A Small Gathering of Japanese Pens

[QM2]

Pictured here are the Japanese fountain pens I've acquired so far. This isn't all of them, but most. Oh and yes, I know that Retro 51 is not Japanese, but I threw it in there because of the Cherry Blossoms & Laquer! Sorry for the bad image quality, I am never home during daylight and my overhead lights are weak.

 

http://queenmargot.com/japanesepens_0408.jpg

 

From Left to Right:

 

Danitrio Raw Ebonite Takumi

Nakaya Piccolo Cigar Kuro-tamenuri with my name in silver Maki-e

Platinum "Rabbit and Moon" Maki-e

Namiki "Courtesan" Maki-e

Namiki "Mt Fuji and Fishing Boat" Maki-e

Sailor "Owl" Maki-e

Sailor 1911 Sterling Silver

Retro 51 "Cherry Blossoms" LE

Sailor Sapporo in Black and Chrome

Pilot Prera in Slate Gray

Pilot Vanishing Point in Slate Gray

Pilot "Birdie"

 

 

Advantages of Japanese Fountain Pens include: a true EF nib straight out of the box; better overall quality control and reliability than their Western counterparts; the beauty of Urushi lacquer and Maki-e; the cool-gadget factor of the VP; the existence of "Sailor" as a brand in general; the squishy goodness of Danitrio raw ebonites; and inspiration of happy dreams of the floating world...

 

QM2

 

 

 

Edited April 23, 2008 by QM2

[stan]

Nice group of pens.

I am especially fond of the Dani.

[Immoteus]

Those are impressive pens. Do you have any close ups of the Kanji on the Nakaya?

[izlat]

WOW!

 

Great pens

 

Cheers

Ivo

[Bart]

Beautiful collection. You have an excellent, and consistent, taste. And with Japanese quality I'm sure every one of these is a great pleasure to use

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

I am surprised how well the looks of the Prera stand up in comparison to much more expensive brethren. Such a well-designed little pen. Too bad it would be too small for me.

Edited April 24, 2008 by Bart

[NeoTiger]

Wow, very nice collection.

 

I'm particularly interested in those maki-e pens. In your opinion, which brand makes a nicer maki-e?

I really like how the Namiki/Pilot pens don't have the cap ring, so the whole pen is uninterrupted.

[QM2]

Do you have any close ups of the Kanji on the Nakaya?

 

Yes, I think so -- will try to find it and send you via PM,; don't want to advertise my name on the forum.

 

I got the maki-e done in silver, which apparently is unusual with the Kuro-tamenuri finish (people usually get gold, the idea being that gold goes better with the red). But I am very glad that I persisted and got the silver -- it looks WONDERFUL. The Kanji characters are very well painted. Crisp, precise lines, no smearing, beautiful calligraphy. A Japanese friend of mine saw the pen and was able to read my name right away. She thought it was very cool, how they transliterated it into Kanji.

 

 

QM2

[QM2]

Wow, very nice collection.

 

I'm particularly interested in those maki-e pens. In your opinion, which brand makes a nicer maki-e?

I really like how the Namiki/Pilot pens don't have the cap ring, so the whole pen is uninterrupted.

 

Thank you for the nice comments everyone.

 

As for comparing the different brands: I am planning to post a side by side review of the Sailor, Namiki & Platinum lower-end Maki-e soon, so please stay tuned.

 

QM2

[Immoteus]

Do you have any close ups of the Kanji on the Nakaya?

 

Yes, I think so -- will try to find it and send you via PM,; don't want to advertise my name on the forum.

 

I got the maki-e done in silver, which apparently is unusual with the Kuro-tamenuri finish (people usually get gold, the idea being that gold goes better with the red). But I am very glad that I persisted and got the silver -- it looks WONDERFUL. The Kanji characters are very well painted. Crisp, precise lines, no smearing, beautiful calligraphy. A Japanese friend of mine saw the pen and was able to read my name right away. She thought it was very cool, how they transliterated it into Kanji.

 

 

QM2

Thanks!

[Martius]

All great pens! The Densho/Takumi is always a lovely pen. I'm digging that sterling Sailor, however.

[QM2]

I'm particularly interested in those maki-e pens. In your opinion, which brand makes a nicer maki-e?

I really like how the Namiki/Pilot pens don't have the cap ring, so the whole pen is uninterrupted.

 

 

OK, I've just posted a comparative review of the Maki-es here:

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=61545

 

In therms of "which brand makes a nicer maki-e", it is not a simple question. Out of the ones I have in those images, the Sailor Owl maki-e is the best quality and has the most hand-painted (as opposed to screened) elements. But in terms of looks and the integration of the Maki-e with the pen design, I like the two Namikis the best. For me, the metal hardware really "ruins" the Maki-e effect quite a bit, and this has a bigger effect on me even than the quality of the actual maki-e. So in the end of the day, I would get more Namiki Nippon Art maki-es, but not the Sailor or Platinum. But for others, their personal preferences may be different.

 

QM2