Pen Review: Opus 88 Picnic and Fantasia Fountain Pens

September 1, 2018

Last month, I had the pleasure of spending the 2018 D.C. Pen Show working behind the Vanness Pens table. One of the surprising things that I learned from helping people try (and buy!) pens is the appeal of Taiwanese brand Opus 88 - I think we sold more Opus 88 pens than any other brand during the show, and the Picnic and Fantasia models were probably the two most popular.

The current Opus 88 model lineup, from left: Transparent Demonstrator, Koloro, Picnic, and Fantasia.

I've previously reviewed the Opus 88 Koloro and larger transparent demonstrator. While those are excellent pens, some people are turned off by the half-ebonite/half-acrylic body on the Koloro, and the larger demonstrator is, well, friggin' huge. The Picnic offers a more traditional cigar shape and is made entirely of acrylic, while the Fantasia sticks to the acrylic and ebonite combination but presents a smaller package. In terms of "technical specs," the Picnic and Fantasia are more or less identical to the rest of the Opus 88 lineup. Both pens feature stainless steel JoWo nibs paired with Opus 88's excellent Japanese-style eyedropper system, which I discussed at length in my prior review. The short version is that you fill the pen as you would a regular eyedropper, but the Japanese-style system incorporates a stopper that closes off the ink reservoir from the nib and feed, which prevents ink "burping" and excessive flow due to temperature and air pressure fluctuations. To open the stopper to write, you turn the blind cap as you would with a piston filler, allowing the ink to flow and saturate the feed. You can then either close it up again - I can get 2 pages or so of writing with a fine nib with the stopper closed - or leave it open for longer writing sessions.

The Fantasia features a different clip than the Picnic and Koloro. I like it - it definitely matches the pen better and seems a bit more refined.

Some additional thoughts and observations on the Opus 88 Picnic:

The pen comes in bright colors, including green, turquoise, and purple, in addition to the more staid brown. The acrylic is thick and high-quality, and I've been pleased with the durability and scratch-resistance.
The Picnic is a good size, and the cigar-shaped body is comfortable in the hand either posted or unposted. While I'd prefer to see a No. 6 nib on a pen of this size, the No. 5 JoWo steel nib writes very well.
Colorverse manufactures a line of ink in partnership with Opus 88, with the ink colors tailored to match various pens in the Opus 88 lineup. For example, Colorverse Supernatural matches the green Picnic, and Colorverse Horizon matches the blue Picnic.

Some people prefer the engraved "Opus 88" logo on the Koloro (right) to the applied logo on the Picnic (left).

Thoughts and Observations on the Opus 88 Fantasia:

Some have described the Fantasia as a pocket pen, but I consider it a bit too large for that designation. While it's shorter than the other Opus 88 models, once you post the cap the Fantasia becomes a full-size pen, and even unposted the barrel has enough girth to be comfortable for short periods of time.
The ebonite blind cap on the Fantasia has a lower profile, and the pen is designed so that you can use the cap to turn it to open and close the eyedropper valve. (It's difficult to explain, see the photos below.) I've never used this trick, and have found that it's easy enough to screw/unscrew the blind cap with my fingers.
The cap and blind cap on the Fantasia are both ebonite, and the body is acrylic. I founded the multicolor banded cap design to be much more understated in person than it can appear in photos online.

The blind cap has a Phillips-head pattern carved into the bottom, and you can use the raised metal ridge in the top of the cap to turn it, if you can't make it comfortably work with your fingers. I've not found it necessary.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

Opus 88 pens offer a great combination of unique design, value, and overall quality that has started to differentiate the company from its competitors in the $90-$125 price bracket. While eyedropper fountain pens certainly aren't for everyone, Opus 88's twin o-ring system and included glass eyedropper makes the filling process as clean and easy as it can be.

You can purchase both pens featured here from our sponsor Vanness Pens. The Opus 88 Picnic is priced at $99, while the Fantasia runs slightly higher at $125. As noted above, both pens come packaged with a quality glass eyedropper and instructions.

Disclaimer: Site sponsor Vanness Pens loaned me these pens for review purposes, free of charge.

Ink Review: Colorverse Season 4, "Trailblazers In Space" (Albert/V2 Rocket)

July 28, 2018

Colorverse recently launched Season 4, titled "Trailblazers in Space," and once again the company has shown that it really has no competition in terms of marketing creativity. This season's theme is again well-thought out, and the inks in the various sets seem to complement each other well. For those of you who aren't space geeks, the names are a tribute to the various animals, mainly monkeys and dogs, who were the first "Trailblazers" to "visit" space. (To be honest, after reading up on this theme in depth, I personally found the history behind these sets more than a little morbid. For example, I think there were technically six "Alberts", which is reflected on the design of the Colorverse box.)

Anyway, back to the ink. The set that I have is Albert/V2 Rocket, which pairs a bright grass green (Albert) with a bright orange (V2 Rocket). I say "bright" - both colors aren't quite what I would call fluorescent, but it's close. While V2 Rocket is easily my favorite here, Albert is also a great color. Both are on the drier side for Colorverse inks, though there were no flow issues. One thing to note about Season 4 is the new and improved packaging. Colorverse now includes foam inserts to help keep the bottles in place during shipping and prevent spillage, which had been an issue with the previous packaging design. (Check out the photo below.)

Colorverse Albert in my Franklin-Christoph Model 02 with a Masuyama-Rouse 14k needlepoint nib.

Colorverse V2 Rocket in my Jim Rouse Sheaffer Legacy.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

Colorverse inks continue to pleasantly surprise me. With all the crazy colors, sheen, and "glistening" properties, one might think that these inks would be slow to dry, or otherwise have issues with feathering and bleeding. Not so - every single one of these inks has behaved itself in any pen I've tried, and Albert/V2 Rocket are no exception. You can check out my prior reviews of other Colorverse inks, including Black Hole and Dark Energy, Schrodinger and Cat, and Quasar.

Many thanks to our sponsor Pen Chalet for graciously supplying this set of Colorverse Ink for review. Pen Chalet carries the entire range of Colorverse, including Season 4. Each set is priced at $36 USD for 80ml of ink (a large 65ml bottle and a smaller 15ml bottle), and with this season you get two different inks per box, much like Season 3.

Disclaimer: Pen Chalet provided me with the ink featured in this review free of charge. This post contains affiliate links.

Ink Review: Colorverse Schrodinger and Cat

May 16, 2018

Well, I'm back with another round of Colorverse inks for you. Up today is an ink, or rather, a set of inks, from Colorverse Season 3: Multiverse. For it's third "season," Colorverse released the inks in packs of two different colors, both featuring physics or space-themed names per the Company's usual practice. It's a cool idea, in that it gives you some variety within a single purchase, and also allows the company to play on some more complex themes. (I won't even try to explain the "Schrodinger/Cat" connection here. That's what Wikipedia is for.)

You can just see the shimmer in "Cat" at the edges of the swab.

There's not too much to say about these inks in addition to what I've already said about other Colorverse inks that I've reviewed. Both Schrodinger and Cat flow well, dry relatively quickly, and behave in the sense that they don't bleed or feather on decent paper, only becoming unusable for me on the cheapest recycled copy stock. Schrodinger is a mid-bright green, maybe slightly darker than Montblanc Irish Green, while Cat is a cobalt blue that "glistens" (i.e., shimmers). A note about Colorverse "shimmer inks": somewhat surprisingly, I like them! I find the glitter effect much more subtle than in the J. Herbin or Diamine offerings, and I had no issues with Colorverse Cat drying out in or clogging a pen. I've used it a fair bit, even at work.

I spent most of this review with Schrodinger loaded into my trusty Faber-Castell Loom, a pen I'm liking more and more as a daily writer.

One thing I like about Colorverse Cat (and most of the Colorverse glistening inks) is that it can pass as a "normal" ink for everyday writing. The "shimmer effect" is subtle and will likely only be noticeable in very wet nibs, unless you look pretty… — One thing I like about Colorverse Cat (and most of the Colorverse glistening inks) is that it can pass as a "normal" ink for everyday writing. The "shimmer effect" is subtle and will likely only be noticeable in very wet nibs, unless you look pretty hard.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

While I like some better than others from an aesthetic perspective, I have not tried a "bad" Colorverse ink. For further reading, check out my earlier reviews of Colorverse Black Hole and Dark Energy, as well as my review of Colorverse Quasar.

Swabs of my current stash of Colorverse Inks.

Site sponsor Pen Chalet carries the full range of Colorverse inks, including Schrodinger/Cat. The inks cost $36 per two-pack of bottles - one 65ml bottle of Schrodinger and one 15ml bottle of Cat - for a total of 80ml of ink. While the cash outlay "per ink" isn't insignificant, given the volume you get in a box the price doesn't strike me as unreasonable (though of course opinions will vary on this).

Disclaimer: I purchased this ink from Pen Chalet using affiliate credit. I was not compensated monetarily for this review, though this post does contain affiliate links.

Ink Review: Colorverse Black Hole and Dark Energy

April 4, 2018

I've got two more Colorverse inks for you this week! I'm loving this brand so far, and these two are among my favorites: Dark Energy, a deep burgundy, and Black Hole, which is what I would call an "off black." So far, nothing has changed from my initial impressions of Colorverse Quasar, which I reviewed a couple weeks ago. All of the Colorverse inks I have tried exhibit reasonable dry times, especially for inks with sheen, and while they aren't the absolute best inks I've ever used on cheap paper, they're more than serviceable. Performance-wise, I'd compare them to Pilot Iroshizuku, though the colors are more saturated.

Two swabs of Colorverse ink on Col-O-Ring paper.

These two inks are from the "Astrophysics" Series. Colorverse manufactures their inks in "Seasons," each of which has a different theme. Season 1, titled "Spaceward," has - you guessed it - a space/space exploration theme, with inks such as "Einstein Ring," "Hubble Zoom," and "Saturn V." The "Astrophysics" inks are from Season 2, which in addition to the two inks reviewed here include "Andromeda," "Gravity Wave," "Quasar" (which I've already reviewed), and "Supernova." Season 3, titled "Multiverse," takes a different approach by offering different inks in pairs, some of which obviously complement each other, but others are more subtle. The three seasons all emphasize unique properties: Season 1 inks tend to shade nicely; Season 2 inks have nice sheen; and the smaller bottles in the Season 3 sets "glisten" (i.e., shimmer ink). So far I have most of the Season 3 inks, which I'm still working through for review purposes.

The burgundy tone on the Dark Energy comes through much more than in a swab.

Since both of these inks are part of "Season 2," they have a lot of sheen. Dark Energy might turn into one of my favorite inks overall. I originally thought the color would contain too much brown for my taste, but that's not the case. While there are hints of brown, the end result is still a rich burgundy red with a dark sheen that I haven't seen before in any other ink.

Colorverse-Ink-Writing-Sample-Montblanc-Lamy

Black Hole is another winner. I love "off-black" colors, where black ink has a hint of something else like green, blue, or purple. I'm not sure how best to describe "Black Hole" - it has an a purple/red sheen to it when it dries, though I've also seen pictures where the sheen looks almost blue. A very cool ink, overall, and a perfect pairing for my Montblanc 146 Ultra Black.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

Colorverse continues to impress, and I honestly don't remember the last time I had this much fun with a new line of ink. I can't wait to see what they have in store for Season 4.

You can purchase the full line of Colorverse ink from our sponsor Pen Chalet. Pricing starts at $36 per ink, though this snags you two bottles for a total of 60ml, which on a price-per-ml basis is comparable to Pilot Iroshizuku and Sailor Jentle (after the latest price increase). The two-bottle packaging creates a great opportunity to go in on these inks with friends, and trade the smaller bottles so that you have samples of all the colors.

Disclaimer: I purchased this ink from Pen Chalet using affiliate credit. I was not compensated monetarily for this review, though this post does contain affiliate links.

Perfect Pairing: Faber-Castell Loom Fountain Pen and Colorverse Quasar Ink

March 24, 2018

Sometimes you run across a pen and ink combination that works especially well, and you just have to review them together. Such is the case with the Faber-Castell Loom and one of the new inks I received last week, "Quasar" by South Korean company Colorverse.

The Faber-Castell Loom: Budget Workhorse?

First off, I've written about Faber-Castell pens before, and in my opinion, the German company sells some of the best steel-nibbed fountain pens on the market. I've never had a Faber-Castell pen with issues, and I've owned several. The nibs always write smoothly and have especially good ink flow. The Loom is no exception.

Since you can purchase the Loom for as little as $40, you might ask why it's taken me so long to review this pen. Well, in pictures, I was always a little put off by the cap. I thought it looked chunky and heavy, and suspected it would throw off the balance of the pen when posted. I was wrong. The cap on the gunmetal versions pictured here is a lightweight plastic, which posts fairly deeply on the aluminum body. I've been writing with the Loom nonstop for the past week and it's extremely comfortable to use for long periods of time.

The Shiny Gunmetal version, which I demoed in-store at Vanness. The pen sits nicely in the hand, and is a great length.

The only real critique I would have is with the grip. The section has raised ridges to give it some texture, but it's still pretty slick, even on the matte pen. It wasn't that big of a deal for me, but I know some readers are sensitive to this issue. I believe the "Piano" versions of the Loom add even more texture to the section in the grip area, which may help.

The Faber-Castell Loom that I actually took home with me was this matte version. I like both Gunmetal versions (matte and shiny), but this one spoke to me more.

Colorverse Quasar: A Sheeny Ink You Can Actually Use

That reddish-purple sheen is insane. And it dries relatively quickly. No smearing three days later like some other sheeny inks.

So what's been my favorite ink to use in the Loom? So far, I've had great luck with one of the new Colorverse inks that I received in the mail last week. Colorverse Quasar is a rich, dark blue that features a reddish sheen, reminiscent of other inks I've tried such as Akkerman Shocking Blue and Diamine Majestic Blue.

I love the fact that Colorverse includes two bottles with every purchase. You can use the smaller bottle for travel, or - even better - you can trade the smaller bottles among friends, making it easier to collect all the colors!

The Faber-Castell Loom ended up being a perfect pen for this ink because the medium nib was wet enough to show off some of the sheen, but not such a gusher that I ended up with bleedthrough or smearing issues. One thing I've loved about the Colorverse inks is the fact that for such saturated, sheeny inks, they seem to be relatively low maintenance, especially with respect to dry time.

No issues with bleedthrough, feathering, or smearing on Baron Fig Mastermind paper. Even on office paper, this ink performed decently.

Take that last comment with a grain of salt, because it's more of an initial impression than a final verdict. I plan to do a more thorough write-up of the Colorverse inks in the future after I test more of the line. I have additional colors on the way. That said, I'm impressed so far, and others whose opinions I trust have had equally positive experiences.

You also get some fun extras in the box, including stickers, a pen rest, and a bookmark. (They also throw in a Colorverse cocktail napkin, which I've heard some people describe as "blotter paper." It's not. It's a cocktail napkin.)

A note on Colorverse pricing: At first glance, the Colorverse inks might appear expensive at $36 apiece, but once you break that down a bit it's not that bad. For each color, you get not one, but TWO bottles (65ml and 15ml) for a total of 80ml of ink. That comes out to roughly $0.45 per ml, which on a per-ml basis is similar to the new Sailor Jentle inks ($0.44) and Iroshizuku ($0.40). All calculations were done using Pen Chalet's best pricing.

Takeaways and Where to Buy

The Faber-Castell Loom took me by surprise. This pen represents excellent value and has one of the best nibs that I've used in the $40-55 price range. Vanness currently has a large stock of these pens in various colors, but unfortunately the "Gunmetal Matte" version is sold out. During my visit to Vanness Pens back in December, I was torn between the matte pen and the "Gunmetal Shiny" version (which I photographed in the store), as well as the "Piano White", both of which Vanness still has in stock.

While I expected to like the Colorverse inks, simply because the "space/astrophysics" concept behind the brand was so well thought-out and intriguing, I didn't expect these inks to work as well as they do for everyday use. As I mentioned, I've ordered more, and look forward to testing the other colors. You can purchase all three "seasons" of Colorverse inks from Pen Chalet, who (along with Vanness) carries the entire line.

Disclaimer: Vanness Pens provided the Faber-Castell Loom for review purposes, free of charge. Pen Chalet supplied me with the Colorverse Ink. This post contains affiliate links.