Here is a preview of my first Nakaya fountain pen, a Naka-ai Cigar Negoro in Shiro-tame with a soft medium nib modified to be even softer and ground to be a left foot oblique (review to come next month):
Pens
Caran d’Ache Hexagonal Ecaille Chinese Lacquer M Nib Fountain Pen Review
The Caran d’Ache Hexagonal Ecaille Chinese Lacquer fountain pen is an odd ball in my collection. I don’t like skinny pens nor do I like fingerprint prone pens and pens with metal sections….this pen is all of these things. So why do I have it you ask? It was the price. I saw this pen new old stock in a small pen shop in the Netherlands and I just couldn’t let it go.
I have decided to use a more standardized review process for nicer fountain pens with six categories and a scale of 1-5 (5 being the best and 1 being the worst).
Appearance:
The Hexagonal shares the same shape as the original Caran d’Ache Ecridor pencil. The combination of gold plate and red marbled Chinese lacquer are pretty dated looking but the fit and finish make this pen still beautiful in my eyes as an objet d’art. I can’t think of another pen in production today that is comparable. The Hexagonal Chinese Lacquer is still listed on Caran d’Ache’s website but if you look around you will have a hard time finding one. The rectangles carved into the grip section are a touch I quite like. I love the squarish shape of the 18kt gold nib and the lack of a breather hole. My pen is from the 90s and the more recent Hexagonals have a more traditional nib with a breather hole. This pen is a fingerprint magnet and I worry that even wiping it with a soft cloth with scratch it. Score: 3.5
Build Quality:
Just by looking at the Hexagonal you can tell that it is of the highest quality. The “Maison de Haute Ecriture” will never disappoint you in the quality department. The gold plate is beautifully polished and the hand painted Chinese lacquer is gorgeous. Running your finger on the barrel you will notice that there is a seamless transition between the gold and lacquer; you cannot feel it at all. The rectangle shapes carved into the section are painted with lacquer. The pen both caps a posts with a crisp snap. This is an incredibly well made pen and is easily on the same quality level as S.T. Dupont and Graf von Faber-Castell. Score: 5
Size and Weight:
The Hexagonal weighs in at just under 27 grams which is neither light nor overly heavy for a normal fountain pen. The pen measures 5.25″ capped, 6″ posted and without the cap the pen measures 4.75″. At its widest point it is less than half an inch thick and the grip section measures about a quarter of an inch thick. The weight and the length of the pen are all excellent but the width makes this pen uncomfortable.
What Caran d’Ache did was made a capped version of the Ecridor pencil which has the same girth as a pencil wooden pencil. Keeping the same form factor with a capped pen means shrinking the grip section width and this is a serious problem comfort-wise. The smaller the girth, the more pressure needed to control the pen and when you consider that this pen weighs many times more than a wooden pencil the result is not brilliant.
I wrote a letter with the Hexagonal and about half way into the second page my hand was in pain and it was a struggle to continue. As a pen for quick notes you shouldn’t run into any problems but I wouldn’t recommend it for long writing sessions at all. Score: 1.5
Performance:
The 18kt gold medium nib writes well and is very smooth with some light feedback. I have had no issues with skipping or hard starting. The performance of the nib has been flawless for me. It’s a pretty stiff nib so you wont see much in the way of line variation. I love nibs with character and unfortunately (like most modern nibs) the Hexagonal’s nib does not have much. Score: 3
Filling System:
The Hexagonal uses a cartridge or converter which is a feature I am starting to like on high-end pens. A piston filling system is more expensive to produce and holds more ink but from a cleaning perspective is much less desirable. I like to be able to change inks frequently and a cartridge or converter allows me to do just that without much hassle. I can easily go from an dark black to an ultra light orange without even giving it a second thought. With a piston fill pen I wouldn’t be able to make that change without a ton of cleaning. I use a regular Waterman converter with the Hexagonal and I have had no issues. Like the nib, the performance is good but there is nothing special to note here. Score: 3
Value:
The retail price of this pen (with the updated nib) is about $1,300 and I could never pay that for this pen. The quality is certainly there but it’s just not comfortable. I also feel as though there is no X-factor with this pen like you would have on many similarly priced pens from other manufacturers. I paid about €120 for my new old stock Hexagonal and at that price it is not a regret for me but it also isn’t a home run purchase as I rarely use it. Score: 2
Bottom Line:
Unless you love the style and can put up with the thin grip section, the Hexagonal isn’t a pen I would ever recommend. Final score : 18/30
Uni-Ball Vision RT Roller Ball Fine Pen Review
The Uni-Ball Vision RT is a retractable roller ball pen. Uni states that this pen has “triple protection against ink leakage” and is airplane safe. I am not certain what consists of triple protection but it sounds nice. The fine point retracts when you pull on the clip making it a safe for pockets. I quite like the design of this pen; someone clearly put thought into it.
In the writing sample I incorrectly state that the pen is not refillable; it is in fact refillable.
On to the bad…
When I first used this pen I thought it was a ballpoint because the pen wrote so dryly. “Roller ball” usually means liquid ink but Vision RT feels pasty like an oil based ink. The lines as you can see in the image above are not clean. This is easily the worst writing roller ball I have come across. At a dollar I would say it’s passable but $2.00 is too much for this level of performance. Uni usually makes excellent product but the Uni-Ball Vision RT is a rare miss.
Here are some reviews of the Uni-Ball Vision RT Roller Ball:
(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)
A Penchant for Paper – Uni-ball Vision RT Bold 0.8mm Black
Office Supply Geek – Uniball Vision RT .6mm
The Pen Addict – Review: Uni-Ball Vision RT
Gourmet Pens – Review: Uni-ball Vision RT 0.8 mm Rollerball Pen
Pilot Precise P-700 0.7mm Gel Roller Ball Review
The Pilot Precise P-700 has been one of my favorite hybrid gel roller balls for quite a while now. The benefit of a hybrid gel roller ball is a smooth writing experience with a low resistance liquid ink, making it a great pen for writing in cursive. The line is clean and smooth and the ink is ultra fast drying making it a great pen for lefties. The ink is permanent and unfortunately the pen is not refillable.
The Precise is an old pen and to my knowledge the design has never been updated and as a result it doesn’t really look like many other pens on the market. The body has a marbled appearance that to me looks like clouds. The ribbed grip is comfortable but not soft. I haven’t been a fan of the looks of this pen in the past and my opinion hasn’t changed; it’s ugly.
The Pilot Precise comes in two widths 0.7mm (P-700) and 0.5mm (P-500) and five colors, black, blue, red, green, and purple. At $2.42 it’s quite affordable and if the looks don’t bother you I highly recommend it.
Here are some great reviews of the Pilot Precise P-700 / P-500:
(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)
Uni-Ball Signo Impact RT 207 Bold 1.0mm Review
The Uni-Ball Signo Impact RT 207 is a retractable gel ink pen with a bold 1.0mm tip. I have been writing with this pen for a day now and line width is too wide for me and I don’t have small handwriting. The ink really flows out of this pen creating an ultra smooth writing experience. It’s actually a fun pen to write with even though I wouldn’t use it for work. The ink drys very quickly which is surprising for a gel ink pen with such a bold line. The design isn’t overly cohesive; it has a silver barrel with a black rubberized grip, a translucent click button with blue plastic inside, and a metal tip. It’s almost as if this pen with made from Uni’s spare parts bin.
I don’t have a use for this pen and it is a bit ugly but I do find it fun to use. I am not sure I would recommend this pen. The quality like all the pens in Uni’s Signo line is great but unless you need a really bold line you would likely be happier with a narrower Signo.
Copic Multiliner SP 0.35mm Review
The Copic Multiliner SP is a drawing pen similar to the Staedtler Triplus Fineliner and the Sakura Pigma Micron. What makes the Multiliner special is that it has replaceable nibs and ink. The Multiliner comes in 10 nib sizes and 13 colors (including black). It is worth noting that the black pen comes in all 10 nib sizes whiles the color Multiliners come in two. The color refills fit in the black pen so if you want a specific nib size you might be better off buying a black one and a color ink cartridge.
The pen writes really well. The 0.35mm tip glides nicely across the paper and lays down a crisp black line. The tip does have some give but is not as soft as other fineliner type drawing pens.
The body is aluminum and while it feels nice it has too much writing on the barrel for my taste. This pen was designed to be a tool and serves its purpose well. The pigment ink is waterproof. The Copic Multiliner retails for $9.20 and the ink refills cost $2.30; it’s not cheap (the refills are almost two times the price of the Staedtler) but the high quality writing experience is easily worth it. I was surprised by how much I like this pen. I prefer Multiliner to my now former favorite the Staedtler Triplus Fineliner.
Here are some reviews of the Copic Multiliner:
(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)
Does This Pen Write? – Copic Multiliner SP
Parka Blogs – Review: Copic Multiliner SP Pen
The Pen Addict -Copic Multiliner SP 0.3 mm Cobalt Blue Review
J. Herbin Refillable Roller Ball Review
J. Herbin is the oldest ink manufacturer in the world and was established in 1670. The J. Herbin roller ball is special because it is designed to use fountain pen ink. It takes short standard international cartridges which gives you a very wide variety of inks to choose from. I have been able to fit a Monteverde mini ink converter and now the ink possibilities are endless.
When I received the pen the first thing I noticed was that it was quite small at 4.5″ capped and about 5.5″ posted. The translucent demonstrator body is decently made. If you look closely you can see some seams but you cannot feel them. The metal clip feels pretty sturdy. I don’t like the “J. HERBIN” in red along the cap; I would have preferred something more subtle. There are three little holes on the bottom of the body so this pen could not be used as an eyedropper. The cap snaps on to the body to close and posts securely. Due to the small size of the pen, some people will need to post the cap to use this pen comfortably.
I filled the pen with Diamine Turquoise and the roller ball wrote quite well. Nice clean lines no skipping or any other bad behavior to report. It is not as smooth as a hybrid gel ink roller ball but that is to be expected. The line is about a medium width. The Monteverde mini converter does not hold a lot of ink so the standard international cartridge may be a better choice for some.
Overall I really like this little pen; it’s well-made, a good writer and can use all my favorite inks but if you are willing to put up with the hassle of fountain pen ink and cleaning the feed when changing colors why wouldn’t you use a fountain pen instead? I can’t come up with any reasons.
Here are some great reviews of the J. Herbin Roller Ball:
East West Everywhere – J. Herbin Rollerball
Paper Pens Ink – Review of the J Herbin rollerball
The Well-Appointed Desk – J. Herbin Rollerball Fail
Life Imitates Doodles – Review of the J Herbin Rollerball Pen and Ink Cartridges
Yasutomo Y&C Gel Stylist Pen 0.5mm Review
The Yasutomo Y&C Gel Stylist is an ugly and cheap refillable gel pen. The rubber gel grip is short on one side and long on the other, ending at a bump that prevents the pen from rolling on a flat surface. There are two big ugly seams that run the length of the pen. The chromed plastic tip unscrews allowing you to change out the refill. I found an unusually amount of resistance on the paper with this pen which made it hard to write in my messy cursive-esque hand. The ink like most gel inks is bright and vibrant. At $1.30 there are a lot better gel pens out there like the Pentel EngerGel X and the Sakura Gelly Roll.
Shachihata Artline Ergoline Roller Ball Pen 0.5mm Review
The Shachihata Artline Ergoline (I am amazed they could only fit “line” into the name twice) is an affordable disposable roller ball pen with a large plastic body and an ergonomic grip. The pen uses a water-based ink with a ceramic ball. I compared it against the Pentel EnerGel Euro and was surprised that the Ergoline moved across the paper with less resistance, despite this fact, the tip feels scratchy…it’s a weird combination.
The Ergoline is one of the fatter disposable pens I have come across at nearly half an inch thick at its widest point. It’s length is pretty standard at 5.5″ long capped and 6.25″ posted. I like the matte plastic black body and inset gold lettering which gives the Ergoline an air of quality. The cap has a nicely integrated clip.
Unfortunately, once you take of the cap and see the shiny black plastic grip section with two large seams the quality look goes out the window. The ergonomic grip felt cheap in hand and took a bit to get used to.
Apart from the grip I like this pen for $2; it has a nice clean look to it and writes relatively well. The Ergoline comes in black, blue, red, and green ink with a 0.5mm tip.
Pentel EnerGel Euro Liquid Gel Pen 0.5mm Blue – Reivew
The Pentel EnerGel Euro uses a liquid gel ink that writes very smoothly and dries quickly. The line is crisp and a true 0.5mm. The pen has a blue almost metallic-looking body made of partially recycled plastic. The body has a lot writing on it as well as a bar code which make the pen ugly and generic looking. The latex free grip is quite comfortable and I like translucent blue plastic between the grip and the metal tip; it has these unusual faceted points. The cap also snaps onto the body when posted which is a feature I love.
The EnerGel Euro comes in black, blue, and red as well as four tip sizes 0.35mm, 0.5mm, 0.7mm and 1.0mm. The EnerGel Euro costs $2.75 and is not refillable. This is an excellent pen and if you don’t mind the generic looks I highly recommend it.
Here are some great reviews of the Pentel EnerGel Euro:
No Pen Intended – Pentel EnerGel Euro Needle-Point Gel Ink Pen – 0.35 mm – Black
Office Supply Geek – Pentel EnerGel Euro Needle-Point Gel Ink Pen
The Pen Addict – Review: Pentel EnerGel Euro Needle-Point Gel Ink Pen 0.35mm Blue
A Penchant for Paper – Pentel EnerGel Euro 0.35mm Black
Gourmet Pens – Review: Pentel EnerGel Euro Black 0.5 mm Needle Point