Nakaya 17Mm Portable Cigar

[geoduc]

I own and love several Nakaya pens. I like the long grip section that is found on the Desk Pen, Neo Standard and Long models, but would prefer the section to be a little bit larger in diameter. Nakaya currently offers the Dorsal Fin and a 17mm Long Cigar with a larger diameter section, but I wanted something a little different. In perusing the Nakaya website, I noticed that they use a 17mm Portable size pen as the base for several of their maki-e models, so I contacted Classic Fountain Pens (www.nibs.com) and asked if Nakaya would be willing to make me a 17mm Portable Cigar in the standard aka-tamenuri finish. They agreed, and here is the finished product.

 

 

 

As you can see, the aka-tamenuri finish is beautiful on this pen, and the long, large diameter section makes it a joy to hold and use. The section is slightly over 1mm larger in diameter than the standard Nakaya models. Doesn't sound like much, but it is definitely noticeable in the hand.

 

Here are the vital statistics for those who might be interested.

Capped length: 151 mm

Unposted length: 137 mm

Posted length: Pen is not designed to be posted

Section length: 23.3 mm

Section diameter: 13.1 (max)/11.5 (min) mm

Weight capped: 32 g

Weight uncapped: 25 g

 

The fill system is the standard Nakaya cartridge/converter setup. There's not much to say about it, other than noting that all the pens I own with this system have been utterly reliable.

 

 

 

I have had a little prior experience with stock Platinum/Nakaya music nibs and wasn't impressed with their line variation, so I asked John Mottishaw to regrind mine to a full width smooth cursive italic with a moderately wet flow. In a word, this nib is superb. It has good line variation (vertical lines ~1.1mm, horizontals ~0.45mm), yet is very forgiving with no sharp edges. There is no problem with finding and maintaining the sweet spot while writing. This nib has quickly become a favorite in my collection.

 

Finally, I'll show a couple of images comparing the 17mm Portable with a standard Portable Writer.

 

 

Capped, the pens are the same length - the only difference is in the girth (17mm vs. 15mm)

 

 

Uncapped, the differences become more apparent. The section on the 17mm Portable is 23.3mm long and 11.5mm at the narrowest point versus 16.6mm long and 10.3mm at the narrowest point for the Portable Writer. The Portable Writer is a great everyday carry pen that I use for quick notes, but I find it uncomfortable for long writing sessions because of the short, narrow section. The 17mm Portable solves that for me.

 

In summary, the 17mm Portable is a great option for those who like a pen with a large girth and a generous section. I'll definitely add another one of these or a Dorsal Fin to my collection in the future.

[WOBentley]

Great review of a beautiful pen!...This may be my Grail Nakaya...Wonderful! :clap1:

[Uncle Red]

That's very beautiful. The little bit of black is a great touch.

[reprieve]

So pretty! I like your nib choice. The comparison photos are great--they really show off the larger girth of the pen.

 

 

Quick, someone notify Ghost Plane. She could have a blue dragon put on the 17mm Long model with a nice fat music nib!

[geoduc]

Great review of a beautiful pen!...This may be my Grail Nakaya...Wonderful! :clap1:

 

If the weather cooperates, you'll get a chance to try it out in a couple of weeks. It's beautiful.

[ehemem]

Great review of a beautiful pen!...This may be my Grail Nakaya...Wonderful! :clap1:

 

If the weather cooperates, you'll get a chance to try it out in a couple of weeks. It's beautiful.

 

ME TOO, ME TOO! I WANT TO GET MY HANDS ON IT!

 

Nice review. Thanks.

[TMLee]

The background of your pics look scary man ....

 

Nice pen though

[geoduc]

That's very beautiful. The little bit of black is a great touch.

 

I hadn't thought about it, but you're right. The black cap threads do provide a nice break in the expanse of red color.

[geoduc]

The background of your pics look scary man ....

 

Nice pen though

 

My daughter gave me the background picture for Christmas - it's a scanning electron microscope image of flower pollen. I'm still trying to identify the pollen types...is there a palynologist in the house??

[hoppes no9]

Beautiful! Mind sharing the price?

 

Also, I wonder if Nakaya offers a larger nib, or is this the nib they normally use in the 17mmbody?

[ethernautrix]

Beautiful Portable Cigar!

 

Today, I was writing with my aka-tamenuri Naka-ai (aka Naka-ai), and I was mesmerized by the beauty of the aka-tamenuri. Such a beautiful color.

 

Hooray! Congratulations!

[geoduc]

Beautiful! Mind sharing the price?

 

Also, I wonder if Nakaya offers a larger nib, or is this the nib they normally use in the 17mmbody?

 

The base pen was $650, so there's a $100 premium over the standard size Portables. The music nib and custom grind increased the total cost to $785.

 

Nakaya doesn't offer a larger nib, unfortunately. I'd love to see one on the big pens.

[geoduc]

Beautiful Portable Cigar!

 

Today, I was writing with my aka-tamenuri Naka-ai (aka Naka-ai), and I was mesmerized by the beauty of the aka-tamenuri. Such a beautiful color.

 

Hooray! Congratulations!

 

 

Thanks, Lisa! I'm not normally a red person, but I fell in love with this one as soon as it came out of the package. I love the depth of the finish and the way the color variation in the base layer is visible through the outer urushi layers. I can't wait to see what it looks like in a year or two as the urushi becomes more transparent.

[marie9999]

Beautiful pen - I do not own a music nib yet - but this review gives me a bit more confidence to try one.

 

thanks for sharing! The background pictures are cool!

[WOBentley]

Great review of a beautiful pen!...This may be my Grail Nakaya...Wonderful! :clap1:

 

If the weather cooperates, you'll get a chance to try it out in a couple of weeks. It's beautiful.

I am truly looking forward to it!

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

I think this is interesting. It's a chunky version of the Nakaya Portable Cigar. I don't have big hands, so I asked Nakaya to make me a pen that was a slim as they could make it. They did, but the difference between it and the regular model isn't so great because they are limited by the size of the nibs they use.

 

Dillon

[Mr. Sweet]

Interesting customization.

How is the barrel width compared to the long cigar model?

Enjoy the new beauty!

[Frank C]

That is a beautiful pen! I like Nakayas and I like big pens, so a big Nakaya, I'll be calling nibs.com, soon.

[geoduc]

Interesting customization.

How is the barrel width compared to the long cigar model?

Enjoy the new beauty!

 

The standard Long Cigar is 15mm in diameter, although Classic Fountain Pens can special order a 17mm Long Cigar if desired.

[Mr. Sweet]

Interesting customization.

 

How is the barrel width compared to the long cigar model?

 

Enjoy the new beauty!

 

The standard Long Cigar is 15mm in diameter, although Classic Fountain Pens can special order a 17mm Long Cigar if desired.

 

Thanks for the information!

 

A 17mm Long Cigar is definitely desired. I've got my eye on a few Danitrios, so after that, it's on to the 17mm Long Cigar!

 

Out of curiosity, did it take more time for the modified order to come through? I don't know what the current wait time is for customized Nakayas these days. Also, will they enlarge the diameter of other colors?

 

Cheers!