Lloyd Reynold's Italic Nib

[dragos.mocanu]

Does anyone know which three tine nib is the one in this series of videos?

 

Thanks!

[Randal6393]

My work with italic started in the late '70's, just when Lloyd Reynolds was going strong. Looking at the pen you are referring to, would say it was a Platignum pen and nib, one of the top-of-the-line sets. Probably a B3 or B4 size. The discipline of the strokes, the preciseness of the line, all looks like the Platignum pens. As does the shape of the nib.

 

If you get a chance to buy one of the sets, jump at it! The older the pen set, the better the initial quality was. However, wear and tear also needs to be factored in. Wish that our current pen sets were as good. Manuscript is still fairly good and has a bit of quality built in. Don't know of any other beginner's sets that meet high standards of quality.

 

Best of luck to you,

[dragos.mocanu]

Thanks for the answer! Do you know how these old Platignums compare to the Osmiroid 75? I managed to find a nice Osmiroid set with 6 italic nibs in perfect working condition (5 of the nibs were unused), and I really like the B4 nib.

[Randal6393]

The old Platignums were a bit less expensive than the Osmiroids and, perhaps, not quite as desireable. However, I learned on the Platignum and found them to be an excellent workhorse pen, as good as the Osmiroids. I think that, having the Osmiroids, I would consider them to be my workhorse set and try an italic fountain pen next, perhaps a Parsons Italix or Pelikan Cognac with an Italic nib. But that's just my take on it.

 

Best of luck,

[dragos.mocanu]

I already have a couple of italic options available, including 3 Parallels (except the 6mm one), a Manuscript set (which is a bit poorer quality...I've found that the feeds can't keep up with the broader nibs), a 1.1mm Goulet nib (which I can use in a Noodler's pen...but it's not crisp enough for calligraphy imho) and the "crown jewel" of my collection, a Lamy 2000 with Pendleton Brown BLSI nib of ~0.7mm (fine italic) for everyday handwriting. The Osmiroid nibs are tons of fun (especially the 3 tined ones), but I found the 75 to be a bit on the thin side...maybe I'll try an Esterbrook J.

 

Cheers!

[Randal6393]

Esterbrook J? My experiences with Esterbrooks are not good but many penmen swear by them. For the majority of my writing, I use a Lamy 2000, Broad turned into a 1.1 mm italic nib. Ground it myself, several years ago.

 

The Goulet nibs are not sharp enough for most calligraphy, I agree. It does not take much effort to sharpen them to cursive or calligraphic levels, though. And then they do very well. The flow from an Ahab requires taming for calligraphy, Konrads usually are pretty close without much tinkering. For daily writers, a touched-up Goulet in an Ahab is just about ideal. Especially when I am writing a cursive italic.

 

The Osmiroids, I find, are a bit thin but work well. The Platignums are a bit sturdier, more of a nail. That's why I liked them so much. When doing italic (or other broad-edged hands), a flex pen is not too good for me.

 

Enjoy,

[kbrede]

I don't believe anyone has mentioned the Sheaffer No Nonsense. I purchased a vintage set and really like the fine italic nib for writing cursive italic. Next to my Franklin Christoph Masuyama CI broad, it's my favorite. I'm waiting on a Kaweco and Lamy 1.1 to see how they compare.

 

Kent

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have a lever Osmiroid 65, and a six nib set. It is a flimsy feeling pen. Works though.

 

I do like Esterbrooks and they will take an Osmiroid nib.

I find the Esterbrook to be a sturdy pen.....pretty too.

In I grew up in lever days have no problems with a lever pen.

[dms525]

I think Randal is correct regarding the pen Reynolds is using in the video.

 

Even though they have been out of production for decades, an Osmiroid italic set, NOS or reconditioned, provides the most bang for the buck (or Pound, Euro, whatever). I have a slight preference for an Osmiroid nib installed in a Estie J over the Osmiroid 65. The Osmiroid 75 has the advantage of being a piston filler, but it is quite slender. Another out of production italic pen to look out for is the German Reform Calligraphy pen. The barrels are slender, like the Osmiroid 75 but feel like slightly higher quality. These are piston loaders. The nibs are gold plated steel and are quite comparable to the Osmiroid nibs in quality. They came in 0.9 (or 0.8?) 1.1, 1.5and 2.3 mm widths. They are screw in and easily swapped, like on the Osmiroid.

 

For everyday italic writing, as opposed to calligraphy where you want a variety of nib widths and wider nibs, I like the JoWo nibs on Edisons, Franklin-Christophs and TWSBI's, especially the 1.5mm. I have not tried the Masuyama-ground JoWo nibs. From the many, many Pelikan, OMAS, Conway Stewart and other nibs he has customized for me, I am sure the CS/Masuyama nibs are very good.

 

I like the Kaweco Sport italic nibs a lot. Even the 1.1mm one has excellent thick/thin differentiation and very smooth writing. Kaweco makes italic nibs in 1.1, 1.5, 1.9 and 2.3 mm widths. They do sell these in a set along with one Sport body.

 

Another very good option is a Pilot Pen. Pilot fitted several of their inexpensive models with steel italic nibs. Some are gold plated. Others are not. The models you can find with italic nibs are the Plumix (about 0.65mm), the Prera with the same nib as the Plumix and the 78G, available with "B" and "BB" nibs., roughly comparable to the Osmiroid M and B italic nibs.

 

Lamy's 1.5 nib is really very nice, IMO. It is a bit broad for my everyday italic script, and the 1.1mm italic nib is not quite crisp enough for me.

 

There are a few other relative inexpensive italic-nibbed pens I have not personally tried. Based on my reading, the most promising of these is the Italix line. I'm sure I will be unable to resist these for much longer.

 

David