Pilot Custom 823 Broad Vs Western Medium

[jburchett]

Hello!

 

I am looking into the Pilot Custom 823 and am curious how the broad nib might compare to a western medium. The only Pilot nibs I've used are a fine and medium, and know those usually run a little bit more narrow than a western nib of the same size. Does the broad Pilot size compare more to the western medium, or is the Pilot broad more to a "true" broad?

 

Thanks for any input or advice!

[Dr.Grace]

Pilot M nibs are often close in width to western M (all of the M nibs on my Custom 74s are just like western M, and one of my C 74s has a B nib that is just like a western B.

 

The M nib on my 823 writes like a western FM. On the other hand, some people here have said that their 823 M nibs are similar to western M nibs or even broader. So there seems to be some variability with the #15 nibs on the 823. Based on my C 74 B nib, I'd guess that a #15 B nib could be fairly broad. It might not necessarily be narrower than a western B.

[jburchett]

  On 3/21/2017 at 10:28 PM, Dr.Grace said:

Pilot M nibs are often close in width to western M (all of the M nibs on my Custom 74s are just like western M, and one of my C 74s has a B nib that is just like a western B.

 

The M nib on my 823 writes like a western FM. On the other hand, some people here have said that their 823 M nibs are similar to western M nibs or even broader. So there seems to be some variability with the #15 nibs on the 823. Based on my C 74 B nib, I'd guess that a #15 B nib could be fairly broad. It might not necessarily be narrower than a western B.

 

Thank you! I have a Custom 74 with a fine and one with a medium. But I've not used any Pilot broads. I appreciate your input with your experience with your Pilot broad!

[Maurizio]

My 823 is a medium, but I do have 2 Pilot broad nibs so I thought I'd pass this on. Both are, to me, true broad nibs.

 

I have a Falcon broad which writes very nicely and feels almost like a paintbrush. The line it lays down is, to my mind, close to a Western broad.

 

I also have a Pilot VP which I bought as a broad nib so I could have it ground to a cursive italic. Before I sent it off I wrote with it for a few days; this too was like a Western broad and layed down a line which I would roughly estimate as around 1mm.

[jburchett]

  On 3/21/2017 at 10:52 PM, Maurizio said:

My 823 is a medium, but I do have 2 Pilot broad nibs so I thought I'd pass this on. Both are, to me, true broad nibs.

 

I have a Falcon broad which writes very nicely and feels almost like a paintbrush. The line it lays down is, to my mind, close to a Western broad.

 

I also have a Pilot VP which I bought as a broad nib so I could have it ground to a cursive italic. Before I sent it off I wrote with it for a few days; this too was like a Western broad and layed down a line which I would roughly estimate as around 1mm.

 

How does the medium on the 823 write?

Thank you for your input!

[Maurizio]

Very nicely and smoothly. The nib is fantastic. The line from mine I would estimate as between a Western fine and medium and again, as a rough estimate, I'd say it was between .7 & .9mm.

[jburchett]

  On 3/21/2017 at 11:55 PM, Maurizio said:

Very nicely and smoothly. The nib is fantastic. The line from mine I would estimate as between a Western fine and medium and again, as a rough estimate, I'd say it was between .7 & .9mm.

How's the wetness and flow?

[Maurizio]

Very good.

[Dr.Grace]

Pilot nibs are generally fantastic, but I also typically need to widen the tine gap subtly to increase flow. In my experience, they sometimes write a bit dry initially.

[Maurizio]

Good point Dr. I experienced that with my Pilot Custom 912 stub nib though I'm not much of a tinkerer; took it back to the shop where I bought it for an adjustment.. I was fortunate that I didn't have that issue with my 823.

[JunkyardSam]

Dr. Grace makes a great point -- Pilot nibs do, often, need adjustment upon arrival in order to flow well. I've heard someone explain that as, "The Japanese like their pens to run dry."

 

But that doesn't explain the incredible variation between how one Pilot and another writes.

 

I own four Custom 91s, for example, and on arrival they ranged from one of them not writing at all (due to tines being too tight) to another being a wet, flowing writer. (With the other two being "normal.")

 

I own multiple 743s, 912, 742, 92, 823, several Falcons - the price point seems to make no difference. One of my wettest and best-writing Pilot pens was a $35 Pilot Lucina.

 

I think the manufacturing process just doesn't allow each pen to be individually tuned... so it's very useful for a pen enthusiast to know how to make these adjustments.

 

Here's a great Pen Habit video to use as a starting point for anyone interested: http://penhabit.com/2015/01/16/adjusting-your-fountain-pen-part-1-ink-flow/

Edited March 25, 2017 by JunkyardSam

[Dr.Grace]

Yes, I agree that pen enthusiasts really should learn to tune nibs. It's not that hard.

 

Here's another great explanation from Brian Gray:

 

http://edisonpen.com/index.cfm/2013/04/27/tweaks-for-geeks-a-big-success-learn-how-to-tune-your-nibs

Edited March 25, 2017 by Dr.Grace

[Bluey]

I find there to be considerable difference between different Pilots. Some are uber wet although others are rather dry. I've never known any pen that is wetter than the Pilot Falcon and the Capless except maybe a Jinhao with the tap on full. Even with their SEF and F nibs they have an insatiable thirst for ink. Glug glug glug and 1ml of ink is gone after a page or 2.

 

I don't find Sailor or Platinum to have the same marked differences.

 

I find Pilot mediums to be the same as Western mediums. I don't think there is much difference between Japanese broads/mediums and their Western counterparts. For F and EF, Japanese are (usually) somewhat finer. My Pilot Capless F is similar to a Western fine or even Western medium because of it's wetness.

Edited March 25, 2017 by Bluey

[Newjelan]

I have a Pilot Custom 823 B and it's broad and wet. My CH 92s are Mediums and also quite wet if slightly finer (only slightly) than my Lamy Studio Mediums. I also have a Pilot CH 74 with a Fine nib which I find a little too fine for my taste.

[EricTheRed]

I have two Custom 823s. The one with a broad nib is similar to a western broad and its very smooth and wet. The 823 with a medium nib is considerably narrower and surprisingly writes like a western EF. It is also wet and very smooth. It is my favorite nib in my entire collection.

[hh1990]

The broad nib on my Custom 823 behaves similarly to what Newjelan and EricTheRed described: similar to "Western" broads (Lamys, Bocks, and Jowos) a moderately wet, and a very, very smooth writer.

[jburchett]

I went with a Medium on the 823, in case I want to carry it for work or for less than stellar paper.. I may end up acquiring a CH 92 or Custom 74 with a broad. I'm curious to try the Pilot broad nib

[EricTheRed]

  On 4/3/2017 at 12:59 PM, jburchett said:

I went with a Medium on the 823, in case I want to carry it for work or for less than stellar paper.. I may end up acquiring a CH 92 or Custom 74 with a broad. I'm curious to try the Pilot broad nib

Great choice. Enjoy your new pen!