Twsbi Vac Mini Review (Ef)

[kittywonghf]

I bought my TWSBI vac mini a couple of weeks ago, and since I haven't been able to find many reviews of the pen here, I figured I might give my two cents and see what happens

 

http://www.stilografica.it/writable/Penne/TWSBI/TWSBI%20VAC%20mini%20-%20Fountain%20Pen%20-%20Penna%20Stilografica.jpg

 

Packaging: 8/10

The Vac Mini comes in a clear plastic box and is held by two shaped plastic pieces which slots in and holds the pen in place. This makes for a very nice display case even when the pen is put away, however the two pieces that come off are a little troublesome as they are loose and will move about in the box when not affixed. Underneath the white plastic, TWSBI also offers the wrench to open the pen for cleaning, a small vial of silicone grease (which is a bit stubborn in terms of squeezing liquid out), and two spare O-rings, which is really nice. The plastic box is contained within a cardboard box when it first comes and is heavily padded out with foam pieces, so rest assured your pen is well protected during delivery

 

 

Design: 7/10

I personally think that the TWSBI vac mini is a beautiful, portable demonstrator. The grip, body, and cap are all pretty much translucent resin save for the cap bands, the clip, and accents, and is made of a very nice clear resin. With a lighter ink in the barrel (or perhaps one that clings to the side adequately), the pen becomes beautifully highlighted. Mine is currently inked with Pelikan Edelstein Topaz. The top of the pen is embossed with the red twsbi logo, and a matte "TWSBI" and "vac mini" is laser engraved onto the chrome metal cap band.

 

The pen is opened via twisting the cap, and also posts by twisting. This may be a downside for some people, but I personally do not mind as this ensures the cap is very secure. The threads are not too sharp for the hand either down in the grip section. As this is a vacuumatic filler, the back of the pen will have to be unscrewed during long writing sessions so as to allow ink to flow from the barrel to the nib unit, otherwise this creates a double reservoir. Once again, this might be a disadvantage to some people out of convenience's sake, but as someone who travels on planes at least twice a year (I study abroad), I think this is a handy feature to prevent leaks and such.

 

The vacuum filler works perfectly if you also have the TWSBI Vac 20A Inkwell, giving a full fill in one or two plunges. If you fill it normally, you'll probably be able to get 3/4 of the ink capacity if you do it a couple times. I do not really mind this as the pen has a huge ink capacity (A whopping 2ml, in a pen this size, is a win!) -- plus some space for in demonstrator pens for ink to slosh around in makes it even more of an eye candy.

 

The only qualm I have regarding the design is really the fiddly re-assembly after you took it apart to clean (which by the way is nearly impossible without full disassembly). Although TWSBI gives you all the tools to do so, the process isn't as straight forward as it can be. Because the threads are double-threaded, many components can fit on multiple ways and if you don't do it right, the clip will not align with the nib. With the vac mini, the cap posts in such a way that the clip will face either one of two directions, both 180 degrees opposite. Ideally, this would be in line with the nib, or directly in line with the feed. However, if you don't assemble the pen carefully, the clip will face a quarter turn away from the nib, or an eighth away, etc. and it really got on my nerves the first time I tried to reassemble it. This arduous process really discourages changing inks in the pen, which I think really takes away some points.

 

 

Construction & Quality: 9/10

The TWSBI vac mini feels like a solid pen in the hand, and it is. The resin looks very clear and of high quality, metal accents are well polished. In the hand it feels just about right for a pen in the £50-60 price range. The threads are smooth and all the components are put together well. The clip wiggles left and right just a little bit, I wish they could have secured it better. As I said the only thing about this pen is that I'd probably just leave it be most of the time and avoid taking it apart. It is really quite a process, often requiring multiple times of taking it apart again and again just to realign the cap and the nib. Also be aware of displacing any O-rings / losing silicone grease in the grip, as this can easily lead to ink leaking into the grip section (nightmare for anyone with OCD!

 

Weight & Dimensions: 8/10

The vac mini was designed to be a portable pen, which makes it quite significantly smaller than most other fountain pens, although it is a little bigger than its close cousin the diamond mini -- and quite honestly, this makes all the difference in the world. For me personally, the vac mini is just the right size that, if I needed a quick note, I could use the pen quite comfortably without posting (whereas the diamond mini is a smidgen too small for that), although I can still see this being a problem for people with bigger hands. Posted, the pen becomes a very very good length for most people, and is extremely well balanced. I am very impressed with how they designed this pen! *For reference, I have somewhat big hands for a female!

 

Here's a comparison to my other pens: (Lamy 2000, TWSBI vac mini, Lamy Al-Star, Parker IM Premium)

http://i.imgur.com/nWxXJlb.jpg

 

Nib & Performance: 10/10

2 words: Simply brilliant. The EF nib is a true western EF, made by the German company Jowo... and BOY is it smooth. I would argue that it's even smoother than the established Lamy EF. It's quite a stiff steel nib and doesn't give a whole lot when pressure is applied, I would say it's harder than the Lamy nibs. I love it. It's an absolute joy to write with, I could only imagine how a medium or broad nib would write. The vac mini is also quite a wet writer -- not a gusher, just about the right amount of wetness to show off some amazing shading for an EF nib. It also reverse writes to a degree, but it's quite scratchy.

 

The nib units can of course be swapped out easily, and the nib and feed can be easily removed during cleaning with a tug. Be careful when putting it back together to line it up with the grip section (little ridges) and push it all the way in, otherwise ink blobs will start forming and it's a pain to push it back whilst the pen is inked.

 

Cost & Value: 10/10

For the price, I think this pen is completely worth it. It looks great, is portable, reliable, and is a great writer sized perfectly for the job. It's a workhorse pen that looks damn good, and the vac filler is just so much fun! For the features this pen scores, I think it is well worth the price tag.

 

Conclusion:

An extremely solid pen that is both functional and beautiful. Perfectly designed for travel (double reservoir with large ink capacity), writes very very well, and well built. The disadvantage is the lack of quick draw / quick posting, and of course the cleaning / disassembly being quite possibly the biggest hassle ever in order to line the cap up with the nib... But at the end of the day, I genuinely think the performance this pen gives is worth it. Just as long as you keep it inked with the same ink and keep with simple flushing most of the time.

Edited February 9, 2017 by kittywonghf

[Komboloi]

Excellent review. Thanks!

 

I'm still playing with my Vac Mini to get consistent flow to the feed, but I like the design and just need more time to familiarize myself with the vacuum.

[Jamerelbe]

I bought a Vac Mini several months ago now, but regretted purchasing it with a B nib - so I've ordered a replacement nib unit that's on its way here from Spain (fpnibs.com). These really are nice pens, but a bit more fiddly than my Diamond Mini and 580 pens.

 

Have to say, though, my experience with TWSBI EF nibs (on my Diamond pens) has been the same as yours: beautifully smooth for such a fine tip. Congratulations on your purchase, and thanks for the review!

[Dufffader]

Excellent review. Thanks!

 

I'm still playing with my Vac Mini to get consistent flow to the feed, but I like the design and just need more time to familiarize myself with the vacuum.

 

 

I think finding the right way to load up the feed with ink is best way for the Vac mini to write consistently. The feed usually dries up if you stop writing for a few days and may appear a little dry. The only issue is loading it with ink requires careful shake or my preference is to pump it carefully - too much and you get drops of ink coming out!

[lgtokar]

Great review, thanks. I purchased mine with a M nib last March and have been very happy with it. It is my home and weekend/vacation carry pen and has performed without any issue.

[EricTheRed]

Here is mine, filled with Sailor Yama Dori ink. Its a great little shirt pocket pen and I take it everywhere, even on airplanes as it never leaks.

[Quantumchaos]

Thanks for the review, I have been considering this pen for awhile now

[thepiman]

Thanks for the great review. I love the concept of the TWSBI Vac 20A Inkwell. I'm not great at refilling my pens, even with careful wiping I usually still manage to leave some ink onto the top of the section (just before the nib) which then travels onto the lid and from there to the rest of the section and my fingers. Although I've not used the Vac 20A Inkwell, I imagine that the TWSBI Vac pens screw in just to the right depth so that the breather hole is covered by ink but so that none of the section gets any ink on it. Is that your experience? Also, does anybody know if any competitors make a pen and inkwell combination which is equivalent to this.