In my past few pen show reviews, particularly my review of the Baltimore Pen Show, I remarked on how there are many more nib grinders working at pen shows than there used to be. The result is not only shorter wait times and more options for those looking to tune or customize their fountain pens to their personal preferences, but a wider range of styles and specialties that only make this hobby more fun and more interesting.
A secondary benefit to having more working nib grinders is yet another trend: manufacturers offering pre-ground specialty nibs as an add-on to standard pens. While Franklin-Christoph has done this for years, with their Masuyama, SIG, and Nagahara-ground nibs, Esterbrook now offers a cursive italic (“Journaler”), an architect (“Scribe”), and now a needlepoint, from Kirk Speer of Pen Realm.
This Kirk Speer needlepoint nib from Esterbrook balances a narrow line with smooth writing.
Needlepoint grinds, or “extra, extra-fine” or “ultra-extra fine” nibs, aren’t necessarily as popular among enthusiasts as stubs, italics, and architects. They require you to use light writing pressure, or else the sharp tip will dig into the paper, and even with a light hand needlepoint nibs can feel toothy, which some people consider “scratchy.” That said, if you have small handwriting, or need a fountain pen to use for annotations or marginalia, I’m a firm believer that you need at least one needlepoint nib in your collection.
Kirk ground this needlepoint from a fine, as opposed to an extra-fine. Having more tipping to work with on the original nib often leads to better results, in my experience, especially if you value smoothness.
This particular nib, ground for Esterbrook by Kirk Speer of Pen Realm, is smoother than most needlepoints I’ve used, making it a perfect nib for those who want something that writes a narrower line than your typical JoWo steel extra fine nib, but isn’t so fine that it can’t easily be used for everyday writing. I would compare this needlepoint nib to a standard Japanese extra-fine nib (or even some Japanese fine nibs), rather than something like the Platinum Ultra-Extra Fine or the Franklin-Christoph Nagahara nibs. That said, because these nibs are ground by hand, there will lbe at least some variation between them, and the nib I received may not be identical to every nib out there.
Comparing the line from a Platinum Ultra-Extra Fine Nib (top), the Franklin-Christoph Nagahara needlepoint (middle), and the Esterbrook by Kirk Speer needlepoint (bottom). The Esterbrook nib writes a wider line, but is much smoother and better for everyday writing than the other two, which many people find too toothy. (I personally love them, but I have situations where I need to write very, very small.)
Takeaways and Where to Buy
Esterbrook has done the pen community a great service by introducing these custom nib options into its standard lineup, and by making it easier to get a custom nib grind as an add-on to your purchase of an Esterbrook pen without having to travel to a pen show or separately send your pen off to a nib grinder for what can be a weeks-long waiting period. While an ultra-fine needlepoint grind may not be for everyone, I found this particular nib to be well-made, and it will have a permanent home among my various Esties.
The Esterbrook featured here is the Honeycomb with Chrome Trim, one of my favorite materials.
You can purchase the nib and pen featured in this review from most Esterbrook retailers, including our friends at Vanness Pens. Typically, the custom-ground Esterbrook nibs cost an additional $48, with most of the markup going to cover the cost of the nib work. (To compare, having a pen ground to a needlepoint typically costs around $50, excluding the cost of shipping.) If you’re interested in further exploring Kirk’s work and having him grind or modify a pen for you, visit his site at Pen Realm.
Further Reading
Those interested in reading further on different types of custom nib grinds should start with this post I wrote a couple of years ago. In terms of other specialty Esterbrook nibs, I have reviewed the Esterbrook “Journaler” nib - a cursive italic nib ground by Gena Salorino of Custom Nib Studio, which is still available. There is also an architect nib, the “Scribe”, ground by Josh Lax of J.J. Lax Pen Co., which I’ve not had the opportunity to try but I have used Josh’s architect nibs and enjoy them.
Disclaimer: Esterbrook provided me with the nib featured in this review free of charge, for review purposes. This post does not contain paid third-party affiliate links. The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases made through the T.G.S. Curated Shop and the T.G.S. Patreon Program.