My first all-India fountain pen.....

[tommym]

In trying to support other pen manufacturers outside my Montblanc world, I was enlightened to the wonderful world of ebonite pens made in India. I was vaguely aware that India had their own ink industry but was too caught up in the high-end inks from Europe, Japan, etc. And I was unaware that India had its own nib industry. So with my most recently purchased Ranga pens (one with a Jowo nib, the other with a Bock nib), I also intended to buy some Kanwrite nibs and some ink(s) made in India to make my first all-India fountain pen. The images below are of my new Ranga 3C, with a Kanwrite EF nib (Jowo compatible nib housing), and Bril Green ink. I am more than satisfied with the results. This Ranga 3C with the Kanwrite EF nib is finally the pen that can more than match and replace my Montblanc 146. Finally!!! 

 

Some other notes:

 

If you want to go down the same path with your Ranga pens, go with the Kanwrite (Jowo compatible nib housing) and not the Kanwrite (Bock compatible nib housing). I knew from the get-go that the Kanwrite (Bock compatible nib housing) would not fit my Ranga pen due to the differences in the exterior of the housings/thread designs. No problem! I knew before ordering the nib that I would just pull the Kanwrite nib and feed and reset them into my existing Bock 250 housing that was already fitted to my Ranga pen. Well, that did not work! It turns out that the Kanwrite (Bock compatible nib housing) is also a wee bit larger in diameter on the interior than the standard Bock 250 housing. As a last-ditch effort to save the day, I tossed the Kanwrite housing and feed and reused the standard Bock 250 housing and its feed. Still, the Kanwrite nib is a wee bit wider than the standard Bock #6 nib, and it requires some superhuman strength (I don't have very strong hands/fingers) to reset the nib and feed assembly back into the Bock 250 housing. I doubt I can ever remove the nib/feed for future cleaning. Still, for the time being, it works! Brutal, but I got it to work! As for the Kanwrite (Jowo compatible nib housing), it screwed right in without any issues. It was that simple!

 

It might just be the luck of the draw, but the Kanwrite EF nibs I received are the smoothest EF nibs I have ever used right out of the box. Smoother than my Montblanc, Jowo, and Bock EF nibs.

 

Getting ink from India shipped to the USA is surprisingly expensive and not straightforward regarding communication, payment methods, etc. However, I did manage to get some sample vials of Bril inks shipped to me, but not the full bottles. Still working on that one. Some reviewers have noted that some Bril inks have a strong smell that some might find objectionable. Indeed, my mother, cats, and dogs found the Bril Green ink smell highly objectionable. As for me, the smell was glorious! It took me back to my youth when the classrooms wreaked of fountain pen inks. The color of the Bril Green was everything I was hoping for, and the smell takes it to another level. So yeah, I'm odd in that way. 

 

Tommy

 

 

[K Singh]

Loved this review. Here in India it's usually the other way around. People(not me) start with these handmade pens and aspire for Montblancs and Pelikans. I think the strength of Indian pens is the Indian Ebonite. For Nikko ebonite and other materials you can easily get a better pen elsewhere. The Indian Ebonite gives you a different experience both in terms of looks and feel, and is a distinguishing factor. I love it, but I also know some who don't.

 

Surprised to hear the housing from Kanwrite isn't compatible with the Bock one, especially if it's advertised as such. Perhaps someone else can throw more light on this.

 

Yes, that nostalgic smell of the Bril green ink. I like it too, for the same reason as you. It reminds me of my school days. The Bril Black has an even stronger smell, just so you know 😉

[tommym]

  On 5/27/2023 at 2:16 AM, K Singh said:

....Surprised to hear the housing from Kanwrite isn't compatible with the Bock one, especially if it's advertised as such. Perhaps someone else can throw more light on this.

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The "standard" Bock 250 housing has a slightly depressed section on the exterior of the housing, as denoted in the image below; the Kanwrite (Bock-compatible housing) does not have this depression. I have highlighted that area in red. The depression on the "standard" Bock 250 housing gives the pen maker a lot of leeway regarding the location of the corresponding threads on the interior of the pen's section. It allows the nib housing to screw in well beyond the start of the threading on the interior of the pen's section. If the threading starts too early within the interior of the pen's section, and the housing doesn't have that depression, it will stand proud and not screw in all the way. That is what is going on with the Kanwrite (Bock-compatible housing). Now if the start of the threading on the interior of the pen's section starts deep enough in the pen's section, then there may be no issues in swapping out the two housings. It depends on the individual pen manufacturer's fitting methodology for the nib housing. In the case of my Ranga's, I could have just taken the pen down to my friend's machine shop and quickly rectified the thread interference issue in a couple of minutes. But I've gone down that road with too many hobbies, got in too deep, and burnt out. So in the future, I'll just order Ranga's that are threaded for Jowo's, as the Kanwrite (Jowo-compatible housing) was a plug-and-play installation. Simple!

 

Tommy

 

[tommym]

  On 5/27/2023 at 2:16 AM, K Singh said:

....The Bril Black has an even stronger smell, just so you know 

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Thanks for the heads-up! Something to look forward to.

 

Tommy

[tommym]

  On 5/27/2023 at 2:16 AM, K Singh said:

....Here in India it's usually the other way around. People(not me) start with these handmade pens and aspire for Montblancs and Pelikans.

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For me, Montblanc's focus had strayed too far from fountain pens and customer service over the years with the advent of their leather goods, jewelry, glasses, watches, fragrances, etc. In the past, I had the option of sending my pens back to Germany for factory service and repairs. They took that option away and limited us to their USA Montblanc service and repair facility. Then they shut down that facility and subbed out all the work to a non-Montblanc company whose main focus was not fountain pens either. By then, I had had enough of Montblanc and felt a real need/want to divest myself of all things Montblanc. My journey for a new line of pens ended in India! 

 

I have found other avenues for my mother (from Germany) to get her pens factory serviced and repaired in Germany. 

 

Tommy

[K Singh]

  On 5/27/2023 at 6:17 PM, tommym said:

 

The "standard" Bock 250 housing has a slightly depressed section on the exterior of the housing, as denoted in the image below; the Kanwrite (Bock-compatible housing) does not have this depression. I have highlighted that area in red. The depression on the "standard" Bock 250 housing gives the pen maker a lot of leeway regarding the location of the corresponding threads on the interior of the pen's section. It allows the nib housing to screw in well beyond the start of the threading on the interior of the pen's section. If the threading starts too early within the interior of the pen's section, and the housing doesn't have that depression, it will stand proud and not screw in all the way. That is what is going on with the Kanwrite (Bock-compatible housing). Now if the start of the threading on the interior of the pen's section starts deep enough in the pen's section, then there may be no issues in swapping out the two housings. It depends on the individual pen manufacturer's fitting methodology for the nib housing. In the case of my Ranga's, I could have just taken the pen down to my friend's machine shop and quickly rectified the thread interference issue in a couple of minutes. But I've gone down that road with too many hobbies, got in too deep, and burnt out. So in the future, I'll just order Ranga's that are threaded for Jowo's, as the Kanwrite (Jowo-compatible housing) was a plug-and-play installation. Simple!

 

Tommy

 

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Thanks for such a detailed explanation. Yes, the Kanwrite jowo-threaded units are perfectly compatible with Jowo ones. Those are the only ones I have tried. I prefer eyedroppers with friction-fit feed and nib setting though, so haven't experimented much with Kanwrite units. 

 

Sad to hear about the Montblanc service. Such signs indicate, like you said, the company's deteriorating focus on fountain pens.

 

There are so many excellent German pens/nibs out there, but more than any other thing the one German product I use the most is their Cherry MX Blue switches in my mechanical keyboard. I am a huge fan of those switches, and using such keyboard over regular keyboards makes me as happy as using Fountain pens over Ballpoints 🙂

[tommym]

  On 5/28/2023 at 2:09 AM, K Singh said:

I use the most is their Cherry MX Blue switches in my mechanical keyboard. I am a huge fan of those switches...

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Yes, the Cherry MX Blue switches are my favorites too. I spent a little extra for the RGB version.

 

Tommy

[VillersCotterets]

  On 5/27/2023 at 6:17 PM, tommym said:

So in the future, I'll just order Ranga's that are threaded for Jowo's

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I had the same problem with the so-called Bock-compatible unit, which isn't totally compatible. My next Ranga will be fitted with Jowo threads, to accommodate Kanwrite nibs more easily.