Jinhao Long March Commemorative Pen

[lightweaver]

Once Upon A Time…

 

I’ve been wanting to write a review for some time, but wanted to wait until the right pen came along. I didn’t want to add to something already there. So now I have the pen, I can do the review!

 

I must confess, I’m rarely struck by a pen that I must have it, but when I saw this one, I bought it straight away, despite the fact it wasn’t was I was searching for at the time. I purchased it through e-bay from seller Comeon1788, whose service has been very professional.

 

First Impressions: 5/5

 

Jinhao certainly know how to package a pen. It comes in a rather nice wooden box engraved with images of the long march. Inside is a posh little booklet and the pen sits nicely on a felt base. Very well presented.

The pen itself has a look of quality that defies the price. Made of Black resin with gold plate decorations, it is a well made piece and feels solidly made. The cap has a poem engraved in gold lettering and screws nicely onto the pen. A very impressive beginning, though I’d been here before with Duke, so I took the plunge to see if it performed as well as it looked, or if I would be disappointed like I had so many times before.

 

Handling: 4/5

 

This is a cheap pen, but it doesn’t feel like a cheap pen. It feels reliably solid. It has a fair bit of heft to it, weighing much heavier than my Parker 51, and about the same as the Duke Carbon Fibre, yet I wouldn’t say it was too heavy for prolonged use.

The pen is 124mm unposted and nicely balanced too. Posted, the pen is 162mm, though I found that a bit unwieldy, but since I don’t post my pens anyway, it wasn’t an issue. Overall a nice pen to hold.

 

Performance: 4/5

 

This was the part I was dreading, yet I was pleasantly surprised. Out of the box this pen was buttery smooth, laying down a nice wet line. The nib glides across the page and is a delight to write with. The only drawback is that the nib does get gradually drier with prolonged use, but I use this as a minutes pen in meetings, so it rarely becomes an issue. It does tend to drink like a fish though, so refilling happens at least weekly.

 

In conclusion…

 

I’ve had this pen for a couple of months now and can honestly say I love writing with it. My only complaint is that it comes with a medium nib, and I would prefer a fine, but I can live with it

 

I use this as my main pen at work, and it gets a few admiring glances at meetings. I love the fact that it stands out, yet does so without being too gaudy or ostentatious. There’s just something special and understated about it. I must admit, it was a relief to find a Chinese pen that wrote this well. Very happy chap indeed.

[lightweaver]

For some reason, it's added the same picture twice. (Though it could easily have been me!!) Here's the extra one:-

[jd50ae]

People are really missing out on this line of pens. I have 4 and all are great writers.

[tipstricks]

Thank you for your review, lightweaver. It's a lot of time I'm pointing this FP. Is it possible have a close-up shot of the nib?

[Deca]

Looking forward to their Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution commemorative pens.

Maybe a Gang of Four FP, RB, BP and pencil set.

Edited November 26, 2007 by Deca

[LapsangS]

Looking forward to their Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution commemorative pens.

Maybe a Gang of Four FP, RB, BP and pencil set.

 

:roflmho:

 

They have already made a pen commemorating the Beijing 2008 Olympics

 

Beijing 2008 Olympic Torch Pen

 

Edited November 26, 2007 by LapsangS

[lightweaver]

Is it possible have a close-up shot of the nib?

 

Here it is. Sorry for the slightly out of focus pic!

[RemyF]

I didn't knew this brand it seems they do really nice pens for unbeatable prices.

 

Will take a closer look at them.

 

By the way this fountain pen looks great !

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for the link Lapsangs the pen look great.

 

I just bought one.

Edited November 29, 2007 by RemyF

[Ray-Vigo]

Looking forward to their Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution commemorative pens.

Maybe a Gang of Four FP, RB, BP and pencil set.

 

 

Nice- Mao would be proud of a nice, capitalist pen selling endeavor coming from his communist exploits. :

Edited November 29, 2007 by Ray-Vigo

[greencobra]

What an interesting pen. I just picked up one on his buy it now feature for 15 bucks, shipping was 13 to the States from China. First time my shipping was almost 50% of the pen cost.