Chinese Models With Extra Fine Nibs

[Sailor Kenshin]

Then there's THIS... which looks to be needle-fine, though QC may be hit or miss.

[KBeezie]

Then there's THIS... which looks to be needle-fine, though QC may be hit or miss.

Yea that looks like a thicker version of the Jinhao 611 I had. But it's not quite needle-fine, I got a few pens that do a finer line than those (MB225, Sheaffer Touchdown with an Accounting nib, Platinum PTL-5000, Pilot Elite EF, etc). The 611 in my write sample above is about the same as what that 599 would produce. (Far as I can tell they mainly use 3 nibs on all their models, the same #5 style, plated or not, the same #6 style, plated or not, and the hooded style like in the 599 and 611, it's mainly the body that changes with each of their Jinhao or Baoer models)

Edited April 30, 2014 by KBeezie

[PingleiHe]

The Hero 329 fine version would be good.

[jeffkoch]

I am only speaking from experience...If you want a very fine line, Japanese nibs are the way to go. I have several Chinese pens, both Hero and Picasso, all have fine nibs and all are as wide or wider than my Pelikan or Lamy 2000's in EF. I have never seen or heard of EF nibs on Chinese pens. Chinese nibs are NOT the same as Japanese! Honestly, the only true EF Chinese nib is from TWSBI...and one of the sweetest around.

I'll grant that the examples I list in my post above are not as fine as an EF Pilot or an EF or UEF Platinum. But they are much finer than the Pelikan, Lamy , or TWSBI nibs.

 

The TWSBI EF is not particularly fine. But it is marked EF -- is that what you're contending? If your point is that Chinese pens are not marked EF, that is true, by and large. However, it is then perhaps worth noting that the TWSBI nib is not Chinese.

[ukini]

I bought so far Pilot 78G, Hero 329 with an arrow on hood, and an aviator Hero 338.

 

They produce quite extra fine lines.

 

My concern is with Hero 338.

 

1. When cupped and uncapped it seems to leak some ink (the inside of cap and the hood would have some ink on them). I'm carrying it right now and try to be careful, just to find out the reasons...

2. The clip on the metal cap is moving sideways, is there any remedy?

 

Thank you very much!

 

And I definitely want to try some Japanese models. I have a feeling that my Pilot 78G is the one that produces most finer lines from all the batch.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Is the 338 a squeeze filler with a metal tube on the fill mechanism? If so, they will often 'spit up' when overfilled. It may be simple as that.

 

Or, if the cap is a tight fit, removing the cap may 'pull' some ink that will then collect inside when the cap is put back on. In time this ink builds up.

 

Hope this helps. Let us know how it goes.

[ukini]

So, I want to summarize my quest for a Extra Fine affordable pen.

 

I tried Hero 329 and Pilot 78G. Although they seem to have very close thin lines, I prefer Plot 78G. First of all, I found hooded nib a little clumsy to write with. Also, Hero 329 seems to be a little dry when writing fast, for example doing signatures; it feels like the ink will skip.

 

On the other hand, simple cap on Hero is more convenient.

 

And I suspect that 78G model has a nib marked as fine, not extra fine, I mean, there is room to grow.

 

Overall, after trying both Japanese and Chinese pens, I'd like to move to a more premium Japanese pens -- although Pilot 78G is a nice pen, it shows its simpler nature.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Sailor! Widest range of stock nibs, and you won't believe how wet an XF nib can be.

[KBeezie]

So, I want to summarize my quest for a Extra Fine affordable pen.

 

I tried Hero 329 and Pilot 78G. Although they seem to have very close thin lines, I prefer Plot 78G. First of all, I found hooded nib a little clumsy to write with. Also, Hero 329 seems to be a little dry when writing fast, for example doing signatures; it feels like the ink will skip.

 

On the other hand, simple cap on Hero is more convenient.

 

And I suspect that 78G model has a nib marked as fine, not extra fine, I mean, there is room to grow.

 

Overall, after trying both Japanese and Chinese pens, I'd like to move to a more premium Japanese pens -- although Pilot 78G is a nice pen, it shows its simpler nature.

 

The 78G's fine is 'marked' fine, but it's the equivalent to a western Extra-Fine. (unless you were going for a Japanese Extra-Fine, which is the Pilot Penmanship, and the nib is interchangeable with a 78G, metropolitan, etc).

 

You might actually like the metropolitan (aka MR, Cocoon) which has a similar nib tot the 78G (can take the same nib from a 78G), comes in either medium or fine. Metal body with a click-on cap and still relatively inexpensive (around $15 USD for the Metropolitan that takes Pilot cartridge/converter).

 

If you want to go up on the price a bit, there are the Pilot Vanishing Point, Pilot Falcon, and Platinum Century 3776 that can be purchased with an extra-fine (The last one even has an ultra-extra-fine available, though the falcon line is all soft nibs [some flex] with Soft Extra-Fine being available).

Edited July 11, 2014 by KBeezie

[ukini]

Thank you very much! For your replies!

 

I'm pondering on getting Platinum 3776 or something in that price range. But I want a little heavier pen, my 78G is around 13 grams, maybe 25-30 gram alternative.

 

 

 

Also, what do you think about vintage pens for extra-fine? Maybe Sheaffer or similar.

 

I mean, if the pen is nice one, it should be enough for years, and I don't want to collect several ones because I won't be using them much.

Because of this I want to see my options (either Japanese, or vintage ones, or a custom nib).

[Sailor Kenshin]

I recently bought a NOS Parker 17 with an XF nib that is needle-fine and a fraction of the cost of a new Sailor. Sheaffer vintage pens might offer similar options, but unlike a new pen you'd have to wait to find one.

[Bounce792]

Get a Pilot Penmanship and swap the nibs. They use the same nib & feed and the penmanship is a Japanese XF. Swapping the nibs is super easy too.

[KBeezie]

Get a Pilot Penmanship and swap the nibs. They use the same nib & feed and the penmanship is a Japanese XF. Swapping the nibs is super easy too.

Swap the nib with what exactly? There are no Chinese made pens that I'm aware of that take pilot nibs.

[Guettaby]

Swap the nib with what exactly? There are no Chinese made pens that I'm aware of that take pilot nibs.

 

Now it is possible