Jump to content

Conklin Mark Twain Crescent


jandrese

Recommended Posts

This is a review of the new Conklin Mark Twain Crescent fountain pen with medium nib. This is not the limited edition pen produced some years ago but a new pen from the Yafa owned Conklin company. As an aside, I have three modern Conklin fountain pens and this one is by far the best. I think Yafa has had a very positive impact on the company. But back to the pen at hand. This is a full sized pen similar in size to a Pelikan 800 but much lighter because it lacks a brass piston mechanism. What it does have, however, is a crescent filling system where depressing the crescent actually squeezes a rubber ink sac. Yikes, a non-cartridge/converter filling pen! Even better this is a relatively cheap pen; Fahrney’s and everybody else is selling this, the green/gold marble pen for $132. The material is claimed to be cellulose acetate and the metal parts are silver-plated. The nib is usually described as two-tone 14 k gold but the pens seen online, and my pen, sport steel nibs.

 

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_hnaALxA0AP8/S3wURUJ3l-I/AAAAAAAAACU/ZOKILCv6d5Y/s800/IMG_4031.JPG

 

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_hnaALxA0AP8/S3wUSyvRWPI/AAAAAAAAACs/DtiYv3SiMbc/s800/IMG_4036.JPG

 

This is a very unassuming pen that I was dubious of at first. I mean, a cheapish crescent filler with a steel nib, it must suck, right? Ummm, no way. This is actually a first rate pen and an excellent writer that I am very impressed with. Construction quality and fit and finish are very good. The clip is strong and functional. The material is attractive, has good transparency, is lightweight, and feels good in the hand. As nice detail is a detent on the barrel that locks in place the ring that prevents the crescent from being inadvertently depressed. Heck, the big cap even posts securely without throwing off the balance too much. The section easily unscrews exposing a huge ink sac that can easily be replaced when the time comes. All in all this is a pretty impressive pen for the money.

 

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_hnaALxA0AP8/S3wUXbgPPMI/AAAAAAAAADo/NTvlHfPqeGg/s800/IMG_4050.JPG

 

http://lh6.ggpht.com/_hnaALxA0AP8/S3wUTaV0Y8I/AAAAAAAAACw/0lEdMWhuHJc/s800/IMG_4037.JPG

 

The steel nib was perhaps the best surprise. My other Conklin pens, a Glider and a Nozac, are really good looking pens that are not very good writers. Well, that is not fair, they are now decent writers but I had to modify the nibs, feeds, etc. to make this happen. With the new pen, however, the experience was totally different. This pen wrote great right out of the box. I’ve filled it twice now with Noodler’s 1870 Dallas black ink (a Dromgoole’s special made for the 2007 Dallas pen show), which I think is Noodler’s basic black ink or something very similar. At least with this ink the Mark Twain Crescent provides a sumptuous writing experience without variation. That is, the nib does not flex so line width does not change, and the pen starts writing immediately even after sitting around a long time. In addition, the pen has proved leak proof on cross-country flights, which is a nice bonus for a pen with an ink sac. This pen proves that steel nibs can be smooth, excellent writers.

 

http://lh5.ggpht.com/_hnaALxA0AP8/S3wUSNZwgvI/AAAAAAAAACg/kcg9uGqMRqs/s800/IMG_4033.JPG

 

http://lh3.ggpht.com/_hnaALxA0AP8/S3wUSZ9h9SI/AAAAAAAAACk/dgHO4CyN_nk/s800/IMG_4034.JPG

 

There are few pens I’d recommend to novices or to those looking to spend relatively small amounts. Amazingly to me, this is one of those pens. To all you dealers out there don’t be afraid to push this pen. And to all you pen nuts you owe it to yourself to try this pen. It just might save you from spending more on a crappier pen. I’m thinking of getting another one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 22
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • jandrese

    3

  • Lorna Reed

    3

  • Jim Holzemer

    1

  • TopPens

    1

I bought the same pen under the previous owner of Conklin. It has a steel nib but it looks slightly different, probably a different manufacture. It writes well, but I have not yet succeeded in filling it with a lot of ink. It needs refilling often.

 

What am I doing wrong?

 

Chaim

Chaim Seymour

David Elazar 8

Givat Shemuel

Israel

54032

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I bought the same pen under the previous owner of Conklin. It has a steel nib but it looks slightly different, probably a different manufacture. It writes well, but I have not yet succeeded in filling it with a lot of ink. It needs refilling often.

 

What am I doing wrong?

 

Chaim

 

 

That is hard to say. Perhaps the ink sac in your pen is small. Mine runs nearly the full length of the pen and holds a lot of ink. Submerge the nib and part of the section, depress the crescent, wait ten seconds and repeat if you want. Good luck.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice review. Thanks

PMS

When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty -Thomas Jefferson

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good review! I bought one of these a few years back and the only thing I noticed is that for some reason the ink comes through a little bit darker...wierd...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Agree this is an under-appreciated pen! Nice photos btw.

...writing only requires focus, and something to write on. —John August

...and a pen that's comfortable in the hand.—moi

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been semi-coveting this pen for a couple months. They got me with the PR stating it was an exact duplicate of Mark Twain's pen, yada yada yada. Thanks so much for a great review and excellent pictures.

 

Marvin

"I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom, and that of all about me, seemed insufficient for the day." Abraham Lincoln

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 months later...

Thanks for the review and now I just have to deal with the temptation. I have been looking at it and the new Endura and liking what I saw - good to hear the positive experience. Thanks

Link to comment
Share on other sites

These are good pens. Very wet writer and IMHO beautiful to look at. I had one just like the one pictured but sold it when I ran across a fancier version on Ebay.

 

Conklin produced many, many pens as part of their Mark Twain series:

There were expensive limited editions made with gold and silver sleeves, there were celluloid versions with solid silver bands & clips, there were black ones with yellow imprinting and limited editions in various colors and patterns, some of these higher-level pens had solid silver clips & rings, some had filled silver, there were pens like the one pictured but with 18K and 14K nibs, there were these steel nib pens in the stained glass-looking patterns in red/drk.brown, green/gold & blue/yellow with crescent filler, and there were the cheaper steel nib with solid color and converter.

 

The Conklin Mark Twain I kept is one of the celluloid butterscotch crescents with solid silver furniture. It has a two-color 14K nib and right now it's loaded with Apache Sunset. Here's a photo...

 

http://i960.photobucket.com/albums/ae87/patienttype2/My%20Pens/MTCC-FP-wcap.jpg

 

This one's likely to stay in my fountain pen collection so long as there is a collection.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

These are good pens. Very wet writer and IMHO beautiful to look at. I had one just like the one pictured but sold it when I ran across a fancier version on Ebay.

 

Conklin produced many, many pens as part of their Mark Twain series:

There were expensive limited editions made with gold and silver sleeves, there were celluloid versions with solid silver bands & clips, there were black ones with yellow imprinting and limited editions in various colors and patterns, some of these higher-level pens had solid silver clips & rings, some had filled silver, there were pens like the one pictured but with 18K and 14K nibs, there were these steel nib pens in the stained glass-looking patterns in red/drk.brown, green/gold & blue/yellow with crescent filler, and there were the cheaper steel nib with solid color and converter.

 

The Conklin Mark Twain I kept is one of the celluloid butterscotch crescents with solid silver furniture. It has a two-color 14K nib and right now it's loaded with Apache Sunset. Here's a photo...

 

http://i960.photobucket.com/albums/ae87/patienttype2/My%20Pens/MTCC-FP-wcap.jpg

 

This one's likely to stay in my fountain pen collection so long as there is a collection.

 

 

Nice one!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks for the review and now I just have to deal with the temptation. I have been looking at it and the new Endura and liking what I saw - good to hear the positive experience. Thanks

 

My new Endura arrived yesterday so it's too soon for a proper review - these are just a few early thoughts-

This pen is VERY light in weight which disappointed me a little when I took it out of the box. I got the Patriot red one which is marble-ised red, white and blue. I was also disappointed that mine did not come with a converter, although the e-bay description indicated that one was included - I have contacted the seller to query this but have not had a reply yet.On hisnibs.com website it is definitely shown with a converter. Fortunately I had a converter which fits. The nib is steel with a gold coloured oval and 'Conklin, Toledo USA' etched on it. The nib is smooth enough but not the smoothest I have. It seems to write well.

On my pen, near where the clip joins the cap, was what looked like dried adhesive. I have managed to remove this with Peek metal polish and elbow grease!

This is a fairly big pen - approx. 5 3/4" capped.

I got mine for $49.00 + $28.00 shipping + £16.48 custom charges!

The RRP is $115 but most places seem to have it priced between $90 - £95 so I got it at a good price.

I'm not sure this will ever become one of my favourites but it is an interesting addition to my small collection.

Whatever is true,whatever is noble,whatever is right,whatever is pure,whatever is lovely,whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things.

Philippians 4.8

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I love this pen and have it in several versions. I agree with Chaim about the need to frequently refill; I think the ink sack in the first batch they made was small. Otherwise it is a flawless, wonderfully-performing pen.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was also disappointed that mine did not come with a converter, although the e-bay description indicated that one was included - I have contacted the seller to query this but have not had a reply yet.

 

 

Did you look under the insert in the box?

 

My Website

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was also disappointed that mine did not come with a converter, although the e-bay description indicated that one was included - I have contacted the seller to query this but have not had a reply yet.

 

 

Did you look under the insert in the box?

 

Hi Jar - yes I did look under the insert. There is a place for the converter to fit, but no converter in mine. don't know if I was just unlucky.

Whatever is true,whatever is noble,whatever is right,whatever is pure,whatever is lovely,whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things.

Philippians 4.8

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the review and now I just have to deal with the temptation. I have been looking at it and the new Endura and liking what I saw - good to hear the positive experience. Thanks

 

My new Endura arrived yesterday so it's too soon for a proper review - these are just a few early thoughts-

This pen is VERY light in weight which disappointed me a little when I took it out of the box. I got the Patriot red one which is marble-ised red, white and blue. I was also disappointed that mine did not come with a converter, although the e-bay description indicated that one was included - I have contacted the seller to query this but have not had a reply yet.On hisnibs.com website it is definitely shown with a converter. Fortunately I had a converter which fits. The nib is steel with a gold coloured oval and 'Conklin, Toledo USA' etched on it. The nib is smooth enough but not the smoothest I have. It seems to write well.

On my pen, near where the clip joins the cap, was what looked like dried adhesive. I have managed to remove this with Peek metal polish and elbow grease!

This is a fairly big pen - approx. 5 3/4" capped.

I got mine for $49.00 + $28.00 shipping + £16.48 custom charges!

The RRP is $115 but most places seem to have it priced between $90 - £95 so I got it at a good price.

I'm not sure this will ever become one of my favourites but it is an interesting addition to my small collection.

UPDATE - just had an e-mail from the seller to say the pen should have come with a converter and he is mailing one to me. :thumbup:

Whatever is true,whatever is noble,whatever is right,whatever is pure,whatever is lovely,whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things.

Philippians 4.8

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...

Thanks for the review! I have one and love it with just one complaint. It's a very difficult starter with any black ink. Any blue ink just flows, but I'm a little neurotic, I suppose, and I want my black M.T.C.F. to have black ink in it - also gives a more retro look to the writing, which is fun. So I'm now looking for a black ink that flows. You mentioned Noodler's Dallas 1870 black. So,I'll give that a try. You may have solved my problem. Thanks!

"A kingdom for a stage, princes to act,

And monarchs to behold the swelling scene!"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43844
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      33501
    3. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    4. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      26627
    5. jar
      jar
      26101
  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Shanghai Knife Dude
      I have the Sailor Naginata and some fancy blade nibs coming after 2022 by a number of new workshop from China.  With all my respect, IMHO, they are all (bleep) in doing chinese characters.  Go use a bush, or at least a bush pen. 
    • A Smug Dill
      It is the reason why I'm so keen on the idea of a personal library — of pens, nibs, inks, paper products, etc. — and spent so much money, as well as time and effort, to “build” it for myself (because I can't simply remember everything, especially as I'm getting older fast) and my wife, so that we can “know”; and, instead of just disposing of what displeased us, or even just not good enough to be “given the time of day” against competition from >500 other pens and >500 other inks for our at
    • adamselene
      Agreed.  And I think it’s good to be aware of this early on and think about at the point of buying rather than rationalizing a purchase..
    • A Smug Dill
      Alas, one cannot know “good” without some idea of “bad” against which to contrast; and, as one of my former bosses (back when I was in my twenties) used to say, “on the scale of good to bad…”, it's a spectrum, not a dichotomy. Whereas subjectively acceptable (or tolerable) and unacceptable may well be a dichotomy to someone, and finding whether the threshold or cusp between them lies takes experiencing many degrees of less-than-ideal, especially if the decision is somehow influenced by factors o
    • adamselene
      I got my first real fountain pen on my 60th birthday and many hundreds of pens later I’ve often thought of what I should’ve known in the beginning. I have many pens, the majority of which have some objectionable feature. If they are too delicate, or can’t be posted, or they are too precious to face losing , still they are users, but only in very limited environments..  I have a big disliking for pens that have the cap jump into the air and fly off. I object to Pens that dry out, or leave blobs o
  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More
  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...