Nib Choice

[mrzas]

Hi everyone,

You guys have already helped me buy a Pilot Metropolitan (fine) and a Kaweco Classic (fine), now I need your help again. My older brother is buying me a Twsbi 580 in Rose Gold (for my birthday woo) but i'm not sure what nib size is should get. I do like my fine nibs but this time I want something that is really smooth, so I was just wondering what your opinions are on the fine and medium Twsbi nibs.

 

Thanks

[Crewel]

Spread your wings a little and go with the Medium. The trend is that the larger nib points (size) will be more smooth provided that you have adequate wetness (lubricant via the ink) from the nib/feed. You can always buy a different nib to swap out if you do not like what comes with the original purchase.

[canibanoglu]

I'd say go even further and get a B nib. TWSBIs already run a little finer than western nibs and with a B nib you're pretty much guaranteed to have a smoother nib than a fine or extra-fine (provided nothing is wrong with either the nib or the feed).

 

I say this from my own experience and I recognize that this doesn't have to be the case for you but here's my story with nib sizes. Before I started out using fountain pens only, I used to use a 0.35 mm mechanical pencil and a 0.3 gel pen. As such, I decided to get the finest nib I could possibly find for my Lamy Safari and I enjoyed my first EF immensely. Then I decided that I'd better order another Safari (so I could use more than one color at a time) and this time I had to buy an F because EF nibs are hard to come by where I live. I discovered that while my writing was getting pretty illegible at that size, I enjoyed the writing even more with an F nib. It was smoother, the colors really popped compared to the EF and I had discovered shading! Around that time my girlfriend decided that she'd buy me a Lamy 2000 and together we decided that it should be a medium (somehow we were lucky enough to come across an EF and they let us dip test it). That pen was pretty much what pushed me over the edge. The broader nibs are a lot more fun. When I buy a new pen, I almost always go with a B+. I had to buy a couple of EF/F pens to discover that I like the experience that comes with the broader nibs more and since then all those Safaris have been fitted with M+ nibs.

[J.P.]

I have a 540 in broad and fine. If you have a couple other fine nibs already, try the medium. It is a different experience and you will notice more shading variation in your inks (at least I do) and a different feel on the page when you write. Good luck with the purchase.

[Oldparkerguy]

Twisbi 1.1 stubs tend to be narrower (finer) on the Minis than on the 580s or the Vac700 in my experience. My fav Twisbi nib is on the Mini.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Oldparkerguy

[ac12]

It also depends on the paper that you write on.

For me, I find that on college ruled paper, I max out at old US Parker F nibs, or current Lamy XF nibs.

On wide ruled paper, I am ok with current M nibs and 1.1 CI nibs.

 

So what I am saying is how does your writing look on the paper that you use.

If it looks cramped, do you need to write larger or use a finer nib.

If it does not look cramped, maybe you can go up to a larger nib.

[Runnin_Ute]

I went with a Broad on my 580 when I got it. I had a lot of fines and mediums in other pens and only one other broad. If you have never tried one - it isn't a bad way to go. And if you don't like it, you can always get something different for about $20-25. (Or have a nibmeister do their magic on it)

[mrzas]

Thanks everyone, so I decided to go with a medium and I'm not disappointed. It did take me a day or two to find the right writing angle but once I did it was smooth as glass.

[FountainPages]

I have always been enthralled with the TWSBI EF's on 4 Mini's and now the Diamond Rose Gold 580. Great EDC pen, with a huge ink tank.