OptiQ Posted June 13, 2019 Share Posted June 13, 2019 Dear all, My grail pen is the Conid Kingsize in Ebonite(and for this pen i m selling almost all my pens). If some of you have the pen please be kind and tell some particular things about this pen.Please to not laught about the questions below: 1.How many turns of the cap will uncap the pen?2.In Ebonite finish are you still able to see the second chamber of ink?-for the moment the CAISO sistem is unavailble and the pen will fly sometimes.3.For long writing sesions you need to unscrew the top cap to have a continuous ink flow?4.If some of you have the pen in Ebonite for more than a yaer or two -how does it look?5.I want to buy a F nib in rhodium trim-your nib's have feedback or are buttery smooth. Thank you for your answears and time, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mulrich Posted June 13, 2019 Share Posted June 13, 2019 (edited) I have an acrylic Kingsize but most of my answers should apply to the ebonite. My answers below in red. 1.How many turns of the cap will uncap the pen?About 1 3/4 turns. 2.In Ebonite finish are you still able to see the second chamber of ink?-for the moment the CAISO sistem is unavailble and the pen will fly sometimes.The ink window shows the smaller of the two chambers, which is the one you may want to empty before flying (I'm not sure which chamber you consider the second chamber but I assume you mean the smaller one). You can't see the larger chamber unless you get a demonstrator, which you could do and still get an ebonite cap. 3.For long writing sesions you need to unscrew the top cap to have a continuous ink flow?It depends on how long your long writing sessions are. I think the smaller chamber holds about a cartridge worth of ink which is enough for a few pages of writing (this varies depending on the width and wetness of the nib). If your long writing sessions require more than this you will need to unscrew the top. I think I have to unscrew the top cap 2-3 times while the pen is inked to use all 3ml of ink. 4.If some of you have the pen in Ebonite for more than a yaer or two -how does it look?I don't have an ebonite Conid but ebonite should hold up well if properly cared for (i.e., not leaving in direct sunlight). I do have a Sailor ebonite pen and it looks great after many years. 5.I want to buy a F nib in rhodium trim-your nib's have feedback or are buttery smooth.I don't have Conid's rhodium coated nib but their standard gold and titanium nibs are both very smooth (the titanium has a very soft feedback). Rhodium coatings can sometimes add feedback to a nib but Conid could make sure the nib is smooth before shipping if that's what you want. They can also do other nib work if you want more customization (e.g., stub, oblique). I hope this helps; Conid makes wonderful pens that should last a couple lifetimes. (Edit to make things red) Edited June 13, 2019 by Mulrich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honeybadgers Posted June 13, 2019 Share Posted June 13, 2019 (edited) It's my next grail pen now that I have my first one (a visconti divina metro in stacked celluloid and sterling silver.) I want the clear demonstrator though. All the info I can provide is that ebonite will wear like iron. It's kind of the king of fountain pen materials. Just don't leave it sitting in direct sunlight or somewhere really, really hot like a car glovebox (like literally ANY pan material) or dunk it in water warmer than lukewarm (it can turn chocolate brown, like a badly bleached shirt. Cold/tepid water is perfectly safe, it's the heat that damages it) Edited June 13, 2019 by Honeybadgers Selling a boatload of restored, fairly rare, vintage Japanese gold nib pens, click here to see (more added as I finish restoring them) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptiQ Posted June 14, 2019 Author Share Posted June 14, 2019 I have an acrylic Kingsize but most of my answers should apply to the ebonite. My answers below in red. 1.How many turns of the cap will uncap the pen?About 1 3/4 turns. 2.In Ebonite finish are you still able to see the second chamber of ink?-for the moment the CAISO sistem is unavailble and the pen will fly sometimes.The ink window shows the smaller of the two chambers, which is the one you may want to empty before flying (I'm not sure which chamber you consider the second chamber but I assume you mean the smaller one). You can't see the larger chamber unless you get a demonstrator, which you could do and still get an ebonite cap. 3.For long writing sesions you need to unscrew the top cap to have a continuous ink flow?It depends on how long your long writing sessions are. I think the smaller chamber holds about a cartridge worth of ink which is enough for a few pages of writing (this varies depending on the width and wetness of the nib). If your long writing sessions require more than this you will need to unscrew the top. I think I have to unscrew the top cap 2-3 times while the pen is inked to use all 3ml of ink. 4.If some of you have the pen in Ebonite for more than a yaer or two -how does it look?I don't have an ebonite Conid but ebonite should hold up well if properly cared for (i.e., not leaving in direct sunlight). I do have a Sailor ebonite pen and it looks great after many years. 5.I want to buy a F nib in rhodium trim-your nib's have feedback or are buttery smooth.I don't have Conid's rhodium coated nib but their standard gold and titanium nibs are both very smooth (the titanium has a very soft feedback). Rhodium coatings can sometimes add feedback to a nib but Conid could make sure the nib is smooth before shipping if that's what you want. They can also do other nib work if you want more customization (e.g., stub, oblique). I hope this helps; Conid makes wonderful pens that should last a couple lifetimes. (Edit to make things red) Thank you very much for your time and answears.It is clearly now that i will buy the pen.Many thanks one again ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptiQ Posted June 14, 2019 Author Share Posted June 14, 2019 It's my next grail pen now that I have my first one (a visconti divina metro in stacked celluloid and sterling silver.) I want the clear demonstrator though. All the info I can provide is that ebonite will wear like iron. It's kind of the king of fountain pen materials. Just don't leave it sitting in direct sunlight or somewhere really, really hot like a car glovebox (like literally ANY pan material) or dunk it in water warmer than lukewarm (it can turn chocolate brown, like a badly bleached shirt. Cold/tepid water is perfectly safe, it's the heat that damages it) Thank you very much for time and answears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jebus Posted June 19, 2019 Share Posted June 19, 2019 I have a CAISO demonstrator with a gold stub. Unfortunately I can only answer your question 1 about the cap turns but Mulrich already did. I've read somewhere on this forum that CAISO will be available "in a couple of months" with a modified feed. I ought to remember that must be arround summer. I don't know if there will be any other modifications. Perhaps worth waiting for? With the CAISO you don't have to unscrew the top. But, on the other hand, if you had to, it wouldn't be that often... Anyway, enjoy your choice! Looking forward to your experience. There are more things in heaven and earth, than are dreamt of in your philosophy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
challer61 Posted June 20, 2019 Share Posted June 20, 2019 I have four. I've never had trouble flying with them and never taken any special action flying with them. After several years, no signs of wear on any of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDarchitect Posted June 22, 2019 Share Posted June 22, 2019 I've read somewhere on this forum that CAISO will be available "in a couple of months" with a modified feed. I ought to remember that must be arround summer. I don't know if there will be any other modifications. Perhaps worth waiting for? I wrote Conid last week asking when the CAISO will be returning to their Kingsize pens. The last time I asked, back in March, they said "very soon, after the Antwerp pen show", but this time the response I got was "we can't make any predictions because we are swamped dealing with back orders." Indeed, if you order a pen from them today the shipping date is three months out. So it may be many months, or longer, before they bring CAISO back into production. I am somewhat impatiently waiting for them to reintroduce it before I shell out over $1000 US for a pen. I also noted that they had a significant price increase this week as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDutchGuy Posted June 22, 2019 Share Posted June 22, 2019 At the risk of going against the grain... are they worth it? A colleague always brings two Conids to work, one is the latest FPN model, the other is a translucent demonstrator. Fit, finish and construction are not of this Earth. No other brand even comes close when it comes to quality of build. But the feel of the pens in the hand when writing, and the feel of the nibs on paper... those pens didn’t rock my world, they didn’t make me want to write. Undoubtedly the best-built pens in the world, but to me they felt a bit lifeless, a bit clinical. So I’ve never been tempted, even though the FPN model looks great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R. Posted June 22, 2019 Share Posted June 22, 2019 I also noted that they had a significant price increase this week as well. What's the price increase? I didn't spot it. At the risk of going against the grain... are they worth it? If one is willed to spend the requested amount and is happy afterwards, then it was worth it ;-) I can let you know later in fall; I've ordered mine a week ago. I can appreciate and value the engineering and craftsmanship of those pens as well as choice of materials. Also I closely followed the evolution of the bulkfiller during mutiple chats with Francis over the year so I like to honor this efforts in addition. I like the use of solid Titanium and ebonite as well. My Conid First Production run has performed flawless so far so I‘m very certain that I will not regret this purchase. It's in the same price range as other bespoken large fountain pens. Cheers Michael flickr instagram Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDarchitect Posted June 23, 2019 Share Posted June 23, 2019 (edited) What's the price increase? I didn't spot it.I put together a sample Kingsize pen with gold nib on their website about four months ago that I recall came to about 825 Euros with shipping and a tool. I put it together again early last week and it had gone up, and by Friday June 21st the same package w/shipping had gone to over 925 Euros. So I infer they have had a 5% and 10% increase on the pen body since my first look. The tool itself has gone from 15.00 to 18.15 Euros, which is one 21% increase or two 10% increases compounded. My memory could be spotty, though. Separately, I saw that the Namiki Yukari Royale just went from $1200 to $1500 US on several websites in the last two weeks, a 25% increase. Edited June 23, 2019 by BDarchitect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael R. Posted June 23, 2019 Share Posted June 23, 2019 (edited) The Kingsize is still 588 Euro w/o a nib and the tool is 15 Euro ... w/o taxes. And those are prices from 2018 I believe. The webshop sometimes shows prices without taxes and on other places with estimated taxes. So maybe thats it. Also I think they do geolocating, so maybe thats because of $ vs. Euro. Cheers Michael Edited June 23, 2019 by Michael R. flickr instagram Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDarchitect Posted June 24, 2019 Share Posted June 24, 2019 The Kingsize is still 588 Euro w/o a nib and the tool is 15 Euro ... w/o taxes. And those are prices from 2018 I believe.That may be the price you see in Europe still, but in the US the Kingsize is listed on their website at 711.48 Euro, the gold nib at 163, and the tool at 18.15. When I first looked four months ago, I believe the Kingsize was 588 Euro, but if you take two 10% price increases compounded, you get to exactly 711.48 Euro. And the tool, with two 10% increases, goes from 15.00 to 18.15. I don't believe they include VAT until checkout, so those are pre-tax prices. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karmachanic Posted June 24, 2019 Share Posted June 24, 2019 If you click on the image on this page https://www.conidpen.com/shop/ (€711.48) you will find the correct pre-VAT prices https://www.conidpen.com/shop/k-ecb-eb-ft/ (€588) which have not changed. "Simplicate and add Lightness." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BDarchitect Posted June 24, 2019 Share Posted June 24, 2019 Thank you. I stand corrected.B Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karmachanic Posted June 24, 2019 Share Posted June 24, 2019 Just trying to ease you into buying mode "Simplicate and add Lightness." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldrifleman Posted June 24, 2019 Share Posted June 24, 2019 I received my Ebonite Kingsize about 2 months ago ( my two Ebonite Regulars needed a big brother😀). It wears a Broad Stub Titanium nib as does my other Kingsize. Conid will happily grind what you want! Both of my Kingsize pens take 1.5 turns from tight to off for the cap. It has the normal small window to see the active ink chamber and can write quite a bit before I need to open the tail. I happen to love Ebonite pens and feel they age very nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheDutchGuy Posted June 25, 2019 Share Posted June 25, 2019 ^—-That’s a beautiful pen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldrifleman Posted June 25, 2019 Share Posted June 25, 2019 Thanks, I noticed I did not wipe my grubby fingerprints off before I took the pictures. The nib is really smooth and has a bit if a bounce to it. My first Kingsize had a Gold nib and I almost gave up on the Kingsize pens, it was just stiff and nail like. I ordered the Titanium to replace it and it made all the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptiQ Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 Dear all, Many thank for your answears. At the moment i've ordered a regular Streamline, with many nibs(the pen will arrive in October).Until then i hope to manage to sell other pens to order the Kingsize to. One again thank you for your time and answears. Have a great day, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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