Quick Review: Wing Sung 234

[bob_hayden]

 

This came as part of a lot of ten old Wing Sung NOS pens from jewelrymathematics on eBay at a cost of about $2.50 per pen. The exterior of the pen is matte gold color metal with decorative grooves cut into it. On my copy there seemed to be a noticeable difference in the depth of the grooved between cap and barrel. Otherwise the fit and finish of the exterior is quite nice. Inside the nib and section are the commonplace WS take on the Sheaffer Triumph nib. My experience with these is that they tend to be scratchy or gritty, but the nib on my 234 is fairly smooth for being in the F to XF range -- narrower than most nibs of this type I have experienced. This is an old model and too nice to have never been reviewed here before. Appears to be bottle fill only. 27g inked. Light and inexpensive for a pen with a metal exterior and reasonably handsome to boot.

[eharriett]

I just learned a triumph style nib Chinese pen exists and I was going to get a pack. I was told about the 233 but Id not seen a 234 until I saw your review. Any difference between the two models? Any others with a triumph style nib?

[bob_hayden]

The 233 is reviewed here.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/206945-wing-sung-233/

 

There are at least a dozen pens with this nib type, all made by the original Wing Sung company that went out of business in the 1990s. Get on eBay and search for these three listing titles..

 

Wing Sung 233 Fine Nib Teal Fountain Pen

 

new old stock rare Vintage Wing Sung 233 Fountain pens Fine Nib

 

Wing Sung 322 Fountain Pen 0.5mm Fine 1.0mm calligraphy Nib and nib replacement

Then visit each vendor's store or look at their other listings. Below is just a sample.

 

[bob_hayden]

I just made a post about the nine pens I own with Triumph-style nibs.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/341192-wing-sung-triumph-nibs/

[bob_hayden]

I just refilled my 234 after using it as my every day carry pen for a month. I have been very happy with it in that capacity and encountered no issues of any kind. The much more expensive current 601a uses the same nib. I'm not seeing a compelling reason to pay more.

[bob_hayden]

I've tried two more -- one gold and the other a metallic color somewhere between silver and white. The latter looks much prettier to me but is much harder to find. Both were quite similar to the first one though one required more smoothing. The XF-F nibs do not feel dry but do much better on cheap pocket notepads than the wetter pen I've been using.

 

[Bikerchick]

On 6/8/2019 at 12:35 AM, bob_hayden said:

I've tried two more -- one gold and the other a metallic color somewhere between silver and white. The latter looks much prettier to me but is much harder to find. Both were quite similar to the first one though one required more smoothing. The XF-F nibs do not feel dry but do much better on cheap pocket notepads than the wetter pen I've been using.

 

I too have several of these 235 pens. Two of them are the same as yours, both in white and one in "gold". Both write very well. Then there's also this 235, which looks slightly different so I take it it's from a different era:

 

 

 The white and gold one are presumably from 1997-1998, but I have no idea what year this silver one is from. It does write a lot smoother and softer, as if someone has been writing with it for years, even though it was listed as NOS by the seller. 

[Gomer]

How hard is it to take apart for cleaning?

 

Thanks

[Bikerchick]

16 hours ago, Gomer said:

How hard is it to take apart for cleaning?

 

Thanks

Cleaning the feed is child's play: the nib unscrews easily and the feed is friction fit. That's the good news.

The filling system is a whole other ball of wax. It's your typical aerometric filler. The metal tube can be easily removed but the sac is not detachable. Then again, I haven't had any issues keeping my 234 clean.