The Picasso Ps-915 With Red Barrel And Gold Plated Nib, A Sturdy Pen.

July 26, 2017

Hello fountain pen enthusiasts,

Today I am writing my very first review. I am new and not well informed on the subject, I will probably make some mistakes. So, please excuse any error I can write. I am open to critics as long as they are not mean.

Recently I was looking for several fountain pens in various colors to match with my mood. I already own a blue and I was looking for a red one to pair with the dark blue suit I have to wear sometimes. I am no a fortunate person, sadly I cannot afford the Parker I really like. I do not think buying a £400 or so pen is a good idea when I have million of things to buy first. Initially, I was lurking on Amazon, latter I took some days looking on Aliexpress. I started to have a growing interest toward the Picasso brand. I was conquered by the PS-915 with a red barrel and gold nib. Eventually, I found an appealing offer on eBay for the decent price of £26.31 (US$ 38.80), free delivery. I bough this baby and a Picasso Pimio 923 at the same time. It is amazing how easy it can be to buy the things you like on-line. A single click an your money is turned into smoke and impatience. Less than one month after I became the happy owner of two nice red pens. It did not last for long, when I have shown the Picasso Pimio to my best half I lost it in a heartbeat. Too bad, this poor pen was too appealing for here, and what woman wants is what woman gets. I have a mixed feeling, do I have so good tastes? Are they too girlie? Anyway, I was not prepared to that, it was a shock, to me the parker vector was a Royce Rolls. Now It makes me feel like the vector is a Lada.

The box and its content:

The pen came with a "Gift Box", I do not know if the other option was a blister. The pen traveled overseas, I am not sure if any other option than a box is an intelligent choice. My first impression was positive, the box looks clean and sturdy. A sticker inside contains a paint to scratch, I removed it, revealing a code. Its purpose is probably related to the after sale service, an authentication code to verify if it is a genuine product or a counterfeit one. I did not buy a lot of pens in my life but I bough a lot of high quality tools, the use of codes like that are generally, a good practice. The "shell" box protects its real content, a black box made of plastic and covered with a plastic/paper material, all sewed to the plastic. Even if it is not leather, this material is not easy to scratch, as long as you are not careless. Inside the box there is a white cotton like fabric, it seems to be a light felt. Along with the pen, an inspection card and a small general guide are enclosed, of course all instructions are written in an authentic Chinglish, nobody is perfect.

The box:

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_01_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_02_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_03_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_04_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_05_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_06_small.jpg

The pen and the nib:

The pen is delivered with a converter, I did not use such thing until this year. I must admit, it is a real pleasure to chose which ink I use from the infinite colors and brand available on the market. You probably all know that, but I do not. To me, fountain pens were made for cartridges and quills for the inkwells. The nib is large (0.357 in, 9.7 mm), it is the largest nib I have seen in my life and I must confess that I love it. A dove with an olive branch is engraved on the surface, as well as the words Picasso and FRANCE. Is the nib made in France? If the pen refuses to write after 35 hours so the nib is French. I am still suspicious, even if it was clearly written "made in France" on it. Anyway, does it really matter? The nib is made of gold plated steel, this seems to be specific to the PS-915 with a red and gold barrel. The tip presents no problems, there is neither baby bottom nor misalignment, and the slit is perfectly parallel. The manufacturer says on its website that you can return the pen within three months to repair or adjust the nib and other parts. I cannot say if they have a god after sale service, but at least they seem to propose a solution to problems that occur within the first three months after purchase. If you have dealt with the Picasso after sale service, please fell free to complete this review with your own experience. The gold parts of the cap are pinker than the gold of the nib. I do not know if it came from the gold plating on a different material or if it is a brass covered with enamel. This is difficult to say without a destructive analysis. The barrel is made of celluloid, so the use of solvents must be avoided, even worst, this material is highly sensitive to fire/heat. The cap remains tightly clipped on the pen when closed. The only problem I observed is that the cap does not fit very well at the bottom of the barrel. Better use the pen without the cap. Either because it will fall from its bottom, or because it will be very hard to write when it is covering the nib. With a diameter of 13.3 mm (0.524 in), the barrel is thick but it is comfortable to use. The total length, with the cap on, is about 157 mm (5.7 in). Without the cap, from the tip of the nib to the bottom of the pen, the length is 129 mm (5.07 in).

The pen:

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_01_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_02_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_03_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_04_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_05_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_06_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_07_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_08_small.jpg

The nib:

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_nib_01_small.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_nib_02_small.jpg

http://www.nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_nib_03_small.jpg

http://www.nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_nib_04_small.jpg

The writing experience:

The first thing about the Picasso pens I like, is the ease of writing, the nib literally floats on the paper. The size highly depends on the paper used, in my case I find it slightly too thick, so I reserve it for the A4 paper size and bigger. The tip does not scratch the paper, this was predictable since the tip is well aligned, as shown on the pictures.

The writing:

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_writing_01_small.jpg

This is the end of my review, you are free to judge by yourself what you think of this pen. In addition to the red and gold barrel presented on this review, the PS-915 is available with a green and silver barrel, and with a black/grey swirls and silver barrel.

Note: This is the pen I bough.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Picasso-Fountain-Pens-915-Eurasian-Feelings-Rosy-Celluloid-Barrel-Luxurious-Gift/401163887600?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m2749.l2649

Note2: Pictures in the spoilers above are in low resolution 1000*750, the links in the spoiler below are linked to the high resolution pictures (2000*1500).

List of links:

Box
http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_01.jpg
http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_02.jpg
http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_03.jpg
http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_04.jpg
http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_05.jpg
http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_box_06.jpg

Pen

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_01.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_02.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_03.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_04.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_05.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_06.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_07.jpg

http://nobelios.com/external/reviews/pen/picasso/ps-915/Picasso_PS-915_pen_08.jpg

Nib