Clash Of The Titans: M800, Homo Sapiens, 146, Justus95

[DrDebG]

It was nice re-reading this again. I wonder, though, if your MB 146 had a different nib - something like an OM, if you would feel the same.

 

But what I am really curious about is how much does the Visconti weigh compared to the MB 146 and the Justus.

[TheDutchGuy]

Now that I've finally received my Pilot Justus 95, and had a chance to do a round of superficial testing with it, I must say it beats my Sailor Professional Gear Slim Ocean in almost every significant consideration as the candidate for, "If the house was burning down and you could only save one pen, which one would you take?" Even the larger Sailor Professional Gear (Classic) Ocean isn't strong competition.

 

Now, if I can marry the Justus' capability as a writing instrument with the looks and the finish of the Pilot 'Hannya Shingyo', that'd be a "grail pen" for me, haha!

 

 

Pilot vs Sailor (vs Platinum)... to each his own. My personal 2 cts: in general, when asked, I’d recommend anyone to get a Sailor with a medium nib, a box of Jentle cartridges, to start writing and never to stop. The Pro Gear Slim and the 1911 Standard are astonishingly good pens. Consistent, reliable, well-made, well-designed, ergonomical, no break-in period, no flow issues... Pilot, on the other hand, never ticked my boxes. I never really liked how they wrote and in Europe they cost an arm and a leg. Specifically, though, the Justus 95 might be the exception to my little rule of thumb. I find it to be an exceptional pen. Mine is a M but I can get the line width as narrow as a Western XF or as wide as a B. Another rule of thumb is to never buy two of the same pens, but with the Justus I can see myself getting an F as well if the price is right.

[TheDutchGuy]

It was nice re-reading this again. I wonder, though, if your MB 146 had a different nib - something like an OM, if you would feel the same.

 

But what I am really curious about is how much does the Visconti weigh compared to the MB 146 and the Justus.

 

That’s hard to say, because to me a nib is very decisive in how I perceive a pen. But obviously things like build quality, materials, how it fits the hand, that doesn’t change. It would still be a great pen.

 

The Justus and the 146 are close in terms of weight. I don’t have a scale, but my hands cannot tell a difference in weight between these two pens. The Homo Sapiens Midi is noticeably heavier.

[A Smug Dill]

Pilot vs Sailor (vs Platinum)... to each his own.

Indeed it is. I personally favour Sailor the most among the Japanese Big Three brands; and even though Pilot was the first of the three, into which I invested about equally as heavily in pens and inks, that captured my continued interest in Japanese products when it comes to this hobby, I am least fond of it, in particular, I just don't think so highly of its Custom and MR lines of pens for which everyone else here seem to know the brand primarily.

 

The way I see it, Capless Vanishing Point, Elite 95S, and of course the 'Hannya Shingyo' are the stars among Pilot pens, and now the Justus 95 joins them on that pedestal. The Namiki Falcon, especially the resin versions, are excellent "alternative" performers for a "soft", responsive and different sort of writing experience. But...

 

My personal 2 cts: in general, when asked, I’d recommend anyone to get a Sailor with a medium nib,

... when it comes to the brands' respective quintessential product lines, I think Sailor Profit (and Professional Gear) is better than Platinum #3776, which in turn is better than Pilot Custom (and Custom Heritage). Then, aside from its cheapest desk pens and Fude de Mannen pens, I haven't come across any Sailor fountain pen that writes poorly, or fear may sour someone else's experiences at the start or intermediate phase of their "journeys" into the hobby.

 

So I think yours is a solid recommendation.

[Beechwood]

Thanks for the review, a complicated process that is well executed.

 

Personally, I don't buy Japanese products and have had bad experiences with Viscontis. Therefore for me it would be the MB or the Pelikan, both of which are enjoyable to use I find.

[Honeybadgers]

Thanks for the review, a complicated process that is well executed.

 

Personally, I don't buy Japanese products and have had bad experiences with Viscontis. Therefore for me it would be the MB or the Pelikan, both of which are enjoyable to use I find.

 

Wait, why don't you buy japanese products?

 

There's a greater than zero chance the electronic device you used to post that was made with extensive japanese products.

 

I was gonna make a WWII joke, but seeing as these were/are all Axis powers, it doesn't quite work

[Beechwood]

 

Wait, why don't you buy japanese products?

 

There's a greater than zero chance the electronic device you used to post that was made with extensive japanese products.

 

I was gonna make a WWII joke, but seeing as these were/are all Axis powers, it doesn't quite work

 

Edited by Beechwood

 

Sorry, the decision is personal.

Edited December 28, 2019 by Beechwood

[pictogramax]

Great review, TheDutchGuy, it was a nice read! To me also that Justus looks bigger than I imagined, it seems to dwarf my Custom Heritage 92 :-)

 

I would like to ask A Smug Dill, as his answers seems to point that he has experience with both Pilot and Sailor, as well as Platinum: I love my Pilots (F, SF, SFM, SM and FA nibs) and my Platinum 3776 SF; I'm thinking of trying out one Sailor and wonder how are their nib sizes?

 

For example, my Platinum SoftFine nib is a bit finer than Pilot SoftFIne. Of my Pilots, SFM is like SM, it is bolder than SF, but practically the same as SM, there was no real need getting it.

 

Would you say Sailor is generally closer to Pilot or Platinum, it's F a bit finer (like Platinum) or a hair bolder (like Pilot)? Maybe the solution of dilemma between getting Sailor F or M can be solved by getting a FM? :-) But as I said, buying Pilot SFM was like getting the SM again.

 

Thanks!

[A Smug Dill]

I would like to ask A Smug Dill,

_...‹snip›...

Would you say Sailor is generally closer to Pilot or Platinum,

I don't really like making that sort of statement or comparison, especially when Sailor doesn't just make one type, style and physical size (as in medium, large, and extra large) of nib, and neither does Pilot, nor does Platinum. I would neither say nor presume Pilot's F nibs in the Capless, Custom, Elite, Justus and MR pens all have similar tipping shapes/geometries and produce identical line widths, any more than I would the F nibs in Platinum's Plaisir, Preppy, President, Vicoh, and #3776 family of pens.

 

However, you can see some comparative writing samples in posts #47 and #49 in this other thread I did a while back. (Part of what I learnt from it was that I really don't like either the idea or the exercise of doing such comparisons.)

[pictogramax]

A Smug Dill, thank you so much for the answer and links to various threads - I've been going through them and it's a gold mine of information. As somebody already stated, it gives impression of a personalized Wikipedia page :-)

 

I'm trying to get the idea how Sailors nibs on Promenade and Pro Gear Slim might compare to Pilot CH 91 and 912, as well as Platinum 3776 SoftFine (which are the pens I own and use a lot). Judging by the samples, I feel that Sailor nibs are closer to Pilot than Platinum in width (Platinum seems to be a bit finer in both F and M), but comments seem to suggest that in feel and feedback it's closer to Platinum than Pilot :-)

 

I guess I'll have to see for myself once I find a good deal on Promenade or PGS, but I still have to determine if I should get F, FM or M.

 

Thanks a lot!