Platinum Procyon

[Caeruleum]

 

 

Total nail. rock hard. It'll do great on carbon paper.

Thanks, that's what I wanted to hear.

 

It's got that platinum feedback (I have the F) where it's somewhere between sailor and pilot. No scratchiness whatsoever, it's got a nice medium flow rate, but I can't say 100% on that since I'm still working on the first included ink cartridge, which I presume is pretty dry since that's how platinum inks tend to be.

 

It comes with a recipe book for recreating the colors, and I was able to get something nearly identical to the ochre using my noodlers CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) set.

 

Honestly, I wish it cost ten more bucks and came with a 14k nib so I could make it an iron gall workhorse.

Do you think IG would really corrode a modern steel-alloy? Have you experienced this?

[Honeybadgers]

 

 

You could make it one now. I seriously doubt that any modern iron-gall ink — not the least the ones produced by Platinum — will render a steel-nibbed Platinum Procyon non-functional or affect its writing performance any time soon.

 

 

I've been using diamine registrars exclusively in a 3776 UEF for about two straight years now.

 

It's nearly ruined the seal on one converter already, chews up the silicone grease quickly, and it leaves its tannic iron oxides on every surface. it's definitely one of the harshest FP specific iron galls, but it's the one I prefer the most, and I don't believe for one instant that it's going to play nice in a permanently inked steel nib.

 

Platinum's classic line are all true iron galls, but their blue-black is a different ferro-tannic compound that is less acidic, so I'd be willing to trust that, but platinum's classic IG's are on the harsher side. I wish I could get a sample tested in the lab, but the dyes would probably destroy the probes on the pH sensors we use.

 

So, as a biochemistry major, I don't think I'd feel good putting one of the more serious IG inks into a steel nib that I can't readily replace. The gallic acids are going to eventually pit and corrode even stainless steel. There's a reason we don't keep even 0.001M HCl in metal containers. If it just used the same nib as a preppy, sure, just replace it as needed for $3-5, but platinum doesn't sell replacement nibs for the procyon.

[Honeybadgers]

Thanks, that's what I wanted to hear.

 

 

Do you think IG would really corrode a modern steel-alloy? Have you experienced this?

 

I've had a 3776 inked with diamine registrars for 2 years straight. It's nearly destroyed one converter (it's starting to have problems drawing ink) and it leaves its tannic compounds everywhere, requiring a thorough cleaning with a physical brushing at least once a year. I wouldn't trust it with a steel nib whatsoever. It may take 2-4 years of being inked continuously before you see the damage, but it'll show up.

 

Modern stainless steels aren't necessarily any better than they used to be even 40-50 years ago. We have more precise formulas for specific tasks, yes, and we understand some of the metallurgies better, but at its core, stainless steel is just iron, carbon, chromium and a few other flavorings. And the stainless we're getting in FP nibs isn't bespoke to be acid resistant. It's just off the shelf sheet stock. It may have a higher chromium content, but those gallics will eventually work their way on the rougher parts of the nib, mainly the slit, and start to send oxides down the tines, just like how you see corrosion form on a dip nib.

 

Would I mind inking it for a week or two at a time, a few times a year? Not at all, that rate of corrosion would be monumentally slow. But continuously? Nope. Not at all.

[A Smug Dill]

So, as a biochemistry major, I don't think I'd feel good putting one of the more serious IG inks into a steel nib that I can't readily replace.

I'm glad I'm not a biochemistry major, then. I happily leave Platinum Classic Ink Khaki Black in my steel-nibbed Pelikan M200 and PCI Lavender Black in my steel-nibbed Monteverde Rodeo Drive for months on end, without losing any sleep over it. Not to spite you or anything, but just for the hell of it, I think I'll put PCI Forest Black in my steel-nibbed Platinum Balance crystal blue pen when I receive the ink in the post in a fortnight or so, and see whether it does anything to the nib over two to three months. (A full fill in my Platinum Balance will not last five months even when unused, in my experience.) I think the Platinum Balance, instead of a Platinum Preppy, has a more similar nib design to that on the Platinum Procyon.

[Caeruleum]

Thanks for your insights, Honeybadgers!

I don't want to hijack this thread too much, but I didn't find too much (understandable to me) information by simply searching and what I learned about acids in school didn't cover reactions with metals in depth. Could you explain or provide a tip for looking it up why some acids are able to corrode some metals while other acids which are considered stronger or more aggressive don't?

[ENewton]

I think I'll put PCI Forest Black in my steel-nibbed Platinum Balance crystal blue pen when I receive the ink in the post in a fortnight or so, and see whether it does anything to the nib over two to three months. (A full fill in my Platinum Balance will not last five months even when unused, in my experience.) I think the Platinum Balance, instead of a Platinum Preppy, has a more similar nib design to that on the Platinum Procyon.

 

 

Your experiment will be of great interest to me. I used Rohrer & Klingner Scabiosa as the only ink in my Platinum Balance for several months of daily use, and quite a bit of plating wore off the nib during that time, but the nib seems otherwise fine. If your pen (which, I assume, will have the same nib as mine, minus the gold plating) survives the iron-gall ink unscathed, I will reassure myself that the damage to my pen is merely cosmetic.

[SoulSamurai]

I think I read somewhere that the Lamy Aion can use standard Lamy nibs (even though the "default" nib is a little different)? If this is true then the Aion might be a good alternative for iron gall inks since Lamy nibs (and compatible Chinese nib) are available seperately, including in gold?

[Honeybadgers]

I'm glad I'm not a biochemistry major, then. I happily leave Platinum Classic Ink Khaki Black in my steel-nibbed Pelikan M200 and PCI Lavender Black in my steel-nibbed Monteverde Rodeo Drive for months on end, without losing any sleep over it. Not to spite you or anything, but just for the hell of it, I think I'll put PCI Forest Black in my steel-nibbed Platinum Balance crystal blue pen when I receive the ink in the post in a fortnight or so, and see whether it does anything to the nib over two to three months. (A full fill in my Platinum Balance will not last five months even when unused, in my experience.) I think the Platinum Balance, instead of a Platinum Preppy, has a more similar nib design to that on the Platinum Procyon.

 

2-3 months differs from 2-3 years of continual use (meaning exposure to air for the ferrous/tannic acids to oxidize the steel.) I think I'll ink up a 3008 with it and see what happens.

 

The wahl doric's plunger rod was coated in celluloid, I can only presume such a difficult process was done in order to prevent acidic ink wear on the rod.

[A Smug Dill]

2-3 months differs from 2-3 years of continual use (meaning exposure to air for the ferrous/tannic acids to oxidize the steel.) I think I'll ink up a 3008 with it and see what happens.

Most of us who have Wing Sung 3008 pens know that the material used for their nibs is questionable.

 

What I personally would be more interested to know — but not enough to invest time and money in finding out — is whether steel nibs from Bock, JoWo, Pelikan, Pilot, Platinum and Sailor (with or without comparing with Delike, Hero, Jinhao, PenBBS and Wing Sung), when given the same treatment with iron-gall inks or some other highly acidic inks, would corrode. One could say all it takes to disprove a hypothesis or assertion is one counterexample, but let's say if there are even two steel nibs from that list that remains intact from acid attack after the sort of prolonged exposure you have in mind, then "we" (in the hobbyist community) can conclude that it could be safe to use steel nibs with iron-gall inks, and thus plausible to have a steel-nibbed "iron-gall workhorse" if that's what someone is after and specifically does not want a gold-nibbed pen.

 

The question of what is "the minimum" one has to spend (on a steel-nibbed pen) to get a durable "iron-gall workhorse" wouldn't interest me; we already know some steel-nibbed pens are more expensive than some gold-nibbed pens. Whether those nibs are readily available as "spare" parts and user-replaceable also doesn't interest me.

 

As it is, in my opinion the Platinum Procyon is priced too highly to consider it worthwhile for me to buy one just to see whether I like it, even though I'm otherwise notoriously frivolous in acquiring costly pens in the name of personal experimentation (and have been let down by the build quality or experience so many times!) But I honestly do hope that the US$50 Procyon can fulfil someone's desire for a "iron-gall workhorse" of that design and that it'll last at least five years; US$10 as the amortised annual capital expense of a good quality writing instrument would be quite reasonable, no?

[catbert]

I think I read somewhere that the Lamy Aion can use standard Lamy nibs (even though the "default" nib is a little different)? If this is true then the Aion might be a good alternative for iron gall inks since Lamy nibs (and compatible Chinese nib) are available seperately, including in gold?

 

Yes, I have a standard Lamy 1.1 stub in my Aion.

 

It's been filled with ESSRI since August last year — should I be worried?

[Honeybadgers]

Most of us who have Wing Sung 3008 pens know that the material used for their nibs is questionable.

 

What I personally would be more interested to know — but not enough to invest time and money in finding out — is whether steel nibs from Bock, JoWo, Pelikan, Pilot, Platinum and Sailor (with or without comparing with Delike, Hero, Jinhao, PenBBS and Wing Sung), when given the same treatment with iron-gall inks or some other highly acidic inks, would corrode. One could say all it takes to disprove a hypothesis or assertion is one counterexample, but let's say if there are even two steel nibs from that list that remains intact from acid attack after the sort of prolonged exposure you have in mind, then "we" (in the hobbyist community) can conclude that it could be safe to use steel nibs with iron-gall inks, and thus plausible to have a steel-nibbed "iron-gall workhorse" if that's what someone is after and specifically does not want a gold-nibbed pen.

 

The question of what is "the minimum" one has to spend (on a steel-nibbed pen) to get a durable "iron-gall workhorse" wouldn't interest me; we already know some steel-nibbed pens are more expensive than some gold-nibbed pens. Whether those nibs are readily available as "spare" parts and user-replaceable also doesn't interest me.

 

As it is, in my opinion the Platinum Procyon is priced too highly to consider it worthwhile for me to buy one just to see whether I like it, even though I'm otherwise notoriously frivolous in acquiring costly pens in the name of personal experimentation (and have been let down by the build quality or experience so many times!) But I honestly do hope that the US$50 Procyon can fulfil someone's desire for a "iron-gall workhorse" of that design and that it'll last at least five years; US$10 as the amortised annual capital expense of a good quality writing instrument would be quite reasonable, no?

 

Personally, if you really want to just think about "minimum" price of entry, a chinese pen with a steel nib that can be just chucked in the bin when the nib starts to corrode is gonna be fine. Run a wung sing 601 and get a pack of replacement nibs for a buck or two.

 

If you want a pen that won't go in the bin, the $35ish PTL5000A or pilot seremo are gonna do the job, so why not run them?

 

TBH, I don't think there's anything about the procyon that would make me recommend someone run out and buy it over a 3776 for nearly the same money, unless that 3/4 turn to uncap is really appealing (and it really is nice) and you badly want a lightweight metal body, or you're just over the moon with the colors (I really did want the persimmon one, but I got this in a trade and I can't complain)

 

It's a great pen, but you're right in that there's no one thing that REALLY sets it apart. It's just kind of one of those "everything about it is just very, very well thought out" from the feed drawing ink from the front, to the quick cap, to the good posting, good clip, good section, and good nib.

 

Which is a little unfortunate that I doubt it'll ever be a big seller. The biggest problem the pen has is that the 3776 isn't too far away from it in price.

[A Smug Dill]

Personally, if you really want to just think about "minimum" price of entry,

I sincerely apologise if I didn't make my position clear.

 

As a fellow consumer, I personally would dearly like everyone's functional and qualitative requirements — just to be absolutely clear, that does not include the cost (or complexity, difficulty, "pain" or consequences) of acquisition, which may not be the same to everyone — to be possible to satisfy in the current market and/or with current technology. That is why I'm absolutely not interested in anyone else's entry barriers (due budgetary concerns, border taxes and duties, or whatever) in discussion of what can be humanly/demonstrably achieved.

 

You mentioned an "iron-gall workhorse", but cited that the steel nib on the Platinum Procyon is an obstacle whereas a gold nib wouldn't be. I'd love to see a steel-nibbed pen more expensive than a gold-nibbed PTL-5000A stand up to iron-gall inks; then that wouldn't be a matter of the resistance steel versus gold (which is objective), but only one's budgetary considerations (which is personal and "subjective", and none of my concern as a fellow hobbyist).

 

If you want a pen that won't go in the bin, the $35ish PTL5000A or pilot seremo are gonna do the job, so why not run them?

I personally don't care if I ruin my Pelikan M200 Smoky Quartz; it's a Pelikan, and it was $75 or some such. (Not that a $200 Pilot Custom Heritage 912 or $400 Aurora 88 Minerali would make me think twice, either, so it isn't a German-as-opposed-to-Japanese thing or German-as-opposed-to-Italian thing.) On the other hand, I don't set out to ruin it for the sake of wasting money; I'm just not concerned one way or another. To me, the core question is simply whether (all) steel is more vulnerable than (all) gold, and if the answer is negative, I'd love to contribute to the community by disabusing others of that notion.

 

TBH, I don't think there's anything about the procyon that would make me recommend someone run out and buy it

I can't think of a reason to buy one for myself just to test in the first place, even though I don't have one and I'd love to have one of "everything", just so I'm not talking out of my exhaust vent when I comment on an open, online discussion forum.

[binbean]

Thank you for your throughout review. Wish to see more writing sample.

[Honeybadgers]

 

I can't think of a reason to buy one for myself just to test in the first place, even though I don't have one and I'd love to have one of "everything", just so I'm not talking out of my exhaust vent when I comment on an open, online discussion forum.

 

You do really like orange though, don't you?

 

The persimmon one might scratch that itch then.

[A Smug Dill]

You do really like orange though, don't you?

I do, but I'm more likely to go for the new Sailor Professional Gear Fire line than the Platinum Procyon in persimmon, even if just for the colour. Actually, I'd probably have already ordered the opaque orange full-sized Sailor Pro Gear with black finials and rhodium trim, if only it came with the two-toned 21K gold nib.

[sciumbasci]

Diamine Registrar's is a well known harsh ink. I went with ESSRI instead and had no troubles in my pens - although I have spiked it with a drop of dishwashing detergent - just because it flows better.

[Honeybadgers]

I do, but I'm more likely to go for the new Sailor Professional Gear Fire line than the Platinum Procyon in persimmon, even if just for the colour. Actually, I'd probably have already ordered the opaque orange full-sized Sailor Pro Gear with black finials and rhodium trim, if only it came with the two-toned 21K gold nib.

 

The procyon's colors have a lot of iridescence to them. For anodizing, it's very pretty.

[Caeruleum]

Do your converters fit the Procyon?

I ask because I just got my Procyon and Platinum converter that works with my Cool/Balance doesn't seem to fit :-(

[MCN]

If they made the pen in a more appealing color I’d give one a try.

[LobsterRoll]

I actually really like the look of this pen. The persimmon color looks pretty and cheerful. I like the little details like the rectangular threads and feed design, too. But somehow it's still not quite enough to make me want it over other choices.