Posts filed under Pen Reviews

Regalia Writing Labs Crossflex Nib: 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.)

Regalia Writing Labs is the brainchild of Ralph Reyes, a college student who also happens to be a genius with nibs. Ralph explains that he was fascinated by flex nibs and Sailor Nagahara nibs, but because he couldn’t afford super expensive vintage flex nibs or Nagahara nibs, he set out to create his own. You can see a gallery of his creations here.

A few weeks ago, Ralph posted a new nib on his Instagram account (@reachingralph) called the Crossflex Nib. Only fifty nibs were available, and I snagged one for $150. The nib came in a small box decorated with a wax seal lookalike accompanied by Ralph’s business card.

The nib is a screw-in JOWO #6 steel and it fits a variety of pens, including Franklin-Christoph, Opus 88, Newton Pens, Herbert Pens, Carolina Pens, Woodshed Pen Co., Kanilea Pens, Desiderata Pens, Scriptorium Pens, and others. The ebonite feed and housing were specially designed for this nib by Flexible Nib Factory.

I put the Crossflex nib into my Opus 88 Koloro (review here). The Opus 88 is an eyedropper pen, and Ralph recommends eyedroppers to supply plenty of ink to the nib. I didn’t try the nib with a converter or piston-fill pen, but I suspect a converter would starve the feed.

The Crossflex nib is specially designed for flex writing. Ralph describes his goals for the nib better than I can:

Durability, snapback, softness, control. These are the qualities I search for, not "mushy" maximum flex. While this nib is designed primarily for flex writing, with extraordinary softness, the lines delivered must be beautiful. The sensation of creating those lines must be a pleasure. Snapback was highly prioritized when creating this nib. The nib starts as an extra fine, but with Ralph’s handmade modifications, it can flex up to 3mm. I didn’t try pushing it that far, but I will say that the nib flexes beautifully.

I practiced writing my formal calligraphy alphabet with the nib, and the results were every bit as good as a dip pen with a flex nib.

You can see the difference between the nib unflexed and flexed in these swirls:

When I measured the pen’s flex, pushing as far as I was comfortable doing, the lines measured a little over 1mm. Like I said, the nib is made to flex up to 3mm, but I never pressed it that hard.

This nib is a joy to write with. Unflexed, it is smooth and bouncy. The tines are perfectly aligned.

When you write with flex, the nib behaves beautifully. The tines spread with gentle pressure and snap back with ease. You can really press into the nib without being afraid that you’re going to spring it (though Ralph warns it is possible to push it too far).

I am thrilled with my Crossflex nib. It makes my Opus 88 the perfect calligraphy practice pen. I no longer have to deal with the mess of a dip pen, but I get the kind of flex I want to form my characters.

Unfortunately, this run of Crossflex nibs sold out quickly, and there are no more. Ralph typically sells his nibs at pen shows, but occasionally he sells them via his website (as he did with the Crossflex nib). The best way to keep apprised of nib sales is via his Instagram account. But it’s definitely worth going to his website to see all the amazing and fantastical nibs--one of his creations has nine tines!

(I purchased the Regalia Writing Labs Crossflex nib with my own funds.)

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Posted on November 9, 2018 by Susan Pigott and filed under Regalia Writing Labs, Pen Reviews.

ShinHan Art Touch Liner Brush, 7-color set

(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.)

If you're a professional artist or letterer, the ShinHan Art Touch Liners are probably going to rank pretty close to perfect. They have a great build, and the ink is archival, acid-free, water resistant, lightfast, and smear-proof. They tick a lot of the essential boxes for creating a quality piece of work--though, of course, some of those features come with compromises.

These pens are constructed really nicely. The body is strong and well-molded. The cap fits and posts well. The clip is a bit shallow, but it's flexible without being too bendy. I do wish the colors were more clearly labeled--it's just a narrow stripe at the bottom or a disc on top of the cap that indicates color. If they were in a case looking straight-on, there's no way to tell. The body is also a bit busy with text. A lot of it is useful information, should the pens be mixed in with other media in a case, but some of it could be cleaned up a bit, I think.

The brush tips on these are really impressive. They're flexible and springy and make great lines from very, very fine to nice, thick swooshes. They've maintained their shape perfectly and I don't feel like I'm going to break them.

The only real disappointment factor for these, I think, is the pigment. While it boasts an excellent list of scientific qualities, the color is just not saturated or vibrant enough for me. Every color looks a bit washed-out. And perhaps it is its quick-dry nature, but it feels very dry to work with as well.

Still, I think they're excellent tools that will make artwork that will last. At $24.50 for a set of seven, they're not cheap, but the build quality will likely lead to a longer lifespan than some of the cheaper alternatives. They'd make a wonderful gift for an art student--or a snazzy reward for participating in Inktober!

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

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Posted on November 8, 2018 by Sarah Read and filed under ShinHan, Brush Pen, Pen Reviews.

Récife Waldorf Fountain Pen Review

The Récife Waldorf fountain pen is a charming and well-made fountain pen from a company located in Paris, France. The body design has lovely lines and grooves that elevate the aesthetic to something that is reminiscent of Art Deco. In fact, Récife cites New York as the inspiration for this design, and I definitely think of the Empire State Building when I use this pen.

The pen is a solid metal and lacquer construction, and it feels great in the hand. The cap screws on securely, and there are also threads on the back of the pen so that you can securely post it when writing. I found the pen to be too long and unbalanced when posted, so I haven't used it that way very much.

The grip section is a polished chrome look and is very comfortable to hold. Despite the polished metal, there are plenty of ridges surrounding the grip section to provide ample finger holds when writing.

The body of the pen is a rippling wave of sparkly purple lacquer. You can pick your color, of course, but the purple version look amazing under light when accompanied by the shiny accents.

The clip is quite strong and is integrated into the finial. The finial itself is decorated tastefully to continue the Art Deco aesthetic.

The only branding on this pen is found in two small places: the cap band and the nib. The nib has a small "Récife" logo along with the nib size, while the band says "Récife" and "PARIS" on opposite sides. I love the minimal branding on this pen. The overall look of the pen is ostentatious, and I'm glad they didn't take it too far with vivid branding.

Uncapping and capping the pen is a smooth process for the most part. I've had a little bit of trouble with the unit I have when trying to cap it sometimes. Every now and then, the threads don't want to line up straight and I have to try several times to find the right path for the threads. It isn't a big deal, but I do think it should be smoother for the price.

Writing with the pen is a delight. The nib was perfect out of the box and I've enjoyed every minute with it. The fine nib is true to the size I expect, and it's a true performer. The flow is perfect, the steel nib is stiff but comfortable, and I can find no flaws in the tip. Writing is smooth, reliable, and pleasant.

Along with the pen, Récife include one international short cartridge. There's no cartridge converter included, and that's disappointing to me because the size of the pen makes it impossible to fit a standard converter. I haven't found a cartridge converter that fits yet, but I only looked through my own collection, which is not extensive. In order to use my own ink, I opted to use a Kaweco bulb converter. It works fine, but it's difficult to fill and doesn't hold much ink. It would be great if Récife included their own converter as part of the purchase so that buyers could use their own ink to match these brightly colored and beautiful pens.

I've really enjoyed using this pen. It has a bold design, but I think it works well. It definitely attracts attention and comments, and people can't wait to get their hands on it. Even better, it's an excellent writer.

My only concern with this pen is the same concern I share with many other luxury pens in this same price bracket: it has so much competition. On the Récife website, it lists the retail price for this pen as €125. In current prices today, that translates to just over $140 USD. In my opinion, that's a bit high for this pen, but it's also the full retail price. If you look at other pen offerings in the $140 price range, you are easily overwhelmed with high-quality pens that feature gold nibs, piston filler ink reservoirs, fancy click mechanisms, and more. At full retail, I can't recommend the Waldorf unless you're absolutely in love with the design. If you just want a good pen for your money, there's a long list of readily available pens that I would recommend first.

This price conundrum will always exist, but it's always so great to see new players and new products in the stationery space! If the Récife Waldorf speaks to you, I encourage you to pick one up. It's an excellent writer and a well made pen that won't let you down.

(Artistic Paper, the US distributor for Récife, loaned this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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