Crónicas Estilográficas

At the Museum (II)

2012-02-10T21:37:00.007+09:00

(As seen at the Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Modern Literature).

The pens I am showing today belonged to INOUE Yasushi (井上靖, 1907 – 1991). These are two Montblanc 146 from different times. The band aid on one of them shows that the writer really worked with it and that he was not concerned about the looks of the pen. I also had the chance to test this pen’s writing –really smooth, probably after years of use. It is probably a B point, which contradicts the idea of Japanese needing fine points to write very complex ideograms.

Inoue, like many other Japanese, preferred German brands over the rest, Japanese or not. This exhibit in Yokohama indeed showed that.

(Sailor Profit Realo – Athena Sepia)

Bruno Taut
February 7th, 2012
[labels: Montblanc, estilofilia, Japón]

100 g/sq m

2012-02-09T09:43:00.008+09:00

I had this text pending for some time. Hong-Kong-based company Daycraft had sent me a sample of its very appealing line of notebooks for me to enjoy and analyze. Travels and other circumstances kept me away from them and only now I could put my hands on them

The one under analysis today is the model named Daycraft Illusions Notebook—an A5 size with white 100g/sq m lined paper. Its 88 sheets (176 pages) are securely sewed together and are attached to a very colorful flexible cover that includes a pocket on the back.

The psychodelic cover.

But how does this heavy paper react to fountain pens? Well but not exceedingly well. We could think that a density of 100 g/sq m would be a good argument for an excellent performance, but density is not everything. The coating of the paper is indeed a very important element.

The reaction of the paper to the ink is based on two factors: evaporation and absorption. The ink must either be absorbed by the paper or, if kept over the paper, should lose its solvents, mostly water, by evaporation. Then, a very absorbent paper needs to be think and heavy to prevent the ink from bleeding to the opposite page. But in very glossy, non-absorbing papers, the problem is a very long drying time with the risk of smearing.

On a side note, I will add that the absorbed ink also loses its solvents through evaporation, but in this situation the surface exposed is much bigger and the evaporation is quicker.

Six pens and five inks. Only one--the very wet Sailor Fude pen--creates a problem.

Bleed through of a very wet Sailor Fude pen with Waterman South Sea Blue ink.

The 100 g/sq m paper by Daycraft is very absorbing and creates no problem in drying and smearing. But wet inks and nibs do bleed through it, although this is not an issue for the vast majority of nibs.

Final verdict: Nice looking notebook. Heavy and good quality paper. However, wet nibs and inks can create minor problems.

(Sailor Profit Realo – Athena Sepia)

Bruno Taut
February 7th, 2012
[labels: papelería, Daycraft]

At the Museum (I)

2012-02-07T05:29:00.006+09:00

The Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Modern Literature holds these days an original exhibit on Writers and Their Pens (from January 14th to February 26th). It is focused mostly on Japanese writers active on the second half of the twentieth century, albeit with some exceptions such as the very notable of SOSEKI Natsume (1867-1916).

Indeed, such a museum is a museum of fetishes. What truly matters of a writer is the final work. However, it is also fair to wonder how the tool would affect the work of art—would Tanizaki have written In Praise of Shadows ((陰翳礼讃, In'ei Raisan) on a keyboard? I guess not. “Elegance is frigid”, he said…

All stylophiles are fetishists. We value the tool over its actual function. What about writers themselves? Are they fetishists or mere users? An exhibit like this helps us to understand this question, no matter how irrelevant it might be to appreciate their work.

This is the first chronicle on some of the pens I had the chance to see and feel at the Museum.

Today I am showing this nice leather pen holder that belonged to SATOMI Ton (1888-1983). It was bought from the very prestigious shop of T. Tanizawa in Ginza, Tokyo. Inside, a Pelikan 400.

My thanks to Mr Niikura and Mr. Tarusawa, and to Mr. Kibo, chairman of the Museum.

(Pilot Super Ultra 500 – Athena Sepia)

Bruno Taut
February 6th, 2012
[labels: Pelikan, estilofilia, Japón]

Fora

2012-02-03T23:57:00.005+09:00

Blogs and fora are the main channels that keep any cyber-community connected. Both allow, although in different degrees, the exchange of information. Blogs like this one have obvious authors and that exchange of information is mostly unidirectional—from the author to the readers; but there is some room, through comments, for some bidirectional exchange. But it is on fora where most of discussions and most information are shared.

Now, we wanted to believe that fora are free and open to accept any discussion, but it is actually not like that. After all, fora belong to some people who have their own legitimate interests, and sooner or later, forum administrators show them. The temptation of limiting —censoring is the unpleasant way to say it— the expression of ideas in order to protect those interests is hard to avoid. Fora become an extension of their business activities and there are certain limits not to be trespassed… But some of them can become ridiculous and question the role of the forum as an agora to learn.

On what grounds can an honest question on the safety of Noodler’s Baystate Blue be banned? Why does questioning the Japanese origin of Danitrio make the moderator –and Danitrio salesman— lock the thread? Why did asking what a fake is trigger bitter responses from a forum administrator?

All these forum policies and all those reactions of forum administrators reveal agendas and interests. And even if legitimate, they are annoying and misleading. Nobody asked us to participate on those fora, and we all agreed on abiding by some rules the forum organizer set in the beginning; and, by the same token, we could quit and leave any time. However, fora need participants and participants need places to discuss and learn.

The bottom line might be not to be misled by the apparent freedom of fora—they are not free.

(Pilot Super Ultra 500 – Athena Sepia)

Bruno Taut
February 1st, 2012
[labels: fora, Mercado, metabitácora]

Cross-music

2012-01-31T01:23:00.006+09:00

The cross-music nib is one of the specialty nibs created by nibmeister Nagahara. Being a cross nib means that it is composed by two overlapping nibs. Therefore, it has four tines and two slits, and the space between the nibs acts as an additional reservoir of ink. The primary result is a fairly wet nib with a broad line… if so we wanted.

The two-fold cross-music nib on the left and a fude nib (55 degrees) on the right. The fude nib is not tipped.

The second characteristic of the cross-music is the way the point is cut: the vertical lines are very fine, and the horizontal strokes are very broad. However, grabbing the pen at a high angle with respect to the paper generates a fine line drawn only by the upper nib of the set.

Steel fude nib on the left, and gold cross-music on the right.

This way of writing is very similar to that of fude nibs, also made by Sailor, and by some other Asian brands. The problem is the price difference between them.

Writing samples. The color rendition of the scanned page is very inaccurate. The angles shown on the image are those between pen and paper.

Needless to say, the cross-music nib is a lot more complex than any fude, and its price reflects this in a quite dramatic way. For similar looking pens –Sailor’s Profit in senior size, 21 K gold nibs, cartridge-converter filling system—the cross-music nib has an overprice of JPY 15000: JPY 50000 for the cross-music, and JPY 35000 for the naginata fude. And if we were interested mostly on the function, there are even cheaper options: fude pens by Sailor with steel nibs bended at angles of 40 or 55 degrees are available for only JPY 1000.

The cross-music nib in a Profit Realo, on top, and, on bottom, a Fude pen (55 degrees) in a balance model by Sailor.

Chasing the nib over the pen has some interesting consequences. The cross-music nib, though, is truly exciting.

(Sailor ふでDEまんねん, 40 degrees – Waterman South Sea Blue)

Bruno Taut
January 29, 2012
[etiquetas: plumín, Sailor]

Metablog

2012-01-27T02:29:00.007+09:00

About what you wanted to learn, start teaching. Surely I can’t teach much, but this old academic sentence describes my intention when I started this blog. I wanted to share experiences and I wanted to learn about fountain pens, and I indeed succeeded—I shared and I learned.

But this blog has its own life. I started writing about Japanese pens out of simple physical proximity, and then I realized the limited information available on them. And suddenly these chronicles became specialized in mannenhitsu, 万年筆,—it was easier to say something original about Japanese Swan or SSS than about Sheaffer, for instance.

A Japanese Swan from the 1910s.

The blog’s life is also determined by those who visit and even read these texts, and the reactions they inspire. Not many comments I receive, and then I turned my eyes to secondary sources of information—number and origin of the hits. Some texts I never thought as truly interesting became very popular; and, reversely, some contributions about which I felt particularly happy barely received any attention. Among the first, the text on the new line of Platinum inks is a perfect example: I had written it about two weeks before I published it. Due to some personal constraints I could not work on these pages for some time and publishing that text was a quick way to say I was still active. Quick and efficient, as the number of hits increased sharply.

Although not an exotic pen, little information can be found online about the brand Athena.

Among the second, I am particularly happy about those texts on the Presidente and Joker pens. nothing seemed to be known on their Japanese origin, and I think my friends and I made some modest but original contributions.

But such is life. At the end, we write mostly for ourselves, and any feedback is a nice surprise. Then, I will continue writing as long as I enjoy it.

With thanks to all those who showed up on these chronicles: Leigh, Kostas, Anele, Kinno, Readymade, Peninkcillin, Merino, pitquim, La Tortuga Vacumática, Julie, Kurazaybo, Nina, Bleubug, Kugel149, MANC... And to all those friends who shared their knowledge and pens with me.

(Waterman, lever filler, made in Canada – Sailor Hiroko’s Green)

Bruno Taut
January 22nd, 2012
[labels: metabitácora]

Second Chance

2012-01-19T23:39:00.012+09:00

Even though a number of pens go through some changes over their production years, few of them see re-editions after having been discontinued. Now, how faithful to the original these re-editions are is a different point—little resemblance there seems to be between the modern Parker Duofolds and those from the 1920s and 1930s, for instance. Another example was the Parker 100 trying to re-create the venerable Parker 51.

Myu-701 on the top, and M90 on the bottom.

The Pilot M90 followed this pattern as a re-issue of the iconic Myu-701 from the 1970s. In 2008, on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the company, 9000 units were released. Then, how do both pens compare?

M90 on the top, and Myu-701 on the bottom.

There are indeed some differences between these two models, but the overall aspect of the newer model is remarkably similar to the original. Other than the small size variations, they differ on the following details:

There are also some differences on the feeds. M90 on the left, Myu on the right.

Nib. Both pens implement integrated steel nibs. However, those on the M90 are springier than those of the Myu. Pilot, on its catalog, called these M90 nibs as “soft” (SF and SM). Only two points were available on this pen, F and M, versus the three points of the Myu.

M90 on the left, Myu on the right.

Cap jewel. TheM90 sports and bright blue jewel that gives this pen a fancier look. This stone is often the bigger source of disappointment among those users who got the M90 as a replacement for the harder to find Myu.

The blue jewel belongs to the newer M90. The Myu-701 has a softer look.

Section clutch and central ring. As was described on the review of the Myu-701, one of the weak points of the original pen laid on the central ring. Occasionally, at opening the barrel, the ring would unscrew from the section leaving the clutch exposed. The newer M90 solved this problem—now the clutch is integrated in the ring, and the ring cannot be removed –not easily, at least— from the section. The price for this is a significant increase in the weight of the pen.

Close-up of the central rings, with the barrels slightly off. That of the M90, on the left, is wider and thicker, and integrates the clutch. On the Myu, on the right, the clutch is attached to the section. The production dates are clearly visible: August 2008 for the M90, December 1980 for the Myu.

The new design of the ring also prevents the usual scratches on section and barrel caused by the cap. On the M90, the clutch secures the cap on both closed and posted configurations. On the Myu, the posted configuration relied solely on the tight fit between barrel and cap and was responsible for those scratches.

M90 on the top. It cost JPY 12000 (without taxes) in 2008. Myu-701 on the bottom. It still has the price sticker--JPY 3500 (without taxes) in 1980.

Clip. The M90 clip, while preserving the basic design of the Myu, is longer and has a clear arc shape. This causes to be stiffer, and makes the pen to look bigger. The new clip is subtly engraved with the model name.

The rest of features are mostly the same, including the filling system by Pilot proprietary cartridges and by the converter CON-20, the only one fitting inside the sections of these two pens.

These are their dimensions

................................................Myu-701...............M90
Diameter:..................................11 mm...............12 mm
Length capped:......................119 mm..............119 mm
Length open:..........................105 mm..............105 mm
Length posted:.......................143 mm..............140 mm
Dry weight with CON-20:.........20.5 g.................26.3 g

The overall impression is that Pilot took benefit of this second chance to improve the weak points of the original Myu-701, mostly on the central ring and the clutch. These improvements, however, had some cost and the question of whether the M90 is better of worse than the Myu-701 remains open in many a forum.

(Pilot Prera, M nib, eyedropper – Senator Regent Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
January 18th, 2011
[labels: Pilot]

Family Portrait (III)

2012-01-18T02:21:00.005+09:00

The following pictures might very well summarize the connection between these pens from East and West… or might them all be Eastern pens. Joker, Presidente, Platinum... all made by Nakaya Seisakusho.

Two Platinum, one Joker, three Presidentes.

Their nibs...

I will note that the unit I have of the Platinum Honest 66 is in very bad condition. It even lacks the original nib and is not usable! So, I am on the hunt for unit in better shape.

...and their caps.

My thanks to my friend Kostas K.

(Pilot Myu 701 – Pilot blue, cartridge)

Bruno Taut
January 16th, 2011
[labels: Presidente, Joker, Platinum, Japón, España]

701

2012-01-13T00:01:00.015+09:00

Para Juanjo, por todo lo que nos dejamos en el tintero.

Pen review. Pilot Myu 701 (M-350SS)

Little have I said after almost 200 chronicles about one of the most popular Japanese pens—the Pilot Myu 701. On a personal note I can say that the Pilot Myu was responsible for my renewed interest on fountain pens. I was already in Japan and an Internet search produced one of the very few websites with information in English on Japanese pens and, more in particular, this pen. Its online price, though, looked totally unreasonable, but being in Japan I thought I could find it for much less. For once, I was right. That was in 2004. Since then, a number of things have changed and there is a lot more information on Japanese pens. The invisible hand of the market, on its side, did its share to reduce the price of a very common pen.

The Pilot Myu was launched in 1971 and was clearly inspired on the short lived Parker T1 for its basic feature: the integrated nib. On the other hand, this is a pocket pen, a concept created in 1964 and adopted by Pilot in 1968. It was on production until 1980. There existed three basic variations—the most common in plain steel shown on this chronicle; another in black stripes; and the very rare with non-colored stripes.

Interestingly enough, this pen deserves just one short sentence, and no picture, on Lambrou’s book Fountain Pens of the World despite being well known outside Japan and having become an icon. Arguably, this pen might be responsible for the popularity of affordable Japanese pens outside Japan. It certainly proves that Japanese pens are a lot more than just those decorated with maki-e and urushi techniques.

1. Appearance and design. (8.0/10)
I will start by admitting that I am positively biased towards this pen. I find its clean lines very attractive and being a pocket pen only adds value to it. However, I reckon that some users (strongly) dislike metallic gripping sections. This pen is clearly not for them.

Regarding the design, I am prompt to admit this pen has several weak points. The main is directly associated to its streamlined look—the integration of nib and section makes the pen very vulnerable to defects and accidents affecting the nib as there is no actual replacement for the nib. This is the inherent price to pay for pens like this.

NOt so inherent are other elements. The beautifully looking clip is not spring-loaded and cannot be used with thick fabrics. Some would say that this was a pocket pen and, therefore, this pen was intended to be carried in shirt pocket, and this purpose is perfectly suited with this clip.

On this picture, both threads of the central ring are loose. Only one, that on the right, should open when inking the pen with anew cartridge or to access the converter.

A third weak point is the central ring. Section and barrel are hold together by this two-threaded ring. When opening the pen, only the barrel thread should come off. However, at times it is that in the section that comes off, and that exposes the spring loaded clutch —a very subtle detail— that secures the cap when closed.

These defects, though, do not affect the performance of the pen.

The central ring, completely disassembled from the section (top left) and from the barrel (bottom right). The clutch to secure the cap can be seen on the section.

2. Construction and quality. (9.0/10)
This pen is certainly well made. It is solid and has stood rough treatment in pockets and backpacks over the years. The fit between barrel and cap, essential for the writing comfort of a pocket pen, is still perfect. On the negative side, I will note that the barrel has become slightly scratched by the cap by the repeated process of posting the pen.

3. Weight and dimensions. (9.5/10)
This pen is a bit on the heavy side, but its very correct balance (55% to the tip-45% to the top, posted) makes it for its ease of use. And indeed this pen is a very good writer.

Diameter: 11 mm.
Length capped: 119 mm.
Length open: 105 mm.
Length posted: 143 mm.
Weight: 19.4 g. (inked, full cartridge)
Center of gravity: at 78 mm from the tip, posted.

4. Nib and writing performance. (8.0/10)
This pen is equipped with a very rigid nib made of steel. Its F point is very smooth despite being on the dry side. However, the ink flow is perfectly constant and never skips a bit. This Pilot is, in my opinion, a basic functional pen and this nib is accordingly reliable even if uneventful beyond its looks.

These pens had three nib point options: F, FM, and M. The second of them, though, is very rare.

Nib and feed of two Pilot Myu with points F (back) and M (front).

5. Filling system and maintenance. (8.5/10)
This is a Pilot-proprietary cartridge-converter pen, and of all the different converters of the company, only the bladder-type CON-20 actually fits in this pen.

Cleaning wise, this is not a difficult pen, as is the case with most cartridge-converters. On this pen, though, removing the feed is not straight-forward and the basic cleaning option is simply flushing some water through the section.

Minor corrections of ink flow are harder and riskier to carry out on this pen than in more standard pens, i. e. with non-integrated nibs. But this is hardly a real need given good quality control of these pens.

6. Cost and value. (8.5/10)
This pen cost JPY 3500 when it was marketed in the 1970s. The contemporary Capless (1971), on its side, was JPY 4000, and the fancier black stripped Myu (model M-500BS), JPY 5000. These relative costs make some sense after all—the Capless is a more sophisticated pen and includes a 14 K gold nib. The Myu was a more basic tool and was price accordingly. And, therefore, there is a steep overprice for the more appealing looks of the black stripped pen.

My grades reflect the current pricing in Japan, where the plain steel Myu is relatively easy to find.

7. Conclusion. (51.5/60 = 86/100)
Writing this review was a struggle between my high appreciation for this pen and the actual knowledge of its weak points, and the final score seems to reflect the first rather than the second. Nonetheless, I hope I had described the defects I have seen in this pen over the years of use, which, at the same time, do not compromise it very good performance.

(Pilot Myu – Pilot blue, cartridge)

Bruno Taut
January 11th, 2012
[etiquetas: Pilot, Japón]

Sailor's Inlaid Nib

2012-01-08T20:50:00.006+09:00

Among all the pocket pens made by Sailor I have shown there are some with a special interest. One of them was the already described steel pen with a Swiss, or wherever, gold nib. Another is this one with inlaid nib.

Another example of a pocket pen.

This is a typical formal looking pen in black and gold. Re filling system, there is nothing remarkable—nominally a cartridge-converter that actually is a cartridge-only pen. The 14 K gold nib on this pen is inlaid on the section and its shape resembles that of the accordion filler by Pilot (Super 500 G)—both nibs are formed by almost flat sections. The Sailor’s looks less extreme that the Pilot’s, and it is certainly smaller. On the more positive side, this Sailor nib is nicely springy, and provides what Japanese aficionados call a “soft touch”.

On the left, the Pilot Super 500 G; on the right, the Sailor's pocket pen with a similar looking nib.

These are the dimensions of the pen:

Diameter: 12 mm
Length closed: 121 mm
Length open: 104 mm
Length posted: 139 mm
Weight: 12.5 g

The section of the pen is engraved with a subtle sign saying 301. I do not know what this figure might mean. If a date stamp, it could be March of Heisei year 1 (1989), which seems a bit too late for a pen like this. The other option, January of Showa 30 (1956), is far too early for a pocket pen. My best guess is that this pen is from the 1970s.

(Sailor, 14 K gold inlaid nib – Montblanc Irish Green)

Bruno Taut
January 7th, 2012
[labels: Sailor, plumín]

Family Portrait (II)

2012-01-05T00:54:00.008+09:00

The Super range of fountain pens was the Pilot’s workhorse between mid 1950s and early 1960s. They arrived to replace the R models —lever fillers— in the market since the end of the war—if not before. Super pens were phased out by the first cartridge-converter pens by Pilot in the early 1960—those using the short-lived double-spare type of cartridges.

A selection of Super pens in black. They were also available in a number of colors.

Most of these pens were equipped with nail-type nibs, albeit there are a couple of exceptions about which I will speak later on. However, the leading characteristic of these pens was the filling system—the quarter-switch device, called “hose system” in Japan. It is composed of a rubber sac covered by a metal sheath inside which there is a pressing plate operated by a small lever located on the top of the sheath. Small Super models, though, could not fit this system inside and implemented a much simpler pressing plate in the fashion of a traditional aerometric device.

The three filling systems on Super pens: accordion (bellows) on the top, quarter-switch on the middle, and the more simple pressure bar on the bottom.

As for the nib materials, in my experience, the vast majority of them were made of 14 K gold. The exceptions were the cheapest models –the Super 50, for instance—, whose nibs were made of gold plated steel. And regarding the points, although most of those available today in the second hand market were rigid Fs, there existed more exciting nibs including flexible falcon and three-tined music nibs.

Four examples of nail-type nibs on Super pens. The first and the third from the left are made of steel.

The exceptions to those characteristics were two pens that I have already described on these chronicles—the accordion filler Super 500G and the Super Ultra 500, which implement inlaid nibs. Actually, the later, as the top of the line model, is a very unique model that deserves a chronicle for itself.

(Pilot Custom 74, music nib – Pilot Iroshizuku Sho-ro)

Bruno Taut
January 3-4th, 2011
[etiquetas: Pilot]

Evolution

2011-12-31T23:58:00.007+09:00

Let us remember now that all the Presidente pens I have seen were aerometric fillers. And they were based on the first cartridge pens ever made in Japan—the Platinum Honest 60 and its later evolution the Honest 66.

Two Presidentes.

Platinum Honest 66, on the back, and Honest 60 on the front.

How do those filling structures compare?

On the top, a Platinum Honest 60 with its Honest cartridge. On the bottom a Presidente with the squeezer removed from the section.

A further step in disassembling the pens. Again, the Platinum pen on the top, and the self-filling Presidente on the bottom.

The answer is both easy and revealing. On two of the Presidente pens, the squeezer device can easily be removed from the pen, and, inside, the breathing tube remains attached to the feed. The interesting detail is that these squeezers could work as converters on the Platinum Honest 60 and 66 pens. On these, the breathing tube is much shorter and is covered by the nipple where the cartridge is attached. This makes perfect sense—this tube is never strong enough to open the cartridge. Its shorter length, however, makes the filling system less efficient. On the opposite direction, the Platinum Honest cartridge could be used on the Presidentes if the breathing tube were removed, which is not difficult to do.

On the left, the Platinum Honest cartridge; on the right, the squeezer of one of the Presidente pens.

All this illustrates the logical evolution of filling systems. Some sources (Ron Dutcher, Kamakura Pens) speak of a bulb filler Platinum Honest in 1955. However, in view of the similarities among the Presidentes and Honest pens, I think of the Spanish brand pens as the early self-filling versions of the Japanese models.

(Athena Basic Line – Sailor Yama-dori)

Bruno Taut
December 31st, 2011
[etiquetas: Presidente, Platinum, conversor, soluciones técnicas]

Family Portrait (I)

2011-12-29T23:56:00.008+09:00

My first chronicle was entitled Metamorfosis, and it was about the internal change many of us, stylophiles, go through when we acquire a passion like this. It does not come without mixed feelings and I have already spoken about how many pen aficionados insist in being users over collectors … if not hoarders! On my side, I did give up some time ago—I am a collector, even if modest, and a hoarder.

Small family portrait: Four hoshiawase pens.

Then, the following family picture makes some sense. It displays my modest collection of Pilot hoshiawase pens from the 1920s. All four of them are late models, from between 1926 and 1928.

The latest arrival dated from August 1927. It has a 14 K gold nib in size 3, and the hard rubber body is chased. Its overall condition is fairly good.

The latest arrival.

These are its dimensions:
Diameter: 12 mm.
Length capped: 122 mm.
Length uncapped: 117 mm.
Length posted: 155 mm.
Weight: 12 g.

The hoshiawase system was finally dropped because it never worked well enough in its purpose to seal the ink deposit. Therefore, its interest nowadays lies more in its originality and rarity than on the actual functionality of these pens. But the temptation to use them is always present. How would the experience of writing with such a pen be?

(Sailor Profit Junior – Pilot Iroshizuku Yama-budo)

Bruno Taut
December 29th, 2011
[labels: Pilot, estilofilia]

Swiss Bank

2011-12-28T06:17:00.010+09:00

On my previous chronicle I mentioned the existence of this Sailor’s nib engraved with the rather cryptic text “Gold from the Swiss Bank”. Nibs like this are made of 14 K gold and were present in a number of pens, both in pocket and full sizes.

The Swiss Bank gold.

But what about this reference to banks in Switzerland or, better, THE Swiss Bank? Does it account for any actual origin of the gold or was it a mere cosmetic detail or a marketing trick?

This inscription could also be seen on older Sailor pens (I, II), probably from the 1970s, whose nibs were very different to the one here shown. As for this particular one, in this original shape, dating it should not be difficult. It is engraved with what looks like a date: 902. It could correspond to September of Heisei year 2, which corresponds to 1990. Although a bit late for pocket pens, it might still be reasonable.

Where did this white gold come from?

A similar nib is present on this other pen, made of steel with black stripes. This time, the nib is made of 18 K white gold and has no engraving stating the origin of the gold. It seems to be dated in 610, which could correspond to June 1998 (Heisei 10). However, these two pens share an air of familiarity that suggest a common origin.

These are the pen dimensions:

Pocket pen. Catalog number 11-0408 220. 14 K gold nib:
Diameter: 12 mm.
Length capped: 120 mm.
Length uncapped: 102 mm.
Length posted: 141 mm.
Weight: 17 g.

Full size pen. Catalog number 11-0604 220. 18 K white gold nib:
Diameter: 11 mm.
Length capped: 136 mm.
Length uncapped: 121 mm.
Length posted: 150 mm.
Weight: 15 g.

(Pilot Custom 74 with music nib – Pilot Iroshizuku Sho-ro)

Bruno Taut
December 27th, 2011)
[etiquetas: plumín, Sailor]

Sailor's Pockets

2011-12-24T00:24:00.008+09:00

Sailor’s approach to pocket pens –that Japanese invention initiated by Platinum in 1964—was quite erratic. Even though pocket pens indeed came in a number of nib points and body decorations, the nib styles were limited for both Platinum and Pilot pens.

In contrast, Sailor’s pocket pens display almost all kinds of nib shapes —from semi-hooded to inlaid— and on materials, although in this department Pilot and Platinum were also quite promiscuous. However, only Sailor made nibs with "gold from the Swiss bank". But that should the topic of another chronicle.

A collection of different nibs, all from Sailor's pocket pens. All of them are made of gold with purities between 14 and 23 K. Two of them are made of white gold.

(Parker 51 – Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-peki)

Bruno Taut
December 22nd, 2011
[etiquetas: Sailor, plumín]

ED (III)

2011-12-22T02:48:00.006+09:00

On these chronicles, I have spoken several times about eyedropper transformations of some pens—Pilot Prera, Kaweco Sport, Platinum Preppy… Good, correct writers as those are, they are not the most charming pens in the market, and filling their barrels with ink is a safe bet for having them inked for a long and boring while. But those experiments show a couple of things.

A Kaweco Sport filled as eyedropper. In this case, the italic nib from the Kaweco Calligraphy set makes this pen a lot more interesting.

Making an eyedropper pen is easy. Easy for the user and, more important, easy for the manufacturer. However, very few companies market pens openly as eyedroppers: Stipula, Pilot-Namiki, Romillopens, Danitrio, Eboya-Nebotek,… And with the exception of the Stipula T, all those pens are very expensive. But the market of stylophiles, on its side, demands arcane filling systems like this.

The Stipula T. A good idea for a poorly performing pen.

Stipula seems to be the only company truly understanding this, although its eyedropper-cartridge-converter pen –the Stipula T— does not perform correctly. Then, why do other companies not try this approach? Why do Pilot, Platinum and Sailor not try to create affordable eyedroppers with their admirable selection of nibs? On top of that, as Stipula showed, eyedropper pens are not incompatible with the convenience of cartridges and converters.

Maybe they are pushing us into buying vintage pens instead of their newly crafted goods...

(Sailor Realo with Cross-music nib – Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
December 18th, 2011
[etiquetas: soluciones técnicas, mercado, estilofilia, Stipula]

Spheres

2011-12-16T07:12:00.006+09:00

For my friend Kugel 149.

Kugel is the German word for sphere or ball, and it is also a label associated to some nibs of, to my knowledge, German manufacturers: Montblanc, Pelikan, Lamy. The idea behind a Kugel nib was to enlarge the “sweet” spot of the nib and to make it easier and more pleasant to write with those fountain pens.

Kugel nib of a Montblanc 149 from the early 1950s. It is a KOB.

These nibs can easily be spotted—the nib point is a small sphere that clearly sticks out over the nib’s upper side. Kugel nibs are usually labeled with a K before the actual nib point—KM, KB, KOB… However, there are a number of nibs sporting this same feature that are not labeled as “Kugel”. Does that mean these were not Kugel nibs?

I see a big ball here. Parker Falcon 50, from ca. 1980.

This question would be irrelevant might not be that German Kugel nibs, labeled as such, reach much higher prices in the second hand market that those not labeled as such. So, what do stylophiles value? The rarity of the label or the actual nib, labeled or not?

Another sphere. A Pilot Capless nib currently on production.

Modern nibs tend to have larger tips, as can be seen on the pictures. I can think of two reasons to explain this: The first one is the current lower price of the raw materials –mostly Ruthenium alloys in modern nibs— with respect to the labor costs of producing smooth and material-efficient points. The second is the lack of use of fountain pens—for people raised in the era of ball-points and keyboards, fountain pens with larger sweet spots and smoother nibs might be arguments to attract new users.

Anyway, that is just a hypothesis. The main conclusion is that there are more Kugel nibs in the market that just those labeled with a K.

(Parker Falcon 50 – Sailor Miruai)

Bruno Taut
December 15th, 2011
[etiquetas: Alemania, plumín, estilofilia]

Hepburn

2011-12-14T08:29:00.010+09:00

When writing about Japan in English or Spanish soon one encounters a linguistic problem—that of the transliteration of Japanese words into alphabet. And this is an important issue as we, non-Japanese, need a consistent way of writing those, otherwise, mostly incomprehensible terms and names.

The most common set of rules for these transcriptions, or in Japanese terms, to write in Romaji, is the so called Hepburn Romanization, after James Curtis Hepburn, who proposed his system by the end of the nineteen century. The problem arises when Japanese native speakers are not really familiar with it. Needless to say, they do not really need any transliteration in their daily life, and Romaji is not seriously covered at school. However, sooner or later, many a Japanese will have to write something in alphabet —a name, an address…— and mistakes are in order. The first type of mistakes is to follow the writing of the Japanese syllabaries. The second is to make the pronunciation of the written word in alphabet close to the Japanese sound when read by an (American) English speaker.

Behind the first mistake lies the inconsistency of writing certain sounds –mostly long o and most diphthongs (Yôon, 拗音). This is the reason why we see the name of the founder of the Japanese brand Swan written as Itou instead of Itô.

The second type of mistake --to help English native speakers to pronounce Japanese more correctly—accounts for spelling Ohto (大戸), a Japanese pen brand and a common family name—instead of Oto or Ôto, although this case creates no problem as the commercial name is well known and is not subject to different spellings.

At the end, the basic problem is one of consistency. Consistency both within any given text as well as with respect to other texts. Andreas Lambrou’s Fountain Pens of the World (1995) is an example of the opposite. The founder of Swan in Japan is sometimes spelled both as Itou and as Ito; SSS’s founder is both Asahirou and Asahiro Hosonuma; workshop or works (製作所) is randomly written as seisakusyo and as seisakusho; to name just a few examples.

I hope these problems were absent in the incoming Fountain Pens of Japan, by A. Lambrou and Masamichi Sunami. This book is bound to become a basic reference on Japanese fountain pens, and everything would be easier with good foundations.

(Pilot Prera, eyedropper – Senator Regent Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
December 13th, 2011
[labels: japonés (idioma), libro, Japón]

Retirement

2011-12-11T03:01:00.009+09:00

Sailor’s nibmeister Nagahara Nobuyoshi (長原宣義) has announced his retirement on the last issue (December 2011) of magazine Shumi-no Bungubako. Logical as it is at his age (he was born in 1932), it is indeed a big loss for the fountain pen scene.

Nibmeister Mr. Nagahara Nobuyoshi at the past Fuente Pen Show (Tokyo, October 2011).

As I have already stated on previous chronicles, Nagahara’s specialty nibs are the single most exciting innovation in fountain pens in many years. After over one hundred years of pen history, not much room there seems to be for changes in an out-of-fashion writing tool. Filling systems, body materials, and nibs and feeds are the basic areas of evolution in a fountain pen. However, it is hard to become impressed by new materials and nothing new we have seen in ages re filling systems and feeds.

Cover of issue 21 of Shumi no Bungubako where the retirement of Mr. Nahagara is announced.

In the nib department, most companies became content with a very limited selection of points, mostly based on the F-M-B triad. A small number of companies, fortunately, are working on revisiting some arcane nib points—flexible and stub, mostly. And then came Sailor and the radical approach to nibs of Mr. Nobuyoshi Nagahara.

In 2007, Mr Nagahara was awarded by the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare of Japan with the distinction of Master of Modern Arts. At the time, Sailor released this limited edition pen whose nib is engraved with Mr. Nagahara's first name: Nobuyoshi (宣義).

I hope his retirement did not mean Sailor abandoned either the will to innovate or the production of these impressive specialty nibs.

My thanks to Mr. Noguchi.

(Sailor Realo with Cross-music nib – Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
December 10th, 2011
[labels: Sailor, soluciones técnicas, plumín, Shumi no Bungubako]

Even More Ink

2011-12-09T09:27:00.006+09:00

Japan also had its big bottles of ink at the heyday of fountain pens. The bottles I am showing today are on display at the Pilot Museum in Tokyo—the beautiful Pen Station, museum & café.

Pilot's Pen Station in Chuo ward in Tokyo.

The first bottle dates back from before 1938, as the logo –the N encircled by the lifebuoy—shows. The ad, from 1929, shows a similar bottle in the background. It holds, apparently, 14 fluid ounces (about 400 ml) for one single yen.

An ink bottle from around 1930.

Pilot ad from 1929. (Taken from Yoshiharu's blog).

The second bottle is also depicted in an ad, this time from 1950. For JPY 270 one could get 24 fl. oz. (about 700 ml) of fountain pen ink, also suitable for general purposes. The price for smaller quantities is displayed on the wooden frame: 1 oz (a little less than 30 ml) for JPY 30, and 2 oz for JPY 50.

About 700 ml. of Pilot ink.

Pilot's ink ad from 1950. (Taken from Yoshiharu's blog).

Nowadays, Pilot still sells ink bottles of 350 ml for JPY 1575. Just three colors are available: black, blue-black and red.

(Pilot Prera, eyedropper – Senator Regent Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
December 8th, 2011
[etiquetas: Pilot, tinta]

Sailor's Piston

2011-12-06T08:54:00.009+09:00

Two are the basic arguments for stylophiles to favor self-filling systems –and eyedroppers— over the more modern and convenient cartridge-converter scheme. The first one, already analyzed, is the romantic appeal associated to this beautiful but obsolete writing tool (CE—Romanticism).

The second argument is the usual claim that traditional filling systems hold more ink. The first critique to this claim is whether we really want big ink deposits (CE—In Defense of Small Deposits). And there is a second one—is that claim on the ink capacity correct? Are self-filling mechanisms that capable?

This question, however, only makes sense when comparing similar pens. One such example are the Profit and Professional Gear models, by Sailor, with 21 K gold in senior size.

Piston filler Sailor Profit Realo.

On the Profit version (torpedo, also called 1911 in some markets), the piston filler Realo holds 1.0 ml of ink according to my own measurements. And this pen is only available in three nib points: F, M, and B. The cost, JPY 31500.

Cartridge-converter Profit with a Naginata togi nib.

Professional Gear with an F nib.

On the other hand, the cartridge-converter version holds either 0.7 ml (converter) or 1.2 ml (cartridge), implements nine different nibs, and its price ranges between JPY 21000 (with nibs EF, F, MF, M, B, and zoom) and JPY 31500. All these facts also apply to the Professional Gear models, Realo and cartridge-converter, with the exception of a shorter nib selection.

This table summarizes the differences between Sailor models associated to the filling system.

Therefore, the price difference associated to the piston mechanism is JPY 10500. In view of these results, is it worth to pay such a premium for a piston filler whose ink capacity was smaller than that of the ink cartridge? How romantic are you, dear stylophile?

(Sailor Pocket pen, 14 K gold nib – Pilot Iroshizuku Sho-ro)

Bruno Taut
December 5th, 2011
[labels: Sailor, soluciones técnicas, conversor, estilofilia]

More Spanish Platinum

2011-12-01T23:47:00.010+09:00

Doroteo Pérez y Pérez, as we already know, registered the brand Presidente in Madrid in 1959. And we also know of the actual Japanese origin of, at least, one Presidente pen model, which was closely related to the first Japanese cartridge-converter pen—the Platinum Honest 60 from 1956. Now two more Presidente models have reached my hands and more questions could be answered.

A Platinum Honest 66, on top, and two Presidentes.

These two pens are, again, Platinum. However, this time the Presidente signs are more clear than in the first model, in which the Spanish name (PRESIDENTE / Registrada) was only present as a subtle engraving on the barrel. Now, on these, the brand name is engraved on the nib, on the cap lip and on the filling plate, as well as on the barrel. The original Japanese brand remains on the nib and on the cap jewel, like if the Platinum logo were also the logo of the Spanish brand.

The Presidente nib, engraved with the Spanish name. This time, the nib is not sealed with the JIS logo of the Japanese Ministry of Industry.

Actually, these pens seem more related to the Platinum 66 model, from 1960. And, as was the case with the previous Presidente with respect to the 1956 Honest 60, the Spanish pens are thinner and shorter than the Japanese original.

The metal plate of the aerometric filling system is engraved in Spanish, albeit with some mistakes: "PRESIDENTE / PARA LLENAR TINTA APRETAR / EL CARTUCHO CUATRO TIEMPOS".

Again, these Presidentes are aerometric fillers as opposed to the more advance cartridge-converter system of the Platinum Honest 60 and 66. This is a perfect logical decision—the Honest 60 cartridge had been released in Japan just in 1956 and it would not reach Europe in a long while.

These caps belong to one Joker 60, two Platinum Honest pens, and three Presidentes.

In conclusion, these two Presidentes are in fact Platinum pens. The metamorphosis to become Spanish out of a Japanese pen is now more thorough, but it did not erase its original genoma completely. In this regard, these pens resemble the case of the Italian Joker 60.

These are the dimensions of the Presidente pens:

Black cap Presidente:
Diameter: 10.5 mm
Length capped: 135 mm.
Length open: 116 mm.
Length posted: 147 mm.
Weight: 11.6 g.

Golden cap Presidente:
Diameter: 10 mm
Length capped: 130 mm.
Length open: 115 mm.
Length posted: 140 mm.
Weight: 12.9 g.

And these, those of the Platinum Honest 66:
Diameter: 12 mm
Length capped: 140 mm.
Length open: 123 mm.
Length posted: 147 mm.
Weight: 11.0 g.

However interesting all this might be, the most relevant conclusion is related to the entrepreneurial activity of Doroteo Pérez y Pérez. Now we see that this man did something else than just buying a batch of old Platinum pens, engraving their barrels and selling them as Presidente. On the contrary, he did negotiate with the Japanese company and changed the engraving on nibs and caps to make the pens more Spanish. Nonetheless, those Presidente pens never lost the Platinum signature, and never the Spanish brand became popular or even known.

(Pilot Petit-1 second generation – Pilot Light Green)

Bruno Taut
November 28th, 2011
[etiquetas: Platinum, Presidente, España, Japón, Joker]

Information

2011-11-30T20:29:00.004+09:00

Information adds value to pens. Knowing who made that obscure pen and under which circumstances do indeed increase the interest and the appeal of that otherwise unremarkable tool. That is why writing on unknown pens might raise their value and why working on the history of pens, Japanese or Spanish or Greek, might be a good investment.

The two pens made by Súper T: a green Olimpia and a blue Gester.

Is that a Platinum or a Presidente?

How many people outside Spain do know about Súper T or about Regia pens? And those are some of the finest brands ever made in Spain. Being in oblivion does not help anyone.

[Pilot Vpen – Sailor Tokiwa-matsu]

Bruno Taut
November 19th, 2011
(etiquetas: libros, estilofilia, Súper T, Presidente)

Matching (XI). Unas Reflexiones

2011-11-28T07:40:00.011+09:00

I.
Tanto definir lo que es una copia como poder distinguirla del original son tareas arduas. Así lo demuestran tanto los procesos legales como los esfuerzos académicos de estudio de las cuestiones relacionadas con la propiedad intelectual. Y al mismo tiempo, las conclusiones –legales y académicas— son a menudo contradictorias, lo que en nada ayuda a resolver estas cuestiones.

Este bolso, ¿es una copia o es un "homenaje" a una marca francesa? No lleva ni marca ni logotipo reconocible.

II.
Algunos, ingenuamente, asumen que algo que se parezca al original no llega a ser copia si no lleva la marca del mismo. Nada más alejado de la realidad: hay multitud de casos en los que esos productos que no llevan la marca son confiscados y destruidos por las autoridades. Y ese fue el caso, años atrás, de las Inoxcrom, Sailor, Pilot, etc. de inquietante parecido con las supuestas obras maestras de Montblanc.

En otros casos, la copia lleva todos los logotipos y los nombres del original, pero el juez ha dictaminado (según Antena 3, España, 21 de septiembre de 2011) que nadie en su sano juicio consideraría ese producto como original y que, en consecuencia, no había ni engaño ni delito.

Es decir, que los criterios legales son, cuando menos, confusos y hasta contradictorios. Siempre nos queda el recurso de caer en el positivismo legal de que es copia todo aquello que el juez decida como tal. Pero los criterios aplicados y las sentencias dictadas, tan contradictorias, ofrecen pocas pistas fiables de antemano.

Si además ampliamos nuestro horizonte y miramos lo que sucede en otros países, todo se hace todavía más complicado. Lo que en Gran Bretaña era copia, en Japón era legítimo. A. D. Waterman en Estados Unidos; Swan, Sailor o Pilot en Japón; Inoxcrom, Apolón en España…. todas ellas han copiado modelos, tecnologías y nombres de marcas de éxito. Y es que es la copia, más que el producto original, lo que predomina en el mercado.

Inoxcrom 55 frente a Parker 21. ¿Copia u homenaje?

III.
Tanto el modelo copiado como las razones para la copia han cambiado a lo largo de la historia. Una de las razones era la de adquirir una tecnología. De hecho, todas las revoluciones industriales, salvo la británica, se hicieron con la copia de tecnologías y de productos ya desarrollados en otros países. Luego, las barreras legales, arancelarias y judiciales, han hecho el resto, aunque a veces, como sucedió con la industria estilográfica española, no fuera suficiente para garantizar su éxito. Y así, Inoxcrom copió la Parker 21 con su modelo 55; y Apolón copió la Sheaffer con plumín Triumph. Hoy en día varias compañías chinas —Rainbow, Hero— insisten en copiar viejos modelos de Parker.

Copia de la Sheaffer Balance bajo el nombre de Hawaiian.

Otras copias buscan más la asociación con una imagen de éxito que les proporcione unos beneficios económicos inmediatos. Es el caso de la Hawaiian Balance en celuloide o de la multitud de copias chinas de las Montblanc modernas. O de las numerosas copias de las viejas Duofold de los años 20.

Copia china de una Montblanc Starwalker.

Claro que si la pluma original pierde su función inicial de escribir, hacer la copia resulta más sencillo: basta con simular el aspecto exterior porque el hecho de escribir con ella es muy secundario.

Sailor Profit. ¿Copia u homenaje a la Meisterstück de Montblanc? En este caso, la copia supera al original.

IV.
En última instancia, nada está claro en este mundo de las copias. Y a falta de una decisión judicial, nuestras circunstancias personales inclinarán la balanza hacia un lado o hacia otro. Tengamos también en cuenta que las legislaciones y los criterios de los jueces son muchas veces contradictorios.

La paradoja última es que la copia es muchas veces mejor que el original.

(Sailor Ballerie – Sailor Miruai)

Bruno Taut
13 de noviembre de 2011
[etiquetas: mercado, Montblanc, Parker, Hawaiian, Inoxcrom, Apolón, Sailor, Pilot, Swan Japan, A. D. Waterman, Rainbow, Hero]

Strategies

2011-11-23T22:35:00.011+09:00

During the last months I have paid quite a lot of attention to modern pens. To modern Japanese pens, should I be more specific. And soon did I realize that Platinum pen company is the one, among the big three, offering less appealing products nowadays. And I will explain why.

Pilot is, certainly, the biggest pen company in Japan and it shows. Not only this company offers a broad selection of nibs –up to 15 in some models— but also the styles of Pilot pens are becoming more appealing in both looks and filing systems: a plunger filler (Custom 823), a demonstrator piston filler (Custom Heritage 92), and even traditional eyedroppers for the luxury division Namiki.

A Pilot self-filling pen.

Sailor, on its side, has a very powerful argument: a unique and unmatched selection of nibs. And there is also a self-filling pen, the Realo, either in the Profit or in the Professional Gear styles in its catalog.

The Sailor Realo in Profit style.

Compared to these strategies, Platinum’s arguments are reduced to a wonderful music nib –in a non very exciting plastic body, prone to scratches— and a collection of cartridge-converter pens. Even the new demonstrator Motosu is a cartridge-converter pen. The rest of exciting nibs, that is, those soft elastic and a stub, are only associated to the luxury division Nakaya. And even so, Nakaya pens are cartridge-converters. The fact that usually they are not present at regular shops does not help either to attract any additional attention to the brand.

Nakaya's filling system is based on the unappealing cartridge-converter system.

Indeed a sad scenario. Platinum makes excellent nibs and feeds, but seems stuck in a very limited scheme. Or it might that the company was truly faithful to the technological evolution accomplished with the Platinum Honest 60 pen—the first cartridge-converter pen in Japan. However, despite its “Good bye, ink bottle”, Platinum recently launched the Mix Free line of inks…

"Good bye, ink bottle", said the ad for the Platinum Honest 60 (or Honest 66) from 1960.

In the meantime, while the company rethinks its strategy for fountain pens, I will stick to vintage Platinums.

(Sailor ProGear – Daiso Red)
Bruno Taut
November 9th, 2011
[etiquetas: Sailor, Platinum, Pilot, Japón]

Ban-ei, 挽栄

2011-11-21T03:26:00.014+09:00

The discussion is out there: does Danitrio make Japanese pens? Regardless of the answer right now, Danitrio did make some Japanese pens some years ago. This is part of the story, following the very limited information available.

Ban-ei (挽栄) was the working name of Sakai Eisuke (酒井栄助) and of the brand of a number of pens manufactured mostly around 1980. Behind this operation there was a team of four people:

Kabutogi Ginjirô (兜木銀次郎), nibmeister.
Sakai Eisuke (酒井栄助), lathe master.
Takahashi Kichitaro (高橋吉太郎), urushi master.
Tsuchida Shuichi (土田修一), in charge of the ebonite feed and the final assembly of the pen.

On a footnote, Kabutogi Ginjirô has already shown up on these chronicles as the nibmeister who created a fake Pelikan nib certified by the Ministry of Industry of Japan.

Group picture of some Ban-ei pens. Those on the right, in black and in red, would be later replicated on limited releases. Courtesy of Mr. Nikos Syrigonakis.

Interestingly enough, most of these pens were not signed and nowadays are often called Tsuchida pens. Some of the models can be seen on the picture by fellow stylophile Nikos Syrigonakis.

A Danitrio-era Ban-ei pen.

Some time later, in 1997, California-based Danitrio company approached the Ban-ei team and commissioned them the production of some of its models: among them, the torpedo-shaped pens in black and red urushi. But this time the pens were limited releases –200 for the black, and 150 for the red— and would be engraved with the original name of the brand both in Chinese characters (Kanji) and in alphabet (Romaji). And with no sign of the commissioning company Danitrio, although these might be the most Japanese pens this company might have ever produced. That was indeed a very respectful and elegant detail.

The Kanji engraved on the cap ring. It says Ban-ei.

By then, mid 1990s, the team had changed. Kabutogi’s son Toshiya (兜木利弥) had replaced his father as nibmeister, and the urushi master Kitamura Zenichi had substituted Takahashi Kichitaro. None of them was young –Tsuchida, born in 1917, was apparently the youngest of them all, and passed away in 2009—, and those changes were perfectly logical.

The nib on this Danitrio-era Ban-ei. The looks are exactly the same as those on pens from the 1980s by the Ban-ei team.

One of this limited-released pens I recently found at the Madrid Pen Show. It is the number 33 out of the 200 units made in black urushi. It is an eyedropper with shut-off valve and implements a rigid F point made of 14 k gold. These are its dimensions:

Diameter: 16 mm.
Length closed: 145 mm.
Length open: 130 mm.
Dry weight: 25.9 g.
Ink deposit: 3 ml.

The beautiful hard rubber feed.

Its construction quality is very good. The seam between barrel and culotte is almost unnoticeable. The ebonite feed is nicely finished and elaborated.

Finally, the overall condition of the pen is very good despite having been used.

My deep appreciation and thanks to Mr. Nikos Syrigonakis and to モンゴルさん.

(Pilot Prera Demonstrator, eyedropper – Senator Regent Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
November 18th, 2011
[labels: Ban-ei, Danitrio]

Prera

2011-11-19T02:00:00.021+09:00

Pen review: Pilot Prera Demonstrator.

The Pilot Prera is one of the inexpensive pens marketed by the Japanese company. In fact, there are two basic variations for this model. The first one is made in nine different solid colors (model FPR-3SR). Its catalog (MSRP) price is JPY 3000 (plus tax) and it does not include any converter. A later arrival (Fall 2010) is the transparent Prera (model FPRN-350R). This model comes in seven variations based on the color of cap and barrel ends. The price, JPY 3500, is justified by including the converter CON-50 (MSRP JPY 500) with it. It seems, though, that some online traders ship this pen with the cheaper CON-20.

This transparent model is the one under analysis today.

1. Appearance and design. (8.5/10)
The Pilot Prera is a small pen. the cap snaps on the section and fits tightly on the barrel when posted, The colored details make it quite appealing. This is a functional pen with an attractive look

2. Construction and quality. (9.0/10)
Typical Pilot construction—everything fits well despite being a relatively inexpensive pen.

A fair concern in all demonstrator pens is how resistant to scratches the plastic material was. It looks good on this pen, but only time and use can give a final answer.

Therefore, so far, 9.0/10.

3. Weight and dimensions. (8.0/10)
Short pen without being a pocket pen. It is on the light side and is well balanced. Most users would post this pen given its short length when open.

Dimensions:
Diameter: 14 mm.
Length closed: 120 mm.
Length open: 108 mm.
Length posted: 135 mm.
Weight: 14.0 g.
Ink deposit: ...Cartridge: 0.9 ml
......................Converter: CON-20: 0.8 ml.
........................................CON-50: 0.7 ml.
......................Eyedropper: 3.4 ml.

4. Nib and writing performance. (9.0/10)
Preras come with two rigid steel nibs: F and M. They are very similar –but not the same— to those used in the already reviewed Pilot Vortex. The M nib of this review is very smooth and delivers a sweet wet line.

This pen shares the nib and the feed with the Plumix/Pluminix (abroad) or Penmanship (in Japan) models. They are easily extracted from the section by pulling. Therefore, it is easy to get an EF Pilot Prera –such is the nib of the Pilot Penmanship— or a 1 mm italic Prera –the Plumix/Pluminix nib.

The EF nib and feed of the Pilot Penmanship.

All in all, the nib performance is excellent for an inexpensive pen like this. The possibility of interchanging nibs (Pilot does not sell spare nibs) with other models adds variation to the available points.

5. Filling system and maintenance. (9.5/10)
Preras use Pilot-proprietary cartridges and two of the Pilot converters (CON-20 and CON-50). The transparent Prera is sold with the piston converter, CON-50, more apt for a demonstrator than the all metal CON-20. With either of these possibilities, the ink deposit fits no more than 0.9 ml.

However, this pen can easily hold a lot more ink. Remove any cartridge or converter and fill the barrel with ink. By transforming it into an eyedropper pen, the ink deposit increases up to 3.4 ml. No gaskets or grease were used. The section-barrel threads are thin and tight and do not leak at all.

Cleaning the Prera is very easy, as is the case on most cartridge/converter pens. And being nib and feed so easily removable, the cleaning is even easier.

6. Cost and value. (8.5/10)
JPY 3500 get a very nice looking pen, with a smooth nib and with a great filling versatility. Hard to beat indeed.

Price wise, though, this pen costs twice that of the Vortex. Are those JPY 1500 worth the better looks and the possibility to remove nib and feed easily?

7. Conclusion. (52.5/60=87.5/100)
Very high marks for an informal looking pen. It performs really well and allows for many variations in the way of filling it and, even, on the writing points.

Maybe it is the experimentalist in me who truly enjoyed this pen

(Pilot Prera Demonstrator, M nib, eyedropper – Senator Regent Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
November 19th, 2011

[etiquetas: Pilot, soluciones técnicas]

Madrid 2011

2011-11-15T03:21:00.008+09:00

The Eighth Madrid Pen Show has just finished. As is often the case with these events, it was a big celebration for all of us lovers of fountain pens and other writing utensils.

Paradoxically, this show is becoming one of the leading events of its kind in Europe. We should remember that the pen industry in Spain was never truly important, and it was localized mainly in Barcelona, and Spanish pens are seldom, if ever, collected by foreign stylophiles. So, those arguments that apply to other pen shows located in cities with a deep manufacturing tradition do not apply in Madrid—does anybody come to Madrid in search a locally made exotic and unique pen? Maybe the 43 traders from Europe and America supplied a number of outstanding pens.

Last year, the seventh edition received about 1000 visitors, and this year everybody said there were less people (about 850, Pen Show sources say), as was the trend on other European pen shows. Figures about the size of the transactions are not made public.

However, this pen show has a big problem of space. Some of the trader’s tables were small and moving around became difficult with just a few number of visitors. Organizers said that the venue for next year’s show will be bigger. I look forward to it, but I am also afraid that organizers think more of the trader than of the visitor. Having more space for more traders with ampler tables is great, but too often the social aspect of the show is ignored. Pen shows are also a meeting place for stylophiles, who keep in touch through fora and blogs. And few occasions are as perfect as pen show for a gathering.

Then, what many an organizer ignores is that those meetings increase sales. We all love to talk about our hobby and we enjoy testing each other's pens. Having a place to sit and a table to display our treasured pens will trigger even more curiosity on other pens. And right there, there are over ten thousand pens ready for the action.

Resident artist Els Baekelandt's tools.

I do believe the social aspect of a pen show needs to be favored. If only, because it will increase the economic yield. But it seems that only in Japan this aspect is taken into consideration.

(Sailor ProGear, senior nib – Daiso red cartridge)

Bruno Taut
November 14th, 2011
[etiquetas: evento, Madrid, mercado]

Coins

2011-11-09T02:34:00.005+09:00

Pilot-Namiki started manufacturing fountain pens with maki-e decoration as early as 1925, just seven years after the foundation of the company. However, the association with Dunhill only started in 1930. These pens, either branded as Pilot or as Dunhill-Namiki, are now objects of desire for many collectors, and their price reflect this demand.

However, not only Pilot made maki-e pen on those years. Sailor copied the idea in 1926 and Platinum followed suit in 1930. Founder Shunichi Nakata commissioned some maki-e artists led by Rosui Gyokusendô Ohara to create some designs.

Such is the case of today’s pen. It is an eyedropper made of hard rubber (ebonite) from the early 1930s. As is often the case in Japanese pens, it implements a shut-off valve to seal the ink deposit. The nib is a size 5 made of steel and signed by Platinum.

These are its dimensions:
Diameter: 14 mm.
Length capped: 135 mm.
Length open: 117 mm.
Length posted: 162 mm.
Weight (dry): 16.9 g.

The culotte operates the shut-off valve.

Details of the texture and of the coins used as docorative elements. Round coins are relatively new in Japan. Actually, yen (en in Japanese, 円) means circular and describes the new shape of coins.

The maki-e decoration is of the rough volcanic surface style –as described by Masa Sunami— with some old coins as decorative motif. This rough texture is very similar to the stone finish (ishime) currently available in Nakaya pens.

The final result is a very shibui pen—elegant and delicate without being ostentatious.

(Platinum 3776 – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
November 8th, 2011
[etiquetas: Platinum, Sailor, Pilot]

Capless 1971

2011-11-03T06:03:00.006+09:00

Among all the Capless models manufactured by Pilot since 1964, that from 1971 is one of the most appreciated by stylophiles. It is made of plastic and stainless steel. Its stripped design pattern will later be shared with a Myu pocket pen, 1973, and a Custom model from 1974.

The three Pilots from the 1970s with black stripes.

The 1971 Capless with a hard fine gold nib.

The Capless is equipped with a 14 K gold nib unit, and it is not visibly dated. It uses the current line of Pilot cartridges and converters with the obvious exception –common to all Capless nibs— of the CON-70. The nib is attached to the rest of the set through a rather long plastic feed. This makes many people speak of a brittle pen and avoid the risk of using it. Actually, it is almost impossible to find replacing nib units for this pen. Those were specific for this model, which was on production for just two years. The following Capless, from 1973, implements nib units compatible with those currently in use.

The long feed is clearly visible on this picture.

These are the dimensions of the 1971 Capless:
Diameter: 11 mm.
Length closed: 139 mm.
Length open: 146 mm.
Weight: 19.8 g (dry).

Detail of the extended nib.

The pen opening for the nib. Contrary to other Capless models, this one is circular.

This model is on display at the Pen Station, the Pilot museum in Tokyo. Its price in the second hand market is becoming strangely high, but at the end it is a matter of how much we are willing to pay for it.

(Athena Basic Line – Sailor Yama-dori)

Bruno Taut
November 2nd, 2011
[etiquetas: Pilot]

Mitaka

2011-11-01T02:25:00.006+09:00

Not much information is available about the Japanese pen Mitaka. A review on an eyedropper from the 1930s, by fellow blog author Jule Okami seems to be the basic reference. Therefore, this pen, even if apparently unremarkable and boring looking, has some interest.

The whole contents of the box--that includes the service Platinum cartridge.

The Platinum Honest 60 pen, already reported on these Chronicles, was the first Japanese pen in using ink cartridges and converters. As a result, these cartridges were the first available in the Japanese market and several companies used them as the standard. Such was the case of Mitaka. This boxed set included a service cartridge branded as Platinum Honest 60 with blue black ink.

Other than that, this pen is made of black plastic, with cap and nib being gold plated. The very rigid steel point is engraved with the company name

This Mitaka pen is quite similar to the cheapest of the Pilot Super series—the Super 50 with steel nib. However, this pen is an aerometric filler. Both cost the same—JPY 500.

On both pictures, on top, the Pilot Super 50. On bottom, the Mitaka.

These are the dimensions of the Mitaka pen:
Diameter: 11 mm.
Length capped: 135 mm.
Length open: 120 mm.
Length posted: 155 mm.
Weight (dry): 10.5 g.

Mitaka is also the name of a city in the prefecture of Tokyo. However, the company was based in the ward of Itabashi.

My thanks to Mr. Alberto Linares.

(Pilot Vpen – Sailor Tokiwa-matsu)

Bruno Taut
October 31st, 2011
[labels: Platinum, Mitaka, conversor, Pilot]

Japanese Celluloid

2011-10-29T23:26:00.004+09:00

Among the big three Japanese pen companies, only Platinum (and its luxury division Nakaya) manufactures pens made of celluloid nowadays. That was not the case in the past, as we have already seen on these Chronicles. Actually, there has been a number of eyedropper pens made of this material, which is certainly strange given the extreme sensitivity of celluloid to color changes due to ink dyes. And in an eyedropper pen, ink is in direct contact with the plastic material of the barrel. However, this practice was not uncommon during the 1920s and 1930s in Japan and overseas.

Pilot made a number of them, and such is the case of the pen here presented today. It is green and black pen, equipped with a shiro nib, fairly flexible, in size 3. The breathing hole, V-shaped, is quite characteristic of flexible steel nibs in Japanese pens.

"Best in the World, Pilot -<3>-", the engraving says.

As mostly any Japanese eyedropper pen, this one implements a shut-off system operated from the culotte. This pen, though, features an unusual detail—the knob thread in the barrel is made in the inner side instead of being lathed on the exterior, as is usually the case.

This Pilot pen dates from the early to mid 1930s. The logo, engraved on the barrel, shows the N, after the company founder Ryosuke Namiki. It was changed in 1938 to show a P instead of the N coinciding with his retirement, which does not seem the best way to honor his legacy.

The pen is in very good condition. It reached my hands in its original case, which included the instruction sheet. Probably, it has never been inked.

These are its dimensions:
Diameter: 23 mm.
Length capped: 132 mm.
Length open: 120 mm.
Length posted: 167 mm.
Weight (dry): 15.8 g.

(Athena Basic Line – Sailor Yama-dori)

Bruno Taut
October 29th, 2011
[labels: Pilot]

Rising Sun

2011-10-21T22:22:00.008+09:00

In the Land of the Rising Sun, such is the usual translation to the more accurate of land where the sun originated (Nippon, 日本), it should came as no surprise that a number of companies use the term asahi, rising sun, in their names. Such is the case of newspaper Asahi Shinbun, the beer company Asahi Breweries, the television company TV Asahi… and even a pen company.

This Asahi Tsubasa Hantsuki Mannenhitsu (旭ッバサ判付萬年筆), such seems to be the model name, is a truly interesting pen and it shows several unusual features.

The box, the pen, the eyedropper, and the ink bottle.

The pen, uncapped, with the shut-off valve and the main thread between section and barrel half open.

It is a grey celluloid eyedropper with a shut off valve, as is the case of most Japanese eyedroppers. The package included a traditional eyedropper, though its rubber bulb is no longer usable, and a small bottle of solid ink to be dissolved in water and ink the pen in the absence of an inkwell.

The solid ink bottle. Its height is four centimeters shy.

The cap looks longer than usual, and it is easy to see that the nib and the section barely occupy two thirds of the space within. The black ring on the cap, apparently an old sticker, is indeed a thread for a shorter cap that hides the stone to carve the seal (hanko, 判子), as was the case on the old Japanese Swan pen I showed some time ago. However, this pen shows some differences—under the seal there is a small deposit for ink that, going through the porous stone, allows printing the seal without the need of an inkpad.

The top of the cap, disassembled. The brown flat piece is the uncarved stone for the seal. It is attached onto a black piece with a thread fitting on the cap, on the far end of the pic, creating a small deposit for the ink. It would go through the porous stone when printing the seal.

Then, the name of the model makes perfect sense: hantsuki (判付) means that this pen is also a seal. And in the instruction sheet it can be read that this pen combines three tools in one—the pen, the seal, and the inkpad!

The instructions for this Asahi Tsubasa Hantsuki Mannenhitsu (旭ッバサ判付萬年筆).

The nib is a size 3 made of steel, and is slightly flexible despite its shape, curved downwards, like a posting nib. It is engraved with the company logo and some Japanese characters, some of which read Asahi Tsubasa, and a more descriptive “IRIDIUM / PEN / -<3>-”.

The steel nib in size 3.

The dimensions of this pen are as follows:
Diameter: 13.0 mm.
Length capped: 130 mm.
Length uncapped: 105 mm.
Length posted: 155 mm.
Dry weight: 15.8 g.

The clip is imprinted with the brand name: Asahi Tsubasa.

All these elements show this was a pen from the war period, which in Asia was a lot longer than in the West. Probably, this pen dates back from the 1930s. The company was based in Arakawa, Tokyo.

(Soennecken 105 – Diamine Evergreen)

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, October 21st, 2011
[labels: Asahi Tsubasa, Japón]

Young Music

2011-10-17T22:52:00.014+09:00

Pen review of the Sailor Young Profit (Somiko in some markets) with music nib.

Feeding my inclination for music nibs I have finally put my hands on this single-slit nib labeled as music by Sailor Company. This is the cheapest music nib among those made in Japan.

1. Appearance and design. (6.0/10)
This is a black pen with golden accents. Even the steel nib is gold plated to match. Therefore, it keeps the classical serious and formal look of many a pen. However, this is not a torpedo pen à la Montblanc despite the model name—Profit pens are the Sailor copies of the German formal pens.

This pen, in a nutshell, is a cartridge-converter, with a snap on cap and a rigid steel nib. All very correct and functional, and nothing really exciting.

2. Construction and quality. (8.0/10)
The materials employed on this pen are correct and show no abnormal wear. Everything seems right. The pen looks durable and ready for years of use.

3. Weight and dimensions. (8.0/10)
Medium weighted pen, which is somehow surprising as it is mostly made of plastic. Fortunately, it is well balanced either posted or unposted.

Dimensions:
Diameter: 12.0 mm.
Length capped: 135 mm.
Length uncapped: 123 mm.
Length posted: 145 mm.
Dry weight: 18.1 g (including the converter).

4. Nib and writing performance. (7.5/10)
Once again, this is the key point of the pen. The nib seems to be the only argument in an inexpensive cartridge-converter pen with boring looks.

This music nib is made of steel and is gold plated through a process of physical vapor deposition. Sailor was a pioneer in using it for pen nibs and decided to mark it with the acronym TIGP: Titanium Ion Gold Plated. However, this is still a steel nib with no special geometry. So, it is also quite rigid.

The nicely engraved steel nib. On top, the acronym TIGP describing the plating process. On the side, MS shows this is a music nib.

Performance-wise, this pen shows a nice line variation between the strokes horizontal (parallel to the tines) and vertical (normal to the tines). However, it is quite critical on this nib to write with no inclination between the nib and the paper. Or in other words—both tines have to be in good contact with the paper. Otherwise, the nib becomes dry and easily looses the ink line. The reason for this behavior, annoying most of the time, lies in the width of the tine, wider than usual. Then, small angles between nib and paper create bigger gaps between the slit and the paper thus breaking the ink drop.

This is not the case in three-tine music nibs because the second slit naturally shortens the outer tines thus making the gaps due to pen inclinations less critical to the nib performance. This Sailor music nib is not suitable for those who use oblique nibs.

All this makes me confirm my initial impression of this nib—it is more of a stub than of a music nib. It is, nonetheless, an interesting and upscale alternative to calligraphy (i. e. italic) nibs.

Writing sample of the Sailor Young Profit with music nib.

5. Filling system and maintenance. (6.5/10)
This is, as are most Japanese pens, a cartridge-converter pen. The converter, of 0.7 ml of capacity, is on the small side for the wide line of this nib. Having a replacement cartridge with this pen is a must.

Nib and feed can easily be detached from the barrel by pulling them. Cleaning the pen is very easy.

6. Cost and value. (8.5/10)
For JPY 5000 (plus taxes) you get a smooth and rigid stub that Sailor insists in labeling as music. It is not easy to master and many would never go through the effort of getting use to it. Two are, in my opinion, the alternatives to this pen: One is the more expensive three-tine music nibs by Pilot and Platinum. The other is any of the calligraphy sets by a number of Western companies. Those Japanese music nibs are easier to use, whereas with those italic sets we are bound to encounter similar problems to those we faced with this Sailor music nib.

7. Conclusion. (43.5/60=72.5/100)
Not very high marks for this pen. Its only interesting feature is the nib, but it is not very user friendly, and, compared to other music nibs as Sailor insists with its naming, it is not a real competitor. The rest of the pen is fairly uneventful.

(Sailor Young Profit with music nib – Sailor Tokiwa-matsu)

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, October 17th, 2011
[labels: plumín, Sailor]

Music Metaphysics

2011-10-13T23:33:00.012+09:00

The NK nib by Kubo Kohei I showed some weeks ago raises some metaphysical questions on the essence of music nibs. What is indeed a music nib?

Kubo Kohei´s music nib in steel.

This Japanese nib, let us remember now, barely shows any line variation unless was pushed down against the paper. And at the same time, the second slit does provide the extra ink flow this wider line demands.

Modern three-tined music nibs: one by Platinum (on top) and two by Pilot.

Music shiro nib by Platinum (mid 1950s).

On the other hand, I voluntarily ignored Sailor´s approach to music nibs when I compared those by Pilot and by Platinum a year ago. “Sailor´s”, I said, “lacks the visual appeal and the extra flow of the second slit. Sailor´s is more of a smooth stub than a real music nib.” But it really shows some line variation.

Modern two-tined music nib by Sailor in steel.

So, what is the essence of a music nib? Is it on the line variation? If so, mostly any stub or italic nib —broad vertical stroke and thin horizontal one— could qualify for such.

What about the three tines? Should this be the standard, what do we do with three-tined nibs showing barely any line variation, like that by Kubo Kohei?

Pilot pen from 1970s with a three-tined music nib in 14 K gold.

Some stylophiles claim that a true music nib must show some flexibility, thus dismissing all those modern Japan-made music nibs. But then, does any flexible or semi-flexible nib qualify for this category? Again, the case of Kubo Kohei´s nib comes in handy—it is not really very different from a semi-flex nib in its performance, but regular nibs showing some flexibility are not considered music nibs.

One more note on this regard. One of those wonderful specialty nibs by Sailor´s master Nagahara is named Cross Music. It has not just three tines but four by means of overlapping two nibs. The result is a very juicy point with a wonderful line variation opposite to that of a standard music nib and closer to an Arabic or fude nibs: thin vertical strokes and wide, very wide, horizontal lines.

The Cross Music nib by Sailor´s nibmeister Nagahara.

Reverse view of the Cross Music nib. The four tines are now visible.

At the end, we might conclude that a music nib is any nib the maker wanted to label as such. Just like a novel is any text under whose title the author added the word “novel.”

(Sailor Young Profit with music nib – Sailor Blue)

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, September-October, 2011
[labels: Pilot, Platinum, Sailor, Kubo Kohei, plumín]

Missing Link

2011-10-09T02:11:00.006+09:00

On a previous Chronicle I spoke about the very interesting Pilot Super 500G: the bellows or accordion filler with the very unique faceted nib. I finished that text with the speculation of whether that Super 500G was the predecessor of the Pilot Elite with integrated nib.

The Super 500G on top, and the two Elite on bottom. These two Elite have different filling systems. The most modern shows a CON-50 converter.

Later on have I discovered a missing –for me, that is—link between those two pens. This is the Pilot Elite equipped with a bellows filler. Externally, this pen is very similar, if not identical, to the cartridge-converter Elite. My unit of the later is dated on October 1972 and uses the current gamut of Pilot cartridges and converters save the CON-70 due to the size of the barrel.

The three nibs. The faceted one for the Super 500G, and the more common and well known of the Elite pens. Only one of them, belonging to the cartridge/converter unit is dated: October 1972.

Now, was there another missing link? A Pilot Elite with double spare cartridges could indeed have existed. If so, it might be a quite rare pen given the short life of those cartridges, soon replaced by those we find on most current Pilot models.

Again, a mere speculation, but the search continues.

(Athena Basic Line – Sailor Yama-dori)

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, October 8th, 2011
[label: Pilot, soluciones técnicas, conversor]

Empty Barrel

2011-10-06T12:05:00.009+09:00

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the company, Sailor has released two limited edition fountain pens. One of them is the object of this Chronicle: the Shima Kuwa mulberry pen, of which 1000 units were crafted.

The Shima Kuwa mulberry fountain pen.

An anchor on the clip shows this is a Sailor pen. There is also a subtle design on gold powder maki-e on the lower area of the cap.

This pen, with a price in Japan of JPY 150,000 (plus taxes), is made of mulberry wood from the island of Mikurajima, located 200 km offshore of the city of Tôkyô to the South. The pen was treated with urushi lacquers and is subtly decorated with gold powder make-e. The nib, in 21 k gold, is imprinted with a special version of the company logo –an anchor and a draped chain— and a sign showing the 100th anniversary. And this seems to be the extent of this pen’s appeal. The rest is, indeed, rather boring.

The nicely engraved nib. It performs nicely.

But make no mistake--this nib is a hard medium. Against all odds in a commemorative pen like this given the impressive wealth of nibs this company enjoys!

Pen wise, this is a simple cartridge-converter pen equipped with a very uneventful medium nib. Quite the opposite, we must quickly add, of the pen released by Sailor five years ago to celebrate the 95th anniversary. That was the first Realo—a naginata togi nib in a piston filler King of Pen.

The anniversary pen with the converter...

...and with the cartridge. More than half of the barrel is empty.

The contrast between these two anniversary pens is even higher given the very large dimensions of this year’s Sailor: 163 mm long when closed, and 149 mm when open. A diameter of 20.5 mm, and a dry weight of 37 g. The cap cannot be posted. The result is a barrel that is mostly empty. So, what is the purpose of such a long pen? I guess it is only a matter of looks, because at the end, this pens holds exactly the same amount of ink as a regular Sailor Profit/1911 model. And their nibs are not any different, either.

The naginata togi nib on the original Realo from 2006.

It should come as no surprise that we stylophiles miss the 2006 Realo so much. And market prices do show it.

My thanks to Mr. Noguchi.

(Soennecken 105 – Sailor Tokiwa-matsu)

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, October 5th, 2011
[labels: Sailor]

Certified Fake

2011-10-02T01:24:00.008+09:00

Wagner meetings always have interesting pens to admire. Nibmeister Yamada, on top of his wonderful abilities to create innovative nibs, is very knowledgeable about pens. His collections seems to be very interesting and large.

Two apparently common Pelikan.

This time, he brought, among other things, these two Pelikan pens. Apparently, they are two regular 140s, the student model in the 1950s and early 1960s.

On top, the stenographic nib. On bottom... the other.

One of them has the stenographic (ST) nib—a flexible one desired by many. The other pen apparently displays a more normal point. It is engraved with the company name and the purity of the gold. However, Mr. Yamada tells us, despite all these indications, this nib was made in Japan—it is a copy. A copy made in Japan and certified by the Ministry of Industry—this nib was the JIS product number 4622, and was made by Kabutogi Ginjirô, probably as a replacement.

The imprint reads "Pelikan / 585 / 14 KARAT / PEN / PURPLE".

Therefore, here we have a true Pelikan with a Japan-certified fake nib.

My thanks to Mr. Yamada.

(Anonymous black hard rubber eyedropper – Sailor Tokiwa-matsu)
Bruno Taut
October 1st, 2011
[labels: evento, Pelikan, Japón]

Romanticism

2011-09-29T23:09:00.006+09:00

Para Alberto, marino estilófilo, maestro de plumas españolas.

(A Spanish version of this text can be seen on forum Grafopasión-Foro de relojes.)

The technological development of fountain pens, we can now see, has followed a clear line in the last sixty years or so regarding filling systems, and its last stage is that of cartridges and converters. And let us be real—this system is great. Cartridges are clean, friendly, reliable, and users do not become inked when filling the pen from those poorly designed inkwells. We can also carry several cartridges in our pockets whereas few of us carry an inkwell with ourselves—not even one of those fancy and beautiful traveling inkwells designed for that purpose. And, finally, we can always romantically ink the pen from an inkwell by using a converter.

Two German piston-fillers.

The Queen, an American eyedropper in hard rubber.

But we have also to understand that fountain pens, nowadays, have totally lost their raison d´être. Now, we use touch screens and keyboards, and when there is no other option, a pencil or a ball pen does the job smartly. Therefore, we use our beloved fountain pens out of a sense of romanticism, out of an added feeling to the act of writing. Settled in this romantic realm, away from utilitarian considerations, anything goes. Anything goes in the search of old filling mechanisms and of ancient materials for bodies and nibs. Once our insanity is understood and assumed only our preferences count no matter how exotic or even irrational they might be. No matter how dirty they were.

This Kaweco is, in principle, a cartridge/converter pen, but it is more fun as an eyedropper.

That is why I, and many others, love eyedropper pens. And friendly to fill they are not.

(Sailor Pro Gear with cross music nib – Diamine Evergreen)

Bruno Taut
May 7th, 2011
[labels: soluciones técnicas, estilofilia, conversor]

Gravity

2011-09-26T17:51:00.011+09:00

Pilot model Capless is likely to be the most successful fountain pen of this maker. It is marketed almost worldwide and therefore it is well known. But the Pilot Capless has a long history since it was initially released in 1963, and little remains nowadays from the original model. Along these 48 years some of the models have raised more eyebrows than others.

The 1968 "sliding nib" Capless model.

The pen, open.The nib unit is specific for this Capless model.

Today´s pen is a very special Capless. It is a short lived model from 1968 as it was on production for less than a year. Its defining characteristic is the way to operate the nib to write. This model is the only Capless not having a push button or a twist knob to push the nib through the section. This pen works only with the help of gravity—a subtle lever located on the clip opens the section’s lid and the nib literally slides down by its own weight. But only if the pen is held pointing down. To hide the nib, simply reverse the action: point the pen up, and open the lid with the lever.

Short 1965 Capless model in plastic and aluminum.

On some units of this model, the whole clip acted as the lever, thus making the design a tad cleaner.

The lever is made of black plastic and slides in the clip.

On this pen, the whole clip is the opening lever for the nib.

This is a well balanced model, on the light side (less than 20 g), and quite compact. It is related, shape wise, to the previous push button model from 1965 in plastic and aluminum.

The nib unit. It is very hard to find it as a spare. And the whole unit relies on the plastic feed. This makes this pen quite fragile and vulnerable.

The dimensions of the 1968 sliding Pilot Capless are as follows:
Diameter: 10 mm.
Length closed: 129 mm.
Length open: 136 mm.
Weight: 19 g

It accepts regular Pilot cartridges, and converters CON-20 and CON-50. The nib units in these sliding models are specific for them—no other Capless model uses them.

My thanks to my friend FPN member Haywoody.

(Sailor Profit with Naginata Togi nib – Diamine Evergreen)

Bruno Taut
September 26th, 2011
[labels: Pilot]

Perfect Pitch

2011-09-23T01:43:00.004+09:00

For those with musical inclinations, perfect pitch is a kind of a holy grail. Perfect pitch is the ability to figure out the note –the frequency—of any sound without the need to compare it to any given reference.

Regarding color, we are told, we all have that ability provided we were not daltonic. However, I think there is a limit to that ability—we might reach it when comparing similar hues. Side by side, it is easy to distinguish them; but once we take them apart, once you no longer have a reference, everything becomes a lot harder and those tonalities become the same color in out memory. Just like close sounding music tones.

Different shades of brown: Noodler´s Old Dutch, Pelikan Brilliant Brown, Platinum Brown, Sailor Brown, Sailor 100717031, Sailor Red Brown, Waterman Havana. Excuse the misspelling on the picture–we all know the name should indeed be written La Habana...

Then, why this obsession about all those green or brown or red inks? Could we really distinguish and name that particular shade of, say, brown without having the other at hand as a reference? I think not.

Then, let us relax our cravings for all those endless variations of ink colors…

(Sailor Pro Gear – Diamine Evergreen)

Bruno Taut
September 22th, 2011
[labels: tinta]

Sailor´s Paradox

2011-09-21T01:33:00.007+09:00

I have already complained on these Chronicles on the difficulties, on modern Japanese pens, to find interesting nibs combined with self-filling systems other than the boring –albeit convenient— cartridge-converter scheme.

The "Mannenhitsu Doraku" pen released on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of Sailor. It implements a beautiful Cross point nib, and a sad converter.

Two Cross points. On the right, the nib implemented in the above mentioned "Mannehitsu Doraku". On the left, a two-fold nib made by nibmeister Yamada based on a Pelikan M800. Both nibs are very similar. However, Yamada´s work is backed by a big ink deposit operated by a piston.

The case of Sailor pens is particularly interesting. This company is arguably the most exciting producer of nibs nowadays. Sure enough, other companies make good nibs, but none of them has reached, in my opinion, the level of sophistication and innovation achieved by nibmeister Nagahara for Sailor. His combination of overlapped nibs and overfeeds and variable points has introduced a new dimension to the idea of nib and to the actual writing experience with a fountain pen.

The Sailor catalog does not consider the Naginata Togi nib as a specialty nib by Mr. Nagahara. However, a number of his creations are based on this variable point nib. On the image, a Naginata Togi in M.

This is one such case—the Concord nib with the emperor (overfeed) is based on the Naginata Togi.

Most of those nibs, and certainly the Cross (two-fold nib) and the Eagle (three-fold) ones, with or without overfeed, are high on ink demands. And here we have the paradox: Those nibs are always associated to cartridge-converter systems whose ink deposits are never that big. At the same time, the contrast between those exquisite nibs and the unsophisticated cartridges and converters is too hard to ignore. Exactly the same cartridge or converter can be found in a big oversized King of Pen in lacquered hard rubber, and in an all plastic Clear Candy. The piston-filler model Realo, let us remember, is only available with the standard triad of nibs —F, M and B—, at least in the Japanese market according to Sailor´s catalog.

The Cross Music. A magnificent two-fold nib.

The disappointing insides of the pen with the Cross Music nib.

Can we avoid our disappointment? Is it too much to ask for equally sophisticated systems on nibs and on filling systems? Sailor has already made the hardest part; that is, creating unique nibs unmatched by any competitor. The rest should be a lot easier.

And I know I am not the only one who thinks this way.

My thanks to my friends Mr. JLML, Mr. Noguchi, and Mr. Yamada.

(Sailor Profit with Naginata Togi nib – Diamine Evergreen)

Bruno Taut
September 20th, 2011
[labels: Sailor, soluciones técnicas, plumín]

Kubo Kohei

2011-09-14T22:48:00.008+09:00

To my friend Noritoshi.

Music nibs are a favorite of mine, as could easily be understood from these Chronicles. So, it is not difficult to imagine how delighted I became when this friend gave me this present.

The imprint on the nib is as follows: "STANDARD / NK / JIS logo / IRIDIUM / -<2>- / NPK".

This music nib is engraved with the Japanese Industrial Standards logo and, besides some other information, the initials NK. They stand for Nobel Kubo. Nobel was a pen brand owned by pen master Kubo Kohei —my friend´s mentor— about which not much information can be found. Kubo Kohei was also involved in the better known brand Elliott, active between 1930s and 1950s, and based in the Kita ward of Tokyo.

A Nobel pen, model Super Gold. A cartridge/converter pen from, probably, early 1960s.

An Elliott in celluloid. This pen´s filling system is a blow-filler or nakaoshi-shiki in Japanese.

This size 2 music nib is made of steel and is slightly flexible. Its point is, surprisingly, quite symmetric and barely shows any line variation unless some pressure was applied. This nib could easily pass as a medium-fine or medium point.

The Twsbi Diamond 530 with the steel music nib.

The nib point is very thin despite the three tines.

This text was written with the NK music nib attached to the Diamond 530. Barely any line variation unless some pressure was applied, as ca be seen at the bottom. Then, the ink flow increases and so does the drying time.

I have attached it to a Twsbi Diamond 530 —remember, the box had already been open— and the results are very pleasant. This nib matches quite well with the Twsbi feed and the resulting ink flow is quite generous, which is very convenient for the demands associated to two slits and to the limited flexibility. Limited, I said, but needed to create any line variation with this nib. At the same time, this ink flow contributes to the overall smoothness of the well made and attractive nib.

(Twsbi Diamond 530 with NK music nib – Diamine Evergreen)

Bruno Taut
September 13th, 2011
[labels: Twsbi, Nobel, Elliott, plumín]

Local Produce

2011-09-11T19:01:00.011+09:00

A market driven by collectors is bound to being irrational. And indeed, anything can happen when the actual needs give way to cravings.

Fountain pen inks are one such example. There are many inexpensive inks in the market, and many of those brands offer a very wide selection of colors. However, the business of fancy inks packaged like exquisite perfume is flourishing despite their color charts or their intrinsic quality might not be different from those cheaper ones. Diamine in Europe and Noodler´s in North America could easily be the rational inks of choice if we only paid attention to the actual price per milliliter of ink. And sure enough, their selection of colors is wide and rich—wider, actually, than those by most other brands.

Ink selection in a shop in Tokyo.

Japan, paradoxically, might have a more limited market. Paradoxically I say given the fascination felt in the West about dyes made by Japanese companies. The big three pen companies –Pilot, Platinum, and Sailor— have inexpensive inks for the domestic market, but with a very limited selection of colors. Interestingly enough, the cheapest ink in Japan, other than buying 500 ml bottles by Pilot, is the German-made Pelikan 4001 series.

The table shows the local prices of the inks mentioned on the text. Figures in bold face show the local prices in the local currency for those inks. The exchange rates used for the currency conversions are those of September 11th, 2011, as shown on the following table

The motto “think globally, act locally” might also be a good idea for the ink business in order to regain some common sense. Think globally to be aware of the market variations, and act locally to keep your buying power in good health.

(Platinum Pocket Pen, Atelier Yamada – Pilot Blue Black)

Bruno Taut
September 6th, 2011
[labels: Mercado, tinta, Noodler´s, Pelikan, Diamine, Pilot, Sailor, Platinum]

Japanese Accordion

2011-09-07T01:21:00.012+09:00

The accordion self-filling system was patented by the French company Stylomine in 1938 and used in the model 303. This company disappeared in the 1950s and once the patent expired other brands copied it. Such was the case of the Fit de Bayard, or some “Spanish” Conklin model.

But not only in Europe was this system used. Pilot did also in one of its Super models—the Super 500G, not to be confused with the Super Ultra 500. The Super 500G also features some other quite unique characteristics.

The accordion system is basically a sac with a very specific shape –similar to that of the accordion bellows—that allows it to shorten and enlarge its length and volume. Guided by a rigid frame, a transparent push button at the end performs this operation while acting as ink window. An internal snorkel, like that in a standard aerometric filler, is in place to increase the efficiency of the system by making the ink and the air go through different routes. And indeed this system is efficient—through repeated pushing of the accordion sac the filling seems complete.

The Pilot Super 500G also sports a very unique integrated nib. It is mostly formed by flat facets in different orientations. It is made of 14 K gold and its point is, most likely, an F. It is fairly rigid.

The Super 500 G faceted nib.

Elite (top) and Super 500 G (bottom) side by side. The Elite is a cartridge/converter pen.

This pen might very well be a predecessor to the later Pilot Elite, launched initially in 1964. Their external shapes and sizes are very similar, and both share the feature of the integrated nib. Their shapes, however, are different, and so are their filling systems.

(Pilot V Pen – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
September 1st, 2011
[labels: Pilot, soluciones técnicas, Stylomine]

Post data: More information on this other Chronicle: Missing Link.

2nd Generation

2011-09-04T12:30:00.008+09:00

The Pilot Petit-1, already reviewed on these Chronicles, is one of the inexpensive fountain pens marketed by Pilot. It is indeed an attractive product, visually appealing and a very acceptable writer, albeit with some minor problems.

Initially, it was marketed in 14 different colors, and pen body and feed were colored accordingly. The price was JPY 300 (plus taxes).

Its main inconvenient features were, first, the inability to use converters—the barrel is too short—and the insecure posted configuration. The cap could indeed be posted, and in fact, posting was required for the pen to be comfortable for writing, but one could never be sure how secure was the cap on the barrel.

Those Pilot Petit-1 are now on their second generation, and Pilot has changed some details.

Pilot Petit is now a line of three different pens: a fountain pen –Petit-1--, a signature pen –a kind of marker, the Petit-2--, and a brush (fude) pen by the name of Petit-3. All three use the same type of ink cartridge.

The three Petit pens: The fountain pen Petit-1, the signature pen Petit-2, and the brush pen Petit-3. All three use the same type of cartridge and of ink.

The eight inks available for the Petit line of pens.

The number of inks has been reduced to eight, and some of the most interesting colors have disappeared—that is the case of a dark green and a dark brown.

The five different models of the Petit-1 fountain pen.

The fountain pen also shows some changes. This second generation is not colored following the ink selection. Instead, there are only five different variations in yellow, violet, pink-purple, whitish and transparent. The feeds are now transparent and they become colored by the ink. Contrary to the previous practice, now the pens are not inked.

The transparent feed.

Finally, the pen barrel has also changed. Now it has four very subtle notches where the cap fits securely when posted.

The barrel has four notches to secure the posted cap.

The price of this pen is now JPY 200 (plus taxes) and the three-cartridge pack costs JPY 100. This second generation might not be so attractive as the first, but its performance has increased and its price is lower.

(Pilot Petit-1, 2nd generation – Pilot Appuru Gurîn, Apple Green)

Bruno Taut
September 2nd, 2011
[labels: Pilot]

Candy

2011-08-31T14:55:00.004+09:00

Despite what many people actually think, fountain pens are not necessarily expensive. A number of companies –and certainly so the big three pen producers in Japan— make entry level inexpensive pens aiming at younger users.

A recent arrival in this market is the Clear Candy pen made by Sailor. Sixteen different models —or sixteen different decorations for the same pen— form this line aiming at high school and college students. Regular Sailor cartridges and converters can be used on these pens, and a special selection of cartridged inks are marketed in combination with them. Sure enough, these cartridges can be used in any other cartridge/converter Sailor pen (save the obvious exception of the ultra-thin Chalana).

With the exception of the yellow ink, they could very likely be the same colors marketed in inkwells by Sailor for this year.

The Candy inks: pink, green, yellow, red brown, black, orange, blue black, and sky blue.

The F2 steel nib. The threads for the cap can be seen on the bottom right corner.

The pen, on its side, performs smoothly with a constant ink flow. The nib, in steel, is very rigid, and its point, not declared, might be a medium fine. The cap, quite surprisingly for an inexpensive product, screws in the barrel.

Sky blue and red brown ink cartridges.

The price of the pen is JPY 1000, plus taxes, and a set of two cartridges cost JPY 100 (plus taxes). The later is fairly expensive given the fact that a pack of six ink cartridges in black or blue-black can be found for that same price.

(Pilot Super Ultra 500– Pilot Blue black)

Bruno Taut
August 30th, 2011
[labels: Sailor]

August Inks

2011-08-27T09:58:00.007+09:00

Somehow this was expected… Platinum released the Mix Free set of inks in March, Sailor followed up with the new selection of colors after a whole year of limited seasonal inks, and Pilot was not doing anything on this active field. Actually, the very profitable line of Iroshizuku inks had not been changed for about a year… until this month of August.

Four new colors have just been added in brown, pink, purple and green. They come in poetic names whose translation is not always straight forward:

Ina-ho (稲穂): ear of rice. A brown ink.

Kosumosu (秋桜): cosmos; it refers to the plant Cosmos bipinnatus. A pink ink.

Murasaki-shikibu (紫式部): this name is very ambiguous. On one hand that is the name of the author of the Tale of Genji. On the other, it is also the name of a couple of flowers: wisteria (a whole genus in the Fabaceae family) and purple gromwell (Callicarpa japonica). Finally, the word Murasaki speaks of purple or violet color by itself. Of course, this is a purple ink.

Chiku-rin (竹林): bamboo woods. A green tonality.

Their price remains stable: JPY 1500 (plus taxes). That is about EUR 13.5, that despite the current strength of the Japanese currency is very well below the outrageous EUR 33 these ink cost in some places in Europe.

(Colors on the pictures are, needless to say, just approximate).

(Esterbrook J Double Jewel – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
August 26th, 2011
[labels: Pilot, tinta, mercado]

Size Differences

2011-08-19T07:46:00.010+09:00

A blog is a work in progress—all the time. But hopefully what we learn today improves and completes what we wrote yesterday.

I have written extensively about the Platinum Honest 60 and its European counterparts in Italy –Joker 60— and Spain –Presidente. The similarities were obvious, but all these pens are far from being identical. To the differences on the filling systems –cartridge/converter for the Japanese; aerometric for the Europeans—we must add the additional detail of the size:

The Japanese Honest 60, with golden cap, is bigger than its European relatives. (Authorship of the pictures as stated on the watermarks).

Platinum Honest 60:
Length capped: 138 mm.
Length open: 126 mm.
Length posted: 146 mm.
Diameter: 12 mm.
Weight: 14.5 g (dry).

Presidente:
Length capped: 134 mm.
Length open: 123 mm.
Length posted: 150 mm.
Diameter: 10 mm.
Weight: 14.5 g (dry).

Joker 60:
Length capped: 134 mm.
Length open: 120 mm.
Length posted: 152 mm.
Diameter: 10 mm.
Weight: 14.5 g (dry).

Platinum Honest 60, on the left, and Presidente, on the right, disassembled.

On the left, the Platinum Honest 60´s feed. On the right, that of the Spanish Presidente.

These differences and the different filling systems affect to the size and shape of the feeds. However, the Presidente´s and Honest 60´s nibs are exactly identical save the cosmetic detail of the Presidente´s being gold plated. And this poses an interesting paradox—a Spanish pen manufactured under the control of the Japanese Ministry of Industry.

The Honest 60´s and Presidente´s nibs in steel.

The Joker 60´s nib. Picture by Kostas K.

The Italian Joker 60 seems to be closer in size to the Spanish Presidente. However, its nib has a totally different engraving.

The quest for information continues.

My thanks to Kostas K.

(Esterbrook J Double Jewel – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
August 18th, 2011
[labels: Platinum, Presidente, Joker]

Honest Cartridge

2011-08-18T01:27:00.004+09:00

Some Chronicles ago I spoke about the Platinum Honest 60 pen. That was, let us remember, the first cartridge/converter pen made by this manufacturer.

Now we might not like the system that much, but it was a great improvement at the time—and even now. “Good bye, ink bottle”, was the argument of the advertisement campaign. Little did they know about marketing ink bottles fifty-plus years later, and that despite the fact that Platinum/Nakaya does not sell any self-filling pen.

Recently, I found one of those original cartridges from the 1950s. And sure it says it belonged to the Honest 60 pen.

"PLATINUM" / SPARE INK / HONEST "60" / BLUE BLACK INK. That is the inscription on the cartridge.

Much as the modern Platinum cartridges, this old one has a metal ball inside to favor the ink flow into the feed. But there are some important differences between old and new cartridges. Their openings have different sections and the current ones do not fit smoothly on the old Honest 60, and neither the current converter does. Certainly an inconvenient for those who wanted the use the first cartridge/converter pen by Platinum. Some arrangement should be devised.

I found this unused cartridge in the box of a non-Platinum pen from around 1960. The Honest 60 cartridge was its service cartridge. But this will be the argument of another Chronicle.

(Pilot Custom 74 Demonstrator – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
August 17th, 2011
[labels: Platinum, conversor]

Size 10

2011-08-16T08:33:00.009+09:00

Most pen companies nowadays barely go beyond the F, M and B triad of nib points in their pen catalogs. The exceptions to this general rule are either variations on those —mostly in the shape of extra fine (EF or XF) or double and triple broad (BB) nibs—, or either non-symmetric points—stub/italic and oblique nibs.

These five exotic nibs by Pilot.

And this scarcity of nibs is a common complaint among pen aficionados. Japanese companies, though, seem to have a wider policy of nib points. Pilot, for instance, manufactures its size 10 nibs in fifteen different points. Ten of them are variations on the F-M-B theme, albeit with the very nice addition of soft, i. e. semi-flexible, variations for F, FM, and M nibs. The remaining five nibs do show some exciting character. In no particular order, they are as follows:

-- Waverly nib (WA). This is a very smooth fine nib. Its geometry allows for a wide variation of writing angles. No line variation can be achieved with this nib. Sheaffer´shad this this waverly geometry on its conic triumph nibs.

All in all, this is a very comfortable F nib.

Size 10 waverly nib.

-- Posting nib (PO). This is a very characteristic one: the nib point is hooked down. It makes this nib very rigid and draws a very thin line. As a result, this point is quite toothy—after all, the contact between nib and paper is very reduced.

In conclusion, a very rigid extra-fine nib.

The posting nib. Very rigid and extra fine.

-- Falcon nib (FA). This is the very flexible version of the size 10 nib. It has the sides cut to allow for the impressive flexibility, at least in contemporary pens. The problem, though, is that the feed does not seem to be up to the challenge of providing all the ink the nib demands. In dipping mode, however, the pen behaves nicely. Its bigger relative, the size 15 falcon nib does not show these problems.

Therefore, this is a very flexible nib with serious performing problems.

The very problematic falcon nib in size 10.

-- Stub nib (SU). This type of point is relatively common in other manufacturers. It is non-circular: the vertical stroke is wider than the horizontal, thus allowing an obvious line variation. It is fairly smooth and nicely wet.

In summary, a nicely performing stub nib, like some others in the market.

The stub nib on top, and the music nib on bottom.

-- Music nib (MS). Only Japanese pen companies seem to implement their pens with this type of nib. It is a variation on the idea of a stub nib—an additional slit and a third tine make this nib richer in ink flow and thicker in stroke. This Custom 742 with music nib has been reviewed on these chronicles.

As a result, this is nicely looking and original stub nib with a generous ink flow.

Writing samples with the five nibs covered on this chronicle.

Pilot also offers a coarse nib (C) among its more exotic variations, but that is only an extra wide point (BBB) and, therefore, it is not unusual to Western users. All in all, these exotic nibs enlarge the writing experience, and that is what many of us look for in pens.

My thanks to Kinno-san.

(Pilot Custom 742 with several nibs – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
August 15th, 2011
[labels: Pilot, Sheaffer, plumín]

Got Ink?

2011-08-15T03:24:00.008+09:00

Enough ink?

A lot could –and should— be said about how much ink we store and the reasons for such behavior. However, in what seems like a distant past, when fountain pens were the tool of choice there were big bottles of ink to be used in schools and offices. This was the case of this one-liter bottle of ferrogallic blue-black Pelikan ink from around 1960.

A liter of ink for 53 pesetas... Made by Productos Pelikan S. A, Barcelona. And with the name of Günther Wagner on the box...

That ink was made in Spain, in the manufacturing plant this company had in Mollet del Vallès, in Barcelona. Apparently, only consumables –ink, erasers, glue— were produced in there. Other, smaller, inkwells came out from that plant.

(Sailor pocket pen with 14 K gold nib – Pilot Iroshizuku Sho-ro)

Bruno Taut
August 14th, 2011
[labels: Pelikan, tinta]

Olimpia

2011-08-05T01:40:00.007+09:00

Pen review of a Súper T Olimpia.

This model was released in 1961—that is, fifty years ago—by the company founded by Manuel Portús Ribas in 1942 in the city of Torelló in Barcelona. The brand Súper T made basically two models. The first one, initially unnamed, was the already reviewed Gester. The second was today’s pen—the Olimpia, named after the 1960 Olympic Games in Rome.

This pen could be purchased with either a gold or a steel nib, and with a gold plated cap. And time passing, a number of small variations simplified the pen. Initially, the barrel had an ink window and a small ball to secure the cap when closed. The ink window was soon eliminated, and the ball was later removed leaving a metal patch first to be finally completely removed. The clip, a beautiful feature of this pen, was also lightened during the later years of the company, already in the 1970s. Súper T ceased its activities in 1976.

1. Appearance and design. (9.5/10)

In few words, this pen is a streamlined piston filler with a steel cap and a gold nib.

More in detail, we can see that the ideas of barrel and section do not apply to this pen, as there is a continuous line from the nib to the piston knob. The clip is the well-known design by Manuel Portús—a single steel plate folded and attached to a single point in the cap.

The Olimpia is mostly a functional pen with little room for luxuries. It is not a pen to show, albeit its elegant and clean design would please many a stylophile—or an architect.

2. Construction and quality. (8.0/10)
No flaws can be seen on this unit after about 40 years of use. The only possible weak point might be in the sealing material used in the piston: that material makes some noise when operating the piston, which is a clear sign of it becoming more rigid.

A typical problem on this pens is a broken piston screw. But that is the fault of an unskilled user who did not know how this pen worked. However, you could say that the Súper T Olimpia is not fool-proof.

3. Weight and dimensions. (8.0/10)
The Olimpia feels comfortably on the hand. It is well balanced, especially if unposted. The ink deposit holds merely 1.2 ml, which seems on the low end for a piston filler.

Dimensions:
Diameter: 12 mm.
Length capped: 135 mm.
Length uncapped: 124 mm.
Length posted: 145 mm.
Total weight: 18.2 g (full)
Weight uncapped: 10.0 g (full)
(For dry weights, deduct 1 g from those values).
Ink deposit: 1.2 ml (aprox.).

4. Nib and writing performance. (8.0/10)

This unit, in particular, has a very fine gold nib. It is smooth and the ink flow, controlled by a hard rubber feed, is constant and reliable. Not a demanding nib, though, but neither it looses the line.

5. Filling system and maintenance. (7.5/10)
This is a piston filler with a good and reliable design unless some inexperienced hands tried to open the pen.

The price to pay for the streamlined design is the difficulty to disassemble the pen. The whole piston mechanism must be removed by pulling it up from the barrel—something not for the faint-hearted. And removing the feed and the nib is not any easier. As a consequence, a deep cleaning of the pen might only be made by some skilled person.

However, I grade this department with a 7.5 over 10 because it is a piston filler, something many of us enjoy, and those inconveniences are part of the deal. Cleaning, at the end, is often made –in this and in many other pens— just by pumping water repeatedly with the piston.

6. Cost and value. (8.5/10)

These pens cost around EUR 50 in the second hand market in Spain. In exchange you get a nice designed and very functional pen with a piston. The deal is good.

7. Conclusion. (49.5/60=82.5/100)

This is an original pen that performs very well for a very reasonable price. The negative points are associated to the clean lines of the pen.

(Súper T Olimpia, 14 K gold nib – Montblanc White Forest)

Bruno Taut
July 30, 2011
[labels: Súper T]

Joker 60

2011-07-31T23:31:00.016+09:00

We concluded on a previous chronicle that the Spanish pen Presidente was in fact a small variation on the Japanese Platinum Honest 60 from 1956. That conclusion, however, opened a number of other questions and the search for more information continues.

Thanks to fellow stylophile Kostas K, I learned of another possible variation of the original Honest 60. That is the Joker 60. Little we know of this brand, but a quick search in the Net points out at Italy as the country of origin.

The Joker 60, capped. It looks like a real Platinum pen. Picture by Kostas K.

The Joker 60, disassembled. Picture by Kostas K.

The Joker 60 is, again, an aerometric filler very much alike to the Honest 60. But there are some additional differences between them. The Joker 60 nib, for instance, is imprinted with the name of this company and with the word PLADIUM, and there is no sign of the original Japanese company. However, this apparent misspelling has already been reported on these chronicles as belonging to a Platinum shiro nib from the 1950s. Therefore, it is reasonable to consider this nib as made by Platinum.

A music shiro nib by Platinum with the "PLADIUM" imprint.

The Joker 60 nib, in "PLADIUM". Picture by Kostas K.

A second, major, difference in the Joker 60 is the wide clutch ring at the end of the section. This wide ring shows an important difference with respect to both the original Platinum Honest 60 and to the Spanish relative. These two pens show a very characteristic shape in the barrel --albeit not unique at all. This ring, then, implies that the manufacturing mold of this Joker was different from those of the Japanese and Spanish Platinums.

The Joker 60, uncapped. The metal ring belongs to the section and is covered by the cap when closed. Picture by Kostas K.

A third difference can be seen in the section: the nib mouth is different from that in the Honest 60, which abounds in the idea of these two pens being separate models, albeit related.

Nib and section of the Joker 60, on top, and of the Platinum Honest 60. There are some obvious differences in the way the sections expose the nib. (Authorship of the pictures as stated on the watermarks).

Finally, the barrel is engraved with the name of the Italian company. As a result, the only obvious sign of the Platinum origin of this pen is the logo on the cap jewel.

The cap jewel in the Joker 60. Picture by Kostas K.

There exists, Kostas K reports, another Joker pen with some additional differences: its cap has no logo, and the feed and the connecting piece between barrel and section are black. Their nibs are identical; i. e., both show the Joker and the “PLADIUM” imprints.

Everything on these Joker pens smell Platinum despite the small differences with respect to the Honest 60, as was the case with the Spanish Presidente.

The two variations of the Joker 60, side by side. The one on the left has the old Platinum logo on the cap. Picture by Kostas K.

There are also news, yet to be confirmed, of some Platinum pen very much alike to the Honest 60, but implemented with an aerometric system. Ron Dutcher has spoken of a previous Honest 60 pen released in 1955 with a bulb filler.

In view of all these facts, I dare to formulate a hypothesis: The Honest 60 was initially released in 1955 as a self-filler pen, either as a bulb-filler or as an aerometric. The next year, Platinum changed it to become the first cartridge/converter pen of the company. Then, I suggest, Platinum got rid of the remaining self-filling pens by selling them in other markets and through other companies, such as Presidente and Joker.

And the quest for information continues.

My great appreciation to my friend Kostas K.

(Kaweco Sport – Diamine Amazing Amethyst)

Bruno Taut
July 27, 2011
[labels: Presidente, Platinum, Joker]

Reliquias

2011-07-29T23:49:00.018+09:00

Per l'Olga.

La gente no debería festejar el paso del tiempo,
aunque siempre sea noble el obstinarse en celebrar el triunfo del enemigo.
Pedro ZARRALUKI. El responsable de las ranas. 1990.

En este año 2011 se cumple el 50 aniversario del modelo Olimpia de la empresa Súper T. Normalmente, éstas son fechas para celebrar y para descorchar una botella de buen cava. Sin embargo, el panorama estilográfico español, y aun europeo, no invita al optimismo.

Súper T Olimpia.

Tres compañías producen hoy plumas estilográficas en España. La más evidente es Inoxcrom. Su situación económica es mala y eso se nota en los productos que proporcionan prestigio pero no dinero. Su catálogo de plumas apenas ha cambiado en los últimos años y esta división parece ir a la deriva, sin una estrategia comercial clara. No obstante, sigue presente en bastantes comercios en Madrid y, presumiblemente, en España.

Inoxcrom 77.

La segunda marca española de plumas –desde un punto de vista histórico— es STYB, antigua Jabalina. Produce tan solo tres modelos de estilográficas y su presencia en el mercado es anecdótica.

STYB Compact.

Finalmente queda la empresa Pixeline como creadora de la marca Romillopens. Son estas plumas artículos de gran lujo, de producción pequeña y artesanal. Se distribuyen tan solo a través de una única tienda física, en Madrid, y, por supuesto, de su página web. Por tanto, las Romillopens no se ven en las tiendas del ramo.

Súper T Gester.

Súper T, por su lado, desapareció en 1976 y sus plumas son ya reliquias en manos de coleccionistas y comerciantes u objetos olvidados en un cajón. Desgraciadamente, me apuro a añadir, porque tanto la Gester como la Olimpia son plumas de buena calidad y de diseño interesante.

Pero ante este panorama, limitarnos a brindar y a darnos palmaditas en la espalda por el cumpleaños de la Olimpia no conduce a nada. ¡Es que ni siquiera podemos exclamar “per molts anys” al brindar!

Por ello quisiera que hubiera alguna iniciativa más atrevida que nos permita mirar al futuro de la estilográfica española con más optimismo. Con objeto de que en algún momento, con motivo de otro aniversario, sí podamos brindar por la larga vida de esa pluma, de esa marca, de esta industria.

(Kaweco Sport transparente – Senator Regent Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
29 de julio de 2011
[labels: Súper T, Inoxcrom, STYB, Romillopens, España]

Matching (X)

2011-07-28T01:17:00.009+09:00

The controversy is always there: Is that pen original or a copy of another? Which company did father that idea? Sometimes, the answers are clear…

We all have heard the idea that the Japanese did not invent anything but they merely copied other countries’s products. And even thought that might have been true at some point, I do not think a leading country in technology could be accused of not creating anything new. So, the accusation is now directed to China—they just copy and manufacture fake products.

It only takes a quick look at the history of technology to realize that with the single exception of the UK, every country’s industrial revolution started by copying goods and products created previously in more developed areas of the world. And now is the time for China.

So, it should be no surprise to find copies of Western products manufactured in China. And in the case of fountain pens, copying the very successful Parker 51 seems like a rite of passage.

The section is closer to that of a Parker 61, showing the damascene decoration to point out where the nib is.

Such is the case of the pen with which I am writing these lines—a Rainbow 202.

Externally, it is a well constructed pen. It feels solidly made, with good quality materials. All the parts fit well. The cap attaches firmly to both section and barrel through an internal clutch. And there is even a small window between section and barrel to check the ink level. However, disassembling the section and discovering the nib quickly break the spell. Steel nibs are all right, but they need to be made of good quality steel and well manufactured. And as the picture shows, none of those conditions is fulfilled.

No second breathing hole but just a defect on the steel. The only engraving on the nib is a subtle "IRIDIUM" close to the feed.

But, how does it write? I have two units of this pen and one of them is terrible and the other is surprisingly good, drawing a juicy and reliable line. In any of the cases, I would be very concerned about the corrosion that might arise in such bad quality steel.

These are the pen dimensions:
Diameter: 12 mm.
Length capped: 133 mm.
Length uncapped: 127 mm.
Length posted: 144 mm.
Total weight: 18.8 g (empty).
Cap weight: 6.7 g.
Ink deposit: 1.4 ml.

China, as Japan or Italy or Spain did in the past, is learning by copying. And by doing that they run along the thin line of intellectual property rights—just as others did in the past and even today. Condemning or absolving them depends too often on what side of the fence we stand on.

(Rainbow 202 – Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue)

Bruno Taut
July 27th, 2011
[labels: Rainbow, Parker]

Drunken Sailor

2011-07-24T02:33:00.008+09:00

Pen review of a Sailor pocket pen, 14 K gold nib, from around 1970.

Now we know pocket pens were probably invented by Platinum in 1964, and that Pilot released its first pocket pen model by the end of 1968. Nothing we know, though, about the origins of those pens when made by Sailor.

The pen under review today is a Sailor pocket with a sort of old look due to a number of reasons: short length, nib flexibility and shape, original clip…

1. Appearance and design. (8.0/10)
This is an average looking pocket pen in terms of materials: plastic body, aluminum cap, steel clip, 14 K gold nib… Nothing special here. However, its very short length when capped gives this pen an additional appeal.

The clip is bended out of a single piece of steel, and resembles a paper clip. It adds an element of simplicity and functionality to the pen.

2. Construction and quality. (8.0/10)
The pen seems to have aged quite well and only some scratches can be seen on the cap. The rest is perfectly functional and shows no blemishes. The cap fits tightly on both the section –to close the pen— and the barrel —to post and to write with it.

3. Weight and dimensions. (9.0/10)

Small pen of average to low weight. It is so short that the option of writing with it unposted is almost out of the question unless the user’s hands were indeed small. But posted it is well balanced and comfortable to use.

Dimensions:
Diameter: 11 mm.
Length capped: 105 mm.
Length uncapped: 92 mm.
Length posted: 141 mm.
Total weight: 14.2 g (full)
Weight uncapped: 7.4 g (full)
(For dry weights, deduct 1 g from those values).

4. Nib and writing performance. (6.5/10)

The nib is made of 14 K gold. It has no point indication but it is likely to be a fine (F). The more surprising detail is its flexibility. Contrary to the very stiff modern nibs by Sailor, this one is definitely springy, almost a semi-flex. And this soft feeling is especially pleasant to write.

The feed, on its side, is not always up to the challenge. For usual writing and note taking, it works perfectly; but a little extra push to explore the full flexibility of the nib breaks the ink drop and the nib railroads. This is not a flexible nib —the feed seems to say—and we should be content with its pleasant springy effect. But it is certainly frustrating—the nib promises but the drunken sailor’s feed fails to deliver.

The bottom line is that this is a nice writer within its limits of ink flow.

5. Filling system and maintenance. (6.0/10)

Records say that Sailor used to market small converters for its pocket pens. But I have never seen any of those and neither can I say whether they would fit in these very short pens.

In any event, this one is now a cartridge-only pen, and only those manufactured by Sailor. This might not be a problem in Japan, but it is in other markets where the distribution of Sailor products is very unreliable. The options, then, are refilling the cartridges and using it as an eyedropper. The connecting piece between section and barrel is made of steel and some people might be afraid of corrosion due to the ink.

Maintenance-wise, this pen is quite easy. Nib and feed can easily be extracted by unscrewing the nipple and pushing them up the section.

6. Cost and value. (9.5/10)
Pocket pens are easily available in the second hand market and as NOS (New Old Stock). Save a couple of examples, they are cheap and make good writers.

7. Conclusion. (47.5/60=79/100)
There are a number of features that make this pen special: its very compact dimensions, the springy nib, the original clip. On the negative side, this is a cartridge-only pen, and the frustrating feed. But it is indeed a nice writer.

(Sailor pocket pen, 14 K gold nib – Sailor black)

Bruno Taut
July 22, 2011
[labels: Sailor]

The Eiko

2011-07-22T02:15:00.010+09:00

Today’s pen is labeled as “The Eiko”, and little else can be said about it. It is a well made pen. A very Japanese model, as the shut off valve shows.

There are three different engravings on the pen:
The clip is marked with a sign saying “NEW CLIP”, about which I should write something. The barrel, on its side, says “The “EIKO”. SAFETY FOUNTAIN”. The steel nib, finally, says “New Style Tubasa Iridium (5) Pen”. However, I cannot guarantee it is the original nib to this pen.

These "new clips" are rather common on Japanese pens from the 1940s.

The engraving says "New Style / Tubasa / Iridium / (5) / Pen". In a proper Japanese romanization, however, the name would be Tsubasa.

The Eiko is a fairly big tool: 15 cm long when closed and the eyedropper deposit holds about 4 ml of ink. These are the actual dimensions:

Diameter: 15 mm (cap).
Length capped: 130 mm.
Length uncapped: 123 mm.
Length posted: 170 mm.
Total weight: 21.3 g (empty).
Weight uncapped: 13.2 g (empty).
Ink deposit: about 4 ml.

Nothing have I found about this brand, and it is difficult to date without any further information. However, I would say it belongs to the early 1940s.

(Pilot Vpen F nib – Diamine Teal)

Bruno Taut
July 16, 2011
[labels: Eiko]

The Platinum Logo

2011-07-18T00:31:00.011+09:00

Not much detailed information there exists about fountain pens. A lot of research must still be done and, as a consequence, we all are subject to make mistakes.

Such was my case when I spoke about pocket pens one year ago (May 17, 2010). Despite my initial doubts, I ended up publishing a chronicle in which I said that they were invented by Pilot in 1968-69. Well, I was mistaken.

This Platinum pocket pen was made before 1968, as the nib shows through the logo on the nib.

The old Platinum logo.

Again, the old Platinum logo on a nib from, probably, the 1940s. The nib shows both the brand name —Platinum— and the name of the company —Nakaya (Seisakusho).

Now (as of July 2011) I read on the Platinum website that this company had released the first pocket pen in 1964—and that makes some sense. That explains, for instance, how the old Platinum logo –that of the world globe– can be seen on a pocket pen. The new logo –the stylized P— was introduced in 1968, according to the same website, and this contradicting some claims dating this change in 1963.

The new logo on a B nib.

The Nakaya logo, on the box and on the nib, resembling the old Platinum logo.

Later on, in the early 2000s, the old Platinum logo was revived to create that of the Nakaya line of pens.

(Slim purple eyedropper – Diamine Amazing Amethyst)

Bruno Taut
July 14, 2011
[labels: Platinum]