Daiso-Hauser Fountain Pen: An Overview

[A Smug Dill]

In spite of the pen's flimsy construction and a plethora of shortcomings, and the nib on my light grey one came twisted off kilter to boot, inexplicably it's a pleasure to write with this pen. I love the look of the tiny wrap-around nib, which makes this look more like a "technical pen" than a regular fountain pen, and the feel and precision it delivers is superb.

It's a standard-priced Daiso item, it's awfully cheap — in price as well as overall product quality — and the converter you fit on it (if you choose to do so) will probably cost you more than the pen itself. I have no idea how effective the cap is at preventing ink evaporation over two or three months, but I haven't encountered any hard starts yet when I uncap for the first time on any given day. The clip is junk, and the plastic cap and body probably won't last, but the nib has stood up well to two hours of "abuse" by two little girls, as well as my very grown-up and ham-fisted sister-in-law, none of whom has any idea about how to handle a fountain pen properly.

If you post the cap on the barrel, it's not going to fail off, even though I don't know whether it posts "deeply" (and, for that matter, don't care). The lightweight plastic won't change the balance of the pen drastically, especially if you install a converter full of ink (adding about 3g in weight) to the body of the pen. There is an audible and kinaesthetically satisfying snap when capping the pen.

[penzel_washinkton]

Have the blue one and absolutely love this pen for its price and performance. I would say that this is one of the best pens under $10 easily.

Fitted mine with a Schmidt K5 converter and it holds a surprisingly quite an amount of ink.

 

My only regret was that I only bought just one and since then I was not able find it anymore.

[tamiya]

Oh wow... so you think it's worth buying just for the nib?

 

Have been avoiding it so far couldn't justify buying that plasticky thing, when I could get a Rivière or the metal thing for same $2ish.

[A Smug Dill]

  On 1/15/2020 at 2:11 PM, tamiya said:

Oh wow... so you think it's worth buying just for the nib?

 

Have been avoiding it so far couldn't justify buying that plasticky thing, when I could get a Rivière or the metal thing for same $2ish.

 

That depends on whether the cap proves effective at preventing evaporation of ink. There is a lot of headroom in the cap, so I'm not expecting it to be very good at that. It's not a pen you'd want to flush and refill often, at least not with different inks, because the extensive fins inside the section — similar to what you'd find in a Platinum Preppy — make it difficult to clean thoroughly.

 

It's not even that the nibs on this model of pen are well-made. I've just inked up a blue one of these, and while the orientation of the nib slit isn't quite as off as the one on the light grey one I photographed yesterday, you can still see there is some misalignment from the centre-line of the translucent feed, and the wrap-around "wings" of the nib don't appear to be nearly perfectly symmetrical:

 

 

But, damn, it writes so well and exceeds my expectations in that regard. I'm not one who fetishises smooth wet broad nibs, and this one comes close to the upper bound of the Good™ range (past which it'd go downhill real fast) for me in each of those regards. If I was inclined to do pages of stream-of-consciousness writing from time to time, this would likely be a very enjoyable pen to use for that.

 

(The nib on the blue pen writes just as smoothly and not quite as wetly, but puts down slightly finer lines compared to the nib on the light grey one.)

 

I haven't tried the other two types of ¥100 Daiso pens yet, and probably wouldn't be inclined to "waste" A$5.60 on them just to give them a try, if this Daiso-Hauser pen didn't pleasantly surprise me and impress me so much. The Daiso-Platinum Riviera PTR-200 looks particularly cheap and nasty to me; the only things about it that demanded a second look is the Platinum co-branding (but cancelled out by being made in China) and that, by Platinum's practice of assigning model numbers based on domestic MSRP, it's nominally a ¥200 pen being offered at ¥100 any day of the week. I read that it has a spring-loaded inner cap, probably much like the one in the Platinum Preppy, and thus the cap could be very effective, but then what good is that if the cap and/or body is prone to cracking? (It's also a curious thing to see, according to the information on the packaging, that the cap and the barrel/shell are made of different plastics in the same colour.)

 

The Daiso fountain pen with the metal body shows the most promise for a ¥100 pen, at least at first glance; but I'm not expecting its Medium nib to write like (or finer than) a "Japanese Medium", and a round-tipped nib that puts down lines too wide for my liking is the sort of thing that promptly sends a fountain pen I own to meet either an emery board or the garbage bin.

Edited January 16, 2020 by A Smug Dill

[Bibliophage]

I have a Daiso pen labeled Rosso Bianco. It's not their bottom brand, but the $5 one. From what I can see, it's a custom fabricated Jinhao - had a standard Jinhao cartridge with it.

 

It may be that the 'standard' 2.4-2.6mm converter didn't fit yours because it's a 2.7mm bore. I've seen a few of those - they'll split the neck of a 'standard' international cartridge if it's too thin.

[A Smug Dill]

  On 1/16/2020 at 4:03 AM, Bibliophage said:

It may be that the 'standard' 2.4-2.6mm converter didn't fit yours because it's a 2.7mm bore. I've seen a few of those - they'll split the neck of a 'standard' international cartridge if it's too thin.

 

 

The 2.4mm bore converter fits the nipple inside the barrel alright. The six equally-spaced fins on the inner wall are what stops some converters of that bore from being fitted onto the nipple. Some converters have a longer snout than others; whereas the Delike converter (if I'm not mistaken as to what it is) on the far left in the line-up of eight converters shown above has no snout at all, and so those fins just get in the way.

 

I have the Diplomat converter in my Daiso-Hauser pen right now, and it fits and works fine. I don't know whether the 2.6mm-bore Jinhao converter would go around the nipple snugly without allow ink the seep out around it, because that converter's snout is not long enough.

Edited January 16, 2020 by A Smug Dill

[A Smug Dill]

  On 1/15/2020 at 2:11 PM, tamiya said:

couldn't justify buying that plasticky thing, when I could get a Rivière or the metal thing for same $2ish.

I just inked up and tried the Daiso fountain pen with the metal body. Ugh. It's not bad enough that I feel compelled to put together an overview — much less a pen review by FPN "standards" — to warn like-minded users or even just curious hobbyists off buying one, but it writes less smoothly than the Daiso-Hauser pens while putting down lines that are one-and-a-half to two grades wider. It's not that it's "feedback-y" in the way Sailor and Aurora nibs are, but it feels more like I'm writing with a felt-tipped pen that is being dragged along the surface of the paper. I think even that crpppy "needlepoint" nib that Parker put on my Duofold Centennial Big Red Vintage writes better than that.

 

In case someone is interested, or even about to ask, I'm not going to compare the three different ¥100 Daiso fountain pens side by side. However, more than twelve months ago a fellow Aussie ("Mick L") did just that on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COJcg3ekoTc

 

However, these are my writing samples using all three:

 

In descending order of how much I liked writing with the different pens:

• Daiso-Hauser in light grey with the significantly misaligned nib

  — the best balance of smoothness, "wetness" and line width to make my writing feel like an effortless flowing experience, without losing control over the size of the writing

• Daiso-Hauser in blue with the "better" and more centre-aligned nib

  — very slightly drier, but puts down finer lines which is worth the small amount of extra focus/effort required when writing when I want my handwriting to be precise/tight/small (which is most of the time)

• Daiso-Platinum Riviere PTR-200

  — "true" Medium, a small amount of feedback that isn't quite enough for me to easily control the nib because of its excessive "wetness"/ink flow, making it arduous to use when writing in my preferred size

• Daiso fountain pen with metal body

  — "true" Medium, made worse by being the least precise, the lines from it aren't crisp, the dull feedback is disagreeable, and even though it has only a small step-down between barrel and section the edge of the metal feels more bothersome than the 1mm step-down on the Daiso-Hauser

Edited January 16, 2020 by A Smug Dill

[penzel_washinkton]

  On 1/15/2020 at 2:11 PM, tamiya said:

Oh wow... so you think it's worth buying just for the nib?

 

Have been avoiding it so far couldn't justify buying that plasticky thing, when I could get a Rivière or the metal thing for same $2ish.

Me personally, yes.

Nib performance at the $2 price point is a no-brainer.

[A Smug Dill]

Suddenly it occurred to me what the writing experience with the Daiso-Hauser nib feels similar to: a Pilot Capless 18K gold Fine nib with a lubricating ink. Of course, the Daiso-Hauser pen itself is much more lightweight than a Pilot Capless Vanishing Point pen, and without the clip getting in the way of one's grip (although that part doesn't bother me too much anyway).

[tamiya]

Guess I'll be adding some Hauser when I next need something to pad out DAISO total at the till

 

Have lots of Metal pen and Rivières.

 

Metal pen don't often write good straight out of packet but occasionally one does... minor nib tinkering gets them going ok. Std int cartridge is good; they'll dry out in 6-8wks capped unused. They're nicely weighted & I haven't broken one yet. Been wondering if other nibs might fit but I haven't gotten any to try yet.

 

Rivière writes nice with some wet ink; tempted to try some Carbon ink. Platinum cart is a pain... but the big ballbearing is a great mixer. Have had at least 1 casualty... but it's not the offwhite plastics that gave way, it's the black section! Don't think I stuffed the nib/feed in that hard, but it did crack & leak.

 

DAISO also sold a brush pen version of the Rivière, the body is black with goldfoiled patterns. Came with a platinum cart of some kind of India ink, maybe even carbon ink. Loved this brushpen, haven't seen then in store for a while now though. I've got a whole sheaf of them inked up in a rainbow of colours.

[A Smug Dill]

  On 1/16/2020 at 1:41 PM, tamiya said:

Rivière writes nice with some wet ink; tempted to try some Carbon ink. Platinum cart is a pain... but the big ballbearing is a great mixer.

 

 

I'm curious as to in what way is the Platinum ink cartridge a pain that Sailor, Pilot, Aurora and De Atramentis cartridges aren't? Is it the form factor or the larger ink capacity? It can't be because they are difficult to get, when Daiso usually sells replacement Platinum cartridges for the PTR-200 on the same rack alongside the pens. If you want to get Japanese-made Platinum cartridges for other ink colours, I'm confident Dymocks and Kinokuniya sell them.

[tamiya]

  On 1/16/2020 at 10:13 PM, A Smug Dill said:

I'm curious as to in what way is the Platinum ink cartridge a pain that Sailor, Pilot, Aurora and De Atramentis cartridges aren't? Is it the form factor or the larger ink capacity? It can't be because they are difficult to get, when Daiso usually sells replacement Platinum cartridges for the PTR-200 on the same rack alongside the pens. If you want to get Japanese-made Platinum cartridges for other ink colours, I'm confident Dymocks and Kinokuniya sell them.

nah we're not as lucky down south as you sydneysiders our Kino died with Daimaru like 20yrs ago

 

Our vic Dymocks are devoid of any pen stuff, not even the biggest one in city. The suburban Dymocks you'd be lucky to find a Lamy stand, last one I saw was 3/4 empty & only ballpoints. They still think of pens as gifts only. Consider yourself fortunate to have Sydney Dymocks HQ... we get Millgram standalone instead. Haven't noticed any Pt in there either.

 

Daisos are a crapshoot too, a few stores might have the Pt carts & some only some of the time. Find the std ints in stock more often. Haven't seen refills for the Pt brush pen in a long time. Outside of Daiso haven't seen anywhere else to buy Pt carts... other than my LPS PenCity, who've ironically moved far out from the city now.

 

Pilot carts I've found in some Officeworks.

 

Have never seen Sailor jars for sale in Melb, nor Pt bottles. Haven't seen fresh stock of Aurora either... always been on lookout for Aurora Black to try. PenCity had some old Aurora, they had some ancient ConwayStewart too so that's not saying much and they're the only place local that I know of with full range of Preppy colours and inks carts to match.

 

 

Pt also PITA for limited convertor figment originals aren't cheap, can't afford to put those in PTR200s or Preppies. I did find some generic offbrand plastic slide-piston converters some years back but haven't been able to find them again recently.

[A Smug Dill]

  On 1/17/2020 at 5:30 AM, tamiya said:

Daisos are a crapshoot too, a few stores might have the Pt carts & some only some of the time.

That's the case with just about any particular Daiso product I have cared to look at. There are three Daiso stores within walking distance from me, and there are days when none of them will have a single, say, A4 5mm dot grid Planning Pad (which has subsequently proven not to be a discontinued product). The "lesson" is, you see something at Daiso you like that nevertheless isn't required to fit a definite and/or immediate need, you buy one to try it out, and if you want more, next time you see it in a store you just sweep up as many as you think you can use. Buying consumable and/or disposable goods from Daiso is not a Just-In-Time acquisition exercise.

 

  Quote

Pt also PITA for limited convertor figment originals aren't cheap, can't afford to put those in PTR200s or Preppies.

Back when I was still ordering stuff from Rakuten, I almost always topped up my orders with Sailor/Platinum converters or bottles of Sailor pigment inks to reach the minimum threshold to qualify for some discount code or other. I still have twelve or fifteen new Platinum converters (including some chrome-trimmed ones), and about as many Sailor and Pilot ones. Japanese-made Platinum ink cartridges coming out of my ears from all the Platinum (from Preppy and Plaisir up to Izumo and #3776 briar models), as I've only ever used one of those cartridges (because modern Platinum converters don't seem to fit that particular old pocket pen I picked up).

 

Platinum cartridges are pretty robust and can stand up to reuse many times over (after being refilled with a syringe), anyway. I mostly just "eye-dropper" my Preppy pens, and I haven't once managed to deplete the ink from a filled Preppy barrel through writing and/or drawing.

[penzel_washinkton]

  On 1/17/2020 at 6:06 AM, A Smug Dill said:

The "lesson" is, you see something at Daiso you like that nevertheless isn't required to fit a definite and/or immediate need, you buy one to try it out, and if you want more, next time you see it in a store you just sweep up as many as you think you can use. Buying consumable and/or disposable goods from Daiso is not a Just-In-Time acquisition exercise.

Wise words regarding buying from Daiso

[clear1]

There are some pens at Daiso in Korea, too. I have a couple of models, and all of them are great writers. Unbelievable.

[Bibliophage]

The local Daiso in Houston, while large, had exactly one white metal body fountain pen, with a single international short cartridge.

 

(They had several of the white ones. Just no other type)

 

The clerk said that they come and go; a friend bought one of the $5 ones to give to me as a gift - the fancy one

[amberleadavis]

I bought about ten of these for my students. About half were terrific writers, and half were unusable. The ones that were not usable were the fancy ones for $5. The cheap ones were awesome right out of the baggie.

[Bibliophage]

  On 2/26/2020 at 8:41 PM, amberleadavis said:

I bought about ten of these for my students. About half were terrific writers, and half were unusable. The ones that were not usable were the fancy ones for $5. The cheap ones were awesome right out of the baggie.

Mine's doing great. Writes a very wet medium line. Chews through ink, which isn't a problem for me, I like wide lines.

[A Smug Dill]

Out of the blue, I received a partial shipment of an order of multiple bottles of Hero 234 carbon ink, which I thought was led by the spirit of air freight chaos into the vast postal wilderness some three months ago and lost forever to temptation, and written off completely (but I got refunded for the order by AliExpress a month ago).

I thought such a potentially troublesome ink deserves to be in a cheap Chinese-made pen that is easily available here in bricks-and-mortar stores, and nothing fits the bill better than the Daiso fountain pens. My primary Daiso-Hauser, as well as my Daiso-Platinum Riviere, are already filled with (Colorverse Vortex Motion and Platinum Carbon Black) ink and otherwise deployed; that leaves the metal-bodied Daiso fountain pen with no co-branding.

Only after I found a cheap, unbranded but compatible ("international standard", but possibly has a 2.6mm-bore opening instead of 2.4mm) converter and filled it — through the nib and feed submerged into the ink in the bottle — did I discover ...

... that the barrel of the metal-bodied Daiso fountain pen is made such that some (or most?) converters could not fit through the mouth of the barrel; the metal collar on the converter, which is not plush with the plastic tube on the converter by just hair's breadth, is stuck at the mouth and cannot enter the barrel. I've tried a couple of other converters since, and in each instance I was frustrated by the phenomenon.

That makes the metal pen absolutely useless to me, since I'm not going to find a compatible cartridge of large enough capacity, only to empty it and then use it as a refillable-by-syringe ink reservoir.

[jchch1950]

The lockdown gave me the opportunity to try the three Daiso Pens. The Daiso Platinum was a failure ink on the section.The nib wrote rather soft.The Daiso Metal had after some weeks behave quite well and the nib wide is close to a western medium, no complains. The third one , the Daiso Hauser wites a thin line on almost any quality of paper;not very easy to uncap but has not shown any stress lines or cracks. I'm happy with the last two pens, good as an extra pens in case someone ask to borrow your pen.