Sailor 1911m with an EF nib

[DanS]

I received my Sailor 1911M in the mail today and was quite excited about trying this pen out. All the members on this forum had nothing but good things to say about this pen so I figured I should give Sailor a try.

 

But after reading all the reviews and praise that others had for the 1911, I was a bit disappointed with my EF 1911. The nib is rather scratchy, much more so than my Lamy 2000 EF nib. The Sailor was even scratchier than my Pilot Elite, which I don't even use anymore because it was so scratchy.

 

I don't know if I got a dud or something, but overall, I was semi disappointed. semi-disappointed because despite being scratchy, the Sailor would never skip and would start right away even if i left the pen out with the cap off. I think I can live with the scratchiness if I excused the pen since it is an extra fine after all.

 

Is the scratchiness simply because the pen is an extra fine or because I got a dud? Any help is appreciated.

[Neill78]

I don't have a lot of experience with Japanese EFs but I doubt they will ever be "buttery smooth" like you may get with an M. You're likely to feel some "tooth" because the tip is so tiny that the quality of paper will affect it greatly. If you try it on some "hard" paper like Clairefontaine or Apica it may feel better.

 

I don't think you can compare it fairly to a Lamy 2000 EF (I have one -- like butter) because Lamy EFs are usually wider than most. Is the line from your Sailor similar/equivalent to your Lamy? If so, you may have a little nib problem (or not.. because nib sizes are so variable).

 

If you write straight lines in different directions, does the nib feel scratchier in a certain direction? Does the line width change depending on the direction you write? Your tines may be slightly out of alignment. I find EFs from any manufacturer tend to be a bit misaligned, and it's easy to put them out of alignment since they are so tiny. If this is the problem, it's an easy fix.. you can probably do it yourself.

 

Neill

[bitterwonder]

I have a Sailor 1911 broad and it is scratchy like an etching needle.

 

[bentnib]

I have a Sailor 1911 broad and it is scratchy like an etching needle.

 

Send it back!

 

My Sailor Sapporo broad is so smooth I can barely believe it - ditto with the 1911 medium - beautiful writing instruments ...

 

 

[bitterwonder]

The person who just bought his should return it if he is not happy.

Why I still have mine is a long story.

[Lloyd]

The person who just bought his should return it if he is not happy.

Why I still have mine is a long story.

Contact Houndstooth for service. They're excellent.

[Joe in Seattle]

It matters not what anyone else's experience is with a Sailor FP (mine were perfect). Your pen needs to be returned and/or exchanged for something satisfactory to you.

[ginigin]

I have a Sailor 1911M with XF nib and it's not scratchy at all - a lovely smooth nib with some responsiveness. So I'd say that maybe yours was either damaged or just not tested before selling. I've read other postings about smoothing with micro mesh and I tried that on a Wality that was an annoyance and it did help. If you got it new, I'd contact dealer to see what they suggest. Trying it yourself might mess up warranty. Another thought, do you write with a good deal of pressure. I have a light hand and use almost no pressure, so that could be a factor. Good luck. I absolutely love my Sailors. ;-)

[DanS]

Thanks for all your responses. I have thought about returning the pen, but it doesn't seem to be worth the trouble. I bought the pen from a seller in japan so i'm not too eager on shipping it back.

 

Contact Houndstooth for service. They're excellent.

 

as for the suggestion on contacting houndstooth, is he a member on this forum or is it a website. thanks for all the help.

[Lloyd]

For Sailor repairs, contact their repair facility:

SAILOR

Houndstooth Enterprises, Ltd.

130 Ralston Court

Fayetteville, GA 30215

pencenter2004@yahoo.com

(770)-716-0805

[Phthalo]

A Sailor MF (Medium Fine) would be more like a LAMY EF. Japanese nibs run much finer than other nibs.

 

You could also try posting a trade offer, so you could just swap the section of your pen with someone more local.

 

 

[Jopen]

I don't have a lot of experience with Japanese EFs but I doubt they will ever be "buttery smooth" like you may get with an M. You're likely to feel some "tooth" because the tip is so tiny that the quality of paper will affect it greatly. If you try it on some "hard" paper like Clairefontaine or Apica it may feel better.

 

I don't think you can compare it fairly to a Lamy 2000 EF (I have one -- like butter) because Lamy EFs are usually wider than most. Is the line from your Sailor similar/equivalent to your Lamy? If so, you may have a little nib problem (or not.. because nib sizes are so variable).

 

If you write straight lines in different directions, does the nib feel scratchier in a certain direction? Does the line width change depending on the direction you write? Your tines may be slightly out of alignment. I find EFs from any manufacturer tend to be a bit misaligned, and it's easy to put them out of alignment since they are so tiny. If this is the problem, it's an easy fix.. you can probably do it yourself.

 

Neill

 

I agree 100% here. There are two factors to be kept in mind.

First. The slightest misalignement in an EF nib causes the worst of the scratchiness. It has to be seen under magnification (15 to 30 X) to see what is really happening there. Once corrected (easy task), it turns into a smooth tip.

Second. The pressure appplied when writing. Those pinpiont nibs need all but the slightest pressure to write smoothly (pure physics).

Last... it would be very strange to have a faulty tip by such a maker, so probably I would stick to the first cause, almost 100% sure...

 

For a just correct tine alignement there are many people around that carry this task flawlessly, I myself, when receiving a FP, the first thing is just try it with the fingertip, second a 30X loupe and almost all are realigned in some extent before sniffing any ink... There are exceptions, but I do not accept writing with scratchy nibs (and I use a lot of EF's).

 

Keep us informed about your experiences, probably you will be in love with your realigned nib, it will feel as a completely different one ...

[Bob Cratchet]

I received my Sailor 1911M in the mail today and was quite excited about trying this pen out. All the members on this forum had nothing but good things to say about this pen so I figured I should give Sailor a try.

 

But after reading all the reviews and praise that others had for the 1911, I was a bit disappointed with my EF 1911. The nib is rather scratchy, much more so than my Lamy 2000 EF nib. The Sailor was even scratchier than my Pilot Elite, which I don't even use anymore because it was so scratchy.

 

I don't know if I got a dud or something, but overall, I was semi disappointed. semi-disappointed because despite being scratchy, the Sailor would never skip and would start right away even if i left the pen out with the cap off. I think I can live with the scratchiness if I excused the pen since it is an extra fine after all.

 

Is the scratchiness simply because the pen is an extra fine or because I got a dud? Any help is appreciated.

 

I have 2 Sailor pens, a 1911 with a fine nib, and a Pro Gear, also with a fine nib, When I first got the 1911 I was very disapointed with it feeling that it was scratchy and basicaly looked loke cheap plastic, after having it on my desk in a mug, and useing it for phone notes, I slowly began to like it, I had always gone for a Medium or fine in european nibs, and felt that this was just too fine, but to me now, I think that this is the nib for me, and I did THINK of trying the ef nib for my next Sailor, but I chickened out, and bought another fine, I also bought a bottle oth Sailor "Kiwaguro" carbon black ink, and tried the new PG with a fill of my other inks, then with the Kiwaguro ink, and the Kiwaguro does offer a slight lubricating property, I feel the differance, this ink is however 2 times the price of a conventinal ink, But I do like it, with its smell of Coal!

Bob

[Lloyd]

Last... it would be very strange to have a faulty tip by such a maker, so probably I would stick to the first cause, almost 100% sure...

I haven't tried more than 6 of these and more than half had scratchy nibs. I used Houndstooth for one, returned two, and sold the rest. The only exceptionally smooth ones I've used were a 1911M with a medium nib and a 1911 with an XF nib. I've tried, and had issues with, F, MF and M 1911 nibs (all new pens, by the way).

[Ledjeffelin]

My experience with them was they will charge for repairs on pens purchased outside the USA. They were very pleasant to deal with and I have heard nothing but good things about the quality of their work.

 

I have to add that every one of the 6 or so Sailors I have owned have been 100% perfect out of the box. None have been EF nibs though.

 

 

 

For Sailor repairs, contact their repair facility:

SAILOR

Houndstooth Enterprises, Ltd.

130 Ralston Court

Fayetteville, GA 30215

pencenter2004@yahoo.com

(770)-716-0805

Edited February 5, 2009 by Ledjeffelin

[RevAaron]

No EF or even EEF need be scratchy unless you're using excessive pressure. If it's still scratchy even when not bearing down too heavily there is something wrong with the pen. Send it back for a return or refund. A lot of sellers in this case are happy to dip the pen they're swapping it with to make sure it is smooth before they send it out.

[Lloyd]

My experience with them was they will charge for repairs on pens purchased outside the USA. They were very pleasant to deal with and I have heard nothing but good things about the quality of their work.

They adjusted the nib of my full-sized Profit (i.e. Asian 1911) for free.

[Siv]

I think I've had 7 or 8 1911/Pro Gears and all have had excellent smooth nibs. The only Sailor bugbear I have is the B Nagi Togi on my Hanzi LE. I find this particularly annoying as it's probably the only Sailor I want to keep!

[DanS]

thanks so much for all your replies. as said before, i am a bit disappointed, but not too much.

 

if you must know, i've actually got the pen to write a bit smoother by rubbing the nib down with some micro mesh. It's much better than before, but it's no Lamy 2000, that's for sure. At the moment, I'm content with the pen, just not blown away.

 

Thanks again for all your responses and help.

[Shamouti]

thanks so much for all your replies. as said before, i am a bit disappointed, but not too much.

 

if you must know, i've actually got the pen to write a bit smoother by rubbing the nib down with some micro mesh. It's much better than before, but it's no Lamy 2000, that's for sure. At the moment, I'm content with the pen, just not blown away.

 

Thanks again for all your responses and help.

 

Ah, very good!

 

Shamouti