Visconti Van Gogh ballpoint pen inquiry

[kingfisher]

I was thinking about purchasing a Visconti Van Gogh ballpoint pen, but before I spend that kind of money on a ballpoint, I wanted to see if anybody here has ever had one, and, if so, what their thoughts were.  Specifically, I was wondering about four things:  

 

1) Is the grip section pretty small, like that of a Mont Blanc?  

 

2) Do the facets bother you, or do they not extend to the section?  Or are they so small as to be not bothersome? 

 

3) How does the acrylic look in person?  On web photos, they look brilliant and vibrant; in the hand, do they have the same effect?  

 

4) I assume they take Parker-style refills.  Is that a correct assumption?  

 

Thanks in advance for any help.  I wish I could get answers to questions 1 and 2 from people who have owned the fountain pen, because I assume there would be a lot more of you that have tried it, but, if memory serves, the FP has a smooth metal section.  

[kingfisher]

I get that, since this is a fountain pen forum, there wasn't that much interest in my inquiries about the Visconti Van Gogh ballpoint pen.  

 

Being impatient, I went ahead and bought one even though I didn't get any answers to my questions.  I did text a friend of mine who I was sure had purchased one, and asked her what she thought of it.  She said that after the bought one, it quickly became her favorite pen, so she purchased another one.  That was a good sign. 

 

When I asked her about the faceting, she literally said she didn't notice until after I asked her that the pen was faceted.  I guess since it apparently has 18 sides, it is pretty subtle.  So, unlikely to present a problem.  

 

I can't wait for it to arrive.  For the record, I purchased the one that is based on the Van Gogh painting entitled "Wheatfield under Thunderclouds," which is a gorgeous painting.  The pen is a vibrant mix of mostly greens and blues.  Since green and blue are my two favorite colors, I have high hopes that this will become a favorite of mine.  

[Black Spot]

 Van Gogh never used a ballpoint !

I will see myself out.

[usk15]

Well, i don't have V VG bp, but I do have a Inoxcrom Corinthian bp with 12 facets and it doesn't bother me at all.

I have a V VG fp, but it is too small for my hands, I'm guessing the bp is also small.

[sandy101]

I have the FP version of Wheatfield under Thunderclouds. I dont think you will be disappoitend with it. It is a pen that inspired me to write every day.

 

If a pen is pretty enough to encourage/inspire you yo pick it up and write with it - then that;s a good thing.

 

Let us know what you think when it arrives.

[kingfisher]

Thanks, everybody.  The pen finally arrived over the weekend.  It is gorgeous.  It had a lot more yellows, whites, and browns than I expected, although the major portion of it is blue and green.  The facets don't bother me at all, as they are very small.  The grip section is smaller than the pens I normally use, but it isn't ridiculously small.  

 

Overall, so far I am very pleased with the pen.  The only issue is the refill is a bit fatter than what I normally use.  I think I will put a Uniball Jetstream SXR-600-05 into it, but maybe I'll just go with "the flow" (pardon the pun) for a while before I switch it out.  

 

I am assuming to put in a new refill you just twist the top of the pen counterclockwise to open it up, but a half-hearted try at that yielded a lot of resistance, which scared me a bit.  None of my other twist to write ballpoints have any other way of opening to change the refill, so I suppose it just requires a bit more force?  I can't imagine another way to open it.  A quick Google search yielded bupkus.  

[Doug C]

15 minutes ago, kingfisher said:

Thanks, everybody.  The pen finally arrived over the weekend.  It is gorgeous.  It had a lot more yellows, whites, and browns than I expected, although the major portion of it is blue and green.  The facets don't bother me at all, as they are very small.  The grip section is smaller than the pens I normally use, but it isn't ridiculously small.  

 

Overall, so far I am very pleased with the pen.  The only issue is the refill is a bit fatter than what I normally use.  I think I will put a Uniball Jetstream SXR-600-05 into it, but maybe I'll just go with "the flow" (pardon the pun) for a while before I switch it out.  

 

I am assuming to put in a new refill you just twist the top of the pen counterclockwise to open it up, but a half-hearted try at that yielded a lot of resistance, which scared me a bit.  None of my other twist to write ballpoints have any other way of opening to change the refill, so I suppose it just requires a bit more force?  I can't imagine another way to open it.  A quick Google search yielded bupkus.  

Sorry for the lack of responses.  I had a Michaelangelo bp which is similar and you did unscrew counterclockwise so I think you can assume that with the Van Gogh. 

[kingfisher]

Thanks, Doug.  

[usk15]

Post some pictures please. Is the clip spring loaded?

[kingfisher]

I would love to post some pics but I'm not sure how to do it.  I am only logged into this site on my work computer.  Maybe if I logged in on my phone it would be obvious how to post a pic?  Will the site allow one to be logged in on a desktop and also sign in on a phone?  

 

I will look into posting a photo.  It is truly a beautiful resin.  

[kingfisher]

I will try to add a photo. 

[kingfisher]

Here are a couple more.  

[Doug C]

24 minutes ago, kingfisher said:

Here are a couple more.  

Very nice!

[kingfisher]

8 minutes ago, Doug C said:

Very nice!

Thanks! 

[usk15]

it looks very nice, thank you for the photos!

 

Here you can find my inoxcrom pen, scroll down:

 

 

[kingfisher]

18 hours ago, usk15 said:

it looks very nice, thank you for the photos!

 

Here you can find my inoxcrom pen, scroll down:

 

 

Beautiful pen.   

 

Maybe soon I will post a group photo of my Italian non-fp pens; I have a Stipula LE, the Visconti we have been talking about, and I also have a Nettuno Skipper (with its matching mechanical pencil, as well).  

[kingfisher]

On 8/9/2023 at 3:58 PM, Doug C said:

 

Eccole! Queste ci sono tre delle mie penne che vengono da Italia. 

 

That's my attempt at saying 'Here they are! These are three of my pens from Italy.' (If you are a native Italian or a fluent Italian speaker, feel free to correct any errors in my Italian.)

 

Anyway, from left to right: Nettuno Skipper in blue acrylic, made in Naples; the Visconti Van Gogh that we have been discussing, made in Florence; and a limited edition Stipula Etruria in the Sasso green celluloid. 

 

[kingfisher]

Forgot to mention that the Stipula was also made in Florence. Many of you probably already knew that. 

[usk15]

Nice pens! Thank you for the photo!