If you are hoping to get the most out of a FPR flex pen buy an ebonite feed. Many of the pens come with them but for those that don't FPR sells individual Ebonite feed for a few dollars. Between carving it out and heat setting an ebonite feed you can really make a pen flow. I have an FPR Muft that keeps up with flex with ease with some slight modifications. Moreover, I have had an extremely pleasant experience with every pen I've bought from FPR. They are a great value and if you are thinking of buying a pen you should go for it! Also, thank you for the review.
I actually bought this pen with a regular (not the ultra) flex nib off ebay last week! And now you review it! It's made in Indian company called Click and the original model is called Aristocrat (sometimes Diplomate) if anyone's interested. I'm not in the States and double handling from India to FPR, then to me, taxes and all that would make it needlessly expensive for me. One thing to note is that the pen is supposedly acrylic _(I didn't receive it yet, I will edit the comment when I do)_ - turned acrylic made outside of China for less than $20 including a flex nib? Yes, please! And I _love_ the oldschool design of not matching the finial and grip section and the whole shape. Can't wait to get it in my hands.
10-18-23 thanks for keeping this review up. Yesterday I rc’d my Himalaya v2 ultra flex and the v2 flex, Kevin was doing a ‘buy one get one’ I haven’t loaded them yet . I got the biggest kick when you imitate those viewer’s critical remarks. I actually C.O.L. (Chuckled Out Loud). Anywho, sprinkle more or your critics comments in reviews. And remember newbies pop up everyday. Thanks again
I bought a Himalaya on your recommendation and I love it. I got the saffron acrylic and its a really lovely finish and it writes beautifully. They really are a great value.
Please try to eye drops it's while using flex. That will help to feed the ink to the feed. Yes I have tried this with convertor and cartridges and it does skip or railroad.
We get this in India by the name of Click Aristocrat a.k.a. Click Diplomat and the Ultra Flex Nib is made by an Indian company called Kanwrite. The price here is just around ₹500 to ₹700 ($7 to $10). While going to US the price bumps up and the branding changes. But again the same happens with US and European pens when they come to India. Just the branding remains the same. 😀 Also those of you love Assam tea here should try the Society Assam Tea atleast once. It is awesome. Just keep in mind that it will brew pretty strong unlike regular assam teas.😁
Stephen, thanks for this review. If flex writing is not your "jam" you are doing a pretty good job of it👍👍👍 FPR is really doing a nice job of bringing affordable pens to the folks, I purchased one of the Darjeeling with the flex nib, as I wanted to try out this "magic", and did not want to shell out a small fortune.
Thanks for showing these, I have several pens from FPR, all of which are great value. If you are looking for an Ultra Flex nib with an ebonite feed I would suggest the FPR Himalaya as that does come with one - I have one of the new #6 size ones, which is a really fun pen to write with.
I have ultra flex in the Himalayan. The feed smells like ebonite. And I got the same experience with the pen you are showing. I noticed the fine point also looks like a medium. I like the pen but still it isn't fine like I was expecting.
I have been a fan of your page for a long time. Long before you got married. I liked your cleaner cut look better then... but I digress. This video made me laugh. I love your little old English lady complaints. Too funny. Keep up the great work Mr. Brown. -Mark from Manchester, Michigan
I just came from their site. They do have ebonite feeds now. You can buy nibs with or without them separately. They will fit Jinhao #6 pens and I believe any other pen thay takes a #6 nib.
I have a Click Aristocrat (in orange) with flex nib. Seems like the only difference between the Darjeeling and the Aristocrat is the nib, which has a slight different design.
The newer FPR pens have plastic feeds which do a disservice to the flex nibs, which are quite good for steel flex nibs. Better than Noodler's nibs, IMO. The ultraflex is particularly nice.
I got 05 FPR pens and a pen pouch from last month. I can say that I experience the best and also the worst experiences in the same purchase. The #6 Ultra Flex is the best, whereas the #5 Flex being the worst. The remaining 03 are somewhere in the middle. I really wish Kevin has put more attention to the finish on the body of the Himalaya. The Saffron is quite OK, but the Blue one is kind of a let down to me. It was not careful polished. I can still the work mark on the cap and the barrel without any loop.
Thanks Stephen! I think we ought to have the Monty Python crew try a review.. let the trollies have fun with that! Best to you and Azizah! Frank from Boulder, Colorado
Terri wrote "... those five people sound like they are about to ask about the airspeed of an unladen swallow.' ..... African, or European? and, singly, or in pairs?
Great review, the nib needs an ebonite feed. I don't understand why these pens are sold with plastic feeds... One of the things that makes vintage nibs so great is the ebonite feeds do a much better job of feeding ink. The vintage feeds also have a HUGE ink channel compared to most modern feeds... Something I don't understand when marrying a miserly feed to a thirsty nib - This is not rocket science - Said with the dowager countess' voice. Thank you
Dear Professor, It appears you have had some challenges with those 5 harpies with the high pitched voices. Otherwise know as the "nattering nebobs of negativity" (to borrow a phrase from the late Spiro Agnew, former vice president of the US of A) 🙂
I happen to be in Texas earlier this month and went to FPR. I bought an ultra flex which I highly enjoy. Kevin was highly recommending that I choose a pen that would accommodate the ebonite feed with the ultra flex nib... Apparently they can only put the other ebonite feed on certain pen bodies, So perhaps that’s why both of these have plastic?
I like the pens for what they are but I’m not sure what material the feeders are made of but they have a reaction with the ink and have a strong smell of foul ink.
I didn't know Ethal May's rummy club watched your pen reviews 😂 (was going to say bridge, but that only requires four players and these ladies wouldnt be able to type if one of them was constantly filling drinks... 🤣)
I've been using one of these on and off for about eight months now. Stephen's review here is pretty well spot on. You can get impressive flex in a pen that you can carry, for that alone I'd say it's worth a shot for a great many people who have been chasing flex nibs. I will note this has one specific advantage over practically all the Noodler's pens in this price range that I've tried, in that the FPR Darjeeling doesn't get ink creep on the grip section. If Noodler's would make a Vegetal Resin version of the Neponset this would be a totally different discussion, but as far as I'm concerned right now Noodler's has no direct equivalent to this pen (I also just placed an order for the Triple Tail, but again, not a sub-$20 pen). I don't have Vintage flex so I can't compare, and I don't have precise measurements, but the pressure required here feels like it's close to being half of a regular Noodler's Ahab nib, and probably 1/3 of the Neponset nib. We definitely need a Triple Tail vs. Darjeeling head-to-head once Stephen gets his hands on one. Now the downsides. Remember how Noodler's Vegetal Resin pens smell? Multiply that by a factor of 2. The Converter works, but I much prefer a Twist type converter because this can easily spray ink out of the pen after the o-ring inevitably gets a bit stuck from sitting idle for a few days. In this regard I would even prefer the Noodler's proprietary .308 size plunger because at least you can twist that to loosen the seal before adjusting the ink reservoir to saturate the feed, which you will be doing after every three or four uses of the Darjeeling if you're trying to get 2-3mm lines every time you use it. That impracticality is compounded by the MANY turns needed to thread the body off of the section so that you can re-saturate the feed. It's absolutely a pen capable of producing Big Flex straight out of your pocket, but if you don't need to carry the pen in your pocket then the practical limitations put it back to being about on par with a dip nib and a bottle while sitting at your desk. I will also note that I have a #5 Ultra Flex nib and I am not impressed. It was horribly scratchy out of the box and #5 is too small and it springs very easily.
Hi I am from India, in west bengal ( state in India) there is a place called Darjeeling in the north, just search in google Darjeeling, west bengal, india
They refuse to sell the pen with ebonite standard for some reason. But the ebonite feed is better and it costs less than 5 bucks so I’d recommend always getting the ebonite feed. You’re looking at 140 dollars for a 14k flex nib in an acrylic pen with an ebonite feed. Beautiful and my Christmas present this year to myself.
You crack me up. Your impressions of those five wretched people critiquing your writing were especially amusing. Goodness knows, I needed the laughs today. Cheers!
29 us dollars 😂.. i am from india and the cost in our country is around Rs 500..... which is around 8 to 9 dollar... but seriously the pen is very nice...
Not actually comparable, a lot of foreign pens indeed are manufactured by click/kanwrite, but the pen bodies/feeds and converters are of better quality and durability when it comes to FPR and Noodlers. Nibs are of similar quality, except the FPR ultra flex. No nib sold in India is comparable!
I'm not very fond of the ball on the end of the clip of many of these FPR, and other Indian, pens. The way the ball is formed leaves sharp edges on its underside and that can easily ruin shirt pockets. I believe it's a serious shortcoming of these pens. At least it is for me.
Pritam Das Be mature when you comments ..fpr has officially tie up with many pen manufactures in India so nothing is illegal only glare India sells over price from your country
@@TheBluestar2009 He said it because we DO get it "in other name". Unless you are on a mission to randomly insult people who have posted perfectly innocuous comments, shut your trap and stay that way. Well, shut your trap and stay that way EVEN IF you are on such a dumbass mission.
EEEE!!! I do not understand in absence of provisos!!!! What ever shall I do????? I am helpless like a kitten in a tree!!!! (a tree drawn of, course, with a pen). EEEEE I feel moved to whine!!!! Please sir, may hI have another of your tortuous caricatures of us your loving fandom!!!!!
First! FPR pens are ok when you need a cheap one. I've had a few lemons though, it can be a hit and miss. You don't fall from too high in the worst case. Earlier flex nibs I got were not very good, they definately did not write like that. I found Noodlers way better than the couple older flex nibs from FPR I have.
in the same voice you were using....."oh this is so annoying you going into little tangents on people leaving negative comments" :) Made this episode unwatchable for me
@@sbrebrown How Stoic of you. It truly has been the honor of honors to be insulted by one like you. Thank you and I really hope you have a wonderful day :)
Or develop a thicker skin as someone in the public eye, and ignore the yahoos. I truly don't understand why you are so sensitive to what people (like me) write in the comments (irony recognized).
If you are hoping to get the most out of a FPR flex pen buy an ebonite feed. Many of the pens come with them but for those that don't FPR sells individual Ebonite feed for a few dollars. Between carving it out and heat setting an ebonite feed you can really make a pen flow. I have an FPR Muft that keeps up with flex with ease with some slight modifications. Moreover, I have had an extremely pleasant experience with every pen I've bought from FPR. They are a great value and if you are thinking of buying a pen you should go for it!
Also, thank you for the review.
I enjoyed the "otherwise five people are going to be like..." parts.
😂😂😂
I actually bought this pen with a regular (not the ultra) flex nib off ebay last week! And now you review it! It's made in Indian company called Click and the original model is called Aristocrat (sometimes Diplomate) if anyone's interested. I'm not in the States and double handling from India to FPR, then to me, taxes and all that would make it needlessly expensive for me.
One thing to note is that the pen is supposedly acrylic _(I didn't receive it yet, I will edit the comment when I do)_ - turned acrylic made outside of China for less than $20 including a flex nib? Yes, please! And I _love_ the oldschool design of not matching the finial and grip section and the whole shape. Can't wait to get it in my hands.
10-18-23 thanks for keeping this review up. Yesterday I rc’d my Himalaya v2 ultra flex and the v2 flex, Kevin was doing a ‘buy one get one’ I haven’t loaded them yet . I got the biggest kick when you imitate those viewer’s critical remarks. I actually C.O.L. (Chuckled Out Loud). Anywho, sprinkle more or your critics comments in reviews. And remember newbies pop up everyday. Thanks again
You were in excellent form for this review! Thank you, Dr. Brown.
I bought a Himalaya on your recommendation and I love it. I got the saffron acrylic and its a really lovely finish and it writes beautifully. They really are a great value.
Please try to eye drops it's while using flex. That will help to feed the ink to the feed. Yes I have tried this with convertor and cartridges and it does skip or railroad.
I have a few FPR pens, worth it.
I am wondering if the sarcasm for the lamented five was overkill.. . But it didn’t matter: the review was honest and thorough, I felt. Thanks !
We get this in India by the name of Click Aristocrat a.k.a. Click Diplomat and the Ultra Flex Nib is made by an Indian company called Kanwrite. The price here is just around ₹500 to ₹700 ($7 to $10). While going to US the price bumps up and the branding changes. But again the same happens with US and European pens when they come to India. Just the branding remains the same. 😀
Also those of you love Assam tea here should try the Society Assam Tea atleast once. It is awesome. Just keep in mind that it will brew pretty strong unlike regular assam teas.😁
Stephen, thanks for this review. If flex writing is not your "jam" you are doing a pretty good job of it👍👍👍
FPR is really doing a nice job of bringing affordable pens to the folks, I purchased one of the Darjeeling with the flex nib, as I wanted to try out this "magic", and did not want to shell out a small fortune.
Thank you, Stephen. FPR does good work.
GREAT SCOTT! Did you just say FLEX CAPACITY!?!? It's what makes line variation possible, Marty!
Thanks for showing these, I have several pens from FPR, all of which are great value. If you are looking for an Ultra Flex nib with an ebonite feed I would suggest the FPR Himalaya as that does come with one - I have one of the new #6 size ones, which is a really fun pen to write with.
All my experiences with FPR have been really good.
I have ultra flex in the Himalayan. The feed smells like ebonite. And I got the same experience with the pen you are showing. I noticed the fine point also looks like a medium. I like the pen but still it isn't fine like I was expecting.
It's always interesting when you do reviews for affordable pens :) 5 people have weird voices, lol.
Yeah....and all of them sounds same...😂....(and annoying)
5 people will complain “you shouldn’t mock people”
I enjoyed your commentary but hope it wasn’t triggered by 5 teaching evaluations.
I have been a fan of your page for a long time. Long before you got married. I liked your cleaner cut look better then... but I digress. This video made me laugh. I love your little old English lady complaints. Too funny. Keep up the great work Mr. Brown. -Mark from Manchester, Michigan
5 of your viewers also feature on Monty Python
Favorite fountain pen channel
Everytime you spoke in the "Complainer Voice" you woke me up!
I put the ultraflex nib on a Noodler’s pen with an ebonite nib…. Amazing combination… no skipping
The feed on my FPR Himalaia Ultraflex is ebonite, not plastic. Hava I got lucky?
Thanks for including the scientific name for tea. It is always an honor to watch your video presentations.
I just came from their site. They do have ebonite feeds now. You can buy nibs with or without them separately. They will fit Jinhao #6 pens and I believe any other pen thay takes a #6 nib.
I have a Click Aristocrat (in orange) with flex nib. Seems like the only difference between the Darjeeling and the Aristocrat is the nib, which has a slight different design.
The newer FPR pens have plastic feeds which do a disservice to the flex nibs, which are quite good for steel flex nibs. Better than Noodler's nibs, IMO. The ultraflex is particularly nice.
I was waiting for this for sooooooooooooooooooo long
Thanks man.
Wish you would review the 14k Ultra flex?
I got 05 FPR pens and a pen pouch from last month. I can say that I experience the best and also the worst experiences in the same purchase. The #6 Ultra Flex is the best, whereas the #5 Flex being the worst. The remaining 03 are somewhere in the middle. I really wish Kevin has put more attention to the finish on the body of the Himalaya. The Saffron is quite OK, but the Blue one is kind of a let down to me. It was not careful polished. I can still the work mark on the cap and the barrel without any loop.
Thanks Stephen! I think we ought to have the Monty Python crew try a review.. let the trollies have fun with that! Best to you and Azizah!
Frank from Boulder, Colorado
I enjoy my Himalayas and Darjeeling. Fun pens. Also, those five people sound like they are about to ask about the airspeed of an unladen swallow.
Terri wrote "... those five people sound like they are about to ask about the airspeed of an unladen swallow.' ..... African, or European? and, singly, or in pairs?
I agree. I had flashes of John Cleese running they my head.
Great review, the nib needs an ebonite feed. I don't understand why these pens are sold with plastic feeds... One of the things that makes vintage nibs so great is the ebonite feeds do a much better job of feeding ink. The vintage feeds also have a HUGE ink channel compared to most modern feeds... Something I don't understand when marrying a miserly feed to a thirsty nib - This is not rocket science - Said with the dowager countess' voice. Thank you
Your flex writing was beautiful
Dear Professor, It appears you have had some challenges with those 5 harpies with the high pitched voices. Otherwise know as the "nattering nebobs of negativity" (to borrow a phrase from the late Spiro Agnew, former vice president of the US of A) 🙂
Cool pens, Darjeeling is a good tea as well.
This is my Christmas present to myself. :)
I have black one, flex nib and it was leaking inks on the nib . How would you like to suggest to stop leaking?
Your second voice sounds like a teacher in horrid henry cartoon show xD so funny haha
I happen to be in Texas earlier this month and went to FPR. I bought an ultra flex which I highly enjoy.
Kevin was highly recommending that I choose a pen that would accommodate the ebonite feed with the ultra flex nib... Apparently they can only put the other ebonite feed on certain pen bodies, So perhaps that’s why both of these have plastic?
I like the pens for what they are but I’m not sure what material the feeders are made of but they have a reaction with the ink and have a strong smell of foul ink.
“Not all websites are in English?” 😱. Have you checked any of those? E.g. ASApens, Lotus, Ranga....
your troll voice is hilarious. I'm sorry that you have to deal with people who were never taught to shut their mouths but love your reviews!
I didn't know Ethal May's rummy club watched your pen reviews 😂 (was going to say bridge, but that only requires four players and these ladies wouldnt be able to type if one of them was constantly filling drinks... 🤣)
I've been using one of these on and off for about eight months now.
Stephen's review here is pretty well spot on.
You can get impressive flex in a pen that you can carry, for that alone I'd say it's worth a shot for a great many people who have been chasing flex nibs.
I will note this has one specific advantage over practically all the Noodler's pens in this price range that I've tried, in that the FPR Darjeeling doesn't get ink creep on the grip section. If Noodler's would make a Vegetal Resin version of the Neponset this would be a totally different discussion, but as far as I'm concerned right now Noodler's has no direct equivalent to this pen (I also just placed an order for the Triple Tail, but again, not a sub-$20 pen).
I don't have Vintage flex so I can't compare, and I don't have precise measurements, but the pressure required here feels like it's close to being half of a regular Noodler's Ahab nib, and probably 1/3 of the Neponset nib.
We definitely need a Triple Tail vs. Darjeeling head-to-head once Stephen gets his hands on one.
Now the downsides.
Remember how Noodler's Vegetal Resin pens smell? Multiply that by a factor of 2.
The Converter works, but I much prefer a Twist type converter because this can easily spray ink out of the pen after the o-ring inevitably gets a bit stuck from sitting idle for a few days. In this regard I would even prefer the Noodler's proprietary .308 size plunger because at least you can twist that to loosen the seal before adjusting the ink reservoir to saturate the feed, which you will be doing after every three or four uses of the Darjeeling if you're trying to get 2-3mm lines every time you use it.
That impracticality is compounded by the MANY turns needed to thread the body off of the section so that you can re-saturate the feed.
It's absolutely a pen capable of producing Big Flex straight out of your pocket, but if you don't need to carry the pen in your pocket then the practical limitations put it back to being about on par with a dip nib and a bottle while sitting at your desk.
I will also note that I have a #5 Ultra Flex nib and I am not impressed. It was horribly scratchy out of the box and #5 is too small and it springs very easily.
Hi I am from India, in west bengal ( state in India) there is a place called Darjeeling in the north, just search in google Darjeeling, west bengal, india
Came for the nib review. Stayed for the 5 people bits.
Would the flex nib work better with an Ebonite feed? FYI, did you know there is Ebonite filament for 3D printers?
They refuse to sell the pen with ebonite standard for some reason. But the ebonite feed is better and it costs less than 5 bucks so I’d recommend always getting the ebonite feed. You’re looking at 140 dollars for a 14k flex nib in an acrylic pen with an ebonite feed. Beautiful and my Christmas present this year to myself.
I think the question on everyone's mind is who are these five people?
They look like the Namiki Urushi Series
Those exact same 5 people have disliked this video...
Hey, love your video, what paper is this??
Rhodia
You crack me up. Your impressions of those five wretched people critiquing your writing were especially amusing. Goodness knows, I needed the laughs today.
Cheers!
Those are the same as the Click Aristocrat Pens. Probably the same manufacturer
29 us dollars 😂.. i am from india and the cost in our country is around Rs 500..... which is around 8 to 9 dollar... but seriously the pen is very nice...
Not actually comparable, a lot of foreign pens indeed are manufactured by click/kanwrite, but the pen bodies/feeds and converters are of better quality and durability when it comes to FPR and Noodlers. Nibs are of similar quality, except the FPR ultra flex. No nib sold in India is comparable!
@@-logic6654 but in this case..i have tried both the versions there is no difference trust me
Why did you write about a Tea Plant when you said Darjeeling? I miss something?
Darjeeling is a tea brand
Darjeeling is an appellation where tea is grown and is sometimes called the champagne of teas
I'm not very fond of the ball on the end of the clip of many of these FPR, and other Indian, pens. The way the ball is formed leaves sharp edges on its underside and that can easily ruin shirt pockets. I believe it's a serious shortcoming of these pens. At least it is for me.
...SOUNDS LIKE SOMEONE NEEDS A HUG..."RAILROAD? I DON'T SEE ANY LOCOMOTIVE?"...
Kind sir, please do provide a facility for your commenters to record voice comments. I do feel that this is direly needed.
LOL, I really want to know who those 5 people are! They all have an interesting voice and their sentences all start with an "oouuh!" LOL
Five people ought to get five Sammich bags for their own “personal” use.
These pens are sold in India by the brand Click and model name is Aristocrat.
Pritam Das Be mature when you comments ..fpr has officially tie up with many pen manufactures in India so nothing is illegal only glare India sells over price from your country
@@TheBluestar2009 when did I said it's illegal? Be mature yourself before dropping a random reply like a fool.
Pritam Das what is purpose of telling in India you get in other name ?? fool
@@TheBluestar2009 just for sake of information, dumb head like you will never understand anyway.....
Get lost
@@TheBluestar2009 He said it because we DO get it "in other name". Unless you are on a mission to randomly insult people who have posted perfectly innocuous comments, shut your trap and stay that way. Well, shut your trap and stay that way EVEN IF you are on such a dumbass mission.
I'm surprised that there aren't 5 dislikes yet
there are now, actually. Gee, I wonder who left those...
OOOHHH why did you use purple ink in an orange pen, those colors are NOT complementary, you should have used BLUUUUEEE
I know how dare he!! I think you sir are one of the 5 people!!
Ohhhhh just how many times is he going to write helllllllooooooo? :-) I just love your reviews Stephen.
EEEE!!! I do not understand in absence of provisos!!!! What ever shall I do????? I am helpless like a kitten in a tree!!!! (a tree drawn of, course, with a pen). EEEEE I feel moved to whine!!!! Please sir, may hI have another of your tortuous caricatures of us your loving fandom!!!!!
I love Assam tea as well..
First! FPR pens are ok when you need a cheap one. I've had a few lemons though, it can be a hit and miss. You don't fall from too high in the worst case.
Earlier flex nibs I got were not very good, they definately did not write like that. I found Noodlers way better than the couple older flex nibs from FPR I have.
Look at reviews for the 14k nib. It’s literally a wet noodle.
Most sites in India are in english
Its Click Aristocrat Flex...
weird how everyone who criticizes you in the voice of an old British biddy
in the same voice you were using....."oh this is so annoying you going into little tangents on people leaving negative comments" :) Made this episode unwatchable for me
That's ironic, because pendantic comments like these give me more reason to use that voice.
@@sbrebrown How Stoic of you. It truly has been the honor of honors to be insulted by one like you. Thank you and I really hope you have a wonderful day :)
I really like the complaining part.. do it more 😂
wow i didnt know boring/fussy ppl speak like that in other nation as well !!!! :D lol :D
Vocês fazem comentários e análises de canetas, que não vendem na loja Fountain Pens (Absurdo)
Main subject lamenting over viewers...
Those five people are very annoying and should go somewhere else. Preferably pursue another hobby entirely.
Are you okay Stephen? You sound irritable and it feels like you're just going through the motions in your review.
Or develop a thicker skin as someone in the public eye, and ignore the yahoos. I truly don't understand why you are so sensitive to what people (like me) write in the comments (irony recognized).
Or, radical idea, people could act like civilized persons online and not like assholes.
sbrebrown Agreed.
@@sbrebrown Of course. But I wonder if you think your reactions will reduce or increase the incidence of assholery in your comments.