Italian Resin Pens

[georges zaslavsky]

Resin isn't plastic you are wrong. Just read the definition of the vegetal resin and celluloid made by Omas and which is used only in high end italian pens:

http://www.omas.com/defaultIntroLink.asp?t...=2&grc=4&grl=13

Cotton resin, a vegetal substance, is warm, soft and pleasing to the touch. The surface is immensely shiny enabling very high definition of the colours used. The shades of colour selected are researched, created and tested in OMAS workshops

Produced from cellulose treated with camphor in an ether solution, celluloid is a material encompassing all the qualities needed to make a perfect fountain pen: light, resilient, sturdy, shiny and pleasing to the touch. These features are then combined with the extraordinary colour combinations offered by celluloid. The processing stages are long and complicated meaning that the production cycle for an OMAS celluloid pen is longer than 100 days.

Hope this helps.

Edited April 14, 2007 by georges zaslavsky

[meanwhile]

George -

 

Because you haven't said who you are replying to, I don't know exactly what has been stated that you think is "wrong".

 

Your argument seems to be that because Omas define resin in a way that you believe excludes plastic, the term "resin" has to mean the same thing when used by all other pen makers. Sorry: I'm afraid things don't work this way. Unless a term like this is defined by legally binding trading standards its use will vary widely.

 

You also need to consider that "resin" is a wide category of substances and that vegetal resin is a subset; this doesn't imply that any that *all* resin is vegetal resin any more than that all plastic is casein (which *is* a plastic).

 

"Resin" sounds much better than "plastic", and "precious resin" or "Italian resin" much better again. It's not untruthful, and there's nothing wrong with companies describing their products as "oven fresh chicken, filled with fragrant herbs" rather than "seared dead poultry, crammed with smelly leaves".

[NeoTiger]

Totally agree with meanwhile.

 

The term "resin" simply isn't defined clearly. There are plastic resins and there are natural resins (such as tree sap).

 

Just because Omas uses natural resins in their pens and say so, doesn't mean other manufacturers will be.

 

"Italian resin" is just a term Laban has chosen to use, it doesn't mean anything definite.

[meanwhile]

QUOTE (NeoTiger @ Apr 14 2007, 02:09 PM)

"Italian resin" is just a term Laban has chosen to use, it doesn't mean anything definite.

Except that hopefully the plastic used has at least seen Italy...

 

Anyway, I think the Labans look pretty. If I was in the market for a CC pen I'd consider one.

 

Of course Mont Blanc are on much safer ground with their precious resin. By definition any plastic that can sold for that much is precious!

Edited April 14, 2007 by meanwhile

[jonro]

resin |ˈrezən| noun a sticky flammable organic substance, insoluble in water, exuded by some trees and other plants (notably fir and pine). Compare with gum 1 (sense 1). • (also synthetic resin) a solid or liquid synthetic organic polymer used as the basis of plastics, adhesives, varnishes, or other products.

 

acrylic resin n. Any of numerous thermoplastic or thermosetting polymers or copolymers of acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, esters of these acids, or acrylonitrile, used to produce paints, synthetic rubbers, and lightweight plastics.

 

Above is the dictionary definition of generic resin and acrylic resin. We, as educated consumers, want to know if the fabulous resinlicious substance used in our pens is organic or inorganic resin. There is a big difference between urushi resin and acrylic and celluloid. All can be used to make attractive and durable products, but there are big differences in production techniques, appearance and cost.

 

We want to know what we are buying so we can make our decisions accordingly. Fountain pen manufacturers should give us complete and accurate information about the materials used in the products they sell.

Edited April 14, 2007 by jonro

[Titivillus]

QUOTE

Fountain pen resin should be some type of tree sap (i.e., urushi is a resin).

 

 

That is not totally correct. resin can either be a the viscous substance of plant origin or any of numerous physically similar polymerized synthetics or chemically modified natural resins including thermoplastic materials such as polyvinyl, polystyrene, and polyethylene and thermosetting materials such as polyesters, epoxies, and silicones.

 

 

 

Kurt

 

who works for a plastics company in real life. and gets to see lots of resin every day.

 

 

Edited April 14, 2007 by Tytyvyllus

[EventHorizon]

QUOTE (meanwhile @ Apr 14 2007, 08:47 AM)

and there's nothing wrong with companies describing their products as "oven fresh chicken, filled with fragrant herbs" rather than "seared dead poultry, crammed with smelly leaves".

Good One

[EventHorizon]

QUOTE (NeoTiger @ Apr 14 2007, 09:09 AM)

"Italian resin" is just a term Laban has chosen to use, it doesn't mean anything definite.

Agree.

 

I also agree with Meanwhile in the fact that it would be nice if said material has at least seen Italy.

 

Tytyvyllus - I'll see what I can dig up at work tomorrow. Our main plant in Germany deals with plastics plus we have a couple suppliers for plastic injected parts.

[NeoTiger]

Except that hopefully the plastic used has at least seen Italy...

 

That's what we'd hope.... but I wouldn't bet on it....

 

They could even go as far as saying it was inspired by Italian designs, thus called Italian resin.... We'll never know until someone official says something.

[QM2]

Resin=Plastic.

resin should be some type of tree sap (i.e., urushi is a resin). Unfortunately, the terms are often used interchangeably

 

Right. True resin is actually an organic substance made of hardened tree sap or other harvested plant secretions. Oil painters use resins to mix with paints for specific kinds of finishing effects, and resins are also used as varnish on expensive handmade furniture. A chunk of real resin looks somewhat like amber, and can have beautiful natural marbling effects. Natural dies can be mixed into the substance while it is still in liquid form to create unusual color possibilities. As you can imagine, harvesting and dying this stuff can be rather costly. So my guess is that unless a pen is insanely expensive and limited edition, by "resin" they mean an acrylic product that is made to resemble the look and feel of real resin.

 

With Laban though, who knows -- they make sterling silver pens that you can buy for just over $100 USD, so anything is possible.

Edited April 16, 2007 by QueenMargot2