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Cross Bailey Fountain Vs Jinhau X750?


Methos777

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Nooby here guys:

 

I just got the Bailey by Cross. I really like how it feels when I write and love the consistent ink flow without pauses. However,I have been seeing a lot of people talking about the brand Jinhau and I saw the x750 and thought it was amazing looking. However, I have never wrote with them. So basically need advice from those who have a lot of experience with both and can give a unbiased opinion, not brand hype, but more function and looks.

 

PS: Outide of not having scratchy flow across the paper and having no flow issues with skips in slow or fast writing, what else can possibly make a $300-$1000 pen?

Edited by Methos777
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The Jihnao X750 does indeed come in a range of splendid colours. The one I bought is such a wet writer, it is nearly the equivalent of a garden hose. I have to change the cartridge quite frequently because it puts so much on the paper. That said, it is not a terrible writer, but you need to be careful what paper you use it with.

 

If you want a more controlled Chinese pen experience then the Baoer 388 and Kagileu 356 are the best Chinese pens I've had. The Baoer puts down a nice, fine line and the Kagileu is a bit thicker.

Edited by sandy101
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Methos - I have a Bailey that I picked up for C$20 on a whim and have to admit it is a nice pen - writes well enough. Just about the only issue I have with it is the silly Cross cartridge system and that I have not got around to ordering a convertor for it. I have a few Jinhao's and they are hit and miss - some write well enough for the US$5 to 10 they cost me but are nothing special. If you buy a batch of 5, I imagine you will have at least one good one, a couple that need adjustment and the remainder are write-offs... They are not bad pens for the money, and if utility is all you are after, worth it. If you like the way the Bailey writes, big box office stores usually have a US$15 special on them and the Aventura. I haven't had the best luck with Jinhaos except for the 159 I have, so from a strategic perspective, I would go Cross.

 

Your second question as to what makes a $300+ pen is the materials / nib / filling system / consistency / collectibility / eccentric factor. There is a vast difference between a $20 and $300 pen but less so between a $300 and $1000 pen in terms of the writing experience.

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Sandy and Shawn...you guys rock!

 

Thanks so much for answering me so quickly. I didn't expect a quick response from anybody because I felt my question was so basic and rookie like. I'm sure my pens that I was looking at don't really hit the wow stage for the majority of the people here but for some reason the Cross Bailey, I thought, wasn't the typical cheap fountain pen. It felt amazingly smooth and the glide across the paper felt like it was motorized, helping my little efforts complete each stroke. I had hopes that the Jinhao would be another surprise act for me but it looks like that might not live up to the same quality as the Cross.

 

Thanks also for the suggestions above. I will start to research them today.

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Methos - Cross seems like a highly underrated brand sometimes. The M nib works as good as most sub $20 pens and I am almost sure that Pelikan makes the ink for them. If you want to take it up a notch maybe try Faber Castell - the Basic / Loom are not crazy $$ but share the same nib as the $100+ models. The reason people go for the Jinhao is they swap out the nibs with something better, but by those nibs often cost more than the pen. If you really want a surprise Mr. Pen has the Parson Essential - if the nib choices don't get you, the overall smoothness is next level good for something like GBP35. All the best!

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Shawn, that is an awesome question. It ranks up there with the meaning of life. My first pen was a Bailey. It writes as smoothly as any other pen I own😃😃

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The reason people go for the Jinhao is they swap out the nibs with something better,

From everything that I've read people swap them out because there is only a (broad and wet) medium available and they want something finer and not so wet. Most people seem to love them otherwise.

I can see why they do because the one that I have is the smoothest nib I've ever written with even though it is a bit on the broad side for every day writing.

Edited by Bluey
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These two pens write OK. If you really like them, stick with them. With Jinhao I have gone the Goulet replacement route to get a fine. The Cross is good as is. My expectation was that pens would get better as modern technology was brought into the picture. These pens have not replaced some older pens for me, though. With newer pens seems to come some cheapening to keep the price down.

"Don't hurry, don't worry. It's better to be late at the Golden Gate than to arrive in Hell on time."
--Sign in a bar and grill, Ormond Beach, Florida, 1960.

 

 

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The prices of Jinhao x750 pens start around 2 USD on eBay (including shipment and converter). My recommendation is simple: just try it and make you own opinion. In my experience, this pen is a robust and reliable writer. The nib is very smooth and fairly wet, the line width is on the broader side of M.

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Ok guys I got the Jinhao x750 in. I ordered one for me and one for my wife. And just like some have said they are two different qualities. One pen the top is so loose it just spins. The other one the top is too tight. One writes scratchy and the other smoother than my Cross Bailey. This pen stuff is confusing. Nothing is consistent. You can find $4 pens writing like $100 pens.I guess I thought there would be a huge difference between performance the higher the price difference. How far can one go to get better before that line is reached and you are only buying name brands?

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This pen stuff is confusing. Nothing is consistent.

 

Consistency can be elusive.

 

You can find $4 pens writing like $100 pens.

 

You can also get $100 pens that don't write as well as $4, or less, pens.

 

I guess I thought there would be a huge difference between performance the higher the price difference.

 

Well, that's one of the things we each have to learn. I constantly see people posting complaints about their very expensive fountain pens here, and they're the same complaints that are posted about 99¢ to $20 pens.

 

Some pen manufacturers are not concentrating on producing a good writing instrument, they're looking to impress buyers who want pocket jewelry.

 

This is one of the great values of FPN, you can find out which fountain pens tend to be good and which tend to be lemons. Notice I said "tend," Guarantees are not easy to find, and when found are not to be unqualifiedly trusted.

On a sacred quest for the perfect blue ink mixture!

ink stained wretch filling inkwell

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One thing you get for the extra money is pen that posts securely. The Cross Bailey I had would not post securely- the cap kept popping off no matter how hard I tried to seat it. I made the mistake of picking it up by the cap one day and the pen fell face down onto my wood floor, destroying the nib, For the $20 it cost me I had no regrets about throwing it in the trash,

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