Susutake Bamboo Pens

[Algester]

Again, thank you all for your kind words. The pleasure is mine in sharing this info with you.

 

 

I first came across Ernest Shin's bamboo pens through one of FPGeeks' Podcasts three years ago, and the pens sure look imposing. His 'Shiro' (white) bamboo pen is quite unusual and is probably made from newly harvested plant.

Algester, the lineup of pens show the Japanese eyedropper filling mechanism used by E. Sakai in most of the Ban-ei pens. While most of my bamboo pens are C/C fillers, the red Ban-ei bamboo pen in my photo is one of those eyedropper pens. Kamakura Pens published a concise explanation of the Japanese eyedropper system on eBay which may be helpful:

http://www.ebay.com/gds/Understanding-Japanese-eyedropper-fountain-pens-/10000000004757924/g.html

I understand what the Japanese eyedropper style pens are and how they work... that I would be honest

[mehandiratta]

these are just amazing... lovely pens... each is different

[mchenart]

Thank you, Michael, for another one of your extremely well-researched and eloquent descriptions of a line of Japanese pens that receives infrequent attention.

 

The Hotel is a masterpiece. Where did you come across it, if I may be so bold as to ask?

 

 

 

Hi David, I am sorry it took me a while to get back to you, and thanks for your comment.

 

Because of the scant amount of information (in English) on the Hotei pen, I am afraid I have very little to offer, other than the fact that they are extremely rare and that they were made only by the senior Nobuyoshi Nagahara during a short period of time. The shape of the Hotei bamboo is such that a lot of work is needed to fashion the material into usable pens. My pen has a Naginata-Togi/Emperor nib and was a trade with a Taiwanese pen collector using my MB Hemingway and an Ohasido. According to him, he bought the pen at an obscure pen shop in Kyoto run by an old lady that is only open several days a week. When I did a search on the Hotei pen on the web, I only found one that was for sale at a Singaporean outfit, and that one has a solid gold dragon roll-stopper on the cap. Actually, I prefer mine which has less bling.

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF7017_zpsg7wacrpq.jpg

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF7019_zpsgnx3taqo.jpg

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF7022_zpsuzhiatwc.jpg

[mchenart]

I just read that Martin Pauli of Manu Propria also makes the susutake pen, and from bamboo he cultivates in his parents' garden in Switzerland!

http://forums.watchuseek.com/f221/manu-propria-hand-made-susutake-bamboo-pen-2192473.html
Different from all other susutake pens in the market, he uses a coating of urushi on the bamboo. 'The surface is "sealed" and toned with urushi lacquer, with a process known as "fuki-urushi" in which raw urushi "ki-urushi" is rubbed into the surface, wiped off and dried for 24 hours, several times over'.

[clickred]

If some FPN member would organise a group buy for susutake pen, we would all benefit from 'hopefully' lower price and have a great pen.

[a student]

On 7/1/2015 at 9:33 PM, mchenart said:

Why make fountain pens out of bamboo? According to the official Sailor PR blurb, susutake (smoked) bamboo is a 'special type of bamboo obtained from the roof timbers from old traditional thatched-roof style houses most of which are in excess of 150 years old. The surface of the bamboo is naturally coloured to a deep red brown from continuous exposure to the smoke of the irori (a traditional Japanese sunken fire/hearth).' From that, we gather that the material is rare and expensive to source. In addition, because of the organic nature of the bamboo, it comes in vastly different widths and lengths, thus making it quite difficult to shape into pens. In essence, Sailor Co. only touch on the 'what' and not the 'why' of the susutake line. Isn't it strange that Sailor would resort to using a material that is rare and difficult to work, to craft it into fountain pens that are sometimes awkward to hold in one's hand, while there are so many other more malleable materials available at their disposal?

Well, I would argue that bamboo in general is more than just a material; it carries a strong cultural aspect that separates it from any other wood or metal in the Orient. True, bamboo has been used to manufacture all kinds of utensils, furniture and constructions in China as well as Japan, yet in the minds of the literati class, it is a symbol of a learnt gentleman's modesty, chastity and resilience to devastating circumstances. Even though it may be an inexpensive and readily available material, the utter simplicity of the humble weed elevates it to the realm of chán (zen), fine taste and wabi sabi. On an Oriental scholar's desk, one would always find accoutrements made of various kinds of bamboo, and most importantly, bamboo calligraphy brushes that one would write and paint with. Since bamboo is synonymous with writing instruments in the East, why not fashion fountain pens out of bamboo as well? Of course, this is purely my own projecture (and there will likely be many other points of view on this), but let's us face it, bamboo is special.

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF6671_zpssudfq55n.jpg

Now, let's get to susutake bamboo. One thing about susutake bamboo that becomes immidiately apparent is that, after long years of sitting above a slowly burning stove in rural Japan, the bamboo has darkened into a beautiful honey brown colour- dark underneath, and a lighter brown facing upward. It has a patinated, aged and almost antiquish appearance that is very attractive. And because of the long 'curing' process, the bamboo has become very tough and stable. The legendary nib-meister Nobuyoshi Nagahara was instrumental in the creation and development of the Sailor susutake line, having personally worked on and tuned the nib of each pen before his reitrement. The pen in the bottom of the photo was made by him, an 18k gold plate on which the meister's name is inscribed is attached to the barrel. Judging from the old style Sailor nib, I would put its date of manufacture at around 2000 or earlier. You will notice a deep dark gash on the barrel that looks almost like a deliberate chisel mark. Knowing the intrinsic nature of susutake bamboo, this 'birth mark' should not be regarded as a flaw as such, but rather a unique virtue. One thing I have also noticed from older susutake pens is that Nagahara-san often used whole sections of the bamboo material (with nodes on both ends) to form his pens. Sometimes he would even leave the crown and tail ends unfinished, as in this example. The nib is an MF grade Naginata-Togi (long sword). Here is a brief introduction of the nib on nibs.com: http://www.nibs.com/SailorSpecialtyNibs.htm

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF6674_zpsk3e58mca.jpg

After the revered master's retirement and passing, his son, Yukio Nagahara, has taken over charge of making susutake pens at Sailor. While many pen lovers still prefer to buy susutakes by his father (if they can find them), yet Yukio's offerings are nothing to sneeze at. The attention to details, the respect of the old bamboo material and the beautifully worked dark wood ends are still there- no doubt, the result of long years of apprenticeship under his father. Since the cross section of a bamboo stick is seldom a perfect circle with the same circumference, one can imagine the difficulties of fitting the metal rings onto the cap and barrel of each pen. The dark wood ends have to be individually hand carved and polished as well to make them fit perfectly. All these require painstaking care and patience. Having other duties such as supervising the production of Naginata-Togi nibs, Yukio Nagahara could only allocate so much time on the susutake pens. So the production is obviously rather limited.

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF6953_zpsc2ulqptj.jpg

Around 18 months ago, Fine Writing International received a small number of susutake rods sourced from Japan, and Rudy proceeded to make a fountain pen with the material for a pen lover in Taiwan. It was quite beautiful, so I asked him to make another one for myself. Different from Sailor's original examples, FWI's susutake is a screw-cap design rather than a snap cap, and the cap needs to be slightly larger than the barrel, making it essential to use two different lengths of bamboo. While Rudy's design permits a less steep drop from the barrel to the section, it sacrifices the continuation of the grain and pattern of the bamboo from head to tail. If I may compare that condition to life itself, we just cannot expect everything to work out perfectly every time, right? Still, I had to wait almost 9 months to get the pen because the artisan needed to carve and sand four pieces of dark wood trims by hand, but I have to say the end result more than justifies the long wait. There are several aspects of the pen that are unique: the section is a hand turned mottled ebonite that echoes the colour of the bamboo, the nib is a new ruthenium plated 18k Italic, and the colour tones of the cap and barrel are closely matched so that they do not seem misplaced.

 

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF6669_zpsjlibndnq.jpg

http://i955.photobucket.com/albums/ae33/mchenart/DSCF6668_zpsky6mof8e.jpg

The susutake pen is not for everyone. They have individual charateristics (and dare I say temperaments) that one needs to accommodate, and they may not be the best overall writer. I think you really need to hold one in your hand and do the road test before taking the plunge. When you are lucky, you get a pen that is both decently comfortable to use and is infused with a mesmerising slice of oriental culture at the same time.

Its late in the day to do this, but really, thank you so much for this write up on Susutake. It is an Education in the best sense of the word! 

[sansenri]

I'm reading this review on the Susutake Bamboo pens for the first time, and although being a westerner, I do feel, and hopefully at least partially understand, the strong fascination tied to tradition and Asian culture, which makes a Bamboo pen so special.

There has been a period in my life, now several years ago, when for business reasons I traveled the Far East quite extensively.

Bamboo there is a tool in many forms, but also an object and a subject of art, specifically tied to writing and painting, which in Asian culture, are much more closely related than in the western world (whereby to a certain extent the nib is considered a paintbrush). The aspect which has struck me most is that painting bamboos, until perfection of forms and expression is reached, is considered a form of meditation.

One of the paintbrushes that I could not resist buying at the time...

 

 

 

[como]

1 hour ago, sansenri said:

One of the paintbrushes that I could not resist buying at the time...

 

 

 

@sansenriBeautiful brush pen! I see that you’ve never used it... The brush part looks too clean 😏!