KenCrooker.com

Fingers Were Meant to be Inky

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / 8 Comments

Jinhao 3005 Fountain Pen Review

The Jinhao 3005 Fountain Pen, uncapped, with the pen resting on the cap

Inexpensive. Chinese. Fountain pens. Some are gems; some are disasters. How does this one measure up? Let’s mess with the…

Jinhao 3005 Fountain Pen

Price: $1.58
Nib: Fine / Extra Fine (Hooded)
Filling System: Cartridge/Converter (Standard International)

About the Company & Pen:

There is a huge number of Chinese fountain pen brands. Some, like Hero and Wing Sung, have been around for several decades. Others, like Duke and Kaigelu, are relatively new, but considered among the high-end of options from the Middle Kingdom.

Jinhao—a property of the Shanghai Qiangu Stationery Co., LTD—is another new-ish pen brand that came storming onto the scene in 1988. Okay, so maybe “storming” is a bit of an exaggeration. But at the present time, Jinhao produces a large number of fountain pens that are considered to be of… Read More

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / Leave a Comment

Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen Review

The The Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen, uncapped, with the cap laying down and the pen resting on top of it

This pen represents the first time I backed something on Kickstarter. It’s also my first hand-machined fountain pen. It also has my first titanium nib. Lotta firsts with this one.

Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen

Price: $118.00 ($79 for the pen + $39 for the nib)
Nib: EF (Titanium)
Filling System: Cartridge/Converter (Standard International)

About the Company & Pen:

Tactile Turn is a tiny machine shop down in Richardson, Texas that designs and creates a modest line of consumer products, catering mostly to the everyday carry (EDC) crowd. The company’s current products include the Pruner and Parer razor handles and the Mover and Shaker rollerball pens. The new (and exciting) addition to their lineup is the Gist fountain pen.

The Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen in its Box

Tactile Turn’s products are all made from rugged, durable, and attractive materials, including stainless steel, titanium, copper, brass, and polycarbonate. They’re made to take a beating, keep functioning as intended, and look snazzy doing it…. Read More

/ / Fountain Pens, Ink, Reviews / 5 Comments

Quick Look: Six Pilot Iroshizuku Inks

Sampler image and title block for the Pilot Iroshizuku blue and green ink comparison

Pilot Iroshizuku Inks: Blue, Green, and In Between

Pilot is arguably the biggest name in pens. If you’ve ever put a long, pointy thing in your hand and wrote with it, you’ve undoubtedly used a Pilot product along the way. Pilot is a Japanese company, and regardless of whether you’re using a cheap, throw-away ballpoint or a $5,000 makie fountain pen, their products are all made with impeccable quality, and you’re sure to experience a nice, trouble-free writing experience.

In addition to pens, Pilot makes a wonderful line of bottled inks for fountain pens. While other brands shoot for vibrant, highly saturated color palettes, Pilot aims for colors that mirror the beauty found in nature. Here’s a description from the Pilot web site:

The name Iroshizuku is a combination of the Japanese words Iro (Coloring), expressing high standards and variation of colors, and Shizuku (Droplet), that embodies the very image of dripping water. Each ink name derives from the expressions of beautiful Japanese natural landscapes and plants, all of which contribute to the depth of each individual hue.


… Read More

/ / Babble, Fountain Pens, Ink, Paper, Reviews, Social / Leave a Comment

I’m Now on Facebook

Visit me on Facebook at the Fingers Were Meant to be Inky Page

I’m not a big Facebook user, primarily because they refuse to notify me ONLY when someone tags/mentions me or posts to my wall. I got tired of wading through pictures of people’s lunch and reading vague and cryptic “some people” complaints. If they’re going to notify me of everything, then I don’t have the time for it.

That said, I know that’s where the majority of people hang out and where they look to share content and engage with each other. So I finally got around to making a Facebook page specifically for posting my reviews and posts related to fountain pens, ink, and paper. I’ll be posting all my old reviews, new reviews, and other fun stuff.

So if you use Facebook, be sure to stop by to say hello or to follow me there. Thanks!

Fingers Were Meant to be Inky on Facebook!

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / 4 Comments

Baoer 508 Fountain Pen Review

The Baoer 508 Fountain Pen, uncapped, with the pen's section resting on top of the cap with the top of the nib facing the camera

Getting back to some good, old-fashioned inexpensive Chinese fountain pen action. Is it cheap? Or is it good? Could it be Both?

Baoer 508 Fountain Pen Review

Price: $3.00
Nib: Medium (on the finer side)
Filling System: Standard International Converter & Cartridges

About the Pen:

Exploring the world of Chinese fountain pens is an adventure. Some are inexpensive, others are less so. Some are outstanding performers, while others are absolute disasters. And there seems to be no real correlation between price and quality. Some of my best finds were in the $4 to $7 range, while some of my biggest disappointments cost between $12 and $19.

Some Chinese pens lead to adventure not because of the price-to-performance ratio, but because of some of the crazy things that happen with them. The Baoer 508 is a perfect example.

I filled the 508 with ink from a sample, so I used a syringe. I was also filling another pen, so I stood the 508 up on its cap to let gravity help the ink find its way to the nib. After about three minutes, I came back to it and took the cap off. Ink went flying… Read More

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / Leave a Comment

Delta Vintage Fountain Pen Review

The Delta Vintage Fountain Pen, uncapped, with the cap laying down and the pen resting on top of it

Straight out of the “No idea what to expect” files, here’s a review of the…

Delta Vintage Collection Fountain Pen

Price: $29.00 (Typically retails for $110 to $150)
Nib: Medium
Filling System: Standard International Cartridge

About the Pen:

No, this is not a vintage pen. It’s a modern pen. Its name is Vintage. The Delta Vintage. Why, Delta? Why? Anyway…

I went back and forth on buying this pen several times before pulling the trigger. And this pen truly is an exercise in paradoxes:

  • It’s made of a beautiful, swirly-pearly acrylic, but it only takes cartridges (as I understand it, the mini Monteverde converter will fit, but I don’t have one to test it).
  • It’s been around since at least 2009, but there is very little information about it on the Internet. It’s not listed in Delta’s own web site, and you have to really hunt to find it in the Yafa site (Yafa is the US distributor for Delta).
  • I found two reviews of the Vintage: Mike Dudek from The Clicky Post loved his, but Amanda Crawford had a ton of problems.

My first Delta, the $76 Unica, is magnificent. The online retailers that carry the Vintage list it for anywhere between $110 and $150 (with $140 the most common price). Delta doesn’t market this pen, it’s over $100, and it doesn’t take a converter. Didn’t seem like much of a deal to me. But then I found it

… Read More

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / 2 Comments

Cross Dubai Fountain Pen Review

The Cross Dubai Fountain Pen, capped and laying on top of the writing sample

From the “What the Hell Were They Thinking?” Files…It’s an ugly, pitiful little thing, but I guess it gets the job done.

Cross Dubai Fountain Pen

Price: $15.00
Nib: Medium
Filling System: Cross Cartridges (No Converter Included)

About the Pen:

If I had to describe the Cross Dubai in one word, it would be “not fantastic.” (But Ken, that’s two words. Shut up!) Thankfully, it only cost $15, because it’s not all that impressive of a writing instrument. The nib is fat and mushy…should probably be considered a broad, not a medium. It dries out fast. The section is slippery. It has an ugly design. It doesn’t come with a converter.

In summary: The Cross Dubai is kind of a loser. Truthfully though, it’s not entirely terrible either. In many ways, writing with it is pretty freaking unpleasant. But when the ink is a’flowin’, it’s kind of appealing, too. A little.

The Cross Dubai Fountain Pen Uncapped with the pen laying down and the cap standing up behind it

Founded way back in 1846, Cross is a huge name in writing instruments. The fact that they’ve been around so long must mean… Read More

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / 3 Comments

Nemosine Neutrino Fountain Pen Review

The Nemosine Neutrino Fountain Pen laying on top of the writing sample, which uses Pelikan Edlestein Aquamarine ink

The most overachieving fountain pen ever…

Nemosine Neutrino Fountain Pen

Price: $20.00
Nib: Extra Fine
Filling System: Cartridge/Converter (International Standard)

About the Pen:

I can’t say that the Nemosine Neutrino really surprised me, as I had high hopes for it before I even had it in my grubby little hands. It looked nice in all the pictures I had seen, and the one or two reviews I saw for it were favorable. What did surprise me, though, was just how fine and smoothly it writes. The EF nib is touted as “Made in Germany,” so I expected a broader line (I seriously need to stop doing that). But this nib is beautiful! It’s maybe two or three molecule-widths broader than my Sailor 1911 EF & Pelikan M200 EF, and definitely finer than my Lamy 2000 EF.

And in addition to how fine it is, it’s also extremely smooth. The nib just glides across the paper – no catch, no scratch, no real feedback, and barely any noise.

A close shot of the Nemosine Neutrino Fountain Pen nib, showing the design and grade (EF)

This is the second Nemosine pen I’ve used, and I’m very, very happy with both of them. While the Singularity is, by all counts, a “cheap” pen (i.e., not the best materials or build quality), the Neutrino is definitely a pen that looks and feels premium, and it performs far above its modest $20 price tag.

A photo of the Nemosine Neutrino Fountain Pen, uncapped, with the cap laying down and the section of the pen resting on top of it… Read More

/ / Fountain Pens, Reviews / 5 Comments

Pelikan Classic M200 Fountain Pen Review

The Pelikan Classic M200 Fountain Pen in Green Swirl Resin with a black cap and piston-filling knob, Capped

Nice to meet you, Peli. I though you’d be broader.

Pelikan Classic M20o Fountain Pen

Price: $152.00
Nib: Extra Fine
Filling System: Piston

About the Pen:

On a recent trip to New York City, I stopped by the Fountain Pen Hospital to see how much trouble I could get into. They had a pile of Pelikans in a case near the front of the store, and the green and pearl swirls of an M200 caught my eye. Such a beautiful pen!

As I meandered around the store, the damn thing kept calling to me: “Kennnnnnnnnnnn! Buuuuuuyyyyyy mmmmeeeeeeeeee! You’ll loooooooove mmmeeeeeee!” I fell in love with the way it looked, but I was hesitant to spend that much money on a European pen that may be too broad for me to use every day. Regardless of how expensive a pen is, I buy it to use it, not to display it as art.

A close-up shot of the Pelikan M200 barrel's green and pearl swirls

I milled about the store for a while, but kept coming back to those luscious swirls. They didn’t have an EF on-hand, but they did let me test one with a Fine nib. I liked it a lot (super smooth), but as I expected, it was a little too broad for my everyday use. I took a chance and asked them if they could swap out an EF nib from another M200, and the dude was like “Oh yeah, sure, no problem!” So I screamed “Sign me up!” and threw money at him. I didn’t test the EF before leaving, so I wasn’t sure what to expect when I got home.

Shock of shocks: This EF really is… Read More

/ / Ink, Reviews / Leave a Comment

Quick Look: Toucan-A-Palooza

All six Toucan ink swabs (Scarlet, Bright Blue, Sienna, Crimson, Aqua, and Orange)

Toucan Inks: Bright Colors from Down Under

Toucan inks are made by a company called Dye Manufacturers of Australia, which has been around since the early 1900s. In about 1918, they started to sell dyes meant for clothing and food products under the name Tintex. More recently, they’ve branched out, producing ink for technical drawing and fountain pens.

At first look, Toucan inks don’t jump out as being too interesting or special. They’re bright, but their colors are pretty basic and not too terribly saturated. The beauty with these inks, though, is that they are specifically formulated so you can mix them to produce any colors you want. I haven’t played with them as yet, but I can see myself doing a bit of mad scientist work in the very near future.
… Read More