Closed - Ranga Handmade Pens- Solid Ebonite Colours Group Buy- Bock Titanium Nibs Available

[Jamerelbe]

@geodesigner, I'm sorry the specks mar the experience for you - the description of these colours does say that "Special/ Regular Ebonite Colours (SE Series). It has random Minimal Black Specs." On my olive green Bamboo pen, which is a slightly darker, they blend in and look more or less 'organic' - a feature rather than a flaw.

[geodesigner]

@geodesigner, I'm sorry the specks mar the experience for you - the description of these colours does say that "Special/ Regular Ebonite Colours (SE Series). It has random Minimal Black Specs." On my olive green Bamboo pen, which is a slightly darker, they blend in and look more or less 'organic' - a feature rather than a flaw.

 

You're right about the description, I was just expecting the specks to blend in more organically as you described. But it's all good. Overall a superb handmade pen, with excellent machining throughout, I'm happy to own one of Mr. Kandan's creations. Cheers.

[sansenri]

don't let the specks put you off, they are small imperfections that are almost unavoidable in a hand made pen which is made of ebonite which is also practically a hand made material though an ancient method of vulcanization of rubber.

Some of my Ranga have specks, but I do my best not to notice them (we are far too accustomed to perfection of modern manufacturing machinery), they detract nothing from the pen performance, and with time you get to understand that they are a sort of sign that your pen is unique.

 

Thank you for the nice pics, we all like to see who got what...

also since I'm still waiting for mine...

enjoy the pen

(the model 5 is a monster!)

Edited May 21, 2019 by sansenri

[Dupontdelamare]

Dear Ranga owners,

My Ranga Bamboo pen arrived over a week ago. It was packed as usual with Rangas care and know how. Even the postman commented on the sealing-waxed stitched cotton packaging.

This I carefully opened to reveal the usual inner layer newspaper covering

http://i67.tinypic.com/sb085c.jpg

and then the Ranga made box, and within that the Bamboo pen itself, an Oliver piston pen, and a pipette (although neither pens are eyedroppers).

http://i64.tinypic.com/e9ao36.jpg

Here the pen is open to reveal the Bock 1.1 italic nib

http://i67.tinypic.com/359d7cy.jpg

 

Although the Bamboo pen does have a step up, because of the hourglass shape of the section (similar the 8B and the 9B), it doesnt seem to effect the writing comfort. The pen is beautifully balanced and the wavy shape is rather sensual to the touch.

As Sansenri says, the Standard Bamboo might be more comfortable than the standard 9B, but this could be more to do with the weight distribution or the shape of the body, since the section of the 9B is quite similar, only fractionally longer in the Standard Bamboo (is that sufficient to make a significant difference?):

http://i65.tinypic.com/2yll1qd.jpg

 

I had already decided to ink up this pen with Sailor Jentle Waka-Uguisu Warbler , and this goes very well with the military green of the pen.

http://i63.tinypic.com/vq4gg5.jpg

 

I would say this ink is like a darker shade of Pilot Chiku-Rin bamboo forest, which I also enjoy.

The Standard Bamboo could now almost be my favourite pen from Ranga (although it is also my latest one ...), I appreciate the balance, the colour, and the italic nib I chose for it, which is superb allowing both good variation and a fine line if wanted.

It differs notably from my JoWo 1.1, which (as can be seen below) has a less rounded more angular cut, giving the JoWo (top centre) a broader maximum line width between that of my Bock 1.1 (bottom left) and my Bock 1.5 (bottom right), almost as though it was, say, 1.25.

http://i67.tinypic.com/w05b84.jpg

The angular cut of the JoWo nib also seems to direct the nib more (as remarked I seem to remember somewhere by Mehinderatta.). I like both nibs, but would perhaps use them in slightly different environments.

I would like to thank Mr Kandan once more for the craftsmanship and the care taken in shipping this pen to me.

Best regards

Dupontdelamare

[crosshatch]

and a pipette (although neither pens are eyedroppers).

 

 

Can the Ranga not be eyedroppered? I've yet to purchase an Indian ebonite pen that can't be. I tend to think of the eyedropper as the "original" form of Indian ebonite pens, with the German C/C threaded ones being a more recent offering. Even with a German nib unit, I usually eyedropper my Indian ebonite pens, as I prefer the richer flow when eyedroppered.

[Timeline]

Received my Model 3 today, did not have the bad smell others stated, the free pen really stunk bad though. This was my first experience with a group buy and Ranga pens, I will say the craftsmanship is outstanding and was well worth the wait.

[BaronWulfraed]

Might as well join the image crowd. My pens arrived a few weeks ago, but the 4C was only recently inked. I don't think much of the ink -- seems to be too pale (or the nib is dry), and in long sessions of Sudoku it did present a build-up of crud along the slit.

 

Scanned version of the text -- some color adjustments made (I was trying to match the scan to the tone of the Moleskine paper). Scan is a bit easier to read the Diamine HoneyBurst content (no comment upon the legibility of my handwriting). The scan is also scaled for 96DPI display.

[crosshatch]

Received my Model 3 today, did not have the bad smell others stated, the free pen really stunk bad though.

 

 

Every Indian custom ebonite pen I've ordered has had a bit of that "burnt rubber" smell that is characteristic of freshly turned ebonite, especially on the interior of the pen. It's quite normal and fades quickly, in my experience. The free pens are usually made of a kind of vegetal resin that is also common in Indian pens, and, when fresh or confined in storage, it's pretty funky. Noodler's vegetal resin pens, for example, are known for this smell. I usually take the pen apart and let it sit in the open for a while (not in the sun--I've heard that sunlight helps, but UV is rarely good for pen materials) and the smell will fade over a few weeks to a tolerable level.

[sansenri]

Dear Ranga owners,

My Ranga Bamboo pen arrived over a week ago. It was packed as usual with Rangas care and know how. Even the postman commented on the sealing-waxed stitched cotton packaging.

This I carefully opened to reveal the usual inner layer newspaper covering

http://i67.tinypic.com/sb085c.jpg

and then the Ranga made box, and within that the Bamboo pen itself, an Oliver piston pen, and a pipette (although neither pens are eyedroppers).

http://i64.tinypic.com/e9ao36.jpg

Here the pen is open to reveal the Bock 1.1 italic nib

http://i67.tinypic.com/359d7cy.jpg

 

Although the Bamboo pen does have a step up, because of the hourglass shape of the section (similar the 8B and the 9B), it doesnt seem to effect the writing comfort. The pen is beautifully balanced and the wavy shape is rather sensual to the touch.

As Sansenri says, the Standard Bamboo might be more comfortable than the standard 9B, but this could be more to do with the weight distribution or the shape of the body, since the section of the 9B is quite similar, only fractionally longer in the Standard Bamboo (is that sufficient to make a significant difference?):

http://i65.tinypic.com/2yll1qd.jpg

 

I had already decided to ink up this pen with Sailor Jentle Waka-Uguisu Warbler , and this goes very well with the military green of the pen.

http://i63.tinypic.com/vq4gg5.jpg

 

I would say this ink is like a darker shade of Pilot Chiku-Rin bamboo forest, which I also enjoy.

The Standard Bamboo could now almost be my favourite pen from Ranga (although it is also my latest one ...), I appreciate the balance, the colour, and the italic nib I chose for it, which is superb allowing both good variation and a fine line if wanted.

It differs notably from my JoWo 1.1, which (as can be seen below) has a less rounded more angular cut, giving the JoWo (top centre) a broader maximum line width between that of my Bock 1.1 (bottom left) and my Bock 1.5 (bottom right), almost as though it was, say, 1.25.

http://i67.tinypic.com/w05b84.jpg

The angular cut of the JoWo nib also seems to direct the nib more (as remarked I seem to remember somewhere by Mehinderatta.). I like both nibs, but would perhaps use them in slightly different environments.

I would like to thank Mr Kandan once more for the craftsmanship and the care taken in shipping this pen to me.

Best regards

Dupontdelamare

 

Thank you very much for the nice quasi-review of your Ranga bamboo.

The colour is a nice match for this shape, I chose the same colour for my sugarcane.

I usually have my Rangas sent to my office address and every time one arrives the girls at the reception raise an eyebrow at the peculiarly accurate hand made packaging...

Thank you also for showing the bamboo and the 9B close to each other, you may be right about the section which might make the 9B a possible option next time

I do hold my pens very far up so that fraction of additional length may make a difference, but perhaps not...

The section in my bamboo also looks slightly longer, but interesting to know.

I also think you are quite right in the description of the wavy body of the bamboo, sensual is a fitting word.

I have the demonstrator version of the bamboo and it's a rather distracting pen, with that wavy body and the swirling ink inside when I take it to the office I have to be careful not to play around with it too much during meetings...

Due to it's size and balance it is also one of my favourite Rangas together with the 3/3C and 8B (the 8 holds a place of its own, it's a smaller pen, but lovely). The sugarcane is nice too, but for some odd reason I always open it holding it from the wrong side...!

[sansenri]

well, the waiting is over much earlier than I was prepared to wait for, and now that the pen has arrived I was very anxious to see it, so although I do love the Ranga packaging and was thinking about taking photos of my unwrapping (in excruciating utube style...) I just could not wait, so please refer to Dupontdelamare's nicely reported unwrapping above!

Just for the record my box is a nice red faux crocodile leather and does contain the pipette (because although in this case my pen is converter system, by just taking the converter off it can be used as eyedropper) and the free Oliver Exam. It does not contain the spare feed, but that is because this is not an ED pen, otherwise it would!

A short note on the Oliver Exam, a simplified piston filler in transparent (I assume acrylic) plastic, but with an ebonite feed.

These small pens can work well. As I mentioned already elsewhere, they are slightly too small in size to give real satisfaction for a longer period of writing (very narrow section), the nib is usually quite scratchy but can be made very smooth and usable with some patient play around on micromesh, and worst of all they are prone to sudden burping, so watch it! On the other hand, with an ebonite feed they have a remarkable flow, and can be quite a joy to write with. (true, they stink some, that's the plastic, leave them in your pencil holder a few months to at least reduce the smell...)

My Ranga from this group buy is a model 3, a classic flat top, one of my favorite shapes in the Ranga range, clipless (clips are useful, but an ebonite body is so nice when it's an interrupted smooth shape). It's the right size, for me at least no question about it, and the flush body with smooth threading is one of my ideal shapes for comfortable use and long writing periods. So no surprise.

The colour was a surprice! A positive one too (you never know with ebonite... )

I chose the colour called teal. I'm not sure if that's the right description for the colour I received, possibly yes, at least one possible shade of teal, but certainly it looks like a very nice dark forest green!

I am posting a pic, but don't take it as reference for the colour, it's way off, it was taken in artificial light with a cell phone (could not wait for tomorrow morning!!) I will take a much better one when good lighting is available.

The nib is a Bock Titanium, feels rather springy. Have not tried it yet, will do in the coming days.

Thanks as usual to Ranga and Mr. Kandan for another nice pen in my Ranga stable.

[MuddyWaters]

Very nice pen. It appears that the model 3 shape has changed since a few years ago. The section appears to taper less. If you look in my sig, there is a link to a few pictures of my pens where you can see a Model 3 from 2-3 years ago.

[NighthawkSix]

I recently received my Ranga Model 3 in golden brown and I love it. The section fits my hand perfectly and the pen is well balanced. I got it with a fine titanium nib and it's fun to write with. It adds a little bounce to your writing.

 

 

[sansenri]

Very nice pen. It appears that the model 3 shape has changed since a few years ago. The section appears to taper less. If you look in my sig, there is a link to a few pictures of my pens where you can see a Model 3 from 2-3 years ago.

 

I know that the model 3 has a slightly narrow section for some with larger hands, but for me, since I don't have very large hands, it's just the right size. Consider also that since I hold my pens far up the part of the section I hold is the second half closer to the threads.

In truth I have several model 3 and if compared they are not all the same width at the section (nor at the barrel, nor exactly same identical length to the millimeter).

That does not surprise me at all, being an individually hand made pen I am almost sure that Mr Pandurangan does not measure the size he makes, but like most masters of their art he makes pens by heart, and by the eye, the size that feels right.

(my mother used to cook this way, I could never learn any of her recipies, she did not measure the doses, and never wrote them down, just went by instinct...). So I have several model 3 and 3C and closely inspected they are all different pens!

 

You can however overcome this if it bothers you, just ask Ranga when you order to leave the section slightly wider, for Mr. Pandurangan it's just a few turns less on his lathe!

 

If you've never watched this its rather amazing!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08pUuLREZR4

 

To my knowledge Mr. Pandurangan turns all the Ranga pens (think of his effort during a group buy...!)

Edited May 24, 2019 by sansenri

[sansenri]

 

Can the Ranga not be eyedroppered? I've yet to purchase an Indian ebonite pen that can't be. I tend to think of the eyedropper as the "original" form of Indian ebonite pens, with the German C/C threaded ones being a more recent offering. Even with a German nib unit, I usually eyedropper my Indian ebonite pens, as I prefer the richer flow when eyedroppered.

 

You're quite right, the reason for the pipette is that even a CC Ranga pen can be eyedroppered.

I agree also to the fact that the eyedroppered CC filler has a richer flow.

My real favourite is the Ranga ED with the ebonite feed, fantastic flow.

The only reason I don't buy all Ranga in ED is that Ranga pens are very good work horses, and I like to take them to the office, in which case an ED is not the very best choice (I've had very scarce episodes of burping, but when it does happen it better not be at a business meeting...)

[MuddyWaters]

I know that the model 3 has a slightly narrow section for some with larger hands, but for me, since I don't have very large hands, it's just the right size. Consider also that since I hold my pens far up the part of the section I hold is the second half closer to the threads.

In truth I have several model 3 and if compared they are not all the same width at the section (nor at the barrel, nor exactly same identical length to the millimeter).

That does not surprise me at all, being an individually hand made pen I am almost sure that Mr Pandurangan does not measure the size he makes, but like most masters of their art he makes pens by heart, and by the eye, the size that feels right.

(my mother used to cook this way, I could never learn any of her recipies, she did not measure the doses, and never wrote them down, just went by instinct...). So I have several model 3 and 3C and closely inspected they are all different pens!

 

You can however overcome this if it bothers you, just ask Ranga when you order to leave the section slightly wider, for Mr. Pandurangan it's just a few turns less on his lathe!

 

If you've never watched this its rather amazing!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08pUuLREZR4

 

To my knowledge Mr. Pandurangan turns all the Ranga pens (think of his effort during a group buy...!)

I can imagine this is the beauty of these pens. I actually did message Mr k to provide some preferences supplemented with a little sketch for a section that tapers less on the model 5. Sure, that will result in a very thick section but I wanted to minimize step down. If the pen is not comfortable, I would be worried about the ergonomics of any pen except the emperor and model 8.

[crosshatch]

 

You're quite right, the reason for the pipette is that even a CC Ranga pen can be eyedroppered.

I agree also to the fact that the eyedroppered CC filler has a richer flow.

My real favourite is the Ranga ED with the ebonite feed, fantastic flow.

The only reason I don't buy all Ranga in ED is that Ranga pens are very good work horses, and I like to take them to the office, in which case an ED is not the very best choice (I've had very scarce episodes of burping, but when it does happen it better not be at a business meeting...)

 

I also have a preference for the pure eyedropper pens with the ebonite feeds. Nothing beats the flow you get from ebonite, IMO. Also, the ease of customizing/setting the feed is a huge plus. My two other Rangas are EDs.

 

This will be my only Ranga with C/C threading and that's just because I have a particular nib experiment in mind that requires a Jowo housing.

[sansenri]

 

I also have a preference for the pure eyedropper pens with the ebonite feeds. Nothing beats the flow you get from ebonite, IMO. Also, the ease of customizing/setting the feed is a huge plus. My two other Rangas are EDs.

 

This will be my only Ranga with C/C threading and that's just because I have a particular nib experiment in mind that requires a Jowo housing.

Curious about the Jowo housing experiment... let s know

[sansenri]

I just wanted to add another picture of my model 3 in teal ebonite (S27),

although when I attempted to take a better picture I found it very difficult to get the right colour in the photo...

as you can see, the tones in the photo are more correct here than in the previous with artificial light, but the pen colour is slightly too blue...

in reality it's just slightly more greenish (a sort of dark forest green).

 

 

a very nice pen in any case, with a very simple but extremely comfortable shape and balance

[sansenri]

since the question has come up I also though it might be interesting to see a comparison of some of these Ranga which have similar size

 

in the following image, top to bottom,

Ranga Emperor CC in mottled brown with Bock Nib

Ranga 3C CC in olive ripple with Jowo nib

Ranga 3 teal CC with Bock titanium nib

Ranga sugarcane olive ED with Bock nib

Ranga 8B ED in olive+green ripple with Kanwrite nib

 

It's easy to see that the section on the 3C is more similar to the Emperor than the model 3

in reality it's an exception, compared to other 3C models I have this one has a larger section...

(to confirm some slight size variations between same models, which nonetheless I don't mind at all)

Edited May 30, 2019 by sansenri

[sansenri]

out of curiosity, here is another comparison with the Ranga 3 from this group buy

 

from top to bottom

Asa Genius

Gama Heyas

Ranga 3

Deccan Advocate (custom modified to take Pelikan nibs, thanks Hari!)