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What Was The Best Knock-Off Fountain Pen Ever Made?


4lex

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I really like Sailor King of Pen. I dont really care that it started its life as a Meisterstuck copy. This made me think what knock-off pen is the greatest of all time and if one day some PenBBS pen will be someones grail pen.

I think best knock-off ever is either Sailor KOP or OMAS Extra Lucens.

I would be interested to hear what you think 🤔

Edited by vonManstein

Inked: Sailor King Pro Gear, Sailor Nagasawa Proske, Sailor 1911 Standard, Parker Sonnet Chiselled Carbon, Parker 51, Pilot Custom Heritage 92, Platinum Preppy

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I just saw a 1st version Aurora 88 on ebay.

The Aurora isn't a knock-off. It doesn't duplicate the Parker pen exactly. The classic appearance with the greater utility of the piston-filling system.

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While this one may not be the "greatest" in terms of luxury, it is certainly great in terms of how many were made, how many people enjoy them and how accessible it is:

 

Hero 616: the knock off Parker 51

WTT: Conklin Nozac Cursive Italic & Edison Beaumont Broad for Pelikan M1000 or Something Cool (PM me to discuss. It's part of my One Red Fountain Pen trading post)

WTB: 1. Camlin SD

2. 1950s to early 1960s 1st Gen MB 149 with BB nib

3. Airmail 90T Teal Swirl

4. PenBBS 355-16SF Demonstrator

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I really like Sailor King of Pen. I dont really care that it started its life as a Meisterstuck copy. This made me think what knock-off pen is the greatest of all time and if one day some PenBBS pen will be someones grail pen.

I think best knock-off ever is either Sailor KOP or OMAS Extra Lucens.

I would be interested to hear what you think 🤔

MB 146 / 149 were great knockoffs of the Sheaffer Balance and the OMAS Paragon was a pretty nice rendition of the Doric. Edited by gyasko
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While this one may not be the "greatest" in terms of luxury, it is certainly great in terms of how many were made, how many people enjoy them and how accessible it is:

 

Hero 616: the knock off Parker 51

 

Agreed.

I think the Hero 616 is a very faithful copy of the 51- but, (imho) far better is the Wing Sung 613, which is actually a very good pen, yet still only costs around £3 - £4.

 

Unlike the Hero, it has a (removable) piston fill (whereas the Hero has the same aerometric filler as the 51), but otherwise the 613 is an exact copy of the 51 - even the same size (Hero is slightly smaller).

I've had one for a long time - only recently lost it somewhwere. It was very reliable and a decent writer. I think I'll get another.

 

Also available as a vacumatic!

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While this one may not be the "greatest" in terms of luxury, it is certainly great in terms of how many were made, how many people enjoy them and how accessible it is:

 

Hero 616: the knock off Parker 51

I have Wing Sung 616 and because of the ink window it is an improvement on Parker 51 Vacumatic. I dont think the build quality matches the original but design is an improvement on the original.

Inked: Sailor King Pro Gear, Sailor Nagasawa Proske, Sailor 1911 Standard, Parker Sonnet Chiselled Carbon, Parker 51, Pilot Custom Heritage 92, Platinum Preppy

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A lot of people trace the lineage of the MB Meisterstück pens to the Shaeffer Balance, but I don't see the MBs as nearly close enough to the Balance to be considered knockoffs. The MBs don't have the near-conical end taper of the Balance, aren't lever or vacuum fillers, don't come in the variety of finishes the Balance did, and so on.

 

On the other hand the similarity of the non-PG Sailor KOP and other Profit/1911-form Sailors to the Meisterstück series is impossible to ignore, though the writing feel is quite different (not necessarily inferior however.)

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A lot of people trace the lineage of the MB Meisterstück pens to the Shaeffer Balance, but I don't see the MBs as nearly close enough to the Balance to be considered knockoffs. The MBs don't have the near-conical end taper of the Balance, aren't lever or vacuum fillers, don't come in the variety of finishes the Balance did, and so on.

 

On the other hand the similarity of the non-PG Sailor KOP and other Profit/1911-form Sailors to the Meisterstück series is impossible to ignore, though the writing feel is quite different (not necessarily inferior however.)

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So a c/c filler is closer to a piston filler than a vac-fill? I have to disagree on that. Also, there were striped 146s in the 1950s, and those look similar to late 30s striped Balances.

 

The MB146/149 are fine pens, but their design was conservative and derivative.

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No question the Meisterstück MBs are conservative, even staid, but if they are derivative then from what? The Balance may have been one of the first pens with rounded ends, but others from between the first Balance and the first 149 were closer in shape the the latter, for example the Parker Vacumatic from about 1945 to the end of its production.

 

It depends on what you consider a knockoff to be. To me it implies a very close physical resemblance, and probably the same filling system. As far as I know only the Balance II was c/c, like the later 144 and 145, so there is not a huge overlap in the filler department. Of course "knockoff" may be defined more broadly, but then almost anything is a knockoff of something else.

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I have Wing Sung 616 and because of the ink window it is an improvement on Parker 51 Vacumatic. I dont think the build quality matches the original but design is an improvement on the original.

Are you referring to the Wing Sung 601? If so I heartily agree - fantastic knockoff/homage and a great pen.

Whenever you are fed up with life, start writing: ink is the great cure for all human ills, as I found out long ago.

~C.S. Lewis

--------------

Current Rotation:

Edison Menlo <m italic>, Lamy 2000 <EF>, Wing Sung 601 <F>

Pilot VP <F>, Pilot Metropolitan <F>, Pilot Penmanship <EF>

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Are you referring to the Wing Sung 601? If so I heartily agree - fantastic knockoff/homage and a great pen.

 

Wing Sung 601is the copy of the vacumatic 51. Wing Sung 613 is the copy of the aerometric 51.

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Are you referring to the Wing Sung 601? If so I heartily agree - fantastic knockoff/homage and a great pen.

Yes, sorry my mistake. I was referring to Wing Sung 601.

Inked: Sailor King Pro Gear, Sailor Nagasawa Proske, Sailor 1911 Standard, Parker Sonnet Chiselled Carbon, Parker 51, Pilot Custom Heritage 92, Platinum Preppy

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A lot of people trace the lineage of the MB Meisterstück pens to the Shaeffer Balance, but I don't see the MBs as nearly close enough to the Balance to be considered knockoffs. The MBs don't have the near-conical end taper of the Balance, aren't lever or vacuum fillers, don't come in the variety of finishes the Balance did, and so on.

 

On the other hand the similarity of the non-PG Sailor KOP and other Profit/1911-form Sailors to the Meisterstück series is impossible to ignore, though the writing feel is quite different (not necessarily inferior however.)

I tend to agree, concerning the shape.

 

Now and again, when I come across such things, I hear of the Balance spoken of as "torpedo shaped", and the Meisterstück always as "cigar shaped".

I don't recall ever hearing of the Sheaffer being likened to a cigar.

 

Whatever.

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What Was The Best Knock-Off Fountain Pen Ever Made?

 

 

All of 'em. No doubt.

Fred

Good values attract good people..........No doubt!

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MB 146 / 149 were great knockoffs of the Sheaffer Balance and the OMAS Paragon was a pretty nice rendition of the Doric.

 

I agree that Mont Blanc used the Balance for inspiration. My OS Balance from the early 30's is unmistakably the forefather to the 149. Not only are the shapes of the pens similar, but the use of plastics was an innovation by Sheaffer that was copied by all of the manufacturers, including MB.

 

Dave

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