Pilot Custom 74 Vs Pilot 78G

[adallak]

I have just inked my new Pilot Custom 74 Fine-Medium. Looks great, feels great. Very comfortable to write with because of the bigger size compared to 78G. Nevertheless, the pen skips badly on side strokes and does not write at all on upstrokes out of the box... NONE of my some ten fine and medium 78Gs skips! The fine medium nib of 74 is as scratchy as any F nibbed 78G.

 

Am I disappointed? Sure I am. For the price of one 74 I could buy ten-fifteen 78Gs and have better writing experience. My $20 Pilot Elite writes better than 74 too. I do realize I might be just not lucky with my 74 and the nib can be adjusted, but all of lower price Pilots wrote very well right out of the box!

 

So, Pilot 78G is still my favorite and most reliable fountain pen!

Edited May 4, 2012 by adallak

[Amandaa]

Sometimes unfortunately I think it just happens. Mine wrote perfectly well out of the box. Doesn't make it any less annoying though.

[pen2paper]

Many new pens require a good flush to remove manufacturing residue, and sometimes a slight adjustment.

I have both of the pens you mention, and suggest you persist in correct adjustment for your hand.

The 74 is well worth the effort.

If you are accustomed to using nail-firm nibs, and move to a nib which is responsive, writing with a heavy hand, and also rotating the pen may yield poor performance.

If there should be some actual defect, contact the rep.

If you find the 74 is does not fit your requirements, then you may wish to list it in classifieds. Exactly where, and how I found mine : )

Edited May 4, 2012 by pen2paper

[XiaoMG]

I have just inked my new Pilot Custom 74 Fine-Medium. Looks great, feels great. Very comfortable to write with because of the bigger size compared to 78G. Nevertheless, the pen skips badly on side strokes and does not write at all on upstrokes out of the box... NONE of my some ten fine and medium 78Gs skips! The fine medium nib of 74 is as scratchy as any F nibbed 78G.

 

Am I disappointed? Sure I am. For the price of one 74 I could buy ten-fifteen 78Gs and have better writing experience. My $20 Pilot Elite writes better than 74 too. I do realize I might be just not lucky with my 74 and the nib can be adjusted, but all of lower price Pilots wrote very well right out of the box!

 

So, Pilot 78G is still my favorite and most reliable fountain pen!

My C74 Fine was problematic when I first got it, possessing the same primary issue with getting a line going. I went to a pen shop and showed it to them, and they did a minor tine spread, and we got it working alright. Later, I made a few tweaks to get the flow where I wanted (very fine at a touch, juicy and medium-broad when pressed, and now it is both very springy and a very smooth and reliable starter). I didn't think it'd become one of my favorites, but it has.

 

However, I too was a bit distraught to discover that a $100 pen needed adjustment while a number of my cheaper pens did not. 78Gs can sometimes have asymmetrical tines and other minor problems, but I agree that in general they are very nice, and I like them a great deal more than my Platinum Preppy pens. I do wish they were a big heavier/denser and had bigger nibs, but once refinished the way I like them, they are some of my best users.

 

Give the nib a good inspection with a loupe if possible, to see if the tines are too tight or aligned poorly. Being set too tight out of the factory seems to be a common issue, and it can be fixed without too much difficulty. Of course, If the nib is clearly asymmetrical or has some shaping defect, surely send it back.

Edited May 4, 2012 by XiaoMG

[bicfan]

I have just inked my new Pilot Custom 74 Fine-Medium. Looks great, feels great. Very comfortable to write with because of the bigger size compared to 78G. Nevertheless, the pen skips badly on side strokes and does not write at all on upstrokes out of the box... NONE of my some ten fine and medium 78Gs skips! The fine medium nib of 74 is as scratchy as any F nibbed 78G.

 

Am I disappointed? Sure I am. For the price of one 74 I could buy ten-fifteen 78Gs and have better writing experience. My $20 Pilot Elite writes better than 74 too. I do realize I might be just not lucky with my 74 and the nib can be adjusted, but all of lower price Pilots wrote very well right out of the box!

 

So, Pilot 78G is still my favorite and most reliable fountain pen!

Damn fountain pens. Why do we even bother?

 

This is an interesting topic for me, as I have a few 78Gs (among my fav writers and always in the rotation), and was thinking about getting a 74. Your experience gives me pause.

 

I had similar problems with a Waterman. I did a Windex flush and detergent flush with converter. Then, after rinsing with water, I took the nib and feed out, scrubbed the feed with soap (with a toothbrush), scrubed with water, put it back in, and the problems stopped. I would give this try.

 

Too bad we have to go through this nonsense to get a fp to work.

Edited May 4, 2012 by bicfan

[codster]

I felt a similar disappointment when I first tried a Pilot Vanishing Point fine nib. The steel Pilot fine nib seemed to work out of the box with perfect flow, but the 18k gold nib skipped on upstrokes and sometimes felt scratchy.

 

I paid close attention to how I rotated the nib and found the gold nib was more sensitive than the steel. Maybe the slight bit of flex meant that I was pressing down and rotating and causing only one tine to touch the paper, which didn't occur with the stiff steel nib. After a couple weeks of infrequent use, the VP nib seemed to become wetter and smoother, and I didn't experience any of the skips and hard starts any more.

 

Try a different ink in your Custom 74 like Namiki Blue or Aurora Black.

Edited May 4, 2012 by codster

[adallak]

Thanks for all the replies! For me, a good fountain pen is one which wrights well right out of the box. Funny, but my biggest disappointments so far were relatively expensive pens. The nib of a new Sailor was terribly scratchy. I have plaid with the nib, ruined it and eventually threw it out. A NOS Sheaffer was a gusher. I knew there would be a problem when inspected uninked nib with a magnifier - huge gap between tines. The replacement was skipping badly and was not new, as the seller promised. And now ... a Pilot! The nib looks perfect, but skips. Never had any problems with less expensive Pilots and I have many of them.

 

I have about 50 fountain pens. Half of them are good writers. Why do I keep buying new ones? Just cannot help when I read another great review! Well, hopefully this thread will make someone who was about to spend another $100 on a pen, think twice!

Edited May 4, 2012 by adallak

[bicfan]

Thanks for all the replies! For me , a good fountain pen is one which rights well right out of the box. Funny, but my biggest disappointments were relatively expensive pens. The nib of a new Sailor was terribly scratchy. I have plaid with the nib, ruined it and eventually threw it out. A NOS Sheaffer was a gusher. I knew there would be problem when inspected uninked nib with a magnifier - huge gap between tines.The replacement was skipping badly and was not new as the seller promised. And now ... a Pilot! Never had any problems with less expensive Pilots and I have many of them.

 

I have about 50 fountain pens. Half of them are good writers. Why do I keep buying new ones? Just cannot help when I read another great review! Well, hopefully this thread will make someone who was about to spend another $100 on pens to think twice!

 

Had the same problem with a Waterman Hemisphere. Was garbage. Had to get a new nib. Which was still bad. Came with a bum feed. Nib was scratchy and not really an extra-fine, imo.

 

After hearing that even the mighty Pilot can put out a stinker . . . I probably won't buy one.

 

I generally just buy less expensive pens because expensive pens have been no better, and often worse. The more you spend, the more disappointing it is.

Edited May 4, 2012 by bicfan

[imadeadend]

I have several of these pens that had the exact same problem out of the box and have been fixed completely using this trick:

 

Grab the nibs shoulders between two fingers on each side with the pen pointing up and the upper face of the nib facing towards you

Then pull the shoulders towards you whilst pushing on the top face of the nib. This will cause the writing surface part of the nib tip to open up, and will thus open the flow slightly.

 

Do this until your pen is amazing

 

They really seem to require an opening of the flow to get writing, and this seems to be a consistent issue, but after doing this trick with my MF and F they write like a dream

 

Hope it works for you too!

[Rugrat]

I have the exact same problem with my clear Custom 74 - Fine nib. I had to return it to get it corrected (another reason to purchase from a nibmeister!) Once corrected, it had no issues whatsoever.

The smoke Custom 74 - Fine nib was fabulous right out of the box.

 

Regards,

Eric

[UDog]

For whatever reason, quality control for higher priced pens is very poor. I have Platinum Preppy XF pens that I will put up against any Sailor, Pilot, Mont Blanc, Aurora, or any other high-end manufacturer. And what about Pilot Varsity? They are incredibly smooth compared to any of their higher priced models. I just don't get it.

[ink mixer]

I have 4 Custom 74's. None of them have nib problems, but I either got them in a shop or from a nibmeister. Anyway, it is a great model.

[Nonsensical]

Hmm, for me personally, I think it varies.

 

I once purchased a pack of 6 Preppies, and ended up dumping them in a corner, until recently (I purchased some 12000 grit paper to smooth my nibs. I have several Pilot Vpens, but none of them are being used, I simply give them away to friends who may be interested in using FPs.

 

On the other hand, my Sailors and Pilots have been smooth out of the box, but usually quite dry. I'm not sure why that is, but changing the inks helped. I also increased the ink flow myself. I think it's a matter of personal preference though. Some people may prefer a drier writing pen.

 

I also have had to adjust my TWSBI nibs for greater flow- they're great, but once again, on the dry side.

[ExcaliburZ]

Is it that the Pilot nibs are scratchy or that compared to Western nibs, the Japanese nibs are so thin and putting down less ink that it is just a side effect of the nib size?

I got a Platinum medium and it was the smoothest thing I ever had (butter on paper), got a fine/extra fine and it was the slightest bit scratchy but also the thinnest nib in my collection. My Pilot 78g medium nib was really scratchy though, so is it just Pilot?

[XiaoMG]

Is it that the Pilot nibs are scratchy or that compared to Western nibs, the Japanese nibs are so thin and putting down less ink that it is just a side effect of the nib size?

I got a Platinum medium and it was the smoothest thing I ever had (butter on paper), got a fine/extra fine and it was the slightest bit scratchy but also the thinnest nib in my collection. My Pilot 78g medium nib was really scratchy though, so is it just Pilot?

I'd suspect not, as my smoothest nibs are generally Pilots. I have come across a few sub-par examples, though, so they're certainly out there.

[adallak]

I have just inked my new Pilot Custom 74 Fine-Medium. Looks great, feels great. Very comfortable to write with because of the bigger size compared to 78G. Nevertheless, the pen skips badly on side strokes and does not write at all on upstrokes out of the box... NONE of my some ten fine and medium 78Gs skips! The fine medium nib of 74 is as scratchy as any F nibbed 78G.

 

Am I disappointed? Sure I am. For the price of one 74 I could buy ten-fifteen 78Gs and have better writing experience. My $20 Pilot Elite writes better than 74 too. I do realize I might be just not lucky with my 74 and the nib can be adjusted, but all of lower price Pilots wrote very well right out of the box!

 

So, Pilot 78G is still my favorite and most reliable fountain pen!

My C74 Fine was problematic when I first got it, possessing the same primary issue with getting a line going. I went to a pen shop and showed it to them, and they did a minor tine spread, and we got it working alright. Later, I made a few tweaks to get the flow where I wanted (very fine at a touch, juicy and medium-broad when pressed, and now it is both very springy and a very smooth and reliable starter). I didn't think it'd become one of my favorites, but it has.

 

However, I too was a bit distraught to discover that a $100 pen needed adjustment while a number of my cheaper pens did not. 78Gs can sometimes have asymmetrical tines and other minor problems, but I agree that in general they are very nice, and I like them a great deal more than my Platinum Preppy pens. I do wish they were a big heavier/denser and had bigger nibs, but once refinished the way I like them, they are some of my best users.

 

Give the nib a good inspection with a loupe if possible, to see if the tines are too tight or aligned poorly. Being set too tight out of the factory seems to be a common issue, and it can be fixed without too much difficulty. Of course, If the nib is clearly asymmetrical or has some shaping defect, surely send it back.

I examined the nib with a 10X magnifier. It is perfect! I have many pens with not perfectly aligned, asymmetric, etc. nibs and they write wonderfully. Some nibs have tiny gaps at the tip, others do not have any, but all of them write okay or great. Go figure... I have many Pilots: 78G, Prera, Petite, Varsity, Plumix, Elite with nibs ranging from EF to B. They are all good or very good writers. This Custom 74 was the first Pilot pen which disappointed me. I was planning to get one for a long time...

 

I will try tine spreading in a few days - too frustrated for experiments! Thanks for sharing secrets!

Edited May 5, 2012 by adallak

[adallak]

I have several of these pens that had the exact same problem out of the box and have been fixed completely using this trick:

 

Grab the nibs shoulders between two fingers on each side with the pen pointing up and the upper face of the nib facing towards you

Then pull the shoulders towards you whilst pushing on the top face of the nib. This will cause the writing surface part of the nib tip to open up, and will thus open the flow slightly.

 

Do this until your pen is amazing

 

They really seem to require an opening of the flow to get writing, and this seems to be a consistent issue, but after doing this trick with my MF and F they write like a dream

 

Hope it works for you too!

As far as I understood, your trick is spreading the tines by flattening the nib. Am I right?

[adallak]

Many new pens require a good flush to remove manufacturing residue, and sometimes a slight adjustment.

I have both of the pens you mention, and suggest you persist in correct adjustment for your hand.

The 74 is well worth the effort.

If you are accustomed to using nail-firm nibs, and move to a nib which is responsive, writing with a heavy hand, and also rotating the pen may yield poor performance.

If there should be some actual defect, contact the rep.

If you find the 74 is does not fit your requirements, then you may wish to list it in classifieds. Exactly where, and how I found mine : )

Did not really have good luck with pens which were not good right out of the box. If tweaking does not help, I will just put it on shelf next to some other expensive duds. Not into selling.

[adallak]

I have 4 Custom 74's. None of them have nib problems, but I either got them in a shop or from a nibmeister. Anyway, it is a great model.

I agree. A great-looking, well-made, comfortable pen. But if a en does not write well it is like a great-looking car with bad engine...

[adallak]

For whatever reason, quality control for higher priced pens is very poor. I have Platinum Preppy XF pens that I will put up against any Sailor, Pilot, Mont Blanc, Aurora, or any other high-end manufacturer. And what about Pilot Varsity? They are incredibly smooth compared to any of their higher priced models. I just don't get it.

Yes, it looks like the higher the price the higher the uncertainty.