Thanks Mike. Bought a second TWISBI GO thanks to your videos and recommendation. Truly enjoy using them. Sorry to hear of your computer issues again. Glad that you are getting it resolved.
How wonderfully timely. In my haste to get a fountain pen, I ordered a TWSBI Eco while my 700 R was on a transatlantic crossing, apparently enjoying an extended cruise. Defective astrolabe, or something beyond the shipper's control. Both pens are fine point, so I ordered a broad #5 nib for the Eco earlier today. I've matured, somewhat. My signature on correspondence should merit dignity. Please don't mind the background sounds. That last paragraph prompted a hearty chuckle from my wife.
I do like my TWSBI Eco (in purple) - which I probably never would have bought except for this channel - thank you. I hadn't realised about the feed and hot water! This was very helpful - thank you. Hope your computer behaves itself from now on!
Thanks for the video, it managed to clear some of the ambiguities that I initially had with my GO. I was thinking of rotating the feed and nib section to better fit my grip but turns out the feed had the flat part that restricted rotation.
That’s a bit of a sod Michael, if it’s any consolation. I waited 30 minutes for my IMac ( 2017 ) to boot up this afternoon and a similar time to close down later, It has been quite slow for a while now since the Monterey update, but that’s another story, so the go, well a few months ago whilst filling it fell to bits, took me ages to realise the cap on the end of the spring chamber had to be turned to the left to be tightened, but once done the pen was quickly refilled with the new Brandy Dazzle shimmering ink you recently reviewed, except your hands didn’t get covered in the stuff, shimmers very well against skin tones, bit of a sod to wash off, but it does write very nice, and like you say the Go is a very nice affordable pen, worth very penny, thanks for another great review
Monterey has not been ideal, has it? That Brandy Dazzle does have an interesting effect on hands, doesn't it? And I know what you mean about the Go's odd construction. No idea why they should decide to use a reverse thread on that cap that holds the spring!
The vast majority of fountain pens today have plastic feeds. It's infinitely easier to manufacture than ebonite, it's stronger, and not nearly as prone to damage. Ebonite has the advantage of aiding in capillary action a bit because of the surface structure, but I think that advantage is highly exaggerated. Plastic feeds work just fine, and ninety percent or more of the problems I've seen with feeds over the years have been when they were made from ebonite. Ebonite usually has to be cut by hand, which makes it very expensive to manufacture outside of China or India, and it is not easy to get a perfect feed/nib fit when using ebonite feeds.
Many thanks for that, James. I appreciate it. My own point was merely that people who want to clean their pens would be advised really not to use hot water just in case. You're right that most don't use ebonite, but the expensive ones tend to still, I think.
May I offer a suggestion? I recently pulled the nib and feed from my TWSBI Eco, a pen I bought out of crazed desperation when the 700 R I'd ordered was temporarily lost in transit. The carrier sturgeon it was strapped to unexpectedly came into season at mid-Atlantic and had to stave off suitors before completing the Stateside delivery. Or something like that. My nib was stuck. I'd heard the feed was fragile, so I used latex gloves. These are important for two reasons. You can get great traction on the sides of the nib where it tapers back toward the section. I couldn't get the nib to budge, bare-handed. The traction helped quite a bit, as did rolling my finger tips, using my fingernails as cams against the end of the section for greater straight-line pull. The other reason the latex gloves are important is for credibility. With any remaining ink in the pen staining the gloves instead of my fingers, it becomes much easier to tell believable lies about owning a fountain pen and never having ink spills. Image must be preserved.
Good afternoon Sir Michael! I always enjoy your content, but was even more interested in this one as I too love the TWSBI GO. I use it daily and very similar to you, I use it to "test" inks as it's so easy to clean. Yes, you are correct that the GO, Eco and Swipe all use the same nib and feed. I need to correct you that none of the TWSBI pens use an ebonite feed, just a plastic feed like 99% of the pens sold today. Back in the day they were much more common, but now they are mostly found on more expensive pens and/or ones that have a flex nib as supposedly ebonite feeds are better at ink flow? One can heat set an ebonite feed and nib, but yes prolong contact to hot water can discolor ebonite (including grip sections, barrels and caps!) I believe TWSBI has upgraded the plastic feeds in newer pens as the fins are much stiffer and less prone to bending and ultimately breaking. Yes, the feed has a flat spot on the bottom that will fit into a flat spot in the grip section. It would of been nice if you totally disassembled the GO as it's very easy to do once you know how and eventually you will need to silicone grease the piston and also better clean the ink chamber. The only thing I would change is better plastic (like what they used in the SWIPE) and maybe more opaque plastic? Oh and also other color choices! Mahalo from Kauai, Hawaii. Kind regards, Thomas
Hi, and thanks for that. I've just acquired a Swipe, and I'm looking forward to reviewing that one too. I'll maybe look at a review of the two side-by-side, and show both being disassembled and (hopefully) reassembled! Thanks for the comments - and it's good to hear from Hawaii. I was there in 1987, when I was working for Wang Labs! One day I hope to be able to get back again.
@@writerlywitterings Aloha Michael! Thanks for the personal reply. I am eagerly awaiting your review of the TWSBI Swipe. The Swipe seems to be a step above the GO in regards to build quality (at least the quality of plastics) so it feels a bit more sturdy, but the grip section looks to be about the same size and shape, but once again with a slightly higher grade of plastic which makes it feel sturdier and clear. I don't necessarily find the converter with the internal spring to be advantageous over the GO and when it comes to cleaning, I find it harder to clean than the GO, which we both agree is very easy to clean and move on to the next ink! Anyway, looking forward to your comments on that when you review and compare the pens. Very nice to hear of your past visit to Hawaii. Was this Honolulu/Oahu? I sure hope you do get a chance for a return visit. Mahalo once again, Thomas
I left a longer note on your Patreon, Michael, but I'll do a shorter one here. Be careful of the feed fins, they are extremely fragile on the TWSBI pens (GO in particular). I'm guessing you've already filmed this but thought I'd try anyway.
I've written replying to your Patreon message, but the short answer is, thanks, and it was because I broke the fins on my own feed that I wanted to mention this in a video!
Well, the reason some TWSBI feeds seem fragile is because they are pulled from the housing while being held incorrectly. The way the feed sits in the housing makes it very easy, even natural, to attempt pulling the feed while putting pressure on the fins. If you do this, the fins will snap. It's best to watch a video or some sort of illustration to see precisely how to hold the feed/nib, but it really just comes doing to making sure you put pressure where it belongs, which is on the solid roof of the feed. Then removing it is very easy and safe. The really tough TWSBI feed to pull is on the Classic, or so I've been told. I haven't tried it yet, but I've talked to nib smiths who said they couldn't pull one without damaging the feed. Brian Goulet said the same thing. I have only one Classic, and it works fine, so I won't pull the feed unless I have to. I've been pulling feeds and changing nibs for more than fifty years, and I've repaired countless pens, but when nib smiths I respect say they haven't been able to do something without damage, I back off. My hands are not very good now, and neither is my vision. I still work on my own pens, but I don't try restoring pens now, and I don't work on pens for anyone else, but I have to admit, it's very, very tempting to trying pulling the Classic feed just to see if I can do it.
Not yet, I'm afraid. It's all my fault on that one. I'm so behind with things generally (catching Covid, then losing days because of the booster too haven't helped!) but I hope to get back to it early in the New Year.
It's been a while since I have tried, but I believe yes. It's what I did with my TWSBIs with a Go and an Eco, but I gave away the Eco, so I can't check right now! Still, I believe yes, and it's worth trying.
Thanks Mike. Bought a second TWISBI GO thanks to your videos and recommendation. Truly enjoy using them. Sorry to hear of your computer issues again. Glad that you are getting it resolved.
Thanks, Randy - iMac all fixed and happy now!
How wonderfully timely. In my haste to get a fountain pen, I ordered a TWSBI Eco while my 700 R was on a transatlantic crossing, apparently enjoying an extended cruise. Defective astrolabe, or something beyond the shipper's control.
Both pens are fine point, so I ordered a broad #5 nib for the Eco earlier today. I've matured, somewhat. My signature on correspondence should merit dignity.
Please don't mind the background sounds. That last paragraph prompted a hearty chuckle from my wife.
Cheers, Johnny, and I hope the video will help. I'll see what else I can incorporate to give your wife another chuckle! All best
I enjoy tinkering with all my pens. Whether they need it or not. Can't help it.
I do know that feeling!
I do like my TWSBI Eco (in purple) - which I probably never would have bought except for this channel - thank you. I hadn't realised about the feed and hot water! This was very helpful - thank you. Hope your computer behaves itself from now on!
Good choice! I hope you have many years of happy writing with it!
Thanks for the video, it managed to clear some of the ambiguities that I initially had with my GO. I was thinking of rotating the feed and nib section to better fit my grip but turns out the feed had the flat part that restricted rotation.
Glad it helped!
That’s a bit of a sod Michael, if it’s any consolation. I waited 30 minutes for my IMac ( 2017 ) to boot up this afternoon and a similar time to close down later, It has been quite slow for a while now since the Monterey update, but that’s another story, so the go, well a few months ago whilst filling it fell to bits, took me ages to realise the cap on the end of the spring chamber had to be turned to the left to be tightened, but once done the pen was quickly refilled with the new Brandy Dazzle shimmering ink you recently reviewed, except your hands didn’t get covered in the stuff, shimmers very well against skin tones, bit of a sod to wash off, but it does write very nice, and like you say the Go is a very nice affordable pen, worth very penny, thanks for another great review
Monterey has not been ideal, has it? That Brandy Dazzle does have an interesting effect on hands, doesn't it? And I know what you mean about the Go's odd construction. No idea why they should decide to use a reverse thread on that cap that holds the spring!
The vast majority of fountain pens today have plastic feeds. It's infinitely easier to manufacture than ebonite, it's stronger, and not nearly as prone to damage. Ebonite has the advantage of aiding in capillary action a bit because of the surface structure, but I think that advantage is highly exaggerated. Plastic feeds work just fine, and ninety percent or more of the problems I've seen with feeds over the years have been when they were made from ebonite.
Ebonite usually has to be cut by hand, which makes it very expensive to manufacture outside of China or India, and it is not easy to get a perfect feed/nib fit when using ebonite feeds.
Many thanks for that, James. I appreciate it. My own point was merely that people who want to clean their pens would be advised really not to use hot water just in case. You're right that most don't use ebonite, but the expensive ones tend to still, I think.
May I offer a suggestion? I recently pulled the nib and feed from my TWSBI Eco, a pen I bought out of crazed desperation when the 700 R I'd ordered was temporarily lost in transit. The carrier sturgeon it was strapped to unexpectedly came into season at mid-Atlantic and had to stave off suitors before completing the Stateside delivery. Or something like that.
My nib was stuck. I'd heard the feed was fragile, so I used latex gloves. These are important for two reasons.
You can get great traction on the sides of the nib where it tapers back toward the section. I couldn't get the nib to budge, bare-handed. The traction helped quite a bit, as did rolling my finger tips, using my fingernails as cams against the end of the section for greater straight-line pull.
The other reason the latex gloves are important is for credibility. With any remaining ink in the pen staining the gloves instead of my fingers, it becomes much easier to tell believable lies about owning a fountain pen and never having ink spills.
Image must be preserved.
Brilliant, Johnny. A great idea which I'll happily steal. If only I could pinch someone's image as well. Mine is more than a little tarnished!
Good afternoon Sir Michael! I always enjoy your content, but was even more interested in this one as I too love the TWSBI GO. I use it daily and very similar to you, I use it to "test" inks as it's so easy to clean. Yes, you are correct that the GO, Eco and Swipe all use the same nib and feed. I need to correct you that none of the TWSBI pens use an ebonite feed, just a plastic feed like 99% of the pens sold today. Back in the day they were much more common, but now they are mostly found on more expensive pens and/or ones that have a flex nib as supposedly ebonite feeds are better at ink flow? One can heat set an ebonite feed and nib, but yes prolong contact to hot water can discolor ebonite (including grip sections, barrels and caps!) I believe TWSBI has upgraded the plastic feeds in newer pens as the fins are much stiffer and less prone to bending and ultimately breaking. Yes, the feed has a flat spot on the bottom that will fit into a flat spot in the grip section. It would of been nice if you totally disassembled the GO as it's very easy to do once you know how and eventually you will need to silicone grease the piston and also better clean the ink chamber. The only thing I would change is better plastic (like what they used in the SWIPE) and maybe more opaque plastic? Oh and also other color choices! Mahalo from Kauai, Hawaii. Kind regards, Thomas
Hi, and thanks for that. I've just acquired a Swipe, and I'm looking forward to reviewing that one too. I'll maybe look at a review of the two side-by-side, and show both being disassembled and (hopefully) reassembled! Thanks for the comments - and it's good to hear from Hawaii. I was there in 1987, when I was working for Wang Labs! One day I hope to be able to get back again.
@@writerlywitterings Aloha Michael! Thanks for the personal reply. I am eagerly awaiting your review of the TWSBI Swipe. The Swipe seems to be a step above the GO in regards to build quality (at least the quality of plastics) so it feels a bit more sturdy, but the grip section looks to be about the same size and shape, but once again with a slightly higher grade of plastic which makes it feel sturdier and clear. I don't necessarily find the converter with the internal spring to be advantageous over the GO and when it comes to cleaning, I find it harder to clean than the GO, which we both agree is very easy to clean and move on to the next ink! Anyway, looking forward to your comments on that when you review and compare the pens. Very nice to hear of your past visit to Hawaii. Was this Honolulu/Oahu? I sure hope you do get a chance for a return visit. Mahalo once again, Thomas
I left a longer note on your Patreon, Michael, but I'll do a shorter one here. Be careful of the feed fins, they are extremely fragile on the TWSBI pens (GO in particular). I'm guessing you've already filmed this but thought I'd try anyway.
I've written replying to your Patreon message, but the short answer is, thanks, and it was because I broke the fins on my own feed that I wanted to mention this in a video!
Well, the reason some TWSBI feeds seem fragile is because they are pulled from the housing while being held incorrectly. The way the feed sits in the housing makes it very easy, even natural, to attempt pulling the feed while putting pressure on the fins. If you do this, the fins will snap. It's best to watch a video or some sort of illustration to see precisely how to hold the feed/nib, but it really just comes doing to making sure you put pressure where it belongs, which is on the solid roof of the feed. Then removing it is very easy and safe.
The really tough TWSBI feed to pull is on the Classic, or so I've been told. I haven't tried it yet, but I've talked to nib smiths who said they couldn't pull one without damaging the feed. Brian Goulet said the same thing. I have only one Classic, and it works fine, so I won't pull the feed unless I have to. I've been pulling feeds and changing nibs for more than fifty years, and I've repaired countless pens, but when nib smiths I respect say they haven't been able to do something without damage, I back off. My hands are not very good now, and neither is my vision.
I still work on my own pens, but I don't try restoring pens now, and I don't work on pens for anyone else, but I have to admit, it's very, very tempting to trying pulling the Classic feed just to see if I can do it.
Have you thought about buying a Raspberry Pi and using Linux ?
Um ... no. Definitely not! I can't do programming and need easy software like Scrivener and Nisus Writer Pro - I can't play with Linux!
Thanks for the video. I hope you have a functioning computer soon! Any news on the “sniper” ?
Not yet, I'm afraid. It's all my fault on that one. I'm so behind with things generally (catching Covid, then losing days because of the booster too haven't helped!) but I hope to get back to it early in the New Year.
@@writerlywitterings I’m sure it will be worth the wait!
Can we swap a TWSBI Eco nib with a TWSBI Go nib?
It's been a while since I have tried, but I believe yes. It's what I did with my TWSBIs with a Go and an Eco, but I gave away the Eco, so I can't check right now! Still, I believe yes, and it's worth trying.