The Wing Sung 601A is yet another riff on the venerable Parker 51 or 21 pen. The design is classic and often reproduced. The 601A takes the classic pen and mashes it up with another classic, the Schaefer Triumph. The effect is a bit off-putting at first, but in the end, I like the look.

The pen is made of some sort of plastic and is well made. Initially, I could not see the seam line between the blind cap and the body of the pen. There are no mold lines visible on my pen. I ordered what they described as indigo and received a dark teal pen. I received the right color, their naming of the color is off a bit. The brushed stainless steel cap looks great and slides easily onto the pen.

The metal cap is friction fit for capping and posting. I found mine to cap securely but it is just a friction fit. While posting I did find that it posts securely and quite deeply. The cap is a tad heavier than I’d like for posting. It seems to throw the balance off a tad. Folks with larger hands will find this one postable.

The vacumatic filling system took a few tries to get a full fill but once I figured it out, it worked well. I inked this pen with Pilot Jentle Yama-dori. It matches the body of the pen quite well. The ink is visible through the ink windows of my pen, which work well enough.

The writing experience with this pen is different. Immediately upon inking I wiped the nib off and wrote in my usual manner, in an attempt to determine if there was any flex or bounce I pressed down with light pressure. The tines flexed outward and never bounced back. I managed to spring the nib with minor pressure. I was able to bring it back with the use of pliers and some work. We’ll return to this topic in a bit.

When it writes, this pen writes beautifully. The nib is silky smooth and lays down a wet line that manages to capture the characteristics of the ink perfectly. This pen feels wonderful in my hand. I reach for it again and again. Only to be disappointed. It will write then not write as the tines spread themselves wide open. I’m left with skipping ink and barely there lines. Sigh. I’ve ordered a replacement nib to see if I have better luck.

At $14.23 (not the current price) this is my most expensive pen ordered to date. It is a shame that it has a bum nib. My plan is to order a package of replacement nibs and see how it responds to a new nib. If this were a standard nib, the replacement would be easier. I could order one from Goulet or Fountain Pen Revolution and have it here in days. Sadly it’s the weird knockoff Triumph nib and thus I’ll need to wait for the delivery from China.

Overall, this is an ok pen, don’t get the Triumph and 51 mashups, get the hooded nib version. You’ll be happier for it.