Stipula Bellini LE F

[AltecGreen]

Stipula Bellini LE

 

Introduction

 

I was browsing through the Fahrney's catalog and came across this pen. It was on sale and I didn't own a Stipula so I bought it on a whim. This is a limited edition of 351 pens.

 

1. First Impressions (9/10) - The pen arrived in rather elegant red Stipula box. The box included the lifetime warranty, manual, a converter and a single cartridge. At first glance the pen was a lot smaller than I expected but immediately exuded a sense of understated elegance. I did not have any expectations for this pen since I bought it on a whim. But upon first opening the box, it was clear that I was going to like this pen.

 

 

 

2. Appearance (9/10) - The entire pen is machined from a red/black ebonite. This ebonite is rather dark and resembles a nicely oiled dark rosewood. The fit and finish exceptional for a pen of this price. The trim is plated in rose gold and features a beautiful engraved band. The form factor seems to be very similar/identical to a Novecento. The edition name and number are engraved on the barrel. Mine is 44/351. This pen is not a large pen and is close in size to a Pelikan M600 albeit a bit slimmer. The pen itself has a slender profile and feels very sleek in the hand. The fine polish on the ebonite adds to the elegance. The section is very slender; the only pen I own with such a slim section is a Graf von Faber Castell Guilloche. Fans of big and thick pens should look elsewhere. The pen is light and is balanced posted and unposted. It's 5 9/32 inches capped and 6 1/8 inches posted. Capped, this pen is a tad lighter than the Pelikan. But unposted, this pen is incredibly light, much lighter than the Pelikan unposted.

 

 

This week's pen arrivals (so far). Stipula Bellini LE, Edison Pearl in flame acrylic, and Pelikan M620-Grand Place.

 

 

3. Nib Performance (9/10) - This pen has an iridium point steel nib that is plated with rose gold. The nib is not a nail and has a bit of give but not much flex. Mine came in a fine point and seems to write a true fine. It is only a hair wider than the Pelikan EF on my Grand Place. This nib is smooth, surprisingly so. I inked mine with Pilot Iroshizuku Yama Budo. When used at it's sweet spot, the nib writes a nice wet line and feels buttery smooth. This is my first Stipula so I have no basis for comparison.

 

4. Filling System (8.5/10) - The pen is a standard cartridge/converter. The converter snapped into place with a satisfying click and worked flawlessly. It is interesting to note that the description in the Fahrney's catalog says this pen can be used as an eyedropper. There seems to enough threads on the section to prevent ink from leaking. I have not tried this yet and it was not clear from the included paperwork.

 

5. Value (9.5/10) - This pen is moderately priced but delivers a lot of performance. Even though the nib is steel, it performs surprisingly well. At the sale price, this pen seems like a very good value.

 

Conclusion

 

I find this pen to be a very elegant pen and there is something about it that really appeals to me. It is a nice compact pen that is a good size for small hands and is very light. I would not recommend this pen for someone used to a Pelikan M1000. If you really wanted a gold nib on this pen, I believe the Novecento Puccini is almost the same pen but with a 14 K nib. This a good pen for someone looking for an Italian pen but not looking at spending OMAS Arte Italiana prices.

Edited March 6, 2009 by AltecGreen

[Sharkle]

 

That's a beautiful pen! Thank you for a great review and wonderful pictures (cool background!). I wish I could see this pen in person, and do let us know if you decide to try this as an eyedropper in the future. By the way, from what I've seen and my own experience, Stipula knows how to design a pen section and the Bellini is no exception.

 

 

[girlieg33k]

Thanks for the great review! The Stipula Bellini happens to be one of the most underrated Stipula pens. I'm surprised that the edition has not yet sold out. I don't think that Farhney's has an exclusive on this pen (at least, initially). I purchased mine from Fountain Pen Domain when Weaver McCracken was still selling pens. Perhaps Fahrney's is now the only store that carries the Bellini -- but the Bellini was created by Stipula especially for the 2007 DC Pen Show.

 

[Russ]

Now you've done it. I had just reached a place where I was backing away from more research and acquisition for a while, and you just had to post those lovely black-n-red photos ... the ones I had trouble finding. [Goes back to finance sheet to plot.... :clap1: ]

[Russ]

Let us know, please, what is the diameter of the Bellini at its widest point. It seems narrower than the Novocento, but without common items in photographs (e.g., a quarter, dollar, ruler, etc.) it is difficult to get a sense of scale.

 

Thank you.

 

 

[AltecGreen]

Thanks for the great review! The Stipula Bellini happens to be one of the most underrated Stipula pens. I'm surprised that the edition has not yet sold out. I don't think that Farhney's has an exclusive on this pen (at least, initially). I purchased mine from Fountain Pen Domain when Weaver McCracken was still selling pens. Perhaps Fahrney's is now the only store that carries the Bellini -- but the Bellini was created by Stipula especially for the 2007 DC Pen Show.

 

 

Thanks for the info. I've edited the post. It does seem that only Fahrney's has it right now. I find this pen to be a hidden gem.

 

 

As for the dimensions, the cap width is a shade over 0.5 inches. The widest point on the barrel is 7/8 inches.

[jde]

A great review. I recently bought a Bellini with hopes of using it as an eyedropper pen. I never got around to testing it as an eyedropper. The pen turned out to have some flow problems, and in my impatience with that, I returned it. (For the # lovers: The # on my pen was close to 200.)

 

I esp. appreciated your stating the converter "snapped" into place. Mine did not. The cartridge that came with the pen did not fair better. The pen would write and then go do a dead stop, be difficult to start up again, and finally I realized this was not the same pen everyone else had written about. From all the raves this pen has gotten, I'm sure mine was a fluke. Fahrney's was very accommodating, fyi.

 

What I liked about the pen was it's slimness, lightness, that it was ebonite, and the fine nib was lovely. (I like smaller pens.)

 

Your photo, too, captured the look of this lovely pen.

[youstruckgold]

reminds me a lot of the Edison Pearl. Very beautiful pen.