Pen Review: Stipula Etruria Alter Ego

August 29, 2015

My pen collection doesn't focus on a specific brand or model of pen. To the extent my collection has a "focus," that focus has been on acquiring pens made from unique materials. Over the past few years, I've snapped up several Italian celluloid pens. The pen featured in today's review: the Stipula Etruria in "Alter Ego" celluloid, was my first.

Most inks have worked well in the Etruria.  For this review, I used Iroshizuku Asa-Gao on Rhodia paper. — Most inks have worked well in the Etruria. For this review, I used Iroshizuku Asa-Gao on Rhodia paper.

The major Italian pen companies are Omas, Delta, Stipula, Aurora, and Montegrappa. I either own or have owned pens from all five, with the exception of Montegrappa. (Nothing against Montegrappa pens--for now most of them are out of my price range.) My favorite Italian pens are my Deltas and my Stipula, primarily because of the different celluloids those companies use.

A note on celluloid: Celluloid is a highly flammable material made from a mixture of nitrocellulose (aka "guncotton") and camphor, which gives the material its distinctive smell. Originally intended as a replacement for ivory, celluloid has incredible depth of color when used to make fountain pens. Unfortunately, modern celluloid pens tend to be extremely expensive, because the material is time-consuming to make and requires years to cure before it can be turned into a pen.

While the Etruria is large, I would not call it an oversized pen.

The Etruria is a large, cigar-shaped pen, and serves as Stipula's flagship model. Stipula has offered the Etruria in various materials (primarily different celluloids), as well as in tweaked designs such as this gorgeous faceted model created as a special edition for Chatterly Luxuries. The pen is a high-capacity piston-filler. The piston mechanism is very tight, and the head of the piston spins along with the rod as the piston is depressed. Stipula advertises this piston as "self-cleaning," and I can attest that this pen appears to be somewhat easier to flush than most piston fillers, presumably because the spinning piston head brushes ink off the sides of the barrel as it turns. The piston also turns counter-clockwise, which is unique.

The Etruria is a big pen, and has some heft. It does post, but many people may find it too top heavy since the piston mechanism already adds a lot of weight to the back end of the pen. To me, the weight/length is similar to a Pelikan M800 posted. My pen features sterling silver trim, which adds additional weight. The clip is engraved to resemble a reed, which the Romans used as pens (aka, a "Stipula").

I've thoroughly enjoyed the 14k, 1.1mm stub, but I originally purchased the pen with Stipula's titanium "T-flex" nib installed. While the "T-flex" is one of the "flexiest" modern nibs available, the flow was too heavy for me, and the pen didn't see much use until I had the nib replaced by sending the pen back to Yafa, the U.S. distributor for Stipula. It's been a couple years, but I recall that Yafa had to send the pen back to Italy so that the nib could be swapped out. Stipula's stock stub nib is a true stub--not a sharp italic--and has fast become one of my favorite writers. It's soft, with just the right amount of flow, and has good line variation. I had considered selling this pen due to my dissatisfaction with the T-flex nib, but I'm glad that I didn't.

At the end of the day, the material is what does it for me with this pen. The Alter Ego celluloid is a brown/orange with black veins running throughout. From what I can tell, Stipula no longer sells the Etruria Alter Ego with the sterling trim, but PenBoutique has been advertising a new Etruria "Magnifica" in Alter Ego celluloid, with gold trim, as "coming soon." Unfortunately, Stipula's celluloid pens are not cheap. The Alter Ego pictured in this review now sells for close to $600, but that may be because this specific pen has been discontinued. The new model looks like it will have a $450 MSRP but is on pre-sale at Pen Boutique for $360, which is, frankly, a good price for an Italian celluloid pen. This price will increase if you opt for a gold nib as opposed to the titanium T-flex.

If you like the Etruria form factor, Stipula offers the model in more accessible entries to the Etruria "Magnifica" line, which feature cartridge-converter filling systems and steel nibs. Stipula pens are generally well-made, and they are a good entry point into the higher-end Italian lines.

DISCLAIMER: I purchased the pen featured in this review with my own funds.

A Pen Geek's Pen: The Conid Bulkfiller Minimalistica

July 18, 2015

Some of you may recall that back in April, I embarked on a “streamlining” of my pen and ink accumulation and sold off nearly a dozen pens, with the goal of buying three or four “custom” pens. While the Conid Bulkfiller is not a “custom pen” per se, because it’s not manufactured to each customer’s specifications, it is what I would call “small batch” (to borrow a whiskey term). Meaning, these pens are manufactured to order (i.e., the pen is not made until a customer’s order is placed), and some customization is possible. I opted for the Bulkfiller Minimalistica, a streamlined version manufactured from Delrin and trimmed with Titanium (including the nib).

History

Conid pens are built around the filling system, termed the “bulkfiller.” The name “bulkfiller” refers to the fact that most piston or plunger-filler pens do not fill to 100% capacity—the ink reservoir is never completely full. Francis Goossens (a noted pen repairman and collector who goes by Fountainbel on FPN) sought to correct what he considered a shortcoming, and the concept of the Bulkfiller was born.

The Filling System

It’s nearly impossible to describe the bulkfiller system without a visual aid. Watch this video first (courtesy of Conid and Francis Goossens via YouTube) and bear with me.

In short, the filling system acts like a syringe. While a typical plunger filler takes advantage of a vacuum in the barrel created when the user depresses the plunger past a certain point, ink enters the Bulkfiller on the upstroke (like a syringe), after which point the user disengages the plunger rod from the seal and slides it back into the barrel, leaving the seal at the top of the ink chamber. The pen holds a full 2ml of ink, and some of the larger models hold as much as 6ml.

The Minimalistica

Originally, Conid offered one model (the “Regular” Bulkfiller), but that has changed over the past few years. There are now 5 main options (Streamlined, Minimalistica, Regular, Kingsize, and Giraffe), and within certain of those primary offerings the customer can choose from different designs. The names of the models are fairly self explanatory (i.e., the “Giraffe” is a very long pen that holds 6ml of ink). I opted for the Minimalistica, a newer model that only comes in Matte Black Delrin and sports titanium trim. Since I purchased this pen for daily use, I chose the version with a clip.

Conid pens are manufactured entirely by CNC lathe in a factory outside of Antwerp, Belgium. Conid builds each pen to order, creating a lag time of 4-6 weeks between placing an order and receiving your pen. It’s worth the wait.

The Conid packaging is high-end.  The pen arrives packed in foam in a metal box, with an engraved titanium plate certifying as to the authenticity.  If you ordered a spare nib and/or the disassembly tool, those will also come packaged in t… — The Conid packaging is high-end. The pen arrives packed in foam in a metal box, with an engraved titanium plate certifying as to the authenticity. If you ordered a spare nib and/or the disassembly tool, those will also come packaged in the box.

The Build

People rave about the build on Conid pens. This is a pen addict’s pen, as it truly is “engineered for people who love writing.” The manufacturing tolerances are incredibly precise. Because Delrin seems to be a fairly “soft” material, and because it’s black, it shows some marks from the machining of the pen, but I can find no “flaws” in the pens finish. The titanium trim is especially well done, and the clip is a single solid piece of titanium!

The filling system on my pen works flawlessly, although it takes a few tries to understand how to engage/disengage the seal from the piston and to get the hang of filling it completely. Again, this pen is not for everyone. It’s the creation of a vintage pen repairman/collector who set out to perfect the fountain pen filling system by creating something that is a hybrid of the classic vintage fillers. I cannot emphasize how much ink this pen holds—it took me nearly three weeks to write it dry, and I write a lot and made a concerted effort to use this pen.

Fortunately, Conid provides helpful step-by-step instructions that ensure, eventually, that even the most mechanically challenged among us will be able to fill the pen.

There is one quirk. In order to make the pen safe for airplane usage and/or to prevent it from burping ink due to temperature or altitude fluctuations, the pen has two ink chambers: the larger chamber at the back, which holds the vast majority of the ink, and a smaller chamber up front, just behind the feed. The smaller chamber holds perhaps 2-3 pages worth of ink, and when it runs dry you have to unscrew the blind cap slightly (and sometimes give the pen a quick flick of the wrist) to allow ink from the back chamber to refill the smaller chamber and the feed. Several other vacuum-filling pens share this double-chambered feature—namely Viscontis that utilize the “Power Filling” system. Both the Pilot Custom 823 and the TWSBI Vac 700 require you to unscrew the blind cap to allow ink to flow through during prolonged writing sessions.

The pen is comfortable to use both posted and unposted. The cap is a slip-cap, which uses an O-ring for friction-fit, so the posting is not the most secure in the world, but I’ve never had it fall off. For some reason I tend to prefer this pen unposted, which is rare for me, but I think Conid nailed it on the length. See the gallery below for some size comparisons with the similarly sized Lamy 2000 and Delta Fusion 82. The Conid is a bit thicker.

The Nib

After trying Brad Dowdy’s and Thomas Hall’s Bulkfillers at the Atlanta Pen Show, I knew that I had to go with the titanium nib. The nib is manufactured by Bock (who, to my knowledge, manufactures most, if not all, of the titanium nibs for the fountain pen industry). I have had one other titanium nib in the past, a Stipula T-Flex, but I didn’t care for it and ended up swapping it out for a gold stub. I found the T-Flex too “flexy” for everyday writing, and too wet to use on standard office paper, which is the bulk of my fountain pen use. The standard Bock fine nib, however, is perfect for me. It’s one of the smoothest nibs I own, and there’s an ever-so-slight springiness to it that gives your writing good shading and visible line variation. In other words, it’s a good everyday writer without the more boring qualities of your typical stiff-as-a-nail steel nibs.

The No. 6 Titanium Bock Nib.  Note that the brushed finish of the titanium nicely complements the Delrin.  Most Bulkfillers come outfitted with a #6 nib. The Slimline sports a #5, and the Kingsize comes with a #8(!!?). — The No. 6 Titanium Bock Nib. Note that the brushed finish of the titanium nicely complements the Delrin. Most Bulkfillers come outfitted with a #6 nib. The Slimline sports a #5, and the Kingsize comes with a #8(!!?).

A writing sample with the fine titanium nib.  Note the shading. — A writing sample with the fine titanium nib. Note the shading.

The Verdict

This is a great pen, and I don’t regret the money spent or the wait. I did choose the title "a pen geek's pen" deliberately--it’s not for everyone. The filling system is complicated and somewhat tricky to master, and if you’re a serial ink changer you may get bored with how long it takes to write the pen dry. But the manufacturing is superb, the nib is wonderful, and Conid’s customer service is outstanding (especially once they figured out how to refund the VAT for non-EU residents).

You can purchase the Bulkfiller directly from Conid on their website. Pricing is consistent with most custom pens, and ultimately depends on the options you select. The basic Bulkfiller Minimalistica with a steel nib will run about $315 (give or take a few dollars for the exchange rate). If you add a titanium nib and the proprietary tool for disassembly (allowing you to repair/clean the pen on your own without shipping it back to Antwerp), the price jumps to about $390 or so. It's expensive, but you are paying for quality machining, titanium trim, and a fairly rare material like Delrin that I understand to be somewhat difficult to work.

I purchased this pen with my own funds, and was not compensated monetarily for this review.

Four colors of the Signo 207 BLX range.  A co-worker stole the brown pen out of my pack.  I didn't like it anyway. — Four colors of the Signo 207 BLX range. A co-worker stole the brown pen out of my pack. I didn't like it anyway.

Review AND GIVEAWAY: Uniball Signo 207 BLX .7mm Gel Pens

June 24, 2015

The Uniball Signo 207 is widely regarded as one of the best pens that you can pick up in just about any big box or office supply store, but it never clicked with me. The length of the pen has something to do with this: it's fairly short and there's not much heft. But the refill is nice, and when it comes to readily available pocket writers, for most people the 207 ranks up there with anything else on the market.

A close-up of the writing sample.  The paper is a Tops Double Docket White Legal Pad, which I'm enjoying for both pens (including fountain pens) and pencils.  Buy the white, not the yellow, which feathers like crazy with pretty much a… — A close-up of the writing sample. The paper is a Tops Double Docket White Legal Pad, which I'm enjoying for both pens (including fountain pens) and pencils. Buy the white, not the yellow, which feathers like crazy with pretty much any ink.

Building on the success of the basic Signo 207, Uniball introduced the BLX series, which feature black-infused blue, green, purple, red, and brown gel inks. (Uni offers the Vision Elite in the BLX color range, as well.) The colors look nice, the red and the purple being my favorite, but the 207 BLX only comes in the .7mm tip size, another reason why this pen will never make it into my regular personal rotation.

So: consistent with last week's theme of reducing my backlog and overall stockpile, I'm passing these for pens on to one lucky reader. The rules of the giveaway are the same as they've always been. Leave a comment on this page OR join my e-mail list using the submission form on the left sidebar. Joining my e-mail list will automatically enter you into my giveaways in the future. Each subscriber or commenter will be assigned a number and I will use a random number generator to pick a winner, who will be announced exactly one week later. Be sure and check back! If you can't wait, here's a buy-it-now link (affiliate).

Franklin-Christoph: Eyedropper Mania!

May 30, 2015

As I recounted here, last month I decided to shift my modern collecting focus to custom pens, and sold off a large number items in my collection to fund several purchases that would give me a head start in this direction. I ordered four fountain pens: a Conid Bulkfiller Minimalistica, a Newton Shinobi, a Scriptorium Balladeer, and a Franklin-Christoph Model 65 Stabilis with a Masuyama-ground medium cursive italic nib. So far, the Model 65 is the only pen I’ve actually received, but--as you will soon be reading--I’m very pleased with the purchase. This morning I received notice that the Conid has shipped (woo-hoo!), and the other two are in production and should make their way to me by mid-summer. In the meantime, I wanted to give my first impressions of not only the Franklin-Christoph Model 65, but also the Franklin-Christoph Pocket 66 that I picked up at the Atlanta Pen Show last month.

Past Experience

Franklin-Christoph is headquartered in North Carolina and has a long an interesting history. I have owned one Franklin-Christoph pen in the past: a Model 03 Iterum that I impulse purchased at the Baltimore pen show a few years back. The pen turned out to be something that just didn't work for me, though I liked the Masuyama-ground medium stub nib that came with it. Since then, I’ve watched Franklin-Christoph closely, waiting for another opportunity to pick up a different pen that spoke to me more.

Model 66 Pocket and Model 65 Stabilis

The “Stabilis” line of pens originated as tester pens that F-C would bring to pen shows so that customers could test all of their various nib offerings. The Model 66 holds No. 6 nibs, while the Model 65 holds the slightly smaller No. 5. If you visit the F-C table at a show, they will have dozens of Stabilis pens set out on the table featuring the entire range of nibs in both High-Performance Steel and 18k Gold. Their range includes standard nib sizes (EF, F, M, B, 1.1, 1.5), the Masuyama specialty nibs (XXF Needlepoint, Medium Italic, Broad Italic, Medium Stub, Broad Stub), and the 1.9mm Christoph Music Nib. It turns out that customers really liked the tester pens and wanted to buy them, so F-C began offering them for sale.

Franklin-Christoph Nib Size Comparison:  Model 66 No. 6 nib on the left; Model 65 No. 5 nib on the right.  Note the threads at the top of the grip section. — Franklin-Christoph Nib Size Comparison: Model 66 No. 6 nib on the left; Model 65 No. 5 nib on the right. Note the threads at the top of the grip section.

The full size Model 66 Stabilis is a bit large for me (which is why I ultimately opted for the Model 65), but F-C does offer the Model 66 in a shorter “Pocket” version. Seeing this for the first time at the Atlanta Pen Show, I couldn’t resist picking one up. It’s the perfect size for a daily carry pen, and for over a month it’s been inked and riding with one of my Sailor Pro Gears in the front pocket of my Nock Co. Fodder stack. For a size comparison of the Model 65 Stabilis and the Pocket 66, see the gallery at the bottom of this post.

Build Quality

The build quality on F-C pens is outstanding. I have neither experienced nor heard of widespread problems with cracks, excessive scratching, or other manufacturing flaws. The caps thread on and post easily, and the threads are cut fairly wide and short, so that cap removal doesn’t take long while still attaching securely. As Susan Pigott points out in her excellent review of the Model 65 for the Pen Addict, the threads are placed at the front of the grip section, out of the way of your fingers, so both Stabilis pens are very comfortable to hold. The pens post well (important for me), and the Model 65 has a flat side so that the pen doesn’t roll off my desk—crucial for a “desk pen”! The Pocket 66 is completely round, but it's used for pocket carry so I haven't had an issue.

The "Ice Effect" in an eyedroppered Model 65 Stabilis.

Most F-C pens are turned from acrylic, though they have some metal options as well. Both of my pens reviewed here are from the “ice” series of demonstrators, meaning that they are turned from clear acrylic but the inside of the pen barrel is not polished in order to maintain the “rough” texture. This creates a smoky, or “ice-like", appearance. When the pen is used as an eyedropper, you can still see the ink slosh around in the barrel of the pen, but the ink also settles in the nooks and crannies of the acrylic and looks, well, like ice.

Filling System

Both of my Franklin-Christoph pens set up as eyedroppers.  On the left is the Model 65 Stabilis filled with Waterman Blue-Black (a classic workhorse!); on the right is the Pocket Model 66 filled with vintage Montblanc Bordeaux. — Both of my Franklin-Christoph pens set up as eyedroppers. On the left is the Model 65 Stabilis filled with Waterman Blue-Black (a classic workhorse!); on the right is the Pocket Model 66 filled with vintage Montblanc Bordeaux.

Most Franklin-Christoph pens are versatile. They can be set up to write as cartridge-converter models or as eyedroppers. Both of my pens have been converted to eyedroppers. “Eyedroppering” a pen is not as scary as it sounds. You apply a small bit of silicone grease to the threads in two places: where the nib unit screws into the section, and where the section screws into the barrel. The trick is to make sure the silicone grease is applied all the way around the threads to seal the ink in the pen. I’ve had no accidents so far, and I’ve not been especially gentle with my Model 66 Pocket.

Eyedropper:  the end result. — Eyedropper: the end result.

A couple notes on eyedroppering: make sure you like the ink you use, because it will be with you for a while, and make sure the ink is relatively easy to clean, especially with the F-C “ice” models. As I noted above, the inside of the ice demonstrators is not smooth. I imagine that a staining ink could get trapped in the nooks and crannies and be difficult to clean. So far, I’ve stuck with Waterman, Montblanc, and Diamine inks and haven’t had any issues with flushing ink out of these pens when cleaning and refilling. I've even changed inks once in the Pocket 66 (from blue to red), and I saw no residue from the old ink (Diamine Regency Blue) after about 10 minutes of cleaning.

Nibs and Packaging

In my mind, two things make Franklin-Christoph pens truly stand out from offerings by other companies: the nibs and the packaging. First, the nibs. F-C uses JoWo nibs, the same nibs used by the Edison Pen Company, Newton Pens, Scriptorium Pens, and many more. While I have tried the 18K gold nibs at pens shows and found them to be smooth and a bit “springy,” JoWo’s "high-performance" (??) steel nibs are quality and I don’t notice a marked difference in performance that would justify the increased price (for me at least). As I mentioned above, one of the most attractive selling points of F-C pens is that they offer specialty nibs custom ground by Mike Masuyama. Some of these nibs are not regularly offered elsewhere, such as the XXF needlepoint, medium stub, and medium cursive italic options. You can also order extra nib units for your pens, and they are easy to unscrew and swap out.

Writing Sample for the Model 65 (Masuyama Medium Cursive Italic) in Waterman Blue-Black.

Writing sample for the Model 66 Pocket (Masuyama Broad Italic) in vintage Montblanc Bordeaux.

At the Atlanta Pen Show, I purchased the “Pocket 66” in clear ice, with the Masuyama broad cursive italic nib. I wanted the medium cursive italic nib, but they had sold out of the No. 6 nib in that size. So why not step out of my comfort zone? End result: there is not a significant difference between the two nibs. When I ordered my Model 65 Stabilis the following month, I opted for the medium CI, and while I slightly prefer the narrower size, it doesn’t keep me from using the Pocket 66 on a daily basis. Even the broad nib is still “fine” enough for me to use to annotate legal briefs and other documents, and it helps that the cursive italic grind, due to its sharpness, tends to not be as wet as a stub and therefore writes better on cheaper paper.

New Franklin-Christoph packaging.  I love the useful leather pen case/carryall.  (I now have two of them.) — New Franklin-Christoph packaging. I love the useful leather pen case/carryall. (I now have two of them.)

Previously, F-C packaged it’s pens in the same faux-alligator clamshell box used by other pen companies such as Edison. While they make for great gift presentation, these boxes are of limited utility elsewhere. Franklin Christoph recently switched to packaging their pens in a brown leather zippered pen sleeve, which I find much more useful. The case easily holds one large pen or two small-to-medium pens, and I’ve also used it to carry a variety of pen-related items, from cartridges to gel pens. I have my Nock Co. gear to cart my fountain pens around, so it probably won’t get much use as an actual pen case.

Takeaway

Franklin Christoph offers high-quality, versatile pens at a reasonable cost, especially if you are looking to try out custom nibs. If you don’t want to risk sending a pen you already own to a nibmeister to grind, I would highly recommend purchasing a Franklin-Christoph pen in a standard nib size (F,M,B) and then springing for an extra Masuyama nib unit. You are guaranteed to get a high quality grind, and Jim Rouse of Franklin-Christoph does one final tuning of the nib to make sure it writes correctly. At a pen show, he will let you write with the pen before he tunes it, and will adjust smoothness, ink flow, etc. to your preferences. The end result is outstanding: these two pens are among the best writing stub/italic nibs that I own, and I don't say that lightly.

DISCLAIMER: I have not been compensated, monetarily or otherwise, for this review. Both of these pens were purchased by me with my own funds for my own use and enjoyment.

Pen Review: Sailor Pro Gear Sky

May 14, 2015

Initially, my Atlanta Pen Show experience was tinged with disappointment because I didn’t have the chance to get this pen worked on by Mike Masuyama, who previously had tuned my Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black Edition to perfection. I had ordered this pen, the Sailor Pro Gear Sky Demonstrator, nearly three weeks prior to the show, but unfortunately (and due to no fault on the part of the good folks at PenChalet) the pen was backordered and didn’t reach me until after I returned. On a side note, during a conversation at the Atlanta Pen Show, I learned that Sailor actually doesn’t keep large numbers of pens in stock, but rather makes small numbers to order. So, if you order an in-demand, limited edition pen (like the Sky) or special order a hard-to-find nib, Sailor has to make an entirely new pen to fill your order. Explains a lot, and actually is kinda cool.

The two prize pieces in my collection.  I love my vintage Vacumatics, but these two regularly find their way into my daily carry — The two prize pieces in my collection. I love my vintage Vacumatics, but these two regularly find their way into my daily carry

The delay was worth it. The Pro Gear Sky is an exceptional pen. The color is exactly what I was looking for, and Sailor once again lives up to its reputation for nibs that write impeccably out of the box. Lately, there has been a lot of focus on Nakaya in the pen blogosphere as the Japanese company that makes “the pen" for a lot of people. I must confess: Nakaya’s offerings, while nice, do not speak to me in the same way as my Sailor pens, particularly the Pro Gear series. There is something about the specific size, weight and balance of this pen, and the fact that it posts well, that fits my hand and style of writing perfectly.

The Background

Sailor’s Pro Gear Sky series is offered in three sizes: the Pro Gear Slim/Sapporo (the smallest); the Pro Gear standard (the pen featured in this review); and the Pro Gear King of Pen (the largest). All feature rhodium plated trim, including a rhodium-plated 21k nib, which nicely complements the clear blue acrylic body of the pens. The blue color is supposed to approximate the color of the summer sky. (It also matches up quite nicely with Sailor’s “sky blue” inks, such as Bung Box Sapphire, which was the first ink I used.) While this pen has been out since late 2014, it is a limited edition, so it won’t be around forever.

The Build

Like all Sailor pens, the Pro Gear Sky is sturdy and well constructed. Some clear plastic demonstrators feel, well, “plasticky”, and you often get the sense that they won’t survive a drop or hold up well over the long term. I don’t get that feeling about the Pro Gear. The acrylic feels substantial and the pen has some heft to it. There are no scratches, dings, or chips in the acrylic that are visible to my naked eye. The cap is snug and the clip fits well to my shirt pocket. Part of me wishes that Sailor offered a “Realo” piston filler model in the Sky series, but that’s a small complaint. The majority of Japanese pens feature a cartridge-converter filling system, and Sailor is no exception.

The Nib

Sailor pens are known for their understated, classic designs and their high quality nibs. Every Sailor pen I have owned has written well out of the box, and this one is no exception. I opted for the fine nib (designated as Hard Fine, or H-F, on the side of the nib). As a Japanese fine nib, it approximates a Western extra-fine, so if you are looking for a pen that lays down more ink, start with the medium and go from there. My pen is not at all scratchy, however, and is relatively wet for a fine/extra-fine. I mentioned earlier that I originally intended to have this pen worked on by Mike Masuyama, and that hasn’t changed. This pen is an excellent writer out of the box, but as many of you know, Mike worked for Sailor for many years, and is especially adept at making Sailor nibs write perfectly. My Pro Gear Imperial Black wrote well out of the box, but after Mike was through with it, the pen became my favorite piece in my collection, and I consider it my “desert island” pen. This one will be no different.

The size of Sailor nibs is etched onto the side.  This one is a "Hard Fine", designated "HF".  The "Soft Fine" has a bit more spring to it, but is not quite flexible. — The size of Sailor nibs is etched onto the side. This one is a "Hard Fine", designated "HF". The "Soft Fine" has a bit more spring to it, but is not quite flexible.

Overall Experience and Takeaways

The experience of writing with a pen you really, really enjoy can’t always easily be reduced to words and accurately expressed on a blog. My Sailor pens provide enjoyment that I don’t get with other pens that I like and use regularly. I always have one inked up; and for the most part, it’s a Pro Gear.

One note on this pen: it feels ever so slightly larger than my Pro Gear Imperial Black, and I suspect that it’s due to the material being used (thick acrylic). The Imperial Black, while the same length, has an almost imperceptibly slimmer barrel than the Pro Gear Sky. To me the Imperial Black feels more comfortable, but that’s possibly due to the heavy use the pen has seen and the fact that its adjusted to my hand.

I purchased this pen from PenChalet, our sponsor, who carries a wide array of Sailor pens in stock and can special order most models. Their prices are competitive, and there is always a discount code or coupon floating around.