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This is a comparison of two different Pilot inks, the Pilot Namiki Blue IC-100 cartridge, which came in together with one of my Pilot pens (I only have a single cartridge of it) and a Brazillian made 500ml bottle of Pilot blue ink, which I got assuming it would be the same Pilot Blue, but I got quite a different ink instead. To keep it short: It is a blurple ink, not as much of a true blue as the Pilot Namiki blue cartridge, but still looks blue when writing. It dries a bit faster, flows a bit wetter, is less resistant to water and bleach overall. No flow issues so far, I've got the Pilot Namiki blue catrdige on my pilot penmanship with an extra fine nib (also swapped in a F nib for comparisons), and the Pilot Brazil's blue in my kakuno with a fine. Here's some comparisons on Rhodia and Tomoe River paper respectively (They both do about the same on cheaper absorbent paper so I haven't scanned those). One question I have is if anyone recognizes if this ink is sold elsewhere, maybe a different product name? Here's the chromatographies for both.

Hello everybody! I have been consulting and reading pen reviews of this forum for some years. It is a pleasure to be part of this community and to be a member here in Brazil. I believe that my grandfather is responsible for my love for the ink fountain pens. When I was a kid, I remember helping him do the cleaning and recharging them. All the care he had with his Parkers, Watermans, blue and black ink bottles ... In spite of my passion for analog tools, I forgot about fountain pens when I was growing up. My return to the world of fountain pens was at first very practical and with specific purpose. I used them again to draw in the university.Then it was only a matter of time before I recalled my childhood experiences, my moments with my grandfather, the pleasure of writing with them.I continue to use the ink fountain pens daily to write and draw, but now I am beginning to collect some examples that are much more than tools for the job - they are objects of design, engineering and art. I have collected and used Montblanc, Omas, Aurora, Conid, Franklin Christoph, Sailor, Pilot, Lamy, Noodler's, TWSBI, etc. cheers! - Fabrizio

I'm beginer in this forum despite of have been reading lots of interesting posts here. Now I decided to drop some lines and learn even more about this writting tool that I like it most. I use fountain pens about a decade and I really appreciate this sort of writting. I have some pieces from Parker, Waterman, MontBlanc, Pelikan, Pilot, Caran d'Ache, Faber Castell and also chineses models. So, let me introduce myself, I leave in Rio de Janeiro, and work in Galeao International Airport, if someone come to Brazil, please email me to have a coffee. Regards Sarmento Campos

Hello, dear fountain pen enthusiasts. I'm new in this amazing forum. I've spent a lot of hours in FP reading and, honestly, reading here really worth. A lot of interesting and expert people in fountain pens' matter, and some amazing reviews of pens and inks. I live in a south Brazilian island (Florianópolis) and love FP since my youth. I've been writing (solely) with it since than. I have little to offer, but much to learn. So, in advance, thanks for your patience with the rookies. Best regards, Aguinel Bastian

Hello! I'm Marcelo from Brazil. I've been coming here for a couple of months because Brian Goulet can't shut up about the FPN Now I've felt sure that I want to be part of this (extra) fine community. I'm a total n00b when it comes to fountain pens — I've been using fountain pens since college, but only this year I decided to really dive into the hobby and acquire some know-how and connect with other enthusiasts. (The discovery of the Goulet Pens YouTube channel might have had something to do with it.) It's quite hard to find good pens, inks, paper, etc. in Brazil without forking out a lot of cash. Not only everything is imported, importation duties are between 86 and 94% over price + shipping. This creates a scenario where few pen companies dare to bring or produce very much of anything. Pilot, for example, sells, two bottled inks, "black" and "blue". That's it. Pilot concentrates on ballpoint and roller pens here. Sheaffer sells maybe three pens and Faber-Castell doesn't even sell anything apart from pencils in Brazil. My first pen ever was made by a regional brand called Crown. They're the only people who lean pretty heavily into fountain pens while also making rollerballs an mechanical pencils (Brazilians love 'em some mechanical pencils). Crown's alright, but they are villains and victims of this state of everything being so expensive: their pens really don't mach up to quality by price if compared to German or Japanese pens of the same level of quality, even with the added importation taxes. I'm rambling (I'll be doing that a lot around here, sorry). Anyhow, it's good to finally stop lurking!

Hello, This Brazilian pen maker, Crown, uses this nib unit in all but their most expensive pens. I've seen pics of pens on Google that use that very same nib unit, and I wonder if anybody know where it's made. I'm guessing China. I started investigating this nib unit after I got frustrated with how little information Crown has on their website regarding their manufature or even brand history. I had to Indiana Jones on Google to find out who owned Crown but I still can't even find where they make their inks for example. It seems they don't actually make anything but order bits and pieces from everywhere and maybe assemble them in Brazil. Maybe. Well, have you seen this nib unit before? It's not clear in the picture, but "Iridium Point Germany" is engraved on the nib, which Brian Grey from Edison Pen was really helpful when he blogged about it in 2009. That made me come just a little closer, though: Crown nib units are made (possibly) in some rough form by JoWo or Bock and finished up... anywhere in the planet (possibly China). So... has anybody seen this very same nib unit somewhere, used by some other manufacturer that's maybe a little more forthcoming when it comes to where/how they make their pens? It might help me track it down. Thanks!

Hi, Greetings from Brazil. Since this post is my introduction but it will be lengthier than the usual introductions, I post it here. 1. Of How I Grew to Hate Fountain Pens I've been fond of calligraphy from the time I learnt to read. I remember distictively a recipe notebook my grandmother had, with perfect Spencerian calligraphy, which I tried to imitate for a long time, but I didn't have quite the motor coordination needed when I was 8 years old or so : o ). Anyhow, when I was 10 or thereabouts I got my first fountain pen, which worked quite ok. I don't remember what happened to it, but i don't have it anymore... it was a really cheap one. Some two years after I got a Crown pen as a gift, and for some reason it never wrote properly... way too scratchy and skipped a lot. I got rid of it and gave up on fountain pens for 18 years ; ), until last week. In this short hiatus I've studied calligraphy, on my own and also on a calligraphy school here in São Paulo. It was founded on the beginning of the 1900s, and it had all the overscientific approach one would expect. For instance, this precious image from their manual, self-eulogizing the contraptions the founder of that school invented: Here the poor boy is being forced not to incline over the table, and to hold the pen correctly with some wires in his hand. I suspect this might be "inspired" in something from abroad, but I never saw anything like that apart from this book. My teacher was the grandson of the founder of this school, and he said they had hoarded dip pens from 1930 to last for at least a century, and that after they had used everything they wouldn't have any way to continue doing business. He flourished his tales way too much, but indeed he only used old dip pens. 2. Of How Much Laziness (and Some Learning) Made Me Overcome Hate Now being thirty I grew quite tired of dip pens, and also wished to be able to write decently away from home : o ). I've chased fountain pens that were similar to dip pens in being able to exchange the nibs easily, and so last week I discovered all about the Esterbrook J pens, mostly thanks to members of this forum. It so happens that Esterbrooks were sold in decent quantities here in Brazil in the 1950s and 60s, apparently. I've been able to buy, so far, just one model J, black, that came with one nib 1550 and a 2668. In fact in the afternoon I was to receive it at home, I went foraging for other nibs here in São Paulo, with my father for moral support. In the old downtown there are three small stores dedicated to fountain pens. In the first one I asked if the owner, who works there in the same store since the 1950s, if he had any Esterbrook pens. He said he didn't, and only that, which sounded like "no, just go away". And so I went. In the next one other venerably old gentleman looked at me with some amazement... it seemed he hadn't heard that name in quite some time. He had just some 9460 nibs, curiously with a green but translucid base; is this common? In the last one I got lucky, they had many: 9461, 9550, 9556, 9668, and the 9968. Bought all of them, and a Waterman Inspired Blue. At last, as I had seen some Pilot Parallels in the first store I went, I forgot the way-too-short talk we had and went again to the first store, and asked for the Parallel and if he had Esterbrook nibs, this time. He asked which one I wanted, and I said I wanted an italic nib. He said he might have one, but took a long while to fix a ballpoint pen some lady had asked him to reassemble, and some fifteen minutes (I checked...) later he went in search of the nib, and some ten minutes more or so he emerged with an 2312 nib, the italic one. Lo that the calligraphy gods smiled to me that day. I asked him if he had just that one, and he said it was his "sole son". I paid the equivalent of 10 dollars for it :-O. After one way to spicy acarajé we came home, the pen had arrived. At first I tested it with the nib it came with, the 2668 one. I liked it a lot. I forgot to clean the pen first, so my blue is tainted with black, apparently... but beautifully so, I think. Then I put the italic one and wrote, and I'm quite shocked to see how easy life can be. Oh dear. A very modest sample is here (Where do I edit my signature?): Now I don't know what exactly to do... if collect every variation of pen and nib, or just get one or two red ones that are really gorgeous, so I can write like normal people too : o ).

Hi, greetings from Brazil ! Some pens in my collection: Faber Castell e-motion CrocoFaber Castell e-motion ParquetFaber Castell Loom BlueLamy Safari Black CharcoalJinhao 5000Jinhao 9009Montblanc Meisterstuck 145 ChopinParket Duofold (demanding restoration)Parker FrontierParker Vacumatic (demanding restoration)Sheaffer Prelude Signature SnakeskinSheaffer Prelude Signature ImperialSheaffer 300 Blue/Chrome And some ink bottles: Sheaffer (Brown, Turquoise, Purple, Green)Pelikan Royal BlueAurora Black (is it really so wet ?)J.herbin 1670 Anniversary Ink Rough Hematite (on its way from USA, high expectation on my first red ink)Thanks for this fantastic source of information. Alves

So today I went to my local Staples and saw something that was simply wonderful. I found on sale for $3 even, Brazilian filler paper! I bought half of the rack that was left. They were $3 for 400 sheets and I ended up buying 7 packages, totaling 2,800 pages! The stack is 8 inches tall and weighs in the neighborhood of 27-34 lbs! I had to have them double bagged. Run and see if yours has them. Mine has no feathering at all.