Posts filed under Pen Reviews

Nakaya Long Cigar in Aka-Tamenuri with Kanji and a Gold Zogan: 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’ve come to the conclusion that my all-time favorite fountain pens are Nakayas. I simply adore them. I love their simple aesthetic, balance in the hand, incredible nibs, and the way they sing when I write with them.

I found this Nakaya on the nibs.com “pre-owned” page and snapped it up. I don’t have a long cigar in my collection, nor do I have any Nakayas with Kanji or gold zogans.

Nakayas are packaged in a softwood box (Paulownia wood) with a red velveteen insert. Included are a kimono (not pictured) and a box of Nakaya cartridges. The pen comes with a Nakaya converter as well.

The Long Cigar is just that: long. It measures 165mm capped and 145mm uncapped. Nakayas aren’t really meant to be posted. Even so, it is not a heavy pen at all, weighing only 27 grams capped and 20 grams uncapped (with converter inked). The pen is perfectly balanced in the hand.

This Nakaya has the Aka-Tamenuri finish, which is a red urushi. You can best see the subtleties of the color when you look at the cap edges and the grip section (pictured below).

In addition, this Nakaya has two extra special touches: Kanji and a gold zogan. The kanji, ikemori means something like “guardian of the pond.” A friend on Instagram explained that it refers to a person in charge of irrigation ponds in medieval Japan. Since this is a pre-owned pen, I don’t know what the Kanji symbolized to the original owner, but I decided to think of the pond as my poetry and this pen as a guardian, since I write out my poetry long hand first.

The gold zogan inlay is a diamond shape, hand painted in 24k yellow gold. It adds an extra touch of zen-like beauty to the pen.

This is my second Nakaya with an elastic nib. I reviewed my first here. An elastic nib is a soft nib that has been modified with cutouts.

This makes the nib separate from the feed in such a way that it feels like you’re writing with a paintbrush. The elastic modification does not provide flex, so you won’t see much line variation with this nib. But, the elastic nib is my favorite nib to write with. It is bouncy, soft, and forces you to maintain a consistent, flowing rhythm as you write.

*The ink used here is* *Kyo-no-oto Adzuki-iro*

I realize that Nakaya pens aren’t for everyone. They are quite expensive, especially when you add features like Kanji, a zogan inlay, and a specialty nib. But, these pens speak to me like no others. The urushi warms to your hand and the smooth lines and earthy colors evoke peace.

(I purchased this Nakaya with my own funds.)

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Posted on August 2, 2019 by Susan Pigott and filed under Nakaya, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

TWSBI GO Clear 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 first novel, The Bone Weaver’s Orchard, now available where books are sold!)

The TWSBI GO sprung onto the scene recently and turned all our collective pen addict heads. Its spring-loaded button-fill system is certainly not new tech, but it's the first time I've seen such a thing in a pen that costs less than a trip to the grocery store, and that's a category that can never have too many cool pens. This is a cool pen.

This clear demonstrator edition shows off all the inner workings of this small marvel. It isn't pretty, bless its little springy heart, but it does look interesting. It has more than once been mistaken for a medical device, but has also several times been a conversation-starter about pens. Sometimes those conversations end with the tell-tale twinkle in the eye of a person who is about to go off and purchase their first fountain pen.

This is a great starter fountain pen for someone who is ink-motivated. If you want sheen and shimmer and endless colors, you need bottled ink, and this pen is a great way to get started with that. The button plunger is intuitive and easy to use. If you are, however, more drawn to 'fine writing instruments' and the elegance of a nice pen, this is not the place to start.

Every piece of this pen except for the spring and the nib is plastic. Well, 'acrylic', but not acrylic in the way that Sailors or Viscontis are acrylic--acrylic in the way that fake nails are acrylic. It feels cheap, almost disposable, in the hand. But it also IS cheap, so that's not really a flaw, it's a feature.

The cap snaps in place with a solid click, and contains an inner cap designed to keep the nib from drying out. Mine has been very effective. The pen doesn't dry out, even after a few days without use. The cap has no clip, but has a very small lanyard loop that also serves as a roll-stop. I put a bit of cotton cord on mine, so I could wear it around my neck when I'm at work. I could only stand to do that for a few days, though, because it's just too odd-looking. I'd prefer a clip. The rim of the cap is not reinforced in any way, so I do worry about cracking. Even my sturdier TWSBIs have cracked, and this one is distinctly more lightweight. I have knocked it about a fair bit, though, in pockets, purses, around my neck, closed up in notebooks--and it doesn't look any worse for the wear. The cap does post securely, and it's light enough that posting doesn't add any extra weight, but I worry about the stress posting puts on the cap rim.

The grip section is a different plastic from the body. It's a bit softer and not as clear, but still shows the feed and ink. The grip is molded, and forces that classic triangular hold that plenty of people hate. It's a bit more pronounced on this pen than on the Eco, I feel. So, if you dislike molded grips, steer clear. It is very comfortable for me, personally, but it's definitely a deal breaker for a lot of folks.

The nib on mine is excellent, but I do see a whole spectrum of complaints about the nib performance people are experiencing. It appears there may be some quality control issues going on. I'd encourage you to try your pen in person, if possible, or order from someone who will check it for you. My nib writes very smoothly and wet, which makes the extra fine look more like a fine or medium. I've owned a lot of TWSBIs, and so far all of mine have been wet writers.

This pen has its flaws, but on a flaws to dollars ratio, it's still coming up as a great value. I reach for it often and I've recommended it to a number of people. I'm recommending it to you, too, right now, with the disclaimer that it is certainly not for everyone.

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

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Posted on August 1, 2019 by Sarah Read and filed under TWSBI, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Pilot Frixion Ball 3 Multi-Pen Studio Ghibli Edition Review

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

I'm no stranger to the Pilot Frixion pens, but I hadn't tried the multi-pen version of this refill until just recently. While not much different from the regular Acroball multi-pen platform, the Frixion does feature a small friction eraser on the top of the pen. As an added bonus, there's also a unique version of the Ball 3 multi-pen based on the Kiki's Delivery Service film from Studio Ghibli. The pen features a small drawing that shows JiJi, KiKi's familiar. If you've never seen the movie, I highly recommend you check it out. While the original is Japanese, Disney released a re-dubbed version in English in the late 90s.

I have two different versions of the Ball 3 multi-pen, but the only difference aside from the unique Kiki's version on the black pen is the refill tip sizes. The Kiki's version only comes in the 0.5mm size, while the silver pen featured here has 0.38mm refills. Obviously, you can customize these with whatever size refills you want in the future, but this is how they came from the manufacturer. If you love the Kiki's pen but want a smaller or larger refill (or even other colors), you can easily swap them out later.

Now, I've used plenty of Frixion pens in the past, but let's do a quick refresher in case you're new to this unique offering from Pilot. The Frixion is an "erasable" pen that uses the heat caused by friction to erase the special ink. The cool thing is that you can actually cause the ink to reappear if you place the paper in the freezer for a while. This is a great solution for using a pen in applications where you might need to erase, but where you also don't want to use pencil. I don't have any particular need in my use cases, but it's still a really cool trick. Obviously, if you leave your notebook in the sun or throw it in the microwave for a bit, the ink will also disappear since it's activated by heat. Just know that the ink is definitely non-permanent and act accordingly.

Starting with the 0.38mm variant, I'm continually surprised how smooth these hybrid ballpoint inks are. The line is incredibly thin — closer to a 0.25mm line once it's on the page, but it's still incredibly crisp. Despite the thinness of the line, Pilot still managed to make the writing experience really smooth. It does feel a bit like you're writing with a nail, but it still feels smooth if you remember to only apply light pressure on the paper. This isn't a specific thing regarding the Frixion refills, but more of a general rule with micro-tipped pens. In all, it's incredibly smooth considering the size. The colors are vibrant and pop off the page.

Moving on to the 0.5mm, the lines are a little bit larger (similar to a 0.4mm gel pen line) but just as crisp. Given the extra surface area on the tip, it's also quite smoother when writing. To me, 0.5mm is the sweet spot when it comes to the hybrid ballpoint refills. 0.7mm is also great if you want the extra line width, but both are incredibly smooth and fun to use. Again, the colors match up perfectly with the other size refills and feature bold, fun colors.

The bodies on both pens are nearly identical once you factor out the custom Kiki's artwork, but the Kiki's pen does have a larger ridge between the soft grip section and the nose cone of the pen. I'm not sure if this is intentional as part of the custom version for the Kiki's film or if this is just a manufacturing variation, but it's hardly noticeable when using the pen.

The grip section is a nice width and is soft to the touch. There's no "squish" or give on the grip, but the soft feel is very comfortable and easy to control. The plastic bodies are sturdy and feel like they'll survive a pretty rough jumble in a bag. Like the Pilot Acroball, you select ink colors with small push tabs on the top of the pen that are equidistant from each other and the clip. To retract a refill, simply press on a different color tab halfway until the active refills pops back in.

The clip is also similar to the Acroball multi-pen in that it's spring loaded and incredibly sturdy. I really like this clip system, which is also very similar to the Zebra Sarasa Clip, because I can clip these pens anywhere (upside down, for instance) and they just stay put. Multi-pens are intended to be incredibly versatile and utilitarian, and the clip just adds to that usefulness.

In all, the Frixion is just another variant of the excellent Acroball line from Pilot, but with an extra erasable trick up its sleeve. With plenty of color options and tip sizes available, you can customize your multi-pen to suite your every writing need without breaking the bank.

The Kiki's Delivery Service only comes in one color and only with 0.5mm refills installed, but you have so many other options if you go with the standard lineup. The standard 0.38mm version featured in this review is about 10 bucks less than the Kiki's version, and that is likely due to the additional licensing required to use the Kiki's artwork. If you're a fan of the film or book, then it's an excellent choice! If not, the standard Frixion multi-pens are stellar.

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

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