Delta Journal Fountain Pen Review

After using my friends Delta Dolce Vita, I was wanting a Delta for myself. I had seen the release of the Delta Journal a couple months ago and was really drawn to the ivory finish and the matte finish on the Journal was intriguing. It was so intriguing that I purchased one for myself and here is what I thought.

This finish is quite interesting. It has a matte finish which I really do like but the texture on this resin has a very pleasing feeling to touch. It is a bit hard to explain but it is unique from any other pen I have. The material is very pleasing. It appears to be more brownish than ivory, or what I envision ivory to look like, and the swirls really brings the eye into the material.

This pen, much like the Dolce Vita Masterpiece, has a blind cap at the end of the barrel which allows you to use the converter like a piston filler which is fun. My only complaint with the pen, however, is that the blind cap is a tad wonky. It is definitely not uniform in shape and does not sit flush with the metal ring it is supposed to be resting on when closed.

The nib is steel and is not a disappointment. The writing experience is smooth with a bit of feedback but the feedback is minor and pleasant. The nib here is a medium width and from what I have experienced with Delta, it is a wet medium and juicy. There is no line variation to speak of but it is not meant to be used in that manner anyways.

I am very pleased with the pen and I find that I will put it down and will immediately pick it back up. My fingers just like holding the pen as if the resin is crack for my fingers. I would definitely purchase this pen again based off of this experience and the price is a great value at $120.

This review is based off of my experience and opinion. I am not representing Delta nor am I being compensated in any manner.

Diamine Deep Dark Inks vs Private Reserve Ebony Inks

Its a dark ink throwdown...ok, perhaps it isn't that drastic. Recently, I found some Diamine exclusive inks at Cult Pens, which is out of the UK. I have my hands on them and decided to go toe to toe with PR Ebony Inks.

Brown

Both of these brown inks are dark, but the Private Reserve ink is darker and richer by comparison. Both shade nicely, but the Ebony Brown has a richer tonal contrast, in my opinion. The Diamine brown is quite nice, it really is. I just rather like the overall package of the PR Ebony Brown more.

Blue

Ok, Diamine wins this one in a landslide. PR Ebony Blue is flat, lifeless and is not all that ebony. Diamine offers up a very rich blue that even has some shading for the darkness it has. Diamine offered a blue with some luster and life and it knock PR Ebony Blue out for the champion belt.

Green

Here we have a tie. Both of these inks are a very rich and dark green which is absolutely gorgeous. The Diamine version does seem to shade a little which is a feat as they are dark colors and darker colors generally don't shade as well.

Purple

 Here we have 2 very different purple colors. Private Reserve is definitely more blue and the Diamine is much more red. I guess it depends on your personal preference here but I am more of the PR Ebony Purple type of fella. Private Reserve is richer and darker, which I like. The Diamine is good also but it is a shader and that adds to its contrast. Without that shading, it is a very red violet color that generally doesn't sit well with me. Both colors are great purple colors, but my nod goes to Private Reserve here.

So here are my preferences based off of this comparison:

• Brown: Private Reserve Ebony Brown
• Blue: Diamine Deep Dark Blue
• Green: Diamine Deep Dark Green (for the shading)
• Purple: Private Reserve Ebony Purple

This post is based off of my experiences and opinions. I am not being compensated at all nor do I represent either company above in any fashion

Delta Dolce Vita Masterpiece Fountain Pen Review

This pen is on loan from a good friend of mine and this is his newest acquisition as well as his first Delta. This is the Delta Dolce Vita Masterpiece mid-size with a 14kt gold 1.1 mm stub nib. In the spirit of Halloween, this finish is quite appropriate so let’s have a look.

It is a good sized pen in girth as well as length. I have large hands and it fits very solidly in my hand. The finish definitely sets it apart with its orange/black print that is much more appealing in person than it is in photos. The gold accents really help make the pen pop.

This is a cartridge/converter pen with a nice little surprise feature that I quite enjoyed. It has a blind cap at the end of the pen that reveals the metal end of the converter to give the pen a piston like filling feel to the pen. I found that to be a nice touch.

The nib is the standout here. It is a rather rigid 14kt gold nib but smooth as butter when writing. You can coax some spring out of the nib but it is more of a solid and sturdy performing writer. The stub has a sweet spot, as all stub nibs do, however it is a tad narrow but not as narrow as the Lamy 2000 is. The nib writes quite wet, yes, it is a stub nib, but wetter than some other stubs I own. A nice line of ink is put on the page with this nib and it is quite enjoyable.

Overall this is a grand pen and worth the price considering it is a luxury pen. I am very appreciative to have been able to use it for this review, thanks Mike and who knows, I may get one some day.

This review is based off of my opinion and experience. I am not being compensated in any way nor am I representing Delta in any fashion.

What New Items Am I Working With?

What’s New?

I figured this would be a fun idea and let all of you see what new items I have been playing with lately. It has mainly been ink related as you have already seen the Diplomat Aero I recently purchased. I ordered some ink samples and have been playing all weekend with the inks, trying to decide which I like and which I don’t.

What was ordered

• Bookbinders Eastern Brown Snake
• Bookbinders Ground Rattler
• Bookbinders Red Spitting Cobra
• Rohrer & Klinger Alt-Goldgrün
• Montblanc Toffee Brown
• Sailor Doyou

The Bookbinder inks were interesting. The Eastern Brown Snake was a definite winner for a reddish-brown. It shades nicely, has good saturation and flow. It does tend towards red more than brown at times but overall a solid color.

The Red Cobra is atrocious and quite visually loud. It may appeal to some but I will not be using it nor will I be purchasing a bottle. This was a disappointing ink color.

The Ground Rattler is a grey ink and it is rather plain. It is a standard grey but it just doesn’t have a personality, in my opinion. There is nothing wrong with the color, it is just not that different than the grey colored inks I already have.

Rohrer & Klinger is a well-known German brand and their Alt-Goldgrün color is quite popular, so I decided to finally give it a whirl. I am normally not a fan of this shade of green but after using it, I love it. It shades, has great flow and saturation and is overall a wonderful ink. I will be purchasing a bottle of this and this is my first R&K ink.

Montblanc Toffee Brown is a winner as well. I seem to have been in a brown mood lately and my quest for the great brown ink continues. This one, I bought in bottle form immediately and should be here any day. It shades wonderfully, has great saturation and is a great shade of brown. I believe I have found my new favorite brown color.

Sailor Doyou is interesting. It is part of the 4 seasons Jentle line of ink and Doyou translates to Midsummer in Japanese. It is advertised as a dark brown color and after using it, it resembles more of a dark greyish-brown but for whatever reason I like it. This has also been purchased in bottle form and should be arriving shortly. As if I really need more ink.

There you have it. This has been occupying me for a few days as I give the ink samples a run through and see what I like. I am sure there will be more new acquisitions in the near future.

I do not represent any of these companies nor am I being compensated in any way. These are based off of my experiences and opinions.

My Favorites from my collection thus far

As new items come and go, our favorites will change accordingly. With this in mind, and looking at my collection as it stands now, here are my favorites from my collection.

Pens:

• Visconti Homo Sapiens Steel Age
• Franklin Christoph 19
• Diplomat Aero
• Signum Nova
• Karas Kustoms Ink

Ink:

• Black – Noodler’s Heart of Darkness/Bad Black Moccasin
• Blue – Pilot Iroshizuku Asa-Gao
• Grey – J. Herbin Stormy Grey
• Red – Private Reserve Burgundy Mist
• Green – KWZ Hunter Green
• Orange – KWZ Honey
• Yellow – too bright, I don’t use this color
• Purple – Private Reserve Ebony Purple
• Brown – Private Reserve Ebony Brown

Paper:

• IKEA Notebooks
• Fabriano
• Mnemosyne
• Rhodia
• Tomoe River

My grail pen is a Pelikan M800/M805 and someday I will have one. 

Keep writing!

Diplomat Aero Fountain Pen Review

This is my first Diplomat pen and I have had my eye on a Diplomat pen for quite some time. I have a love affair with German things, and the language so I guess it is natural that I like German pens. I had a hard time finding one to purchase here in the US so I ordered from Germany direct and so glad i did. Let's take a look.

Photos really do not do this pen any justice. The pen itself is modeled after airships or Zeppelins. I opened the box and I knew it had a fluted body/cap but when I picked it up, oh man. This pen is made of anodized aluminum with a matte finish. The flutes feel nice in the hand but the material really have a wonderful tactile quality that I greatly enjoy.

The pen itself is made of metal so it has some nice heft to it as well, which I am a big fan of. The shape is definitely reminiscent of the old airships and this pen design really shoes the sleek, aerodynamic quality of those. The finial is the Diplomat logo and adds to the aesthetics of the look.

The section is also anodized aluminum in matte as well as the body but I did not have any slipping issues as the anodized material holds the hand grip quite nicely. 

The nib is stainless steel and it does not disappoint in the least. It is etched with the Diplomat logo ad company name. What I really like, though, is that the nib does not have a breather hole in it. I do believe these nibs are Jowo nibs and after writing with it, I am almost certain. So super smooth is the writing experience here that I have a difficult time putting the pen down.

The nib itself is a broad and it is a nice and wet nib. I am quite happy with it and would definitely purchase another Diplomat pen going forward. Call this guy greatly impressed.

This review is based off of my personal experience and opinion. I am not representing Diplomat in any way nor am I being compensated by Diplomat for this review.

The more money, the better it is, right?

This is a topic that can really generate some discussion whether casual or heated. The question is basically whether a pen, ink or even paper is better because it is more expensive than the others? My answer is no, not really but it depends. Allow me to elaborate.

Functionally, a pen will write at any price range, but the writing experience is what can be debateable. A Jinhao x750 can be purchased between $5 - $10 dollars, depending on where it is purchased from. The nib is a medium #6 size and usually a rather wet medium. The pen comes with a standard international cartridge converter and is a great all around pen. Is it less of a pen when compared to a Visconti Van Gogh or Rembrandt? The Visconti Van Gogh and Rembrandt are both steel nib based pens, but come in more sizes than medium, are cartridge converter based and write well. A Rembrandt has a MSRP of $165 and the Van Gogh is $289. These 2 Visconti pens are made with lacquer and resin and mimic Rembrandt’s brush stroke technique or one of Van Gogh’s paintings. Other than the material the pen is made of, in this case, same pen.

I have a Visconti Homo Sapiens Steel Age pen and I love it. I also feel it was worth the cost. It is a piston filling pen but the pen is constructed of a basaltic lava resin from Mt. Etna in Italy and the nib is 23kt Palladium. The writing experience is much more elevated with this pen. I love the heft, the springy nib and the feel of the material. In this case, the price justifies the material it is made of. I do have piston filling pens by Twsbi and Noodler’s and they function very well but the Visconti HS has the notable differences that drive the price.

I have a Franklin Christoph 19 pen which is a cartridge/converter style pen and has a steel nib. It is made of acrylic and resin and I paid $245 for it. Is it better than the Jinhao for a fraction of the cost? To me, yes. The difference here is the nib. Yes, it is steel but it is a custom ground medium cursive italic by Mike Masuyama. The writing experience is elevated by that for me.

Let’s look at ink. Caran D’Ache is roughly $41 per bottle. Bungubox is right around the same cost. Hieronymous is $51 a bottle. Seriously? Why? Private Reserve is $11, Noodler’s is $12.50, Organics Studio is $13, KWZ is $12, Diamine is around $14. The cheaper inks have greater varieties of colors, properties and flow compared to their expensive counterparts and are usually equal in saturation if not more so, depending on the particular ink. Why in the world would I pay so much for an ink? I understand Bungubox is a Japanese import but so is Sailor. Pilot Iroshizuku bottles are as well and are retailed around $35 but can be ordered through Amazon for $20. In my opinion, the same quality but cheaper ink. Is a $41 bottle of ink that much better? I have had samples and I don’t see a reason for it.

I recently went to Ikea and purchased some more notebooks. I did a review of one of them here on the blog and I love it. I bought more of that model as well as 2 others. The paper weight is the exact same as Rhodia paper but it does not have the ceramic coating that makes it so smooth. Ok, that’s fine. The Ikea books are $3 compared to the Rhodia ones which are a bit more. The Ikea books don’t feather, bleed or spread under normal use, a 1.5mm or 1.9mm stub is a bit different though but how often do you use those larger nib widths?

Is price ultimately the decider here? For some, yes but I am trying to get people to realize that is not always the case. There are always exceptions, as I mentioned above and it is always going to rely upon personal experience and opinion. All I ask is you be mindful of the price and know what you are truly getting for that price. Is it worth it to you? Do you feel comfortable paying the elevated cost like in the case of the Jinhao vs the Visconti Rembrandt or Van Gogh? No need to pay unnecessarily and like I said earlier, this is mainly my opinion here. I’m just trying to be the voice of reason in some manner.