Faber - Castell Ondoro

[visvamitra]

There are brands I trust and Faber-Castell is one of them. So far I’ve never been disappointed by Faber-Castell fountain pen (the same can’t be said, sadly, about their inks – newest additions to the line are less than mediocre). Not only their products offer good quality but also interesting design. Of course some of their designs don’t suit my taste – Basic is too heavy and unshapely, Loom looks funny. Both of them, however, are great writers.

I was interested in trying Ondoro for quite some time. It offers unique and rather striking design that attracted me to it – how many hexagonal fountain pens do you know? The temptation was strong but before I could spend money on the pen I’ve received it from a friend. I didn’t object. I’ve grabbed it before she could change her mind and started testing it. Since that time I’ve managed to try two Ondoros. I’ve sold Orange one and, after some time, bought Black one and, month after, received another black one. At the moment I have two black Ondoros.

 

I believe this design is subtle but also sophisticated. Smooth, unclattered barrel finishes with a comfortably tapered grip near the nib. Polished chrome cap is engraved with the company logo on the end and is equipped with functional spring-loaded clip. The hexagonal shape is quite ergonomic in the hand. Also it’ll never roll off the table, trust me on this. Actually you don’t need to trust me – just look at the pen

 

Fit & Finish

Construction and quality are quite impressive. In their marketing materials Faber-Castell claims, as most manufacturers do, the pen is made from “precious resin”. The material has nice feel to it but let’s be realistic and call it plastic for what it really is. It feels substantial and solid and because of matte finish (in Black Ondoro) it’s pleasant to the touch. The plastic is, in muy opinion, much better than the one used in Pelikan pens.

 

The metallic snap-on cap is small and hexagonal. It opens and closes on the barrel with audible click. It’s made of chrome plated metal and plastic (inside) – it’s quite heavy and it tends to collect dust easily. I don’t mind it but some people won’t be happy cleaning it every few days. The cap can be posted on the back of the pen – you just need to align facets on the barrel with the ones on the cap. I never post my pens but if you usually do you may be unhappy with Ondoro – metal cap will make it back heavy. It feels unbalanced to me.

 

The pen isn’t huge but, due to significant diameter and well engineered grip, it is very comfortable to hold. Small grip section is short but has concave shape that forces fingers to hold it close to the nib. For me it’s perfect – I always keep my fingers almost on the nib. Some people though will need to get used to it.

 

Nib

Ondoro’s stainless steel nib doesn’t have a breather hole, it’s adorned with dotted pattern as well as the Faber-Castell logo and the nib size stamped on it. It’s available in EF, F, M and B sizes. I had a chance to try fine and medium Ondoro nibs. They both performed well out of the box. They’re not buttery smooth – in a way they’re similar to japanese nibs. They give some feedback, sometimes less, sometimes more – depending on the paper and ink you use.

Filling system

The Ondoro fills using the standard international cartridge/converter system. The system is practical, easy to clean, but rather boring. It has no panache.

Dimensions

Length, capped: 12.8 c

Length, uncapped: 12.4 cm

Length, posted: 15.9 cm

Weight, posted: 32 g

Summary

Faber-Castell Ondoro is undoubtedly interesting fountain pen. It’s design is eye-catching but apart from visual appeal it’s quite practical and ergonomic. Ondoro writes nicely and I appreciate the fact there’s little in the way of branding or marks on the pen to spoil its clean lines. As for the price – it’s not cheap pen. For it’s MSRP you can easily get better pens on eBay. On the other hand it’s well built and with unique design. I’ve sold my first Ondoro because I didn’t fully enjoy it’s orange hue (I love oranges, but darker ones). After some time I’ve decided to get another one in another finish and I’m quite happy with it.

 

I think it’s great pen but it should be 30 % cheaper.

[AllenTBar]

I have one of these in the dark brown wood grain finish with an EF nib and it just sits and unfortunately collects dust. Like you mentioned, the design really suits some people and others not at all. I've actually decided recently to try to sell it, as I feel bad leaving such an aesthetically pretty piece on my desk never being used.

 

Hopefully it will wind up with someone who appreciates it as much as you do, it really is beautiful.

[Tas]

Excellent review of an solid and understated pen. Thank you.

 

My shiny black has been a brilliant every day carry with SK Navy Blue as it's only ink.

 

That green and orange combo of yours works a treat . . .

[Ileach]

Do they say anywhere that it's "Made in Germany"?

[migo984]

I have two - a Graphite (matt) Black (came with an F nib) and a matt Grey-Brown (came with an M nib). I'm not keen on the orange as it's too shiny. The Grey-Brown one cost me £65, which I thought was a pretty good price. I only like the ones with the resin sections; recently the design has been changed and sometimes the black, orange and graphite models are sold with metal sections. The shape & size of the section is perfect for me. They're great nibs, and of course are interchangeable with the Basic nib and other standard size #5s. I've been swapping these out for an 18k Arrow EF nib & a rhodium 18k F #5, both from fpnibs.com. Look and work a treat.

 

These are beautifully engineered pens. Mine are both immaculately made. My partner has just received a Piano (shiny) Black one. Speerbob on eBay had a few for sale at good BIN prices.

 

Cartridge/converter is my favourite filling system for a whole host of reasons, so I'm happy with that aspect too.

Edited August 1, 2016 by migo984

[inotrym]

Thank you for reminding me of this pen´s existence.

 

I wanted to add an orange pen in my collection for quite some time and I am a Faber-Castell fan (due to my 3 E-motions), but still for some reason I´d missed this.

[Sagarb]

superb review...I am really excited because I have acquired one just few days ago..I am really enjoying every bit of it..have got a black one as well..Thanks for an excellent exhibition of pictures..

[Algester]

Wait ondoro with a matte finish? Is that a new one I remember it only came in wood, orange and black... I have one in wood but the matte black is interesting sadly the cap isnt well known t have a good seal so I'm having hard starting issues when the pen sees little to often no use

[migo984]

Matt black has been around for a little while. They used to sell it in white too.

I dint have any hard starts with my two. I asked the seller to check the cap fit before sending to me.

[Pensei]

Good review. And I cast one more vote saying this is a nice pen. I have the orange EF and it's one of my favorites. A very attractive nib that writes well, also. Massdrop has had this pen a couple of times, so that might be a way to achieve the price discount you mentioned.

[mehandiratta]

Orange I guess is the hottest selling Ondoro...

And i have the same one broad nib... but the nib is actually quite smooth.. and not feedbacky...

 

loved the pictures and crisp review...

[Tas]

  On 8/2/2016 at 3:50 AM, Algester said:

Wait ondoro with a matte finish? Is that a new one I remember it only came in wood, orange and black... I have one in wood but the matte black is interesting sadly the cap isnt well known t have a good seal so I'm having hard starting issues when the pen sees little to often no use

 

How sad mine has never failed to start. Have you tried using a different ink to see ? I'm so sorry.

[visvamitra]

@Algester - I've never had such issues with this one. The only thing I fear is how well the cap will handle multiple closings and openings through the years. I remember my black Ambition's cap had become loose after a year or so of use.

[Maxim]

Thanks for the review!

 

I really like the look of this pen. I ordered one in walnut/black for my wife which is very pretty. The nib unit didn't feed the best though.

 

Then I picked up a gloss black for myself. The cap really lets the pen down in my opinion -- when paying three figures for a pen, a metal cap should really be a given and the cheap feeling of the cap is rather distracting.

[Algester]

But honestly Ondoro is one of the best pens Faber-Castell has to offer in terms of function and design it has its flaws for me personally the cap not being able to seal well but feed priming shouldnt be that hard and I did say if the pen sees little to often no use I guess its to be expected but right now I'm still trying to get my Ondoro fixed (I'm not sure what ink has caused the stainless nib to get some corrosion) or I could probably just settle for an EF nib unit...

And personally I wish they come up with the pear wood variant... Like the Ambition

Edited August 2, 2016 by Algester

[rudyhou]

  On 8/1/2016 at 11:10 PM, migo984 said:

I have two - a Graphite (matt) Black (came with an F nib) and a matt Grey-Brown (came with an M nib). I'm not keen on the orange as it's too shiny. The Grey-Brown one cost me £65, which I thought was a pretty good price. I only like the ones with the resin sections; recently the design has been changed and sometimes the black, orange and graphite models are sold with metal sections. The shape & size of the section is perfect for me. They're great nibs, and of course are interchangeable with the Basic nib and other standard size #5s. I've been swapping these out for an 18k Arrow EF nib & a rhodium 18k F #5, both from fpnibs.com. Look and work a treat.

 

These are beautifully engineered pens. Mine are both immaculately made. My partner has just received a Piano (shiny) Black one. Speerbob on eBay had a few for sale at good BIN prices.

 

Cartridge/converter is my favourite filling system for a whole host of reasons, so I'm happy with that aspect too.

 

wait a minute. i'm aware of the matt black version, but i wasn't aware that there is a matt brown . hope i get to see it soon before i decide to purchase the matt black one.

[rudyhou]

thank you for the review. i have always wanted to get one. was dead sure about getting the walnut wood version but found it to be too heavy after trying it out at a shop. and so now i plan on maybe getting a matt black version.

[migo984]

  On 8/12/2016 at 7:04 AM, rudyhou said:

wait a minute. i'm aware of the matt black version, but i wasn't aware that there is a matt brown . hope i get to see it soon before i decide to purchase the matt black one.

 

Here's the matt grey-brown I bought from Andy's Pens. Excl VAT + international shipping of around £8 to Australia.

Excellent service & I really like the colour & finish.

 

http://www.andys-pens.co.uk/faberdesign.shtml/faber-ondoro-fp-grey-brown?page=2

[rudyhou]

  On 8/12/2016 at 9:09 AM, migo984 said:

Here's the matt grey-brown I bought from Andy's Pens. Excl VAT + international shipping of around £8 to Australia.

Excellent service & I really like the colour & finish.

 

http://www.andys-pens.co.uk/faberdesign.shtml/faber-ondoro-fp-grey-brown?page=2

 

thank you for this. hhmm... this matt brown is equally nice. so far i have never seen this available in my country. i wonder if this is only made for overseas markets. need to do some checking.

[MontPelikan]

Hello,

 

here is a little video review of this pen:

 

 

Best wishes

 

MontPelikan