Wing Sung 698 Vs Twsbi Eco - Battle Of The Republic

[Inky.Fingers]

Wing Sung 698 & TWSBI Eco

- Piston Filler (different design)

- Steel Nib (Eco - more choices of nibs +1)

- Plastic casing (Eco - have a better plastic feel & more clear plastic, but still plastics... you know, the brittle, unsavory type.)

- Design similar

 

Differences

 

Wing Sung 698

- Nib section can be unscrew +1

- No tools needed for disassembly +1

- Transparent Fee (a matter of preference, since demo are demos --> +1)

- Holds more ink (extension to the end of the barrel) +1

- Price cheaper by $20USD when you shop smart +20

 

TWSBI Eco

- Difficult to re-assemble the piston for alignments. (-1)

- Threaded blind cap (+1)

 

 

How does it write? I don't know, and I don't bother with steel nibs. I like my broad edged nibs, home ground to perfection.

 

Both pens will be used for donation for other nib sections that I have interest in.

Edited November 1, 2016 by _InkyFingers

[Jimmy Joe]

Does the Wing Sung use a standard sized nib?

[Inky.Fingers]

Very similar in size to an Eco

[Frank66]

Thanks for your post InkyFingers. Do you think you can you swap a #5 Jowo or Bock nib into the Wing Sung, or you need something similar to a Pilot Plumix, 78G, Metropolitan or Prera nib as a replacement nib?

Edited November 2, 2016 by Frank66

[Jamerelbe]

The cheapest I can find one on eBay is US$20 - which admittedly is still cheaper when you factor in postage. How are you managing to save $20 on the purchase - or would you rather not say...? [For that price, I'll happily put in an order!]

[rafapa]

I thought the wingsung was inspired by the twsbi diamond 580 and not the eco. Am I wrong?

[Jamerelbe]

I thought the wingsung was inspired by the twsbi diamond 580 and not the eco. Am I wrong?

Judging from the aesthetics I'd say so - but in terms of price point, it's closer to the Eco...

[Inky.Fingers]

At 15.75$usd when you get 6 per pack. As for nibs, I have no interest in nib swap. I rather use a different feed and nib and possibly section.

[Ergative]

Would you be willing to ink them both up and show us the larger capacity of the Wing-Sung and how the ink looks near the feed?

[J_MM]

If they had it in a medium I would give the Wing Sung a try.

[Flounder]

I would also like to know whether the Wing Sung uses Pilot 78G clone nib & feeds, and also hw well it posts?

[jekostas]

I would also like to know whether the Wing Sung uses Pilot 78G clone nib & feeds, and also hw well it posts?

 

The Wing Sung 698 is compatible with Pilot "Super Quality" nibs, same as the Wing Sung 659. This includes F/M from the Metropolitan/Kakuno/Prera, EF from the Penmanship, medium italic from the Plumix/Prera, and B/BB italics from the 78G (though the feed may not be able to keep up with the latter).

 

The pen posts fine but you can accidentally turn the piston nob so I wouldn't suggest doing so. That said it's a long-ish pen at ~13CM/5.1" unposted so it shouldn't be necessary for most people. It also comes with a little stoppered converter filled with silicon grease for maintenance.

 

Edit: I should note that I measured the ink capacity at ~1.6ml. Pretty good if you ask me.

Edited November 4, 2016 by jekostas

[Inky.Fingers]

 

Regular Fill: Dipped & twist.

Max Fill: Dipped & Twist; Invert the pen; Expelled air; Dipped & Twist.

 

I was surprised of this outcome....Way to go Eco! But price-wise....698 ANYTIME.

 

 

Really .. Neither of these pen will perform as well as my Sheaffer Sterling Triumph....because the nib was modified to my liking

 

Edited November 5, 2016 by _InkyFingers

[Jamerelbe]

I've just ordered a Wing Sung 659 - it was 1/3 the price, though it's not a piston filler, and I thought a better place to dive in to the brand. Good to hear that it's compatible with Pilot Metro/Plumix/Penmanship etc!

[Seele]

It's actually quite a surprise to see a piston filler from the mainland, as it's not a particularly common type; the last piston filler I am aware of was by Ta Tung which, of course, was acquired by Wing Sung.

 

While TWSBI favours a piston mechanism of regular type, requiring the wrench to disassemble, I do not know what the Wing Sung 698 uses: is it a clutchless type similar to the Nib Creaper and Konrad?

[jekostas]

While TWSBI favours a piston mechanism of regular type, requiring the wrench to disassemble, I do not know what the Wing Sung 698 uses: is it a clutchless type similar to the Nib Creaper and Konrad?

 

The piston mechanism isn't screwed in to the barrel, it's kept in place by a screw down metal trim ring (visible in Inkyfingers' photos). It's not a clutchless mechanism, but it's different from TWSBI's design.

[garyc]

Just to say I ordered one when I saw this thread and it arrived late last week, I got around to testing it yesterday and was immediately impressed - the standard F nib was incredibly smooth and a joy to write with straight away, no messing with Micromesh or anything The price (after USD to GBP conversion) meant that it was just about 57% what a TWSBI Eco retails for in the UK (£28). I have a TWSBI Eco with a 1.1 nib so it is hard to compare directly, but the Hero 698 is a big step up in quality and feel from the 659 (which I also have) .

 

Right now, I'm enjoying the Hero nib so much I am not tempted to try and replace with a Pilot nib. So much, in fact, that I've just ordered another in EF.

[Inky.Fingers]

I am so sorry for your wallet. Enjoy

[Seele]

Just to say I ordered one when I saw this thread and it arrived late last week, I got around to testing it yesterday and was immediately impressed - the standard F nib was incredibly smooth and a joy to write with straight away, no messing with Micromesh or anything The price (after USD to GBP conversion) meant that it was just about 57% what a TWSBI Eco retails for in the UK (£28). I have a TWSBI Eco with a 1.1 nib so it is hard to compare directly, but the Hero 698 is a big step up in quality and feel from the 659 (which I also have) .

 

Right now, I'm enjoying the Hero nib so much I am not tempted to try and replace with a Pilot nib. So much, in fact, that I've just ordered another in EF.

 

garyc,

 

Interesting to know that the F nib on yours works to your satisfaction.

 

While I am waiting for mine to arrive (which I ordered in a rather convoluted manner), it's probably a good place for me to add that the revived Wing Sung brand, at least as instanced by this 698 and the C/C 659, are actually made by a Hero subsidiary, so I cannot tell if the nibs themselves are made at Hero's own facilities.

[garyc]

That's interesting about the Hero subsidiary. My experience up until with Hero has been with their Parker 51 simulations and the nibs on those have been quite different - they invariably require work of some kind to get them to write well. I may well revisit the 659 as I don't think I have even dip tested that one, let alone inked it up properly.

 

I have quite a few in the Pilot line - 78G, Prera, Pluminix and MR and liked particularly both their F and italic nibs. The 698 took me by surprise that it wrote so well 'out of the box'. I'll try and find time to give the 659 a go tonight.