Review: Hero 616 Big Size or Doctor Fountain Pen

Bobby is a seller on eBay who focuses on inexpensive fountain pens and other office supplies. He sells under the name Office_Supplies_Pen. This pen cost $2.35. It took 15 days from date of purchase to arrive on my doorstep.

Compared to the standard sized 616, externally I notice little difference. The cap and body are identically sized. With the cap off the section is the same size as well. The hooded nib is the same as well.

The cap is also a friction fit for capping and posting. Again I like it posted better than unposted. This cap actually wiggled loose inside a pen case. Fortunately not enough to leak but it was annoying. The cap secures itself with springy steel fingers inside the cap. I used a kitchen skewer to reach into the cap and pull the fingers that hold the cap on out, so they would be tighter when the pen is capped. It is a quick fix that anyone can do that actually works quite well. The clip is diminutive and seems too small for the size of the cap. That said it is springy and secure on my shirt and in a pocket.

The difference is inside, the aeromeric* filler is significantly larger. With the outer case of the filler off, you can see that the sac is significantly larger. I cleaned my pen with water and filled it with water. I measured the resulting fill, it held 1.25 ml of water. I was able to get about half that amount of ink into the pen. Meanwhile, I managed to cover my hands with ink. I hate cheap aerometric fillers.

The nib on mine was misaligned with the body of the pen and the feed. Once I got it into alignment I found that it was scratchy and not very nice. I swapped it out with another Hero nib and suddenly wow. The plastic arrives with micro scratches all over the plastic. Some time with a cloth and polish would probably solve this issue, but who has the time for it? At $2.35 I wasn’t expecting perfection anyway.

Ink flow is great, in a sweet spot, it’s not too wet not too dry. I’ve got this one loaded with Sailor Sky High, which admittedly is a nice lubricated ink but it all works together to feel great. The pen is about the right size in hand and feels good both posted and unposted. The balance is nice either way. It posts deeply and securely.

I don’t dislike this pen but I’m not wowed by it either. It’s an okay everyday user pen. It’s cheap and writes great, once you get one with a good nib. With eBay you take a chance of getting a garbage nib, but when you get a good nib**, they are decent writers. I’d avoid the aerometric filler version and go for those with a piston or cartridge option. If I’m comparing it to other cheapish pens out there, the Kaco Retro is also a Parker 51/ 21 riff but performs much better. It’s is also a cartridge or converter pen.

A big issue that I notice with this pen is that it tends to dry out between uses, even if it only sits for a few hours capped. I’ve attempted to seal the cap with some E6000 to mixed results. Personally if I’m going to recommend one of these PArk 51/21 knock offs it’s going to be the Kaco Retro, it works better and works reliably with every ink I’ve put into it. When these have a good nib in them they are pleasant but don’t blow my mind.