Posts filed under Fountain Pens

Leonardo Momento Zero Blue Hawaii Fountain Pen Review

If you have paid attention at all to the fountain pen scene over the last year, then you have seen the rise of Leonardo Officina Italian fountain pens. Susan has reviewed two for The Pen Addict already (here and here) and I’m finally ready to spill a few words on my own Leonardo Momento Zero Blue Hawaii fountain pen.

Leonardo Officina Italiana was launched in 2018 by the Matrone family, who have a combined 45 years in the pen business, primarily with the now-shuttered Delta. All Leonardo Pens are manufactured in-house in Italy, where they also manufacture pens for Armando Simoni Club. This experience has led the the creation of one of the best new entrants in the pen market in years.

What caught my eye with the first batch of Leonardo pens were the materials used. The acrylics in the Momento Zero lineup (they also use celluloid and ebonite) are stunning. Choosing my first proved to be difficult, but I zoned in on the Blue Hawaii early on. The only issue was the color was so popular that it took me a while to acquire one with rhodium trim!

My time came all the way back at the 2019 Atlanta Pen Show, and the Momento Zero has been a regular in my rotation ever since.

While the material used for this pen is what caught my eye, what good is the material if the pen barrel isn’t nice to use? The experience of the makers show that they know how to make a great feeling writing instrument, not only a great looking one.

The grip section has a slight taper in the middle, allowing for a natural feeling finger placement. The barrel length (5.5 inches) and diameter (0.6 inches) both fall into the standard size category for me, and the 0.8 oz. weight give it a perfectly balanced feel. It uses a cartridge/converter filling system, with a blind cap on the back end of the pen as an added way to access the converter. Speaking of which, this is a fancy converter that I very much enjoy.

If you were to force me to list any negatives about the Leonardo Momento Zero, I can come up with two, but only barely. One, the materials on the barrel do not line up. There are six areas that the materials run through, and none match up. They aren’t trying to line the material up and it’s off - it’s not supposed to line up at all. I think of it like the pattern on a calico cat, and I think it is great. Some may not like it.

Two, Leonardo uses Bock nibs. If I had my choice, I would choose Jowo every time, but it’s pretty clear that these nibs are being QC’ed and adjusted if needed before leaving the shop. This steel EF nib was perfect right out of the box.

With a street price of $199 these are not inexpensive pens, but I feel that they represent good value. And, with a bit of shopping around, you can bring that price down on this model a good bit. I recall paying $180 for mine from Dan Smith at the Atlanta Pen Show, and site sponsor Pen Chalet has several models for as low as $159. With the number of models and colors available, you are certainly able to find one that suits your style if you are interested in Leonardo Officina Italiana fountain pens.

I know I am interested, as I just picked up my second one a week ago. And I feel like it won’t be the last.

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Posted on March 9, 2020 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Leonardo, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Narwhal Piston-Fill Fountain Pen Review

(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!)

I hadn't heard of or seen a Narwhal fountain pen till I watched Brad unbox his on his Twitch stream. Even after seeing the video, I kept my expectations low. With its price tag of $45, I assumed it was more likely to be cheaply made and slightly overpriced than well-made and underpriced. When the pen arrived, I was pleasantly surprised. Maybe even shocked. Possibly flabbergasted.

The first thing I noticed about the pen is how substantial it feels. It's very solid. A bit heavy, but in a reassuring way. It doesn't feel like the plastic is fragile or cheap, the way some economically priced acrylic pens sometimes do. In the hand, it does not feel like a cheap pen at all. The joins and corners are all smooth and seamless. The threads are precise, both for the cap and for the piston. Because, yes, this is a piston filler! The mechanism resembles the one in a TWSBI ECO, and it holds a comparable amount of ink. As in, a lot of ink.

The piston is operated by twisting the end cap. The cap, end cap, body, and grip section are all in the same pretty, swirly acrylic. The ribbons of color have a great depth to them and it's a lovely effect. The grip tapers smoothly and is very comfortable to hold. The threads at the top of the grip section are so smooth that you can hardly feel them. There is a silver clip that has the perfect amount of grip and spring, and a silver cap band that says "Narwhal." The clip design even looks like a fountain pen! There is also a silver ring at the join for the end cap. Every fitting is absolutely seamless. I don't think I've ever seen this level of precision on a pen under a hundred dollars. Heck, I have some that cost over that that are less well fitted.

Narwhal also make their own nibs, which sounds bold, even foolhardy, but--again--they've exceeded my expectations. This is a good nib. Perfectly wet with no skipping. There's a bit more feedback than I personally prefer, but it doesn't feel too scratchy, and it doesn't feel dry. It also has one of the coolest engravings I've seen on a nib--a leaping narwhal (their company logo). The nib only comes in Fine, but it's not a true fine, in my opinion. It's closer to a western medium, or even a Japanese broad.

When uncapped, it's perfectly balanced. With the cap on, it's very cap-heavy, as there's a chunk of metal at the finial. The only negative I can name so far is that it does not post. I know that can be a dealbreaker for some folks. If it did post, though, that metal in the cap would be a problem. It's a large enough pen that it does not need to be posted, and would even be a bit unwieldly if it was. It's slightly longer than a TWSBI ECO.

I highly recommend this pen if you're looking to try a piston filling pen and want great quality for your money. I can't quite fathom (haha, get it?) how they've kept the cost so low while offering such high level of finish. They could easily be charging quite a bit more for these pens. I'm really looking forward to seeing what Narwhal comes out with next. I'll definitely be keeping my eye on this new brand.

(Goldspot provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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Posted on March 5, 2020 by Sarah Read and filed under Narwhal, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

TWSBI ECO White Rose Gold Fountain Pen Review

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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