Goldfink Imperial Brown And Black Celluloid - A Review

[Calamus plasticus]

This is a review of a Goldfink Imperial button filler in brown-black celluloid I received a couple of days ago. Hope you like the review as much as I like this pen.

[Apologies for my English, that is not my mother tongue]

 

1. The author:

 

Well, most reviews can dispense of this entry, as there is no person behind the pen or there is a number of no name people involved. When it comes to handmade pens there  certainly is a person behind. Many of you may know about Tom Westerich: a leading expert on vintage pens, FPN member, repair person, handcrafter of celluloid and ebonite pens, pretty cool guy and an excellent partner for a conversation at Penshows. Last but not least, a happy gardiner in a paradisiac town of Italy.

 

[This is Tom with two of his favourite beverages]

 

He is also responsible for the "rebird" of a German trademark lost some decades ago: the Goldfink pens. Tom makes very nice pens using noble materials ("no modern plastics, please") on the lathe, with not so modern technology involved (no CAD or CNC). His pens are partly fixed models (the Imperial, The Wunderfüller, the 29, the Liebling...) and partly bespoke, that is to say, you can talk to him to adapt the pen to your liking within some parameters.

 

2. First Impression/Presentation:

 

Like other handmade pens (Nakaya, Astoria, Romillo...) the Goldfink Imperial knocks on your door in a wood box: a noble and classical material. I apologise for my ignorance, but I am not sure what kind of wood this is. What I know for sure is that it is beautiful. The box itself is protected by a (recycled, I think) cardboard box and comes with a single printed sheet of paper (this is recycled for sure) that explains in English the characteristics of the pen and is signed by Tom.

 

[Cardboard box]

 

[Wood box and "paper"]

 

 

[box and pen]

 

3. Appearance and Design:  

 

Well, the appearance and design of the pen have been worked out with the customer, so you expect them to be as you wanted. And in this case it is. I chose a brown-black celluloid, classic and serious ma non troppo. Tom says that this celluloid comes from Delta (other of his rods come from Visconti and Omas) and I find it very well made: deep and shining. The pen itself follows the classic design of the Golden Era safety fillers, adapted of course and oversized: round top and semirounded blind cap. No metal on the pen body or cap except for the clip, a feature I like very much of this model: I am tired of that so much gold on high-end pens.

 

 

 

 

 

4. Construction and Quality:

 

The pen is made of celluloid and ebonite, nothing more and nothing less. I find the material on this pen of very good quality. The celluloid is thick and the finish looks perfect for an average customer as me. The long tailed snake clip (three rounds to the cap, no cheats here) is made of 925 solid silver (not hallmarked).

 

 

5. Weight and dimensions:

 

These are taken from Tom's web:

- Barrel diameter: 15 mm

- Cap diameter: 16.5 mm

- Pen length:  147 mm closed, cap posted: 187 mm

- Weight: aprox. 30 grams.

 

So this is a huge but not oversized pen. Some comparative pics with a Waterman Edson and a MB Hemingway tell the tale better. I thought it also deserves a pic with a MB Christie and a Astoria

 

 

 

 

 

6. Nib and Performance:

 

The nib is a Bock 14 k # 8 with a fine tip that has been grinded by Tom to my request to a certain stub flavour and a normal ink flow. I wanted the pen for everyday use, so I constrained me from a wider and wetter nib. The Bock nib has been imprinted with a "Warranted" mark to imitate vintage nibs and follows the design (see the 575 in a rhombus) of vintage Italian pens. This is a touch I like: warranted nibs were the common good nibs of old, just as Bock is today... yes, many pen makers imprint their names or logo, but it is the same old Bock pal everywhere.

 

 

The feed... well, you know the tale: "chase the nib, not the pen"... but the truth is: "chase the nib and the feed", or you may have nothing. The feed is an ebonite handmade of very good quality (only comparable, in my experience, to Astoria's excellent feeds)

 

 

Good nib + good feed = good writing. The pen just glides on paper. Here you have some notes written with the pen (yes, my handwriting is horrible and I do not deserve a pen like this, but so is life). Ink: Rohrer und Klingner Verdigris.

 

 

 

 

 

 

7. Filling System and Maintenance:

 

This is a classic button filler that charges a good amount of ink, inferior of course in capacity to a piston filler. But I like button fillers very much, and this is a well made mechanism... yes, my Parker Big Red charges more ink, but it's a Big Red you know... Tom tells me that he is working in some very interesting filling system with a Italian name...

 

 

Maintenance? The nib is friction fixed, so when the sac reaches its life limit you just cahnge or have it changed like any other vintage pen. I do not know what kind of sac it has, silicone or classic rubber or what kind of bladder: yes, I restrained myself of dismounting the pen: I don't want to void the warranty :-) By the way I don't know what kind of warranty this pen has. I presume you just email Tom and tell him that your dog ate your pen and he works out a solution...

 

8. Cost and Value:

 

Oops, difficult task ahead! This pen retails for 980 Euro (1362 USD) if you live outside the EU. If you live here, well, you have to add 21% VAT for Ms Merkel, up to 1166 Euro. That is to say, it costs the same as 65 Lamy Safaries.

 

[Here you see the Safaries doing their best to carry the Goldfink]

 

A expensive pen, that's for sure, but in line with most flagship models of high-end handmade pens: the Astoria Goliath black retails for € 1.125,00  (~ US$ 1.564,00) as export price, € 1.339,00 VAT included; a Romillo Sil # 9, depends much on the trims you want, but is around € 1000-1200 (correct me if I am wrong, I do not own a Romillo… yet); A Torelli... oops, no information on prices on his web...

 

And compared to other celluloid pens? The new Omas Ogiva Arco retails at 875 USD in the States, but it does not have a 925 snake clip. A MB Christie in good condition does, but is made of resin and costs around 1200-1400 Euro nowadays. So I would say this pen is fairly priced at the average of its line. And its line is high-end pens.

It's a handmade pen, all right. I have no expertise to know how much time is needed in the making of this pen (or any pen), so I can't judge that.

 

Value: it's a personal pen with very good materials; you don't have to bear with any feature that you don't like because you choose the features yourself; it's sturdy and long lasting. For me, it is worth the investment. In my case I have let go two MBs for the sake of this pen and for me it was a good deal, as I didn`t use those pens and I intend to use this one very very much.

 

9. Conclusion:  

 

A modern classic pen of excellent quality, that I like very much. Well, you knew this from the beginning, didn't you?

 

Should I give a number to rate this pen, I would give it a 9/10. Why a 9 rating, if this is a trully perfect pen? Well, if it costed 40 Safaries instead of 65, I would have given it a 10/10 (yes, the same applies to the Astorias, the Romillos and all the rest) :-) Just my two cents.

 

Thanks for reading.

Edited May 20, 2014 by Calamus plasticus

[Inkwisitor]

Congratulations are due all round, for the craftsmanship that has gone into making this beauty and for the good taste to buy it. The pattern and colour are wonderful. I hope that you enjoy owning and using it.

 

Oh, and thank you for a thorough review. Now, where is my lottery ticket.....?

[MisterBoll]

Great review and wonderful photos. Congrats on your beautiful pen!

[penboard.de]

Dear Luis,

can´t really comment on this, its simply flattering. :-)

 

a comment -

the box material - its pine tree - living in Italy, searching for a box,

I found a maker of wooden wine boxes, and talked him into doing

some pen boxes for me.

pretty rough make, a perfect contrast to the high gloss of the pen inside.

Not ideal - I still need to find an elegant sleeve for transporting the pen without getting scratched.

 

pen sac inside - a rubber pen sac.

Silicone might last a lifetime, but as its pretty rigid, I always fear you will wear out the pressure bar instead of the pen sac.

 

Warranty - pen sac rotten after 4 years - I would not expect the pen to return to Europe.

I would expect you to open the pen and fit a pen sac, following St.Dubiel´s advices on vintage pens.

Dogbites, or naughty daughter bites - (or a bored father in a meeting bites...) whatever can be done will be done to save the pen. :-)

And if its a defect coming to light exactly 12 months and a day after delivery, of course, I will not tell you "warranty expired"

 

Regards and GRAZIE

Tom

[hari317]

wonderful review. I am an admirer of Tom W's creations. I had the privilege of tuning up the nib of a twist filler Goldfink with the Bock no 8 nib for a friend who was visiting Mumbai and had brought a lot of pens to show me. I found that the pen is a very comfortable size, pleasantly light and excellent machining, hats off.

[Calamus plasticus]

Dear Luis,

can´t really comment on this, its simply flattering. :-)

 

a comment -

the box material - its pine tree - living in Italy, searching for a box,

I found a maker of wooden wine boxes, and talked him into doing

some pen boxes for me.

pretty rough make, a perfect contrast to the high gloss of the pen inside.

Not ideal - I still need to find an elegant sleeve for transporting the pen without getting scratched.

 

pen sac inside - a rubber pen sac.

Silicone might last a lifetime, but as its pretty rigid, I always fear you will wear out the pressure bar instead of the pen sac.

 

Warranty - pen sac rotten after 4 years - I would not expect the pen to return to Europe.

I would expect you to open the pen and fit a pen sac, following St.Dubiel´s advices on vintage pens.

Dogbites, or naughty daughter bites - (or a bored father in a meeting bites...) whatever can be done will be done to save the pen. :-)

And if its a defect coming to light exactly 12 months and a day after delivery, of course, I will not tell you "warranty expired"

 

Regards and GRAZIE

Tom

 

The pen deserves it, Tom, and more :-)

 

Talking about pen boxes. I have a lot of very nice pen boxes lying in a drawer. Some of them are very huge... and totally useless. What I like about your box is that can be used on its own: it's a sturdy, artisan made wood box that can be used as a nice pencil box, office supplies box, etc.

 

Perhaps you're right and you should find something to protect the pen while in transit (better than bubble plastic)... hmm, Italian leather is very famous, you know :-)

 

Thanks for the pen, again. Happy with it.

[Calamus plasticus]

Addendum (as I don't know how to edit the original post): I have just seen a Lamy Safari Savanna Green offered on fleabay for 500 Euro.

So, my rate of the Goldfink is now 10/10. Everything is relative?... well, not everything.

[mongrelnomad]

A great review of a lovely, unusual, and much under-reviewed pen. As a fan of custom pens myself (I have a few Hakases, a custom Nakaya, a Romillo, and previously a Torelli, too), I appreciate every and all owners willing to take the time to offer thoughts, impressions and photos, not only of the pens, but of the process too.

 

During your discussions with Tom, did he happen to mention (or better - send photographs) of the rod stocks he has for use in the Imperial and the Wunderfuller?

[Calamus plasticus]

A great review of a lovely, unusual, and much under-reviewed pen. As a fan of custom pens myself (I have a few Hakases, a custom Nakaya, a Romillo, and previously a Torelli, too), I appreciate every and all owners willing to take the time to offer thoughts, impressions and photos, not only of the pens, but of the process too.

 

During your discussions with Tom, did he happen to mention (or better - send photographs) of the rod stocks he has for use in the Imperial and the Wunderfuller?

Thanks for your message: I agree that handmade pens deserve full reviews, as their makers have no publicity and marketing departments as pen brands do. We users are the only to know their real features and quality.

 

Yes: he sent me a pic of a tray full of pens in the making... write to him, that's a pic worth of seeing.

[mongrelnomad]

Thanks for your message: I agree that handmade pens deserve full reviews, as their makers have no publicity and marketing departments as pen brands do. We users are the only to know their real features and quality.

 

Yes: he sent me a pic of a tray full of pens in the making... write to him, that's a pic worth of seeing.

Will do

[ArchiMark]

Excellent review of a very unique and handsome pen! Thanks for sharing it with everyone here...

 

Familiar with that brown celluloid as I had some Deltas with it.....beautiful coloration and depth to it...

 

Tom is a great guy to deal with and it is good to see his work get some exposure here at FPN....

 

And agree with mongrelnomad's point about hearing from everyone that has experiences with custom penmakers....

 

Enjoy using the Goldfink pen!

 

 

Mark

[Calamus plasticus]

Thanks, Mark. I've seen that the Sevivon uses that celluloid (or one very close) Do you know which other Deltas use it too?

 

Excellent review of a very unique and handsome pen! Thanks for sharing it with everyone here...

 

Familiar with that brown celluloid as I had some Deltas with it.....beautiful coloration and depth to it...

 

Tom is a great guy to deal with and it is good to see his work get some exposure here at FPN....

 

And agree with mongrelnomad's point about hearing from everyone that has experiences with custom penmakers....

 

Enjoy using the Goldfink pen!

 

 

Mark

Edited May 26, 2014 by Calamus plasticus

[ArchiMark]

Like these.....

 

Chatterley Pens/ Delta Prodigio II....see:

 

https://chatterleyluxuries.com/product/chatterley-pens-delta-prodigio-ii-oversized-fountain-pen-0125/

 

Delta Caruso.....

 

[Calamus plasticus]

Like these.....

 

Chatterley Pens/ Delta Prodigio II....see:

 

https://chatterleyluxuries.com/product/chatterley-pens-delta-prodigio-ii-oversized-fountain-pen-0125/

 

Delta Caruso.....

 

Nice pens, indeed!

[greatorg]

Just wonderful

[zaddick]

Thank you for taking the time to write a review of a handmade pen. It opens my eyes to wonderful possibilities for future pens.

[pavoni]

Whilst I have not yet purchased one of Tom's fabulous Goldfink creations, I have bought vintage pens from him in the past and once had the privilege of his excellent company at dinner. Tom is a real (and multi-talented) Gentleman. It is really good to see his honest work given such a positive appraisal.

 

A super review Calamus plasticus. Gorgeous pen Actually, I hope you buy and review more pens - I enjoyed the overall style of your piece so much, I read it twice

 

Would you be so good to schedule an update on your pen, a year from now?

 

Thank you for sharing so generously.

 

Pavoni.

[Calamus plasticus]

Great idea, Pavoni: I will re-review the pen in a year... I am sure there will be at least one more Goldfink in my collection by that time :-)

 

Those among us who like vintage pens from the Golden Era, specially of German design, are very likely to end up adding one of Tom' pens to the hoard...

[visvamitra]

Stunning pen. I've missed this review.

[zaddick]

Tom's work is very detailed. It is not cheap but I find it more enjoyable than some other similarly priced small batch pen makers.