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I dislike modern Sheaffer fountain pens. They perform well but I find most of them them boring. It's strange as Sheaffer has a rich history of innovative pen, nib, filling-system designs. What went wrong? Some designs look interesting though - Sheaffer Crest for example. I've received this pen from a fellow fountain pen user to play with it. And so I played. Modern Crest line was offered between 1989 and 1998. Soon it'll become vintage, I guess. Anyway the line was inspired by Snorkel pens, the name Crest comes from a Snorkel model with gold filled cap and plastic barrel. The pen is rather small, too small for my preferences. The cap and barrel have equal length. Gold electroplated cap shows four straight lines, white dot and the clip is spring loaded, making it easy to slip onto many materials. The section is smooth and has gold plated metal threads that work well. During the years of production Sheaffer launched few series of modern Crest. The one I received is called Opalite Red (598) and was introduced on the market in 1996. It seems that apart Opalite Red, two more finishes - Marine Green and Golden Brown - were available at the time. The marbled and lightweigh tbarrel of the pen is made from natural cotton based celluloid . It's slightly translucent - not much, but still. It was cool that Sheaffer decided to reintroduce celluloid to the materials they use. Opalite red celluloid has a lot of depth and visual appeal, at least to me. Sadly and just in my opinion there's just too much gold here. I prefet chrome trim to golden one and therefore I'm not crazy about the pen. Nib I always considered vintage Sheaffer's nib to be one of the nicest ever made. Crest is equipped with Triumph conical two tone palladium plated 18 kt gold nib, stamped "Sheaffer" over "18K" and "750". I can't find nib size but I would say it's juicy broad. The nib is pleasantly smooth, there's also no feedback. The nib feels firm but the writing feel is quite buttery. The flow is consistent and I haven't experienced any ink starvation, hard-starts or skipping. Filling system The pen fills with a squeeze converter or standard Sheaffer cartridges. Dimensions Capped - 142.5 mm Uncapped - 125.2 mm Summary As these pens are no longer produced, they're not easy to find. Prices on ebay vary from 150-350 $. Not cheap. It's not the best fountain pen in this price range but it's relatively cheap for a modern celluloid pen. Sheaffer Crest is well built and feels solid in the hand, it writes very well. A one to consider if you enjoy slender pens, tons of gold and celluloid.

I consider myself Lamy fan. Sadly Lamy does everything they can to unmake me their fan. Such is life. Lamy 50th anniversary Lamy 2000 Amber was basically poor and outrageously overpriced addition to the line. I sort of collect Al-Stars so I can understand and forgive them for trying to milk this design as much as possible by introducing new colors and inks every year. That’s cool, I would do the same thing. On the other hand Lamy built their brand on innovation and design novelties. I do realise innovations are expensive and good designers have high wages.Still I hope Lamy will surprise us all and introduce something fresh any time soon. I really do as my respect to the company has limits. Lamy LX line is the best example of hardcore design milking. I’m not saying it’s ugly or anything like that. It’s good pen. However it’s also two times more expensive than Al-Star and it doesn’t give anything extra except for two metal screws, slightly modifies logo on the barrel and case I will have no use of. I realise that stationery market isn’t exactly thriving and every way to get some reasonable margin is worth trying. The thing is I expect more than cosmetics to justify doubling the price. The selling points of the Lx (pronounced “Luxe” – shocking, I know) are upgraded anodized – barrel, clip, and finial as well as coated black steel nibs. There’s also a tube (made from anodized alluminium) that matches the color of the pen. I don;t like this pen and I’ll never use it. If you like it and carry one pen with you, it may turn out to be pretty useful though. In the hand this pen feels totally like Al-Star. You won’t feel any difference. Sure, there are some visual differences but overall feel and performance didn’t change. Differences between Lamy LX and Lamy Safari Clip, both screws and case of the Lx are coloured the same as the body. The Lamy logo on the barrel of the Lx is polished and glossy while on the Al-Star, it is just an outline. Cap screws in LX are made of metal and not plastic.Cap screw and tail end are made of a shiny metal that color matches the pen. Nibs on both pens are made of stainless steel. Lamy LX nibs are coated black with a rose gold laser etching that outlines the slit and breather hole. This slit is longer than in the Al-Star. Al-Star nib doesn’t have a breather hole. And thet’s pretty much all, folks. Translucent grey triangular grip section is the same as in Al-Star. Nib Medium nib I got in my LX is scratchy and dry. Usually I enjoy Lamy nibs but this one is pretty bad. It needs tuning to write properly. Happily the nib is swappable with other Lamy nibs and as I have way too many of them I use black Lamy broad nib that performs flawlessly. Filling system Lamy LX comes with an ink cartridge. So generous…If you want converter you have buy one. It’s not a secret that companies earn most on accessories so why would Lamy offer one in their new toy? Summary If you like the colors and overall aesthetics of the pen and it’s enough to make you pay 56 $ for this pen, go ahead. It won’t dissapoint you. Especially if you fell in love with gold or rose gold finish that, so far, aren’t available in regular Al-Stars line. My feelings? I’m disappointed. I simply expect more from Lamy but slowly I begin to loose hope.

The pen I’m about to review to review always amazed me by the looks. It has been reviewed by Hari here on FPN ) So following is my review of the pen with my inputs and writing samples and close up images. DESIGN : One of the most beautifully designed pen I’ve come across. Very slim profile pen. Easily fits in the pocket. Long cap rounded at top with gold plated clip which really complements the pen color. Made of ebonite, comes in 5 colors shiny black, matte black, green rippled, brown rippled, and light brown rippled. This pen comes with stock gold plated nib which again complements the design. I believe brown and gold color really go along very well. The pen cap opens with 5 turns just like many Indian ebonite pens. The clip is bit flexible and as mentioned earlier is good plated with no inscriptions, looks wonderful. The top of the cap is rounded and the bottom of the barrel of pen tapers down to sharp narrow rounded profile. The pen size is comparable to Pilot Metropolitan in length but in thickness this pen is of slim profile. Below are the images of pen compared to metropolitan and Gama Kuyil. I would say I love the design of the pen. For more details and handwritten review and handwriting sample. Please follow my blog LINK

Metal pens are cool - I've been enjoying them since the beginning of my perfect fountain pen quest. The moment I saw Yard-o-Led photo few years ago I wanted to try one but I couldn't excuse the cost. Recently I received a package of higher end pens from a fellow FPN member. Before I give them back, I'll have reasonable amount of time to test them. While there's a stunning Omas in the package and Pelikan and another Dunhill, it was Yard-o-Led that caught my eye the moment I opened the box. Also this pen made really great impression on me. This pen is simply stunning. Before I will describe it I would like to say that I'm surprised that Yard-o-Led isn't well known company and remains a little bit obscure.C'mon guys, they have been making writing instruments since 1822! I would like to say it but I can't. I'm not surprised at all. Their products are very expensive and made of variety of good quality materials.For some bizarre reason many fountain pen users dislike metal sections and prefer warmer materials. I love wood and ebonite but I also like the feel of cold metal in the hand. It calms me down. Also I prefer bigger pens and usually dislike golden accents. Basically Yard-o-Led is my dream pen: all metal, big, heavy and handmade. The Viceroy comes in a choice of three finishes: plain, Barley, and Victorian. The Barley and Victorian are hand engraved, and all pens are numbered and hallmarked. Additionally the pen comes in three different sizes: Pocket, Standard and Grand - the chances are every fountain pen user will find one that fits his/her hand perfectly well. Viceroy Grand in plain finish looks clean and elegant. I would describe it as tasteful but tastes do vary between us so we may have different opinions here The pen comes in the black wooden case with metal clasp enclosure. Sterling Silver pen rests in black velvet. No plastic elements here. The pen is made of plain hallmarked sterling silver. The barrel feels solid and has a nice torpedo shape. As it is made in sterling silver it will need some cleaning from time to time. Part of the typical Yard-o-Led design are the 6 marks. The YOL company mark, Lion symbol of English sterling, Anchor symbol for Birmingham Assay Office, 925 meaning 925 parts of silver, 925 European Convention mark for silver, the mark for the year of production. The cap is quite heavy and I don't think it would be comfortablle to post it. It's snan-on type of cap. It feels pretty solid. The section is made of metal and if you tend to sweat a lot chances are you won't fall in love with it. I enjoy both the shape and ergonomics of this section but it's individual. While reviewing the pen it's impossible not to mention the distinctive pocket clip. This stylish clip is attached to the cap with two screws. It is elegantly curved and ends in a curled fold. Nib Writing samples were made with Kyo no oto ink called Azukiiro. Viceroys nib is big and looks stunning. It's not as nice as some Pmas or Montblanc nibs but I always thought that simple chrome / rhodium plated nibs look great. This one does. I believe the nib and feed are made by Bock and because of this it's rather predictable in terms of pen-to-paper performance. The nib can be bought in free sizes: fine, medium and broad. 18 kt nib writes nicely and smoothly although some "tooth" is present and you'll definitely feel some feedback. Unless you use pelikan Edelstein tanzanire, Sailor Miruai or other ink that's extremelly lubricated. It's possible BUT RISKY to produce some line variation. The feed does its work efficiently and the flow of ink is consistent. Actually it's very wet writer and I would be surprised to experience any ink starvation while using it. While it's not the best nib I had in hands, I think it's definitely above average. It wouldn't make to my Top 5 but I appreciate the looks and enjoyable springiness. Filling System Viceroy can be filled with international standar cartridges or with supplied converter that holds reasonable amount of ink. The converter looks a little bit different than most converters used by YOL market competitors but it's just cosmetics. Functionality is equal. Dimensions Length: 148 mm Weight: 65 g Diameter: 13,5 mm Summary Yard-o-Led Viceroy is an elegant, functional writing tool that can fit comfortably in most human hands - remember, you don't have to choose Grand variant, there are smaller models available. Viceroy Grand may be too big, too metal and too heavy for some fountain pen users. For me though it's a stunning pen that I would prefer to keep than give back to its owner. It definitely gets on my list of Grail Pens (at the moment the list is short, I try to place there pens that are more expensive then I feel comfortable to spend on a pen but aren't beyond reach). It fulfills practical and aesthetic functions very well. The price though is very high - the pen costs close to 580 GBP and that's a lot. Sure the pen is handmade in Europe and the costs of work and life ion general are rather high on Old Continent. On the other hand for this price you'll easily buy few better and nicer pens made from cool materials. I believe this is the pen that will appeal to limited number of people but once they'll try it they won't be able to stop thinking about it. Additionally the pen has a life time guarantee, quite unusual among pen makers as the guarantee is usually 2 years.

Nathan Tardif recently released a Youtube video where he described a new fountain pen, the Noodler's Charlie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-FpVSf8udI He gives a great explanation about the importance of free speech and how the pen is meant to be in homage to Charlie Hebdo, a French satirical magazine that was recently attacked by terrorists in Paris. He doesn't want to charge for this pen, so he decided to replace the Platinum Preppy fountain pen that used to come with Heart of Darkness with this pen. Here are some images of the pen in the box (it comes wrapped in a plastic sleeve). This is a limited release of Heart of Darkness, so you will have to specifically ask for this set: On removing the pen and ink from the bottle, you can see its a very skinny pen. It's my thinnest pen by measuring barrel width, just below the Waterman Hemisphere: Its a simple design, but I find it elegant. It's definitely a step up from the Preppy. The pen feels much better in my hands than the platinum preppy, and I think it also looks nicer. CLIP: The Charlie's metal clip is springy and allows me to easily slide the pen in my jeans pocket without the fear that it might slide out. CAP: The cap is screwed on to the barrel, and with tightening feels like there's no chance the cap will accidentally disengage from the section while I'm on the move. The cap posts to the pen securely, and adds very little weight to the pen. I feel comfortable writing with this pen posted and unposted. The cap is made of a multi-color resin that is supposed to be unique for each pen. I don't think it's particularly beautiful looking, but the mix of colors does look interesting. FILLING: The pen is a simple eyedropper fountain pen. It comes pre-lubed with silicon grease. After filling the pen with ink, I recommend using a paper towel to remove any ink drops from the threads covered in silicon grease before screwing the barrel onto the section. BARREL: The barrel is made of the same biodegradable material the Ahab is made of. Yes, that means it also smells the same (for those that think its weird to sniff fountain pens... you don't own a noodle's pen yet ) The smell doesn't bother me, and I've gotten used to it. The barrel is also completely translucent; I like this because I like to watch the ink slosh around in my pen. The only marking on the barrel is a small imprint that says "NOODLERS INK CO". NIB: The nib of the fountain pen is much smaller than the Ahab's. This is made clear by comparing the pen to several other pens with relatively small nibs. From left to right are laid out: Kaweco Al-Star (stone washed) with broad nib, Noodler's Charlie, Lamy Vista, Noodler's Ahab. WRITING SAMPLE: Finally, after filling the pen with a few eyedroppers of Heart of Darkness, I took her out for a spin. She's a pretty smooth writer. The nib is as hard as a nail, but I wouldn't really take points off for that. I attempted to apply pressure to the nib, but there was no flex to be had. The nib is smooth and writes well. Comparing it to several other pens, I've concluded that its approximately the same size as a Faber Castell Medium. CONCLUSION: The Noodler's Charlie is a good writer. It's a simple eye dropper filling fountain pen with a pleasing design, and it writes well out of the box. If you're looking for a flex pen, head over to the Ahab, Konrad, Nibcreeper, etc. If you're looking for a solid no-frills writer, the Charlie may fit your bill. I haven't had much experience with Heart of Darkness yet, but based on my initial testing its a saturated black with no smearing on Rhodia paper. It's also waterproof and inexpensive. I like the pen, I like the ink. I think its a good deal.

Lately ASA has released lot of pens and believe they will be coming up with lot more in near future. And today I am reviewing another great pen by them which is ASA Patriot. My detailed review is also shown at wordpress page here Link ASA Patriot I had my eyes on Gama Eyas / Gama Hawk for a quite a long time because i wanted an ebonite pen with the rounded top and bottoms. I was just about to buy the pen and then ASA came out with this beauty named PATRIOT and i quickly grabbed the same. DESIGN & BUILT: The pen is a regular sized pen and comes in 5 color options, shiny black, matte black, light brown rippled, dark brown rippled and green rippled finish. Its a regular sized pen which comes with JoWo nib options of F, M , B and 1.1 Italic size. The pen that i reviewed today comes with 1.1 Italic nib. ASA Patriot with 1.1 JoWo Itaic nib It has a clean and minimalist design. The pen open in 2 and half turns which I beleive is the highlight of the pen being an Indian pen. The top and bottom of pen are rounded which are quite nicely done and has been paid lot of attention as it is a handmade pen. ASA Patriot - Top of Cap and Bottom of Barrel ASA Patriot - Uncapped The section of the pen is finished in black shiny finish which is quite okay and provides for sturdy grip. However i would have liked it even more if the section would also have been given a matte finish. Below is the image which shows the pen broken down in to parts, which shows the Schmidt K5 converter also. ASA Patriot - Taken apart The Clip is chrome finished and quite sturdy and the O ring of the clip is well hidden by the rounded cap top. (Update: these are push in type clips, thus no O ring )The Also i got an option to engrave my name on the pen and i opted for the same to be done at the cap which really adds to the beauty of pen. ASA Patriot - Sturdy Clip ASA Patriot - Name Engraving As mentioned earlier the pen is the regular sized pen and below are the few images to show the comparison against various pens. ASA I Can vs ASA Patriot vs Pilot Metropolitan vs Sheaffer No Nonsense - Capped ASA I Can vs ASA Patriot vs Pilot Metropolitan vs Sheaffer No Nonsense - Uncapped This is a well designed pen which is just a class apart in built quality. Actually its a no fuss design. For the detailed review and more images along with the writing sample please follow the link : ASA PATRIOT

My friend Sanjeev has just launched an "Extremely beautiful" pen under the brand name "Glare" and it's called THE GLARE C7. He has sent me 7 of the C7's with different nib variations to let him know what I feel about them. The pens look extremely colorful and delicious. The attractive, radiant and highly polished designs make these pens instant head turners and make you want to hold them immediately. The designs on some of these pens are extremely rich and vivid... The pen comes in 7 different design options. Glare C7 is made up of extremely high quality acrylic that not just makes it look great but also feels amazing in the hands. But what really surprises you is how extremely lightweight this pen is. The lightweight of this pen is also because of the minimal use of metal on it. Unlike the Glare 71, there are no chunky metal clips, bands and threads. The only metal you will find on this pen is the cute stainless steel clip and the ring at the bottom of the cap. However, the build quality of this pen is exceptional with every part fitting smoothly and seamlessly in its place that makes the pen extremely durable. Plus, the polishing on it is top notch that makes it feel like you are holding an extremely premium pen. The pen has a screw on cap and the cap has a screw on top that helps you to adjust the clip properly. The cap not just posts buttery smooth at the back of the pen but also provides perfect weight and balance to the pen while writing. You would love to write with this pen for long hours with the cap posted. Now, this is a cartridge converter pen that accepts both international cartridges and converters. Now, if you want, with the help of some silicone grease... you can also convert this pen into a jumbo eyedropper. The section area of this pen is also very well designed... It tapers down a bit and sits nicely between your fingers... So, you can write for long hours with this pen without hurting your fingers. The stainless steel nib of this pen and its ebonite feed, both, are made in Germany, and so is the iridium tip of the nib. And what's exciting is that you can unscrew the nib and the feed.. and replace it with a different one. And it's extremely easy to do so. Glare C7 comes in 3 different nib options - Fine, Medium and Broad. Each option has 2 different color variations. The first is the simple stainless steel nib and the other is the gold plated one. All the nibs carry the same minimalistic design and compliment the overall look of the pen. A couple of diagonal lines running around the big breather hole look very cool. The size of the nib is engraved on it and so is the fact that the tip is made up of "German Iridium". Now, I have just written briefly with all these nibs but I am already extremely impressed with all 3 of them. All the nibs write incredibly smooth and fast... and literally glides effortlessly on the paper. In fact, writing super fast with them would not be an issue at all. You would really enjoy writing with these nibs. The ink flow of all the three nibs is exceptional and that is because of their amazing nib and feed combos. And the more i am writing with them, the better the ink flow is getting. I am really impressed by all the three nibs... The work Glare has done on them, really shows. Now, how well this pen performs would depend on the price of this pen and how aggressive Glare India promotes it in the international markets. And if priced well, I would definitely recommend this pen for the sheer writing pleasure that it provides. You can soon purchase these pens from Store108.com

Picasso 903 Sweden King on Top With any Chinese fountain pen you are going to get a confusing name. For this review I am going to refer to it as the Picasso 903. I was a fan of this pen right from the start. I received it in a beautiful box; far better than some boxes of more expensive pens. I have never used a fountain pen from a Chinese Manufacturer that I absolutely loved... until this pen. It has one of the smoothest nibs I have ever used.

It has been a very long time since my friend has actually posted any review on his channel. I would like to share with you the new review that he has just posted of a very premium "Indian fountain pen" called the Glare 71. Here's the video review: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gGDiLlv4dc As he himself is unable to access his FPN account, he has asked me to post it on his behalf. Anyways, talking about the pen, Glare 71 is an extremely premium fountain pen in every aspect. It is a head turner that has got premium looks, exceptional build, feels amazing in the hands and writes exceedingly well. For more information about the pen, do watch the video. I hope you like it.

In the beginning of my fountain pen quest I was hooked by variety of reasonably priced chinese fountain pens. Jinahos and Baoers propelled me into the hobby. With time I switched to more expensive pens with more nuanced design but I still enjoy some of chinese creations. Jinhao X750 is among my favorite ones. The X750 is a cigar shaped brass fountain pen that comes in a lot of finishes, I tried all of them and I think checkerboard one looks best. Of course the pattern is far from perfect – some of the squares overlap awkwardly, some are smudged and so on. The pattern is ingrained (anodized?) in the metal of the body and cap. It shouldn’t wear off easily. Snap on cap works well but in some pens it may become wobbly with time, especially if you tend to post your pens. I’m not a poster. Unless I’m using Kaweco Sport but that’s a different story. Clip does what’s it supposed to do well but it doesn’t look particluarly interesting. In some pieces it’s incredibly stiff. The centre band (rather ugly) is silver and etched with the words “JINHAO” and “X750” on opposite ends with some flourishes separating them. Both ends of the Jinhao X750, clip and centre band has a polished mirror finish. The plastic grip section tapers towards a metal ring separating it from the nib. As this ring is slightly wider than the grip section it may serve as a nice resting point for fingers if you grip close to the nib. Nib Montblanc Jonathan Swift on Oxford Paper The nib looks like a standard #6 medium. It’s not particluarly nice but I don’t mind as it performs very well. I got a smooth writing experience with no skipping or hard starts. Both nib and feed easily slide in and out of the section, with little effort required. This makes it very easy to clean the pen. Filling System The Jinhao X750 comes with a standard international converter. However it takes a standard international cartridge if you prefer to use them. Dimensions Weight: 37g Capped: 141.5mm Uncapped: 125.5mm Summary This pen costs less than 5$. You really can’t go wrong with it. And even if your taste will change with time, one of these can be used with riskier inks or as workhorse pen that’s not afraid to get some beating. It feels weighty and ponderous in the hand so if you prefer featherlight fountain pens this one won’t be for you.

PILOT CUSTOM 74 - MUSIC NIB Pilot Custom 74 – Music Nib This happens to be my latest addition or you may call addiction to Pilot Pens. After buying and using PILOT CAPLESS I realised that I need more Pilot Pens and lot of fellow fountain pen users and friends recommended me to buy Custom 74 and here I must thank Dhruv for connecting me with Bunkidou Shop. Dealing with Bunkidou was an amazing experience and his service was excellent. I actually bought two PILOT pens from him, CUSTOM 74 and CUSTOM HERITAGE 92. And the EMS service was so amazing that the pens reached to India from Japan within 5 days. I will be doing reviews of both, however this review is about PILOT CUSTOM 74 WITH MUSIC NIB. DESIGN & BUILT : 4/5 The pen is regular sized classic cigar shape pen. The pen comes in various colours like Black, Burgundy, Dark Green and Dark Blue with gold trims. There are demonstrator versions also available with chrome trims also, but the music nib is only available in Black colour in Japan. Pilot Custom 74 – Beauty Shot Pilot Custom 74 – Uncapped and Capped – Classical Cigar Shape Pen The classical cigar shaped pen is thickest at the cap centre-band and cap tapers down to rounded finial at top. The finial is visually separated by gold colour band. The clip is stiff and sturdy and has a ball end. Pilot Custom – Cap View – The clip is stiff and sturdy and has ball shaped end Pilot Custom 74 – Cap View Pilot Custom 74 – Cap Inner View The cap has dual centre band, with slim one at top and broad one below where branding is done and reads “PILOT – MADE IN JAPAN *CUSTOM 74*” . The clip also displays the the brand name PILOT engraved. Pilot Custom 74 – Centreband Pilot Custom 74 – Close up showing clip & centreband branding and beautiful nib The pen is extremely well detailed out. There is a gold colour band at the bottom of barrel separating it from the bottom finial and also there is gold colour band at the bottom of grip section (as you can see from above image) separating it from barrel. Pilot Custom 74 – Rounded Finials separated via gold trim bands The material used is plastic resin which is of same quality as Pilot 78G, thus nothing premium in that regards.The material is very well polished and finished. The quality control is superb and amazing and that is where Pilot excels. The pen uncaps in 1 – 3/4 turns and the grip section is slight concave albeit just a little bit. Below are the few images showing the comparative with other pens: Pilot Custom 74 vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari Pilot Custom 74 vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari – Capped Pilot Custom 74 vs Jinhao X-750 vs Lamy Safari – Uncapped and Posted I actually wanted to buy demo version but music nib was not available available in any other colour, so I had to settle for this. But this black colour has grown over me because of its classical, understated and professional look. BALANCE : 5/5 The pen is made of resin and is light weight and superbly well balanced whether you write with cap posted at the back or not. yes the cap posts securely at the back. The pen is of regular length comparable to that of Lamy Safari as shown in comparison above. The pen is slim and the grip is perfect. Pilot Custom 74 – Writing Unposted Pilot Custom 74 – Writing Posted Few specifications are as follows: Length (Capped) : 141 mm Length (Uncapped) : 125 mm Length (Posted) : 158 mm Dia (Section) : 9.7 mm Dia (Barrel) : 11.5 mm Dia (Cap) : 14.5 mm Weight (Capped) : 20 g Weight (Uncapped) : 12 g Pen is very ergonomic. I absolutely love this pen because of the grip and balance. NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 4.5/5 Now comes the best part for which the pen was bought irrespective of the colour and by the way this colour has really grown on me. It looks so decent and professional. Well the pen comes in various nib widths, EF, F, SF, SFM, M, SM, FM, B, BB, MS, & C but the I am here using Music (MS) nib which has 3 tines. The friction fit nib is #5, 14 K Gold nib and writes amazingly soft and wet. I would say it writes fairly wet on higher medium side. The nib offers amazing and precise line variation . Its actually a kind of very wet stub and thus it helps in shading a lot. Even this black ink shades a little bit. It suits my script writing very well. Pilot Custom – 14k #5 Gold nib – Beautiful Nib Writing cursive with the nib gives you a feedback but by no means it is scratchy. Feed is made of plastic. When first I inked this pen it used to get dry but after flushing the pen its a loveliest wet stubby pen I have. Ink just dries at 25 sec mark. Pilot Custom – Nib Unit View – Top Pilot Custom 74 – Nib Unit View – Side Pilot Custom – Nib Unit View – Bottom The pen actually came only with black ink cartridge so had to purchase the converter separately. It actually takes all the Pilot proprietary converters , CON 20, CON 50, CON 70 and also Pilot cartridges. I like CON 50 because its easy to fill and clean and also I like its small ink capacity because I like changing inks. Pilot Custom – Ink filling via Pilot cartridge or converter The pen can not be used as eyedropper because of metal tenon underneath the grip section which accepts the cartridge or converter. Pilot Custom – Metal tenon I have enjoyed writing every single letter with this pen. Below are the images of my handwritten review containing ink drying times and writing samples: Pilot Custom 74 – Handwritten Review – Page 1 Pilot Custom 74 – Handwritten Review – Page 2 Pilot Custom 74 – Handwritten Review – Page 3 Pilot Custom 74 – Handwritten Review – Page 4 CONCLUSION: 13.5/15 The pen is no nonsense , classic looking pen. And at 82 USD shipped via EMS from Japanto India in 5 days, its terrific value for money. Cant beat that. Lot of retailer are selling it at 160 USD. So buying via Rakuten really helped. I recommend this to all the fountain pen users who like using stub nibs. Must buy. What I Like: Classic Design Superb Finish & very well detailed Ergonomic Size & Wonderful Balance Beautiful 14K wet Nib Better than many higher priced pens Complete Value for money What I don’t Like: Material quality is same as Pilot 78G Proprietary Converter and Cartridges. This is for the love of my life My other reviews can be checked at my blog here : MEHANDIRATTA

TWSBI ECO - 1.1 Stub Nib This is the first non Indian pen I am going to review and I hope you all like the review and please leave the comments if you like. The same has been reviewed at my blog and you are welcomed to visit my blog to check the reviews : LINK This pen actually took almost 4 months to come into my hand. Even though I have TWSBI 580 Al Orange but I was more excited about the ECO. This pen was bought from Frank of FONTOPLUMO. It was booked as soon as it was launched and Frank was kind enough to hold the pen for more than a month and he was even kind enough to hand over the order to a visiting friend (Kapil Apashankar) in Netherlands and i must also mention this that the pen was on hold despite me not making the payment. And in the end I bought not just Eco but lot more pens for myself which will be reviewed here slowly. Also let me take this opportunity to thank Kapil for taking all the pain of collecting the pens and sending it across to me from Pune. So this is review about TWSBI ECO. TWSBI ECO DESIGN AND BUILT : 04/05 The pen came in a no nonsense plastic box and the pen and the accessories were well packed. I took the white color model. The pen currently comes in two colors: Black and White. However there are certain other colors being proposed by TWSBI on their blog. It’s a well designed elegant pen and even though it looks chunky when capped. It’s a beautiful pen when inked. TWSBI ECO – Beauty Shot The barrel is clear acrylic which is again of good quality and is circular instead of faceted design of TWSBI 580 or VAC. The grip section is also clear acrylic and you can see the ink flowing to the feed from barrel to section and feed. I kind of love the demonstrators. They actually take the color of the ink you put in. Looks lovely. TWSBI ECO – Capped The pen is actually one piece from grip section to barrel, only knob being different. Some people have not like the cap design but for me it’s just okay and carries the design cues from the faceted design of 580 or Vac. The cap and piston knob both have faceted design. All the trims are chrome silver finish and the centre band of the cap has TWSBI and ECO imprinted on the band. TWSBI ECO – Cap View TWSBI ECO – Cap Clip View TWSBI ECO – Cap and Piston Knob – Faceted TWSBI ECO – Cap Inner View The best thing about the pen is the rubberized O ring at the joint of piston knob and barrel which really helps in secure posting of the Cap. One thing to be noticed here is that apart from the nib and cap clip there is no metal part in the pen. Also like the O ring at the bottom there is one more O ring at the front of barrel which ensures the Cap doesn’t slip of and is securely closed. Below image shows the pen capped and uncapped for comparison. The pen is just tad smaller than TWSBI 580 when it is capped. I love the pen and I believe there is no good quality piston filler demonstrator in this price range. Below are the few images showing the comparison of the pen with others. TWSBI ECO vs Parker Sonnet vs Pelikan M200 Cognac – Capped TWSBI ECO vs Parker Sonnet vs Pelikan M200 Cognac – Uncapped and Posted The pen is similarly prized as Lamy Safari and I believe this is better bet. BALANCE : 05/05 The pen is very well balanced whether the cap is posted at back or not. Its a sizable pen and it is just a tad bit longer than 580 when posted.The pen posts really well and securely but for me its amazing when writing with cap not posted at back, but thats my personal preference. The pen is 139 mm when capped and 168 when cap is posted at back. Below are the images showing the comparison of writing with cap posted and cap unposted. TWSBI ECO – Writing Unposted TWSBI ECO – Writing Posted NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 05/05 The pen I am reviewing comes with friction fit 1.1 Stub nib and boy it writes so amazing. Loved the nib and the ink flow. 1.1 Stub gives you a crisp writing with lovely welcome feedback. I love it. Yes the nib is friction fit and is easily removable. Nib is #5 steel nib and option of EF, F, M, B and 1.1 Stub is available on ECO. TWSBI ECO – Nib Unit Side View TWSBI ECO – Nib Unit Top View TWSBI ECO – Nib Unit Bottom View The ink filling mechanism is via Piston which is the best considered ink filling mechanism. The pen holds almost just less than 2 ml of ink. TWSBI ECO – Piston Filling Mechanism The piston knob is easily removable via plastic wrench that is supplied with the pen. There is also silicone grease supplied with the pen. Below are the images of my handwritten review and the writing sample: TWSBI ECO – Handwritten Review – Page 1 TWSBI ECO – Handwritten Review – Page 2 TWSBI ECO – Handwritten Review – Page 3 CONCLUSION: I am totally in love with this pen and the my iroshizuku ink looks stunning with this pen. The pen actually takes any color you want with the ink you put in the pen. Buy it – thats my advice. Beautiful quality product at surprisingly low price (25 Euros) with TWSBI lifetime warranty. The review has been posted simultaneous at my blog. Kindly visit blog for more detailed reviews here : LINK

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

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

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

BLACKSTONE AXIOM This pen was available for review on FPN for review and was made available by Just Write Company and I happened to be at right place at right time and also I was lucky enough to be selected amongst many to review this pen. I thank Kevin for sending me across the pen and later on the inks too for review. I have extensively used this pen and this actually is detailed review of the pen. DESIGN & BUILT: 3.5/5 The pen arrived in very well packaged PU leather zip case along with the spare JoWo nib as the pen was available for review with two nib options. Blackstone Axiom – Arrived in PU Leather Case The pen is available in 2 options with 3 different trims. Two finishes were PU Leather and Carbon Fibre , both in black colour. And the trim options were Gold, Silver and Black Titanium. And I opted for the PU leather finish with black titanium trim. Well it is actually a kit pen and is known as CHURCHILL FOUNTAIN PEN KIT. Blackstone Axiom – In the wild The pen arrived and the first impression was “Wow.. its a hefty pen” and in actual it weighs around 30 g when uncapped. I think the Jinhao 159 almost weighs in the same category. Blackstone Axiom – Beauty shot The pen is made of brass except the ABS plastic grip section. The finials are brass also with black paint finish. The cap and barrel are finished with very nice warm textured PU leather finish. It feels very good in hand unlike the cold metal in your hand. I can almost compare it with feel of ebonite in my hand. The pen is cylindrical with rounded edges and bullet shaped bottom finial which is painted and I think this finish will wear off after some wear and tear. The grip section has hourglass design, which I really like. Blackstone Axiom – Capped Blackstone Axiom – Uncapped The pen is well detailed out with nice addition of trims with double centre band and triple band at bottom of barrel. There is also one band at cap top along the clip. All are nice and sturdy. There is small O ring at the junction of cap and barrel also. Blackstone Axiom – Barrel PU Leather Finish Overall the pen is very well finished and executed in detail and is very well built and I must say the quality control was stringent as the pen I received had perfectly aligned rings at regular spacing. The cap has cylindrical finial in painted finish and the centre portion of the cap has PU Leather finish and the cap lip is again painted finish with double bands. As far as cap clip is concerned I really like the design and the clip is stiff and sturdy but not springy. Blackstone Axiom – Cap Birds Eye View Blackstone Axiom – Cap Top View Blackstone Axiom – Cap Side View Blackstone Axiom – Cap Inside view As far as the branding goes the name “Axiom” is not mentioned anywhere, only brand name “Blackstone” is mentioned below dual centre band on cap. Below are the few images showing comparison of pen with other pens: Capped – Blackstone Axiom, Parsons Italix, TWSBI Eco, Ranga Model 3 (from bottom to top) Uncapped – Blackstone Axiom, Parsons Italix, TWSBI Eco, Ranga Model 3 (from bottom to top) Angled View – Blackstone Axiom, Parsons Italix, TWSBI Eco, Ranga Model 3 (from right to left) I must say its a very well built pen. Though the pen is hefty some may not like it (e.g. my wife) but I do like it. This pen looks classy. Few things i don’t like are triple bands at bottom, I think dual bands would have served the purpose well. BALANCE : 3/5 As I mentioned earlier the pen is a hefty one and the bottom finial is also heavy which actually balances the brass barrel. Thus this pen is a bottom heavy pen. Pen is well balanced when writing cap unposted but cap posting makes it unbearable (yes the cap posts securely). Below are the pics showing comparison of pen length while writing posted or unposted: Blackstone Axiom – Writing with cap unposted Blackstone Axiom – Writing with cap posted When cap is not posted most of the weight is in centre but when cap is posted at back more than 2/3 rd weight goes to the back, thus making it uncomfortable. Some specifications are as below: Length uncapped : 125 mm (including nib)Length capped : 140 mmDia of Barrel : 13.5 mmDia of Section : 9.5 to 11 mmWeight of pen (capped) : 49.11 gWeight of pen (uncapped) : 29.4 g Blackstone Axiom – Weight with cap Blackstone Axiom – Weight without cap NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 5/5 The pen comes with option of #6 JoWo Ruthenium nib in EF, F, M, B, 1.1, 1.5. I took up M and 1.1 and this particular review was written with 1.1 calligraphy nib. It wrote amazing and very well. Even though JoWo nibs have never disappointed me still I have had bad experience with JoWo #5 Chrome finish 1.1 nib but this one was amazing even the ruthenium finish was matching with black titanium trims. Blackstone Axiom – Nib Unit Top View Blackstone Axiom – Nib Unit Side view Blackstone Axiom – Nib Unit Bottom view Ink Filling is via converter or cartridge. The pen comes with good quality converter which is not Schmidt made. The pen can’t be converted to eyedropper as it is a metal pen. Blackstone Axiom – Taken Apart – Ink filling via converter CONCLUSION: It is extremely well built hefty kit pen with excellent #6 JoWo Ruthenium nibs. Priced around 70 USD puts it in mid range segment. I recommend this to people who want hefty and classy looking pen. For more images and handwritten samples kindly visit my blog here : MEHANDIRATTA

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

The review is simultaneously posted on my blog which is the detailed review with handwritten sample. LINK Wality 71 JT – Close up Wality 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 Wality 70 AM Wality Pens are generally not easily available in northern part of India, I actually can to an extent of saying that they are not even available in that part. Reason could be poor marketing or poor sales. Surprisingly Wality pens are manufactured in Mumbai and even in Mumbai you will find them only certain parts not everywhere. This particular pen i.e. WALITY 71 JT was bought from ASA Pens. Amazing, passionate pen man Mr. Subramaniam behind the store. He actually has enabled lot of people in around the world. Best part is even if i have certain issues with pens he offers to replace or service them which is his forte. Though this only happened once with ASA Spear. Wality 71 JT gave me lot of troubles which will be covered in detail review below and how it became one of the best writers i have today. And surely it is #inexpensive. Wality 71 JT DESIGN & BUILT : 4.5 / 5 Oooooh that look ….. Beauty. This pen is gorgeous. One gorgeous demonstrator pen. Lovely. What not. One look at it and I am sure you will love to grab this pen. Wality 71 JT – Beauty Shot Wality 71 JT (Jumbo Transparent) is a reasonably large pen when capped. The barrel is transparent and is amazingly polished inside and out. Its crystal clear, and rest of the pen i.e. cap and section are made of solid swirl acrylic and it comes in various colors like Blue Swirl, Green Swirl, Purple Swirl and many more. Wality 71 JT – Uncapped The trims are chrome silver finish. Cap top is like a conical dome as you can see from the picture above and the silver colored clip is trademark Wality sturdy stiff clip. There is a big silver center band in the cap with circular ring pattern all over and engraving at the bottom “Mfg. by Airmail Pen Co.” The thing that i don’t like is that the silver center band easily rotates in this model and is not fixed and that is the reason why I have deducted half point out of built. Wality 71 JT – Cap The cap has a breather hole which like many of the Indian pens it has which can be clear from image above and below. Wality 71 JT – Breather Hole. There is a inner lining of the same acrylic material also provided which is slightly visible from the image below. The cap opens in 3 turns. Wality 71 JT – Cap Inner View The grip section of the pen is small in size and people who hold the pen a bit higher might encounter the the threads but the good thing is that these threads are not the sharp threads and in actual they provide more grip to otherwise slippery hands. Wality 71 JT – Small Length Section The pen (without the cap) is thickest at the center of the barrel and it tapers down towards both the ends. Also the bottom of the pen which is solid crystal also has the same conical domed shape similar to cap top. Wality 71 JT – Thickest at Centre The quality of the acrylic used in this pen is far better than the other wality pens like Wality 52 PD, Wality 69 A etc which all give you a certain pungent odor, which is not the case here. Built quality is top notch only issue being the loose center band which keeps rotating and thats the reason for deduction half of the point. Below are the few images showing comparison of Wality 71 JT with other pens. Wality 71 JT vs ASA I-Can vs Jinhao 159 vs Pilot 78G – Capped Wality 71 JT vs ASA I-Can vs Jinhao 159 vs Pilot 78G – Capped Side view Wality 71 JT vs ASA I-Can vs Jinhao 159 vs Pilot 78G – Cap Posted Wality 71 JT vs ASA I-Can vs Jinhao 159 vs Pilot 78G – Cap Posted Side View Overall its an amazing beautiful looking pen which had one issue in looks department , that this pen came with Gold Color Monotone fine Wality nib which was replaced to Ambitious Chrome nib. Wality 71 JT – At Top BALANCE: 4.5 / 5 The pen is Large Pen. The pen is 152 mm when capped and 135 mm when uncapped including the nib. The pen as a whole is thickest at the lip of the cap which is 14 mm and the barrel is thickest at center which is 12mm. The pen is very well balanced when writing uncapped and unposted. The length is perfect and feels really good and balanced and lightweight in your hands. Wality 71 JT – Writing Unposted However when you post the cap at the back the pen really becomes long and uncomfortable even though the cap postes quite securely at back. Wality 71 JT – Writing Posted Therefore, I beleive there is no requirement of posting. NIB & INK FILLING MECHANISM: 3 / 5 This is what i was not at all happy with. The whole charm of the pen died in a moment when i inked it and started writing with it. First of all the nib was scratchy and then second thing was that it burped. it was a leaky pen. Nib it came with was stock gold colored monotone fine nib which first of all did not go well with chrome trims. I did lot of tinkering with the pen. Pushing the nib deep and heat setting the nib and changing the nib to dual tone wality nib even putting iron balls inside the barrel to prevent burping, but it did not work there was always a air gap in section which was leading to burping and none of the Wality feeds was proper match to it. Then in last attempt I changed the nib to monotone chrome finish Ambitious #6 Nib and voila … it did wonders to my pen. I was extremely happy. Wality 71JT with Ambitious Nib replacement The nib set deep inside the section and is a big #6 size nib which looks small as it is set deep inside section. Now it writes medium and wet, just the way i like…Smooth. Love it. I bet you will also love it. Wality 71JT with Ambitious Nib – Top View Wality 71JT with Ambitious Nib – Side View Wality 71JT with Ambitious Nib – Bottom View Wality 71 JT – Nib porn The feed is made of ebonite and this resulted in proper setting of nib by heat setting. Images below shows clearly the ebonite feed heat set with ambitious nib and also the ebonite feed bottom view ink channel. Wality 71JT with Ambitious Nib – Section View after Heat Setting. Wality 71 JT – bottom Feed view – Ink Channel Ink Filling mechanism is through eyedropper and it takes approx 3.5 to 4 ml and being demonstrator love the ink sloshing in the pen barrel. Wality 71JT – Taken Apart Wality 71 JT – Ink Fill Wality 71 JT – Threaded Section Barrel Top View So all in all I am quite happy now with Ambitious Nib and love it. I keep picking this pen again and again as my edc pen. I have finished two barrels of ink completely without any burping now. For more details and images and Handrwritting sample and ink drying times please check my blog : LINK

The pen I am reviewing today and actually using for quite long is Wality 52 PD. And this is my every day carry (edc) pen. Th detailed review of same with the handwritten samples and size comparison can be found on my blog here. Wality 52 PD This is actually the second Wality pen I bought after Wality 69 A, because i liked the way 69 A wrote. Wality pens are manufactured by Airmail Pen Company based out of Mumbai, India. Like 90% of my pens this pen also was procured from ASAPENS also. It is also available at Fountain Pen Revolution albeit at Higher price. Design: This pen arrived along with my other Wality pens like 71JT, 70 AM and Pilot 78G BB Nib. This actually is my second Wality pen and it happens to be a piston filler. It comes in variety of colors like green, teal, burgundy, blue and black. Wality 52 PD - Uncapped Like my previous Wality pen this also gives a certain pungent odor and from what i have come to know is that they they have used a LDPE plastic, which smells a bit. I washed it with detergent water and also kept it overnight in detergent water but still a faint smell persists which now at the time of writing review has subdued. The pen is a classic design and has an amazing build quality for an inexpensive pen. Unlike many Chinese pens (no offence) this pen has a certain character and recall value. Classic Design with matte finished silver cap and clip inspired from the skyline series. And has that feel and character to it which makes it my EDC pen. Wality 52 PD - Classic Vintage Look The pen actually feels quite solid in hand and has certain heft to it. The cap top and bottom of pen are rounded and pen itself is quite straight without any tapering towards bottom or top. Rounded top and bottom The Nib is monotone gold colored and the cap has inner lining of plastic and actually the matte silver metal is molded with the plastic. Also there is a inner plastic lining to prevent ink drying. Metal matte silver finish cap molded with plastic cap Nib is Monotone - Gold Color The pen cap open in 2 1/2 turns. The Clip is also silver colored and quite sturdy and springy at the same time. No complaints whatsoever in those regards. Wality 52 PD - Close up of Cap Wality 52 PD - Clip Wality 52 PD - Inner cap lining There is an ink window on the barrel just below the threads which actually is beneficial to get the idea of ink levels. Wality 52 PD - Ink Window This piston filler mechanism at the bottom is separated from main barrel via a silver colored 'O' ring.This retro look classic design pen is built for lifetime and rough tough usage. Full marks to the build quality. Further details and images available here @ MY BLOG

HERO - 336 Over the period of past 4-5 months i have started collecting Chinese Fountain pens which i will be reviewing one by one. This review is about the pen which was recommended to me by Mr. Subramaniam of ASA Pens after i have collected lot of Chinese Fountain Pens from local market of Old Delhi (Nai Sadak & Sadar Bazaar). And I am surely not disappointed at all. Lets see what are the goods and not so goods about this HERO 336. Hero 336 Design & Built: As far as design is concerned it is a decent, simple, sleek looking pen and you surely might see lot of iterations of the same in the market, thus there is nothing exciting about this pen. As far as i know it comes in four colors, black, navy blue, dark green & burgundy. It is made of plastic which is fairly finished. Hero 336 - posing for camera The cap is of yellow gold colored aluminum and the gold color of the clip is somewhat different from gold color of the cap. The clip is quite springy but yes it gives a bit screechy noise and feels a bit flimsy which in actual is not. The Clip has "Hero" engraved on it and the bottom of the cap i.e. center band displays the model no. and made in china marking. Hero 336 - Cap Also there is gold color metal part screwed at the bottom of barrel, which is purely aesthetic. Hero 336 - Gold plated metal bottom screwed in to bottom of barrel The construction quality is far above acceptable for such a low priced pen, actually it is well built for general everyday rough tough use. It easily takes few drops here and there. The inside of cap has metal springy clips which actually tightens the grip around the section when pen cap is closed and it works pretty fine. Hero 336 - Closeup of Nib and Cap For Further details like nib and balance and more images and my handwritten writing samples i request you to please go through my Blog

I have never seen a review of the Caran d’Ache blue lacquer Varius. I think this pen is a great addition to people who wants to know more about the lacquer version of this Caran d'Ache model. This is my first fountain pen review and I hope to write more reviews for the fountain pen community. Please feel free to comment on this post. I hope to contribute more to the fountain pen community. I will like to thank Sbre Brown, FP geeks, and the Pen Habit for getting me started on fountain pen reviews. First impression This pen is something special. The first thing that catches the eye is the blue lacquer. From what I can tell, it is a navy or dark blue. I will argue this is the prettiest of the lacquered Varius because the color really contrasts well with the silver plating. The color reminds me of the staedtler product with the pencils and erasers, which I used throughout school. I just love lacquer and always wanted to own a pen made with the material. When people think of lacquer, they think of Nakaya, Sailor, or Namiki. I am pretty sure they never thought of this Swiss brand. score 5 out of 5 Appearance This is a very thin pen which is a characteristics of many Caran d'Ache pens. They are usually very thin and a gripping section that is even thinner than the pen body. I usually have very big pens. My everyday carry is a Lamy Al-star and my biggest pen is a Homo Sapien Bronze. But the blue and silver body will make anyone fall in love with this pen. The pen body is hexagonal with the beautiful Caran d'ache labeled cap perfectly aligned to the 6 sided blue and silver body. The hexagonal cap has smooth edges capped a cylinder top with the words Caran d'ache and the logo CdA. I got to admit that Swiss engineering make this pen aesthetically pleasing and very precise. Well done Caran d'Ache. The clip is a very functioning that can easily clip to any shirt and even jean pockets. Tension of this clip is just enough to secure the pen while having enough give to operate it with relative easy. The metal cap is a fingerprint magnet. I personally have no problem with it, but some people certainly do. If you hate fingerprints on your pen, I would not recommend this pen score 5 out of 5 Size/ weight The pen capped at 5¼ inches and uncapped at 5 inches. Capped, this pen stands at 6½ inches. The diameter of this pen at its largest section at ½ inch and the smallest section at ¼ inch. I will say this is a very decent size pen, but the section is a little small for my hands. I will hold it a little further back. I can still write with this pen for long sessions. This is a heavy pen. It is a smaller pen, but the metal certainly make this a very substantial pen on the hands. I like heavy pens so I definitely like the weight of this pen. I will advise this pen to be uncapped because it is a little back heavy when its capped. Without the cap, this pen is extremely well balanced. score 4 out of 5 Filling mechanism This is a standard/ international cartridge converter pen which will have some people groan. I personally have a power filler visconti and while I enjoyed it, its not too upsetting for some pens to have with cartridge converter. For the retail price, I definitely expect this pen to have a piston filler. I understand that the company might not want to put in a piston filling mechanism because this pen is pretty small with a small piston knob will certainly make this pen difficult to operate. score 3.5 out of 5 Nib The pen is nothing without the nib. This is a 18K Medium nib with a plastic feed. Decorated with the beautiful scroll work, this is a very small nib. It writes smoothly when you write on its sweet spot. It has a preference on how you hold it. If you angle the pen towards you to admire the nib design, the nib will become scratchy. I have to adapt to its sweet spot, but it was not hard to figure it out. This pen has a lot of tooth so you definitely feel like writing with a fountain pen. This pen writes like a true European medium. I have compared the Pilot Vanishing point and the Visconti Homo Sapien. The VP writes just a tad bit thicker Varius with the gushing Homo Sapien writing the broadest. It is very consistent with flow when I filled this pen with Waterman Serenity blue. It only skips once or twice after I had this pen, but once I started writing it is just magical. This pen does not flex well, while it can give some line variation, it is a pretty small difference between flex and unflex. I will not use this pen for any spencerian script. Score: 4 out of 5 Price At retail price of over $1115.95 at gold Spot, this pen is MORE THAN the Montblanc 149 and that is a piston filler. I saw this pen at the back room of Fountain Pen Hospital for $495 used. I am screaming inside because this pen is certainly NOT worth $1000+ dollars. The writing experience plus the blue lacquer is just not worth $1000. Luckily, I bought this pen off an auction on Ebay used for about $300. I will say this pen is a steal for me. The owner really took care of this pen and I will treasure it like its previous owner. Retail: 0 out of 5 Me: 5 out of 5 Conclusion It is not everyday that someone can find this pen for the price I got it. The color just POPs. I am really impressed by the design. It is a beautiful Swiss design and I am proud to say I found my accidental grail pen. Here in the U.S., not a lot of people appreciate Caran d’Ache due to price and its not a Montblanc, Visconti, nor a Pelikan. I think I will looke into Caran d’ache more often in the future assuming the price is right. Score 4.417 out of 5 Total

This is my first fountain pen review. Hope you enjoy it!