Chinese Pens Show And Tell.

[FrankH]

My first effort at this sort of thing. Be gentle with me,

 

I have several Chinese pens, these are the two I currently have inked. First is a Duke 2009 "Charlie Chaplin", second is also a Duke, it was advertised as model # 220 but it's on Duke's website as model # 200.http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/IMG_2739.png

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/IMG_2740.png

 

The "Charlie Chaplin" is a seriously heavy pen, you really know you've got something substantial in your hand although it's nicely balanced and comfortable to use. It's rather short and stout at 130mm capped although at 149mm posted it's the same as the 200. I prefer to use pens posted but it feels good posted or unposted. It's a smooth writer and lays quite a wet line. It weighs 74g split evenly 37/37 between the body and the cap. (Anybody notice my not very deliberate mistake yet? Maybe I got away with it. ) The cap is 18mm at its widest, the body is 16mm both taper to about 12mm.

 

The cap clicks into place to close the pen and it clicks into place when you post it.

 

The band around the cap is engraved with a couple of boots and a hat, which presumably is where the Charlie Chaplin connection comes in.

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/IMG_2741.png

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/IMG_2742.png

 

And now the 200.

 

This is much slimmer than the "Charlie Chaplin" pen, the cap is about 13mm tapering to 11mm, the body is 12mm tapering to 9mm. The total weight is 29g split 16g for the body, 12g for the cap (and 1g for my scale's rounding error).

 

136mm capped and 149mm posted. This pen also sits nicely in the hand posted or unposted. It's not as smooth as the "Charlie Chaplin" but writing with it is a pleasant experience nonetheless. The nib is 10K and there is virtually no flex to it.

 

The body and the cap are black with delicate pale blue marbling and the cap has a wide band engraved with the maker's name and what look like wings.

 

The cap clicks into place to close the pen and it's a fairly secure friction fit when posted.

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/IMG_2743.png

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/IMG_2745.png

Edited September 9, 2016 by FrankH

[Ian the Jock]

Welcome Frank

Great stuff.

I don't have any Duke pens, but I've always been tempted by the Charlie Chaplin and The Taoist Priest pens, probably due to their awesome bulk.

Like yourself I always post my pens, and I've always been concerned that the Chaplin and the Taoist wouldn't post because of their bulk...but now I know.

And

The Chaplin looks excellent posted as well, and I love the wee bowler hat on top.

 

Another one to add to the list then.

 

Ian

[Ian the Jock]

Ok, so a few weeks back, my mother in law won some money on one of the lotteries, not much though, as by the time she’d dished it out she had virtually nothing left.

She gave Laura, my wife, £40, of which Laura gave me £20 and asked if I would be able to buy a pen with it.

My reply was of course…. Yes, of course I can.

So.

That was my task…find the best pen I could for £20 ($30 approx).

There was 2 ways to go about it.

1. Rake about on Ebay and see if I could find a bargain Waterman of some description.
2. Head for Ebay China and get me a “more expensive” offering from one of my Chinese favourites.

There wasn’t much doing on the Waterman front, other than an Expert 2 that had potential, but it wasn’t finishing for 6 days, so I bid enough to get me to the top of the pile, with a few quid held back with which to aid my assault when the auction was finishing, and headed for Ebay China to check out what I could maybe go for if I didn’t win the Expert.

To cut a long story short, the expert auction finished at tea time, and thanks to my own “no phones at the dinner table” rule, I missed the end of the auction and the Expert sold for £12.50…….gutted, I couldn’t believe it. It had sold for 50p more than my max bid, when I was prepared to go to the £20 at the end of the auction, which I missed, obviously.

So, to console myself, I headed to Mr Reliable, Jewellery Mathematics, to buy myself the best pen I could find for my £20.

I had considered getting another Kaigelu 316, and another Jinhao/Hero or 2, but the rule was…….1 pen, and I had quite fancied getting another Picasso, as the Swedish Flower King I already have is a brilliant pen, and one of my favourites.

While looking through JMs' Picasso offerings, I happened upon a pen listed as Picasso Art Collection 915 celluloid.

It was a green marble barrelled pen, and although not a big fan of green pens, I clicked on it, and it was a pleasant surprise to find that it came in other colours, namely Ruby, and Black.

Immediately, the Ruby leapt off the screen and my mind was made up…It looked gorgeous, and so I went through the usual, offer, counter offer procedure to get my 10% off, and the order was placed.

Generally delivery is in around 3-4 weeks, but I have learned to be patient and excitedly awaited the arrival of my latest acquisition.

 

As it happened, I got a second chance offer a few days later on the Waterman, and snapped it up for £12, which was a serious bargain, but I still wasn’t as excited as I was waiting for my new Picasso.

 

Less than 2 weeks after placing the order, I returned from walking the dog one morning, to find that my package from beyond the great wall had arrived.

 

Excitedly, but carefully, I cut open the packaging (of which there was lots. Bubble wrap city, so no damage concerns there then).

On removing the packaging, I was through to the outer box, which was a nicely decorated affair.

 

 

I opened the outer box and slipped out the inner box, which was a nice, stiff, pretty artistic faux leather affair, with some nicely embossed Picasso artwork on it, which made for a pretty good 1st impression

 

I then opened the box and my first impression was….WOW!!

The pen was gorgeous, and really looked the part in its’ lined box with warranty card and instruction booklet behind……a really classy looking ensemble altogether.

 

 

I took out the pen and was immediately taken by the size and weight of the pen, as well as the fact that it was absolutely gorgeous.

The celluloid, which is of course, acrylic, has a lovely depth and pearlescence to it, not too dis-similar to the acrylic on my ruby Delta Vintage, really, really nice.

The weight, like the K316, comes from a brass barrel finial and the brass joining the barrel to the section, which gives the pen a pretty hefty 54g weight, although it is quite a large pen in general at 145mm capped and 169mm posted.

Despite being a heavy pen it balances beautifully in the hand, and although I don’t really do a lot of writing per se, I knocked out 10 full pages of Clydeside shipbuilding history without a glitch, in fact, the big Picasso “sailed” through it, if you’ll pardon the pun.

Another eye opener, is the nib……it’s huge.

I have no idea what size it is, but it is bigger than the K316 nib and the big Jinhao nibs, and, like the rest of the pen, it is very nice indeed, a two tone affair, engraved with the Picasso peace dove, and the Picasso signature, putting down a sumptuously wet, medium line……Lovely.

 

 

 

 

 

The cap is also very well constructed with a few nice touches on it, which adds to the look of the pen. It has a wide overlay type band with a Picasso design on it which is nice, an inlaid cap final with nice detailing and again, Picasso imagery.

The clip is really eye catching , with a risen Picasso-esque “face” shape, moulded, or cast, or whatever onto the face of the clip.

 

 

 

So

How does it write?

Quite simply, It’s a dream to write with, and has immediately thrust itself to the upper echelons of my Chinese pen chart.

The nib Is very, very, smooth, and the large feed keeps up with the wet nib with no issues, even at high speed.

 

 

 

 

 

So A few questions…

 

Am I pleased with my new pen?

You Betcha.

Is it a better buy than a £70 Expert 2 for £12.?

It feels as well built, writes as well, if not , better, and is decidedly more beautiful, and if I had the choice of any of the 2 for £20, I’d take the Picasso.

Are “higher priced” Chinese pens worth the extra green?

They are only higher priced compared to low priced Chinese pens, but compared to comparable quality western pens, they are an absolute steal, as there is no way you’d get a new western pen of this quality for the same money.

Will the nay sayers and decryers of Chinese pens wake up and realise that there are many, many, brilliant value Chinese pens out there which are certainly worthy of consideration, and are probably, £ for £ as good, if not better value, than many of their far more expensive western counterparts?

Probably not.

 

 

As I’ve said….Not exactly a cheap Chinese pen, as Chinese pens go, but still seriously inexpensive for what you are getting, and at £20 ($30) including shipping, it’s an absolute bargain.

 

CHEERS

Ian.

Edited September 14, 2016 by Ian the Jock

[Bluey]

  On 9/14/2016 at 2:56 PM, Ian the Jock said:

Will the nay sayers and decryers of Chinese pens wake up and realise that there are many, many, brilliant value Chinese pens out there which are certainly worthy of consideration, and are probably, £ for £ as good, if not better value, than many of their far more expensive western counterparts?

Probably not.

 

 

I think most people on the forum now acknowledge this, but there are still the fountain pen snobs who wouldn't know quality if it slapped them into oblivion, because to them quality is a brand rather than a pen. Bless their (Versace) cotton socks.

Unfortunately they represent the ugly side that taints this otherwise thoroughly enjoyable hobby.

 

Beautiful pens btw. I'm going to look for that one for myself.

Edited September 14, 2016 by Bluey

[FrankH]

  On 9/14/2016 at 12:49 PM, Ian the Jock said:

Welcome Frank

Great stuff.

I don't have any Duke pens, but I've always been tempted by the Charlie Chaplin and The Taoist Priest pens, probably due to their awesome bulk.

Like yourself I always post my pens, and I've always been concerned that the Chaplin and the Taoist wouldn't post because of their bulk...but now I know.

And

The Chaplin looks excellent posted as well, and I love the wee bowler hat on top.

 

Another one to add to the list then.

 

Ian

Thank you for your welcome. I have four more Duke pens to tell you about and a couple of Heroes.

 

Having read your review of the "hefty, 54g" Picasso, I think you'd like the Charlie Chaplin. It's certainly not one for those who prefer lightweight pens but it writes beautifully. As for posting, the ring on the end of the body (is that called a finial?) is the same size as the ring on the end of the section and the cap clicks securely into place on one or the other when the pen is closed or capped.

 

I hadn't noticed the resemblance to a bowler hat, but now you mention it...

 

 

EDIT: "...closed or capped" What was I thinking? "...capped or posted" is what I meant.

Edited September 15, 2016 by FrankH

[Ian the Jock]

  On 9/14/2016 at 6:35 PM, FrankH said:

Thank you for your welcome. I have four more Duke pens to tell you about and a couple of Heroes.

 

Having read your review of the "hefty, 54g" Picasso, I think you'd like the Charlie Chaplin. It's certainly not one for those who prefer lightweight pens but it writes beautifully. As for posting, the ring on the end of the body (is that called a finial?) is the same size as the ring on the end of the section and the cap clicks securely into place on one or the other when the pen is closed or capped.

 

I hadn't noticed the resemblance to a bowler hat, but now you mention it...

In the pic where the cap stands alone, it looks just like Charlie Chaplain, bowler and all.

I believe it was designed to be so.

I do like a pen that clicks to post, so this pen is becoming more desirable by the minute.

 

Ian

[bobje]

Ian,

Terrific story about the Waterman non-completion eBay auction, which sounds like something I've done several times. And what a great looking pen, handsome ruby material. The packaging is especially impressive for a price tag of $30, and I'm a sucker for a novel nib imprint. Nice red ink selection for your first filling -- what is that ink, anyway?

[Ian the Jock]

Thanks Bob

It's a mixture of 1 part diamine Syrah, to 5 parts diamine Poppy.

I was looking to create a red that was a wee bit deeper, and a bit more saturated, to take away the "orangey" look of the poppy, but not deep enough to become a burgundy.

It's a bit unruly on some of my paper but it's great in finer nibs.

[Ian the Jock]

  On 9/14/2016 at 5:02 PM, Bluey said:

I think most people on the forum now acknowledge this, but there are still the fountain pen snobs who wouldn't know quality if it slapped them into oblivion, because to them quality is a brand rather than a pen. Bless their (Versace) cotton socks.

Unfortunately they represent the ugly side that taints this otherwise thoroughly enjoyable hobby.

 

Beautiful pens btw. I'm going to look for that one for myself.

Thanks Bluey

Yip, I've come across them.........but I now tend to look at it that it's their loss.

 

The pen is lovely, and I would certainly recommend it.

 

Ian

[Helen350]

Ian beautiful pics & an excellent review! I have looked at this pen previously and wondered? Of the three colors, that red looks lovely. I like that it has some heft to it! Your review has helped me to finally make that decision for my "November' pen!

[Ian the Jock]

Thanks Helen.

I'm sure you'll like it, and it will certainly fit in with the other beautiful pens in your collection.

I'm now thinking about the other 2 as they both have their merits, even though one is green

On this one, I particularly like the wee "Picasso bits" that give the pen a certain individuality.

The cap band, clip, nib and the barrel finial, which you don't see in the pics.

It's like a mini coin in a dome, but I have been finding it particularly difficult to photograph.

 

Here's the best I could do.

 

 

Ian

[Bluey]

  On 9/15/2016 at 12:17 PM, Ian the Jock said:

Thanks Bluey

Yip, I've come across them.........but I now tend to look at it that it's their loss.

 

The pen is lovely, and I would certainly recommend it.

 

Ian

Such people are found in all hobbies unfortunately.

I really wanted to find the Picasso 915 in blue but could only find black, red, and green. I'll probably go for the green I think. One thing I notice is that the nib on the green one is gold on silver coloured, whereas on the red it's the reverse. Interesting!

 

Btw I wanted to ask, is that your dog in you're avatar. He/she is totally adorable!

[lovemy51]

Hero 189, 12k nib, very springy (semi-flex, IMO).

 

http://i338.photobucket.com/albums/n419/peterpaul_rguez/P6175829.jpg

[Ian the Jock]

  On 9/15/2016 at 4:25 PM, Bluey said:

Such people are found in all hobbies unfortunately.

I really wanted to find the Picasso 915 in blue but could only find black, red, and green. I'll probably go for the green I think. One thing I notice is that the nib on the green one is gold on silver coloured, whereas on the red it's the reverse. Interesting!

 

Btw I wanted to ask, is that your dog in you're avatar. He/she is totally adorable!

Yes, both the 915 in green and black have silver coloured furniture, with the same nib only in silver with a gold dove, I suppose to match better with the pens.

 

Yes it is, her name is Hannah, and she is an English (ptoo!) cocker spaniel, and is a total diva.

She's madea few appearances on fpn.

 

Ian

[Bluey]

  On 9/15/2016 at 4:55 PM, Ian the Jock said:

Yes, both the 915 in green and black have silver coloured furniture, with the same nib only in silver with a gold dove, I suppose to match better with the pens.

 

Yes it is, her name is Hannah, and she is an English (ptoo!) cocker spaniel, and is a total diva.

She's madea few appearances on fpn.

 

Ian

Ah yes I suppose in a way it does now you mention.

She's a real cutie. Say "bark bark"(that's dog for "hello") to Hannah from me .

[Jaysix]

Another cheapo met the drill press this afternoon.

[FrankH]

After my last show & tell where I told you about two of my pens I decided that two was one too many and in future I'll just do one pen at a time.

 

So my next pen is two Duke 669s. Good intentions defenestrated already but these pens are really just one pen model so it makes sense to do them together. I have a blue one and a red one, I have Quink blue ink in the blue one and Hero red ink in the red one, it satisfies my desire for order.

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/DSCF0413.png

 

Dimensions (approx):

Capped: 140 mm

Cap: 64 mm x 16 mm

Uncapped: 122 mm

Body: 85 mm x 15 mm

Posted: 164 mm

 

Weight:

Although they are undoubtedly the same model, the red pen is heavier than the blue:

Whole pen: red 47g, blue 42g

Body: red 28g, blue 24g

Cap: red 19g, blue 18g

 

The cap is a screw fit, it screws to close and it screws to post. The thread has three starts so it will post in three positions. I like to post the clip in line with the nib, neither of them line up exactly, not far enough out to annoy; a matter of a degree or two but enough to be noticeable. I tried swapping the caps over but they were way out and that would have annoyed me.

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/DSCF0414.png

 

The caps are black with silver coloured band and clip and a pearlescent "jewel" on the end, the clip has the Duke logo and "duke 669" stamped on it. The body has a shiny black finial , a silver coloured thread where you post the cap and the rest of the body is black with the shiny rippled colour, red or blue.

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/DSCF0415.png

 

I prefer to use my pens posted but the 669 is comfortable to hold and use posted or unposted. It writes a smooth line, about the same as my "cheap" Parker with a medium nib.

 

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/DSCF0417.png

 

 

 

http://www.cappuccino.org.uk/images/DSCF0418.png

 

I bought the pens in China for about 100 Yuan Renminbi each when the exchange rate was about 9.50 to the £1, so about £10 or £11.

 

Do I like this pen? There are seven or eight different colours and designs of this pen on the Duke website. I intend to buy two or three more when I next go to China. Yes, I like it.

[ppateel]

I just got back into using fountain pens after growing up using them exclusively. I started out by buying Jinhao x750 and a Baoer 388. The Jinhao x750 lays a really good wet medium line which is too thick for me so I am planning on replacing that with a JoWo extra fine. That was a easy decision as I know that the x750 uses a standard #6 nib. I also ordered a Jinhao 500 and Hero 7022. I have couple of requests.

 

1. These two pens are posing a big problem as I was researching the nib size. I am unable to find anywhere the size of the nibs on these pens. From looking at all the photos both appear to be using a #5 nib. Does the knowledgeable folks in the group know what is the nib size?
2. And also if any of you have replaced the stock nibs on these pens?
3. Does anybody own these (Jinhao 500 and Hero 7022) and Jinhao x750 and do a writing sample to compare the line width using the stock nibs?

I really love both the pens but I am partial to Baoer 388 mainly because of the fine line it puts out. If the Jinhao 500 and Hero 7022 put a thinner line than Baoer 388, I will be ecstatic. If not I would be equally happy, if I can replace the nibs with a standard #5 or #6 nib.

 

PS: I just spent a better part of 4 hours reading thru each and every post in this thread. You all are amazing!! I am glad I stumbled upon this thread while researching the replacement nib for jinhao 500 and Hero 7022.

[Ian the Jock]

Frank

I do like those 669s

I have a Baoer with that herringbone effect, and I really like it....Keep em' coming.

 

ppateel

Welcome BACK into the world of fountain pens.

Wow! that's a years worth of stuff in those 4 hrs, well played.

 

I've done a quick line width comparison for you, although nothing really scientific, but It'll give you an idea.

 

If all you are looking for in the 500 and the 7022, is that they should produce a finer line than the Baoer 388 then I think you'll be fine.

I haven't changed any of the two nibs, as both are excellent.

If you must change them, then I know the 500 is a #5 and the Hero looks like a 5 too although appearing fractionally slimmer near the section end, but as I said I've never felt the need to change it, therefore couldn't say for sure if it could be swapped for a Bock 5.

 

Both are excellent pens, and a fine choice, and also better pens than the 388 in my opinion, although the 388 is also a great pen.

 

hope this helps

 

Ian

Edited September 18, 2016 by Ian the Jock

[ppateel]

  On 9/18/2016 at 2:02 PM, Ian the Jock said:

Frank

I do like those 669s

I have a Baoer with that herringbone effect, and I really like it....Keep em' coming.

 

ppateel

Welcome BACK into the world of fountain pens.

Wow! that's a years worth of stuff in those 4 hrs, well played.

 

I've done a quick line width comparison for you, although nothing really scientific, but It'll give you an idea.

 

If all you are looking for in the 500 and the 7022, is that they should produce a finer line than the Baoer 388 then I think you'll be fine.

I haven't changed any of the two nibs, as both are excellent.

If you must change them, then I know the 500 is a #5 and the Hero looks like a 5 too although appearing fractionally slimmer near the section end, but as I said I've never felt the need to change it, therefore couldn't say for sure if it could be swapped for a Bock 5.

 

Both are excellent pens, and a fine choice, and also better pens than the 388 in my opinion, although the 388 is also a great pen.

 

hope this helps

 

Ian

 

Ian,

Thanks for the very quick reply and also the information. I really appreciate it. Even more so the writing sample. Thank you so much. That was really nice of you.

 

It is good to know that the nibs are finer than the 388. For me, if they write as thin as the 388, I am good. But seeing that they might write even finer I am very very happy. Another thing I am also looking forward to is "postability" I somehow gotten into the habit of posting my pens all the time irrespective of how heavy the end result is. I cannot bring myself to write without posting. For that reason I also bought a Duke 209. It posts beautifully but the section is shiny metal and smooth and slippery and small. Because of this I am not planning on using it at all. I am thinking of exchanging that with someone once I figure out if that is allowed here and how to do the barter. Looking at the design of the 500 and 7022, I am hoping that they will post securely. I am a big fan of the duofold design and these come pretty close without breaking the bank. I just found out that the pens were shipped as the tracking numbers were updated on ebay. Can't wait to try these out.

 

Once again thank you for the information and the writing sample.