Goodbye Dreamtouch?

[Twister292]

I posted this in the Italy forum, but I think this is a better place... I've heard that Visconti are going to phase out the Dreamtouch Pd nibs...the relaunched watermark series and the Voyager 30 all have 18K nibs.

 

 

Flipside? The newer nibs are insanely expensive. I queried getting one for my watermark feom 2017 to swap out the Pd nib, and they are EUR315+VAT for F, M and B and the EF and Stub will be EUR363+VAT

 

 

I'm not sure whether they're just meant to replace the Pd nibs or are simply another tier up...Considering they're a good EUR125 (ex-VAT) more expensive than the Pd nib units, this could mean the refreshes of the HS series could go up by as much as US$200(!)

 

 

Your thoughts?

[Tas]

I posted this in the Italy forum, but I think this is a better place... I've heard that Visconti are going to phase out the Dreamtouch Pd nibs...the relaunched watermark series and the Voyager 30 all have 18K nibs.

 

 

Flipside? The newer nibs are insanely expensive. I queried getting one for my watermark feom 2017 to swap out the Pd nib, and they are EUR315+VAT for F, M and B and the EF and Stub will be EUR363+VAT

 

 

I'm not sure whether they're just meant to replace the Pd nibs or are simply another tier up...Considering they're a good EUR125 (ex-VAT) more expensive than the Pd nib units, this could mean the refreshes of the HS series could go up by as much as US$200(!)

 

 

Your thoughts?

My thoughts . . .?

I'm lucky enough to own an EF dreamtouch nib. I'm also lucky enough to own a similar sized Bock Ti Ef nib - It came with my Namisu Nova. If I were blindfolded, I'd be hard pushed to tell the difference.

£315+VAT vs £45inc VAT, hmmm. I ADORE my VHS but I know what I'd do next time around.

 

 

[Karmachanic]

My thoughts . . .?

I'm lucky enough to own an EF dreamtouch nib. I'm also lucky enough to own a similar sized Bock Ti Ef nib - It came with my Namisu Nova. If I were blindfolded, I'd be hard pushed to tell the difference.

£315+VAT vs £45inc VAT, hmmm. I ADORE my VHS but I know what I'd do next time around.

 

 

 

Yeah, but the Ti nib doesn't have a Visconti imprint, does it?

[Tas]

 

Yeah, but the Ti nib doesn't have a Visconti imprint, does it?

 

True

[Mr.Rene]

I posted this in the Italy forum, but I think this is a better place... I've heard that Visconti are going to phase out the Dreamtouch Pd nibs...the relaunched watermark series and the Voyager 30 all have 18K nibs.

 

 

Flipside? The newer nibs are insanely expensive.

 

 

Your thoughts?

Italian pens, as always, are insanely expensive...maybe Italian pen maker insanity problem... Regards

[oldrifleman]

My thoughts . . .?

I'm lucky enough to own an EF dreamtouch nib. I'm also lucky enough to own a similar sized Bock Ti Ef nib - It came with my Namisu Nova. If I were blindfolded, I'd be hard pushed to tell the difference.

£315+VAT vs £45inc VAT, hmmm. I ADORE my VHS but I know what I'd do next time around.

 

 

I also have a Dreamtouch and several Bock Titanium nibs. The Bock wins every time!

[Tas]

I also have a Dreamtouch and several Bock Titanium nibs. The Bock wins every time!

 

Don't get me wrong. I'm not in ANY way bashing Visconti nibs. Far from it. They are a beautiful thing. Just saying that there are many, many beautiful things in this world that can be had for a lot less.

 

[Honeybadgers]

Honestly, I'd prefer they get rid of the dreamtouch. it was a great nib when it worked, but the QC on it was always (bleep). So if the alternative is an 18k that WORKS, I'd take that.

 

But not at an increased price. Sorry, but the homo sapiens isn't worth $150-200 more than they already ask.

 

But I'd also be down with the dreamtouch (with the damn QC fixed) as the mid tier, $300-700 range, and then throwing a huge 18k nib on their top of the range models. As it stands, I really am turned off by visconti's highest end pens when they come with the exact same nibs as are in my homosapiens and divinia metro.

Edited July 16, 2019 by Honeybadgers

[silverlifter]

So if the alternative is an 18k that WORKS, I'd take that.

 

Is Palladium that much different to gold that their nibs would start working out of the box? Sheaffer made gorgeous PdAg and Pd-plated nibs for years and seemed to manage fine.

 

Personally, I would expect the cost to increase and the performance to continue on its current trajectory...

[TheDutchGuy]

Don’t really care what a nib is made of. I care how well it writes. The 23k Pd Dreamtouch nib in my HS is the only modern nib that I have which gives me beautiful, subtle line variation from the slight, natural pressure differences when I write. Which makes the HS my one modern pen which gives me something that resembles a vintage writing experience. For that alone, I cherish it.

 

Having said that, nothing that I know of surpasses the feel on paper of the cheap, Bock-made, super-feathery nibs in the Leonardo Momento Zero and Furore (and the Leonardo nib I transplanted into a Kaweco Supra Brass, which is currently my EDC).

[Honeybadgers]

 

Is Palladium that much different to gold that their nibs would start working out of the box? Sheaffer made gorgeous PdAg and Pd-plated nibs for years and seemed to manage fine.

 

Personally, I would expect the cost to increase and the performance to continue on its current trajectory...

 

 

I don't see any flaws in your logic, a nib is a nib, but at least visconti is known for their older gold nibs actually being good, and the dreamtouch has just been a QC nightmare.

 

Such a shame. The nibs feel amazing when they're tuned, the softness is definitely different from Ti to me, titanium is mushier, the Pd feels closer to a 14-18k hybrid.

[Twister292]

 

Is Palladium that much different to gold that their nibs would start working out of the box? Sheaffer made gorgeous PdAg and Pd-plated nibs for years and seemed to manage fine.

 

Personally, I would expect the cost to increase and the performance to continue on its current trajectory...

 

I'm afraid this will be the case as well...since Dante Del Vechio's departure, Visconti has been taking the absolute mickey on pricing. If the HS Evolution is anything to go by, and the relaunch of the watermark series, they're simply trying to push the price envelope as far as they can. And they're almost forcing people up the ladder...e.g. the Steel Age HS is now discontinued, which means the only black HS series pen with a silver trim is the HS Evolution...Which is EUR 790 for a steel nib.

[icarus33]

Seems there are a few folks here that have seen the lifespan of the Dreamtouch 23k Pd nib and I'm coming up to speed here. For quite some time, it appears the two tone nib was used on the Homo Sapiens Bronze Age and current vendor stocks are selling through. In the past couple months it's been discussed that the Palladium nib is being replaced with an 18k gold nib. So my question for those in the know, when did the Palladium all gold plated/toned Dreamtouch nib come into existence on the HS Bronze Age? Is this too being discontinued?

[Honeybadgers]

Seems there are a few folks here that have seen the lifespan of the Dreamtouch 23k Pd nib and I'm coming up to speed here. For quite some time, it appears the two tone nib was used on the Homo Sapiens Bronze Age and current vendor stocks are selling through. In the past couple months it's been discussed that the Palladium nib is being replaced with an 18k gold nib. So my question for those in the know, when did the Palladium all gold plated/toned Dreamtouch nib come into existence on the HS Bronze Age? Is this too being discontinued?

 

I doubt the HS is going to be discontinued anytime soon. The bronze age is their flagship pen, and they regularly release special versions of it. Maybe it'll get a different nib, hopefully they don't pull the torpedo/montegrappa idiotic idea of swapping in a steel nib on a pen worth over $500, but it'll likely stick around. it's not like it's a special bespoke size, any old JoWo #6 fits in it.

[DrDebG]

Palladium is a much more difficult metal to work with than gold. It is also difficult to find consistent sources. Then of course there is always the price differential inherent with precious metals.

[Storch]

I feel like everyone is making this more complicated than it needs to be.

I doubt this has anything to to with performance and everything to do with cost. Over the last year gold is up about $350 but palladium is up over $500. Put simply, they are just about even right now and, if the trend continues, paladium will be more expensive. Coupled with the cost of all the QC-related customer service expensies, I don't think it's hard to see that gold is just cheaper.

[Honeybadgers]

I feel like everyone is making this more complicated than it needs to be.

I doubt this has anything to to with performance and everything to do with cost. Over the last year gold is up about $350 but palladium is up over $500. Put simply, they are just about even right now and, if the trend continues, paladium will be more expensive. Coupled with the cost of all the QC-related customer service expensies, I don't think it's hard to see that gold is just cheaper.

 

This. If we see the dreamtouch go away, it'd just be cost.

 

And nobody is clamoring for the dreamtouch anyways, visconti thoroughly killed that nib's potentially phenomenal reputation with awful QC.

[TheDutchGuy]

And nobody is clamoring for the dreamtouch anyways,

Except me. I tend to go against the grain.

[Honeybadgers]

Except me. I tend to go against the grain.

 

It's glorious, no doubt, when tuned properly. But the 25-75% QC failure rate killed it.

[TheDutchGuy]

Another reason why I love Dreamtouch, although of course this can also be achieved with gold nibs provided theres enough tipping material available. Edited September 6, 2019 by TheDutchGuy