Introducing The Penventory

Looking for a particular pen or ink review? Check out the new Penventory page in the menu bar. Here you'll find a completely sporadically updated list of all of the fountain pens and inks in my collection, as well as links to related reviews and Buy links. Entries are separated into Pens and Inks and listed in alphabetical order by brand. I hope that this makes it easier to find what you're looking for at A Better Desk, but please leave a comment if you have suggestions. Thanks for reading!

Diamine Pumpkin Ink Review

Noodler's Black has been my goto ink for some time, but the rapid expansion of my pen collection meant that it was time to branch out. Orange is my favorite color, so it was an easy choice for my second ink. I wanted a bright color to mark up student documents, and orange is a nice alternative to traditional and fear-inducing red. Fall is my favorite season (insert pumpkin spice sipping anecdote here), so the fall themed Diamine inks, like Pumpkin and Autumn Oak, were calling to me. Diamine Pumpkin appeared to be the brightest of the bunch so I committed to an 80 ml bottle.

Diamine Pumpkin in the the sunlight

Diamine Pumpkin is a vivid orange that lays down a bright line on the page. The ink works very well with flex and wider nibs and offers a bit of shading, but it can run a little dry on finer or dryer nibs. It has a relatively fast dry time and does tend to leave little crusties on my nibs. I've read that this is common with bright reds and oranges, but it's barely noticeable and very easy to clean.

I absolutely love Diamine Pumpkin. I typically keep this inked up in my Ahab flex pen or TWSBI 580AL, which has a juicier fine nib. Although inks like Noodler's Apache Sunset or even Diamine Autumn Oak are a better choice for shading, Pumpkin is perfect for a bright but consistent ink.

Stats

• Dry Time: Less than 30 seconds
• Wetness: Low
• Shading: Low
• Feathering: Low
• Saturation: Medium

Tools

• Lamy Safari - F nib
• Noodler's Ahab - Flex nib
• Pilot Parallel - 6mm nib
• Rhodia DotPad

Pilot Metropolitan Fountain Pen Review

The Pilot Metropolitan is the quintessential fountain pen. Its simple black body is sleek and businesslike, tapered on both ends with little decorations, aside from a shiny black band of plastic around the barrel. The pen's brass body gives a nicely weighted feel. The Metropolitan's slick design and thoughtful packaging give it the appearance of a $50 pen, a pen that I would feel comfortable carrying in a suit pocket while attending a fancy conference or important meeting. I can't say the same about my Safari.

The cap of the Pilot Metropolitan uses a snap-fit mechanism. I normally prefer threaded caps; however, the Metropolitan provides a satisfying click. The cap feels magnetic as it powerfully clicks into place and takes a bit of forced to uncap. There's no need to worry about the pen coming uncapped in a pocket of a bag; it simply isn't going to happen. Although capping and uncapping the pen is satisfying, the pen's posting performance is surprisingly poor. The cap wiggles while writing, unless it's smashed down onto the barrel of the pen. Fortunately, the pen is very comfortable to write with while unposted.

The Pilot Metropolitan is my first Japanese fountain pen. I read that Japanese nibs run fine compared to European nibs, so I wanted to compare the "fine" of the Metropolitan with the "fine" of my Kaweco, TWSBI, and Lamy. I've never written with a hypodermic needle before, but I bet it's much like writing with the Pilot Metropolitan for the first time. The nib scratched across the page, leaving a razor thin line, but pulling up bits of paper with it. The scratchiness went away after a few minutes of writing, but the fine line remained. The Pilot Metropolitan "fine" is dramatically finer than the "fine" of any of my European fountain pen nibs. Those looking for a similar line as a European fine nib would probably prefer the medium nib version of the Pilot Metropolitan. Despite my preference for a thicker line, the Metropolitan lays down a juicy consistent line and slides across the page effortlessly, which is surprising for its tiny nib.

The grip of the Pilot Metropolitan leaves much to be desired. The slick plastic become slippery and uncomfortable after long writing periods. This wouldn't be as much of an issue, but the grip is also very thin, which makes it hard for larger hands to grasp firmly. I know from experience. The grip mirrors the shiny black band around the pen barrel and is separated by a metal midsection. The pen is just as stunning uncapped as it is capped.

The Pilot Metropolitan is shorter, with a thinner grip than the Lamy Safari. Despite its smaller stature, the Metropolitan has more heft, due to its brass body.

The Pilot Metropolitan comes with both a squeeze converter and a cartridge. I greatly prefer piston converters to squeeze converters, and the Pilot's converter reinforces this preference. The squeeze converter has a metal strip that runs along the converter and can be pinched to ensure that the converter takes as much ink as possible. This is an improvement over similar squeeze converters, like Kaweco's converter for its Sport line. Unfortunately, the converter is opaque, which makes it very difficult to tell whether or not it's completely filled. This combines with a small converter capacity to provide a poor filling experience.

At $20 or so, it's really not a question of whether or not to buy a Pilot Metropolitan. You will own one of these pens eventually. For most, the question is whether or not this should be your first fountain pen. If you're looking for a sleek but professional-looking pen to take to your jobby job, this isn't a bad place to start. It's a well-performing pen that's well built and sturdy. This is probably where I should end the review, but there's something that's been nagging me about this pen.

No one could argue that the Pilot Metropolitan isn't a very good pen for the money. The problem is, the Metropolitan just isn't very interesting. The mint Kaweco Skyline Sport was my first heavy-use pen, and I still find it so exciting to use. The color is unique, and the retro touches make it fun to use and look at. It's not a perfect pen, but it's memorable. I would never confuse a Kaweco for another brand of fountain pen. The same goes for my Lamy, with its divisive grip design, and TWSBI, with its clever nib mechanism. I've had several people compliment my Kaweco and TWSBI 580, but no one has even noticed my Metropolitan. Although the Metropolitan is a safe introduction to the world of fountain pens, it's not a very fun one.

I started writing with a fountain pen because I wanted to have fun while writing, to motivate myself to take notes and improve my handwriting. To me, quirky and unique pens are what make this hobby attractive, and this pen simply isn't either of those. The Pilot Metropolitan is a very good pen, and you'll like it if you buy it. It's only fair to note that the pen comes in a few colors and design variations, but they do little to make the pen more exciting. The question is, do you want a pen that you'll like, or do you want a pen that you'll love? I want a pen that I love to use, even if it has flaws. It's oftentimes the outrageous design choices that make pens interesting, and the Metropolitan plays it so safe that it's completely forgettable. The Pilot Metropolitan is merely a stepping stone to far more interesting writing experiences.

*The plain black version of the Pilot Metropolitan is not currently available on JetPens, so this is an Amazon Affiliate link.

Casual Sunday: Tactile Turn Gist Edition - November 1, 2015

It's Sunday, which means it's time to pour a cup of coffee, snuggle up next to the pooch, and catch up on current events.

Tactile Turn is definitely making major waves in the fountain pen community with their Gist Fountain Pen Kickstarter. With four days remaining in the project, it’s time to make a final decision. I originally backed the stainless still grip and finial but, after much debate, decided to try something new and switched to the copper grip and finial. The early reviews of the Gist are in, and it’s a stunner. The question is no longer whether to back but what to back, and I found the following links incredibly helpful. I know that I’ve posted some of these before, but I wanted to collect them all in one place. If you’re looking for a specific pen configuration, the types covered in the reviews are listed next to the links.

• Gourmet Pens: First Impressions: Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen @TactileTurn - Full copper and titanium bodies, polycarbonate body with zirconium grip and finial. This post provides a great steel/titanium/gold nib comparison if you’re on the fence. This is the only review that shows how the copper ages with a bit of use.
• Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen / Kickstarter Launch UPDATED w/ COMPARISON | edjelley.com – Fountain Pen, Ink, and Stationery Reviews - Ed did all of the photography work for the Gist Kickstarter, and his preview features beautiful photos of the polycarbonate body with brass, Damascus Steel, and titanium grips and finials and full titanium body. He calls out the polycarbonate body with titanium grip and finial specifically. Ed also provides an awesome photo lineup of the Tactile Turn Gist next to several other popular pens.
• First Look: The Gist By Tactile Turn — The Pen Addict - Polycarbonate grip with Damascus Steel finial, brass grip and finial, full titanium body
• Everyday Commentary: Tactile Turn Gist Review - Damascus Steel grip and finial
• Tactile Turn Gist Fountain Pen - The Clicky Post - Polycarbonate grip with zirconium finial, titanium grip and finial, and full stainless steel and titanium bodies
• Gist Fountain Pen — Tactile Turn - This page shows every possible metal/nib combination, both capped and uncapped.

Other Interesting Reads:

• Get Started On Logging Inks In 10 Steps - I’m planning to do ink reviews in the future, so I’m exploring different ways of ink logging.
• Gourmet Pens: Review: Pelikan Souverän M800 Burnt Orange Fountain Pen @AppelboomLaren - I’m a sucker for orange pens and this pretty little thing popped up in my feeds several time this week.
• Tom Norton Walnut Drawing Ink Review — The Pen Addict - The shading on this ink is phenomenal. I just wish I had these drawing skills.
• Paper Cut: Paperblanks Journals | The Pen Habit - I purchased a leather-bound journal a few years ago, and I love writing in it. These journals are absolutely stunning.
• New Neuroscience Reveals 4 Rituals That Will Make You Happy - It’s a little link baity, but this article provides simple advise for practices that result in major benefits.

Thanks for checking out this week's issue of Casual Sunday. Check back in on Tuesday morning for a brand new blog post or subscribe to the RSS feed at the bottom of the page. Thanks for your support!

And Now for Something Completely Different

Writing is my escape. I can't claim to write well, but I always turn to writing when I need to work out issues or leave the worries of the day behind. My journey through the world of fancy pens was inevitable, as my obsession with the tools of the writing trade is insatiable. I've loved learning and writing about fancy pens and stationary over the last months, and I have no plans of stopping. I'm typically so excited to write my Tuesday post, but sometimes things happen in life that make it hard to want to write about its little joys. I've tried to throw something together to post today, but it's not up to snuff. If you've shown up for a Tuesday post, I apologize for this disappointing placeholder. If you're still reading, I would like to take this chance to thank you so much for your support. I promise to be back next week with 100% less sob stories, and I would appreciate it if you would come back to visit.