Aurora Style First Impressions

[TheRealScubaSteve]

Today I have for you a medium Paprika Aurora Style. The pen's MSRP is $100, though it can be found for about $70 U.S. online. I like the look of Aurora pens, but they are typically far outisde of what I am currently willing to spend.

 

 

I have an interest in the inexpensive offerings of more expensive brands to see what they bring to the table. Rightly or wrongly, I compare all brands to Pilot and their Metropolitan. It's downright cheap, but well built, and a solid performer right out of the box. Failure to at least come close here with a much more expensive pen would make me hesitate to purchase a more expensive pen from Aurora or any other brand.

 

 

My expectations for a smooth writer were not let down. This nib performs flawlessly. It is not the most buttery-smooth nib that I've ever used, but it ranks right up there. There was initially a very slight hint of feedback (I hesitate to even call it that), but after further writing it was indistinguishable. I suspect that it was due to my writing angle rather than the paper: Black N Red 24lb.

 

Without a doubt, this was one of the most difficult pens to get started I've ever used. Cartridges, in general, are much more difficult to get started (short of dipping the nib or squeezing the cartridge) and this was no exception. At this price range, a converter (or option to purchase one) would have been nice. As I understand it, Parker converters will fit.

 

 

As noted above, I was not overly impressed with the plastic "resin" that Aurora used on this pen. It looks and feels cheap and seems to be very prone to subtle scratching. It's nothing that a quick buff could not take care of, but an annoyance nonetheless.

 

Many pens have this feel (the Platinum Cool comes to mind) and I would not necessarily steer clear of the pen for that reason alone. It does have a much nicer feel, though, than other plastic pens such as the Platinum Preppy. It does not feel as hard and is warmer to the touch.

 

Overall, I really like the shape of the pen and the design. I even like the angled cap, but I think that the Aurora-shaped "emblem" looks tacky. It does not sit flush with the cap and looks like something that you'd find cheaply glued onto a Chinese knockoff. It could have used a nicer finish and would have largely benefited from "Aurora" being written on the insert.

 

[dan in montreal]

Thanks for the review. I'm glad you got a good nib. I have the exact same pen. Unfortunately, my nib was super scratchy. Realigned the tines and it's still a little rough. I agree with pretty much everything you've written. I also find the pen rather cheap looking and the mirror "jewel" on top of the cap is indeed tacky.

If this was a 20.00 pen, I wouldn't mind so much, but for 70.00... I use mine from time to time, but it comes out of rotation pretty fast. For the same price, I got a Pilot Lucina with a converter and a super smooth nib right out of the box. Even though the Style is Aurora's cheapest offering, I expected better.

[TheRealScubaSteve]

Thanks for the review. I'm glad you got a good nib. I have the exact same pen. Unfortunately, my nib was super scratchy. Realigned the tines and it's still a little rough. I agree with pretty much everything you've written. I also find the pen rather cheap looking and the mirror "jewel" on top of the cap is indeed tacky.

If this was a 20.00 pen, I wouldn't mind so much, but for 70.00... I use mine from time to time, but it comes out of rotation pretty fast. For the same price, I got a Pilot Lucina with a converter and a super smooth nib right out of the box. Even though the Style is Aurora's cheapest offering, I expected better.

 

What a disappointment about your Aurora's nib! I don't mind fiddling to get wetness or dryness right because that varies so much person to person and depends on the nib width, but a pen should not write terrible out of the box without being tuned - at least at this price range. Did you contact Aurora? I'm curious to how they would have responded.

[dan in montreal]

It's just one of those things. I got the pen, waited forever to ink it, fiddled with it, wrote with it for a short while and... forgot about it, having acquired other pens that suited me better. This is 3 or 4 years ago. I probably should have contacted them, I just never got around to it! After reading your post I took it out, dipped it in Waterman Florida Blue (what is it now? Serenity Blue? I still can't stand the Waterman ink name changes) and it's still a little scratchy, even on Rhodia paper. I just might tinker with it more this weekend.

That being said, I agree that a new fountain pen should not require significant work to be usable. I suppose that is why the Pilot Metropolitan is such a success, it works right out of the box. I've bought about 10 of them as gifts and tested each one - they all performed flawlessly.