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In praise of Shiro-Tamenuri


Wadude

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For the longest time, I counted myself firmly as an adept of Aka-Tamenuri, red being the essence of old urushi art in Japan. I wrinkled up my nose in distaste of other gimmicky color combinations. “Midori-Tamenuri. Why not adding a Maki-e Pokemon then?”

 

And that was when the depths of my folly were revealed to me, as I had for the first time a Shiro-Tamenuri pen before my eyes. A friend’s pen.

 

Today, I received a lovely box from Nakaya, containing my first Shiro-Tamenuri pen. My lousy photos do not do it justice.


The top coating alternates: a chocolatey brown indoors, a sunset orange when in direct sunlight. A deep golden sea lies in its depths, emerging to the surface in the urushi fins. The nine-tailed fox glistens and hides, revealing itself only in parts. An elusive ember warms my finger as I write.

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Congratulations, it is breathtaking. I am fascinated by, among other things, the treatment of the section. Is that something you ordered custom? I ask because I didn't see anything like that on the Nakaya site. 

 

Speaking of which, I didn't see this finish anywhere on their site either, in this model pen or in any other. I guess I don't understand how ordering with them works. I'll have to look up that thread that was active recently about that process. I see from your location flag that you are living in Japan, were you able to interact with Nakaya in person?

 

Thanks for the photos. I'm afraid I may be sorely tempted to order something like it. There goes my savings plan. 

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Thanks so much! It’s one of the joys of this hobby: to have a community of people with whom to share a taste and an understanding of the beauty of writing instruments.

 

I wish I could claim to be the original creator of this design, but, alas, I just used the model below, albeit with the Dorsal Fin II form factor, and suggested some slight changes to the tame sukashi traces.

 

http://www.nakaya.org/en/review.aspx?id=352&type=body

 

As for the section, it was made of Shiro-Tamenuri with an Ishime-Kanshitsu treatment. It makes for a very pleasant grip: it’s not in any way sharp, but it doesn’t slide from your fingers like normal glossy urushi. I believe you can ask for the same treatment on any model if you e-mail Nakaya, both in the entire pen or just in the section.
 

Let me know if I can be of help.

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Thanks! It was originally to take about 15 months, but in the end they managed to make it in a little less than 8 months. I reckon they overestimate the queue time so as to avoid customer frustration. Not a bad strategy...

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What a truly outstanding pen!  Wonderful that you have it on the Dorsal Fin 2!

 

Shiro Tamenuri is one of my favorite Nakaya finishes.  I was sorry that Nakaya discontinued it a couple of years ago, but was thrilled when they announced a special limited production run late last year.  I am currently awaiting delivery of the two I ordered to go with my current group.

 

 

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That’s an awesome collection, Whichwatch. Thanks for sharing! It’s amazing to see how the same finish varies so much from pen to pen. It really makes every piece a unique work.

 

I remember there was an outcry, at the time, when they discontinued it. I wonder if they will consider reinstating regular Shiro-Tamenuri finishes after the success of last year’s limited run. On the other hand, there is already Toki-Tamenuri, whose differences to Shiro are subtle (albeit noticeable). I confess I do not find it as beautiful as Shiro, although I have also heard many people with the opposite opinion.

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I know I should be paying attention to the craftsmanship in the fox, but I keep going back to the section.  It never would have occurred to me to ask for ishime just for the section, but I think you nailed it.  Congratulations on a gorgeous pen!

 

What ink & paper are you using in those images?  It's a nice brown ink.

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Thanks, XYZZY! Here’s some more photos of the section. I was a bit concerned about that choice, since I had seen it done on a Cigar and the result was quite jarring. As it turns out, it worked very nicely on the DF II, maybe because the section is longer.

 

Ink is good ole Iroshizuku Yamaguri. The paper is Tomoe River 68g/m2.

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On 1/22/2021 at 10:17 AM, whichwatch said:

What a truly outstanding pen!  Wonderful that you have it on the Dorsal Fin 2!

 

Shiro Tamenuri is one of my favorite Nakaya finishes.  I was sorry that Nakaya discontinued it a couple of years ago, but was thrilled when they announced a special limited production run late last year.  I am currently awaiting delivery of the two I ordered to go with my current group.

 

 

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As Whichwatch knows, Shiro-Tamenuri is one of my favorite Nakaya finishes also.

Rationalizing pen and ink purchases since 1967.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Wadude, I would much rather see your pictures and share in your joy of a fantastic pen you have acquired than read the criticisms posted by "banned"

 

Yes, I said share in your joy.  I did not feel for one second that you were trying to reflect superiority in any way, and I'll bet 99% of the readers here feel pretty much the same.  

 

Please keep posting those great photos!

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Agreed with the post above, seems this particular user has come to post everywhere labeling Nakaya owners as stupid, and has subsequently been banned. Thanks for sharing your post Wadude, posts like this give me something to aspire towards one day :) 

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Looks like my previous post was removed, but here is the key sentiment: You have nothing to apologize for and no need for the post to be taken down. Everyone is entitled to their opinion but not everyone is capable of acting like a thoughtful, empathetic individual. The vast majority of people who read and participate in this site can appreciate the passion shared by fellow enthusiasts in a supporting and welcoming manner. 

If you want less blah, blah, blah and more pictures, follow me on Instagram!

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Gorgeous pens!  Elastic nib?  How’s it write? I don’t remember them being mentioned for how they perform compared to the soft nib or regular nib.

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Dear Friends,

 

I am deeply grateful for your kind and supportive comments.

 

This forum has always been a source of joy for me precisely because one can see pictures of gorgeous pens and, somehow, partake on the experience of other hobbyists (not to mention finding hitherto unbeknownst pen models, as I just found the Tohma pens on the other post by 25_15_3).

 

I was very surprised to read that someone could feel belittled by that. But then again I failed to account for the possibility that, as it often happens on the internet, the poster was not really aggrieved, but simply trying to have himself some fun by agitating others. 😂 I hope he did find some joy in it. We all need a little pleasure in life.

 

Thanks again!

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9 hours ago, GardenWeasel said:

Gorgeous pens!  Elastic nib?  How’s it write? I don’t remember them being mentioned for how they perform compared to the soft nib or regular nib.


Thanks, GardenWeasel. The pen has a soft medium nib with the elastic mod. It is a mix of wonderful and not-so-wonderful things. Nakaya's customization was outstanding on making a nib exactly to my preference: brush-like (it does give quite a bit of line variation, though not near as much as a proper flex nib), very bouncy. It dances as you write on paper. When the nib is primed, it writes just perfectly for wetness, with high precision and little feedback. The long section in the DFII model makes for a very comfortable grip.

 

When I first used the pen, it would suffer from hard starts and quite a bit of skipping. It would also dry out after about half an hour of use and become unforgiving with ink yield. I have substituted the Platinum converter for a syringe-filled cartridge, and that made a significant improvement. When using wet, saturated inks, it will function perfectly for long writing sessions. However, it still skips and dries out when using drier inks, especially when I flex. Once Japan lifts its current state of emergency, I will probably take it to one of Nakaya's pen clinics.

 

Here is a writing sample:

 

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I've  watched a video by the reviewer Fig boots one time where he mentioned that the Fins on these kind of pens are made entirely by Urushi. Is this True? Or Do they have to make   the Ebonite body take that  Fin shape as well ?

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