You'd think this should go without saying, but really, sometimes I think we become so focused on acquisition in our mini buying-sprees that we forget the awesome pens we bought in the past.
I was re-arranging my modest collection in some new pen rolls, and I came across the Pilot Elite 95S. It's been cleaned and stored for probably a year and a half, behind its Pilot Custom brothers in the pecking order. It's a modest and handsome little pen, and boasts an impressive heritage, being the latest iteration of the Japanese "long-short" pocket pen design. And I have to say...I've used it the past week, and it is pretty close to a perfect "daily carry" pen. Small enough capped to fit into a shirt pocket, and full-length when posted, with a really smooth and quick slip-cap action. And of course, I love the 1960's aesthetic it has. The nib is fantastic. I don't know if it can be called "inlaid" but it's definitely "inset", and is somewhat springy. It's every bit the equal of Pilot's other 14K nibs of similar size.
The only thing that keeps it from being "perfect" is the Con-20 converter. While I don't mind this and it's what the vintage models had as well, it's not as easy to flush as other converters. There's not much you can do because of the short size of the pen, but still...I can only wonder how awesome it would be if it had an integrated piston design or if the barrel was a bit longer to accommodate the Con-70. With the Con-20 being discontinued in 2016 (along with the Con-50), you have to wonder if Pilot will again retire this wonderful pen design or re-introduce it again with a slight design tweak. If the new Con-40 doesn't fit it, it'll be a cartridge-only pen. And that's a shame.
I also reacquainted myself with my Franklin Christoph 02 with a Masuyama cursive italic nib. It is of course a lovely writer, and I love how it feels when posted. I'd get another one of these, too, if F-C would just release it in more finishes/materials. Seriously, that's my biggest gripe about the otherwise awesome company, but I understand that they're small.
Finally, my Custom 74 with a Soft Fine nib. I ordered it from Japan in 2013 (hides from Brian Goulet after his recent "undercutters" discussion on last week's Q&A...just kidding
), and it is every bit as lovely a writer as many of the vintage pens I've used. I've never used a "vintage flex" pen like a wet noodle Waterman from the 1920's or whatever, but Pilot's soft nibs definitely show that modern manufacturers haven't "forgotten" how to do vintage-like 14K softness. It goes from a Japanese Fine (western EF) to a double broad quite easily, but I wouldn't flex it like that regularly. It's easily capable of a Broad line under "normal" usage. When I inked it up again I realized that it demanded a bit of an adjustment to my writing technique, but after about 20 minutes, I remembered again how much I love the pen. Smooth, bouncy...it showed me that I don't really need to chase 1950's Pelikans on Ebay from sellers in Croatia. My 1990's Tortoise M400 is just fine in that regard...and this Custom 74 provides a thinner line than the M400 when I need it with all the smoothness I appreciate. And that Con-70 is one awesome converter. Piston fillers are nice, but if you HAVE to use a converter, I don't think you can do much better.
Does this mean I won't succumb to pen AD again in the future? No. There are still a few more pens that I want. But I think that sometimes we forget that we actually HAVE nice pens that we should reacquaint ourselves with if we're in the midst of a "Should I buy this?" attack. So, open up your pen cases and pen rolls and look at the pens you have every once in awhile. Old favorites could be there waiting to be enjoyed again.
Of course, it may also lead to "I need another Pilot Elite just in case they retire the model again..."
I was re-arranging my modest collection in some new pen rolls, and I came across the Pilot Elite 95S. It's been cleaned and stored for probably a year and a half, behind its Pilot Custom brothers in the pecking order. It's a modest and handsome little pen, and boasts an impressive heritage, being the latest iteration of the Japanese "long-short" pocket pen design. And I have to say...I've used it the past week, and it is pretty close to a perfect "daily carry" pen. Small enough capped to fit into a shirt pocket, and full-length when posted, with a really smooth and quick slip-cap action. And of course, I love the 1960's aesthetic it has. The nib is fantastic. I don't know if it can be called "inlaid" but it's definitely "inset", and is somewhat springy. It's every bit the equal of Pilot's other 14K nibs of similar size.
The only thing that keeps it from being "perfect" is the Con-20 converter. While I don't mind this and it's what the vintage models had as well, it's not as easy to flush as other converters. There's not much you can do because of the short size of the pen, but still...I can only wonder how awesome it would be if it had an integrated piston design or if the barrel was a bit longer to accommodate the Con-70. With the Con-20 being discontinued in 2016 (along with the Con-50), you have to wonder if Pilot will again retire this wonderful pen design or re-introduce it again with a slight design tweak. If the new Con-40 doesn't fit it, it'll be a cartridge-only pen. And that's a shame.
I also reacquainted myself with my Franklin Christoph 02 with a Masuyama cursive italic nib. It is of course a lovely writer, and I love how it feels when posted. I'd get another one of these, too, if F-C would just release it in more finishes/materials. Seriously, that's my biggest gripe about the otherwise awesome company, but I understand that they're small.
Finally, my Custom 74 with a Soft Fine nib. I ordered it from Japan in 2013 (hides from Brian Goulet after his recent "undercutters" discussion on last week's Q&A...just kidding
), and it is every bit as lovely a writer as many of the vintage pens I've used. I've never used a "vintage flex" pen like a wet noodle Waterman from the 1920's or whatever, but Pilot's soft nibs definitely show that modern manufacturers haven't "forgotten" how to do vintage-like 14K softness. It goes from a Japanese Fine (western EF) to a double broad quite easily, but I wouldn't flex it like that regularly. It's easily capable of a Broad line under "normal" usage. When I inked it up again I realized that it demanded a bit of an adjustment to my writing technique, but after about 20 minutes, I remembered again how much I love the pen. Smooth, bouncy...it showed me that I don't really need to chase 1950's Pelikans on Ebay from sellers in Croatia. My 1990's Tortoise M400 is just fine in that regard...and this Custom 74 provides a thinner line than the M400 when I need it with all the smoothness I appreciate. And that Con-70 is one awesome converter. Piston fillers are nice, but if you HAVE to use a converter, I don't think you can do much better.Does this mean I won't succumb to pen AD again in the future? No. There are still a few more pens that I want. But I think that sometimes we forget that we actually HAVE nice pens that we should reacquaint ourselves with if we're in the midst of a "Should I buy this?" attack. So, open up your pen cases and pen rolls and look at the pens you have every once in awhile. Old favorites could be there waiting to be enjoyed again.
Of course, it may also lead to "I need another Pilot Elite just in case they retire the model again..."
