Contemplating 1st Italian Pen

February 13, 2009

The Ragtime Black are also quite nice- the two here recentlyish went for $80; nice pens.

February 13, 2009

The Ragtime Black are also quite nice- the two here recentlyish went for $80; nice pens.

Aaron, did you mean to post a photo or a link?

February 13, 2009

The Ragtime Black are also quite nice- the two here recentlyish went for $80; nice pens.

Aaron, did you mean to post a photo or a link?

Take a look at Visconti's site, in particular the Museum. Bear in mind that sometimes the info, particularly about the filling system and nibs, may not be right or definitive.

Ragtime Black

Ragtime Medici

Just noticed that the photos for those two pens are the same, although according to the site, main difference between them is the steel nibs on the Black while gold on the Medici. The Black is a shorter than the original Ragtime. (Don't have a Pelikan handy now, but I'd say the barrel size of the Black is similar to a Pelikan M200; but the cap is heavier on the Ragtime Black compared to the Pelikan -- may get a bit top-heavy posted depending on the size of your hands.)

You singled out the Omas of the pens you bought. I'm trying to figure out what pen that Demo is based on. Does it have a gold or only a gold-plated nib? I think I may actually have one...I just found one the other day for less than what you usually pay in tax for an Omas ;-). Can you give the dimensions of that pen?

If you're used to and enjoy old Omas pens/nibs, then maybe the Ragtime Medici would be better with the gold nib...but I can't say since I've never tried the steel-nibbed Viscontis that I have.

If you like a slightly smaller Omas, then you might look for the old-style Milord with piston. N.B. Some Milord are converter, so always ask when buying old-style Milords. Might be able to find one for not too much, I saw an NOS black resin close on Ebay a few weeks back for around EUR110 -- older old-style with the diamond clip and not the wheeled clip. In my smallish hands, the Milord is my favorite Arte Italiana to write with posted; I write with the Paragon and Ogiva (big) unposted since they get a little top heavy for me.

Good luck.

Edited February 13, 2009 by eric47

February 14, 2009

<snip>
You singled out the Omas of the pens you bought. I'm trying to figure out what pen that Demo is based on. Does it have a gold or only a gold-plated nib? I think I may actually have one...I just found one the other day for less than what you usually pay in tax for an Omas ;-). Can you give the dimensions of that pen?

The Omas Extra is out having the nib customized so I can't give you the dimensions. It is a fairly thin pen.

I've had the older, smaller Milords on my radar for awhile now. My Stipula Bellini arrived today, and I have not inked it yet, but it is a wonderful size. A mini Aurora Optima is in the mail. I really think I need to give acquisitions a bit of a rest so that I can give all these new pens some time in my hands.