Sailor Brush-Style ("fude De Mannen") Fp With 55˚ Angle Nib

[aenjin]

Review of Sailor Brush-Style ("fude de mannen") Fountain Pen with 55˚ Angle Nib (Green)

Sorry about the lack of photos of the pen (my camera isn't that great) but I didn't see many reviews of this FP so I thought I would make a post on how it handles. At the end of the review I've included a couple of images to show the different lines weights possible with the pen.

Filling System: This FP can be used with either proprietary Sailor cartridges or the Sailor converter. Eyedropper conversion should be possible, giving the pen massive ink capacity, but given that the threaded part of the nib section is rather short, it'd be best to exercise due caution if you go the eyedropper route.

The Sailor converter doesn't hold a lot of ink but I find the capacity adequate for a quick sketching session and refilling the pen is easy to do. Unfortunately my first converter broke only after a few uses but the second one is holding up well. . . I'm hoping that the first one was just a dud.

General Notes on Appearance, Size and Weight: With a full converter in, the pen is a little lighter than a filled Lamy Safari and around an inch and a half longer capped/uncapped.

The cap is light and can be posted, but I found that doing so makes the pen too long and unbalanced. This doesn't matter to me since I don't post, but it might bother those who do. The cap has a small, shallow plastic tab sticking out that keeps it from rolling away, at least. This might be a design minus for some.

Detailed Notes on Nib and Performance: The tip of the nib is bent at an angle which allows for a variety of line widths depending on how you hold the pen (there's no flex). Holding it almost vertically will give a fine line and holding it at a normal writing angle (so that the full underside surface of the nib is in contact with the paper) will produce a very bold line.

Apparently the nib is intended to simulate a brush, but as the nib is on the scratchy side and transitioning from one width to another isn't exactly easy, in my opinion, it's not really comparable. If you like the spring and snap of a brushpen/brush, don't expect that with this pen.

This seems to be marketed as an alternative to brush calligraphy pens, but as far as writing goes, in my opinion the time it would take for you to learn to do calligraphy with this FP would be far better spent practicing with a brushpen or a real brush.

However! As a sketching tool it's not bad at all, quite versatile in fact. To me it feels similar to sketching with a reed pen but much more convenient on account of the steady ink supply. Personally I wouldn't say that this pen has line variation since the ability to transition from one line weight to another isn't really there as with brushes. Line variety might be a better way to put it.

I went back and forth trying to decide if I wanted The 55˚ (green) or the 40˚ (blue), and though I haven't used the latter, I'll offer up some educated guesses based on my experience with the 55˚ below.

The 55˚ has to be held quite 'high' even for the bolder lines, so the 40˚ may be more comfortable. But if you plan on mostly drawing with either pen, if you've used fineliners or technical pens before the the going vertical isn't much different.

It's hard to say so don't take any of this as a recommendation one way or another, but my sense is that the 40˚ will be easier to use, though you might be able to get a slightly bigger range of lines with the 55˚ (probably not by that much).

In sum, I'm enjoying using this to sketch but it did take me a couple of weeks to really get a feel for the pen and at times it was somewhat frustrating. Although this FP is kind of finicky, if the scratchiness is acceptable, you might find that it can also be rewarding.

Pros

- Possible to get several different line widths

- Short feed means flushing ink is pretty easy

- Good for sketching

Cons

- Scratchy

- Low ink capacity using cartridge or converter

- Not fun to write with

In the samples (Pelikan Fount India Ink on regular 98 gsm sketch paper) you can see that the pen lays down a fairly reliable line and can change directions without too much skipping. The pen has a steady default flow and by going faster/using a lighter hand it's definitely possible to get brushy lines.

[HildyZ]

Thanks for this review! I've had one of these, and I could never get much line variation while writing. I thought it was just the general deficiency of my character. Using it for drawing looks like a great idea, one I hadn't thought of.

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

The ones I've had were quite interesting. It was one of the first fountain pens I got since it doesn't really cost so much. I do recall though that the barrel and finial on the end are held together by friction. I had to glue mine back on after some use to make it hold better. Also, the threads on the barrel are extremely coarse, which might make it leak a lot as an eyedropper pen.

 

I did reshape the tip of the nib on mine to round the edges slightly to make it a little smoother and less sharp. It worked quite well. It was a fun pen. I gave mine away recently, but I had a lot of fun.

 

Dillon

[Sandy1]

Hi,

 

Many thanks for such a detailed look at this pen!

 

I think you are spot-on as to the uses for such a nib.

 

I would also like to add the potential for use with a high-lighter ink: it can cover rows / blocks of text, circle areas in graphics, and be used to underline text. I also find the variable width nib quite useful when I'm working on an outline to establish hierarchy (and to make hasty redactions.)

 

For text, it comes in handy when writing within a greeting card - I can use the same pen+ink to write the main sentiment with a wide line and the little bits of text in a narrow like, and add flourishes.

 

One friend has also taken to the fude nib for writing music.

 

Bye,

S1

[HildyZ]

I do recall though that the barrel and finial on the end are held together by friction. I had to glue mine back on after some use to make it hold better.

 

Yes, I had to pop the final off and lose the little brass ring around the end to learn that lesson.

[Montblanc owner and lover]

from what i understand your pen is the "cheap" fude de manen right?or is it one of the more expensive 1911,pro gear with the specialty nib?

[aenjin]

Thanks for this review! I've had one of these, and I could never get much line variation while writing. I thought it was just the general deficiency of my character. Using it for drawing looks like a great idea, one I hadn't thought of.

 

Thanks for your comment! It's definitely a tricky nib to work with. I hope you'll give drawing with it a go. Does take some getting used to but it's quite fun I think, there's something quite satisfying about being able to fill in large spaces at the same time you can make fine detailed lines just using one pen.

 

 

Hi,

 

The ones I've had were quite interesting. It was one of the first fountain pens I got since it doesn't really cost so much. I do recall though that the barrel and finial on the end are held together by friction. I had to glue mine back on after some use to make it hold better. Also, the threads on the barrel are extremely coarse, which might make it leak a lot as an eyedropper pen.

 

I did reshape the tip of the nib on mine to round the edges slightly to make it a little smoother and less sharp. It worked quite well. It was a fun pen. I gave mine away recently, but I had a lot of fun.

 

Dillon

 

Luckily my pen is still holding up, but you're right on the threads being not as cleanly cut as with some other pens. A leak with this pen would also mean a really big mess...

 

I think the nib of my FP as-is works for me for now, but I might try modifying it in the future, maybe buffing the tip a tiny bit.

 

 

Hi,

 

Many thanks for such a detailed look at this pen!

 

I think you are spot-on as to the uses for such a nib.

 

I would also like to add the potential for use with a high-lighter ink: it can cover rows / blocks of text, circle areas in graphics, and be used to underline text. I also find the variable width nib quite useful when I'm working on an outline to establish hierarchy (and to make hasty redactions.)

 

For text, it comes in handy when writing within a greeting card - I can use the same pen+ink to write the main sentiment with a wide line and the little bits of text in a narrow like, and add flourishes.

 

One friend has also taken to the fude nib for writing music.

 

Bye,

S1

 

Thanks! Using it with highlighter ink hadn't occurred to me at all but it would be make for a lot of versatility in highlighting for sure. I imagine music figures written with a fude nib would have a wonderful character to them.

 

 

from what i understand your pen is the "cheap" fude de manen right?or is it one of the more expensive 1911,pro gear with the specialty nib?

 

Sorry about the delay in replying, yes it's the green plastic FP that can be had for a fraction of the more expensive Sailor FPs. I must admit the higher end ones intrigue me, but I don't know if I love this style of pen enough to really go for it.

[nudgedtodeath]

Just a note, but this pen can not be turned into an eyedropper without modification. The gold ring detail at the back of the pen leaks as soon as you begin filling it with ink. Hope this saves someone else a desktop covered in Platinum Carbon Ink.

[Scribble Monboddo]

'Just had a play with one of these and I have to agree; it's fine for sketching and 'painting' with ink, but pretty ghastly for writing. You can see my appalling scrawl here.

[RMH]

Thanks for the review- answered my application questions.

[Syene]

Is it possible to swap nibs on this pen?

[A Smug Dill]

Is it possible to swap nibs on this pen?

Physically? Affirmative.

[Honeybadgers]

Is it possible to swap nibs on this pen?

 

Yes. Sorta.

 

Its section is interchangable with many sailor pens. the 1911 standard and pro gear slim's sections swap over (the nib/feed does not, but the entire nib/feed/section fits and the cap screws on properly, so you can nib swap a gold nib into one) and if you want a standard steel nib, the young profit's nib/feed are interchangable, as is the entire section.

Edited April 19, 2019 by Honeybadgers

[A Smug Dill]

Yes. Sorta.

 

Why (or how) only "sorta"? I physically swapped the nibs between a Sailor 11-0127-740 clipless pen (with a 40° Fude de Mannen nib) and a Sailor 10-0212-740 cigar-shaped pen (with a 55° Fude de Mannen nib), and both pens still write OK after the operation. I don't see any reason why the Sailor 11-0127-767 would be any more restrictive than those other two pens I mentioned.