Stainless steel nibs: Parker Sonnet or Waterman Expert Metallic

[sfbooklady]

First post, so apologies if I say something like a noob.

I have a Waterman Laureat from the mid 90's that has the best "feel" for me - ink flow, nib flex,, etc. It's a stainless steel with gold plating.

I want to buy either a Parker Sonnet (SS nib) or a Waterman Expert Metallic (SS nib with PVD coating). I like a medium, flexible but not to the point of "smooshy". In terms of looks the PVD coating is very cool, but the red GT Sonnet is quite lovely. In terms of nib, I know Waterman generally has more "flex" but I'm not sure if that's still the case. I recall the Sonnet's nib was well regarded.

Any answers or opinions are greatly appreciated.

[Checklist]

I like my Sonnet; it is one of my favorites.  The stainless nib writes a true fine, though wet, line.  I had a medium on it at first, and, while it was too broad for me, it was a nice writer.  I don't look for flex, but it is still a rather stiff nib.  I would certainly recommend it, in any case.

 

Unfortunately, I have never tried a Waterman, so I cannot make a recommendation or comparison there.

[Waltz For Zizi]

I would not buy any of those pens. Had both of them, more sonnets than experts, ended up selling almost all. The nib on the expert/hemisphere feel extra cheap like they used the cheapest alloy there is. Even the nib on a Parker vector, a 6-8 times cheaper pen, feels more high-quality.

And the sonnet feels cheap as a pen in your hand. The grip section even has visible mold lines.

There is more quality in a Faber castell Ambition, or if you still want a waterman try the Allure, much better for the price. I have 12 of these, and the mat finis feels great in the hand.

I would never ever buy another expert. As for the sonnet I still have one of them, a crocodile version. I keep it cause it's a vermeil and the finish aged very well, it has a color in some places simmilar to an oil spot color, raibow-ish, but as I said, even this one which is a more expensive version has mold lines on the grip section.

[jchch1950]

Between the Parker Sonnet and the Waterman Expert,  I will recommend the Sonnet. 

[A Smug Dill]

4 hours ago, jchch1950 said:

Between the Parker Sonnet and the Waterman Expert,  I will recommend the Sonnet.

 

Between the Parker Sonnet (of which I had three: two 1994 version of Cascade Gold, and one Dimonite G, if I recall correctly from before I had any real ‘knowledge’ about fountain pens) and Waterman Expert (of which I had four, including the first fountain pen I bought with money I earned, an Expert II in green lacquer), I'd recommend against the Sonnet. Those Sonnet pens left me with a distaste for anything Parker, that is refreshed and cemented many years later by my experiences with a steel-nibbed IM and a gold-nibbed Duofold Centennial on either side of the Sonnet on the price spectrum. Whereas my Waterman Expert all ended up taken and/or given away to family by my ex-wife and (second) wife; they were fine pens in my opinion, although not fine enough to warrant replacing in my collection.

 

If you want a cushiony or bouncy steel nib, I'd recommend looking at a Platinum Balance in one of the opaque colours. Or, if you want something with a ‘classier’ looking barrel, as much as I dislike Leonardo Officina Italiana as a brand, the (early?) Momento Zero and Furore models fitted with steel nibs made by Bock have a reputation for having cushiony nibs. Or try a steel-nibbed Pelikan M20x (or P20x, if you prefer cartridge/converter-filled pens); I have eight or nine of those now, and my wife has another four for her fleet plus an F-nibbed M120 in iconic blue that writes a little too wet and broad for my preferences, but since you're after a Medium nib, perhaps it might suit your tastes.

[Olya]

I concur with @A Smug Dill.

 

I have liked my Waterman and Parker nibs, both companies make them stiff and smooth.

 

My Watermans don't show any problems, my Sonnets tend to have the infamous drying-out problem.

The worst that's happened with Waterman so far is that uncapping them there are blobs of Pilot ink on the nib, which isn't that much of an issue.

Based on this alone I recommend against Parker. The only modern Parkers, which don't have issues and don't cost too much are Vectors and Jotters (and vintage models). I hear the modern Duofold also doesn't have issues, but that one's an entirely different price class.

 

For softer steel nibs I also recommend the Platinum Crystal/Balance, Pelikan m2xx/p2xx, and Pilot n°5 gold nibs (Custom (Heritage) 74/91).

[senzen]

I hated my two Sonnets for a long time, they evaporate like crazy which resulted in starting problems every single time and put me off fountain pens for a long time; they finally sort of behave after I plugged the cap and keep them in a case, I don't know if they ever fixed this problem. Oh, and they're also the most pirated fountain pen so on top of everything you have to be very careful who you buy it from. 

 

My brother had an Expert, it seemed like a decent pen, I also find it very fetching with silver trim.

 

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have the best 'Sonnet' the P-75. A light for silver pen with great balance posted. Triple filling option; the issue squeeze gismo, cartridge, or later converter.

 

Even 13 years ago when I came on the com, the Sonnet was bad news from nib up. The same and more complaints. A high priced low quality pen.

It appears little to nothing has changed with Sonnets being bad news.

[senzen]

Agreed, the Parker 75 is everything the Sonnet could never be: reliable and with a design that stands the test of time. For smaller hands even the Parker 50 brings a spectacular design and reliability, I just got a much rare 105 and it's also behaving after much cleaning. At some point companies seem to have lost the know how they had, seems to have happened to Waterman in the 70s too.

 

The 75 does come with gold nibs, except perhaps the "octanium" model.