Nahvalur Eclipse - New capless pen

[Doug C]

13 minutes ago, stephanos said:

This is definitely interesting; thank you. To me - based on the photos you've posted - it looks a lot like the Curidas, but without the bulge at the end of the barrel for the nib trapdoor. Would that be more or less accurate?

Pretty much. I'd think that the section is a hair thinner than the Curidas. 

[inkstainedadventure]

4 hours ago, stephanos said:

This is definitely interesting; thank you. To me - based on the photos you've posted - it looks a lot like the Curidas, but without the bulge at the end of the barrel for the nib trapdoor. Would that be more or less accurate?

I would say that is an accurate assessment. The only differences is the width (13mm Curidas and 14mm Eclipse), weight (27 grams Curidas and 36 grams Eclipse). They handle the same, roughly the same length, and have removeable clips. I will give a shoutout to the Eclipse for being a better handler without the clip as there is no annoying bump under the pen. It is also faceted and can function as its own rollstop without the clip.

[Driften]

I have found some sharp edges. Also note when mine was shipped the clip set on where the pens action is not on the body. It made things too sluggish to properly operate. Once I found that and set it on the body it worked correctly. It was hard starting a couple of days after getting it, but with all of the times I removed the nib unit to debug the action it could have impacted it. I've been letting it sit to see if it has the issue again.

[inkstainedadventure]

5 minutes ago, Driften said:

I have found some sharp edges. Also note when mine was shipped the clip set on where the pens action is not on the body. It made things too sluggish to properly operate. Once I found that and set it on the body it worked correctly. It was hard starting a couple of days after getting it, but with all of the times I removed the nib unit to debug the action it could have impacted it. I've been letting it sit to see if it has the issue again.

Thanks for that information. It just adds to the conclusion that some of these were rushed to be shipped due to the overwhelming pre-orders. You may want to clean the upper body where the nib unit goes in. I notice a but of ink on the outside of the nib body where the cartridge goes in and I think it may have prevented the trap door from sealing completely. Once I washed it out and dried it, I have not had a hard start issue, yet. I'm just surprised Nahvalur let some of these pens go out with shoddy gluing and clips not set in the right place. Usually their QC is much better than this.

[Dan Carmell]

1 hour ago, inkstainedadventure said:

…I'm just surprised Nahvalur let some of these pens go out with shoddy gluing and clips not set in the right place. Usually their QC is much better than this.

I got that retractable from Endless and the trap door is askew and doesn’t seal. I didn’t bother dealing with it then and probably it could be fixed—by a better tinkerer than me. But maybe the lesson for me with both pens is to let someone experience the initial production run. 

[inkstainedadventure]

36 minutes ago, Dan Carmell said:

I got that retractable from Endless and the trap door is askew and doesn’t seal. I didn’t bother dealing with it then and probably it could be fixed—by a better tinkerer than me. But maybe the lesson for me with both pens is to let someone experience the initial production run. 

I tend to agree. I like to tinker quite a bit but there is a line where frustration comes into play. I have found that line lol. This is the first pen I have purchased on a pre-order. I took a chance since they spent 2 years developing this pen. What I didn't factor in was the production being rushed due to the flood of pre-orders. I mean they delayed the shipping by a couple of weeks due to the 'stress' on the producers. That should have been my clue. That is when corners are cut.

[Doug C]

Other than the issues I mentioned above,  it has been a reliable starter for the week I've had it.

 

[Driften]

My testing after six days of sitting, the nib is dry. That'a a pain as you can't just advance the converter to try and force more ink though the feed. On VP style pens normally all you are going to end up doing is dumping ink out the breather hole. 

[Driften]

I opened up the eclipse after trying a damp paper napkin with no luck to get the ink flowing and found all of the ink stuck at the back of the converter. I turned the converter out of the pen to raise the ink higher and then it pen wrote. So it’s somewhat drying out, but more ink not flowing well in the converter. I'll need to clean out the pen and expect I'll try a different ink. I was testing with Pelikan Olivine. I might also try the pilot con-20 in it if that fits.

[Mark from Yorkshire]

49 minutes ago, Driften said:

I opened up the eclipse after trying a damp paper napkin with no luck to get the ink flowing and found all of the ink stuck at the back of the converter. I turned the converter out of the pen to raise the ink higher and then it pen wrote. So it’s somewhat drying out, but more ink not flowing well in the converter. I'll need to clean out the pen and expect I'll try a different ink. I was testing with Pelikan Olivine. I might also try the pilot con-20 in it if that fits.

At the price range Nahvalur have pitched at I would not waste my time. I suspect they are trying to steal Pilots thunder, but not being all that successful same as the Indian brand Endless with the creator. That particular pen put me off retracting fountain pens forever especially the low end varieties 

[stephanos]

12 hours ago, Mark from Yorkshire said:

At the price range Nahvalur have pitched at I would not waste my time. I suspect they are trying to steal Pilots thunder, but not being all that successful same as the Indian brand Endless with the creator. That particular pen put me off retracting fountain pens forever especially the low end varieties 

Don't let that one bad experience throw you off.

 

I used to have a Pilot Vanishing Point, didn't enjoy it at all and ended up giving it away (in a PiF, IIRC - I used to do one annually). It looked fine and wrote well; I just couldn't get along with the clip.

 

Then about two years ago I bought a Majohn/Moonman A1, which is essentially a less expensive version of the Capless/Vanishing Point (given the agre of Pilot's original, I think it's fine to buy a remake - patents expire for a reason). Crucially, the version of the A1 that I bought doesn't have a clip. It writes beautifully and fits well in my hand: I enjoy it very much.

 

Is the A1 a low-end version? Price-wise definitely. Quality-wise, not at all.

(Having said that, my "retracting pen itch" is sufficiently scratched - I don't see myself buying the Nahvalur.)

[Mark from Yorkshire]

4 minutes ago, stephanos said:

Don't let that one bad experience throw you off.

 

I used to have a Pilot Vanishing Point, didn't enjoy it at all and ended up giving it away (in a PiF, IIRC - I used to do one annually). It looked fine and wrote well; I just couldn't get along with the clip.

 

Then about two years ago I bought a Majohn/Moonman A1, which is essentially a less expensive version of the Capless/Vanishing Point (given the agre of Pilot's original, I think it's fine to buy a remake - patents expire for a reason). Crucially, the version of the A1 that I bought doesn't have a clip. It writes beautifully and fits well in my hand: I enjoy it very much.

 

Is the A1 a low-end version? Price-wise definitely. Quality-wise, not at all.

(Having said that, my "retracting pen itch" is sufficiently scratched - I don't see myself buying the Nahvalur.)

Thanks @stephanos I’ll try not to. I have more than enough pens at present. I don’t need to add any more to the number I already own😜 who am I kidding lol.

[stephanos]

4 minutes ago, Mark from Yorkshire said:

Thanks @stephanos I’ll try not to. I have more than enough pens at present. I don’t need to add any more to the number I already own😜 who am I kidding lol.

 

It's called PAD - pen acquisition disorder ... 😉

[inkstainedadventure]

Update: Just a little more experimentation on the Eclipse. I found out that a Vanishing Point nib unit fits and works perfectly in the Eclipse. So I have a gold nib now inside the Eclipse. Funny that the nib unit for the VP costs more than the whole Eclipse lol. No clue why I did it other than to see if it worked. It did.

[Mark from Yorkshire]

2 hours ago, inkstainedadventure said:

Update: Just a little more experimentation on the Eclipse. I found out that a Vanishing Point nib unit fits and works perfectly in the Eclipse. So I have a gold nib now inside the Eclipse. Funny that the nib unit for the VP costs more than the whole Eclipse lol. No clue why I did it other than to see if it worked. It did.

Just because you could, it’s always worth a try

[inkstainedadventure]

1 hour ago, Mark from Yorkshire said:

Just because you could, it’s always worth a try

Yes...it's  how things are found out. I have noticed the pen community is a great bunch at experimentation and asking "Can this be done?", not "Should this be done?" lol