(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)
Scribo is an Italian company founded by former employees of Omas. Their signature pen is the Scribo Feel, which originally came in two colors: grey-blue and blue-black. Recently, they've expanded their colors, one of which is a rich burgundy called Amarena.
The Scribo Feel comes in a grey-blue box with a magnetic closure. It folds up to reveal a cotton/leather pen case, which can hold two pens and has a pocket with a soft cleaning cloth.
The pen is large, measuring 5.9 inches/150mm capped and 5.31 inches/135mm uncapped. Supposedly it can be posted, but the cap doesn't feel secure posted and it makes the pen unwieldy. Capped it weighs a solid 31.87 grams; uncapped it weighs 20.62 grams (both weights were measured with the pen inked). Although the pen is large, the grip is only 11.32mm, which makes it comfortable in the hand. I like girthy pens, and the Scribo's shape and size suits me perfectly. People with small hands or who prefer lighter pens should try this pen in person before purchasing.
The Amarena is made of burgundy resin hand turned from a single rod. There are twelve facets, which are meant to evoke a Doric column. In addition, both the cap and barrel have convex shapes called entasis, also derived from columns.
Ruthenium accents adorn the pen. The cap finial is a ruthenium coin with a quill inscribed on the surface.
The spring-loaded clip curves to match the cap.
The cap ring is engraved with "Scribo" and "Feel the Writing."
Another slim ring adorns the barrel above the piston knob. The piston mechanism is metal.
Uncapped, you'll notice a distinct drop from the barrel to the grip section. This does not create any discomfort, however, because the barrel of the pen rests between your thumb and pointer finger and your fingertips settle near the nib.
The piston mechanism works smoothly and the pen holds 1.4 ml of ink.
This pen has a 14k ruthenium plated fine flex nib and an ebonite feed. It's not the most beautiful nib, engraved with "Feel the Flex" and "Scribo." I'd prefer scrollwork or the minimalist design of the old Omas nibs.
The nib itself is excellent. It writes smoothly with or without flex and offers generous ink flow.
This is an example of writing without flex:
The fine line without flex expands to about 1mm with flex. It's possible that you could get an even broader line if you pressed harder, but since this pen is on loan, I didn't want to risk it. The pictures that follow demonstrate writing with flex.
I wanted to compare the Scribo flex nib with my vintage celluloid Montblanc 146, which has an oblique medium flex nib, because flex-lovers always want to know how modern flex nibs compare to vintage ones.
As you'd expect, the Montblanc nib is considerably softer than the Scribo nib. Plus, because the Montblanc is a medium nib, it starts with a wider line unflexed so it doesn't demonstrate as much variation when flexed.
The Scribo nib is pretty darn good. It flexes to about 1mm, and bounces back quickly. Because it starts fine, the variation between the line when the nib is unflexed and when it is flexed is much more obvious.
Both nibs performed well when I did calligraphy (please forgive the shaky lines--I'm still learning):
I am pleased with how well the Scribo flex nib performed. I encountered absolutely no railroading or skipping, even when flexing the nib. The nib doesn't feel mushy like the Omas flex nibs. It's bouncy and offers good feedback when flexed.
I've been wanting to try the Scribo Feel ever since it was announced, so I was thrilled when Vanness sent Pen Addict the loaner pen. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of these pens straight away . . . if they weren't so expensive. The Scribo Amarena with flex nib costs $760. That's a pretty penny for a resin fountain pen. But you are getting a piston filler (with metal threads) and a beautifully designed fountain pen with excellent ink capacity and a flex nib.
I'm debating about purchasing a Scribo Feel. Now that they are offering more choices of color and material, I may succumb to the temptation. It's a well-crafted pen and the flex nib is superior.
You can purchase Scribo Feel fountain pens from Vanness Pens in Amarena, Mediterraneo (teal green), Blue-Black, Grey-Blue, or Grigio-Notte (grey with black trim).
(Vanness Pens loaned this product to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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