Is It Possible To Get A Sailor Pro Gear Slim Mini With An Ef Nib?

[Venemo]

I was looking at getting another Japanese fountain pen. I found the Sailor Pro Gear Slim Mini which looks like something my brother would enjoy, he loves small pens with very fine nibs, so I thought I'd get one for him as a present. He is studying Japanese and currently uses a Pilot Elite 95S EF that I gave him when he was accepted to university. However, I was disappointed to see that the Slim Mini is only available with a MF nib.

 

So I wonder, is it possible to find it anywhere with an EF nib? Or if not, is it compatible with any other Sailor pen, so that I could just swap the nibs?

Also, how does the MF compare to a normal japanese EF?

[Olya]

The Pro Gear Slim Mini has the same section, nib and feed as the Pro Gear Slim, 1911 Standard and the Promenade.

 

You should be able to switch between these models (though I can't guarantee this! I am very certain, however).

 

I can't say how the EF compares to the MF, as the finest I have is F, but the majority are M and FM/MF with the odd B.

 

Maybe your brother would like the MF or even an F?

Sometimes tastes also changes over the years...

 

The minis are btw only a bit shorter than their normal sized counterparts (Pro Gear Slim Minis and Pro Gear Minis), so if you can't quite find the desired nib size for the Slim Mini, maybe the PGS will be of equal satisfaction.

[Venemo]

Thank you Olya for the suggestions. I looked at the Sailor MF and EF in the Goulet Pens Nib Nook to compare to the Platinum and Pilot EF, and the Sailor MF doesn't look much broader than those. But I'm not completely sure if the nib nook is accurate because it shows that the Sailor EF is thinner than the Platinum UEF.

[Olya]

You're welcome.

 

I have no experience with the UEF nib or EF (of any maker tbh!), but I have read people's opinions/reviews, and sometimes a Sailor EF does turn out finer than a UEF.

 

The Japanese makers are very precise, but even with that precision and good quality control, you still get a margin, so any nib size can turn out broader/finer than intended.

 

The nib nook is a great place to start, also use google images to compare nib sizes, that's what I used to do when I wanted a new nib size (still do occasionally!), but even these comparisons aren't always super helpful.

 

Eg when I bought a Platinum 3776 Century with an M nib, I was surprised how much finer it was compared to my other Ms (even compared to Sailor & Pilot), so I thought the B nib would be great, also because everyone kept saying japanese = one smaller than Western and the Sailor B I tried back in the day wrote finer than my Pelikan M at the time... Looked at comparisons on google, instagram and other places, the B seemed good, ordered it and good God did that turn out to be a paintbrush!

I like the B nib, but for my taste it's a bit too broad so doesn't get much use....

 

Don't get too hung up over comparisons (though definitely invest time in them!), also always apply the golden rule of gift giving: suss out the victim subtly to see where to go. Eg get him into a talk about pens and how he likes the nib size you gave him prior and how useful it is and whether he's interested in a slightly broader nib.

 

Getting a gift-victim into conversation is always great and you'll be even smugger when the intended is super surprised about the gift later (at least I am!).

[A Smug Dill]

... how does the MF compare to a normal japanese EF?

 

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/343508-q-i-use-western-fine-nibs-what-is-the-japanese-equivalent/?p=4173821

 

Of course, there's going to be physical variation from one MF nib to the next (and that's also true for EF nibs). I have two Sailor Koshu-Inden pens in different colours, both of which (are only offered, and) came with MF nibs. One writes finer than the other consistently.