Waterman Kultur Fountain Pen Review

In this 4K video I review the Waterman Kultur Fountain pen. This budget French fountain can be had for less than $20 and features a full-size body and nib.

The Paper Mind Mitsubishi Bank Paper Notebook

Waterman Edson Fountain Pen Review

In this 4K video I review the Waterman Edson fountain pen. The Edson was Waterman’s flagship fountain pen from the early ’90s to the mid ’10s. It features a beautiful inlaid 18kt gold nib nib.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen Review

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen

Mild curiosity mixed with a very good deal got the better of me and I now have a Waterman Carene.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen

The Carene is one of the older pens in the Waterman lineup and features an inlaid nib like their flagship Edson pen.  Carene in French means “hull” and the literature for this pen states that the Carene is inspired by “luxury yacht design”.   The ends of this pen do bear resemblance to the bow and stern of a yacht but other than that there are no cues to signify a nautical theme.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen

The pen has a metal body covered in black lacquer and weighs a hefty 33 grams.  The Carene measures 5.7″ capped and is a nicely balanced pen posted or unposted.  I did find that you have to push the cap onto the barrel with a bit of effort for it to stay posted. The real star of this pen is it’s beautiful inlaid nib.  It is solid 18kt gold with a stub point made in house by Waterman.  The nib is a nail but performs very nicely.  It is on the finer side for a stub and is quite forgiving on paper.  The downside is that you get a little bit less flare but more usability overall.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen  nib

The Carene like all modern Watermans uses a cartridge converter system.  The pens comes with a Waterman branded converter as well as a box of 6 Waterman ink cartridges.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen

The build quality of the pen is excellent.  There are no flaws in any of the materials.  The section has two rubber o-rings on the threading and I found that these made it difficult to get the nib in line with the gold tail of the barrel.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen

Amazon UK (no affiliation) had this pen for sale brand new for 60 GBP (approximately $90 USD) and at that price I couldn’t pass it up.  Even though this is an excellent pen by all accounts, I didn’t end up bonding with it; it’s boring.  If this pen had some personality it would be a home run.   With a street price around $220 it’s definitely a pass for me.  At $90-$100? It is a lot of pen for the money but I get more enjoyment out of pens like the TWSBI Vac 700  and the Pelikan M200 even though they are not made as well nor adorned with gold nibs.

Waterman Carene Black Sea Fountain Pen

 

Here are some other great reviews of the Waterman Carene:

(I have no affiliation with any of the sites linked below)

Pen Classics – Waterman Carene

Leigh Reyes. My Life As A Verb – Waterman Carene, now with stub

Waterman Serenity Blue (FKA Florida Blue) Fountain Pen Ink Review

Waterman Serenity Blue

If I was only allowed one ink, Waterman Serenity Blue would be it.  While the color is not particularly special, I have had more bottles of Florida Blue (now called Serenity Blue) than any other ink.  I love Serenity Blue because it is so well behaved.  If I buy a vintage pen this is my initial go to ink because it is very easy to clean out of my pens.  I have had no issues with this ink the 12 years I have been using it.  No clogging, no staining, no nothing.

The color is a soft blue, not a lot of saturation but there is good shading.  I haven’t had any issues with feathering and it is not prone to bleeding.  Serenity Blue is not lubricated and the flow is average to dry.  The ink isn’t waterproof  and is easily washed off the page.  The dry time is about average.

Waterman Serenity Blue is a staple that all fountain pen users should own.

Here are some great reviews of Waterman Serenity Blue (FKA Florida Blue):

(I have no affiliation with the sites linked below)

Pen Paper Ink Letter – Quick Handwritten Ink Review: Waterman Serenity Blue

Coffee, Ink, & Serenity – Fountain Pen Ink Review: Waterman’s “Serenity Blue”

Tyler Dahl Pens – Ink Review – Waterman Florida Blue

Caran d’Ache Hexagonal Ecaille Chinese Lacquer M Nib Fountain Pen Review

Caran d'Ache Hexagonal

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:

Caran d'Ache Hexagonal
It is hard to see the marbled red look of the Chinese lacquer in the pictures.

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

Caran d'Ache Hexagonal

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

Caran d'Ache Hexagonal

Performance:

Lots of tipping material
Lots of tipping material

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

...Perle Noire*** (I did it again)
…Perle Noire*** (I did it again)

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