to guider for such a beauty. BALANCE : 3.5/5 The pen is around 125 mm including nib and fits perfectly in my small hands. The pen is very well balanced when writing unposted. The pen cap doesn’t post deep and thus making it a large pen when cap is posted at back at 173 mm and honestly, to me it feels a bit uncomfortable and awkward even though it is surprisingly balanced. i would have preferred more if the cap would have posted more deep. Guider Acrylic Medium – Writing Unposted Guider Acrylic Medium – Writing Posted The pen being acrylic doesn’t weigh much. Below are the images showing the weight of pen with or without the cap. Guider Acrylic Medium – Weight without the cap and with ink filled Guider Acrylic Medium – Weight with the cap and with ink filled Few Specifications of the pens are as follows: Length of Pen – Capped = 146 mmLength of Pen – Uncapped including nib = 125 mmLength of Grip Section = 18 mmLength of Barrel = 91 mmLength of Pen – Cap Posted = 173 mmDia. of Barrel @ centre = 13 mm (avg)Dia. of Cap = 14 mm (avg)Dia. of Grip Section = 10 mm (avg)Weight of Pen including Cap and Ink filled = 23.53 gWeight of Pen without Cap and Ink filled = 14.47 g NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 3/5 Nib is #5 Gold Colour Steel Nib which writes fine and was a big, bigg, biggg disappointment. I will actually give only one mark for the nib for actually being there. The feed is ebonite. I actually grinded the nib to oblique italic to suit my handwriting and now it writes like a dream with amazing ink flow via ebonite feed. I am actually really fortunate that nib grind turned out to be blessing in disguise for the (bleep) nib provided along with this pen. I have been writing with this pen for past one month and it has not burped on me even though i have been careful of topping up the ink when ink level goes really low. Guider Acrylic Medium – Nib Unit Top View Guider Acrylic Medium – Nib Unit Side View Guider Acrylic Medium – Nib Unit Underside View The pen holds approx around 2 ml , an advantage being of an eyedropper fill mechanism. Guider Acrylic Medium – Eyedropper Ink Filling Mechanism I wish the nib could have been better. Below is the handwritten review showing the writing sample also: Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 1 Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 2 Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 3 Guider Acrylic Medium – Handwritten Review -Page 4 CONCLUSION: 11.5/15 I recommend this beautiful pen to people who can tune or change the nibs on their own, not that the nib is difficult to change, it actually is an easy job provided you have a standalone spare nib and also to people who don’t mind using the Pen with eyedropper fill mechanism. I bought this pen for Rs. 1000 (approx 15 usd) including shipping which was not a bad deal. What I Like: Classic Design Well Finished Beautiful Acrylic Material Lot of Ink CapacityWhat I don’t Like: Bad Steel Nib For other posts kindly check my blog : mehandiratta

KRISHNA BLUE MAGIC The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold for Rs. 100 (1.5 USD) each for 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. The inks that are being produced are currently limited to 28 nos. : GOLD RUSH MEADOW GREEN BLUE MAGIC AFTER DARK SAPPHIRE BLUE LAKE BLUE BRONZE LEAF ORANGE CRUSH AUTUMN SINDHOOR GLORY VINE DARK ROSE NJAVAL WILD CHERRY PURPLE PEACOCK YELLOW VALLEY MELLOW BLUE VIVID VIOLET ORCHARD LILY DARK CHOCOLATE COOL BREEZE SILENT NIGHT SKY FORGET ME NOT SKY BLUE GHAT GREEN PUMPKIN GIRL PINK Renamed as BARBIE PINK Krishna Inks – Color Chart 1 Krishna Inks – Color Chart 2 I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in. I will be reviewing all one by one. This review is about BLUE MAGIC ink from KRISHNA. This is vibrant blue ink colour which I like. Ink needs improvement because it feathers even on good quality JK Cedar 100 gsm paper. And last when I heard it has been reformulated. Krishna Blue Magic - Ink Bottle Krishna Ink comes in plastic bottles in 30 ml quantity andthe procurement for better quality plastic bottles or probably glass bottles is already under way. And I believe thats the right direction to move forward. Update is that the the Glass bottles have been procured and new inks might come in glass bottles now. INK SPLASH Krishna Blue Magic – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm There is no sheen on the ink even if there is any ink pooling and rather you can see more of the feathering. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Blue Magic – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOR MATCH Krishna Blue Magic – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Blue Magic – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Blue Magic – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View There ink has very slight shading and ink flows quite well and is not that lubricated. INK SWABS Krishna Blue Magic – Ink Passes on JK Cedar Krishna Blue Magic – Ink Swab on JK Cedar WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Blue Magic – Waterproof Test The ink is not at all water resistant. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Blue Magic – Ink Drying Times Ink drying times are just above 25 seconds. I can live with that. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Blue Magic – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm CONCLUSION: I like the colour, only if it would have resistance to feathering. Sailor Souten and Iroshizuku KonPeki are way better inks when it comes to sheen, feathering and shading however they are very expensive. However I have also heard from Dr. Sreekumar that this ink is being reformulated. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : YesSheen : NoShading : Very LowLubrication : LowFlow : MediumWater Resistance : BadDrying Times : MediumNib Creep : NoneClogging : NoneOdor : NoneInk can be bought from : LINK (Ebay India Store)

KRISHNA BRONZE LEAF The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. I am really happy to see someone in India has taken initiative to standup and make good quality and non standard color Inks. These inks are sold for Rs. 100 (1.5 USD) each for 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. The inks that are being produced are currently limited to 28 nos. : GOLD RUSH MEADOW GREEN BLUE MAGIC AFTER DARK SAPPHIRE BLUE LAKE BLUE BRONZE LEAF ORANGE CRUSH AUTUMN SINDHOOR GLORY VINE DARK ROSE NJAVAL WILD CHERRY PURPLE PEACOCK YELLOW VALLEY MELLOW BLUE VIVID VIOLET ORCHARD LILY DARK CHOCOLATE COOL BREEZE SILENT NIGHT SKY FORGET ME NOT SKY BLUE GHAT GREEN PUMPKIN GIRL PINK Krishna Inks – Color Chart 1 Krishna Inks – Color Chart 2 I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in. I will be reviewing all one by one. This review is about BRONZE LEAF ink from KRISHNA. And this is absolutely one of the top in my favourite ink category of Krishna Inks. Krishna Ink – Bottle Krishna Ink comes in amber coloured plastic bottles in 30 ml quantity and I have been told that the procurement for better quality plastic bottles or probably glass bottles is already under way. And I believe thats the right direction to move forward. INK SPLASH Krishna Bronze Leaf – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm There is no sheen on the ink even if there is any ink pooling DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Bronze Leaf – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOR MATCH Krishna Bronze Leaf – Color Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Ink Bronze Leaf – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Ink Bronze Leaf – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View There is a good amount of shading with this ink which I absolutely love about this ink. INK SWABS Krishna Bronze Leaf – Ink Swab on JK Cedar WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Bronze Leaf – Waterproof Test Please ignore the certain black shades of lower part of drip test as there was certain ink spill. Kindly refer upper drip part. As you can see from images from above, ink is not at all waterproof. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Bronze Leaf – Ink Drying Times BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Bronze Leaf – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm CONCLUSION: I absolutely love this ink. And actually this is the only brown coloured ink produced in India. And I recommend all buyers to use this ink. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : YesLubrication : GoodFlow : GoodWater Resistance : BadDrying Times : HighNib Creep : NoClogging : No Ink can be bought from : LINK (Ebay India Store)

KRISHNA DARK ROSE The review is simultaneously posted at my blog here : LINK In Indian Fountain Pen industry or Circles, Dr. Sreekumar is quite known for his hand-turned fountain pens and almost 20 types of nib tuning. However recently he has shelved in to making fountain pen inks under the brand name of KRISHNA. These inks are sold for Rs. 100 (1.5 USD) each for 30 ml ink bottle plus shipping. The inks that are being produced are currently limited to 28 nos. : GOLD RUSH MEADOW GREEN BLUE MAGIC AFTER DARK SAPPHIRE BLUE LAKE BLUE BRONZE LEAF ORANGE CRUSH AUTUMN SINDHOOR GLORY VINE DARK ROSE NJAVAL WILD CHERRY PURPLE PEACOCK YELLOW VALLEY MELLOW BLUE VIVID VIOLET ORCHARD LILY DARK CHOCOLATE COOL BREEZE SILENT NIGHT SKY FORGET ME NOT SKY BLUE GHAT GREEN PUMPKIN GIRL PINK Krishna Inks – Color Chart 1 Krishna Inks – Color Chart 2 I would like to thank Dr. Sreekumar for sending me the samples and also for the effort that he has put in. I will be reviewing all one by one. This review is about DARK ROSE ink from KRISHNA. And this is absolutely one of the top in my favourite ink category of Krishna Inks. Krishna Dark Rose - Ink Bottle Krishna Ink comes in plastic bottles in 30 ml quantity andthe procurement for better quality plastic bottles or probably glass bottles is already under way. And I believe thats the right direction to move forward. INK SPLASH Krishna Dark Rose – Ink Splash on JK Cedar 100 gsm There is no sheen on the ink even if there is any ink pooling. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Krishna Dark Rose – Ink Drop on Paper Towel COLOR MATCH Krishna Dark Rose – Colour Range WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Dark Rose – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm Krishna Dark Rose – Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm – Angled View There ink has slight shading and it is visible only in stub calligraphy nibs. INK SWABS Krishna Dark Rose – Ink Passes on JK Cedar Krishna Dark Rose – Ink Swab on JK Cedar WATERPROOF TEST Krishna Dark Rose – Waterproof Test The ink is bit resistant to water and even after the rubbing with water vigorously there were still line visible. INK DRYING TIMES Krishna Dark Rose – Ink Drying Times Ink drying times are just below 25 seconds. Which is good, compared to Bronze Leaf ink. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLES Krishna Dark Rose – Blow up Writing Sample on JK Cedar 100 gsm CONCLUSION: I like the colour, however I would have loved it more if it has more shading properties. Following are the summation of ink properties: Feathering : NoSheen : NoShading : LowLubrication : MediumFlow : HighWater Resistance : GoodDrying Times : MediumNib Creep : NoneClogging : NoneOdor : None Ink can be bought from : LINK (Ebay India Store)

Hello fellow fountain pen lovers This is an update to the Group Buy that we created for custom hooded nib pen made in acrylic or ebonite at fountain pen network. Group Buy Link : FPN GROUP BUY Link for Buying Pen : ASA SNIPER The new images are as below. Also there is a new blue color. Enjoy. Products will start shipping on 28th March.

The review is about my second oversized pen ASA Viraat that i bought along with the Gama Supreme which i will be reviewing later. The detailed review is posted on my wordpress blog here : ASA Viraat This happens to be custom job that he did for me and supposedly upcoming model in growing list of ASA Pens. My other review of ASA pens are as follows: ASA Spear ASA Galactic ASA I-Can ASA Porus ASA Patriot DESIGN & BUILT: 4.5 / 5 This pen comes in two ebonite colors like black, light brown rippled, dark brown rippled. The pen in review is light brown rippled often called as White Tiger Ebonite. ASA Viraat – Top View ASA Viraat – Uncapped Built wise its a amazing, thick and the quality of the ebonite used is top notch. No qualms about it. Also there are two option of finishes available for this pen, Polished and Matte. Matte being new finish on the colored ebonite from ASA Pens. I am using the Polished version which can be seen in the image below. ASA Viraat – Polished version. Look at the shine The thickness of material is amazing. Its built like tank. Throw it here and there and forget. No damage will happen to this tank like built pen. The pen is fat and average thickness of pen is 15 mm, with maximum thickness at 16 mm around center of barrel and then barrel tapers down to bottom to 14 mm. ASA Viraat – Capped Pen View Compared to Gama Supreme it is smaller by 4 mm in length. The pen is around 160 mm in length which is quite big. The cap is @17mm dia at bottom and @16mm at cap finial. The clip is quite stiff and sturdy. Also there is a band at the edge of bottom of cap called lip band. All the trims are in silver chrome finish. I personally don't like the lip band but that doesn’t discount from the fact that it is well executed pen. Some people may like this some may not. ASA Viraat – Cap with silver trims ASA Viraat – Inner Cap View The grip section length is small though. The pen is flat top and bottom design with certain amount of tapering towards at either ends.Overall its a simple design for a pen but in big proportions. Quality is top notch. ASA Viraat – Flat Top and Bottom ASA Viraat – View of Grip Section and Cap Bottom Below are the few images showing its comparison with other pens. ASA Viraat vs Gama Popular vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier ASA Viraat vs Gama Popular vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Side View ASA Viraat vs Gama Popular – Barrel Thickness Few vitals are that the cap opens in 4 turns and the grip section is 13 mm thick. BALANCE: 4.5/5 The pen of these size are generally heavy but being ebonite its light weight. But because of its size there is just a little amount of welcome heft which make you feel that you are actually holding a big pen. The cap posts securely at back but i don’t think that is required. As mentioned earlier the grip section is small though and might be hassle for some. who hold the pen a bit higher. ASA Viraat – Writing without cap posted ASA Viraat – Writing with cap posted As you can see the pen is quite big, thus no requirement of posting the cap at back. Also you can see the grip section being small in length and my grip touching the threads which actually are not sharp and provide slip resistance. Actually this thick section takes some time getting used to. NIB AND INK FILLING MECHANISM: 05/05 Now the pen is fitted with Broad Bock nib. Oh man l love this nib. Lovely. Lays down perfect wet line that broad nib is supposed to do. ASA Viraat – Nib Unit Top View ASA Viraat – Nib Unit Side View ASA Viraat – Nib Unit Bottom View ASA Viraat – Nib Unit Angled View Pen is an eyedropper filler. And hold approx 5 ml of the ink. Feed is made of ebonite. And following nib options are available. Bock Fine Nib Bock Medium Nib Bock Broad Nib Ambitious 35 mm Medium Nib Ambitious 40 mm Medium-Broad Nib ASA Viraat – Pen taken apart ASA Viraat – Ebonite Feed Below is the handwritten review showing the writing sample and ink drying tests. Conclusion: This pen is for the serious buyers who actually are on lookout for oversized beauties. And this is one of them.

The review is posted at my blog with more images and handwritten pen samples LINK Islander – In the Wild Well this particular pen, ISLANDER from Fosfor Pens was love at first site when I actually saw it in person at Delhi Pen Meet. I had seen lot of Islanders in the Wood online but never saw one in polycast resin. And Rishminder was the guy at pen meet who had the pen made out of polycast resin in tri colors of Indian Flag and i must complement Manoj Deshmukh of the wonderfully executed job. And trust me friends, it was love at first sight. I ordered the pen that very day and waited patiently for 3 weeks while going through the process of selecting colors, clips and bands. It was an amazing experience dealing with him and thus it lead me to ordering few more pens from him. This review is about Fosfor Islander. (Islander being named because it was first commissioned by a person who lived on an island) DESIGN & BUILT: 05/05 Where shall i start ? Actually i was speechless when I first saw the pen. It’s such a beauty. It arrived in very nice cardboard package which actually is a nice case for this big pen. The pen box is the only area where the branding is done. and you won’t find the branding anywhere else. Islander – Glamor Shot The pen is made of polycast acrylic resin which Manoj Deshmukh of Fosfor pen casts himself and thus you have the flexibility of having the pen in any color mix you want. And I actually wanted something brownish orange with white as a base and Manoj has produced a beauty. Islander – Close Up And as far as finish is concerned, I can find not even a single fault. It’s supremely well finished not even a single lathe mark. I can even go to an extent of saying that the pen is the best finished pen of India. The quality of the resin is superb though I beleive that being acrylic it is brittle. So care is needed in that regards. Its an eye-candy for sure. As far as design is concerned it’s a beautifully designed and executed pen. It’s a straight cylindrical pen with barrel tapering at bottom. The cap top and barrel bottom have soft rounded edges. Below are the few images which might help in design understanding. Islander – Capped Islander – Uncapped The cap top and barrel bottom have sublime protrusion i.e. they are raised. Clip is springy and stiff and like the fact the bottom is raised for easy clipping. The band above the clip is above has intricate design and is made of pure Silver. Islander – Cap top View Islander – Cap Side View – Intricate Silver Band Below are the few images of the pen showing comparison with other pens: Fosfor Islander vs Ranga Model 4C vs Italix Parson’s Essential vs Pilot 78G – Capped Fosfor Islander vs Ranga Model 4C vs Italix Parson’s Essential vs Pilot 78G – Uncapped I love this pen and soooo beautiful. And this has taken place in my top 5 pens with steel nibs. BALANCE: 04/05 It’s a perfectly balanced pen when writing uncapped and unposted. But for me it becomes quite large and uncomfortable when cap is posted at back. Yes the cap posts quite securely. The pen length is 149 mm when capped and 133 when uncapped. Below are the images of the pen showing comparative of writing with cap posted and unposted. Islander – Writing Unposted Islander – Writing Posted Since it's a long pen I don’t think there is no need of posting cap. NIB AND INK FILLING MECHANISM: 05/05 There were lot of nib options like JoWo, Schmidt and Ambitious and I opted for Schmidt silver monotone #6 Medium nib which is tried and tested. Islander – Nib unit angled view Islander – Nib unit top view Islander – Nib unit side view Islander – Nib unit bottom view The ink filling mechanism is via converter and cartridge mechanism. It can also be used as eyedropper. Islander – Cartridge Filling Mechanism Islander – Can be used as eyedropper showing inner side of cap above and barrel below This pen writes beautifully and writes wet and is perfect for shading inks. Below are the few images which shows the handwritten review along with test of wetness and line variation. CONCLUSION: This pen is available starting from 70 USD. And is available in different materials like wood, ebonite, acrylic resin. It is my top favorite pen. No.1 in my top favorite followed closely by Ranga Model 4C. Just to tell you all that this is completely handmade pen. Kudos to Mr. Deshmukh. Thank you.

Ranga Pens is amongst the one quality pen manufacturer in India. Infact they are the only manufacturer in India who have the premium colors and quality ebonite pens apart from regular ebonite and acrylic pens. They have an active Ebay store where they sell not just fountain pens but also ball pens and Roller Ball pens and also raw materials like ebonite rods and acrylic blanks. The link to ebay shop is as below: RANGAHANDMADE Also Peyton Pen Street is also authorized seller of Ranga Hand Made pens. Here is the link to the webpage: PEYTON Mr. M.P. Kandan of Ranga Pens can also be reached at Fountain Pen Network, where he is quite active. Here is the link to reach him on FPN : MPKANDAN – RANGA I have recently organized 3 group buys for three different model of thiers. Model 4C, Model 3 and Bamboo Model. And i have bought all three models through group buy. I will be reviewing all the models one by one. They have following Models in their lineup: Model 4C Bamboo Model 3 Model 4CS Model 5 Model 6 Model 8 Model 2c Model 2d ZealAnd few more. I will be reviewing Model 4C in this post. Which M.S.Pandurangan (Owner/Pen Turner) has crafted these pens from end-end. I also have reviewed this pen at my blog along with other pens and inks : LINK Model 4C – In the Wild This happens to be actually my second pen from the house of Ranga Pens and first one being Bamboo Model. Which i will be reviewing next. DESIGN & BUILT: 05/05 The build quality of this pen is impeccable. Its very well polished and there is no marks at all i see on the pen. Believe me its an handmade pen and when you hold the pen in your hand you wont be able to judge whether it’s handmade or not. Such and excellent finish Mr. Kandan has given on this pen. Model 4C – beauty Shot The quality of this premium ebonite is really really good. There are hardly any imperfections that you might otherwise find in regular color ebonites. The pen is quite sturdy and being ebonite it is more durable. The pen actually comes in approximately 24 color options out of which 10 are premium ebonite colors. The pen in review is premium orange ebonite which actually is muted earthy orange color. Model 4C – Uncapped It really feel amazing in your hand. And its certainly a looker. People look at this pen and actually take it from my hands just to feel it of not write with it. Such is the charming factor of this premium color ebonite. And yes i have noticed that these premium ebonites are far superior over the regular ebonites. Model 4C is actually a regular sized pen with bit of girth. It’s a cigar shaped pen which tapers down to the bottom and has rounded top and bottom. The cap is flushed with the barrel and you would hardly notice the joint. No imperfection. Superior attention paid to the product. Model 4C – Rounded Top and Bottom Model 4C – Capped - Cap is flushed with the barrel Model 4C – Uncapped -Barrel Tapers down to bottom Cap Clip is strong and sturdy and pen can easily stick to the shirt pocket. I have one qualms which is very minor and that is gold trim which is clip will turn to chrome soon. But i have an option to replace the cap clip easily. Also i found that clip was not in alignment and was off centred when pen arrived , but again that was easily taken care off by unscrewing the cap finial and straightening the clip. Model 4C – Cap and Clip Model 4C – Cap Finial View from top Model 4C – Cap inner view The grip section of the pen gradually tapers slightly towards the top and is also made of the same material. Complete pen is made of ebonite. I am really really happy with the top notch quality and finish on the pen. Below are few images showing the comparison of the pen with other pens: Ranga Model 4C vs Jinhao 159 vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Capped Ranga Model 4C vs Jinhao 159 vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Uncapped and Posted Ranga Model 4C vs Jinhao 159 vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Uncapped and Posted – Side View Overall I am extremely happy with quality, built and finish of the pen. This is probably amongst the best pens from India. Full marks to Ranga. BALANCE AND SIZE: 4/5 The pen measures 150 mm when capped and 135 mm when uncapped including the nib. The dia of the cap is 15 mm and barrel tapers down from center to the bottom to 9mm from 15 mm. The average grip section dia is 10 mm and length is 30 mm. As far as balance is concerned it is very well balanced and you would love writing with this pen uncapped for longer periods. However I beleive the posting cap makes it extremely large at 180mm (yes cap posts securely) and for me it becomes slightly uncomfortable. Model 4C – Writing Unposted Model 4C – Writing Posted I love writing with this pen uncapped and unposted for longer periods. NIB AND INK FILLING MECHANISM: 05/05 My pen came with Dual Tone JoWo 1.5 Calligraphy stub and it writes amazing. has amazing line variation and is not at all scratchy. The pen has various nib options like JoWo (EF, F, M, B & 1.5) , Schmidt (F, M, & , Bock (F, M, & B – with Conklin imprinted) and Ambitious (F-M). I am really happy with my JoWo 1.5 Stub. It writes superb. MODEL 4C – JoWo Nib Unit Top View MODEL 4C – JoWo Nib Unit Side View MODEL 4C – JoWo Nib Unit Bottom View Ink filling mechanism is via Cartridge converter and the material being ebonite can be easily used as eyedropper.I prefer the flexibility of the pen to be used as eyedropper which lot of pens don’t give. Model 4C – Converter mechanism filling Below are few images showing handwritten review and sample: Model 4C – Page 1 _ Handwritten review Model 4C – Page 2 _ Handwritten review Model 4C – Page 3 _ Handwritten review CONCLUSION: I love the size shape and finish of the Model 4C. It's a regular sized pen with girth and i Like that and premium ebonite is like cherry on top. The price seemed expensive in beginning but beleive me it was worth it. Few other reviews can be checked at my Blog here : MEHANDIRATTA

Ranga Pens is amongst the one quality pen manufacturer in India. Infact they are the only manufacturer in India who have the premium colors and quality ebonite pens apart from regular ebonite and acrylic pens. They have an active Ebay store where they sell not just fountain pens but also ball pens and Roller Ball pens and also raw materials like ebonite rods and acrylic blanks. The link to ebay shop is as below: RANGAHANDMADE Also Peyton Pen Street is also authorized seller of Ranga Hand Made pens. Here is the link to the webpage: PEYTON Mr. M.P. Kandan of Ranga Pens can also be reached at Fountain Pen Network, where he is quite active. Here is the link to reach him on FPN : MPKANDAN – RANGA I have recently organized 3 group buys for three different model of thiers. Model 4C, Model 3 and Bamboo Model. And i have bought all three models through group buy. I will be reviewing all the models one by one. They have following Models in their lineup: Model 4C Bamboo Model 3 Model 4CS Model 5 Model 6 Model 8 Model 2c Model 2d Zeal And few more. I will be reviewing Model 4C in this post. Which M.S.Pandurangan (Owner/Pen Turner) has crafted these pens from end-end. I also have reviewed this pen at my blog along with other pens and inks : LINK Model 4C – In the Wild This happens to be actually my second pen from the house of Ranga Pens and first one being Bamboo Model. Which i will be reviewing next. DESIGN & BUILT: 05/05 The build quality of this pen is impeccable. Its very well polished and there is no marks at all i see on the pen. Believe me its an handmade pen and when you hold the pen in your hand you wont be able to judge whether it’s handmade or not. Such and excellent finish Mr. Kandan has given on this pen. Model 4C – beauty Shot The quality of this premium ebonite is really really good. There are hardly any imperfections that you might otherwise find in regular color ebonites. The pen is quite sturdy and being ebonite it is more durable. The pen actually comes in approximately 24 color options out of which 10 are premium ebonite colors. The pen in review is premium orange ebonite which actually is muted earthy orange color. Model 4C – Uncapped It really feel amazing in your hand. And its certainly a looker. People look at this pen and actually take it from my hands just to feel it of not write with it. Such is the charming factor of this premium color ebonite. And yes i have noticed that these premium ebonites are far superior over the regular ebonites. Model 4C is actually a regular sized pen with bit of girth. It’s a cigar shaped pen which tapers down to the bottom and has rounded top and bottom. The cap is flushed with the barrel and you would hardly notice the joint. No imperfection. Superior attention paid to the product. Model 4C – Rounded Top and Bottom Model 4C – Capped - Cap is flushed with the barrel Model 4C – Uncapped -Barrel Tapers down to bottom Cap Clip is strong and sturdy and pen can easily stick to the shirt pocket. I have one qualms which is very minor and that is gold trim which is clip will turn to chrome soon. But i have an option to replace the cap clip easily. Also i found that clip was not in alignment and was off centred when pen arrived , but again that was easily taken care off by unscrewing the cap finial and straightening the clip. Model 4C – Cap and Clip Model 4C – Cap Finial View from top Model 4C – Cap inner view The grip section of the pen gradually tapers slightly towards the top and is also made of the same material. Complete pen is made of ebonite. I am really really happy with the top notch quality and finish on the pen. Below are few images showing the comparison of the pen with other pens: Ranga Model 4C vs Jinhao 159 vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Capped Ranga Model 4C vs Jinhao 159 vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Uncapped and Posted Ranga Model 4C vs Jinhao 159 vs Oliver F27 vs Parker Frontier – Uncapped and Posted – Side View Overall I am extremely happy with quality, built and finish of the pen. This is probably amongst the best pens from India. Full marks to Ranga. BALANCE AND SIZE: 4/5 The pen measures 150 mm when capped and 135 mm when uncapped including the nib. The dia of the cap is 15 mm and barrel tapers down from center to the bottom to 9mm from 15 mm. The average grip section dia is 10 mm and length is 30 mm. As far as balance is concerned it is very well balanced and you would love writing with this pen uncapped for longer periods. However I beleive the posting cap makes it extremely large at 180mm (yes cap posts securely) and for me it becomes slightly uncomfortable. Model 4C – Writing Unposted Model 4C – Writing Posted I love writing with this pen uncapped and unposted for longer periods. NIB AND INK FILLING MECHANISM: 05/05 My pen came with Dual Tone JoWo 1.5 Calligraphy stub and it writes amazing. has amazing line variation and is not at all scratchy. The pen has various nib options like JoWo (EF, F, M, B & 1.5) , Schmidt (F, M, & , Bock (F, M, & B – with Conklin imprinted) and Ambitious (F-M). I am really happy with my JoWo 1.5 Stub. It writes superb. MODEL 4C – JoWo Nib Unit Top View MODEL 4C – JoWo Nib Unit Side View MODEL 4C – JoWo Nib Unit Bottom View Ink filling mechanism is via Cartridge converter and the material being ebonite can be easily used as eyedropper.I prefer the flexibility of the pen to be used as eyedropper which lot of pens don’t give. Model 4C – Converter mechanism filling Below are few images showing handwritten review and sample: Model 4C – Page 1 _ Handwritten review Model 4C – Page 2 _ Handwritten review Model 4C – Page 3 _ Handwritten review CONCLUSION: I love the size shape and finish of the Model 4C. It's a regular sized pen with girth and i Like that and premium ebonite is like cherry on top. The price seemed expensive in beginning but beleive me it was worth it. Few other reviews can be checked at my Blog here : MEHANDIRATTA

Hi fellow users... After the giveaway for Bril Royal Blue Ink I have 3 ink bottles (Plastic) - 25 ml filled with Camlin Scarlet Red for giveaway now. The review for the same is done here - LINK I am willing to give this to 3 people , worldwide. Kindly put in your names below and I will be choosing the people through random.org Below is the ink shot for your reference. Please check the review in depth HERE This is the Best Bright Red ink in India. Even gives run for money to many expensive inks.

Dear All This is new group buy for the new model of ASApens named "Popsicles". Completely handmade. Popsicles is homage to classic design of Sailor King of Pens. Fitted with Schmidt #6 Nib in Chrome color. (Fine, Medium and Broad Available). Comes with Schmidt K5 Converter. This is made of premium thick acrylic and comes in following colors: Shiny Ivory Floral Rose Tangy Orange Pure White Pastel Green Sky Blue Coral Red You can pre order this pen here POPSICLES We are running a special Group Buy Offer for FPN members. The price mentioned here is the special group price of Rs.2000/- for Indian Customers and 49USD for international customers. Limited Period Offer. Normal Price is 65 USD for international shipments and 2500 for indian customers Offer expires on 31st August.

Chelpark is one of the oldest brand of Ink in India. And the company is staring the closure at the moment and it is difficult to get stock of the inks easily now. My earlier Ink reviews are listed as below: BRIL ROYAL BLUE CAMLIN SCARLET RED Chelpark is currently manufactured by PG Stationary in Bangalore and as per local availability following inks can be found in market: Black Blue Black Washable Blue Turquoise Blue Crimson Violet (Old stock available only) Ruby Red Emerald Green (Not available anymore) Sapphire Blue (Not available anymore) The Chelpark Black Ink which i will be reviewing today comes at price of Rs. 20 for 60 ml glass bottle. However this bottle was gifted to me by my friend Prithwijit. Chelpark Black - 60 ml Glass Bottle Its a dye based ink and comes with so called Cleen-X technology which prevents clogging. Chelpark inks used to be most widely used ink in the India but lately the production is on and off and the supply is not regular. Even their are speculation that company is getting closed. This ink is actually not black at all rather the faded black and is very diluted. One can easily say it is more of a grey rather than black. INK SPLASH Chelpark Black - Ink Splash on Bilt Matrix paper - 70 gsm I am pretty much disappointed with the color of this ink. It is no where near black rather it is grey. If one is intending to use the ink as grey one might be pleased. But i am not. DROP ON PAPER NAPKIN Chelpark Black - Ink drop on paper napkin COLOR MATCH Chelpark Black - Color Match WRITING SAMPLES On Century Copy Paper Chelpark Black - Writing sample on Century Copy Paper - 70 gsm Chelpark Black - Writing sample on Century Copy Paper - 70 gsm Chelpark Black - Writing sample on Century Copy Paper - 70 gsm On BILT Matrix Paper Chelpark Black - Writing sample on BILT Matrix Paper - 70 gsm Chelpark Black - Writing sample on BILT Matrix Paper - 70 gsm Chelpark Black - Writing sample on BILT Matrix Paper - 70 gsm On Camlin Kokuyo School Notebook Chelpark Black - Writing sample on Camlin Kokuyo School Notebook Chelpark Black - Writing sample on Camlin Kokuyo School Notebook Chelpark Black - Writing sample on Camlin Kokuyo School Notebook The handwritten samples clearly shows the darkness of color. It is a light grey ink and perform substantially okay with wet medium nib like Jinhao X750.Also we can see a bit of shading on a very lighter side. INK SWABS Chelpark Black - on Camlin Kokuyo Notebook (from top to bottom , 1 Swab, 2 Swabs, & 3 Swabs) Chelpark Black - on BILT Matrix - 70 gsm (from top to bottom , 1 Swab, 2 Swabs, & 3 Swabs) Chelpark Black - on Century Copy Paper (from top to bottom , 1 Swab, 2 Swabs, & 3 Swabs) WATERPROOF TEST Chelpark Black - Waterproof Test It is clear that ink is not completely washed out. The paper directly was run through tap water for 60 seconds. BLOW UP WRITING SAMPLE Chelpark Black - Zoomed in Writing Sample on Century Copy Paper Chelpark Black - Zoomed in Writing Sample on BILT Matrix Paper For more details and review kindly visit my blog : LINK CONCLUSION: The ink is not what you expect from a black ink.Its very faded and not light in color more towards grey. I beleive Camlin Black is far better than Chelpark Black, I beleive this ink can be avoided totally if you are looking for Black Ink but at the same time if you are game for grey ink at cheap price this is for you.