Monteverde Ritma

[fkyu]

I don’t see any reviews for the Monteverde Ritma, so I’ll offer a few observations of my own.

This is a substantial pen – 49.8 grams, filled with an international short cartridge. It comes with a converter and two short cartridges. It has a magnet in the cap that produces a solid click when you cap it. On another pen it might seem gimmicky, but on this pen ‘it works’.

This pen feels good in the hand. I never post, but if you do, it’s huge - weapons grade. As Boris ‘the bullet-dodger’ so aptly says “the weight is a sign of reliability...” The same magnetic snap happens when you post.

For the sweaty hands/ metal grip discussion: It’s a small grip and I find my fingers half on the grip and half on the matte barrel. The minute step-down between the two surfaces is not an issue. Granted it’s not one continuous surface like an Aion any one of the many designs without a step-down.

The Ritma reminds me of the Faber-Castell Essentio, with the following differences: the Essentio has a plastic section going into a metal barrel. The Ritma has a metal section into a metal barrel. The Essentio is heavily back weighted, the Ritma is very well balanced. The Essentio has a wonderful Faber-Castell nib that writes perfectly out of the box. The Ritma nib needed work. I had to widen the tines and smooth it out. Now it writes beautifully. The Ritma is heavier and a few dollars less expensive.

The nib unit screws out for easy cleaning and replacement if needed. It has a cut out for the nib to slide into.

It’s 137.2 mm capped, and 128 mm uncapped.

If you like good solid pens, and don’t mind doing some nib tweaking, the Ritma might be for you.

 

the out of focus silver ring is the magnet

section has slot for the nib

Faber-Castell Essentio - Pilot Metropolitan - Monteverde Ritma - Lamy Studio - Parker Duofold

[goodpens]

Thank you for this review. I appreciate the notes about weight, size, and nib!

[mdrpens2012]

Agree. Excellent every day use pen to carry for price. Nice quality - I like the heavier metal feel, aluminum body, nice balance. Found myself using at work daily. Magnetic cap is well made, posts with a magnetic pull click. Concerned about clipping it with the magnet in my shirt pocket next to my cell phone, so I keep it apart; might be cautious with magnetic credit cards, etc - I have no evidence that it affects anything re electronic data, but you can feel the pen magnet slightly attract to metals. The nib is nice steel quality, fitting the price. With use, I have had some ink coloring my fingers - ink seems to pool at the base of the nib section occasionally - I think possibly when uncapping frequently after writing when ink still fully in the feed, and wonder if the suction pull from the uncapping is the cause (possibly after I uncapped several times in quick succession). I carry a Lamy Studio for everyday use, and have not had similar degree of inking my fingers. As result I use the Studio without thought, but the Ritma with some care, watching for generous ink feed collecting at the base, and occasionally outside the base of the cap onto the barrel (when I haven't been paying attention, ? maybe just my pen/nib section/converter fit - I'll play with). Clever execution and design.

[inkstainedruth]

Thanks for the review. The size comparison was particularly useful, as well as the weight. A pen roughly the size of a Metropolitan is good. But not when it weighs nearly twice as much as a TWSBI 580-AL. So I'll pass.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[MadAsAHatter]

I bought a Ritma not too long ago. It writes well, is a good size and the magnetic clip holds on very securely. The one thing that's keeping me from putting it in my normal rotation is the weight. At almost 50g it's the heaviest pen I own. I guess if I wanted to carry something around to thump people on the noggin if they get out of line that could as double as a writing instrument then this would be it.

[Zoran Grbic]

Wrong thread. 😉

Edited February 6 by Zoran Grbic
Wrong thread.

[Sporadic Traveler]

I love the Ritma.  I prefer a slimmer pen over the chunky cigar-shaped ones and I like the feel of a pen with a little weight to it.  It's an attractive, professional-looking pen and the magnetic cap works well.  The EF nibs are not quite as fine as on my Pilots or Platinums but write nicely with no scratchiness.