Conklin Duragraph: Cobalt Blue (M)

[rroossinck]

If you'll bear with some non-specific shots of this pen for right now, there'll be some new detail-oriented shots of it shortly. Thanks!

 

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First Impressions

Holy moley...what a big pen! Seriously, this thing is a baseball bat!

 

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Appearance

This flagship model of the Conklin lineup is made in a gorgeous blue resin that screams, “Put me in coach! I’m ready to play!”

 

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The styling, to me, is reminiscent of the flat-tops of the 20s and 30s. the cap is topped with a big sterling jewel stamped “Conklin Est. 1898.” The clip is a flat, fairly substantial piece of sterling, also stamped with Conklin’s name. It tapers down to a flat-ball on the end. There’s a lot of tension on this clip; once it’s grabed onto something, it won’t let go. When it does, it gives a very audible “Click!” when the ball comes back in contact with the cap.

 

The cap pays homage to the Duragraphs of years gone by, with 2 black rings etched into the resin (there’re also two more on the barrel). The cap-band is sterling, engraved “Conklin Duragraph”, with the two words being separated by their signature “Crescent” logo - another trademark of their storied history with the Crescent Fillers that Mark Twain used.

 

The barrel and section are both well-designed, and I love the fact that they’re all the same color. The section is supremely comfortable for me, with my big hands. Love it!

 

Design/Size/Weight

It’s a big pen. If I had to guess, I’d say that it’s probably similar in size to a Pelikan M1000. Capped, the pen is 5.75 in., and posted, you’re looking at 6.625 in. The Pelikan might be a little longer when it’s posted, and perhaps a little tiny bigger around (the Duragraph is 0.5 in.), but they’d be awful close counterparts.

 

The pen is reasonably hefty, but not so big that you feel like you’re actually getting tired while using it. It’s a good size, and despite the big dimensions, it works fairly well for a long session.

 

Nib

Mine came with a medium, although I don’t know that it’ll stay that way forever (more on that in a minute). In practice, it’s probably a half-size broad (maybe a quarter-size), which is in keeping with the standard Conklin gold nibs. It’s not as wide as the recent All-American’s nibs, which I would suggest run somewhere along the lines of a full size broader than they’re marked.

 

It can be a bit of a hard starter, though. I’ve flossed it a little, but it’s probably more of a feed issue than a nib. Once it gets going, it’s very smooth and fairly uniform in terms of line variation. Another nice thing about it (for me as a lefty, anyway) is that it writes a fairly dry line...therefore, it’s typically dry by the time my hand is dragged over it.

 

Filling System

Nothing terribly noteworthy here; it’s a typical c/c filler. One thing I really do like about it, though, is the positive lock when fitting the converter to the nipple on the end of the feed. When it locks up, you know that it won’t go anywhere. That’s a reassuring feeling to me.

 

Cost and Value

For this one, SWMBO paid full retail. I know it’s available for less, but I think that this one is worth it (and those of you who know me well know that I don’t pay full retail for ANYTHING!). She chose this one out of 20 or so other pens that she knew that I was considering (drooling counts as considering, right?), and I’m very happy that she chose this one. The color, size, and great nib make it a great value, and a worthy competitor to the Parker Duofold, the Pelikan M8XX/M1XXX series, and maybe even the Visconti Van Gogh. When purchased at the typical street price for one of these on the web, this pen is an outright steal.

 

Conclusion

Kara bought this one for me for out 5th wedding anniversary, and as such, it’ll never be sold or traded. It’s the only pen that she’s ever chosen specifically for me, and that makes it very precious to me.

 

I plan to send this one off to a nib specialist, although at the time of this review, I haven’t decided which one to send it to. My original thought was to have it ground to an XXF, but upon further reflection, I’m leaning more towards an XF stub, perhaps on the order of a 0.5mm, or maybe 0.4mm. Either way, I’ll be patient and be certain to make the right decision. Cost and wait time won’t be a factor with this pen, as it’s so precious to me.

 

 

[TheNobleSavage]

Nice pen and since it is an anniversary present, it has even that much more value to it!! My wife also buys me pens for special occasions. Our 10th anniversary, she bought me a Delta Dolce Vita OS, it is a very special pen to me!!! For Christmas of 2006, my wife and children bought me a Conway Stewart Churchill LE in BCHR with rhodium trim, lever filler and Italic medium nib.

 

Thanks for the review and for sharing it with the rest of the group!!! I just added your review to the master list.

 

Best Regards

 

TNS

[rroossinck]

Thanks, Savage! Yes, this one is very special to me.

[Keng]

You're a lucky man, rroossinck with a priceless pen.

 

kind regards,

Mike

[bdngrd]

Nice review, it is a very nice looking pen! Pens with a special occasion connected to them must be even more valued. Thanks for sharing.

[rroossinck]

Yep, this one is by far the most prized in my collection.

 

The fact that it's a gorgeous pen is just a bonus. The really important part is that Kara picked it out for me.

[georges zaslavsky]

That is a very nice pen and a very nice anniversary wedding present.

[rroossinck]

I'll see if I can't take some better pictures of it tonight and insert them in the review. I had the chance to snap a couple of pics of the Smart ForTwo that I reviewed earlier last week, but haven't had a long stretch of time to get the Duragraph done properly. Hopefully I can do the resin justice! Maybe an outside picture or two would help, with the sunlight doing the illumination.

[southpaw]

Congrats on your 5th! Nicely done review - thanks, and enjoy your pen!

[alvarez57]

Happy anniversary! Enjoy your love for your wife AND your pen. We girls can give good surprises to our hubbies!