Even More Ink

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

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 nibs 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

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

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

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. A. 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

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

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.

(NOTE added on June of 2017: Although this information is suggested by Danitrio founder Bernard Lyn, there are some grounds to doubt about whether Kabutogi Toshiya was really in charge of the nibs of the Danitrio-commissioned Ban-ei series of pens. More information on the following text: On Ban-ei Nibs.)

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, nibmeister Kabutogi]

Prera

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

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

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 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]