RichardsPens.com vs. Nibs.com - Any difference in nib quality?

[beluga]

One difference is that Richard grinds and repairs nibs at the shows he attends, but John just sells pens and accepts repair orders to go home with him.

 

So it is a bit more than marketing that makes the difference. Oh, and Richard's wait time is a little over three months these days (I think)--John's is over six months! That's a big difference if you just need a nib ground and want it sooner than later!

 

Dan

 

 

 

Lastly, people here should also be aware that one of the greatest nibmeisters is Mike Masuyama of MikeItWork.com. Mike studied under the "God of Fountain Pens" from Sailor (visit his website to learn all about his training) and is absolutely one of the best. Although John's lead time for pens is 6 months and Richards is 4 months (or more) Mike will grind or tune your pen in a few weeks. Why wait months when you could get your pen back from one of the best in the world in a few weeks? Frankly waiting that amount of time to me is absurd!

 

 

 

JK

 

 

 

 

Mike is very good indeed and may be able to offer faster turnaround times than John and Richard.

It has been mentioned that Mike was trained mostly on Japanese pens and it might be prudent to keep in mind that typical Japanese stroke widths are narrower than typical Western widths.

When asking Mike to work on a Western nib (he does that too) it may help if you mention if you have a Western stroke in mind.

 

 

 

B.

[SamCapote]

Got my Pelikan M200 with the 0.9 stock cursive italic nib from RichardsPens.com today (very fast service), and filled it with some Waterman Florida Blue.

 

I now see why Barbara/Richard told me that for most people the more economical "stock" nibs work out just fine. This is really wonderful. Much more variation than the Lamy 1.1 Calligraphy nib, and glides more smoothly. It lays down the ink without skipping as fast as I can write. This is everything I hoped it would be, and exceeds my expectations. Thanks Richard!

 

Here's a comparison scan (thumbnail):

 

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/pike444/m200s.jpg

[jpr]

I have an equal amount of nibs from John M. and Richard B.

Both are excellent nib masters, both are excellent service providers.

If financially capable, I would buy a hundred nibs from both in a heartbeat.

[Dace]

I cannot control it, but for the record, I did not want this topic to be drifting off into "polarizing" comments, nib grinding at shows, or adding a host of other nib adjusters which can be another topic. It was specifically about the difference in nib quality received from these two websites, and my understanding is that they both do superb work. Thanks for your understanding.

 

With all due respect, what did you think would happen? When you ask people to compare to very loved vendors it will happen.

 

It will happen with anything in this world; sports, politics, women, men etc. There is no such thing as a fair and balanced debate, you will get opinions and people fired up anytime you ask a question like this.

 

I think it was an honest question and a fair one, but the responses are not unexpected.

[OcalaFlGuy]

Got my Pelikan M200 with the 0.9 stock cursive italic nib from RichardsPens.com today (very fast service), and filled it with some Waterman Florida Blue.

 

I now see why Barbara/Richard told me that for most people the more economical "stock" nibs work out just fine. This is really wonderful. Much more variation than the Lamy 1.1 Calligraphy nib, and glides more smoothly. It lays down the ink without skipping as fast as I can write. This is everything I hoped it would be, and exceeds my expectations. Thanks Richard!

 

Here's a comparison scan (thumbnail):

 

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/pike444/m200s.jpg

 

I am lightly scratching my head over your Lamy sample.

 

Here is my 1.1 (admittedly short sample)

 

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XB-IYvzxVyY/S0ObcgxeLZI/AAAAAAAABFE/3YpD1GAQrfY/s800/Stuff%20037.jpg

 

While obviously Richard's nib has much more variation AND one might argue that mine above is more Stubish, mine

appers to have more variation than your Lamy. :hmm1:

 

And yes, I understand there is likely to be variances in $11 nibs...

 

PS; WOWSER! do I like that Quink Red on Staples Bagasse!

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[SamCapote]

I am lightly scratching my head over your Lamy sample.

 

Here is my 1.1 (admittedly short sample)

 

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XB-IYvzxVyY/S0ObcgxeLZI/AAAAAAAABFE/3YpD1GAQrfY/s800/Stuff%20037.jpg

 

While obviously Richard's nib has much more variation AND one might argue that mine above is more Stubish, mine

appers to have more variation than your Lamy. :hmm1:

 

And yes, I understand there is likely to be variances in $11 nibs...

 

PS; WOWSER! do I like that Quink Red on Staples Bagasse!

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

 

That red is wonderful. Is that still sold?

 

I'm not sure I see a lot more dramatic variation in your writing than mine, except for showing the grid. I got about the same appearance making a similar grid just now with the Lamy, so I think we have the same 1.1 nib. I find the best character to show the variation of these wider cursive italic/calligraphy nibs is doing a bunch of "8's" When I do that now, there is again a more obvious difference in terms of more variation and nicer flow with the M200 Cursive Italic I got from Binders over the Lamy 1.1 nib. I also have the 1.5 Lamy nib, and that has very striking variation, but not what I would call easy flowing, and it needs to be more precisely held at optimal angles.

[SamCapote]

Just got an M400 Brown Torthoise Shell from John @ nibs.com that I asked to custom grind a 14K Double Broad to cursive italic, and I couldn't be happier with the job they did. Comparing it to the stock M200 from RichardsPens with a cursive italic .9mm, I would say there is more variation to the stock, but more requirement to maintain proper holding angle. The more expensive custom ground M400 has less variation, but a smoother feel.

 

In summary, both websites have been excellent experiences, and both nibs (although it is like comparing apples and oranges) are wonderful. I have since ordered a whole set of M200/M400 Extra Fine, Fine, Medium, Broad nibs from Richard.

[buffalowings]

not attempting to hijack this thread, but I must ask, of the pens which you have had tuned by Richard Binder or John Mottishaw, are the pens equipped with a fine nib as smooth as a medium nib? I know the smoothness is also dependent on the fact that medium nibs have a larger area so the hydroplane effect can take place (resulting in a smoother nib)but I wonder if your fine nibs are just as smooth or even smoother than a similar pen with the same nib except as a medium

 

James

[HenryLouis]

I liked my VP from John Mottishaw. I'm sure Richard is great as well, as are all the nibmeisters...

 

If we are really taking time into the equation, there are a lot of smaller nib repair places that have faster turnarounds...

[fabiorr]

I will speak for myself, but I believe the differences regarding skills of those professionals are negligible if compared to the user ability to transpose subjective requirements to objective specification.

 

Fabio

Edited March 10, 2010 by fabiorr

[OcalaFlGuy]

I am lightly scratching my head over your Lamy sample.

 

Here is my 1.1 (admittedly short sample)

 

http://lh4.ggpht.com/_XB-IYvzxVyY/S0ObcgxeLZI/AAAAAAAABFE/3YpD1GAQrfY/s800/Stuff%20037.jpg

 

That red is wonderful. Is that still sold?

 

 

It is Parker Quink Red. I'm not sure if it's still sold retail or not. If not, I'm sure John Bosley at Vintage Inks can get it or has it.

 

I got a sample of it from Florence Nightingangel, when she saw me using and drooling over it, she gave me the rest of the bottle.

 

PS EDIT; Florence tells me the Quink Red is still available in England, Australia and Malaysia or from ebay from there.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

Edited March 10, 2010 by OcalaFlGuy

[bushido]

i would buy from nibs.com any day of the week, john's a big help and a man of integrity.

[Pensee]

I ordered "super-needle" Pel. nib from Binder & no complaints. Fantastic!

 

Ordered xf Pel. nib from Mottishaw & said wanted just a tad of flex.

 

Probably communication error between person taking my order on the phone, and John doing the work.

 

Received an 'xf' nib that wet all over 32# Crane paper in a 4pt line.

 

Called & joked if that's xf I'd hate to see medium!

 

Maybe she didn't like my sense of humor. If I understood correctly, I could send back, but I'd still be charged a fee.

 

Annoyed, I tweaked the tines closer together myself & clamped that puppy tight against feed. That did the trick.

 

I'd buy from both again, but not during x-mas! Methinks they were probably just too busy & my preferences got lost in the shuffle.

 

Just one man's story fwiw. Not trying to start anything here!

[Lloyd]

FWIW, my #1 choice is Michael Masuyama (Mike-It-Work).

[tanalasta]

I just received an XF pelikan M600 from Richard today. First time I have bought from a nibmeister and it came with a little slip writen in waterman blue-black with the signature (demonstration of the pen's writing line) of the person who adjusted it. The pen was thankfully flushed and clean on arrival (as it was sent via USPS).

 

First impressions are that it writes plenty smooth but slightly wet. Whether this is a result of binderizing or Pelikan (I filled it with Aurora Blue to match the pen) I don't know. I am satisfied with his communication all the way. He told me the pen doesn't write as fine as a Sailor or Pilot (it's probably close to a Western Fine and probably the same as my MB XF to be honest).

 

However, it's smooth and his service exceptional. I would purchase from him again.

[ianmedium]

I have not had experience of Richard yet (soon to be fixed!) but have had two pens from John(Mottishaw.

Both pens from John are wonderful, my custome flexi stub nib Nakaya is a pure joy to write with as is my Stock Montegrappa Historia which was a used pen made in 1999. I knew obviously that john had worked on the Nakaya but was suprised to see that he had also checked over the Montegrappa as well (there were tiny droplets of water in the CC!)

My feeling is that both are equal in terms of talent and customer service which is why I will be sharing the pen buying between the two!

 

By the way. For anyone on the fence, it is wonderful to have even a stock nib checked over by a nib miester, you end up with a pen that writes right out of the box in the way you want it to! As for the extra expense of having a custom nib, well it was the best $120 I have spent. The Nakaya arrived exactly how I wanted it too and everyone who has tried it has been amazed at the writing quality! I did not have the Montegrappa customized as it is a ltd edition..Was tempted though!