So what new pens are there during the hiatus

[jchch1950]

So many new pens!!! The Jinhao 85 looks quite close to the next Parker 51 reissue.

[WJM]

1 hour ago, jchch1950 said:

So many new pens!!! The Jinhao 85 looks quite close to the next Parker 51 reissue.

 

Well, what are the chances...?

 

Ordered the black one. I don't quite like they're supposedly "lacquered metal", but I like the look of it and for $10 I'm willing to give it a try. 

 

I was surprised to see that the Jinhao 85 looks like it has threads at the top of the section, but I just learned that the Parker 51 re-issue is also going to have a screw cap. Seems kinda anthitetical to 51's idea, but  there's no harm in that I suppose. 

 

These Hong Dians also look very tempting. Kinda Pelikan-ish. 

 

 

 

[Mech-for-i]

4 minutes ago, WJM said:

 

.... I don't quite like they're supposedly "laquered metal", but I like the look of it and for $10 I'm willing to give it a try. ...

 

 

well they are definitely lacquered metal alright, had one right beside me now

[Misfit]

I got a Pilot Prera in lime green, and on Fountain Pen Day I got a Conklin Stylograph in Tropical Blend. It was already on a good sale, and a 15% off coupon code helped on the whole order. I added an Endless Recorder notebook and got two Monteverde inks on a Buy One Get One deal. 

[Paganini]

I always thought it was weird that the Wing Sung 618 retains the clutch ring, even though it has a screw cap. I like that this new Jinhao 85 doesn't do that. How does the lacquer seem? Is it sturdy, or is it that kind you have to keep in a pen sleeve all the time to prevent chipping? 

[WarrenB]

On 12/7/2020 at 3:41 PM, Mech-for-i said:

 

Ooops - Rice Bran Grey ... lol .. Yes that pale yellow grey is commonly referred to as Rice Bran Grey in its home market cause it resemble the colour of brown rice or as the namesake goes, the bran of the rice crop, you can see a sample of how it looks like on my latest Hero 100

 

Haha, yes, that makes more sense. And it's a nice colour. Something close to what I'd call a (collared) dove grey.

 

Looking forward to see what that black tortoise 456 looks like. I can't track it down on Aliexpress or Engtaobao just yet.

[Mech-for-i]

13 hours ago, Paganini said:

I always thought it was weird that the Wing Sung 618 retains the clutch ring, even though it has a screw cap. I like that this new Jinhao 85 doesn't do that. How does the lacquer seem? Is it sturdy, or is it that kind you have to keep in a pen sleeve all the time to prevent chipping? 

 

well only time can tell, its really too early, but handling it ; it feel real solid coated , not like the old type they had on 159, X450/X750 , it feel more like old enamel type ( though AFAIK, no more enamel paint job any more in China for a long long time already due to the law regulating ) , you know the type then used on old Steel Frame Bicycle, feel less slippery though still smooth and polished.

 

Mine been used for up to 3 weeks, not using any sleeve, just taking it along , clipping it to the briefcase side pocket, see not scratch nor any sign yet.

[penzel_washinkton]

On 12/8/2020 at 7:47 AM, drathbun said:

The Black Tortoise is really not black. It is slightly translucent and a deep purple. It is very nice. I have it in a 323.

 

I actually have the Black Tortoise for the 323 too, yes they are certainly not a solid black and more of a translucent color. Can't wait for your best of 2020 video

[5thhistorian]

Has anyone tried the new Montblanc snake pen clone from Moonman? I've been interested in picking one up, except that I'm wary of the metal construction being too heavy (as the modern Montblancs are). Perhaps I'll get one anyway and reuse the nib and hardware in a custom ebonite eyedropper someday. I think they missed an opportunity to show up Montblanc since it would be within their capabilities to make a plastic or acrylic barrel pen that better approximated the original 1920s designs.

[Mech-for-i]

On 12/15/2020 at 11:51 PM, 5thhistorian said:

Has anyone tried the new Montblanc snake pen clone from Moonman? I've been interested in picking one up, except that I'm wary of the metal construction being too heavy (as the modern Montblancs are). Perhaps I'll get one anyway and reuse the nib and hardware in a custom ebonite eyedropper someday. I think they missed an opportunity to show up Montblanc since it would be within their capabilities to make a plastic or acrylic barrel pen that better approximated the original 1920s designs.

 

well the spec say 48g for the all steel version, 45g for the spider version, and 32g for all other , but being a slim pen I think it definitely kind of weight it down , if actually using them it might be better to use them un-posted which ( according to the spec ) will weight between 22 to 25g

[Mech-for-i]

This is how the new 616s and the H0503 looks like

 

 

the 616s spot a domed instead of pointed cap jewel that's colour matched to the body, the barrel on it is a metal construction ( not sure what material ) with a brass thread insert where the section remain plastic , its essentially the 616 Plus parts. The H0503, curiously use a wide throat ( aka 3.2mm ) converter not the usual default Hero , got to take it apart to see how its engineered.   but it looks like it retain the old thin rod feed and separate ink collector mechanism instead o the single piece buffered feed the 616s had.

 

And NO , the colour Hero use is not the same as Wing Sung , its more muted and more grey in there

[Stefan-Ionut-Marius]

On 12/17/2020 at 7:01 AM, Mech-for-i said:

This is how the new 616s and the H0503 looks like

 

 

the 616s spot a domed instead of pointed cap jewel that's colour matched to the body, the barrel on it is a metal construction ( not sure what material ) with a brass thread insert where the section remain plastic , its essentially the 616 Plus parts. The H0503, curiously use a wide throat ( aka 3.2mm ) converter not the usual default Hero , got to take it apart to see how its engineered.   but it looks like it retain the old thin rod feed and separate ink collector mechanism instead o the single piece buffered feed the 616s had.

 

And NO , the colour Hero use is not the same as Wing Sung , its more muted and more grey in there

The barrel of Hero 616 plus  it's compatible with the section of the Hero 616S ?

[Mech-for-i]

2 hours ago, Stefan-Ionut-Marius said:

The barrel of Hero 616 plus  it's compatible with the section of the Hero 616S ?

 

Just try, the barrel of the 616s and the 616 Plus are cross compatible , no surprise here since the pen part ( other than the inlaid on the 616s section ) is the same

[MuddyWaters]

Mech, do you know anything about the hero 329? It became my favourite of those Parker copies because it is small, comfortable, light and I can write fast with it. However I see different versions online. I saw in an earlier post by you that you referred to the different versions as 329 and 329-2?

 

I like the one with the flat clip that Ben's easily. I should maybe buy a lot of them if they have gone out of production for a new version...

[Mech-for-i]

17 hours ago, MuddyWaters said:

Mech, do you know anything about the hero 329?...

 

Hmm ... Hero 329, the little unsung Hero, so to speak ... OK probably not well known outside of those who actually hobbyist with the brand but the Hero 329 was the evolution up market model Hero had on its general consumer market hooded nib models , aka its suppose to be a grade or more above the 616 and indeed it was and it still is ..

 

The family, include the 329 ( cigar shaped with curve formed clip ), the 329 EF ( with a flat top flat clip, and of course an EF nib ), 330 ( home market version ) is the calligraphy nib version of the 329 ; all without any hood decoration . Then there's the 329-2 ( 329 with hood inlaid and further improved innards ) ; the 330 ( export market version ) , 331, 332, 336 all initially export models with cosmetic difference , all with inlaid on the hood ; 338/339 ( old version ) are the flighter variant usually with the always black hood unadorned but some can be found with hood inlaid ( might be for export market ). The 335 is the aluminum barrel / cap variant in TigP chiselled Guilloché finish and always with a calligraphy nib , can be found with or without hood inlaid on the black hood. The rare model 333 that's basically a home market version of the 330 but with rounded ends vs Yuk pointed ends and some without the hood inlaid. And then there's the model 130 which is based off the 329-2 but with a 12K gold nib and a heavy duty sac protector, and even rarer is the model 131 which is the 130 with a brass lacquered barrel and a gold plated cap and fashioned with a 14K nib

 

As far as the innards goes they are all the same , and was designed, engineered, and manufactured to be improvement over the basic 616 / Wing Sung 612 mechanism ... its primary ( but always neglected ) advantage is its nib, feed, and ink collector it does not look the part but the 329 family use a 3.5mm ( diameter ) nib vs the 3.3 used by 616/612 and pretty much all others, its also of a length of 21.5mm vs 616/612 ( and today's 601 ) 19.5/18.5mm , and of course its got a feed that's that sized and was tuned for way more consistent and wetter flow. The ink collector also see improvement especially in the air feedback channel and the ink feed grooves, its initially engineered with the same plastic as the transparent coupler, but later switch to ABS construction ( and this improve ink flow further ). The only other fountain pen that use this form factor of nib/feed is the Golden Star ( Jinxing ) 565 and 535 and by extension the Hero 565 and H0503. Most who use the 329 or any variant routinely could tell its writing in a more consistent and wetter fashion than almost all other hooded nib model of similar periods. The 329 was initially marketed very late 1979 ( some reference do say as early as 1976 ), and its still on catalog today on Hero's list with the model 329-2 , & 329 EF

 

Early batches 329 and 329 EF as well as the 330 Home Market variant are offered in multitude of colours but later production had that restricted to the usual Black, Burgundy and Dark Green on all variants

[Licue]

On 12/5/2020 at 8:07 AM, Mech-for-i said:

• Hero release an interesting H1219 in a whopping 11 different colour option , got one myself , nice ergonomics

Hero H1219 Circa 2020, on Flickr

 

On 12/5/2020 at 2:30 PM, Bill P said:

I can't find the Hero H1219 listed anywhere for sale...??

 

Where did you obtain it from?

 

Thanks,

 

Bill

 

I'd be interested in that H1219 too. Triangular and somewhat Safari-inspired but decidedly not a copy - nice 🙂

Hopefully it shows up on Ali and/or Ebay soon.

 

Since you got one, would you mind a few questions, @Mech-for-i?

- Which type of cartridges does it need? Does Hero use a special format?

- Is the nib easily swapable? And would Lamy nibs fit?

- On one pic on Taobao the caps show to have some white chinese writing on the side. Is that true?

- What colors are there? On Taobao I see only 4: grey, medium green-teal, dark burgundy, and salmon.

 

🎄

Edited December 26, 2020 by Licue

[Mech-for-i]

1 hour ago, Licue said:

.. Since you got one, would you mind a few some questions, @Mech-for-i?

 

 

well ...

 

- Which type of cartridges does it need? Does Hero use a special format?

• it use the wide mouth , aka Lamy / Parker spec sized cart

- Is the nib easily swapable? And would Lamy nibs fit?

• its cross compatible with all the Safari / Safari style nib , I can put my Safari nib onto it and the Hero nib onto my Safari

- On one pic on Taobao the caps show to have some white chinese writing on the side. Is that true?

• probably just photo show option for ( optional service ) engraving , cause none of the one I've encountered had any

- What colors are there? On Taobao I see only 4: grey, middle green-teal, dark burgundy, and salmon.

• a photo could answer that better , it should be noted that the black clipped version come with a smoked, and frosted clear section where the chrome clipped ones come with a frosted and plain clear section

[Licue]

@Mech-for-iThank you very much for answering - and all answers were good news too! 🙂

 

 

 

[MuddyWaters]

5 hours ago, Mech-for-i said:

 

Hmm ... Hero 329, the little unsung Hero, so to speak ... OK probably not well known outside of those who actually hobbyist with the brand but the Hero 329 was the evolution up market model Hero had on its general consumer market hooded nib models , aka its suppose to be a grade or more above the 616 and indeed it was and it still is ..

 

The family, include the 329 ( cigar shaped with curve formed clip ), the 329 EF ( with a flat top flat clip, and of course an EF nib ), 330 ( home market version ) is the calligraphy nib version of the 329 ; all without any hood decoration . Then there's the 329-2 ( 329 with hood inlaid and further improved innards ) ; the 330 ( export market version ) , 331, 332, 336 all initially export models with cosmetic difference , all with inlaid on the hood ; 338/339 ( old version ) are the flighter variant usually with the always black hood unadorned but some can be found with hood inlaid ( might be for export market ). The 335 is the aluminum barrel / cap variant in TigP chiselled Guilloché finish and always with a calligraphy nib , can be found with or without hood inlaid on the black hood. The rare model 333 that's basically a home market version of the 330 but with rounded ends vs Yuk pointed ends and some without the hood inlaid. And then there's the model 130 which is based off the 329-2 but with a 12K gold nib and a heavy duty sac protector, and even rarer is the model 131 which is the 130 with a brass lacquered barrel and a gold plated cap and fashioned with a 14K nib

 

As far as the innards goes they are all the same , and was designed, engineered, and manufactured to be improvement over the basic 616 / Wing Sung 612 mechanism ... its primary ( but always neglected ) advantage is its nib, feed, and ink collector it does not look the part but the 329 family use a 3.5mm ( diameter ) nib vs the 3.3 used by 616/612 and pretty much all others, its also of a length of 21.5mm vs 616/612 ( and today's 601 ) 19.5/18.5mm , and of course its got a feed that's that sized and was tuned for way more consistent and wetter flow. The ink collector also see improvement especially in the air feedback channel and the ink feed grooves, its initially engineered with the same plastic as the transparent coupler, but later switch to ABS construction ( and this improve ink flow further ). The only other fountain pen that use this form factor of nib/feed is the Golden Star ( Jinxing ) 565 and 535 and by extension the Hero 565 and H0503. Most who use the 329 or any variant routinely could tell its writing in a more consistent and wetter fashion than almost all other hooded nib model of similar periods. The 329 was initially marketed very late 1979 ( some reference do say as early as 1976 ), and its still on catalog today on Hero's list with the model 329-2 , & 329 EF

 

Early batches 329 and 329 EF as well as the 330 Home Market variant are offered in multitude of colours but later production had that restricted to the usual Black, Burgundy and Dark Green on all variants

 

 

This is the one I am talking about:

 

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/10-PCS-Hero-329-Classic-Extra-Fine-Fountain-Pen-Set-Vintage-Writing-Pen-/192886736122

 

It surprised me that you said it is some sort of upgrade on the 616. I do not see a huge quality difference. The plastic and heft of the pen seems to be similar. And these 329 are very small, smaller than the 616. I may have misunderstood your post but you said they were all longer than the 616. 

 

The one hero pen in my posession that is clearly higher quality than the 616 is the 565 you mentioned, except that I find its nib has a little bit of a sweet spot, is broader (around a medium) and is stiff as hell.

 

It has that little design on the plastic near the nib, as do some of the 329 variants:

 

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/3Pcs-Hero-329-2-Vintage-Plastic-Metal-Cap-Fountain-Pen-0-5mm-Nib-Writing-Gift-s-/174139027078

 

 Is that a marker of greater quality compared to the 616? 

[Mech-for-i]

I do not think I ever mention the size being longer or larger, did I got something missed  ??? well I did mention the nib is longer and wider, but its only the nib.

 

Well , as far as quality goes that's what Hero aim for and it do materialize, though for most who are not into using these pens for length of a period and experience they would feel very similar. My experience personally is that the 329 family is in usage more consistent in delivering the ink and in the writing part , generally smoother than the 616 but you had to be real familiar with both to sense the difference and its probably not that apparent if you are not writing the home language. It is though more apparent when using for home language writing.

 

Upon your case , you are talking about using the 329 EF ( as those on your link ) and they are known to be very positively giving feedback and very firm and very dry ( for cursive writing ) but its doing the part of writing the home language in EF admirably, and generally considered not that great in most cursive writing , unless you write casual pace and real small. Being  bit too generalized, but the usual Chinese Extra Fine fountain pen , even todays tend to be tuned fairly to very dry, and with a very firm nib coupled with fairly positive feedback . its a great property to had for writing the home language in extra fine and the opposite for writing anything like Cursive

 

One had to know that, as far as Hero goes, the better part is for writing the home language and not cursive nor any Latin based language , so the firm / sweet spot part is really only a by product of such, in fact the Hero 565 use the same nib as all the Hero 329 family but it use a different feed ( due to size difference in the hood ).

 

Most of us write cursive , daily writing / penmanship as how we had been taught in school and it is very different vs what Hero tune the pen for , basically daily usage quasi-Calligraphy / Cursive Chinese writing , and yes sometime you got to find these with or without that hood inlaid , its probably due to the large volume of production to cater to various order both home and export market.

 

if you are looking for a good all rounder from the family , I would suggest instead look for the 330/331/332/336 export model , while they use the same engineered parts, they usually are fashioned with a nib that's tailored for , export market , which mean they had a grind that's less a quasi architect ( which is the usual home version ) but more a krugal ( still not quite )but all of them are not current, the only current model is the 329-2 ( 2nd link on your post ) and the 329 EF ( which is the pen you had and also the one on the 1st link )