Esterbrook Camden Composition 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!)

Stationery with a stylish nod to another type of stationery? That's a winning aesthetic. I still remember my first composition book, purchased for my high school biology class. I had always been tempted by those elite-looking books when school shopping, and I wanted one. They looked so much cooler than notebooks. I didn't want to just "note" things, I wanted to "compose" them. And I needed those marbled covers and cloth binding to do it, I was certain. I reveled in the use of that composition book--my biology labs were written up with the elaborate precision that would later manifest in my bullet journals. I still can't resist a good composition notebook, and I couldn't resist the Esterbrook Camden Composition Fountain Pen, either. I mean, look at it.

Full disclosure: this is my first Esterbrook of any kind. I've played with the vintage ones, but I've never owned one, an I haven't made any foray into the new brand until now. So I can't draw any comparisons under the Esterbrook name, but I can speak to its individual quality.

I love this pen. Not just because it's stylish and nostalgic, but because it's an overall excellent pen. It has a metal body with a paint-spatter marble effect overlaid on it. The surface is slightly textured. It's weighty, but not heavy--it just feels sturdy, but is very comfortable to hold and is balanced enough to not cause hand fatigue. It doesn't post well, however--it's shallow, over-long, and unbalanced when posted. There is a springy clip on the cap. The cap is a twist closure, and has a "cushion closure" that feels bouncy as you close and open it. You have to press it in and then twist to close it, but this ensures a nice seal, so there is no nib dry-out.

The grip section is resin, according to some online specs, though it doesn't feel like resin. the texture feels almost like carbon fiber, though some places are saying aluminum. I'm betting it's brushed aluminum. It's very comfortable to hold, with a slight contour that prevents finger slipping. The threads are smooth, and while there's a step between the grip and body, it's not sharp or intrusive.

The nib is a #6 Schmidt steel nib, available in F, M, and B. It writes well, with a perfect balance of wetness and feedback. It's a very smooth writer, and the performance combined with the feel of the pen in the hand makes it a pen that I keep reaching for.

The MSRP for this pen is $195, with most stores offering it for around $156. It's a very fair price. Right now it's available in Lime “Spring Break" Green, and “Back to School" Black, with promises of a fall red color coming in a few months. There are only 250 each of these limited-edition beauties, so I wouldn't wait, if you're as smitten as I am. The only downside? I don't know of any classic-looking composition books that have fountain pen friendly paper. If you know of one, please drop me a line!

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

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Platinum Prefounte Fine Nib Fountain Pen Review

The Platinum Prefounte is a heck of a good pen. But, …

Sarah reviewed the Medium nib/Vermillion Orange model for the site recently, so in this review I'll be tackling the Fine nib/Night Sea model to finish testing out the nib sizes offered in the Prefounte.

As I mentioned up top, I really like this pen, but I have questions I have yet to answer about its place in the larger stationery marketplace. Yes, I tend to overthink these things.

What Platinum gets right with the Prefounte is nearly everything. The shape of the pen is classic, but with the modern twist of a transparent barrel in fun colors. The nib is spectacular, which Platinum does as well as anyone at this price point. It feels good, looks great, and writes well.

The only performance oddity I found - which Sarah did as well in her review - is that it would hard start when uncapping the pen to use for the first time of the day. A little scribble would get it going, but I wouldn’t expect this to be happening with the Slip and Seal insert they use inside the cap. That said, once I got it going it never stopped, but I also don’t recall this ever happening with the Platinum Preppy - even after sitting unused for weeks.

The Preppy is part of the reason for the “But, …” at the top. The other part is the other choices consumers have in the under $20 price range - mainly the Pilot Kakuno and Pilot Metropolitan.

All four of these pens represent some of the best choices for fountain pen users, beginner or experienced, and I’m trying to sort out where the Prefounte lands within this group.

I think the Preppy is the best of the bunch, and also the least expensive. At either $4 or $5 (depending on the nib size), it provides the exact same writing experience and a similar feel as the $10 Prefounte. Barrel style is the only reason to pay twice as much for the Prefounte.

One of my other favorite pens in this category is the Pilot Kakuno. It is Pilot’s entry-level fun pen, and the quality is exceptional. It’s the Platinum Preppy of Pilot’s lineup when compared to the more classically styled Pilot Metropolitan.

If I’m forced to break these entry-level pens down into a ranking, it would look like this:

1. Platinum Preppy
2. Pilot Kakuno
3. Platinum Prefounte
4. Pilot Metropolitan

The good thing is that there’s no wrong choice. It’s like if I had to choose my favorite bread style. I might choose sourdough over ciabatta, but I’d gorge myself on both equally if the opportunity presented itself.

I’ve learned a few things reviewing the Prefounte. One, Platinum really knows what they are doing at this price point. Two, I probably need an Under $15 fountain pen list on the Top 5 Pens page, because there are several great choices. The Platinum Prefounte definitely makes the cut - right behind the Preppy and Kakuno.

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

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TWSBI Diamond 580 Smoke and Rose Gold Fountain Pen: A Review

(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)

I own several TWSBI fountain pens, from the TWSBI Mini to the Eco to the 580, and all of them have been excellent. I’ve enjoyed the different colors that TWSBI offers (usually leaning towards the blue ones, of course), but I don’t think I would have considered the TWSBI Diamond 580 in Smoke and Rose Gold for myself. The photographs I’ve seen didn’t make the color combination look all that interesting. I am so glad JetPens sent the Smoke and Rose Gold for review, because this is a gorgeous fountain pen in person. I hope my photos can do it justice.

The pen arrives in typical TWSBI packaging--a brown outer cardboard box and an inner plastic display case. (Um . . . the pen doesn’t really arrive already inked--I forgot to take pictures of it before I inked it!)

Nestled beneath the white plastic stand you’ll find a TWSBI branded wrench (for removing the piston mechanism for cleaning and lubing) and a tiny bottle of silicone gel.

The 580 is a medium-sized pen, measuring 5.5 inches/140 mm capped, 5.1 inches/130 mm uncapped, and 7 inches/177 mm posted. The grip diameter is 10.4 mm. Un-inked and capped, the pen weighs 30 grams. Unposted and inked it weighs 18.2 grams, so it’s a fairly heavy pen due to the metal piston and trims. I find it well balanced and comfortable unposted. Posted it becomes too unwieldy.

The pen is quite beautiful with rose gold trims from top to bottom--even the inner piston mechanism is rose-gold plated.

The cap, grip, and piston knob are translucent smoke colored--and this is really what makes the rose gold stand out. The faceted barrel is clear allowing your ink color to show through.

The only thing that detracts from the beauty, in my opinion, is the red TWSBI finial on the cap. There’s just something about bright red that clashes with rose gold, but I realize that changing the finial color to please me probably isn’t a priority for TWSBI.

The 580 is a piston filler that holds a glorious 1.8 ml of ink. Originally, I inked my pen with Robert Oster Sushi, and I loved how the ink complemented the rose gold on the pen. I switched over to Bungubox 4B for this review to test the pen with a wetter ink.

My pen came equipped with an extra fine nib. I’m more of a stub/italic gal, but this EF nib writes smoothly and I’m enjoying using a much more delicate nib point. The nib is steel with rose gold plating. It is decorated with some scrollwork, the TWSBI logo, the TWSBI name, and the nib size.

Although I haven’t had any problems writing with the nib, my macro shots reveal tines that look misaligned--almost twisted.

Maybe this is just due to some extra tipping left behind on the top of one of the tines, making them look misaligned. I’m not sure.

Inked with Bungubox 4B, the nib writes a smooth line, obviously without any line variation due to the fineness of the nib.

Writing long passages was pleasant and trouble free. I encountered no hard starts, scratchiness, or skipping despite the strange looking tines.

The EF nib was perfect for creating this delicate mandala (pictured also in last week’s review of Robert Oster Sushi ink).

As I said at the beginning of the review, I have not experienced any problems with my TWSBIs so far. I think these pens are a terrific value for the price, and they are built solidly. However, I know from reading other reviews and discussions on fountain pen forums that quality control can be an issue for TWSBI fountain pens. Some customers complain about cracks in the plastic, poor nib quality, scratches, and other issues (such as unhelpful customer support). I hope that most TWSBI customers have a positive experience with the brand, as I have.

You can purchase the TWSBI Diamond 580 in Smoke and Rose Gold from JetPens in EF, F, M, B, and 1.1 stub for $87.00. As of this writing, JetPens is currently out of stock in all nib sizes, but you can ask for a restock notification.

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

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Enjoy reading The Pen Addict? Then consider becoming a member to receive additional weekly content, giveaways, and discounts in The Pen Addict shop. Plus, you support me and the site directly, for which I am very grateful.

Membership starts at just $5/month, with a discounted annual option available. To find out more about membership click here and join us!