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Author Archives: leslie
Review: Diamine Chopin Ink
Diamine Chopin was first introduced as part of the Diamine Music boxed set. The set had ten colors of ink in 30 ml bottles. In this case, the bottles are short squat squares rather than Diamine’s usual taller rectangular 30 ml plastic or 80ml glass round shouldered bottles. When sold individually the 30 ml bottle retails for roughly $10. The set is roughly $55.
This ink is a warm blue-grey, though most will classify it as a blue-black. I notice some shading on some paper, though not on most. The ink feels great on every paper I used- even Field Notes*! The ink is well lubricated and like most Diamine inks, well behaved. The flow is great in the pens I’ve tested. Currently, I’ve got it in a Wing Sung 3118. In the layered test on Baron Fig Strategist
In testing this ink was very well behaved, while lines may have spread on cheaper and more absorbent paper I didn’t notice any feathering. Dry time was about 7 seconds on most paper, except on the Field Notes, where it absorbed the ink quickly. I really loved this ink in my L1917 and Confidant. It looks great and stands out on the warm papers. It tends to blend in well with photocopies, so it wouldn’t be a good blue-black for making notes while reading articles.
In the drip and wipe test the ink proved to be more water resistant than I expected. The drip definitely migrated a lot of color all over the wet area. The wipe stood up better than expected. Both had legible lines left behind. I would not expect this ink to survive the washing machine but it would likely survive a coffee dribble or spill.
This is a nice sedate but gorgeous blue grey ink. I adore it. It’s sedate enough that my old boss would have mistaken it for black and not made a snide comment about my color choice. The ink feels great on everything, even Moleskine.
Review: Pen Addict X Spoke Pen
I’ve been testing out the orange Spoke pen for the last few weeks. When I write testing, I really mean abusing. I’ve been carrying it with me everywhere. I’ve used it at work, on the bus, outside, and at home. Right now you can sign up to buy your own via Kickstarter. The kickstarter campaign ends on 20190309 (March 9th, 2019.)
It hasn’t disappointed.
The pen arrived swaddled in bubble wrap from The Pen Addict himself. The pen is lightweight but feels sturdy. The cap is the heaviest part of the pen and moved the balance when capped. The pen cannot be posted, which works well enough for me, but might be a deal breaker for some. The clip is simple and springy. It’s not tight but grips to things well. I carried this clipped to my shirt and it never once slipped or fell off. It stays where you clip it. I also carried this clipped into my leather Fodderstack XL (LFXL) and it stayed in my pocket. I dropped my LFXL and the pen stayed IN the pen slot.
The body of the pen consists of two parts- the grip and the body. The grip has rings to improve the grip rather than knurling. I’d love to see a deeply knurled version of this grip. The grooves feel good and are easy to like. I could also see some silicone or rubber o-rings slid into the grooves. In other words I see loads of potential for customization here.
The body of the pen has slots cut into the sides. They expose a sleeve inside the body of the pen. In this case that sleeve is black, but there are plans to offer additional colors and color combinations. I find that the slots offer a tactile fidget opportunity. I like the look and the feel.
The pen takes Uniball Signo DX or Uni-ball Signo UMR-1 refills. It ships with one 0.5 refill but others are available via Amazon or Jetpens. They are available in 0.28 on up. I like the 0.38 or 0.5. The 0.5 is slim but also smooth, while the 0.38 can be a bit scratchy.
In
The cap deserves another mention here. It is held to the pen via rare earth magnets. The cap slides on smoothly and snaps in place after a certain point. I find myself fidgeting with this gain and again. Despite the pen being held into the cap with magnets I found that it never slid out while I was wearing it clipped to my shirt. It stayed perfectly in place.
Clearly, I like this pen. The orange is bright without being neon. I can find it easily in my bag or on my desk. I like the fact that it holds a refill that most pen bodies ignore. Like Brad, I’m a fan of the Uniball Signo, it’s a great pen and the UMR refills are among the best Uniball make. They are also a superior pen refill for sketching- laying down smooth even lines that dry water resistant.
Any refillable pen body is an investment. Like any investment one must decide how much of an investment they are willing to dive into. The Spoke pen is not cheap, at $60, it is on par with any other machined pen body. It is made and assembled in the US. It’s a gorgeous pen that is durable as hell. If you like the Uniball Signo DX this might be the refillable investment for you.
Review: Wing Sung 6118 Fountain Pen
I ordered this pen on eBay for $7.12 and it arrived from China 15 days later. It was packaged in an inexpensive black gift box, of the sort that inexpensive necklaces might be packaged. Inside a velvet drawstring pouch held the pen within a thin plastic sleeve. The cheap pouch (available from the same seller for 99 cents) sits atop a bed of black foam. Altogether the package is then in a plastic bag, and inside another bubble envelope, then wrapped in bubble wrap and slid into a plastic envelope. The whole thing is very secure and my pen arrived in good condition.
I ordered a second pen from another seller on eBay for $1.66. It arrived 25 days after purchase in a bubble mailer and in a thin plastic sleeve. I was not expecting much for $1.66
The 6118 is a piston filling pen. It mashes together the looks and features of several different brands. The body of the pen looks much like a TWSBI Diamond or Eco or Pilot Prera. It uses the same piston mechanism as the Wing Sung 6008. The piston works delightfully well, sucking up a huge portion of ink, roughly 1.9ml. The body of the pen is also easy to disassemble- remove the silver ring near the fill knob and the whole mechanism pops out. This allows for easy cleaning and lubrication of the mechanism.
The feed on this pen is also
The second pen ordered had a dark grey feed and a terrific nib. It worked very well right out of the envelope.
The cap is a direct riff of the Lamy Safari wire clip and cap. It screws on and off the pen in about 3 to 4 turns. The wire clip has sharper bends than a Lamy but it works just as well. I’ve clipped it to my shirt, a pocket and to my notebooks. It works great. You could post it, but posting throws the entire balance of the pen off. It posts to the silver ring that holds the piston mechanism into the pen. Pulling the cap off the back of the pen incorrectly could cause a squirt or dribble of ink.
Overall, I really like this pen. The piston filling mechanism sucks ink in perfectly each time and is smooth. The clear plastic lets me see all the ink moving around plus the mechanism working. The clear feed adds to the whole look. While the nib on this pen is junk the rest of the pen is well worth the $7 price tag. The rest of the packaging serves only to protect the pen and would not be a great presentation, depending on who you were gifting the pen. The 6008 has significantly better packaging.
I ordered 3 “Genuine” Wing Sung nibs from yet another seller on eBay for just over $3USD. The replacement was as easy as ripping off the old junk nib and sliding the new one in place. You’ve got to be gentle and careful when you slide the new nib into place, Now that I’ve done this, the pen works great. Look for a seller who sells these pens with nibs that have a Wing Sung logo.
In my search for a new
Review: Leuchtturm 1917 Dots Notebook
I picked up this Leuchtturm 1917 (L1917) years ago at my local Artist and Craftsman. The sky blue color called my name.
Since the L1917 is the suggested journal for bullet journaling, I pulled the failed notebook out of retirement and pressed it into service.
A few notes. This book sat in my abandoned journal bin for years. In this time the elastic lost its elasticity and stretched completely out. I remember it was loose even when first purchased. I ripped it out and replaced it with a new sturdy black elastic. Inside I found several loose stitches, which I clipped and melted into place. Otherwise the notebook was well made.
The journal is Smythe sewn with nylon thread. It opens completely flat and can be folded over on itself for writing in hand. Unlike a Moleskine the L1917 features a supported rather than hollow spine. This means that folding the book over on itself takes a bit of work and requires creasing the spine. It looks natural on my L1917, but some folks might not appreciate the look. The cover is made of vinyl over stiff hard card that feels very sturdy.
The ribbon marker is a shade darker than the cover and is also made of nylon. I think mine arrived heat sealed but I do know that I sealed it more deeply. The marker is generous and has several inches outside of the book. I like this. I can grab it and open the book with it easily. It is also glued deeply into the spine. I gave it a good yank and didn’t feel any give at all. The back of the book had a generously sized pocket that holds the stickers that arrive with the book. I also store my sheet of blotting paper here.
The paper in my is labeled as “ink proof” and indicates that there should be no bleed through. I have found that this is true, but I have also noticed that there is some feathering. Some ink wicks along long fibers in the paper, which is a major complaint that many fountain pen users have against Moleskine. I don’t notice this with all inks, just some of them. The paper is heavily sized, and even quick drying inks seem to take forever to dry, which is why I keep a sheet of blotting paper handy. I use it VERY often. I’ve had issues with gel pens smearing hours after I’ve finished writing.
I’ve frequently touched a page days later only to have the slight moisture from my hands* smear the ink all over the page. Forget about using a highlighter to emphasis an item in your bullet journal, it’ll smear.
The paper is very thin. All the inks I used had show through on the back side of the page. It’s not so bad that the page is unusable, just very obvious, particularly with black ink.
Complaints aside, this paper feels great with everything- even pencil and ballpoint. It’s smooth with a hint of tooth. Even rubber stamps perform well on this paper. In fact the variety of stamp inks I used on this paper responded well- dye, pigment, and Staz-on. The paper takes a great impression.
The dots are tiny and the palest of grey. They completely disappear behind any writing, which you know I love. The creamy shade of the paper looks great with all the colors of ink I’ve used and graphite looks great on it too.
Overall, this is a perfectly acceptable notebook. I like the pale gray dots, that the pages are numbered, and the feel of the paper. The generous page marker and sturdy pocket are great too. The elastic left something to be desired but that could have been due to age and storage. The price of $$$ is within range for hardcover A5 journals with quality paper. If you watch the stationery sites you can often find them on sale.
This is a nice journal, it’s just not my favorite.
Review: Pen Addict X Robert Oster Fire on Fire Fountain Pen Ink
Brad graciously sent me a bottle of this ink for review. When he contacted me I was so excited. Having a good orange or red ink is vital for editing, for me anyway. I need something with some pop against the borning black. I also want something that I can read with ease.
The color is a true orange leaning neither yellow nor red. This ink is not overly saturated and has some lovely shading with a hint of sheen. The sheen is red and the shading is warm and a touch reddish, though not overly so. In a dry-ish
I don’t know why I’m always surprised when a Robert Oster ink is so well behaved, but I am. This ink was amazingly well behaved on the garbage paper at work. It stayed true to nib size, didn’t feather, didn’t bleed through, and had little to no show through. On good paper I was able to get that shading and sheen. I used it in my L1917 and Baron Fig Confidant and it looks great on those warm creamy pages. With a fine nib it even did okay in a Field Notes, but with a wet or wide nib it was as awful as any other fountain pen ink.
I’ve put it into two of my cheap fountain pens- the Kaco Retro and the Wing Sung 601a. The Retro writes on the dry side while the 601A writes wet. The ink in both pens feels well lubricated and smooth. Flow in both is average, with neither pen exhibiting dryness nor excessive wetness. Both pens feel good with this ink on multiple paper types.
This ink isn’t particularly professional- unless you edit papers or need to use it to draw attention to places where people need to sign documents. I’m not someone who will regularly write with orange ink, even with a firehose of a nib this ink is too light to read large passages written with it. That said it is a pleasurable ink to use and I have used it to write several long entries into my bullet journal. I’ve also used it during a brainstorming session to highlight particular ideas. In my use this is where an ink like this stands out- highlighting and lending emphasis.
I’m running a giveaway. Sign up via the rafflecopter widget to win a 3ml sample of The Pen Addict x Robert Oster Fire on Fire ink and a few other goodies.
Review: Jinhao 51A Tiger Sandalwood
This pen took 21 days to arrive on my doorstep after ordering via a seller in China on eBay. The 51A cost $3.98 with free shipping. Packaging was a simple plastic sleeve over the pen and a thin lightweight bubble wrap envelope. I was surprised it arrived in one piece.
Inside the envelope and sleeve is the pen. I ordered one of the wooden versions, there are several. I particularly liked the visible graining on the “Tiger Sandalwood.” I have no idea if this is really sandalwood or not, but it looks great. The wood arrives dull but smooth. Nothing a little work can’t fix.
The nib is a standard Jinhao fine number 5 nib. Mine have all been smooth from the first inking to the last and this was no different from the other Jinhao pens I’ve ordered. I’ve watched and read a few other reviews that report this having a metal section, mine is plastic. Though there are brass threads inset into the wooden body of the pen.
The cap is brushed stainless steel with a sturdy clip. The clip features a large ball at the end, which I think looks great. It also clips securely to notebooks and shirts alike. Despite being a friction fit, when capped the pen is secure. The cap also posts securely and deeply. I find that the pen is balanced when posted and feels good. It also feels good when unposted.
This is a cartridge or converter pen, and mine arrived with a Jinhao converter already installed. After washing the pen, I filled it with Akkerman Van Vermeer Ceruleum Blauw. Flow is acceptable and it lays down a decently wet and smooth line. The pen doesn’t dry out when left for a few days.
I wanted to bring up the shine and visibility of the grain but keep the feel of the wood. I rubbed silicone grease into the pen, let it absorb and then buffed off the excess. I’m not sure you can tell the difference in the photos but in person the difference is amazing. The wood is satin, the grain pops, and it still feels like wood. The silicone grease isn’t slippery or tacky, the wood has absorbed most of it, it has left a nice tactile shine on the pen. A hard wax would give a similar shine for the same amount of work.
This pen is also available with a hooded nib.
Like the Kaco Retro I reach for the pen again and again. It’s the right size for my hand, clips securely to my shirt, and feels amazing. The balance and weight is great. The wood is a perfect fidget. The updated clip and cap really brings a nice feel to the classic Parker 51 or 21 riff. At less than $4 each you can afford to buy a hooded nib and classic nibbed version, just for giggles.
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
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
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.
Review: Color It Dot Grid Journal
My gold standard notebooks for bullet journaling are Baron Fig Confidants. The combination of heavy covers and near perfect paper make them a notebook I reach for every time I need a notebook. That said, they lack some features that most bullet journalers look for when selecting a journal. The gold standard for most other people is the Leuchtturm 1917 (L1917), which features great paper, an elastic and a pocket over the Confidant. The larger issue with these notebooks is the cost. At $20 each, they are a pricey investment, particularly if you are just testing out bullet journaling.
This A5 notebook has black and white covers intended to be colored with permanent markers, allowing the buyer to customize it fully. It measures 5.8×8.2 inches, or real A5, just like the Leuchtturm 1917 (L1917). This notebook cost $9.99 at the time of purchase.
It has all the expected bells and whistles of the L1917- elastic, ribbon bookmark, hardcovers, and a pocket in the back. The pocket feels soft and pulpy but the gusset is covered in satin cloth.
The toothy off white pages are reported to be 80gsm. Every page is perforated. In testing, it took some work to remove them- folding along the perfs, then tearing. The dots are dark and are ruled at a wide feeling 6mm. I actually prefer the slightly wider ruling in this book.
The paper itself is okay. It has a lot of issues with fountain pen inks. Many of inks soaked into the paper and bleed through to the back side of the paper. The lines looked true to nib size for the most part, with a few notable exceptions of the lines feathering quite noticeably. Some inks spider webbed from the line. The paper was very nice for
The bottom line? I picked up this book because of the composition book style cover. It looks great, this caused me to miss the fact that it has perforated pages. This is a good journal if you stick to
No links in this one.
Review: Hero 616 Standard “Bobby Launch”
Bobby is an eBay seller who seems to primarily focus on fountain pens and other office supplies. Shipping took 15 days from the date I ordered. The cost of this little pen was a whole $1.39.
The pen arrived swaddled in bubble wrap and inside a yellow bubble envelope. The pen was inside a plastic sleeve with cheerful red, white, and blue printing.
The pen outside of the plastic sleeve looks small and inexpensive. The stainless steel cap has lines engraved vertically. This version of the 616 has a brass clip. The plastic of the pen body is dull and flat. A little polishing might help bring out the shine.
The brushed stainless steel cap friction fits for capping the pen. Mine is secure but it would be easy to not cap it tightly enough and have the cap wiggle loose. The cap also friction fits for posting. I found that it posted deeply and securely. The cap and pen are so lightweight that the balance wasn’t affected at all. I find this pen MORE comfortable when posted.
It should be noted that, in my testing, I carried the pen clipped to the placket of my shirt and neither the clip nor cap, ever came loose. However, while traveling to and from work I had it along with other pens, inside a hard shelled case. On more than one occasion I knocked my bag over or dropped the case. Upon opening the case the cap had wiggled loose from the pen. I would not carry this pen in the pen pocket of a bag or anywhere the cap could wiggle loose. It is certainly not a pocket pen, despite its diminutive size.
The nib is hooded and also gold toned. Mine arrived misaligned with the hood and the feed. A little work pushing and pulling aligned everything. Once inked the pen was a tad bit scratchy, so I ran it over my buffing stick. Ten minutes work gave me a pen that feels great.
This pen is an aerometric filler. I’ve used the Pilot aerometric refill and that works well. The Hero aerometric is a piece of garbage. The small tube inside isn’t long enough and the feed not set up to work properly, so every squeeze pushes out all of the ink. Testing this filler with water I was able to suck in about 1ml of water. Once dried and inked I was only able to get the damn things to suck up a little over half a fill of ink.
I also managed to cover my hands with ink. Sadly I have 2 more aerometric fillers that I need to review and each fill pissed me off. I will never order another cheap aerometric filler for review, but you’ll need to suffer through 2 more reviews of them.
Overall, this pen is quite nice. The hooded nib once aligned and tuned writes like a dream. Like all hooded nibs, dependent upon ink choice, it just writes and writes well. It’s an easy pen to like, it is, after all, a rip off of the classic Pilot 51/21. Sadly, they weren’t able to get the aerometric filler to work well. I’ll probably adapt mine to work with a standard piston type converter, but that’s a kludge I’ll share later. If you want to read about the original that this is riffed from check out Parker51.com it’s a great resource.