Noodler's Ahab Flex Pen

[raging.dragon]

I agree with you that there is added value in buying a higher quality pen like you mention, or like I mentioned such as Pelikan M1000, Nakaya cigar, MB 149, the many many others....and even getting customized nibs from the masters. The breakthrough of a pen like the Ahab was giving a nice writing, very functional, self-serviceable, flex nib, and a valued vegetal resin/celluloid (check how Binder describes it) barrel for $20.

 

I know from speaking to Nathan that he is not opposed to all of the quality pen makers and customizers. Rather if people cannot find a decent quality fountain pen available for the "masses" who are already moving away from writing towards keyboards anyway...then this entire fountain pen hobby will disappear as another 1-2 generations pass. I know there are very cheap FP's out there, but they are rarely something that people actually enjoy using long term.

 

Nathan also believes that if you can somehow "hook" larger numbers of people coming into the FP area, some of them will migrate up the purchase ladder and will even expand the demand for higher quality pens. Right now the industry is the other way around. To get a decent performing, quality pen, as a brand new user, you have to spend a lot more than $20 to find out if it is worthwhile--which scares away most people-right back to their disposable ballpoint/gellpoint/rollerballs.

 

On the smell, when I put the removed ebonite feed almost up inside my nostrils, there is very little smell. So actually, "the smell" with Noodler's pens is coming from the vegetal resin itself.

 

I understand and appreciate what Nathan is doing, in fact I find that I usually agree with him. I certainly hope the Nathan's attempts to expand the market for fountain pens are successful.

 

The pens I listed off, are all custom or semi-custom and with the 14K flex nibs cost 10X or more what the Noodler's Ahab costs. So no question they're in totally different market segments. And those semi-flex meister nibs only became available recently, so it's entirely possible that the success of Nathan's flex pens helped convince Brian that flex nibs were a viable product.

 

Not only is Nathan introducing people to flex nibs, he's also bringing integral fillers to a price point where they're otherwise rare, if not non-existant.

 

The only other company I can think of who are using vegetal resin in their pens is OMAS. And they are most definetly a high-end brand, which further indicates that vegetal resin is premium product.

Edited November 20, 2011 by raging.dragon

[chupie]

Oh fer cryin' out loud. This is why I don't come to the forum very often. I didn't NEED another pen but WHO COULD PASS THIS UP????

[watch_art]

And those semi-flex meister nibs only became available recently, so it's entirely possible that the success of Nathan's flex pens helped convince Brian that flex nibs were a viable product.

 

 

Erm. Brian Gray has offered the flex customization to his 14k nibs longer than the Noodler's flex piston fillers have been around.

 

Edisons

 

The oldest Noodler's flex review is from October 2010, while the above review of the Edisons are from July. And I think that Brian offered that customization even farther back than this.

 

Noodler's

 

Edited November 20, 2011 by watch_art

[SamCapote]

And those semi-flex meister nibs only became available recently, so it's entirely possible that the success of Nathan's flex pens helped convince Brian that flex nibs were a viable product.

 

 

Erm. Brian Gray has offered the flex customization to his 14k nibs longer than the Noodler's flex piston fillers have been around.

 

Edisons

 

The oldest Noodler's flex review is from October 2010, while the above review of the Edisons are from July. And I think that Brian offered that customization even farther back than this.

 

Noodler's

 

 

LOL! Well now I have to get one of these too, because I already adore the Cappuccino Nouveau Premiere I got through the collaboration with GouletPens. I didn't know that Brian made the superflex shown in the first post.

[raging.dragon]

And those semi-flex meister nibs only became available recently, so it's entirely possible that the success of Nathan's flex pens helped convince Brian that flex nibs were a viable product.

 

 

Erm. Brian Gray has offered the flex customization to his 14k nibs longer than the Noodler's flex piston fillers have been around.

 

Edisons

 

The oldest Noodler's flex review is from October 2010, while the above review of the Edisons are from July. And I think that Brian offered that customization even farther back than this.

 

Noodler's

 

 

I didn't notice them until recently.

[JonB55198]

Wow, this is an excellent and thorough review. I really learned alot about this pen and enjoyed reading it! Thanks a ton for posting this

[MD249]

The Goulet Pens website says that the pen will be available on Monday November 21st at 12pm, usually when there is a release like this they make it for 12AM, has anyone else noticed this? To me it seems like a mistake.

[Roger D]

The Goulet Pens website says that the pen will be available on Monday November 21st at 12pm, usually when there is a release like this they make it for 12AM, has anyone else noticed this? To me it seems like a mistake.

12am, 12pm... there's always the chance for a misunderstanding.

 

Is the Ahab release not noon, New Jersey time?

[MD249]

Well the website says 12PM Eastern Standard Time, which is 12 noon, New Jersey time. It just seems odd that they would format the release time in EST but release it at noon.

[79spitfire]

I have mine, I had a devil of a time getting it to write the first time. I ended up pulling the feed and gently cleaning the feed with the corner of a piece of cardboard and clearing the first 'vent' rib. Now it writes great, smooth and seems to keep up with my writing just fine. I inked it with Noodler's eel blue for a first run. The filler is a blast to watch fill and for an integral filler pen holds a lot of ink, as much as my TWSBI Diamond 530. It's very similar in size to the Diamond making it a larger pen. It feels nice in the hand and doesn't dry at the nib over night!

 

Now part of me wishes I hadn't bought the demonstrator, but perhaps the Jade...

[MrsGouletPens]

The Goulet Pens website says that the pen will be available on Monday November 21st at 12pm, usually when there is a release like this they make it for 12AM, has anyone else noticed this? To me it seems like a mistake.

Well the website says 12PM Eastern Standard Time, which is 12 noon, New Jersey time. It just seems odd that they would format the release time in EST but release it at noon.

 

Not a mistake. Yes, 12pm = noon, aka lunchtime. We're in Virginia, which is east coast. Should be 9am on the west coast, early evening in Europe. We have found that this time works best for most folks in their schedules, except maybe our customers in Asia & Australia. Sorry if it's confusing for anyone!

 

And sorry to derail this thread... back to review discussion!

[SamCapote]

I have mine, I had a devil of a time getting it to write the first time. I ended up pulling the feed and gently cleaning the feed with the corner of a piece of cardboard and clearing the first 'vent' rib. Now it writes great, smooth and seems to keep up with my writing just fine. I inked it with Noodler's eel blue for a first run. The filler is a blast to watch fill and for an integral filler pen holds a lot of ink, as much as my TWSBI Diamond 530. It's very similar in size to the Diamond making it a larger pen. It feels nice in the hand and doesn't dry at the nib over night!

 

Now part of me wishes I hadn't bought the demonstrator, but perhaps the Jade...

 

With the comments so far, it does sound like people should plan on first removing the nib and feed, washing it a bit and make sure the feed channels are clean and clear. I don't think I can say that my six all working great out of the box is panning out with everyone's experience. I'm guessing that there are residual machining oils or maybe some bits of ebonite that need to be flushed clear in some cases. It's probably a good way to get to know your pen anyway.

 

I like to see the demonstrator since this is a new pen, and you can see what's going on.

 

I wish more pens were made of this vegetal resin material, because it is such a pleasure to hold. It's grippy, but not gritty. It's smooth but not slippery. It's warmer to the touch on these cold days. The size makes it much easier to use for flexing.

[Inka]

I like to see the demonstrator since this is a new pen, and you can see what's going on.

 

I wish more pens were made of this vegetal resin material, because it is such a pleasure to hold. It's grippy, but not gritty. It's smooth but not slippery. It's warmer to the touch on these cold days. The size makes it much easier to use for flexing.

I agree with everything you said, especially these points.

If I wasn't broke I'd get the clear demonstrator in a heartbeat.

The filling system being clear is cool too, but being able to see everything that's going on with a new pen w/o the need to partially disassemble would be my pick.

 

Natrual materials are a joy to use, in fountain pens.

I too feel there's a warmth not felt with most plastics when holding a Hard Rubber or natural material.

I like the size looks of this pen, despite my not caring for the flex of an 18C M1000 nib, this pen seems it would be less difficult to use.

If a nib flexes too easily my hand cramps terribly trying to gain control, if it flexes hard it also hurts me trying to keep line-width were I want it.

For some reason this particular pen/ nib combo look like they may really be the "Goldilocks" of pen [&] flex-nib, wish I could try one in clear for myself.

Edited November 21, 2011 by Inka

[Earthdawn]

Great review... Thank you...

 

Of course I finally get home and the "Medieval Lapis" is already out of stock

 

hmmmm now to decide on another color

[Soundsider]

Great review... Thank you...

 

Of course I finally get home and the "Medieval Lapis" is already out of stock

 

hmmmm now to decide on another color

 

Seriously sorry about that...I have to claim partial responsibility, though I only ordered one. Interesting color.

[JonB55198]

The only thing I would have changed about this pen is that I would have added an ink window. This way, if the user chose to operate it in eyedropper mode, they would have the benefit of being able to tell when it was almost time to refill.

[GemMayhem]

Thanks, Sam, for the thorough, informative and exciting review! The photos are wonderful - thanks for taking the extra time to photograph the pens and share with us.

 

Thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences and advice so far. Most helpful!

 

I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of my order, even more so after reading the early reviews.

 

Nathan, if you should happen to read this, thanks from the heart for your commitment to producing quality products at very reasonable prices. I hope that through the efforts of dedicated creators like yourself, the top-notch service from our favorite retailers and the enthusiasm of the fountain pen community will all result in a renewed love of (and even adoption of) writing overall and especially with the inimitable character of fountain pens.

 

All the Best,

Gem

[OrangeJoe]

Since this is the definitive Ahab review, I'll ask here.

 

Let's say someone wanted to put a large Ti nib on it... What nib size will the Ahab accept?

[Thornton]

Thanks for the wonderful review, Sam. I've been disappointed in all the Noodler's pens I've tried, but I'll give this one a shot. Noodler's ink is my favorite by far, but the pens...not so much. The Medieval Lapis Ahab looks delicious. Hoping to get one once it's back in stock at the Goulets'.

[Fabienne]

Yea, cleaning this one is a must. Mine worked great out of the box BUT THEN it dead stopped. I primed the pump and it wrote and stopped. So, I took it apart and looked at it through a loup. I saw that the nib and the feed were not in alignment, there was nothing clogging the feed that I could see. I put the nib and feed in the ultrasonic bath with a drop of Dawn and turned it on for 480 seconds. Took them out and rinsed in warm soapy water. BUT then I put the nib and feed together and put them all back in the collar and put that on the desoldering bulb and squeezed warm soapy water out of the whole assembly. Wouldn't you know it, a rather large (sesame seed size) brown bit came out of it all.

 

I think that something was caught in the collar area and that must have been interfering with the rest of the flow. Also, putting the feed and nib together so they lined up helped too.

 

Nice pen. Mine is in Arizona and I have it filled with American Eel Blue for a first color. Contrasts merrily with that orange and yellow swirl!

 

Neat-O pen.