A comparison between Stipula 1.1 steel and 1.1 14k stub nibs

[RubenDh]

Hello everybody

 

With the steady rise of Stipula pens, such as the Goulet exclusive Ventidue, the new Adagio line and the recent additions to the Florentia line, the company seems to be gaining more traction recently. For those who are looking to get a Stipula pen, their nib options prove to be a real value proposition. That is, the company offers nibs in stainless steel, titanium, 14kt gold and 18kt gold. And, they provide a wide range of nib sizes, too. Additionally, some of their nibs are even made in-house! With such an array of options to choose from, it could be difficult to have an idea of the real differences between the performances of their nibs.

 

In this post, I aim to compare the two lowest priced stub nibs (the stainless steel and 14k versions) with each other. This topic could be useful for those looking to upgrade their Stipula nib game, or, for those who're looking at Stipula pens from retailers who provide different options on a pen.

 

The front-side

 

The nibs of both pens are marked beautifully, with the Stipula logo (the leaves) and the company name stamped on both nibs. The steel nib, though, has no indication of the size. It's a 1.1 stub!

 

(The pens, by the way, are an old style Stipula Etruria Ambre with the steel replacement stub, and the Stipula Etruria Alter Ego, with the 14k stub nib! All Stipula #6 sized nibs are friction fit and thus easy to swap around.)

 

 

The 14kt gold nib, which has been plated to look silvery, does include the size marking, at the base of the nib. It also includes the 14k 585 markings below the breather hole.

The markings on the gold nib are deeper and the engraving of the company name consists out of 1 deep line, while for the steel nib, it's made out of two less deep lines!

 

 

The tipping

 

If we take a closer look at the tipping, the differences begin to appear!

The steel nib has no tipping, while the 14kt does have a big tipping.

 

Here's a better look:

 

And here is the back-side. Note, as well, the differences in width of the tipping and the sharpness of the corners!

 

 

The 14kt stub really is more of an italic it seems, as the corners are more sharp. The rounded corners of the steel nib, along with the slightly thinner tipping, do make a big difference when writing. Here's what I mean:

 

 

 

 

It's clear that the 14k stub/italic has more pronounced line variation. Judging from the writing sample, the horizontal lines are thinner and the down strokes are wider!

An additional benefit of gold is the nice soft flex when applying pressure. This is easily spotted when comparing the loop figures with each other.

The steel nib does still offer a bit of flex too, though it feels much stiffer.

 

Conclusion

 

The steel nib writes wonderfully and has been a very lovely nib. Only now, I got an upgrade to the 14k stub, and there really are some big differences. The 14k gold stub/italics nibs are marked on the front, their corners are more sharply ground, the tipping is wider and the gold content provides more flexing. 

 

I love the additional characteristic, and I do recommend upgrading steel to 14k gold stubs!

Stipula also offers 18k gold nibs, but these are more expensive and harder to find. If I get my hands on one of those, I'll update this thread! 🙂 

 

Edit: the black ink in this comparison is Parker Quink

[JayHomeBody]

I love this, it's so interesting to see the difference in two same size nibs, just by what they're made of. I never realized that there *would* be a difference, since both are #6, 1.1 stub nibs. 

 

[TheDutchGuy]

Very interesting, thank you! That 14k 1.1 appears to be a really, really well-made nib. Inspiring.

[sansenri]

Thank you Ruben, that is a very nice comparison, and very clear photos.

I share your experience. As far as Stipula stubs are concerned I prefer the tipped ones.

Not that the steel are bad, in my experience Stipula steel nibs are very good, most of the time they work so well it's difficult to complain or want a gold nib instead, except... for that extra softness/springiness which is desirable.

So I agree that an upgrade when possible is not just for the "gold".

[sansenri]

PS btw thanks for showing the Ventidue Silver, very nice. A pity shipping + tax to Italy from Goulet would cost me a fortune...

The new Florentia are also very nice, I was keeping an eye on these already since a while and am very tempted...

[RubenDh]

 

14 hours ago, sansenri said:

The new Florentia are also very nice, I was keeping an eye on these already since a while and am very tempted...

 

I'm especially keeping an eye out for the newly released ebonite version (Montezumo). The contrasts of the traditional cap band and clip really go well with the shades of the ebonite. Here's a review in Italian, which includes some beautiful still pictures in the beginning of the video.

 

I love Stipula, but my wallet doesn't 😄

[sansenri]

nice, spotted this one too, I'm not 100% convinced of the ebonite shades, but I  can easily see it growing on me...

[Audrey T]

I appreciate all the careful detail -- very helpful. Thank you!

[Audrey T]

Could you recommend possible places to purchase a 14K Stipula stub replacement? Thank you for any help you can offer me!

[RubenDh]

12 hours ago, Audrey T said:

Could you recommend possible places to purchase a 14K Stipula stub replacement? Thank you for any help you can offer me!

 

I bought the replacement steel 1.1 at: http://www.giardino.it/accessori/stipula/ricambistipula_i.php

 

I'm happy with the product and shipping, so that's my recommendation.

[Audrey T]

Thank you, Ruben, that's very helpful.

[Detman101]

Oh wow, this is great info!
Thank you!