Gold Nibs For Jinhao Pens?

[Mark Karpeles]

Inked.

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[Mark Karpeles]

The paper will be Apica Premium C.D. Notebook A4.

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[Mark Karpeles]

It writes.

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[Mark Karpeles]

It's very nice indeed. I am relieved. I was half expecting it not to work.

http://s26.postimg.org/91txf4cuh/20140328_194506.jpg

[Mark Karpeles]

The ink shades in a pleasant way, and it dries markedly darker on the edges of the characters, emphasizing them.

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[Mark Karpeles]

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[Mark Karpeles]

Whoosh.

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[Mark Karpeles]

Second order subscripts are no problem with this German F nib.

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That's the end of my pics.

 

The experiment was a success. I would not hesitate to install further gold nibs into Chinese pens, but I would prefer not to pay $100 per nib.

[KBeezie]

It's quite an attractive finish to the 159, especially with that trim coating on the gold nib, so that's an added bonus on top of working and being smooth.

[Guest Ray Cornett]

Jinhaos are nice cheap pens but I have to wonder if this is a case of lipstick on a pig. Overkill. What was the initial reason for needing a new nib? I have the 159 and loved it as is. But the other night it felt a little scratchy and turns out one of the tines went slighty wonky. I fixed it and somehow it acts like a flex nib now and writes nearly like a broad although it is a medium.

[Mark Karpeles]

KBeezie, the rhodium prow-paint does compliment the 159's chrome trim, I hadn't considered that.

 

Ray, I love Jinhaos, and I have no problem with the stock nib. The 159 is my favorite model. The brass, the heft -- lovely. The 18k nib is a token of esteem, an homage, to my favorite pen.

[Timtro]

It's very nice indeed. I am relieved. I was half expecting it not to work.

http://s26.postimg.org/91txf4cuh/20140328_194506.jpg

 

 

+1 for testing with Maxwell's equations (And the tensor below this.)

[Cal_D]

In the end, its nice to show that the pen body means nothing. The finish and materials might vary, but all it does is hold the working guts of a pen. All that matters is a good nib, with a good feed and converter not far behind. For other filling systems, there is more engineering involved, but for C/C, its what you make it, and the pen body is just a shell. If you want to throw a $100 buck nib into a $5 pen, that all you. I like that degree of customization. Its like an Italian V8 in a 1980s sedan. If it makes you happy, go for it.

[magnus919]

I'm very pelased to see that others have the same sort of curiosities that I've been entertaining. While I haven't been active in any of the pen communities, I've recently been exploring the Chinese pens on the big auction site and then immediately upgrading them. For about $25 total outlay, I end up with a pen that looks very nice, writes very well, and doesn't leak. While the pen itself is often less than $3, my favorite setup right now involves:

 

• Jinhao X450 pen
• Schmidt K5 international converter (cheapest reliable source I've found so far is in 3 packs on the big auction site)
• Goulet nib (I like the 1.1mm stub, your mileage may vary)

Coming from photography, I've gained an appreciation for the "lipstick on a pig" approach. Cheap camera bodies are ok. Don't be afraid to use nice lenses on it.

 

$20+ of upgrades on a $3 pen is ok. The cost of the nib upgrade improves the quality of the writing experience by at least $15. The cost of the converter solves the slight leak that some of these pens show where the grip & barrel meet, and tend to hold a little more ink, too. My $25 pen writes like something more expensive.

 

I've not yet been brave enough to invest in a gold nib. Though I suppose that's an inevitability at this point.

 

Thank you so much for sharing this adventure in irresponsible spending with us.

[Mark Karpeles]

Magnus919, that looks like a great and cost-effective combination of parts. If you want variety in bodies, you can try the equally cost-effective and lovely Jinhao X750 and Jinhao 159.

[magnus919]

Mark, I do also have the X750 and I find I prefer the handfeel of the X450 a little more. The two are very similar pens, but the X450 has a slight edge in my tastes. I haven't yet experienced the 159, but I'm going to order one (or more) now.

I also just blogged some thoughts for newbies or FP-curious people who may benefit from starting out their FP journey with a Jinhao.

[EricTheRed]

Mark - Awesome experiment with a very successful result. I like your experiment's presentation, it was very entertaining! Well done...

 

Magnus 919 - Thanks for the info, I might have to start upgrading my Jinhao's as well.

[Mark Karpeles]

By the way, and at the risk of saying something too obvious, I strongly agree with Cuza that the Jinhao 159 is intended by the manufacturer to be a respectful tribute -- an homage -- to the flagship of the Montblanc series, the Montbanc 149. It's much too different to be called a copy. (The Montblanc 149 has gold trim while the Jinhao 159 has silvery trim, to name but one obvious difference.) But the overall shape of the barrel, and the similar model number, are suggestive.