Ink Review: Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin

June 07, 2015 by Lori Beck in Ink Review

Pilot Iroshizuku Chiku-rin
Pen: Kaweco Brass F
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: moderate
Saturation: medium
Flow: medium
Dry Time: 9 seconds

I've always been a big fan of green, and my boyfriend and I have really been enjoying the Iroshizuku line of inks; so I figured it was time to pick up a sample of Chiku-rin and see how I liked it. It definitely didn't disappoint.

Chiku-rin translates to "bamboo forest," which is actually a very fitting description of the color of this ink. The shade of green very much resembles a stick of fresh bamboo. I love the mild shading properties this ink has, even with a fine nib. With larger nib sizes, I'd imagine the ink is quite an exceptional shader. It's nicely saturated, but not so much so that it kills the shading, and it flows quite well. Dry time is right around average at 9 seconds in my fine nib.

As far as comparisons to other inks I've tried, the closest I've got is Diamine Meadow. Chiku-rin is a tiny bit lighter in color and to me, has better shading characteristics. Meadow is a nice slightly darker medium green with rich saturation. I tried to decide which one I like best, and honestly I just can't make that decision - I love them both!

Once again, Pilot doesn't disappoint with another great Iroshizuku ink! If you'd like a bottle for yourself, it'll run your about $28 for the full sized bottle. However, if you're interested in a smaller 15mL bottle, you can check out Vanness Pens - they sell the 15mL bottles for $10.50, or you can get a 3 pack for $29 that comes with a really nice display box. I definitely plan on getting a set once I decide what my favorite Iroshizuku inks are!

Thanks for reading!
Lori

Pen Review: Kaweco Brass Sport

June 03, 2015 by Lori Beck in Pen Review

Kaweco Brass Sport - Raw Brass (F)
Length Capped: 107mm
Length Posted: 126mm
Length Unposted: 100mm
Section at Thinnest Point: 7mm
Section at Widest Point: 9mm
Weight with Cartridge: 43.5g
Fast Writing: Feed does struggle a bit to keep up, though I think this may be due to the nib issue.
Line Variation: Decent, but will railroad quickly. Not practical.
Upside down Writing: Scratchy, but doable
Wetness: Fairly Dry
Pros: Unique, hefty (could be con as well, depending on the person), patina, customizability
Cons: Hefty (depending on the person), nib issues (see below), converter options

Parts of the Pen:

Like all Kaweco Sport models, the pen features a fairly long cap with an octagonal facets. The body is cylindrical with a step down at the end leading to an end cap with a rounded top and a dimple in the middle. The section is tapered and flared, and has a small grouping of threads at the top where the cap screws on. Unlike other Sport models, this one has a plastic lining in the cap, which I believe is meant to prevent seizing of the brass parts to one another. The raw aluminum one may have this as well - I've not seen that one in person. One good thing about the plastic lining is you don't get the scratchy sound of metal on metal when you screw the cap on. Finally, the finial is very slightly conical and features the 3-syllable Kaweco logo.

Review

As soon as I saw the Kaweco Brass Sport, I knew I had to have one. Knowing what kind of patina could develop on raw brass made the pen appeal to me. Up to this point, I'd only used the Skyline Sport, and I really fell in love with that pen, so I couldn't wait to get ahold of some more Kawecos.

The first thing that will strike you about this pen is obviously its incredible heft; especially if you're accustomed to using a regular Sport or Skyline. The Brass is around 33g heavier than a regular Sport, so that's something to consider if you don't like heavier pens. Me, I really enjoyed the extra weight. I've done some fairly long writing sessions with this pen and didn't experience any fatigue. The extra weight actually assisted in getting the pen to write with what I unfortunately found to be a pretty poor nib out of the box. More on that in a moment...

With my Skyline, I didn't have too many issues with the nib - I did make it a little wetter, just for personal preference, but other than that it was decently smooth. The Fine nib that came with my Brass Sport was misaligned and had a pretty bad case of "baby's bottom" which hampered the ink flow and gave a ton of hard starts. Luckily I've gotten accustomed to smoothing my own nibs, so once I hit it with some micromesh and widened the tines just a bit, it wrote like a dream. It was unfortunate to get a poor nib on such an awesome pen, though I was glad to have been able to fix it. I know some others haven't been so lucky, and have written the brand off completely. I encourage you to give it another try and even practice some smoothing on cheaper nibs (try eBay) so that you can remedy these issues yourself should they happen again. Granted, I certainly don't think that nib issues should happen on any pen, let alone one of this price. Sadly the pen world is never perfect.

Now onto the good stuff - the patina that has developed on this pen in just a few days is awesome. I really can't wait to see how this thing looks in a few months. Out of the box, the pen is a very bright shiny raw brass with no flaws to speak of. As soon as you touch your fingers to it, it'll start to develop some darkening, or patina. For those that don't know what that is, it is a fine layer or "tarnish" that forms on various metals such as brass, copper, bronze, etc. due to oxidation or other chemical processes. A tarnish or patina can protect metal from corrosion or weathering. You'll notice that pennies that are very old have actually darkened over time - that is the same as what's happening to this brass pen.

As is always a topic of conversation with the Kaweco Sports, you don't have a ton of options in the way of converters. I'm currently refilling empty cartridges until the Kaweco Squeeze Converter comes back in stock at JetPens. The downside to refilling cartridges is that they will eventually wear out over time and have to be replaced, making it a continual investment, albeit a small one. A lot of folks have had a bad time filling the squeeze converter and end up using an ink syringe to fill it. I'm fine with that, as it at least eliminates the need to keep buying cartridges. Another option I've heard of is the Templar Mini Converter - I'm eager to try that one out as well, as Stephen Brown says in one of his reviews that it holds a tiny bit more ink than the squeeze converter. Also please note this pen should not be eyedropper converted as it is metal, which does not play nice with a lot of fountain pen inks.

Not unlike the Al Sport Raw Aluminum, the Brass Sport will change based on the way you use it, giving it a look and feel that is unique to you. I really love that about this pen; it's design is a reflection of its user. It's a pen that I won't be afraid to throw in a pants pocket with keys, or toss into the bottom of a bag full of loose articles. Each ding and dent will be part of its character. One downside that some may not like, is it does make your hands smell like metal. I'm hoping that will fade over time.

If you can't tell I'm smitten with this pen. If you're interested in one for yourself, they're still slowly making their way to the US - Goulet has it listed but doesn't have it up for sale just yet. I believe it's currently listed on CultPens for my friends in the UK. Online retail is $100 - it might be steep for some folks since it comes standard with a steel nib, but I believe the uniqueness makes it worth it.

Thanks for reading!
- Lori

(Kaweco has provided this product at no charge to The Desk for the purpose of review - I have since chosen to purchase the pen from them. My opinions are honest and without bias - visit the About Me page for more details).

Ink Review: Waterman Harmonious Green

June 01, 2015 by Lori Beck in Ink Review

Waterman Harmonious Green - May 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Pilot Metropolitan M
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: moderate to high
Saturation: medium
Flow: wet
Dry Time: 9 seconds

As soon as I inked up Waterman Harmonious Green, it immediately reminded me of the green ink that is ink the Pilot Precise V5 and V7 pens. Before I used fountain pens, the V5/7 and the Pilot G2 in green were my most used pens, so I had a little bit of flash back when using this ink. Admittedly, I liked the green ink that was in the G2 a lot more than the V5/7; so Harmonious Green isn't my favorite green, but it's still a good one.

A great characteristic of this ink is its shading. I got quite a bit even with my medium nib, so with a stub or broad nib, you will likely get even more. The ink is about a medium on the saturation scale, which probably contributes to the shading characteristics. The ink flows nice and wet and has a very decent dry time at 9 seconds.

Amongst the swabs that I have currently, Harmonious Green sits between Noodler's Bad Green Gator and Diamine Woodland Green. It's a lot lighter than Green Gator, and a tad bit darker than Woodland Green.

Waterman Harmonious Green is really a nice, neutral, well behaved ink. If you're nostalgic for your old Pilot Precise V5/7 green pen, then you may like this one. You can pick up a 50mL bottle from Goulet or a similar retailer for $11.00.

Ink Review: Platinum Pigmented Rose Red

May 31, 2015 by Lori Beck in Ink Review

Platinum Pigmented Rose Red - May 2015 Ink Drop
Pen: Pilot Metropolitan M
Paper: Rhodia Dotpad 80gsm
Shading: low to moderate
Saturation: low
Flow: medium
Dry Time: 15 seconds

The next ink in the Goulet Ink Drop this month unfortunately didn't appeal to me much in terms of color. If you know me personally you know that I'm not a fan of pink, and despite it being called "Rose Red," the ink is definitely pink rather than red. Platinum's Pigmented series of inks were created to be a fountain-pen friendly ink that is water-resistant. Vintage pigmented inks were not meant for use in fountain pens as they typically cause clogging. As I understand it, they contain "particles" which would cause clogging issues in the feed system. According to their website, Platinum's pigmented inks have "ultra-fine" particles, so that isn't an issue.

Pigmented inks are highly favored by the artist community for ink washing since they are waterproof. So if you are an artist, you should definitely check out this line. Platinum markets their pigmented inks as "quick-drying" but I just didn't find that to be the case. With my medium nib, it took 15 seconds to try, so if you're ink washing that might be a pain for you if you're trying to do things quickly.

Shading was fairly low with my medium nib. The ink isn't highly saturated from my experience, but it does flow nicely, though not extremely wet. As I mentioned the dry time is fairly high at 15 seconds, so it may not be well suited to left-handed writers. I did test the waterproofness and it performed quite well; so if you're looking to do some ink washing, this should do quite nicely for you.

Considering I don't care for pink inks, this one just didn't do it for me - but that doesn't mean it's not for you. Performance-wise it's a nicely behaved ink, and is as advertised. If you'd like to pick up a bottle, you can get 60mL for $20 at Goulet or a similar retailer.