Magic Mirror on the wall,

[enricof]

I myself, was not able to decide, so had to get all of them

 

Some pics to help (all of them inked, of course).

 

Amber with Noodler's Red-Black

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/enricofacchin/823-3.jpg

 

Black with Pilot Black

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/enricofacchin/823-5.jpg

 

Clear, with Montblanc White Forest

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/enricofacchin/823-4.jpg

 

 

All together now...

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/enricofacchin/823-1.jpg

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/enricofacchin/823-2.jpg

http://i384.photobucket.com/albums/oo288/enricofacchin/823-6.jpg

Edited November 5, 2009 by enricof

[jlepens]

Cool collection!!!

[PatientType]

My 823 in the black version just arrived late afternoon yesterday. After inking it and writing a couple of pages of the Gettysburg Address, I'm glad I got it. It is a good writer and holds a good deal of ink. The loading system is unlike any of my other pens. Which nibs do you have in your collection of three? Mine's a medium and writes about the same width as my Pelikan fine nibs.

[Siv]

Enrico, I am so very happy that you finally managed to get all three in your hands. Congratulations!

[enricof]

My 823 in the black version just arrived late afternoon yesterday. After inking it and writing a couple of pages of the Gettysburg Address, I'm glad I got it. It is a good writer and holds a good deal of ink. The loading system is unlike any of my other pens. Which nibs do you have in your collection of three? Mine's a medium and writes about the same width as my Pelikan fine nibs.

 

All mediums.

 

Line width seems to be quite dependent from ink/paper, anyway I too find them similar to my Pel F nibs (but I have also F Pel nibs that write wider than M Pel nibs).

[enricof]

Enrico, I am so very happy that you finally managed to get all three in your hands. Congratulations!

 

Yes, last week the black one eventually arrived (shipped from HK on July 25th...), and now I'm happy.

 

Now that I've all of them in my hands, I still can't decide which one I prefer, so usually carry all the three of them with me (with different colors).

[mgutman]

Nice collection! I have a black version in "B" that writes like a broad medium on the Pelikan scale.

It is a great pen - perfect size, balance, and smooooth! My next 823 purchase will be a brown Medium.

[hari317]

Hi Enrico, Congratulations! as you know, I own a Amber 823 "B", However I voted "none", I think Pilot should come out with a 823 based on their excellent Celluloid propionate material used in the custom Legance line.

 

Best,

Hari

[georges zaslavsky]

congrats on the nice 823 collection

[HenryLouis]

does anyone have a writing sample of the M nib?

[Highbinder]

I like the black. I just think its a great idea that the pen appears normal but then if you put it up to a light it lights up the inside. Discrete demonstrator! I'm looking to buy one in the next month or two.

[enricof]

I like the black. I just think its a great idea that the pen appears normal but then if you put it up to a light it lights up the inside. Discrete demonstrator! I'm looking to buy one in the next month or two.

 

As a matter of fact, the black one is not really a demonstrator, because it's quite difficult to see what's inside.

I'd call it a "private demonstrator".

 

The clear one is a real one, and it also has something to show inside (frankly speaking, I do nor really understand c/c filler demo).

Anybody will see there's something in it, if you use it. Moreover, the color I inked it is quite brilliant.

 

The amber one is probably a good "in-between" solution.

Does not draw much attention but will be noticed if used in front of another FP-freak...

[stevlight]

I love my amber one.

[Highbinder]

I like the black. I just think its a great idea that the pen appears normal but then if you put it up to a light it lights up the inside. Discrete demonstrator! I'm looking to buy one in the next month or two.

 

As a matter of fact, the black one is not really a demonstrator, because it's quite difficult to see what's inside.

I'd call it a "private demonstrator".

 

Exactly why I want one! I like the idea of it being almost an plain-sight secret. Esthetically I don't usually like demonstrators so it being black offers the best of both worlds to me.

[Flourish]

I like the black. I just think its a great idea that the pen appears normal but then if you put it up to a light it lights up the inside. Discrete demonstrator! I'm looking to buy one in the next month or two.

 

I agree completely with HighBinder on this particular issue.

 

I like using the highest quality fountain pens that I can get ahold of, and the Pilot Custom 823 is in my humble opinion one of the highest quality pens out there today. However, I don't really like being too flashy and you have to admit demonstrators are more eye catching to most people. The Pilot Custom 823 in Transparent Black satisfies my personal need for a demonstrator while looking like an average pen to most everyone else. What I think is really special abut my particular 823 is what's under the cap, an EEEF Full Flex Falcon nib. Now my entire 823 is my special little secret that makes me a little giddy every time I see or use it.

[alkman]

You must be related to Faust to have such a nib. My jealousy overruns me, but you have answered an enduring question of whether the 823 can be fitted with size 15 specialty nibs.

 

I like the Amber version of this pen, and, although I don't have a clear 823, I do have a 74 demonstrator. I've realized that some of the nicety is the shadowing of the ink and not the colour of the ink itself. My students were pestering me about it the other day...

 

I like the black. I just think its a great idea that the pen appears normal but then if you put it up to a light it lights up the inside. Discrete demonstrator! I'm looking to buy one in the next month or two.

 

I agree completely with HighBinder on this particular issue.

 

I like using the highest quality fountain pens that I can get ahold of, and the Pilot Custom 823 is in my humble opinion one of the highest quality pens out there today. However, I don't really like being too flashy and you have to admit demonstrators are more eye catching to most people. The Pilot Custom 823 in Transparent Black satisfies my personal need for a demonstrator while looking like an average pen to most everyone else. What I think is really special abut my particular 823 is what's under the cap, an EEEF Full Flex Falcon nib. Now my entire 823 is my special little secret that makes me a little giddy every time I see or use it.

[PatientType]

Resonding to Henry Louis' request, here is a scan of handwriting with a comparison of three nibs:

 

The Pilot 823 Medium, the Pelikan M800 Fine, and the Omas 360 Fine. (Note that the irregularity on the Omas is because the pen was running out of ink and had to be reloaded in the middle of the comparison -- no ink window on those 360s.)

 

http://i960.photobucket.com/albums/ae87/patienttype2/NibComparison823800360.jpg

 

These are written in Private Reserve Burgundy Mist (Pilot), Private Reserve American Blue (Pelikan) and Private Reserve Sherwood Green (Omas) on Staples bagasse notebook paper.

 

Edited to note that these three pens are the best writing standard nib fountain pens in my collection. It's also interesting that the breadth of the lines are fairly close even though the nibs are of differing sizes.

Edited November 22, 2009 by PatientType

[MadAmos]

I just recieved my amber 823 from Pam Braun, after admiring it... I filled it with my favorite Tsuki-Yo and I am very pleased, the fine nib is as smoooooth as can be. On decent paper it just floats along and makes just the line I was after this will be seeing a great deal of use along with my V/P's. Now, I hope the Dialog 3 I have on order works out as well.

[Flourish]

You must be related to Faust to have such a nib. My jealousy overruns me, but you have answered an enduring question of whether the 823 can be fitted with size 15 specialty nibs.

 

I like the Amber version of this pen, and, although I don't have a clear 823, I do have a 74 demonstrator. I've realized that some of the nicety is the shadowing of the ink and not the colour of the ink itself. My students were pestering me about it the other day...

 

I like the black. I just think its a great idea that the pen appears normal but then if you put it up to a light it lights up the inside. Discrete demonstrator! I'm looking to buy one in the next month or two.

 

I agree completely with HighBinder on this particular issue.

 

I like using the highest quality fountain pens that I can get ahold of, and the Pilot Custom 823 is in my humble opinion one of the highest quality pens out there today. However, I don't really like being too flashy and you have to admit demonstrators are more eye catching to most people. The Pilot Custom 823 in Transparent Black satisfies my personal need for a demonstrator while looking like an average pen to most everyone else. What I think is really special abut my particular 823 is what's under the cap, an EEEF Full Flex Falcon nib. Now my entire 823 is my special little secret that makes me a little giddy every time I see or use it.

 

You can switch out size 15 nibs between Pilot pens rather easily. I switched out the Pilot 743's Falcon nib with the 823's Fine nib in about 10 minutes being careful as these were new pens to me and I wanted to know everything about their workings before I put them back together. Of course I just had to regrind the Falcon nib to EEEF and it is now one of my two favorite nibs of all time. In the next few days I'll be regrinding and adding flex to the #15 Fine nib so that my 743 won't feel so neglected. If you're interested in switching out nibs I believe I have a letter I sent to someone else interested that explains the process, it's not hard to do at all.

 

I too have a Custom 74 and absolutely love it. Every time I use it I feel like the old 1930's Buck Rodgers flying his rocket ship. And yeah, I had this nib flexed out to a EEEF Mid Flex and it is absolutely the best nib I have for microscopic roundhand scripts. If I concentrate real hard I can get slightly under 5 mm f letter height, wow!

[nib of the iceberg]

By the way: I've been last week in Tokyo at Itoya Ginza I store and there was a gentleman in a cubicle on the first floor that customises Pilot pens. He could adapt my amber 823 to my handwriting and my favourite ink (left handed / a document proof Noodler's legal blue). The cost were approx. 1.500 JPY and I've received an extra two year guarantee on my pen. As the 823 performed already on a very high level before the adjustment it was difficult to imagine what the difference would be, but from the perspectives of smoothness, balanced ink flow and 'Einsatzfreude' (a German word that is approximated by my dictionary as 'enthusiasm') my 823 is now a perfect pen.

 

It just has some shortcomings regarding to weight balance (as a result of the huge ink tank, but others might see that as an advantage) and inspiration. As a personal observation I find the design to be a no-design which doesn't age well, transcends to nothing and carries no idea. There is a certain depth missing and most casual observers might take our wonderful 823 for a corporate gift. Other Japanese pens are here at the forefront. Even the 823 is a proof that the quest for the perfect pen might be a never ending story.

 

(It's needless to say that the shop featured the most amazing Japanese and international pens I've seen so far, but - interestingly enough - most Japanese customers seemed to be interested in Pelikan pens(??))

 

Bottom line: If you pass by Tokyo, bring your 823 and have it customised to you. It's an experience you shouldn't miss.