BLAKE'S BROADCAST

Platinum 3776 Century Chartres Blue Fountain Pen Review

August 14, 2014 by Blake

On specifications alone the Platinum 3776 fountain pen is a winner; it’s affordably priced and it features a full-sized body and solid gold nib…what’s not to love?

Appearance

There are a lot of Japanese Montblanc look-alikes but the Platinum 3776 takes the cake with its mountain theme. The streamlined design and gold furniture are all very similar to a Montblanc Meisterstück. If you look at the nib of a Montblanc Meisterstück you will see the number “4810”; this number represents the height (in meters) of Mont Blanc in the Graian Alps. What do you suppose “3776” refers to? It’s the height (in meters) of Mount Fuji.

The nib features a mountain design with “#3776” right in the middle.

When you put the Montblanc similarities aside the 3776 is a pretty plain looking fountain pen.

Platinum 3776 Century Chartres Blue Fountain Pen

The Chartres Blue body is translucent but not clear enough for this pen to truly be considered a demonstrator. I quite like the Chartres Blue body because it allows you to see the innovative “Slip & Seal” cap mechanism that prevents the pen from drying out. Supposedly you can leave this pen inked for 24 months without problem…I don’t want to test that, so I will take Platinum’s word for it.

The 14kt gold nib is large and shapely; it’s a much more agreeable size than similarly priced Pilot Custom 74.

While the 3776 has a well proportioned, modest and understated design, it isn’t going to win any style awards. At the end of the day this pen has a boring unoriginal appearance.

Score: 2/5

Build Quality

The build quality of the 3776 isn’t bad. There are seams in the plastic but everything fits together as it should and the use of the “Slip & Seal” mechanism shows that Platinum isn’t just pushing out cheap Montblanc lookalikes.

The gold plated trim matches the color of the solid 14kt nib.

I compared the 3776 to the similarly priced Pilot Custom 74 and to my eye the engraving and the overall fit and finish of the gold furniture is better on the Pilot BUT the gold trim on the Pilot is much more yellow than its 14kt gold nib…so you kind of have to pick your poison: mismatched nib and trim or cheaper looking engraving?

Score: 3.5/5

Size & Weight

The 3776 measures 5.5” capped and 4.7” uncapped. The pen weighs a comfortable 24.3 grams. It is an agreeable size that most people will find comfortable. The pen posts well and has a good balance posted or unposted.

Score: 4/5

Performance

The fine nib on the 3776 is a phenomenal performer and in my opinion it is the reason to buy this pen. Being Japanese the fine point is an extra or extra extra fine by western standards but despite this the nib is smooth and a real pleasure to use. I haven’t noticed a single skip or hard start since I began using this pen four months ago.

The nib is pretty stiff so you wont be seeing much in the way of line variation.

Left to right: Pilot Custom 74 Music Nib, Nakaya Naka-ai Negoro nib, Platinum 3776 nib. Notice that the similarly priced Pilot has a much smaller nib.

This is the same nib that is used on $500+ Nakayas. In the sub $100 range I don’t believe you can find a better performer.

Score: 5/5

Filling System

Platinum 3776 Century Chartres Blue Fountain Pen

The Platinum uses a proprietary cartridge converter filling system but for $1 you can buy an adaptor that will allow you to use international cartridges.

In Japan, the 3776 is sold without converter but in the US it is sold with the same Platinum converter you get with a Nakaya and I have to say its one of the nicest converters out there.

Score: 2.5/5

Value

I bought my 3776 new in Japan for about $80, which is an awesome deal for a pen with a phenomenal 14kt gold nib. The US street price is about $175 ($220 retail). I am not sure why it is so much more money in the US but you can buy a new one on eBay from Japanese sellers for $90 (I haven’t tried this but it’s what I would do if I were to buy one again).

Score: 4/5

Bottom Line

This is a sleeper pen, boring looks but with a monster performer under the cap.

Final Score 21/30

Here are some great reviews of the Platinum 3776:

(I have no affiliation to the sites linked below)

The Pencil Case Blog – Platinum #3776 Century fountain pen

From the Pen Cup – Merry Mary: Platinum #3776 Century Chartres Blue Fountain Pen

The Fountain Pen Quest – Review: Platinum #3776 Century Bourgogne

The Pen Habit – Pen Review: Platinum 3776 Century

I Laike Pens – PLATINUM #3776 CENTURY FOUNTAIN PEN REVIEW

The Pen Addict -Platinum 3776 Century UEF Nib Fountain Pen Review

Inkophile -Platinum #3776 Century Fountain Pens

Comparison of 73 Bottled Fountain Pen Inks

August 10, 2014August 8, 2014 by Blake

I don’t consider myself an ink person…I like ink but I like pens much more. Boring old Waterman Serenity Blue (FKA Florida Blue) has been my go-to ink for vintage pens for a good while now but I have been finding that with dryer and finer nibbed pens it isn’t the best match. I had to find a safe blue ink with good lubrication and Diamine (with all inks in a pH range of 6-8) was the brand that came to mind.

I ordered 14 Diamine samples from the Goulet Pen Company (no affiliation) and to narrow it down I put the samples on Maruman Mnemosyne Word Book cards as I had first seen on The Pen Addict (again no affiliation)…well one thing led to another and I decided put all of my bottled inks on the Word Book cards and here is the result:

The blues:

The greens:

The purples:

The grays and blacks:

The browns and reds:

The orange and pinks:

I haven’t picked a new blue yet but Diamine Majestic Blue and Diamine Asa blue are the ones catching my eye.

Franklin-Christoph Penvelope Six Leather Pen Case Review

August 7, 2014 by Blake

The San Francisco Pen Show is coming up Friday the 22nd, the same day that I have to fly to Seattle. Luckily for me the SF Pen Show is taking place at the SFO (airport) Sofitel.

I need to bring three pens for tuning AND I need to have room for purchases AND I need to have a highly protective case for air travel …so what case do I bring? A big pen wrap? Both of my 3 pen cases (the Nock Co. Lookout and the Pelikan)?

I realized that each case is flawed for my purposes…the pen wrap and the Lookout case are soft don’t provide quite enough protection for air travel, the Pelikan case protects well but if I end up buying big pens they wont all fit.

While surfing around on the Fountain Pen Network I came across the “Penvelope” by Franklin-Christoph. Penvelopes come in three sizes: 2 pen, 6 pen and 13 pen. I opted for the 6 pen case as this is the most practical for use with a backpack. The 13 pen model is tempting but more appropriate for a briefcase than a backpack.

The Penvelope has 6 very spacious slots which can be filled with your fattest pens (up to .75″ wide and 7″ long). You could comfortably fill all 6 slots with Montblanc 149s and none of the pens would touch each other.

Franklin-Christoph Penvelope Six Leather Pen Case — Left to Right: Sailor Clear Candy, OMAS Paragon, Montblanc 149, Montblanc 136, Recife, Conway Stewart 58.

The slots extend almost to the bottom of the case and approximately measure 5″ long in total. The slots are in from the hard leather edges about .75″ so your pens will be well protected on the sides.

Because the slots are so spacious I recommend clipping your pens (especially the smaller ones) so that they don’t move around if the case were accidentally turned over.

The interior is lined with a burgundy color cloth that Franklin-Christoph claims is safe for all pens. The case closes securely with a magnetic snap.

The overall dimensions of the case Penvelope are 6″ wide x 7″ tall x 1.25″ deep. When the Penvelope is filled you it will get a bit fatter.

When purchasing a Penvelope you get three choices of leather: boot leather, Napa leather, and “croc print” leather (yuck!). You can chose black or brown leather (except for the Napa which only comes in black). I opted for the soon to be released brown boot leather because it is thicker and will develop a patina with use.

Note the nicely embossed Franklin-Christoph logo.

The quality seems decent. It is machine stitched with a thick thread and the stitching is mostly straight. The outer part of the case is made of three pieces of leather and they aren’t combined in the cleanest fashion but for a large $70 leather case these sorts of things are to be expected.

Overall, the Penvelope is an excellent 6 pen case that will protect your pens well. I am not sure it will replace my Nock Co. Lookout as my regular every day carry case but it is definitely my new go-to travel case.

Here is a great review of the Penvelope 6:

(I have no affiliation with the site linked below)

PENS PAPER INKS…WHATEVER! – Franklin Christoph Penvelope 6

Lamy Turquoise Fountain Pen Ink Review

July 31, 2014 by Blake

I have always been a fan of turquoise ink, it’s a fun and playful ink color that I enjoy using. Lamy Turquoise is a true turquoise that’s not too green and not too blue.

My go to turquoise has been Diamine Turquoise but this Lamy ink looks near as nice and behaves much better. No significant issues with bleeding and feathering as I experience with the Diamine. I find that the Lamy Turquoise has an average flow and saturation with good shading. Overall it’s a very well behaved ink that has become my new favorite Turquoise.

The Lamy ink bottle is very well designed. The glass vessel is shaped like a top and the plastic base is a ink blotting paper for cleaning your pen after filling.

Please note: this product was provided to me at no charge by JetPens for review purposes.

Here are some great reviews of Lamy Turquoise Ink:

(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)

Ink of Me Fondly – Lamy Turquoise Bottle Ink

Flotsam Not Jetsam – Lamy Turquoise Review

The Pencil Case Blog – Inktastic: LAMY turquoise ink

Field Notes Centipede! Blackbird Tar Field Notes Notebook Review

July 29, 2014 by Blake

The mad scientists at Blackbird Ballard have taken three Field Notes Pitch Black Edition notebooks and bound them together with their “tar formula” and added a cord to keep the notebook closed. The end result is a very unusual looking 144 page notebook.

The Tar Field Notes arrive in a black bag with a tape "X" — The Tar Field Notes arrive in a black bag with a tape “X”

As a Seattle native and fan of the Blackbird store I decided to buy this mutant Field Notes for $28 (yes $28!!!) and see if it was any good.

The “tar” appears to be quite durable and while a bit stiff at first, the binding relaxes and the notebook becomes nice to use. Blackbird uses their tar formula on its wallets and pouches so it should hold up through to the last page of the notebook.

The Field Notes Pitch Black have Finch 50#T paper with a dot grid and while it is not the most fountain pen friendly paper, I find that it works well enough with fine nibbed pens.

The notebook also features thick tar covered page marker which is a nice addition. I have have been using the three different notebooks together such that I have 1 book for to-dos and reminders, 1 book for ideas and doodling and 1 book for the blog (with a list of reviews outstanding, ideas, pens to sell and pens to buy).

I have been enjoying this notebook immensely. The main downside (apart from the price) is that it’s less pocketable than a single Field Notes (it does fit in my pants pockets but it’s bulky.

Do I recommend it? That would depend on how you like to use your Field Notes.

If you normally carry your Field Notes around in your pants pocket, then no, I definitely do not recommend them, but if you throw them in a bag as I do and you appreciate the “design” then I say go for it.

Waterford Kilbarry Guilloche Fountain Pen Quick Review

July 25, 2014 by Blake

Waterford is synonymous with fine leaded crystal, so I was surprised to learn that they make fountain pens (or at least have someone else make fountain pens under their name).

If you search for “Waterford Kilbarry” you will see plates and flatware under the same name, though I don’t see much correlation in design.

The most interesting feature of the Kilbarry is the amber-colored solid brass body which features an engraved “guilloche” pattern that is covered in a clear lacquer. This design gives the body some depth and it shimmers in the light.

The rest of the pen is decidedly less interesting. The gold furniture and black end caps are not that appealing when taken in as a whole. The top of the cap features the Waterford star symbol which does resemble a classic Waterford crystal design.

Waterford crystal Martini glass base with star design. — Waterford crystal martini glass base with star design.

The large two-tone steel nib is produced by Jowo in Germany and features “1789” (the year of Waterford’s founding), the Waterford seahorse symbol and the absence of a breather hole. The nib also reads “Germany” which to me makes the nib seem cheap. That is not a knock against, Germany, it is just that many mass produced nibs I have come across read “iridium point Germany.”

The nib performs beautifully with a fat, juicy medium line. I have experienced no issues with hard starting or skipping. The Klibarry takes standard international cartridges and converters.

The grip section is made out of black plastic with no seams that I can detect and the cap posts nicely on the the back of the pen. Being that the pen has a solid brass body it weighs almost 41 grams (with the converter installed). The pen is well balanced when posted but I find that I prefer to write cap off with this pen.

Capped, the pen measures 5.25″ and about 4.8″ uncapped. At it’s widest point the Kilbarry measures just over half an inch.

The build quality overall is quite good, the Waterford star on the top of the cap isn’t cut as crisply as it could be but otherwise there are no real flaws to speak of. I don’t know where this pen is made but I would suspect it is made somewhere in Asia.

The Kilbarry feels nice in hand and writes very well but ultimately it’s not my cup of tea. The $135 retail price is quite high and I think this pen would make more sense around $70.

Pen Shopping in Paris and Copenhagen

July 21, 2014 by Blake

Round 2: Shopping in Paris and Copenhagen.

Paris has a number of excellent pens stores but the one that really stood out to me was Mora Stylos.

This beautiful little shop has the best selection of quality pens that I saw on my entire trip. So what do they offer? In addition to most major brands, they had a very nice selection of mint to near mint vintage pages as well as a beautiful selection of new old stock pens. They also have an impressive selection of highly optioned Nakaya pens. The sales woman showed me one where the clip had been painted in the same midori urushi lacquer as the barrel; she was proud to say that this was a custom option that had only been done for their store.

The real star of the store though is Oldwin pens, these pens are made specifically for the shop and feature huge customized number 7 and number 8 Bock nibs. What really stands out with these pens are the materials used. They select very old materials like hard rubber from an 1930s bocce ball and vintage celluloid used by OMAS. The result is a stunningly beautiful collection of pens. Each pen is a one off; no two pens are the same. I got the chance to write with a medium nibbed Oldwin with a”cracked ice” (black with white veins) celluloid body and the pen wrote beautifully. The nib was a true medium and not the overly fat medium I am accustomed to with many European pens.

I did not buy an Oldwin but I do hope to add one to my collection at some point. It is advantageous to be a foreigner when buying an Oldwin pen because when purchased through Mora’s website you get the VAT removed from the price and free shipping. The sales women also stated that when you place an order you can request minor customizations to the nib, to increase or decrease the flow of the pen free of charge.

If you only visit one pen store in Paris, this is it.

Copenhagen:

I am sorry to say that I was only able to find one pen store in Copenhagen and while they had a large selection of new Montblancs, and Lamy pens that was really about it.

On the plus side Copenhagen did have some amazing food:

Geranium Copenhagen — “Dillstone”: Mackerel, Horseradish & Granita from Pickled Cucumber

Uni-Ball 5 Roller Ball Pen Review

July 18, 2014 by Blake

The Uni-Ball 5 is a roller ball pen that I can find almost no information on. I couldn’t find this pen on Mitsubishi’s (Uni) Japanese site (http://www.mpuni.co.jp/) nor on their US site nor on Google. Here is what I do know:

I bought this pen from Itoya in Tokyo for 100 YEN (a bit less than a $1USD). It is a roller ball with a 0.5mm point. The ink is ultra smooth and fast drying.

I put the Uni-Ball 5 up again three other traditional roller balls, the Pilot V Ball, the Pilot Precise Rolling Ball, and the Uni-Ball Deluxe Micro (all 0.5mm).

The Uni-Ball 5 was the clear winner for me. The lines are tight and sharp and it’s the smoothest writer out of all of them. In terms of price its most clear competitor is the Pilot Precise Rolling Ball and comparing them more closely the Pilot had a more liquid and fluid feel where the Uni had a more viscous, thicker feel (though clearly a liquid ink). I also found that the dry times for the Uni-Ball 5 were faster than that of the Pilot Precise. With that said the Pilot Precise’s feel on paper is more unique and a bit more fun but objectively it really isn’t a better pen.

In short the Uni-Ball is the best writing disposable roller ball pen I have come across under $1. I almost think I might like it better than the Ohto Graphic Liner. I don’t know how to buy them in the USA, so if anyone out there knows of a place or has more information on this pen I would love to hear from you.

Success!!! Pen Shopping in Zürich and Milano

October 14, 2014July 11, 2014 by Blake

1938 OMAS Extra Lucens — 1938-1939 OMAS Extra Lucens

Six days in and finally today I found a grail pen in Milano, a late 1930s OMAS Extra Lucens!!!

The shop:

Cartoleria Novecento

Run by Albert and Alberta (husband and wife). Albert spoke fluent English and could not have been more friendly. His shop sells vintage and new fountain pens as well as stationery and other antiques. He had some beautiful Italian rolled gold safety pens as well as a good number of vintage American pens. He showed me many pens, including some magnificent new old stock OMAS and Namiki pens. I saw the vintage OMAS Extra Lucens and I knew it had to be mine. That makes two Extra Lucens from me in one month *doh!* (I might have to eat ramen for the next couple of years). I am contemplating going back for the limited edition reproduction E.E. Ercolessi fountain pen produced by OMAS.

While in Milano I also checked out a couple of other pen stores:

The famed E.E. Ercolessi:

E.E. Ercolessi only sells new pens and stationery. The selection was generous and the staff were very friendly but the prices are pretty close to retail and ultimately not favorable when translated from Euros to USD.

The last shop I visited in Milano was Brunori:

Run by Joseph Brunori, this small shop features a good number of Italian pens from Aurora, OMAS, Delta, Visconti and Marlen as well as pens from Montblanc, Faber-Castell, Kaweco, Lamy and Twsbi. Joseph was kind to me despite my horrendous Italian and showed me several pens. Inside the shop he displays pens from his personal collection which included beautiful vintage American pens from Waterman and Parker. He also had a very nice collection of vintage ink bottles.

In Zürich I found a few stationery/pen shops but only one that I feel is a must see:

Landolt-Arbenz

This beautiful store features three floors of writing instruments and related accessories. The basement floor features the majority of the fountain pens and stationery as well as one of the best displays of ink I have ever seen. They had a huge selection of Abraxas ink and the discontinued versions of Sailor Jentle and Caran d’Ache inks as well as ink from many other brands, Stipula, Montblanc, Pilot, Montegrappa and others. Landolt-Arbenz also has their own line of ink (made in Italy) and stationery. I wanted to try their ink but decided against it as the design of the bottle was a shallow rectangular shape which is not a particularly usable design for an ink bottle.

As far as fountain pens go they had a beautiful selection of Nakayas, Caran d’Ache, and some amazing limited editions such as a Cartier Eagle which is an insane 33,000 CHF (approximately $37k USD) fountain pen!!!

The stationery at Landolt-Arbenz is beautiful but expensive. There was a wonderful A6 sized leather bound notebook that I was going to buy until I saw the 230 CHF price tag.

Next stop: Paris…

Nock Co. Chimneytop Pen Case Review

July 12, 2014July 11, 2014 by Blake

The Chimneytop is a simple zippered pouch for pens and accessories. They are sold as a set of two, you get one small size and one medium size. They are made out of a 1000D textured nylon that is very much like Cordura. The small size measures about 7″ long and the medium measures about 7.5″ long. I found both of them to be a tight squeeze from my freshly sharpened wooden pencils. This isn’t a big deal as soft cases are not ideal for carrying wooden pencils but I thought it was worth pointing out.

Per the Nock Co. website the small Chimneytop has a capacity of 6 pens and the medium has a 12 pen capacity. I was able to almost double these figures but obviously the size of the pens you carry is an important factor.

Here is the small mandarin Chimneytop with 11 pens:

Nock Co. Chimneytop Pen Case — Not a bad stash for such a small case.

Here is the medium midnight Chimneytop with 21 pens:

Medium Chimneytop with 22 pens. — Medium Chimneytop with 21 pens.

I found that I preferred the smaller size. It’s proportions are a bit more attractive to me and the thick 1000D fabric gives the small Chimneytop more structure than the medium which was more blob like. The set is sold for $12 and for an American-made product constructed out of hardwearing materials the price is a steal.

Here is a great review of the Nock Co. Chimneytop pen case:

(I have no affiliation to the site linked below)

patrickrhone – A Brief Review — The Chimneytop Pop-Up Zip Case by Nock Co.