Jinhao 51A, Another New ( Or Is It Renewed ) C/c Filling Hooded Nib

[Mech-for-i]

as always there is no set standard how one suppose to term EF ... but in any case once we start talking F and EF and even finer I found the whole naming a bit of a hit or miss anyway. Just as Tefolium had mentioned different period yield different technical definition of what's a F and what's an EF and so on , and of course at these fine writing situation, how one write actually matters a lot. Chinese fountain pen manufacturer in particular had vast variation on ow they consider F and EF and even more s in ow they do the grind ..

[penzel_washinkton]

It would be a whole lot of different topic to discuss the width of a "true" EF but what I'm referring would be the recent times.

[Mech-for-i]

Actually even with just recent / in production this same fact hold true .. and even among similar regional productions. Say between Pilot, Platinum, & Sailor the big 3 in Japan , even with their almost industry wide norm their F and EF are not the same by all means.

 

In the case of the 51A, though I am not sure how this come off as I've seen Jinhao themselves only ever refer to offering a single grind Fine on both the hooded and unhooded version .. might be I had missed some, but the 51A use the now de facto standard 18.5x3.3mm hooded nib which mean there is all the variation of nibs on the market for retrofit and similar for the typical Size 26 ( aka no.5 ) nib on the open variant so its not a necessity for them to offer anything different. The Japanese / European / US and pretty much almost every other fountain pen Mfr usually offer their pens in different grind where in China this is not a factor as the Mfr sees that the user can liberally simply source whatever nib they want extra so they just do the pen in 1 grind and leave the consumer to customize if they want to.

Edited November 21, 2018 by Mech-for-i

[bass1193]

Actually even with just recent / in production this same fact hold true .. and even among similar regional productions. Say between Pilot, Platinum, & Sailor the big 3 in Japan , even with their almost industry wide norm their F and EF are not the same by all means.

 

In the case of the 51A, though I am not sure how this come off as I've seen Jinhao themselves only ever refer to offering a single grind Fine on both the hooded and unhooded version .. might be I had missed some, but the 51A use the now de facto standard 18.5x3.3mm hooded nib which mean there is all the variation of nibs on the market for retrofit and similar for the typical Size 26 ( aka no.5 ) nib on the open variant so its not a necessity for them to offer anything different. The Japanese / European / US and pretty much almost every other fountain pen Mfr usually offer their pens in different grind where in China this is not a factor as the Mfr sees that the user can liberally simply source whatever nib they want extra so they just do the pen in 1 grind and leave the consumer to customize if they want to.

Awesome point from a knowledgeable person! And Jinhao did an amazing job on the body of the pen (wood- and acrylic-barreled ones at least) so there's a great pen to put many nibs into 😄

[penzel_washinkton]

Actually even with just recent / in production this same fact hold true .. and even among similar regional productions. Say between Pilot, Platinum, & Sailor the big 3 in Japan , even with their almost industry wide norm their F and EF are not the same by all means.

 

In the case of the 51A, though I am not sure how this come off as I've seen Jinhao themselves only ever refer to offering a single grind Fine on both the hooded and unhooded version .. might be I had missed some, but the 51A use the now de facto standard 18.5x3.3mm hooded nib which mean there is all the variation of nibs on the market for retrofit and similar for the typical Size 26 ( aka no.5 ) nib on the open variant so its not a necessity for them to offer anything different. The Japanese / European / US and pretty much almost every other fountain pen Mfr usually offer their pens in different grind where in China this is not a factor as the Mfr sees that the user can liberally simply source whatever nib they want extra so they just do the pen in 1 grind and leave the consumer to customize if they want to.

 

I think that itself is quite clear since there are no binding regulations / standards regarding line widths on a whole.

BUT, between those three Japanese fountain pen powerhouses, the Fines are very similar in terms of width.

 

As for the Jinhao51A I don't know what kind of grind they are after but it sure is not following their neighbors (JPN) line width if it is a Fine.

 

But then it is fair to say that there is not a widely agreed width on a "true" EF or any line size for that matter.

[PennedParadise]

Any information on the build quality / longevity of the 51a acrylic versions?

[JollyCynic]

Any information on the build quality / longevity of the 51a acrylic versions?

 

I have one of each of the three. I modified two of them, and the third was left stock. The one I left stock has been constantly inked since I got it (received mid-October) and there aren't any negative issues. I'm quite hard on the barrels of the modified ones, too, squeezing a section into them that doesn't really fit well, but there's no cracking or other issues on those, either. It's one of my most consistent and reliable pens, hence always inked.

 

There's a screw at the end of the cap which can potentially corrode over time. I just removed one to look at it, and it has a black oxide coating to reduce corrosion, but it doesn't look like it's going to do much of a job of that. So that's something to look out for over an extended period.

[Charles Skinner]

Do you know of a U. S. dealer now selling the 51A? I know I could buy one on Amazon, but I don't like the long delivery time. C. S.

[MuddyWaters]

Do we have a separate thread for the non-hooded version? I got one of those and the pen and nib are nice but the weight distribution is not very comfortable unfortunately.

[mana]

Hmmm... just checking about the wooden barrel ones, is the thread/fit compatible with a Parker 51 Aerometric? Got this funny idea of swapping a wooden barrel to one of my 51s...

[WirsPlm]

I have had an open nib wooden 51A for several weeks, and am pretty disappointed. I liked the a lot at first but have found that the inside of the barrel is finished so badly that it grips the converter and half the time I take the barrel off to refill the converter, the converter is pulled off the section. I wind up with the pen in two pieces (just not the expected ones!) with the nib, feed and section in one hand and the barrel with the converter stuck tight inside the other hand. I have to use pliers to pull the converter out of the barrel. After needing to do this repeatedly I tried to find an international converter that would fit but no dice.

 

I'm not sure if the real problem is with the section's nipple that goes into the converter, with the barrel or both (although my money is on both) but I'm giving up on the pen.

 

For anyone else who has an open nib 51A and is not having this converter/barrel issue, I discovered that a Noodler's Creeper feed and a Nemosine #5 nib work well as a nib replacement, the original Jinhao feed does not work with the nibs I tried as replacements.

Edited March 4, 2019 by WirsPlm

[Drinky]

I have been using a 51A as my main pen for a couple of months now. I am downright shocked at how much pen they can sell for just a few bucks.

 

HOWEVER, after changing inks and letting the section soak long enough to get all the ink out, it suddenly started drying out for no good reason that I can see. It had never dried out prior to the soaking, but now I have to take it apart several times a day to twist the converter and saturate the feed. Then it will only work for a while before drying out again.

 

I would think the feed needs cleaning, but I can't get the thing open. I have tried the hot water trick to loosen the glue holding it together, but this one is on tight and will not budge. Of course, I can just replace it for a few dollars. I'm thinking the open nib version will be easier to tinker with, though it doesn't look nearly as unique.

[MissCellany]

I loved my smoke demonstrator hooded 51a when I had it, but I have it to my bestie who had three different inks and only one pen. When money is better for me (unfortunately, things are super tight right now, and even a $5 pen is a bit of a stretch), I definitely plan on getting another. May even eyedropper it, that could be fun!

[A Smug Dill]

• the wooden barrel variant use a metal coupler with a thin brass screw insert on the wood. I am kind of skeptical about its longevity; the wood part is really cutting real it thin .. and the finish of the wood is .. well .. may I say rough or rather less finished / polished, a waxing / oiling is asked for.

I have one of each of the five variants with wooden barrels. One has a somewhat glossy finish, one seems slightly waxed, and the other three feel somewhat like natural wood. I like it natural. Especially for a $4 pen, longevity is not a concern; if it stains, if it scratches, that only speaks to how much care the owner or user has taken, not how poorly made the pen is, when someone can elect to handle it with kid gloves in the same way he/she would a $400 Delta Sea Wood pen with an iroko barrel. In any case, I don't think such cosmetic marring would sufficiently damage the function of the barrel, but being a cylinder it would take quite a bit of force to cause the wood to split.

 

The multi-coloured acrylic versions are a different matter. I have one of each of these five:

Source: AliExpress

 

and the darker blue one appealed the least to me aesthetically, but I was trying to get all different ones while I made up the number of items on that order, so I bought it anyway. I could see a much bigger issue with the material upon arrival:

 

 

(That was part of the photo I sent to secure a speedy full refund; interestingly enough, it was the "AliExpress dispute resolution team" that directly authorised the refund, seemingly without referring it first to the seller.)

 

The "cracked ice" versions are fine, although on one of the pens (in the twenty or so I ordered) had a speck of dirt of something trapped in the lighter coloured part of the acrylic, obviously picked up during the manufacture of the material itself.

[Mech-for-i]

Both the wood and acrylic barrels are kind of nice, but to stick with the vintage / retro theme, I prefer to find some like styled to fit onto the pen so I can had an updated filling system / feed while still keeping the old days style , check this out ... this is the 51a retrofitted with a Yong-Jiu 800 barrel and cap vintage 1980's

 

Jinhao 51a retrofitted, on Flickr

[truthpil]

Lovely!!!

 

Both the wood and acrylic barrels are kind of nice, but to stick with the vintage / retro theme, I prefer to find some like styled to fit onto the pen so I can had an updated filling system / feed while still keeping the old days style , check this out ... this is the 51a retrofitted with a Yong-Jiu 800 barrel and cap vintage 1980's

 

Jinhao 51a retrofitted, on Flickr

[DonLeone]

I have 3 of the acrylics. The dark amber one, red/purple one and the blueish one (not the dark blue one). I'm guessing they cracked some resins and hen poured resin over it, hoping to fill all the little nooks and crannies somehow.

 

Reason I think this is because I can see and feel some imperfections on the barrels of at least 2 of them and the imperfections line up with the chunky stuff in the material. Luckily no issues near the threads. Not complaining tho, for the price I expected much much worse.

[Mech-for-i]

latest variant of the Jinhao 51A, Jinhao call it the for use with journal version ; its kind of a long one , wooden barrel only , with a barrel a fair bit longer than the normal version and a fair bit shorter than typical desk pen's long tail, the pen part all the same as old both hooded and open nib. The big news here is the new cap, its slightly smaller, slightly slimmer, and fit better and tighter and having a smaller slot in clip itself too, you can see on following the pens with the new and old cap and compared to a normal version ( with new cap on ), the cap is now single piece cigar end shaped just as the barrel and balance well with all version of the 51A.

 

 

Comparison of old and new cap ( on an old acrylic version )

Edited October 24, 2019 by Mech-for-i

[LazyPen]

For my first hooden nib pen I'm undecided among this Jinhao and the Kaco Retrò.

 

[Mech-for-i]

as far as current up to date construction of a hooded nib ( C/C filling, integral single piece feed ) in the retro P51 styling .. there's the

 

• Jinhao 51a
• Hero 616 Plus
• Wing Sung 613
• Kaco Retro
• Wing Sung 3411
• Hero 100 ( all metal version )

and if you do not limit yourself to the C/C filling you can try

• Wing Sung 601 ( piston Pump Vacumetic )
• Wing Sung 618 ( Piston )
• Hero 100 ( good old fixed aerometric )
• practically any old timer vintage models you can find ...

Between the Kaco Retro and the Jinhao 51a , I suppose the main difference is aesthetic / cosmetic and ergonomic .. though they both share same styling, the Retro is a fatter pen.