Diplomat Excellence - We're Not Worthy!

[jameswatts]

I have three Diplomats — what I believe was sold as the Classic from the 1980s, a Balance and an Aero. All are excellent, although the Balance is a personal favorite

[Tseg]

Not sure if I’m mad or pleased with this thread... but it sent me on a path to ordering an A2 Marrakesh with 14K M nib. I have a number of “iconic” pens and I was afraid I wouldn’t find a new addition for <$500 but really was not looking to spend more than $250. I don’t own a Diplomat but was off and on my radar over the last few years. This thread rekindled my research into the brand and models offered and the A2 really checked all the boxes of what I know I like in a pen, and with a deal found I’m within budget, thus the pen was ordered. It will be a few weeks until it is received.

 

Based on my research I anticipate it will feel similar to a super smooth ST Dupont Olympio XL I have, with a similar cap locking mechanism. I realize I have a thing for brass and lacquer pens, with my Waterman Carene and Namiki Urushi No. 20 also being among my favorites. I think this will represent Diplomat well in my collection.

[Tseg]

My Diplomat Excellence A2 Marrakesh 14K M arrived today. To me it is a very nice pen but probably not an amazing pen. The nib is smooth, but not glassy smooth like my Olympio or Pelikan M800. But this is Day 1. I believe nibs break in over time, so we'll see how it plays out. It does remind me a lot of my Olympio XL, but the XL is girthier and sturdier (not necessarily a great thing) and the lacquer is Asian Urushi, I believe. A used XL (18K nib) in excellent condition may still cost a bit to a lot more than what I paid for a new Diplomat Excellence (14K nib). What I prefer about the Diplomat is the nice long section and minor chamfered step, combined with being lesser weight, is more comfortable to me than the big-stepped XL. The Diplomat nib is a step below a nail. It is a smooth quiet writer straight out of the box. Ink flow is very balanced... I might prefer a hair more wet (maybe not) and I'm using Iro Yama-Guri in it now. My alternate pen under consideration was a Sailor Realo... unfortunately this Diplomat is likely not the pen to beat all other pens so I may end up with a Realo yet at some point in the future. I now have lots of brass and lacquer pens... not a bad one in the bunch.

 

In summary, I'm glad I added a Diplomat to my collection. Of course the credit card bill has not hit yet.

 

[tim77]

Very good photo. It shows off the finish much better than Diplomat's own pictures, in which the Marrakesh just looks brown. If you ever get chance to compare the gold nib with one of Diplomat's steel equivalents, I'd be very interested in your opinion.

[Tseg]

Twenty-four hours in and I determined my nib had slight baby's bottom because of an occasional skip with my up-stroke to a capital M or W at the beginning of a sentance. I have since given a very sparing amount of 8K and 12K grit micromesh to the nib to try to work it out. The result is all skipping has absolutely disappeared. I also noticed this pen likes a good manual prime and then a solid flow will keep up for the duration. Not sure if the lack of a breather hole hightens this sensitivity?

 

Nonetheless... today I can honestly say this nib is now writing as smooth and juicy and perfect as my M800 and ST Dupont Olympio XL, maybe with even slightly more spring to the nib. I'm really enjoying this very comfortable, smooth and quiet pen.

 

Would I get a Diplomat with steel nib? Probably not. I have 2 excellent steel nibbed pens, a Leonardo Officina Momento Zero and Pelikan M120 Iconic Blue. Both write fantastically but they feel and sound different to me... more of a tight brittle high pitched resonance that works its way through the barrel of the pen into my hand. Gold nibs just make my writing experience so much more luscious. Likely it is pure snobbery, but I'll be hard pressed to but another steel nibbed pen.

[Tseg]

Week update... I continued to be plagued in the early days with my nib writing dryer than I liked as well as delivering a thin-Medium line. After an ultrasonic cleaning and some "heavy handed" writing this nib has opened up perfectly. It now really is a smooth and luscious writer. I'm now using Waterman Absolute Brown which has reddish overtones and it is perfect for this pen. This pen now is definitely one of my top writing pens. I'm still amazed how a new nib has to break in, so don't take its performance out of the box as the final verdict.

[MuddyWaters]

Week update... I continued to be plagued in the early days with my nib writing dryer than I liked as well as delivering a thin-Medium line. After an ultrasonic cleaning and some "heavy handed" writing this nib has opened up perfectly. It now really is a smooth and luscious writer. I'm now using Waterman Absolute Brown which has reddish overtones and it is perfect for this pen. This pen now is definitely one of my top writing pens. I'm still amazed how a new nib has to break in, so don't take its performance out of the box as the final verdict.

Any updates with this Tseg?

[Tseg]

On 6/28/2020 at 1:52 PM, MuddyWaters said:

Any updates with this Tseg?

It's been a while since I've inked this pen.  I've made a slight nib adjustment after looking head on at the nib under a loop to see 1 tine a hair raised vs. the other, now corrected.  For the holidays I have it inked with Diamine Sherwood Green.  It took a 1/2 page a writing to get the nib properly lubed and settled in.   The pen is writing beautifully.  Now with good ink flow the nib is laying down a proper European Medium-sized line.   Versus Day 1 where I mentioned the nib wrote 1 step below a nail, today I sense a slight bit of softness, but still no line variation... so, I guess, still 1 step below a nail .  It is really smooth.  The heavy brass lacquer body provides a different writing experience than my Pelikan M800 (also very smooth and 1 step below a nail, if that).   Ultimately, if one appreciates a smooth hard nib there is value in this pen.  But in fairness, the design and materials are a bit uninspiring.  This is definitely a pen for writing, not for oogling.  A fine, robust tool to write with, if that is your thing.

[MuddyWaters]

7 hours ago, Tseg said:

It's been a while since I've inked this pen.  I've made a slight nib adjustment after looking head on at the nib under a loop to see 1 tine a hair raised vs. the other, now corrected.  For the holidays I have it inked with Diamine Sherwood Green.  It took a 1/2 page a writing to get the nib properly lubed and settled in.   The pen is writing beautifully.  Now with good ink flow the nib is laying down a proper European Medium-sized line.   Versus Day 1 where I mentioned the nib wrote 1 step below a nail, today I sense a slight bit of softness, but still no line variation... so, I guess, still 1 step below a nail .  It is really smooth.  The heavy brass lacquer body provides a different writing experience than my Pelikan M800 (also very smooth and 1 step below a nail, if that).   Ultimately, if one appreciates a smooth hard nib there is value in this pen.  But in fairness, the design and materials are a bit uninspiring.  This is definitely a pen for writing, not for oogling.  A fine, robust tool to write with, if that is your thing.

 

Thanks for that honest update. I have also not been too tempted to splurge on this pen given the lacklustreness of the material and steel jovo nib, which is not categorically a rare thing.