Posts filed under Pen Reviews

ATELEIA Stainless Steel Pen Review

(Jeff Abbott is a regular contributor at The Pen Addict. You can find more from Jeff online at Draft Evolution and Twitter.)

When it comes to machined pens, I’m always game to try another one. In most cases, machined pens follow a lot of the same rules, which I assume is due to the medium. With the ATELEIA stainless steel pen, it manages to deliver a compelling pen in a unique, sleek package.

ATELEIA is a small shop that operates out of Phoenix, AZ under the direction of Chris Williams, the mastermind behind the designs. Like so many crowd-funded pens and stationery products, the ATELEIA pen was born from a personal need. Since 2014, Chris has been designing products and growing his business, but the simple pen was what started it all (after the hand-made journal cover, of course).

The pens offered by ATELEIA are all the same design, but are available in different types of metal. From aluminum, stainless steel, copper, and brass, all the popular options are there. There aren’t any titanium versions of the pen yet, and I hope that might be a future campaign due to the lightweight characteristic of the metal.

So, what’s special about this pen? Well, to me it’s all about simplicity without sacrificing function. When you first look at the pen, it looks like a smooth piece of metal stock with slightly concave ends. When you unscrew the cap, that’s where you start to notice the high level of quality and care put into the product. Under the cap, there’s a small piece holding the refill in place, but nothing else. I wasn’t sure how I would like the feel of the pen when writing, but I was surprised to find that I really enjoy writing with it. In most cases, slim, slick metal pens usually don’t suit me. With the ATELEIA, I found myself reaching for it every day because I just like how it feels in the hand—both when writing and handling it.

Along with the pen, there’s a small wrench and a couple of lengths of hard tubing for matching up different refills with the pen body. According to the site, you have two variations of the pen that cater to several different popular refills. One version accepts Pentel EnerGel, Uni-ball Signo 207 and DX, and Monteverde rollerball refills, while the other (the one used in this review) accepts Pilot Hi-Tec-C, Pilot G2 (or Juice!), Schmidt Rolling Ball Line, or Fisher Space Pen refills. Externally, the two variations are identical.

To remove or replace the refill, simply use the provided wrench to unscrew the refill bit. In some cases, you might need to trim down the plastic tubing to get the perfect fit, but this isn’t new territory for machined pens that are intended to fit a variety of refills. In the case of the version I have, the Pilot G2, Juice, and Hi-Tec-C refills fit perfectly without any additional plastic tubing. The included spring is enough to keep the refill in place when writing.

As a quick side-note, I did try to use a Parker-style refill with this pen, but it didn’t work. Unlike the Fisher refill, Parker-style refills don’t have the necessary increase in the refill diameter to keep the refill from protruding too far past the bit. It technically fit in the pen, but I couldn’t screw on the cap because the refill was too long. Still, with this list of compatible refills, you have plenty of color and size options to last a long while.

I’ve really enjoyed using this pen, but there has been one minor niggle that I notice almost every time I use the pen. The piece that threads into the cap is only partially threaded, meaning there are two flat sides that accept the wrench. In theory, this is an efficient and clean solution to the refill replaceability problem. In practice, the pen cap tends to get mis-threaded or stuck when trying to screw it on due to the interrupted threads. As long as you’re careful to screw the cap on evenly and be patient when it does get stuck, it’s not a big deal.

The other thing to consider is that you cannot post the cap with this pen! Since I rarely post the cap on my pens, this isn’t a big deal for me, but it might be a deal-breaker for some.

Overall, I really love the simple and efficient design of the ATELEIA stainless steel pen. It’s great that the pen is compatible with about 7 different popular refills, so you’re not locked down to a single type. The packaging and general aesthetic is nice and adds to the high-quality feel of the product. At $79.00 for the raw aluminum model and $105 for the stainless, it’s a bit on the expensive side, but it’s not too far off from other metal pens offered by other small companies. With the amount of fit and finish, I think the price is fair, especially considering the material (stainless steel in this case). Obviously, the prices vary based on the material you pick, which includes brass and copper as well.

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

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Posted on January 10, 2018 by Jeff Abbott and filed under ATELEIA, Pen Reviews.

ystudio Brassing Desk Fountain Pen Review

I admit I’m a bit of a ystudio fanboy. I fell instantly in love with their design when I first saw them (from Patrick Ng on Instagram I’m certain) and found a shop called Kohezi in Amsterdam in 2016 to get the Brassing Ballpoint from. To use the great stationery cliché, it was love at first write.

As great as it was, the release of the fountain pen in late 2016 really set me off. It was an instant hit - for me anyway - and became one of my most used pens of 2017. I still get complete enjoyment every time I ink it up and use it.

Since I’m committed to that ystudio life now, you know I was going to get the Brassing Desk Fountain Pen from JetPens the minute I could. And - spoiler alert - it’s everything I hoped it would be.

For starters, it is a big pen, as a desk pen should be. The base is heavy, and the brass barrel with #6 nib fits in perfectly and securely. If there was any question I had about using a desk pen, it was if the nib would dry out being left in the base for weeks or months at a time. I haven’t hit the months mark yet, but weeks have been no issue. The nib writes the second it hits the page, with no priming or startup scribbling required. It is instantly good when I am ready to write.

The size and brass construction also had me wondering if it was going to be too heavy to write for any length of time. It’s not. In fact, the barrel weight is only slightly more than the much smaller standard ystudio fountain pen, 1.25 oz vs. 1.00 oz. The concave section fits my grip perfectly, and it is well balanced in the hand, so I don’t even notice the weight that much. Sure, it’s more than an acrylic or ebonite barrel, but still within a reasonable range.

As I mentioned earlier, the desk pen comes with a larger #6 Schmidt nib. It was smooth and wet right out of the box, although for my specific needs, I’ll be looking to swap in something finer than the stock Fine nib for every day use. Any Jowo nib or nib unit will swap in easily.

While my love for the brand knows no bounds, there is one issue with the lineup overall: The price. These are expensive pens. The standard fountain pen is $160 at JetPens, and the Desk Pen is $180. They are beautifully made, highly functional, and fit my personal aesthetic to a tee, but I understand they will not fall into the great value category. The steel nib alone is enough to make buyers balk at this price point, and rightfully so.

It comes down to style and use case, especially when considering the desk pen. If I could only choose one ystudio product it would be the standard fountain pen without question. The desk pen is a much more particular category. It looks amazing and functions perfectly, but will you use it enough to justify the high price? Right now, it is a great fit on my desk, but I’ll see if it stays there long term. I’m guessing it will.

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

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Posted on January 8, 2018 by Brad Dowdy and filed under ystudio, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Visconti Homo Sapiens Elegance: 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.)

The Visconti Homo Sapiens Elegance is an over-sized pen made of black resin with silver trim. It is meant as a less-expensive option for those who like the Visconti Homo Sapiens style. Thus, the pen is made of resin instead of lava or special acriloid and it utilizes a screw-in converter rather than Visconti’s high-capacity power filler.

The Homo Sapiens Elegance comes in a standard Visconti clamshell box with cream interior.

The pen is trimmed with shiny silver rings on the cap and barrel, a silver Visconti finial, and Visconti’s signature arched clip.

However, the large ring on the barrel sports a matte look with “Homo Sapiens” engraved in shiny silver.

The cap uses Visconti’s hook safe lock system which makes it easy to get on and off and makes the cap secure.

Over-sized means that this is an extra large pen, measuring 145mm capped, 170mm posted, and 132mm unposted. At 43 grams, the Elegance is just as heavy as the Homo Sapiens Bronze Age which surprised me considering that one pen is made of lava and the other of resin.

The converter is a nice screw-in model with metal trim. It holds 1.03 ml of ink and is much easier to clean than the power filler pens.

My loaner pen came with the 1.3mm 23k Palladium stub nib. It’s a beautiful nib with Visconti’s classic scroll work.

Unfortunately, this nib is not a smooth writer. There’s a small sweet spot, but even when you’ve got the pen positioned correctly, you can hear it scratch the paper as you write (and not in a pleasant way). I found myself having to hold the pen at an awkward angle in order to maintain some semblance of consistent writing.

My experience with Visconti nibs is not positive. Out of all the Viscontis I’ve owned (and I’ve owned at least eight), only two wrote well out of the box. My Homo Sapiens Bronze Age with a 1.3mm stub had to go to two different nibmeisters before it started writing reasonably well.

The nib on this pen is inconsistent and skips often. As I wrote with it over the past three weeks, I had hard starts that required pushing ink into the nib using the converter. For my handwritten review, I refilled the converter and started fresh. Even with that, I experienced lots of skipping and rough writing.

Although I like the resin version of the Visconti Homo Sapiens Elegance, I think it is still priced too high at $595.00 retail. And, at this price you should get a perfect nib right out of the box. Honestly, if you want a Visconti, I’d suggest saving up for a Bronze Age (which is $200 more) or one of the more colorful versions. And I would make sure that your retailer tests the nib before shipping it to you.

*Left to right: Visconti London Fog, Homo Sapiens Bronze Age, Homo Sapiens Elegance, and Divina Elegance*

You can purchase the Visconti Homo Sapiens Elegance from Goldspot Pens. Their retail price is $595, but if you log in and add the pen to your cart you’ll see a significantly reduced price.

Pros

The Visconti Homo Sapiens Elegance is a nice alternative for anyone who finds the Homo Sapiens Bronze Age to be too expensive at $795 retail.
The Elegance uses a cartridge/converter filling system that is much easier to use and clean than the power filler system used by more expensive Visconti models. Even though the power-fillers hold more ink, I like the convenience of a converter filling system.
Visconti offers their premium 23k Palladium nib with this pen.

Cons

Although the Homo Sapiens Elegance is $200 less than the Bronze Age, it is still an expensive pen.
The nib on my loaner pen was finicky and an unpleasant, scratchy writer. Unfortunately, this is typical of my experiences with Visconti nibs, and I always think very hard before purchasing this brand because of it. I recommend asking your retailer to check your nib before shipping.

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

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