Are Cheap, 'nice Looking' Pens Any Good?

[Penoholic]

If you want nice,good looking, but cheap pens,try these companies :

1. Picasso

2. Hero

3. Jinhao

4. Duke

5. Wingsung

The order is made by the pens styles and QC of that specific pen company.

The order comes from me, I have been in the fountain pen business at my country for more then 9 years,I think this is quite accurate up to today.

Edited August 14, 2014 by Penoholic

[Romans5.8]

Well I bought the Jinhao. 10 bucks, why not?

It's a wet writer, but a nice writer. Actually, I've been using it more than the Lamy. I've discovered I prefer both a broader nib and a heavier pen. I just love the weight of the Jinhao. Go figure.

 

I also much prefer the look and feel. Fat, round, black and gold, ornate clip. Much better looking (IMHO, seems I'm in the minority) than the Lamy. But the Lamy definitely writes crisper and more consistently.

 

http://i60.tinypic.com/2hohems.jpg

Edited August 14, 2014 by Romans5.8

[KBeezie]

Well I bought the Jinhao. 10 bucks, why not?

 

It's a wet writer, but a nice writer. Actually, I've been using it more than the Lamy. I've discovered I prefer both a broader nib and a heavier pen. I just love the weight of the Jinhao. Go figure.

 

I also much prefer the look and feel. Fat, round, black and gold, ornate clip. Much better looking (IMHO, seems I'm in the minority) than the Lamy. But the Lamy definitely writes crisper and more consistently.

 

http://i60.tinypic.com/2hohems.jpg

 

 

You didn't mention the model # of "The Jinhao", but based on the grip and look, guessing that's an X450 (I don't care for the grip and cap on the X450, prefer the one on the X750).

[balson]

jinhaos are not a bad pen for the price but they will not work as well as your lamy. within your price range i would look into a restored vintage sheaffer pen. they are usually nice smooth wet writers with that classic fountain pen look, and you can get one restored on ebay for $20-50

[WaskiSquirrel]

 

http://www.amazon.com/JinHao-Stainless-Steel-Gold-Fountain/dp/B0052KLTM6/ref=sr_1_1?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1407719744&sr=1-1&keywords=fountain+pen

 

http://www.amazon.com/Hand-turned-Holy-Olive-Fountain-Fittings/dp/B00FXDQHVK/ref=sr_1_2?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1407719785&sr=1-2&keywords=wood+fountain+pen

 

http://www.amazon.com/Jinhao-X450-Dark-Fountain-Medium/dp/B00J0RJKVY/ref=sr_1_5?s=office-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1407719814&sr=1-5&keywords=fountain+pen

 

Just curious. I like the looks of those pens more than I do the looks of a lot of the pens recommended around here. But they seem to be no-name brands. Just out of curiosity, are they any good?

 

 

You should buy what pleases you, not what you hear from others. So, take what I say (and what everyone else says) with a grain of salt.

 

Of the three pens you listed, I actually own the last one. It's ok. It skips a little with its native nib. I liked it a lot better when I put in a Goulet nib. My impression of these pens after a while was that they looked like costume jewelry: overdone and blingy to hide their cheapness. That said, function is the main thing, and these pens do function decently. They are good, wet writers, and the feed is exactly the same as the feed in the much more expensive Monteverde pens.

 

Other than the nib and the look, my main objections to my Jinhao pens -- I own two -- are the nasty converter and the way the cap fills with ink splashes put there by the very act of capping and uncapping the pen. This quickly adds up to serious and messy amounts of ink.

 

But, again, this may be a cheap pen, but it does have nice weight, it works well with the right nib, and it does have the classic elements. As to the other two pens, I have no intelligent comment.

 

My personal favorite Jinhao is the porcelain line. They look more Chinese, less like costume jewelry, and write very well with their factory standard nib. My main complaint with them is the same as the one I just finished describing: the ink splashing from the nib as I cap and uncap the pen.

[doriath19]

Jinhao pens are great pens for the price. The weight and feel is surprisingly good quality. Also the nibs of some models can be easily swapped out for a size 6 nib such as the ones sold by gouletpens (no affiliation just extremely impressed by these nibs).

[Tessy Moon]

I have two Jinhao x450 and they are great for the $5 each I paid for them on ebay.

 

Have you looked at the pens by Nemoisine? I think they look cool. I have the Fission (a metal pen) and just ordered the Singularity (a plastic pen)

 

The nice thing is they have lots of colors and nib choices. Also if you happen to not like the nib just switch it with any other #6 nib.

 

Here is just one example of each, but as I said, there are lots more color and nib choices available on Amazon and xfountainpens.com

 

http://www.amazon.com/Nemosine-Singularity-Fountain-Demonstrator-NEM-SIN-01-F/dp/B007L4Y8L0/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1408073671&sr=8-3&keywords=nemosine

 

http://www.amazon.com/Nemosine-Fission-Jet-Black-Fountain/dp/B00JG0I2X2/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1408073754&sr=8-5&keywords=nemosine+fission

[Romans5.8]

Thanks guys!

 

I definitely like the weight.

 

Just out of curiosity, what are some other heavy, broad writing pens? Not gonna go out and order one tonight; but I could see myself in the future with a 'nicer' fountain pen that has a nice weight to it and is sort of that style. I wish I had a pen that wrote as well as the Lamy, but was as heavy as the Jinhao. And I'm a sucker for brass and cold over the more 'sterile' styling a lot of these pens.

 

And yes, it's an X450!

Edited August 16, 2014 by Romans5.8

[KBeezie]

Thanks guys!

 

I definitely like the weight.

 

Just out of curiosity, what are some other heavy, broad writing pens? Not gonna go out and order one tonight; but I could see myself in the future with a 'nicer' fountain pen that has a nice weight to it and is sort of that style. I wish I had a pen that wrote as well as the Lamy, but was as heavy as the Jinhao. And I'm a sucker for brass and cold over the more 'sterile' styling a lot of these pens.

 

And yes, it's an X450!

 

Well you could always put a Knox 1.9 or Goulet 1.5 stub nib onto your X450. Which is what I did when I first got m y X450 (that 1.5 is now on my Nemosine Singularity Demonstrator, the X450 was PIF'd).

 

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/intro/x450_stub.jpg

 

The Goulet 1.5 I find to be very smooth and very good flow, but runs about $15. I have not tried the Knox 1.9, but you can get the nib for 7.99, the K35 Knox nibs fit onto the Jinhao X450, X750, 159, and in general most that take a #6.

 

I never cared for the stock Jinhao nibs the X450/X750/159 comes with, kind of has an annoying flow that's not quite consistent as my Goulet EF, M and 1.5.

 

I own a Safari with a "Fine" Nib, and my Goulet EF, M and 1.5 nib is as smooth if not smoother than the Lamy Fine.

 

 

Edit: You can also get the Knox broad set (B, OB, OBB) for $19, if you're not quite sure how broad you want, and don't care for stubs. That seems like your best bet if you like the heft of the X450 and just want it broader, in case you didn't know you could just swap the nib.

Edited August 16, 2014 by KBeezie

[EFP]

Ordered a red 78G BB from Peyton Street on ebay yesterday. Can't wait till it gets here!

 

You might browse Teri's Web site at Peyton Street Pens. She not only has good modern Chinese pens, but also very affordable hand-made Indian pens, and wonderful new-old-stock and restored vintage pens. You might find a look you really want in your price range. My experience with Peyton Street is that if they ship a pen to you, it's going to write wonderfully.

ron

[bbs]

Hi, if your criteria are still the same, the Waterman Phileas might please you. Very nice inexpensive writers.

 

https://www.google.co.uk/#q=waterman+phileas+red+marble+fountain+pen&facrc=_&imgrc=7dQ1-t3Aix-P8M%253A%3Bundefined%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fimgs.inkfrog.com%252Fpix%252FUncleDearest%252FWATERMAN_PHILEAS_RED_BLACK_MARBLE_FOUNTAIN_PEN_MEDIUM_POIN.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fvintagepencollectibles.com%252FWaterman_Pens.html%3B500%3B263

[richardandtracy]

I have a Parker Duofold Centennial, Pearl & Black. Lovely pen, love using it, want more Centennials. Can't afford them.

This is where the Kaigelu 316 comes in. It starts off being a good pen for the money. Then with a replacement JoWo #6 nib and a home made finial to correct the balance, I have a pen that looks & feels like the $500 Parker. For maybe $30. The only downside is that the plating starts to show wear after 2 years.

 

Regards,

 

Richard

[Romans5.8]

Well I picked up two goulet nibs, bold and 1.5 italic. (Go big or go home right?)

 

Some thoughts,

 

The 1.5 isn't extremely smooth, but it's nice. And boy does it write great. It's very wet and bold though so you need to write big.

 

The bold is smoother than the Lamy. It is a SWEET writer. But it's almost a little 'too' bold. I think I'm going to place another order for a 1.1, medium, and fine nibs from Goulet, and try them out. A goulet nib with a Jinhao pen isn't a bad combination! IF the Goulet medium/fine nibs are a little less 'wet' (though I suspect that's a lot more the pen than the nib), then I could see using the Jinhao as my out and about / note taking pen. But likely that'll remain the lamy, which is where it's wide clip, light weight and stingy ink dispension come in really handy.

 

http://i60.tinypic.com/23tiic2.jpg

 

As you can see, for whatever reason, the heavier, bolder pen is much neater for me. I guess I just do better with a heavy pen. My handwriting is terrible so I need all the help I can get.

 

The 1.5 stub is fairly 'scratchy', and the bold nib is BUTTERY smooth, unbelievably smooth. Are stubs just a little 'scratchier', or is there many a break in period? Just curious.

[Tessy Moon]

 

The 1.5 stub is fairly 'scratchy', and the bold nib is BUTTERY smooth, unbelievably smooth. Are stubs just a little 'scratchier', or is there many a break in period? Just curious.

 

 

Email Goulet and tell them you received a scratchy nib!

I had the same thing happen once with a Goulet 1.5 nib. They sent me a new one immediately, free of charge!

I now have three 1.5 and two 1.1 Goulet nibs and love them! In my experience they are all buttery smooth! Except for that one, which they were wonderful to replace!

[Tessy Moon]

Also, you can invest in a nib smoothing kit like this one: http://www.gouletpens.com/Goulet_Pen_Tuning_Package_Set_p/gpc-package-tuning.htm

 

You can use this to smooth some nibs on your own. I highly recommend watching the video and being confident to go slow and gentle so you do not ruin a nib. And please start with a cheap or easily replaceable nib! You can get regular Noodler's nibs for $2 here: http://www.gouletpens.com/Noodlers_Non_Flex_Replacement_Steel_Nib_p/n18091.htm

 

Having the kit above has helped me a great deal. It probably can't save every nib out there, but it sure can help in many cases! It has made a huge difference in my writing experience!

I was very hesitant to try this and wasn't sure if I could do it right. But after plenty of research and watching videos on it, I gave it a try and am so glad I did!

Hope this helps!

[KBeezie]

Also, you can invest in a nib smoothing kit like this one: http://www.gouletpens.com/Goulet_Pen_Tuning_Package_Set_p/gpc-package-tuning.htm

 

You can use this to smooth some nibs on your own. I highly recommend watching the video and being confident to go slow and gentle so you do not ruin a nib. And please start with a cheap or easily replaceable nib! You can get regular Noodler's nibs for $2 here: http://www.gouletpens.com/Noodlers_Non_Flex_Replacement_Steel_Nib_p/n18091.htm

 

Having the kit above has helped me a great deal. It probably can't save every nib out there, but it sure can help in many cases! It has made a huge difference in my writing experience!

I was very hesitant to try this and wasn't sure if I could do it right. But after plenty of research and watching videos on it, I gave it a try and am so glad I did!

Hope this helps!

 

Though before trying to smooth anything, get a loupe and make sure the tines are aligned (usually best to look at it at a slightly down slant so you can see how flat it is across the part of the tipping that will contact the paper).

 

Alignment is usually the biggest factor as to why a nib is scratchy.

 

But if it's aligned and too scratchy you can have GouletPens exchange it. All three of mine (EF, M, 1.5) were pretty decent, but I did take the Goulet EF and smooth it a little with the micro-mesh and then with the mylar paper to give it a nice smooth feel but without being too slippery on the paper (a comfortable smooth graphite-like feedback without scratch or snag), which I was even more successful with my Kaweco AL Sport's medium nib.

[Tessy Moon]

Yes I forgot to mention the loupe! Although I think Brian mentions in his video about using the loupe before doing anything else.

Thank you for bringing up that great point!

[dothgrin]

Pilot 78G or my fave, the Pilot Metro. So many good options, fine and medium, and under $15. Jinhao x750 is also nice, but not if one is a fine nib fan (one would need to buy a Goulet nib for a fine or extra fine nib, but that adds another $15). I have a Jinhao X750 Shimmering Sands, and it is a nice pen, even with its weight.

[mtnbiker62]

+1 for the Jinhao X750 + Goulet nib combination. The Jinhao medium nibs aren't too bad (with a little adjustment), but the pens really shine with the Goulet nibs. $25 total, and you have a substantial feeling pen that writes well. The converters that come with the Jinhao pens have varied widely in my experience (I've only owned 7 of the pens), so sometimes an upgrade to the converter has also been necessary, but they are a nice performing pen for a pretty low price. I even found one on eBay a while back that had been ground to a fine stub nib!