The Pilot Custom Heritage Esterbrook 912: Fountain Pen Success!

[peroride]

Peroride's winning recipe for fountain pen success!

 

What do you get when you combine a well balanced classically styled pen offered in specialty nibs like the Postal, Waverley and FA

 

PLUS

 

the vast affordable range of vintage steel nibs from Esterbrook?

 

A great buy-it-for-life package

 

For this endeavor, you'll need

• a Pilot Custom Heritage 912 pen in the nib of your choice
• an Esterbrook MV Nib Adaptor
• Some Esterbrook nibs

Recipe:

 

Prepare your work area and steady the mind for relaxed hand control

1. Unscrew the Pilot nib unit off
2. Screw in the Esterbrook nib into the Esterbrook MV Nib Adaptor
3. Attach the converter that comes with the adaptor kit
4. And now for the tricky part.......steady...steady now....
5. Screw in the Esterbrook MV Nib Adaptor into Pilot Custom Heritage 912 barrel

​

Edited June 30, 2020 by peroride

[TheDutchGuy]

I’m a little bit puzzled by this, to be honest. If you have a few Esterbrook nibs, then no doubt you’ll also have an Esterbrook pen. Why not enjoy the Estie nibs in an Estie pen and the Pilot nib (which is a delight in its own right) in the 912...? If you put aside the 912’s nib/feed/section, i.e. the business part of the pen, then all that’s left are cap and barrel.

[peroride]

I’m a little bit puzzled by this, to be honest. If you have a few Esterbrook nibs, then no doubt you’ll also have an Esterbrook pen. Why not enjoy the Estie nibs in an Estie pen and the Pilot nib (which is a delight in its own right) in the 912...? If you put aside the 912’s nib/feed/section, i.e. the business part of the pen, then all that’s left are cap and barrel.

 

That is perfectly fine, as one does with buying multiple pens like Platinum 3776 or Aurora when the nib units are not cost effective.

 

Does one buy an Esterbrook pen for every nib they have? No, they can swap nibs to save costs, if needed.

 

Use cases differ. I don't have a vintage Esterbrook pen.

 

The modern Esterbrook pen does not post and has Jowo #6 which covers a whole wide range. As gifted to my wife, her use is occasional.

 

The extra adapter came with an extra Esterbrook nib and others can be purchased elsewhere. The adapter can be bought without the Esterbrook pen.

 

Pilot CH 912 may be the only pen one has or has a form factor preferred over the current cigar/bullet shape of the modern Esterbrook. It posts and can sport a unique primary nib. In fact, I have it right next to a Conid Flat Top and both post well to my preference just like Sailor Pro Gear. But the Sailor Pro gear nor the Conid will take an Esterbrook 9128 EF flexible.

 

Buying another pen, like a vintage Esterbrook J is an option but then why ? I enjoy lever fillers and but not replacing sacs.

 

When one wants a change of line, they can go this route as I described and enjoy their Esterbrook nibs in a great modern form factor.

Edited June 30, 2020 by peroride

[Tas]

It pleases me that you have discovered this .

I regularly muck about in a similar way.

 

In fact only yesterday I was trying to find a "better" body that would fit a new pen I've become a little smitten with - Rotring Isograph 0.3mm
(I wasn't successful. I will have to accept the original )

[Karmachanic]

Bookmarked. Thank you. Having the ability to easily change nibs certainly makes my 912 FA more 'flexible'.

[carlos.q]

This is a most ingenious idea!

[XYZZY]

Cool beans. I think what you're saying is that the Pilot 912 section is interchangeable with current production Esterbrook sections? And assuming the barrel is big enough, I could have a CON-70 inside the Esterbrook?

[TheDutchGuy]

I’m glad that this solution allows you to enjoy your Esterbrook nibs! My comments was in no way meant as a criticism. It’s just that personally I admire vintage Esterbrook and modern Pilot so much that the thought would never have occurred to me.

[steve50]

So I guess this also means that modern Esterbrooks can take Pilot 912/742/743/845 sections as well?!

[peroride]

Holy bleep!

 

@XYZZY Genius! More minds, actually helped the stew

 

It never dawned on me to flip it the other way.

 

Just tested:

• Modern Esterbrook will take Pilot 912 PO and has slip and seal ?! I only have con-40 inked up at the moment so yet to test con-70 @DutchGuy revisting my wife's modern Esterbrook, i retract the bit about posting, it posts but a bit long but well enough. It too is a good pen.
• Pilot 912 will accept the Jowo #6 based long nib with cap clearance which means the sky is open if you get a Black Estie and mount it with a specialty nib like from nib specialists, Gena - journaler nib, or Mark - turk hybrid, Ralph - sequel, etc

 

If folks have any more franken barrel combos - please share

 

As competition increases, I hope the industry recognizes a market for user customization. It's specialty niche within a niche now, but I suspect it can go further mainstream.

[peroride]

So I guess this also means that modern Esterbrooks can take Pilot 912/742/743/845 sections as well?!

 

Bingo! @steve50

 

Kids don't try this at home without first checking out Ron Zorn's measurement tutorial at https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/354469-kaweco-dia-2-and-bock-060-v-076-nibs-by-the-numbers/

 

The post notes cap clearance in the thousandths ...

 

I took the plunge and carefully and slowingly turned the modern Estie cap over the Pilot 743 FA nib.....

 

It worked! I'm still a bit concerned as the FA nib is a tipping longer that the Estie's Jowo, probably would not do a quick jamming of the cap else

 

Imagine all the Esterbrook colors + Pilot FA ( with CON-70!!!) + FNF 2 channel ebonite feed upgrade

 

dubbed thee Esterbrook Falcon!

Edited June 30, 2020 by peroride

[steve50]

 

Bingo! @steve50

 

Kids don't try this at home without first checking out Ron Zorn's measurement tutorial at https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/354469-kaweco-dia-2-and-bock-060-v-076-nibs-by-the-numbers/

 

The post notes cap clearance in the thousandths ...

 

I took the plunge and carefully and slowingly turned the modern Estie cap over the Pilot 743 FA nib.....

 

It worked! I'm still a bit concerned as the FA nib is a tipping longer that the Estie's Jowo, probably would not do a quick jamming of the cap else

 

Imagine all the Esterbrook colors + Pilot FA ( with CON-70!!!) + FNF 2 channel ebonite feed upgrade

 

dubbed thee Esterbrook Falcon!

 

They fit really nicely together! I wonder how this came about. Is it just a coincidence or does Pilot secretly manufacture the new Esties??

[Honeybadgers]

I’m a little bit puzzled by this, to be honest. If you have a few Esterbrook nibs, then no doubt you’ll also have an Esterbrook pen. Why not enjoy the Estie nibs in an Estie pen and the Pilot nib (which is a delight in its own right) in the 912...? If you put aside the 912’s nib/feed/section, i.e. the business part of the pen, then all that’s left are cap and barrel.

 

I don't really like most vintage estie pens, and I very much dislike the current "new" esterbrook pens.

 

But I have a few estie nibs that I love.

 

I honestly might now buy a 912 just for this.

Edited July 1, 2020 by Honeybadgers

[ardene]

I’m a little bit puzzled by this, to be honest. If you have a few Esterbrook nibs, then no doubt you’ll also have an Esterbrook pen. Why not enjoy the Estie nibs in an Estie pen and the Pilot nib (which is a delight in its own right) in the 912...? If you put aside the 912’s nib/feed/section, i.e. the business part of the pen, then all that’s left are cap and barrel.

 

 

 

Buying another pen, like a vintage Esterbrook J is an option but then why ? I enjoy lever fillers and but not replacing sacs.

Another (I would think significant) practicality is that if one refills too often and the pen is a lever-filler there is always a chance that a lever might break. (For this very reason my vintage pen is a button-filler, used often and regularly refilled, sometimes twice daily - that's about 8-10 A4 pages). A new body helps in general in being a bit more carefree with the pen, like forgetting some Quink for three months to dry in the converter, washing it every day to try new ink colours with vintage springy inks, etc.

[A Smug Dill]

Thanks for this @peroride.

 

I have a Pilot Custom Heritage 912 pen body — everything sans the nib — that I have no use for. Maybe this is something I can try one day (but avoid multiple lots of international shipping charges from the US, so I'll have to look primarily for European vendors of the Esterbrook pieces). Some of the nibs on your site to which you linked look somewhat interesting.

[XYZZY]

I didn't even realize that the 912, 742, 743, and 845 were all interchangeable. I dislike the new Esterbrook pens just on general principal, but I might get over that--putting my 743-FA in a different body is intriguing. Looking forward to hearing whether the CON-70 fits.

[peroride]

I didn't even realize that the 912, 742, 743, and 845 were all interchangeable. I dislike the new Esterbrook pens just on general principal, but I might get over that--putting my 743-FA in a different body is intriguing. Looking forward to hearing whether the CON-70 fits.

 

Me: "Hey babe, can i use your Estie?"

 

Better half: "yeah"

 

Con-70 fits

[Honeybadgers]

I didn't even realize that the 912, 742, 743, and 845 were all interchangeable. I dislike the new Esterbrook pens just on general principal, but I might get over that--putting my 743-FA in a different body is intriguing. Looking forward to hearing whether the CON-70 fits.

 

the 845 and 743 and 823 nibs are not interchangeable with the 912 and 742. the 912 and 742 both use the pilot #10 gold nib, which is somewhere between a #5 and #6, and the 845, 743, and 823 all use the #15 pilot nib, which is pretty much a direct swap for a #6.

 

I don't know if the sections interchange though. But I do know that the pilot Falcon section sorta fits the CH 92/74, but you cant' fully screw down the cap because it fouls on the longer section, though it is usable that way.

[A Smug Dill]

I don't know if the sections interchange though.

 

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/354464-pilot-custom-845-section-interchangeability/?p=4335044

[Honeybadgers]

 

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/354464-pilot-custom-845-section-interchangeability/?p=4335044

 

That doesn't actually explain whether the sections of the 845/743 can be interchanged with the 742/912