Singing Bird

The Birdie was an inexpensive fountain pen made by Pilot in the 1980s.

In a nutshell, it is an all metal pen, stainless steel, with a plastic gripping section and a steel nib. Its filling system is by Pilot cartridges and it also admits the use of the CON-20 bladder-type converter.

The stainless steel nib in point F. It was manufactured on May of 1981.

The main characteristic of this pen is its very small size—thin and short. And simple too: the cap friction fits both the section (closing the pen), and the barrel (posting it). The later configuration is very nicely designed—the barrel becomes thinner to allow for a smooth fit a clean look.

These are the dimensions of the Pilot Birdie (1981):

Length closed: 110 mm
Length open: 105 mm
Length posted: 129 mm
Diameter: 9 mm
Weight: 12.9 g (dry, with converter)

The stainless steel nib is not particularly interesting. It is just functional and efficient, boring until we discovered there was a three-tined music nib, untipped, implemented on the Pilot Birdie.

On top, the cap posted on the barrel. Note the alignment between both pieces. On bottom, the music nib, the section, and the single spare Pilot cartridge. On this pen, made in April 1982, the clip is marked with the model name: Birdie.

And then, the boring and efficient Pilot Birdie became a very exciting pen.

The untipped three-tined music nib.

As can be seen on the pictures of this text, there were several variations along the history of this model. The dimensions stated on this text correspond to the model issued in 1981. The model with the music nib was made in 1982 and its ends are not flat.

My thanks to Mr. Niikura.

Sailor pocket pen, 21 K – Daiso Black cartridge

Bruno Taut
Madrid, November 28th, 2015
etiquetas: Pilot, plumín, plumín musical

Music Evolution

The current Pilot model Custom in the all-too-well-known balance shape, so dear to Montblanc, has its starting point in modern times in 1983. In that year, to celebrate its 65th anniversary, the 65th anniversary model was released as a limited edition, This pen was designed, Masa Sunami says, following the style of some Pilot models from the 1930s, although some might insist in the German-copy theory.

Pilot Custom 65th, released in 1983. 6500 units were marketed.

Two years after those 6500 units, in 1985, Pilot launched the non-limited Custom 67. This newer model preserved the shape and dimensions of the previous model while simplified the cap ring. The nibs of these two pens were identical and, in actual terms, they are number 5 nibs (Pilot numbering) albeit without that label. Size 5 nibs, let us remember, are those of the current models Custom 74 and Custom Heritage 92, plus that of some low-end maki-e models branded as Pilot and as Namiki.

Pilot Custom 67, from 1985. Of course, a cartridge-converter pen.

Custom 74 (top) and Custom 67 (bottom), side by side.

Both Custom 67 and 74 implemented three-tined music nibs. They are apparently identical, but a careful inspection of their points reveals a clear change. On the older nib, made in 1989, the tipping material is smoothly integrated in the nib, and creates no apparent ball at the end. In this regard, this nib unit is closer to that of the Custom Grandee (1978). The nib of the newer Custom 74, on the contrary, displays an wide plateau that sticks out of the nib on the writing area.

The music nib of the Custom 67.

Feeds are also different: the newer unit implements and internal channel for ink and air that does not exist in older feeds by Pilot.

On the left, music nib of the Custom 74. On the bottom, that of the Custom Grandee. On the right, the Custom 67.

Therefore, the apparent similarities should not confuse us. There is always room for changes and innovations. In this particular case, the looks of the tip and the writing feeling on the hand are much closer to those of the Custom Grandee released in 1978, with which the nib has no resemblance.

My thanks to Mr. Noguchi.

Universal, music nib – Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Brown

Bruno Taut
Nakano, July 13th 2014
etiquetas: Pilot, plumín, plumín musical

German Music

The pen of the day is not Japanese, but German. In fact, it is a full fledged Montblanc in its biggest and more representative model—the 149. But this is not any 149, and to see that we only need to check the truly amazing nib.

A regular Montblanc 149?

Its three-tined music nib is a bespoke unit ordered by the proud owner. It was commissioned to Montblanc Hong-Kong, which was cheaper than its Japanese counterpart. The order took two months to be completed and delivered.

A 18 K gold nib. On the side it reads "Handcrafted". By hand-really?

Now, is it just a three-tined nib? Not so easy. On the reverse side, we can see up to five tines separated by four slits. All in all it is a very wide, 6B, stub nib with a complex slit structure. Exquisite work.

The back of the nib shows a more complex structure than just those three tines visible on the front. Please, excuse the out-of-focus picture.

This nib proves Montblanc could make actual working fountain pens instead of mere symbols of status. But they do not come cheap.

My thanks to Mr. Suzuki.

Pilot Custom 74, music nib – Pilot Black

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, February 3rd, 2014
etiquetas: Montblanc, plumín, plumín musical

Universal (Japan)

Music nibs are rare finds in the wild, save for the obvious exception of those currently on production. From a purely statistical consideration, those we could find should mostly belong to those made by any of the big companies. But it is also known that minor companies also manufactured three-tined music nibs.

But nobody seemed to know anything about a pen brand called Universal. It seems, in fact, to be a very normal pen, boring and uneventful… until open.

The pen barrel in engraved with the company logo and the brand name: "UNIVERSAL".

Then, the nib this pen sported made the difference. It is a three-tined music nib made of steel. It is not, though, a refined product. It implements a big iridium point underneath that does not seem very finely cut. The filling system is aerometric.

These are the dimensions of the pen:

• Length closed: 134 mm
• Length open: 114 mm
• Length posted: 145 mm
• Diameter: 11 mm
• Weight: 11.6 g (dry)

The nib shows the company logo plus the word "Iridosmin".

The pen logo, a World globe with some additional decoration to its sides, resembles that of Platinum before 1969. However, there are no records showing Platinum using the name Universal for its pens.

In the West, a similar logo and the name Universal belong to an Italian company founded in 1956 in Torino. This company sells its products under brand names Carioca and Corvina, but no fountain pens seem to have been ever made by it. So, the questions about the Japanese brand Universal remain unanswered.

My thanks to Mr. Shimizu.

Pilot jumbo with Tsugaru-nuri maki-e decoration – Pilot Blue

Bruno Taut
Machida, January 4th, 2014
etiquetas: Universal (Japón), plumín, plumín musical, Platinum, Universal (Italia)

Family Portrait (VI)

I will be a bit narcissistic today and will show my collection of music nibs. All of them are Japanese.

Clock-wise from the top, these are the pens:

At 12 o’clock: Pilot Super 200 made in 1962. Hose filling (quarter-switch) system. 14 K gold nib.

Pilot Super 250, E model, made in 1967. Hose filling (quarter switch) system. 14 K gold nib.

Pilot Custom Grandee made in 1982. Cartridge-converter. 14 K gold nib.

Pilot Custom 74 made in 2010. Cartridge-converter. 14 K gold nib.

Twsbi Diamond 530, red, with a Kubo Kohei’s nib in size 2. Piston filler. Steel nib. This is a “frankenpen”. Twsbi does not sell music nibs for its pens. The best we can get are italic nibs.

Platinum P-300 made in 1969. Cartridge-converter. 18 K gold nib.

Platinum pocket with wingflow nib, made in 1978. Cartridge. 14 K gold nib.

Platinum 3776 in celluloid (calico pattern) made in 2009. Cartridge-converter. 14 K gold nib.

Platinum 3776 Century, made in 2012. Cartridge-converter. 14 K gold nib.

For this list, I have purposely ignored the music nibs currently made by Sailor in 14 K gold and steel. Those have failed in attracting my attention and their writing was never very pleasant. But Sailor, nonetheless, had manufactured three-tined music nibs in the past. The current Cross-music nib, by nibmeister Nagahara, is a totally different animal.

All these nibs, save for those currently on production, are rare finds in the second hand market. Rare, however, only means that it takes longer to find. Collecting has a lot to do with being patient.

Parker 51, octanium nib – Pilot Blue

Bruno Taut
In flight over Europe, November 13th, 2013
etiquetas: Pilot, Platinum, nibmeister Kubo Kohei, plumín, plumín musical, Sailor, estilofilia, Twsbi

Custom Grandee, Music Nib (1978)

What are the key characteristics of Japanese fountain pens in the 1980s? On the previous decade, we had seen the glorification of the pocket pen invented in the 1960s and the birth of some model that became iconic after the years: Pilot’s Myu. With regard to filling systems, everything had turned to easy, clean and inexpensive cartridges and converters, save for the very few exceptions still using the old Japanese eyedropper system.

Platinum launched the initial 3776 model, designed by Haruo Umeda, in 1978. Sailor was already using 21 K gold on nail-shaped nibs that would last for many a decade longer. And Pilot was in the transition between the old nail-shaped nibs and new geometries, while keeping the inlaid nibs of some Elite and Custom pens. And then, the new Custom and the Custom Grandee models became the workhorses of the company in 1978. This later model was exported to some markets overseas.

A Pilot ad from 1978 showing the Custom Grandee together with the Murex.

Another advertisement of the Custom Grandee (1978). It shows the seven available nib points. Picture taken from Lambrou and Sunami's Fountain Pens of Japan (2012. ISBN: 978-0-9571230-0).

The Custom Grandee line of pens was composed by seven different nib points, including a three-tine music nib. And this is the example on display today. This pen was a cartridge-converter pen, equipped with a 14 K gold nib, a snap-on cap, and a flat-top shape. The original price was JPY 7000.

This three-tine nib is slightly –but clearly— flexible and has quite sharp edges, thus becoming almost a cursive pen. It provides a remarkable line variation.

Written sample done with the pen on review, and an iron-gall ink made by Gary.

The very flat point of this three-tine nib.

These are its dimensions:
Length closed: 137 mm
Length open: 122 mm
Length posted: 150 mm
Diameter: 13 mm
Weight: 19 g (with inked CON-50 converter)
Ink deposit: 0.9 ml (cartridge), 0.8 ml (CON-20), 0.6-0.7 ml (CON-50)

The nib is simply decorated. Note the chipped ring on the section.

This model has a weak point. The ring on the section is metal plated, but the quality of the plating is very poor and easily chips off. It is in fact very difficult to find a unit with this ring in good condition. The music nib, though, is well-worth this cosmetic inconvenient. Later music nibs, like those in the current models Custom 74 and Custom 742, are a lot rounder on their edges and do not offer the line variation of this Custom Grandee.

The nib of this unit is dated as having been made at Hiratsuka factory (Kanagawa prefecture) on November 1982.

Platinum Century, music nib – Platinum Pigment Blue

Bruno Taut
Shinjuku, August 12th 2013
labels: Pilot, plumín, plumín musical

More Platinum Music

Pocket pens, also known as mini and as long-short pens, were introduced in Japan in 1963 by Sailor 1964 by Platinum, and remained in the market until the 1980s. Later on, though, Pilot released other pocket pen models—the limited edition M90 in 2008, and the entry-level Vortex, still on production.

A selection of pocket pens from six different manufacturers. Their nibs are made of steel, yellow gold of purities between 14 K and 23 K; white gold and the not-so-unique Platinum alloy.

During the twenty years or so of existence, these small pens were made in a variety of looks and styles—from formal and black to colorful and casual; for women and for men; for students and for successful professionals. And their nibs were matched with this variety: steel, gold in many different grades, white gold… And, finally, nib points were not limited to the traditional F and M. Other points were not that common, but existed.

A formal looking pocket pen--black with golden accents.

The following pen is an example of an unusual nib point. This Platinum pocket pen is equipped with a three-tined music nib. It follows the wing-flow design of nibs still on production, albeit this music nib is no longer available in current pens. Its feed has two ink channels, one per slit, and it is specific for this nib. The nib is dated on its reverse as having been made in 1973.

Previous Platinum music nibs did not implement specific feeds. Such was the case, for instance, of the unit from 1969 shown on the Chronicle entitled “Sixties Music”. That music nib, also installed in pocket pens, had a single ink-channel feed, like the rest of nibs of that design.

The feed with the double ink-channel.

This pocket pen is on the big size, and has a very formal look: black with golden accents. These are its dimensions:
Length closed: 125 mm
Length open: 109 mm
Length posted: 149 mm
Diameter: 13 mm
Weight (full ink cartridge): 18.3 g

The filling system is by cartridge. The current Platinum converter does not fit inside the barrel, although a small adaptation would make it fit at the expense of reducing the already small capacity of the ink converter (0.53 ml if untouched). Therefore, the ink cartridge, new or refilled, remains a sensible option (ink capacity, 1.2 ml).

All in all, this pen shows that a small container can be matched with an exciting nib. However, its size, and the policy of Platinum on the matter, limited the options for the filling system.

Pilot Vpen, F nib – Sailor Jentle Yama-dori

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, June 7th, 2013
etiquetas: Platinum, plumín, plumín musical

Wingflow by Platinum

I finished the previous Chronicle with the picture of a recently purchased music nib by Platinum. That pen truly calls for a detailed presentation, but its nib is interesting on its own merits—long lasting merits. For this nib design is still in the market, forty years (at least) after it was initially released.

The Platinum music nib I mentioned on the previous Chronicle.

In fact, that music nib might very well be one of the first examples of this design together, of course, with more standard points. That was around 1973. Since then, that nib has been implemented in a number of pens, including some early Nakaya (2001), and has been cast in many different materials: steel, 14 K and 18 K (yellow) gold, and 14 K and 18 K white gold.

Three examples of this nib design made in three different materials. From top to bottom: 14 K yellow gold, 14 K white gold, and steel.

The same nib, now in 18 K gold, was implemented in this "exotic skin" series of Platinum pens from the late 1970s. This particular unit was produced in August of 1978.

As of today, in 2013, this design, made in steel, can be found in some (relatively) inexpensive Platinum models: Balance/Cool, Affection, and steel-nib Standard. On more upscale models –Sheep, gold-nib Standard, and some low end maki-e pens— we can see it made of 14 K and 18 K gold. However, on all these models only two nib points are available: F (細) and M (中).

The Platinum Cool uses a steel version on this nib. On the picture, with a fine (細) point.

Forty years in the market make a good argument. But how do these nibs perform? They are very rigid with just a hint of bending under pressure, but they are unbelievable reliable. They do write on contact, and are never shy to speak out.

On this design the nib edges wrap around the feed and fix their relative positions. This geometry was not new or unique. It could be seen as early as in 1935 in the Chilton Wingflow pens. The claims of this manufacturer were that this shape of the nib ensured “perpetual factory precision adjustment of point and ink feed”, while “it creates a reserve pocket for ink”. However, many argue that the main point of this design was to reduce the amount of gold in the nib. But Chilton closed down in 1941, and Platinum and is still here producing wing-flow nibs for over forty years. In fact, for longer than that, albeit with different designs now no longer available.

Two units of this wing-flow design by Platinum.

Page of the 1937 catalog of Chilton with the description of the Wingflow nib and its advantages. This image was taken from the website http://www.chiltonpens.com/.

Now, the question is, once again, whether we needed gold nibs or, given the stiffness of these nibs, much cheaper steel nibs would suffice.

My thanks to Mr. Furuya.

External links:
On the Platinum Balance-Cool:
http://penaddict.com/blog/2013/5/9/platinum-balance-fountain-pen-f-nib
On Chilton:
http://www.chiltonpens.com/
http://www.chiltonpens.net/

Platinum Belage (1979) – Platinum Pigmented Blue

Bruno Taut
Yokohama, June 3rd 2013
etiquetas: Platinum, plumín musical, plumín, Chilton