Your Best Cheap Pen?

[Mech-for-i]

12 hours ago, InkNsap said:

I have been looking at this one with a wooden barrel. I like the idea of writing with a little piece of wood. Why is it always better the open version? 

I have a WS601 and it’s a bit on the scratchy side, I’m considering changing the nib to a broader Bobby nib.... 

 

No.5 nib is easier to source and with variety and easier for user servicing / exchange

[SlowMovingTarget]

Jinhao x750 with a Goulet fine Steel nib. Solid cartridge converter pen, nice wet nib.

[ethernautrix]

Moonman C2...with a Pilot #10 PO nib. Hah! I know, the nib bumps the price up, but I already had the Pilot 912, so....

 

Also, a second Moonman C2 with a Jowo #6 EF nib.

 

[A Smug Dill]

6 hours ago, InkNsap said:

A lot of people have said they prefer the open version of the Jinhao 51A.

 

I don't. Every single one I bought (in the dozens, over time) — including the one I ordered just yesterday — has a hooded nib, even after the open nib variant became more visible and available in online marketplaces such as AliExpress.

 

6 hours ago, InkNsap said:

I was just wondering why?

 

You'll have to ask them.

 

I wouldn't trust any of the open nibs to write as finely out-of-the-box as the factory-condition hooded nib; I don't think the open nib offers any advantage in resisting hard-starts when writing after a pause, or ink drying out when the pen is capped and unused, although they may not necessarily be inferior to the hooded nib in that regard; I don't need the Jinhao 51A to be a glorified nib holder to swapping in either one's favourite nib, or different nib types willy-nilly; and I don't think seeing the naked piece of metal, shoulders and all, make for a better writing instrument or user experience of such, as long as I can clearly see where the nib tip is touching the paper.

[MuddyWaters]

I am guessing the open nib has less of a sweet spot. I have found hooded nibs more likely to be squared off at the end. Have you found this dill?

[A Smug Dill]

55 minutes ago, MuddyWaters said:

I am guessing the open nib has less of a sweet spot. I have found hooded nibs more likely to be squared off at the end. Have you found this dill?

 

I haven't been tracking such stats. 🤓 I'm certainly in no position to tell you how the Jinhao hooded nibs compare to Jinhao open nibs (only on the 51A or across models, only in that physical nib size or including larger nibs), in terms of likelihood of having sweet spots and square ends, as supplied. All I can say is I've seen far more variation and/or inconsistency out-of-the-box with open nibs in general, with regard to tine (mis)alignment and gap width, tipping symmetry and smoothness, nib ‘wetness’ or ‘dryness’.

 

At one point, I cleaned and tested in a single session all of the Jinhao 51A pens (with hooded nibs) I bought to give away (the best 85%) as bomboniere at my wedding, and by and large they're very consistent; none of the nibs wrote scratchy, needed smoothing or tine realignment. The wetness of the nibs were all within close range of each other.

[N1003U]

My go-to for minimum cost and solid reliability is the Platinum Preppy. My only complaint about the Preppy is that sometimes the nibs have more feedback than I like, but I can't remember ever having one that didn't write reliably right out of the package (or lack of package, as the case might have been). The spring-loaded inner cap is also a nice feature for such a cheap pen (dry-outs are very rare).

 

My next favorite is a Lamy Safari, but relatively speaking, that is a bit of a step up in price. I like the writing experience with the Lamy nibs, and that replacement nibs are cheap and easy to find, and easy to change. On the other hand, my experience with dry-outs is not as good with the Safaris. I don't often ink a Safari unless I believe I am going to write it dry within a month.

[georgeb]

18 hours ago, ethernautrix said:

Moonman C2...with a Pilot #10 PO nib. Hah! I know, the nib bumps the price up, but I already had the Pilot 912, so....

 

Also, a second Moonman C2 with a Jowo #6 EF nib.

 

Hi Ether,

 

Do the nibs and feeds just pull out?

[Arkanabar]

My preference for open nibs is based on the greater ease I have in tweaking them and fixing any alignment issues that arise, and also aesthetics -- the very aesthetical preference that led to the development of the Parker VS or Vacuumatic Successor, which was basically a "51" with an open nib and feed instead of the collector and hood.

[ethernautrix]

On 2/11/2021 at 8:18 PM, georgeb said:

Hi Ether,

 

Do the nibs and feeds just pull out?

 

Surprisingly, yes! The surprise applies to the fit of the Pilot #10 PO nib. I'd bought a Jowo #6 housing that accommodates Pilot #10 nibs but didn't have to use it. The Pilot PO nib might not fit like Cinderella's shoe, but certainly close enough. I've been using the Moonman C2 with the Pilot PO nib for about a year with no problem at all.

 

The Jowo nib substitute in the second Moonman C2 worked exactly as expected. Just tug and plug. *Smiley*

[InkNsap]

Thank you Dill! That gives me confidence in purchasing one. Do you have a preference on finish? Rosewood vs Ebony? Acrylic? 
 

Quote

On 2/11/2021 at 1:11 AM, A Smug Dill said:

 

I don't. Every single one I bought (in the dozens, over time) — including the one I ordered just yesterday — has a hooded nib, even after the open nib variant became more visible and available in online marketplaces such as AliExpress.

 

 

You'll have to ask them.

 

I wouldn't trust any of the open nibs to write as finely out-of-the-box as the factory-condition hooded nib; I don't think the open nib offers any advantage in resisting hard-starts when writing after a pause, or ink drying out when the pen is capped and unused, although they may not necessarily be inferior to the hooded nib in that regard; I don't need the Jinhao 51A to be a glorified nib holder to swapping in either one's favourite nib, or different nib types willy-nilly; and I don't think seeing the naked piece of metal, shoulders and all, make for a better writing instrument or user experience of such, as long as I can clearly see where the nib tip is touching the paper.

 

 

[maclink]

I don't know what qualifies as cheap, but the one I'd seriously recommend that's reasonably priced is a TWSBI Eco.  My experience with this pen is that it writes well, and is so reliable.

[camjr]

Parker Urban

[A Smug Dill]

On 2/13/2021 at 7:23 PM, InkNsap said:

Do you have a preference on finish? Rosewood vs Ebony? Acrylic? 

 

I like both the ones with wooden barrels and the ones in ‘cracked ice’ acrylic. (The one in blue swirly acrylic is definitely not recommended, even outside of the fact I like it least aesthetically out of the acrylic versions.) The black-grey and black-brown ones are gorgeous, and more than comfortable enough in the hand for long writing sessions, although I prefer the feel of the wooden barrels. Out of the ones with the wooden barrels, I think I like the walnut one the best and the ebony one the least, not that there's anything wrong with it. The walnut and rosewood are more textured (but not rough like the walnut finish on the Faber-Castell Ambition), whereas the red osmanthus one I have feels slightly waxed (which is a shame, because I like the colour) and the ebony one is too naturally(?) smooth.

[Mrsnuffles]

The Noodler's Ahab. It's decently smooth, and flexes pretty well, despite being so cheap. I prefer the writing experience to the Lamy Safari and Pilot Metropolitan.

[MuddyWaters]

On 2/12/2021 at 9:04 PM, ethernautrix said:

 

Surprisingly, yes! The surprise applies to the fit of the Pilot #10 PO nib. I'd bought a Jowo #6 housing that accommodates Pilot #10 nibs but didn't have to use it. The Pilot PO nib might not fit like Cinderella's shoe, but certainly close enough. I've been using the Moonman C2 with the Pilot PO nib for about a year with no problem at all.

 

The Jowo nib substitute in the second Moonman C2 worked exactly as expected. Just tug and plug. *Smiley*

 

Do you find the c2 more comfortable in the hand than the pilot 912? The 912 seems pretty solid in terms of comfort. 

 

My current cheap pen is the wing sung 3013. I'm sure it will fall apart eventually but it has a nice heft to it and the filling mechanism seems to work well up to now. 

[ethernautrix]

23 hours ago, MuddyWaters said:

 

Do you find the c2 more comfortable in the hand than the pilot 912? The 912 seems pretty solid in terms of comfort. 

 

My current cheap pen is the wing sung 3013. I'm sure it will fall apart eventually but it has a nice heft to it and the filling mechanism seems to work well up to now. 

 

Yes, the Moonman C2 is super comfortable. On a par with my favorite pen make and model, Nakaya Piccolo Cigar. The 912 is comfortable, as far as I remember. I haven't used it since I bought an 823 (and a 743, for the PO nib), which was a couple of years ago. I do find the 823 a tad not as comfortable as Piccolos and the C2, which are shorter pens. And lighter.

 

A few days ago, wanting to use Pelikan Edelstein Smoky Quartz ink, I filled a Wing Sung 618. After I figured out the end-cap clicky mechanism to engage the piston, I am very much enjoying this pen, too. It looks like a transparent Parker 51 (but obviously is not), which is another model that I find super comfortable for long writing sessions.

[AlexItto]

As a new user, this may be my favorite thread. Does anyone have any thoughts on the cheap Schneiders (such as the Base model) or the cheap Pelikans (like the Pelicano?)

[MuddyWaters]

2 hours ago, ethernautrix said:

 

Yes, the Moonman C2 is super comfortable. On a par with my favorite pen make and model, Nakaya Piccolo Cigar. The 912 is comfortable, as far as I remember. I haven't used it since I bought an 823 (and a 743, for the PO nib), which was a couple of years ago. I do find the 823 a tad not as comfortable as Piccolos and the C2, which are shorter pens. And lighter.

 

A few days ago, wanting to use Pelikan Edelstein Smoky Quartz ink, I filled a Wing Sung 618. After I figured out the end-cap clicky mechanism to engage the piston, I am very much enjoying this pen, too. It looks like a transparent Parker 51 (but obviously is not), which is another model that I find super comfortable for long writing sessions.

 

I loved the wing sung 618 as my favourite work pen. I found its ever so slightly stepped down grip section to be really comfortable, and the pen to be of a really balanced weight, but alas it cracked

 

I'll have to look into the moonman c2... First I may consider a 912. 

[ethernautrix]

3 hours ago, MuddyWaters said:

 

I loved the wing sung 618 as my favourite work pen. I found its ever so slightly stepped down grip section to be really comfortable, and the pen to be of a really balanced weight, but alas it cracked

 

I'll have to look into the moonman c2... First I may consider a 912. 

 

Thanks for the heads up on potential crackage on the WS 618. I don't take the pen out of the apartment, cos brown ink.

 

I used the heck out of my 912, but I just wanted its PO nib in a Nakaya. Haha. Had to settle for the 823, which I used everyday, having parked all my Nakayas in the Pen Valise. For nearly a year.

 

But then I ordered a kuro-tamenuri Piccolo to replace one I'd lost two years ago, and its EF nib is faaaaabulous (not a PO, but all nibs don't have to be a PO. I guess.), so now the 832 is in the Pen Valise -- cos the Moonman C2 has the 912's PO nib in it.

 

But, yeah, the 912 was more comfortable to write with than the 823, cos size. BUT the 823 has the massive ink capacity. But now neither is inked.