kyuseido A quick preview of Kyuseido Kakari with double-stack reverse tousen grind

[sannidh]

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

BLOGGER LINK

I finally got my hands on the almost famous Kyuseido Kakari. I chose the double stack nib, because I was enamoured by the idea of regular writing, and partly because I was fascinated by the psychology behind paying a bomb for a metallic brush. Jokes aside, with time & practice, I hope to use the broader side for calligraphy. My 3 year old wanted his airplane to be in the frame, even though it's not even 3 weeks old and you can already see the condition of the Beluga scale model. So here's the picture.

The Kakari is a handsome pen, vaguely reminding me of my Conid Kingsize demonstrator with titanium ends, although it has a completely different nib. The filling system with the hook-like structure, seems more mechanical and less sophisticated than a Conid, but I found its functionality to be quite the opposite. The cleaning process is somehwat superior to that of a Conid - two flushes and it's completely clean. Plus, it eliminates the need of a ink-breaker. Here is the exquisite work of art with the double stack nib. CY is quite an artist.

The reverse side of the nib, which is almost a BB-3B grind is incredibly smooth, with a generous ink flow enhances the experience. I am confident that the ebonite feed is well engineered to keep up with it.

My issue is with the regular writing side. It's a Japanese fine, but way too sharp for my taste. I prefer writing with nibs that offer some control. This one grips the paper fibres and leaves marks on it, even with a light touch. I had a word with Kyuseido team, they are happy to adjust and smoothen the nib. I understand CY is a one-man team handling the nib-work but I do still expect better QC than Visconti.

Last but not least, this is a lovely pen with its own pros and cons. In my not so humble opinion, it's quite different to a Conid! Paul's lovely review does more justice to the Kakari.

 

SOME WRITING

[jchch1950]

The nib is impressive. When you write with the wide section does it fill like a normal nib that you can use for long writing sessions?

[sannidh]

On 9/3/2024 at 1:12 PM, jchch1950 said:

The nib is impressive. When you write with the wide section does it fill like a normal nib that you can use for long writing sessions?

Thank you for the question. It does feel a tad back heavy, although there is a little play around the seal to change that balance (if you have low ink levels).