Smoothest Chinese Pens?

[Paul80]

Hi

 

Like many others I have quite a few Chinese pens that have very smooth wet nibs, all are medium to broad though,

 

They are from a number of different makers, well different names, don't know how many actual makers there are in China that are totally independent of each other though.

 

Kaigelu, Hero, Jinhao. Duke, Picasso Baoer to name just a few.

 

Given just how cheap these pens are against just how well they are made I find them to be fantastic pens, ok QC can sometimes be an issue but of all the Chinese pens I have owned the only one I had issues with was a Hero 100 that had a nib like a rusty nail and an Aerometric filling system that would only work if the sac protector was pulled off. But then again it only cost 99 pence and that included free shipping from China so I cannot really complain, and it might not have even been a genuine hero as there are quite a few hero copies out there, especially their 616 model, and the 100 is very close in looks to the 616. But then again QC has been a big issue with some of the more expensive pen makes over the last few years as they try to cut costs, Pelikan Nibs are getting quite a few negative reports that they are no longer writing well out of the box.

 

I would suggest that the odd problem with a £10 pen is far more acceptable than it is in a £300 pen don't you

 

If only they would start using gold for their nibs, they would compare even better to pens from the main stream makers, even with the obviouse price rise that would entail.

 

Also this is just a personal thing but I like the weight go a pen made of brass over one made of plastic..

 

Paul

[wlwilcox]

I have 2- Jinhao 159's and 4- Jinhao X-450's. Every one except for 1 wrote great right out of the box. From what has been said their nibs are a slight bit different as far as how they write. They say Medium however mine write like a Broad. The one that gaveme trouble, all I had to do was use my series of Micro-mesh pads and the nib turned smooth as butter. I have several higher end pens (Waterman, Cross) and my Jinhao's are the best of the lot. If I every buy another pen and it does'nt perform well, I would run them on my Micro-mesh pads.

[grahamtillotson]

+1 on the Jinhao 159. I have two of them and they write extremely well for the price. I have a number of x450s as well, and they are good but the 159 nib seems better for some reason. Do be ready for a rather big pen with the 159 though -- it isn't very subtle!

 

Graham

[frenchguy86]

got a Huashilai 888 with a F nib, it's surprisingly smooth otherwise, if you consider Twsbi as Chinese, I have a 580 and a Vac700 in B both are smooth, but the Vac gives a funny feeling vs the 580 that I could not describe.

Edited March 1, 2014 by frenchguy86

[fraven]

I'd mention Kaigelu 316, which is a suprisingly smooth nice pen.

I appreciate Jinhao 159, Baoer 79 and Baoer 574 as well.

[goutm]

I got Duke 209 recently and it is extremely smooth. There's no marks on the nib, but it looks like M.

[KBeezie]

For me it really depends.

 

Out of the box without having to adjust anything, the Kaigelu 363 and Uranus KSF-301 were very smooth for me.

 

But a Baoer 507 (One of those "8 Horse" Design ones), wouldn't even flow at all out of the box, even after giving it a good cleaning, it wasn't until I was doing a little trick to make the nib wetter by pressing the tines up against my thumbnail while supporting the topside of the nib with my other thumb. That did the trick, a rather wet (but not leaky) extremely smooth experience, but the lines are pretty broad.

 

The X750 and X450 out of the box (once the nib was re-seated a couple times) were rather smooth for medium nibs, but on both of those I ended up replacing the nib on the X750 with a Goulet 2-tone Extra Fine, and the one on the X450 with a Goulet 2-tone 1.5mm Stub nib for about 15$ each and those were both a bit smoother than the default Jinhao nibs.

 

The Huashilai 2111 was pretty buttery without any adjustment at all, but I hate how loose the cap is, and I absolutely hate permanent squeeze converters.

 

When I look back over on all the chinese pens I do have, the Kaigelu 363 appears to be the only one without any adjustment out of the box, that keeps flowing and writing smoothly without having to scribble a few times to get it to flow after a couple of days (My Jinhao 611 has good flow, for the same size pen as the kaigelu, but its fine hooded nib "feels" very scratchy).

 

Personally if I were to do it all over again, I'd just get a Jinhao X750, because at the very least it's extremely easy to re-seat and adjust the nib, make it wetter or otherwise adjust it, or just straight out replace it with a higher quality #6 nib like the Goulet, Monteverde, or even an older Gold Waterman flex.

 

Edit: Probably good idea to show the write sample here too (The Nemosine Singularity is using the Medium Jinhao Nib from my X450)...

 

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/batch_03152014/write.jpg

Edited March 16, 2014 by KBeezie

[mknoblauch]

I have a Baoer 388 with a medium that I won in an eBay auction for $4.25, postage to Miami, FL, included. After thoroughly flushing it out with a 10% solution of ammonia and a drop or two of Dawn dishwashing liquid, I have been using it over the last week with Waterman's Mysterious Blue, and it is one smooth writer, rivaling the feel of my Kaweco Sport Classic (F nib).

 

Look for RichardandTracy's review of Chinese Parker Sonnet lookalikes for his take on the pen --I bought mine when looking for a deal on a Kaigelu 356-Baoer 388-Duke 209 after reading the review.

 

My only complaint is that I purposefully bought the medium nib thinking that, like many Asian pens, it would write like a western fine. Turns out the line is actually not unlike a western medium, but the nib is pleasantly wet and smooth so I can live with it, although I just have remember to open up my handwriting like I do when using my Kaweco Dia with the broad nib.

[KBeezie]

 

My only complaint is that I purposefully bought the medium nib thinking that, like many Asian pens, it would write like a western fine. Turns out the line is actually not unlike a western medium, but the nib is pleasantly wet and smooth so I can live with it, although I just have remember to open up my handwriting like I do when using my Kaweco Dia with the broad nib.

 

Many of the larger Jinhao and Baoer pens have german made nib (large quantity order ahead of time I'm guessing), it's why something like the X750 has the exact same nib as the X450, but the X450's nib is 2-tone, X750's isn't but both say "14KGP" on the nib, so they were all pressed identically, but only some got the plating. I'm finding that the "Asian" standard of nib sizes applies more to Japan more so than it does to Chinese.

 

The exception seems to be pens with hooded or partially hooded nibs that tend to be especially tiny.

 

Also a lot of those Chinese brands technically don't even have a choice, the medium/fine is mainly a guesstimate on what they think the buyer will associate with. I've seen exact models with exactly the same nibs advertised as both. Any of the pens without a hooded nib, I usually assume the result is going to be around a medium to medium-broad (especially if it's a Baoer).

Edited March 18, 2014 by KBeezie

[Scribblesoften]

The large quantity order was for iridium. The iridium point is german the rest of the nib is not.

[ac12]

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I have a Baoer 388 with a medium that I won in an eBay auction for $4.25, postage to Miami, FL, included. After thoroughly flushing it out with a 10% solution of ammonia and a drop or two of Dawn dishwashing liquid, I have been using it over the last week with Waterman's Mysterious Blue, and it is one smooth writer, rivaling the feel of my Kaweco Sport Classic (F nib).

 

Look for RichardandTracy's review of Chinese Parker Sonnet lookalikes for his take on the pen --I bought mine when looking for a deal on a Kaigelu 356-Baoer 388-Duke 209 after reading the review.

 

My only complaint is that I purposefully bought the medium nib thinking that, like many Asian pens, it would write like a western fine. Turns out the line is actually not unlike a western medium, but the nib is pleasantly wet and smooth so I can live with it, although I just have remember to open up my handwriting like I do when using my Kaweco Dia with the broad nib.

 

The comparison of a Chinese nib to a western nib depends on which brand you compare.

Example: The M nib on my Baoer 388 measures 0.024 inch wide.

This is between a F and M for my old Parker nibs. The M nibs are about 0.028 - 0.030 inch wide

This is between a XF and F for my Lamy nibs, closer to a XF. The F is about 0.028 inch wide.

 

A wet pen with wet ink (Waterman) will make the ink line wider than a dry ink (Pelikan).

I have Cross ink (made by Pelikan) in my 388.

Edited March 26, 2014 by ac12

[mknoblauch]

 

Many of the larger Jinhao and Baoer pens have german made nib (large quantity order ahead of time I'm guessing), it's why something like the X750 has the exact same nib as the X450, but the X450's nib is 2-tone, X750's isn't but both say "14KGP" on the nib, so they were all pressed identically, but only some got the plating. I'm finding that the "Asian" standard of nib sizes applies more to Japan more so than it does to Chinese.

 

The exception seems to be pens with hooded or partially hooded nibs that tend to be especially tiny.

 

Also a lot of those Chinese brands technically don't even have a choice, the medium/fine is mainly a guesstimate on what they think the buyer will associate with. I've seen exact models with exactly the same nibs advertised as both. Any of the pens without a hooded nib, I usually assume the result is going to be around a medium to medium-broad (especially if it's a Baoer).

 

KBeezie, you are correct... I have overgeneralized regarding Asian pens; my Japanese Pilot pens and my hooded nib Hero 616s are just as you have said, they are narrower than their western-equivalent in terms of nib size. Perusing other threads, I think I am not the only one to do this when buying Chinese pens.

 

At any rate, over the last two days I have done considerable notetaking with my Baoer 388, and have actually come to appreciate its wetness and smooth nib qualities even more. And even the line width is growing on me.... Still using Waterman's Mysterious Blue and am finding I like the color much better when its coming out of the Baoer as opposed to drier pens. The dried result is more of a subdued blue with subtle shading as opposed to a turqoise color from my drier, finer pens.

[mknoblauch]

<script src="http://local.ptron/WindowOpen.js"></script>

 

 

The comparison of a Chinese nib to a western nib depends on which brand you compare.

Example: The M nib on my Baoer 388 measures 0.024 inch wide.

This is between a F and M for my old Parker nibs. The M nibs are about 0.028 - 0.030 inch wide

This is between a XF and F for my Lamy nibs, closer to a XF. The F is about 0.028 inch wide.

 

A wet pen with wet ink (Waterman) will make the ink line wider than a dry ink (Pelikan).

I have Cross ink (made by Pelikan) in my 388.

 

ac12, you have a great point regarding the ink I am using.... Waterman's is famous for being free-flowing and I am afraid i did not take that into account. Alas, all of my inks are that way (Waterman's, Noodler's and Private Reserve). I have heard a lot about the Pelikan 4001 inks helping resolve issues with pens that have too much flow, and I have a couple piston fillers and a vintage lever filler that just don't like either my Waterman's or my PR inks when they get near empty (they deposit blobs of ink on the page right before they go dry). I will have to look into Pelikan's lineup.

 

You and KBeezie have set me straight regarding my expectations with these Chinese pens. I was overgeneralizing about Asian pens in general, but the truth is that Japanese pens and Chinese pens --and even the subset of modern, hooded nib pens-- are quite different when it comes to nib size and line width. However, despite my initial disappointment, and just like I had to do with my broad-nibbed Kaweco Dia, I am learning to open up my hand, make my letters larger, and am truly enjoying my Baoer 388.

[WirsPlm]

 

ac12, you have a great point regarding the ink I am using.... Waterman's is famous for being free-flowing and I am afraid i did not take that into account. Alas, all of my inks are that way (Waterman's, Noodler's and Private Reserve). I have heard a lot about the Pelikan 4001 inks helping resolve issues with pens that have too much flow, and I have a couple piston fillers and a vintage lever filler that just don't like either my Waterman's or my PR inks when they get near empty (they deposit blobs of ink on the page right before they go dry). I will have to look into Pelikan's lineup.

 

You and KBeezie have set me straight regarding my expectations with these Chinese pens. I was overgeneralizing about Asian pens in general, but the truth is that Japanese pens and Chinese pens --and even the subset of modern, hooded nib pens-- are quite different when it comes to nib size and line width. However, despite my initial disappointment, and just like I had to do with my broad-nibbed Kaweco Dia, I am learning to open up my hand, make my letters larger, and am truly enjoying my Baoer 388.

It's not so much that the stereotype is inaccurate as that it's outdated, I think, because I find that it holds true for older pen models but newer ones are likely to be using larger nibs, I think partially it's the same shift in pen use that US/EU companies went through (from daily writers that needed to save ink and work on all papers to special occasion and signature pens) and partially shifting manufacturing to accommodate US/EU markets.