Jinhao 599 Demonstrator: New Ver. W/ Transparent Feed?

[SoresuMakashi]

First post because I actually have something interesting to share. I've always liked the Jinhao 599 demonstrators. I admit they're not durable and they have that entirely useless hole for checking the ink level/color, but they write decently and they're cheap, which is exactly what a student needs. Today I received 2 of them from eBay ($2 each, listing no longer available) and immediately noticed that the feed was transparent (I forgot to take a picture, sorry). This has never happened to me before; I have owned several previously and the feed was always black. When filled with ink, the feed is both visually appealing, and it clearly tells you what color your ink is (when it's just in the converter, it can be very hard to tell the difference between, say, blue-black, black, and brown). I think it's awesome! Here are some pictures with Waterman's Absolute Brown and Inspired Blue (please excuse the bad quality, the colors are more vibrant IRL). As you can see, the cap piece is still black, hiding the nib itself.

 

 

 

Anyone else got one of these? Has Jinhao updated their design?

 

P.S. I also think the thread spacing on the provided converted has been increased.

Edited March 31, 2017 by SoresuMakashi

[ErrantSmudge]

I just bought a set of 11 Jinhao 599 pens from Amazon that arrived yesterday. Four of them were demonstrators, and three had transparent feeds. Very cool, actually.

 

I also notice that some converters have transparent nozzles, and others have black nozzles. I guess the transparent-nozzled converters are also intended for the demonstrator pens.

Edited March 31, 2017 by ErrantSmudge

[mke]

I recently bought this Jinhao 599 Link to ebay

 

One of these two "nib parts" has a transparent feed and the other has a black one. As this pen writes very nicely, I ordered two more - they haven't arrived yet, so I can't tell if there are always transparent feeds with it - I will update when they arrive. The pictures of the product shows two black ones, however.

 

I recommend - just buy it (it is only 2.9 USD) and hope. At the moment, the counter says "458 sold", I would guess that means that the seller ordered 1000 and is now reselling them. Ask him to check his stock for transparent feeds. If you are lucky, he does.

 

I don't think that "I guess the transparent-nozzled converters are also intended for the demonstrator pens" is a valid conclusion because there is nowhere a talk about demonstrators.

 

But if you really want to be sure to get transparent pens, look for the Yiren 358. They are fully transparent. But they take 5 USD out of your pocket.

Edited March 31, 2017 by mke

[frankb3]

I got an 8 pack of 599s last year. Three are demonstrators, but all 8 have black feeds. They are OK pens, but nothing special. One of the nibs was ground so far off center that one tine was effectively shorter than the other, but replacement nibs are only $0.40 each ($1.60 / 4).

 

I hadn't seen the Yiren 358 before, it and the Wing Sung 659 are clones of the Pilot 78G. The Wing Sung is well made and comes with F and EF nibs and clear feeds.

 

I have a Wing Sung 698 on the way, a clear piston filler with a clear feed. The Wing Sungs (659 and 698) both come in clear/gold which I think looks really nice.

 

Also check out the Lorelei pens. The cost a little more, but they feel like a nicer pen, maybe it's just the extra weight from the big band on the cap. The demonstrators have clear feeds and come in clear, and several colors of tinting. I have the blue and red (non-demonstrator) models and they are nice looking pens.

[Zookie]

I just received a Yiren 358. It comes with two sections, both have an EF nib. That's fine with me as I like fine lines best.

It's a nice transparent black. I've used Yiren pens before and was pleasantly surprised by them.

 

BTW Wearever pens came equipped with a clear feed back in the late 50s / early 60s.

[mke]

> One of these two "nib parts" has a transparent feed and the other has a black one. As this pen writes very nicely, I ordered two more - they haven't arrived yet, so I can't tell if there are always transparent feeds with it - I will update when they arrive. The pictures of the product shows two black ones, however.

 

They have arrived and as the first one, one feed is black and the other transparent.

 

Also arrived have some Yiren 358 with a double nib - all the feeds are transparent.

 

And, finally, on Aliexpress, you can find many "transparent fountain pen" around 4-5 USD. "Penton" is written as name of the pen.

[mke]

The penton pens I bought have a little bit of problems with the converters. It seems that they don't keep the vacuum well. The back part of the converter can be easily taken off and is therefore letting a little bit of air in. 3 from 4 have this problem. Also the nibs vary quite a lot - from hard and scratchy to soft and noiseless. But they look nice with their old-fashioned cigar form.

 

I also bought a set of 5 transparent Yiren 358 in several colors on Ebay, several sets with double nibs (same store has many more colors) and several sets of Jinhao with double-nibs. All were OK and write well.