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Fingers Were Meant to be Inky

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Delta Unica Fountain Pen Review

The Delta Unica Fountain Pen uncapped, with the pen section resting atop and perpendicular to the cap

Straight outta my “I really gotta consider more European pens, you know?” files, here’s my review of the simple yet sexy…

Delta Unica Fountain Pen

Price: $76.00
Nib: Fine (F)
Filling System: Screw-Type Piston Converter

About the Pen:

Unlike fellow Italian fountain pen manufacturers Montegrappa, Aurora, and Omas (RIP), which are pushing their century mark, Delta is a relatively new player in the field. Founded back when the Go-Go’s were sealing their lips, The Cars were shaking it up, and Joan Jett was stating the obvious (1982, in case you didn’t know), Delta has yet to hit their 35th birthday. When looking at the big players of Italian fountain pens, only Visconti (1988) has been around for less time.

Despite their relative youth, Delta smashed one out of the park with their luscious and sexy
… Read More

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Lanbitou 280 Fountain Pen Review

Lanbitou 280 Fountain Pen Capped

For the next entry in my “Inexpensive Chinese Fountain Pens” series, I would like to call your attention to the…

Lanbitou 280 Fountain Pen

Price: $7.00
Nib: Fine/Extra Fine
Filling System: International Standard Converter & Cartridges

Born of an Old Chinese Proverb:

An old Chinese Proverb states “A good memory is no match for a worn pen nib.” It’s lesson: to write everything down…a written account of an event, by its very nature, is stronger (and more accurate) than an oral tale of that account passed down through generations.

In Chinese, “worn pen nib” is translated to lan bi tou (or Lanbitou). What a beautiful name for a pen brand. I love it. It tells me that the company takes writing seriously, and that the pens that bear its name can be trusted to record all the events of my life, all the stories I hold dear, all the knowledge that I want to live on after I’m gone…. Read More

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Nemosine Singularity Fountain Pen Review

Nemosine Singularity Fountain Pen, uncapped, with the cap standing up behind the pen, which is laying down

An interesting, little $15 wonder…

Nemosine Singularity Fountain Pen

Price: $15.00
Nib: 0.6mm Stub
Filling System: Cartridge/Converter (Standard International)

About the Pen & the Company:

I really wasn’t sure what to expect from this pen. Opinions around the InnerNets are very mixed. Some love their Nemosine Singularity. Others have found them unusable. I’m definitely in the “love” category, but it does have some potentially large flaws that could be considered deal-breakers for those shopping for an inexpensive fountain pen.

Before I get into the pen too much, though, let’s chat for a spell on the company, Nemosine, as they’re sort of a big mystery…. Read More

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Faber-Castell Basic Fountain Pen Review

Faber-Castell Basic Fountain Pen, uncapped and looking sexy

From my “I can’t believe it’s not broader” file, I would like to introduce you to the…

Faber-Castell Basic Fountain Pen

Price: $45.00 (+ $5 for the converter)
Nib: Extra Fine
Filling System: Converter & Standard International Cartridges

About the Pen:

Founded in 1761, Faber-Castell is one of the oldest and most well known manufacturers of writing instruments and art supplies. 1761. That’s over 250 years. Two and a half centuries. We’re talking a quarter of a millennium, people. They’ve been around a while. They’ve had lots of time to perfect their products. And it shows.

I bought this pen a long time ago, and never got around to inking it up. I figured that because it’s a European pen, the nib would probably be broader than I’d prefer. When I finally tried the pen, I entered a fit of jubilation and regret: Jubilation over how fine a line it actually puts down, and regret over having let it sit in a drawer for so long.

Faber-Castell Glamor shot of the Basic Fountain Pen, capped… Read More

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Yiren 860 Fountain Pen Review

Yiren 860 Fountain Pen, uncapped

Next up in my “Cheap Inexpensive Chinese Fountain Pens” series, another winner from one of my favorite Chinese brands…

Yiren 860 Fountain Pen

Price: $7.00
Nib: Medium
Filling System: Standard International Converter (& Cartridges)

About the Pen:

I’m a really big fan of gunmetal-colored pens. It’s just classy, you know? Eye-catching. I often peruse eBay in search of cool-looking pens that won’t break the bank. Quite often, I find interesting Chinese pens for under $10. I’ve purchased and used a number of them, and I’m always happy when I find new designs that I haven’t seen before. I stumbled on an auction for this beautiful little Yiren 860, and immediately fell in love with the gunmetal and gold colors.

Given the terrific success I had with another Yiren pen, I pounced on the 860 like a rat on a Cheeto. And I’m not sorry about it, either…. Read More

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Quick Look: New Chesterfield Antique Inks

New Chesterfield Antique Inks

Chesterfield recently released four new antique inks. They were on a serious sale from XFountainPens, so I picked up a 50ml bottle of each. I think most Chesterfield inks are re-branded Diamine colors. I’m not sure if these new ones are also Diamine, but I’m blown away by all four of them.

The image below shows writing and swab samples of all four. I apologize in advance for my horrible writing. I’m a menace with a dip pen. I’ve got some quick write-ups below the photo, so get your butt down there and read them.

Writing samples of the new Chesterfield Antique Fountain Pen Inks using a dip pen and a q-tip… Read More

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Duke 116 Fountain Pen Review

Duke 116 Fountain Pen, Capped

Straight from the “Well, it’s not quite as inexpensive as my other Chinese Fountain Pens” files, I present the Chinese, yet somehow also German…

Duke 116 Fountain Pen

Price: $18.00
Nib: Medium
Filling System: Screw-Type Piston Converter

About the Pen:

Despite their relatively inexpensive prices and questionable quality standards, Chinese fountain pens offer some of the nicest and most interesting designs out there. I find that taking a chance on various Chinese pens is kind of an adventure. You never really know what you’re going to get. Some are stinkers, others are studs. The Duke 116 is closer to stud than stinker, although there are some aspects of the pen I’m not very fond of. And if I do say, the pen is quite a looker.

Duke 116 Fountain Pen, Uncapped

About the Company

Duke is the “street name” for the Shanghai G-Crown Fountain Pen Company, which is a Chinese company based in…you guessed it…Shanghai. The weird thing is that they also go by German Duke Lux Pen GmbH, suggesting that they’re a German company. GmbH indicates that the company is registered in Germany as a Limited Liability company. Soooooo…is it a Chinese company or German?… Read More

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Pilot Vanishing Point Fountain Pen Review

Pilot Vanishing Point Fountain Pen, retracted

The short version of this review: Oh my God! For a slightly longer version, keep reading…

Pilot Vanishing Point Fountain Pen

Price: $140.00
Nib: Extra Fine (Oh my, yes!)
Filling System: Pilot converters & cartridges

About the Pen:

Around 1964, Pilot introduced a high-tech and remarkable writing instrument: a fully retractable fountain pen they called the Capless. Over the next 60 years, they’ve made a number of refinements and design changes, such as changing the original twist-to-retract mechanism to the pushbutton style we see today.

A note about the “Vanishing Point” and “Capless” names: The official name of this pen has gone back and forth a number of times (as has the brand name between Pilot and Namiki). I believe it is still called the Capless in many parts of the world, but it’s marketed as the Vanishing Point in the US.

The current incarnation of the Vanishing Point is as technologically advanced as it is elegant.

Pilot Vanishing Point Fountain Pen, close-up image of the pen's Nose & Clip
… Read More

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Lamy 2000 Fountain Pen Review

Lamy 2000 Fountain Pen in black Makrolon with an EF nib

In my first review of a gold-nibbed pen, I present the beautiful yet slightly frustrating…

Lamy 2000 Fountain Pen

Price: $160.00
Nib: Extra Fine
Filling System: Piston Filler

About the Pen:

So after the saga of the Grail Pen that Wasn’t, I decided to tone it down just a bit and take a stroll down Entry Level of High End Boulevard. Up to now, the majority of my pens have been in the sub-$20 range, with a handful of mid-range pens (about $40-$80) peppered in for an extra dose of shiny bits. Buying a Visconti Homo Sapiens was a thrilling, disappointing, and eye-opening event for me. It was a beautiful pen…oh yes, it was (Lava! It was made from freaking Lava!). But it didn’t work out for me as a useful writer and it was WAAAAY too expensive to be just a showpiece. So I traded it in for three (count ’em THREE) pens that are considered among the first tier of the high-end fountain pens. The first one I’m going to review is this luscious little polycarbonate wonder: the Lamy 2000 (look for reviews for the Pilot Custom 74 and Vanishing Point in the near future).

I was kind of surprised. I had every intention of tearing into the Vanishing Point first, but once I picked up the Lamy, I just couldn’t put it down. So sit down, strap in, grab yourself (insert Beavis joke here) a mug of tea, and read on to find out how good it really is…. Read More

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Dikawen 821 Fountain Pen Review

Dikawen 821 Fountain Pen, Uncapped

Next up in my “Inexpensive Chinese Fountain Pens” series, I present to you…

The Dikawen 821 Fountain Pen

Price: $9.50
Nib: Medium/Broad
Filling System: Screw-Type Piston Converter & Standard International Cartridges

About the Pen:

It’s no secret that I love Chinese fountain pens. They’re typically inexpensive and they offer some really fantastic designs. Sure, some of them flat-out suck, but I enjoy the adventure of trying them out and finding the gems amid the duds.

I was drawn to to the Dikawen 821 by two things:

  • I just loved the juxtaposition of the dark, marbled wine-colored barrel against the milky-white color of the cap. I’ve seen plenty of silver-capped and gold-capped fountain pens, but I’ve never noticed a white-capped one before. I thought it looked classy in the pictures.
  • The second thing this pen had going for it was that it was made by Dikawen. I recently reviewed the Dikawen 839, and absolutely loved it. If the 821 were to look as good as it did in pictures AND write as well as the 839, buying one was a no-brainer.

… Read More