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First off, pics and more detail in my post here: https://www.neverposted.com/home/2017/4/27/fountain-pen-review-desiderata-daedalus Introduction: Hello, friends. I've got an interesting of product that has only been discussed a few times on here: the Desiderata Daedalus. As I think most of us are aware, we want flex, but there's no replacement for vintage flex, Pilot FA nib railroads, Noodler's Pens are semi-flex, etc. So what do we do? Well Mr. Pierre Miller founded the Desiderata Pen Co. with the intention of producing pen bodies for the Zebra G, every fountain pen lover's favorite dip nib. For the most part he succeeds. Appearance: Simple, utilitarian, even minimalist. I like it. There's not a whole lot going on; that is, it's more tool than art piece. But I don't think anyone would call it ugly, and I've grown quite fond of the sight of my Daedalus on my desk. Functionality (how the pen works outside of writing): The converter I got with mine was pretty much pointless. This pen guzzles ink, so I quickly decided to eyedropper it. It's a foolproof eyedropper with about an inch of tight threading. The nib isn't stainless, so it does need to be replaced, but the pen comes apart easily and the nibs last plenty long enough. A ten pack can be had for 13.50 on Jetpens and will last a year, easily. Also, the feed is cavernous, so shaking the pen will cause large droplets to go flying every time. This is probably the biggest problem, as it somewhat negates the portability of dipless dip pen. Writing: Honestly, this pen could have the build quality of a matchstick and I would still be interested if it could replicate vintage flex. The answer is that it pretty much does. You get hairlines, you get BBBB lines, and all with relatively little effort. Railroading is minimized, and with a controlled hand is a negligible problem. Honestly, if anything the pen is too wet. The lines end up looking a little blobby and the dry times are unreasonable. Now, this isn't something I've mentioned in my blog post, but I will add that I find myself reaching for the Daedalus only when I want to practice my laughable attempts at calligraphy. For casual flex writing, I think the hairlines are too thin. Conclusion: Worth it if you want to do serious calligraphy. I mean, sure you could always use a dip pen, but this is a neat product.

Desiderata Daedalus It’s a fountain pen. No, wait. It’s a dip pen. Hang on a minute. Ah, nuts! It’s both. By now many people will have heard of or seen the Desiderata Daedalus, conceived of and brought into existence by Mr. Pierre Miller of The Desiderata Pen Co., Chicago, Illinois. The pen is a hybrid. It is essentially a fountain pen sporting a dip nib. In this case the nib is the Comic Zebra G, much favoured by manga artists and a solid performer – which we will come to in due course. In the early history of this one-man company there were many and varied models made from a number of interesting and exotic woods, and even a part acrylic version. Sadly, for most of us, and for one reason or another, these wood versions are no longer available. We can only hope they may re-emerge later. What we have left is a pen made from Delrin. This is a versatile plastic that is used in a wide range of applications, from precision engineering components to furniture parts and much else. Perhaps most people will be familiar with it in its use in knife handles. Anyway, the Delrin here is cool, smooth and very, very black. The shape of the pen is in the guise of a three stepped telescoping rod. In fact, on the day it arrived at work a colleague asked if it was a pocket tool – which it is, only not quite what they expected! The reason for the small step toward the end of the barrel is to accommodate the cap if one should wish to post it. Frankly speaking the pen does benefit from being posted, in terms of its perceived weight and balance, but naturally this will be a personal choice. The ends of the barrel and cap have some neat chamfering, and overall the pen is well-turned. There are some turning marks on it, though they seem quite in keeping with its industrial demeanour. Dimensions (approximate) Length Capped: 153 mm Uncapped: 115 mm (not including the nib) Posted: 144 mm (not including the nib) The nib adds about 24 mm Barrel (main) diameter is 11 mm, section is 10 mm. (Bear in mind that these pens are individually made and so measurements may very slightly) Filling system The pen is an eyedropper. Open that sucker up and slop your favourite writing juices in there! I haven't measured this yet but at a guess I would say the barrel takes between 2 and 3 ml of ink. The main draw here, and the raison d’etre for the pen’s existence, is the nib. This is a pen that offers the full flexibility of a steel (or titanium) dip pen, but without the very high price tag that often accompanies vintage pens with gold nibs. And that is exactly what it does. Familiarity with dip pens is useful, though this is also an excellent tool for those who are new to this sort of thing. The nib is sharp, flexible and, unlike a lot of dip nibs, quite user friendly. In other words, it will take a reasonable amount of abuse from the ham-fisted among us (author included). So, to shamelessly borrow from Dr. SBRE Brown, what do I like and what do I not like? Likes (in no particular order) Price – well under $100, makes this a most affordable alternative to vintage flex pens. Durability – the Delrin looks like it would survive the apocalypse. Nib – the zebra G is a first rate entry into flexible dip pens. It is also quite cheap to buy and easily available from all the usual sources. Machining – good finishing and precision threading give lots of confidence. Feed – hand cut ebonite feed that serves the nib well. Dislikes Size - it’s a thin pen. A little more girth would be nice. Subjective yes, but noted nonetheless. Delrin – It’s a good functional material, but does not ring my bell for aesthetics. Other material options would be nice to explore. Maintenance – the trade-offs with using a steel dip nib are the need to keep it clean and the understanding that it will wear out and need replacing. Meaning a lot of nib pulling. No roll-stop – some may like the cool and vast expanses of darkness. I am not one of them. The earlier pens had a neat little stop. Pierre, please bring back this option! Conclusion This is a good fountain pen and a very neat way for those of us on a budget to have a go at writing with a flexible nib. The need to change the nib relatively regularly, and to keep it clean in between changes, can be seen as both good and bad. Good in that it encourages good pen housekeeping habits, bad because it may be a tad annoying to have to do it so often. The pen is certainly different from anything else out there. Pierre has improved the feed from the earlier models and it works very well. I haven’t had any noticeable railroading yet. At this point I have only tried Diamine Teal and ESSRI iron gall ink. Both worked well, but there may be other inks that do not. Discovery is part of the fun, they say! Also worth noting, I tried some frankenpen set-ups using the same nib in Chinese pen bodies. While this worked tolerably well, the feeds on those pens did not work anywhere near as well as the Daedalus. Would I recommend it? Yes, I would, but with the caveat that the pen will not magically make your writing better. It still takes practice and patience. Will I keep mine? Debatable. I like using an oblique dip pen holder for this kind of writing. And yet the Daedalus is certainly a lot of fun. Time will tell. Disclaimer: this review represents my personal opinion. The pen was purchased at full price by me.