(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her latest book, Out of Water, now available where books are sold!)
TWSBI has kept the hype alive for their ECO model by rolling out fresh looks for the line on a regular basis. With an affordable price-point and an endless train of fun and tempting hues, they're totally collectible. The latest irresistible offering is the White Rose Gold. This new look brings a more elegant, formal look to the line known for neon and pizzazz. The clear plastic body, white plastic lid, and rose gold accents look like the much-beloved ECO in an executive suit.
The fanciness of this model does raise the price considerably. Instead of $31.50, the rose gold runs at about $52.50. It's till within the realm of affordability, but it does push it over that $50 threshold into another category of pen, in my opinion. The standard ECOs are much beloved for their value--where the quality well exceeds the price tag. With a price hike of over $20, does this version maintain a good value? There are some materials upgrades that help justify the increased cost, and the rosy finish is an extra bit of production. But overall, this is still the same ECO--just in fancy pants. While this is a very pretty pen, I'm not sure I'd be tempted enough to pay the extra when I can get the same pen for so much less.
Like all ECOs, this pen has a piston filling mechanism with a remarkable ink capacity, and the clear body allows you to see your ink sloshing around inside, making it easy to see when your ink is running low. Which it won't, for a very long while. The cap screws on and contains an insert to help prevent ink from drying in the feed, so the pen will start writing even after sitting for a period of time. I have never had any issues with dry ink in any of the TWSBIs I've used. The grip section is clear and slightly molded to fit a triangular grip, but not so strictly shaped that other grips would find it uncomfortable. The cap does post, but it throws the balance off a bit, and it did not stay posted very firmly.
Most of the TWSBI pens I've used have been excellent writers. This is the first one I've tried where the nib felt scratchy in a way that goes beyond feedback. I don't see any obvious nib issues, so I wonder if the rose gold coating gives it an unpleasant texture, much like black coating does on other pens I've tried. It is also the driest writing TWSBI I've used, though it's not for lack of ink supply. In fact, this pen has a bit of a leaking problem.
After I filled the pen, I could see that ink was gathered inside the section of the pen. I had hoped it would stay there, but when I next used the pen, I was greeted by a cap full of ink, most of which spilled across my meeting notes. The more I wrote with the pen, the less leaking I noticed, so I hope this issue is only a factor for the first little while after a fill saturates the feed. I have, however, encountered this collar-leaking with TWSBI pens before.
Ultimately, the writing experience of this particular rose gold ECO has not been as nice as a standard ECO. There are inconsistencies in the quality control of TWSBI pens, however, that may mean that other rose gold ECOs are as dreamy as they look. I can't say this pen is as good a value as a regular ECO, but if you love ECOs and find this particular finish enchanting, it's still not a bad pen. And even with its quirks, I've used worse pens that cost twice as much and didn't look nearly so nice.
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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