I've had trouble with both of the Zebra V-301s that I tried, so I'd be more likely to use the Varsity for this purpose, or to test the Zebra before handing it to the recipient.
Parker Sonnet. Writes beautifully, not too expensive, seems to have no fashion credence but is about the best every day work pen I've ever had. So much so I have 2 and intend to get more!
I carry several pens (4-7) in a hard clamshell eyeglass case in my purse, and no matter what else is in it, there are always my 2 E95ses. One is Burgandy/Ivory, the other Black/Gold, and both have EF nibs. They never fail me and they are absolutley wonderful in the hand.
The E95S has to be one of the best in my collection. Inexpensive, beautiful design (some similarities to the Carene) and an excellent writing tool. I have a number of Pelikan,Waterman, Sailor and Parker pens but this little E95S stays inked, only problem, it doesn’t hold a lot of ink. 👍🇨🇦👨🦳
I got the burgundy/ivory E95S with a medium nib a couple weeks ago from you guys and I absolutely love it. So beautiful, satisfying cap, typical great nib from Pilot. I'd been wanting it for months, and it was worth the wait!
I bought my first fountain pen from you guys and now I'm hooked. I'm really watching 2 guys talk about pens for 13 minutes lol. Thanks for the dumdum btw. It made my day when I opened the box and saw that.
Watching this, I remembered an old Pilot Varsity I hadn’t touched in a year or two. Found it, intending to pull the nib but it wrote just fine. Didn’t dry up at all. Putting it back into rotation and will try to refill when it runs dry. Thanks!!
I found a misplaced Pilot Varsity after 12 years around the time of my divorce and it wrote immediately with no problems! I was going to toss it in the trash but just decided to give it a try - and it worked fine!
I also got Pens way more expensive than the E95S ... but its still one of my absolut favourite Pens. You should defenitly get it. I got the EF Nib on mine, and its the best EF Nib i own. It is the Pen that is allways attached to my Kallender.
I just picked up the classic elite for $30. It came with an 18k script nib. It's great, but old pens you may have to take some time to clean. Spent 3 days flushing soaking and cleaning mine this last week.
Hey, John….they are quite amazing!! I got hooked about 15 yes ago, and have quite a collection of NOS Murex Red and Black and Myu’s…none have been inked!! I can’t write with all of them, and am willing to part with some. Not sure what to put here to contact me… perhaps you’ll see this!! Goulet Pens: I don’t want to infringe or do anything inappropriate on your platform, I simply saw this, and answered. You guys are great!!
The Varsity was actually a cool trial for my kid this past school year. My 7-year-old has disgraphia, and I found the varsity at staples. It slowed him down and improved his handwriting to use a fountain pen, and he felt so awesome using a grown-up pen like daddy! The yookers has been in and out of my shopping cart multiple times, I may end up pulling the trigger with the ink promo right now :-) I got the E95S with some gift money recently and it’s my new EDC - I’m so impressed with how it writes and I’m not afraid to clip it in my jeans pocket.
Here's my take for a future Q & A, with which pen did you start your fountain pen journey and which pen completely changed it for you and made it fall in love with them.
Diplomat Magnum… I bought one from y’all this year in the prismatic purple…MAN so pretty, lightweight, great nib, loooove it and it’s in that $25 range
Dude, the Plaisir is the pen I always reach for first. It writes soooo well! Even after being set down for a month, it will write on demand. So smooth in the hand, so esthetically sleek. Love it!
I think I learned how to refill the Varsity from one of your old videos. The first one I got is about to get its third refill. They hold a lot of ink, and unlike regular eyedropper setups, they don't burp due to the fiber feed.
I couldn't agree more on the Pilot E95S. Pilot nibs never fail to impress me. I have a variety or vintage Pilot pocket pens and there is just something so seductive about the way the cap slides onto the section and the body when posting the cap.
My most under-rated pen is the Lamy Aion!!! It is one of my absolute favorite pen! There is nothing on the pen to irritate my fingers, or prevent me from putting my fingers where I want. And it writes beautifully!!! Every time I pick it up to write, I smile. It just feels so good.
Drew, if you haven’t heard of it, the Schon DSGN pocket 6 fountain pen is pretty cool. It’s kind of like that kaweco you mentioned. It’s small enough to carry in your pocket, but when you post it, it becomes a full sized pen. It also manages to fit a size 6 nib! Pretty crazy, I thought I’d share.
Seconded! I cannot praise the Schon DSGN pocket 6 highly enough on all counts: style, design, appearance, performance and price. Easily one of my Top 5 favorite pocket pens, ever!
Ohh the supera does looks amazing and it’s underrated. Also fountain pens that I think doesn’t get enough love and are underrated are Faber Castell loom gun, which I really love with amazing Nib and great balanced pen
Thank you for sharing your fountain pen love and enthusiasm! I’ve been a ballpoint baby for a many years and occasionally ventured into fountain pen land, but haven’t really found the love yet. I probably just haven’t found the right fountain pen, so I am hopeful as I watch your conversations. Btw…love your shirt!! 😊
the E95S was my first gold nibbed pen, and I got it as my coming of age birthday present from my parents. It gets carried everywhere and is one of my most used pens.
I have 6 of the 9 pens in this list (the ones from Sailor, Pilot and Platinum). I have the pilot explorer which I love mostly because it takes the CON-70 converter. And for those who don't like the nib, you can swap it for one from the kakuno, penmanship, metropolitan or prera.
Some Japanese people say Plaisir’s design is like an earthworm. I think that may be the reason why Plaisir is underrated and Kakuno is more popular than that.
I feel that E95S' problem is Vanishing Point. VP is just bit more expensive, but it has that wow factor. E95S' is a beautiful and sexy pen (got it) but when I took it in my hands my wife's VP... It's even more sexy.
Talking about Platinum Preppy and its upgrades sharing the same nib , actually Faber Castell does exactly the same (from Loom to e-Motion level), but with even higher prices. Maybe the design matters? Also sth to do with branding and marketing stuff🤔.
Initially, I tried hard to avoid buying the Pilot E95s because I really didn't "need" it at the time, but I very glad I succumbed. It's the black one with a Fine nib. Man, o man, do I love that little guy. The capping mechanism is just like you (Brian) said -- and that's actually very satisfying. The "feel" in the hand is far better than I expected from a small pen and that nib could NOT be more perfect. It's smooth, it's quite wet without being a gusher, it's a Japanese Fine (more fine than western fines) and it ALWAYS starts righting immediately without hesitation or skipping and it seems forgiving of hand rotation/angle, plus it needs no extra pressure against the page to write. If I need, or want, a fine-nibbed pen, that's the one I always reach for. I prefer Broads because they're smooth and lay down a lot of ink. I did not expect to be so pleased with a Fine nib. My Yookers Yooth kept drying out between writing sessions until the "nib" just became too clogged. It was too much trouble to buy another tip that seemed likely to fail the same way. I desperately wanted to like my Traveler's pen, but the back end popped off and won't stay in place. I suppose I could glue it in place, but that shouldn't be required. It wasn't abused, it just failed. Ah, well.
I'd say the *most* underrated would be the LAMY Logo. Inexpensive, very slim profile, pivoting clip, steel nib.... and the Fine point is literally the smoothest nib in my entire Way-too-many Fountain Pen collection. That includes Limited Editions costing several times more than the Logo. And why the excellent pivoting clip is not more common in the industry, I have no clue. Not everything is perfect though. I _very_ strongly recommend using only LAMY cartridges with this pen. Even though the LAMY Z27 converter will fit and work inside the pen. The Logo has a couple of very thin vertical cut-outs in the very back of the body. I believe they are there to help with placing the cap onto that end of the pen when you want to write with it. Only a small section of the cap fits down onto the body when the nib is exposed for writing. Makes the Logo rather tall, but not ridiculously so. Thing is, LAMY's Z27 is literally the only converter I've had leak on me in my vast collection of converters. Yes, you guessed it. I nearly ended up throwing away a perfectly good White uniform shirt because the Logo was clipped to my shirt pocket, with a full black ink Z27 converter inside that started very slowly leaking, and the ink then leaked out of those couple of vertical slots cut into the body, and inside my shirt pocket. Yeah, not good. I now only use LAMY cartridges in my Logo to not deal with this issue every again. The defective Z27 leaked from the back of the clear plastic portion. Also, just for clarification, I did NOT purchase that particular converter from The Goulet Pen Company.
Thornton's has done some work on the Novice disposable. I'd seen some complaints of hard starts, but the entire 12 pack I got started right up, no trouble. The nib is very smooth and forgiving, and they've got some nice colors, or sets with the typical "office colors" of black, red, and blue. I like them a lot for pens I won't care to lose. If I was in an office with a pen cup on a desk, I'd fill it with Thornton Novices. Wanna steal a pen from my desk? Then you're going to deal with a fountain pen...but not one I'll hate to lose.
Because some of the brands and names of these pens are a bit hard to understand...it would be great if in your write-up you would put them there for us..?
I bought a Jinhao x450 from you fine folks, and I got an x750 as a bonus with a private sale, and talk about underrated! Both are simply fantastic. That Traveler's brass, though...mmmmm...I do like a good brass pocket pen.
Just like what all the rest say, go for it Drew! The E95S is amazing. I’m not sure, it I thought I saw a video where it said that it was one of Brian’s everyday carrys. I also own a Second hand murex μ 90 I got from Japan off eBay over 10 years ago and it is wonderful.
The Sailor Neo also comes in the most fantastic EF nib, which is XXF in real terms The feed is the same as the italic so the EF is wet The Pilot pocket pens are great, with a superb nib I have a bunch of Elites
I have preppy and I really love everything about it except one thing: the grip section. If plaisir had a different (slightly more “curved” like metropolitan grip, i would buy plaisir in every color)
I am seeing a lot of love for the E95S, so I am not going to repeat what I see everyone saying already. I will say that it is, to my preferences, the best balanced (when posted) pen I own. I found that surprising because I tend to prefer thicker pens and because I was not expecting a pocket pen to be well balanced whether they were clever with the cap or not. It feels like a luxury item just as much as pens multiple times it’s price and I would say that all the love I have seen displayed in the comments here is warranted. The only reason that it is not my favorite pen is because I wish that it wrote a little bit wetter. It is not a dry writer by any means; I just prefer really wet writing pens.
They certainly don't hurt. They not usually necessary but there are definitely time where they could potentially help agitate certain inks or break up surface tension. - Drew
You should review the Flair ink tanker in your next video, I know it will be hard to get where you live, but it writes more smooth than my parker and pilot pens, so I guess you should give it a look
I purchased a Japanese fountain pen a few years ago called “Natami”. The one I purchased is green transparent with rose gold trim and a fine nib. It writes really well. I just ordered 2 more because I happened to see them online. I’m curious to see if this fountain pen is still as good a writer & as pretty in person as I remember. When I moved I put all my fountain pens, inks & specialty paper in storage. It’s suppose to be temporary, but everything is behind schedule, so I’ve been repurchasing the items I miss… The “Natami” is under $20.00 each; I think that’s a good deal… I’m glad you guys brought the “Supra” up. That is one of those fountain pens I keep putting off or forgetting to purchase. Thanks for the reminder. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by all the Kaweco fountain pens I’ve purchased. I saw another fountain pen designed with same concept as Supra, but I can’t remember the brand… I have fun trying never heard of brands. I’m not talking about fountain pens that are say, same as Jinhao, only relabeled cause they are private label. Maybe I am not experienced enough to know if I have quality in my hands, but a fountain pen brand called “Tianzi” which I ordered off Etsy is much nicer than it looks, not that it looks bad. I purchased the transparent fountain pens they offer in the $40.00 range. The acrylic is very nice. The pen feels very substantial & has some real heft. It also writes really well. There are swirl designs inside the clear acrylic which look like they were done on a 3-D printer. Oh & the Prefounte eyedroppers quite nicely + it writes well. I like it quite a bit… Another cool pen is made in China, but I found it in the UK. I don’t think it is a new brand. It’s the “Ted Baker”. There doesn’t seem to be a converter advertised for it, only cartridges, but the Kaweco mini-squeeze converter is a perfect fit. I only own one “Ted Baker” fountain pen which has a cap the same length as the pen… It’s a good writer and unique enough to hold my interest… I know everyone seems to like the Pilot “Vanishing Point”, but I’m crazy about the Lamy “Dialog 3”. I’m waiting for the Lamy “Dialog cc” to arrive with some special edition Diamine inks not available in the United States. I’m anxious to see how this next generation Dialog behaves… I have a love of ink and color. Fountain pens are necessary tools for me to play with all the inks… Fountain pens and inks are my first hobby. I didn’t realize I’d never had a hobby before until one of my friends pointed out my ink addiction. And, of course, paper comes with this addiction or hobby… Lol…
I’m not a pen afficinato, though I can handle a crow quill or a dip pen like few others. I’ve been using Lamy Safari and Vista for years and they are absolutely super pens. The Vista being clear eventually gets brittle but I’ve used my very first Safari every day for the last 25 years. With the adaptor, because the Lamy ink is just okay.
Oh, I forgot to ask Drew: which is the podcast where you talk extensively about the E95S, how much you like it, how the cap feels different and nice, and that the only thing you dislike is the inability to pull out the nib and feed to clean it, please?
I carry around pretty nice pens and come across as a kinda serious person. When people ask to borrow one, I bust out one of my many shark pens (ink to match the shark of course).
I love my Yookers. I bought a Yooth just to try it out, and now I'm trying to decide which Metis to get. The one caveat is that the tips widths are not similar to other fiber pens - you will want a wider one than you think.
The Kaweco Supra looks really nice! Along those lines, why am I just now hearing about the Ystudio brass pen line? First I was looking at the Kaweco brass sport, then I saw the Y studio, and now Supra.
Other than my Pilot Vanishing Point, none of my pens write more smoothly than my Platinum Preppy, and it's literally the least expensive fountain pen I own.
Well Brian, you just cost yourself $400... I was going to buy a Pro Gear, but since you're out of stock in the one I want AND I just found out I can refill my Varsity... why would I waste the money?! j/k... definitely still getting the PG when it restocks. But I do appreciate the pro tip!
You mean posting? You won’t have any flak from me. Posting caps on the back of pens not only mars the finish on many pens, and may or not throw the balance off, but mostly it makes me cringe every time I see anybody doing it in a video or up close in real life.
@@charlie9ine ..I swear I meant it, too. Posting caps on pens is just a major and total turn-off to me. I wish more people would stop doing it. However, I admit I’m forced to post caps on my few very small pocket pens. I hate it, but there’s no way around it. So, you’re an artist. How interesting and admirable. I’d trust you to appreciate beauty, form, function, etc…in pens or anything else at all.
20 Bucks for a dressed up preppy. Bought one because I was curious... and then I realized that if the grip section is the same... I suddenly had the possibility to get nib replacements from preppys! I have a preppy pen I polished as a practice, and I can put its nib in the Plaisir. Also, the preppy-like nibs are getting really good, the new one is incredibly smooth.
I’ve considered buying a Platinum Plaisir several times but never done it. I don’t have any other Platinum pens and the converter seemed expensive. Didn’t seem to be many colors to choose from in cartridges. I know they have an adapter to be able to use standard international but it just felt so impractical
@@nicksg3002 …seriously, the Japanese cartridges are easily the best, overall. All of them have a larger than normal opening that clearly enables superior ink flow. They hold a lot of ink and are just well made and reliable.
@@sajjadhusain4146 Flow! yes larger openings because I tend to blame the plastic feed or Fine nibs and it could be the narrowed cartridge or old converter.
@@nicksg3002 …None of my many Japanese pens has ever given me ink flow problems. And I put that down to the clearly larger opening on their cartridges and converters. Of course, the feed is also equally important. The plastic feeds don’t help any pen’s ink flow. So, it must be the bigger opening that saves the Japanese pens flow troubles. Also, many converters have ink sticking to the sides of the plastic walls and need to be shaken to get the ink going. Really annoying. And the cause of flow problems and ink starvation that constantly makes the pen stop writing after a while. Observation and experience teaches you many things. And I’ve used fountain pens for almost all of my life.
Most underrated? Most Chinese pens of course! In the pen world, as everywhere else, never has the quote "They know the price of everything, and the value of nothing" been more apt. If they upped their prices ten fold maybe they would be more "desirable".
Personally, I don't care about the inners of Platinum Plaisir, my issue with these pens is the exterior design. I would pay 20 dollars for a decent writer in a metal body if only it didn't have that god awful ugly chunky cap ring!
I like the profonte but why spend more when you can get the peppy so inexpensive and so easily available. They just priced themselves out of sales. The best modern pen ever is the metropolitan. So why pay metropolitan price for a preppy then have to turn around and buy a converter. They screwed themselves. Include the converter or decrease the price. It's that simple.
Your videos are helpful but one problem with your videos is that at times you act very childish and immature in your facial expressions and responses, almost like you’re trying to be cute. It’s a bit overdone.
I buy the Varsity Disposables and the Zebra Disposables to give out as free crack samples to get people hooked on fountain pens.😂
Well done! Lol - Drew
I have done this with Varsity's but also more recently with Jinhao Sharks because the whimsy is good with some audiences
I will have to look into getting some of these.
The Pilot Pitit is good for that, too. It’s a sweet little ‘snort’!
I've had trouble with both of the Zebra V-301s that I tried, so I'd be more likely to use the Varsity for this purpose, or to test the Zebra before handing it to the recipient.
All Diplomat pens. Seem to be very much overlooked and yet are some of the best writing pens at any price
I agree! - Drew
Parker Sonnet. Writes beautifully, not too expensive, seems to have no fashion credence but is about the best every day work pen I've ever had. So much so I have 2 and intend to get more!
I carry several pens (4-7) in a hard clamshell eyeglass case in my purse, and no matter what else is in it, there are always my 2 E95ses.
One is Burgandy/Ivory, the other Black/Gold, and both have EF nibs. They never fail me and they are absolutley wonderful in the hand.
My E95s was my first gold nib pen, and still a favorite. Like all pilots I have ever used, the nib is excellent. I just wish it held more ink.
Sounds like you have good taste in 🖋.🇨🇦👨🦳
The E95S has to be one of the best in my collection. Inexpensive, beautiful design (some similarities to the Carene) and an excellent writing tool. I have a number of Pelikan,Waterman, Sailor and Parker pens but this little E95S stays inked, only problem, it doesn’t hold a lot of ink. 👍🇨🇦👨🦳
Owner of two Stargazers and an E95S here. Yes, they are all amazing pens, and deserve your mentions here. Thank you for highlighting them!
I hope to own one of each at some point! I'm so glad you're loving them! - Drew
I got the burgundy/ivory E95S with a medium nib a couple weeks ago from you guys and I absolutely love it. So beautiful, satisfying cap, typical great nib from Pilot. I'd been wanting it for months, and it was worth the wait!
Yay! Thanks so much for choosing us! We really do appreciate it! - Drew
I bought my first fountain pen from you guys and now I'm hooked. I'm really watching 2 guys talk about pens for 13 minutes lol. Thanks for the dumdum btw. It made my day when I opened the box and saw that.
Watching this, I remembered an old Pilot Varsity I hadn’t touched in a year or two. Found it, intending to pull the nib but it wrote just fine. Didn’t dry up at all. Putting it back into rotation and will try to refill when it runs dry. Thanks!!
I found a misplaced Pilot Varsity after 12 years around the time of my divorce and it wrote immediately with no problems! I was going to toss it in the trash but just decided to give it a try - and it worked fine!
The E95S is still on my wishlist, amongst many 10x the cost. I need to take action ASAP !
Do it! It's such a great writer.
I also got Pens way more expensive than the E95S ... but its still one of my absolut favourite Pens. You should defenitly get it. I got the EF Nib on mine, and its the best EF Nib i own. It is the Pen that is allways attached to my Kallender.
I just picked up the classic elite for $30. It came with an 18k script nib. It's great, but old pens you may have to take some time to clean. Spent 3 days flushing soaking and cleaning mine this last week.
The E95S is neck and neck with my Homo Sapiens for my #1 pen
It's still on my wish list too! - Drew
If there was an E95S with silver-colored metal instead of gold, I'd be all about it. (Even better if they started making a Murex/Myu/M90 again)
Amen to that!
Hey, John….they are quite amazing!! I got hooked about 15 yes ago, and have quite a collection of NOS Murex Red and Black and Myu’s…none have been inked!! I can’t write with all of them, and am willing to part with some. Not sure what to put here to contact me… perhaps you’ll see this!!
Goulet Pens: I don’t want to infringe or do anything inappropriate on your platform, I simply saw this, and answered. You guys are great!!
The Varsity was actually a cool trial for my kid this past school year. My 7-year-old has disgraphia, and I found the varsity at staples. It slowed him down and improved his handwriting to use a fountain pen, and he felt so awesome using a grown-up pen like daddy!
The yookers has been in and out of my shopping cart multiple times, I may end up pulling the trigger with the ink promo right now :-) I got the E95S with some gift money recently and it’s my new EDC - I’m so impressed with how it writes and I’m not afraid to clip it in my jeans pocket.
I was using a Varsity last night! It's great! - Drew
The pilot metal falcon! That nib is otherworldly! And the burgundy color is beautiful! Matched it with writers blood and I’m in love❤😂
Here's my take for a future Q & A, with which pen did you start your fountain pen journey and which pen completely changed it for you and made it fall in love with them.
Love the Kaweco Supra. It is the perfect addition to my Lochby Pocket Journal!
Diplomat Magnum… I bought one from y’all this year in the prismatic purple…MAN so pretty, lightweight, great nib, loooove it and it’s in that $25 range
I'm definitely with Drew on the Kaweco Supra.
So much fun! - Drew
The Supra ( I have the Steel) is superb, to put it mildly. It’s only behind the Dia2 and the Elite in my Top 3 favorite Kaweco pens ever.
I am definitely getting that ivory and maroon Pilot E95S.
Dude, the Plaisir is the pen I always reach for first. It writes soooo well! Even after being set down for a month, it will write on demand. So smooth in the hand, so esthetically sleek. Love it!
I think I learned how to refill the Varsity from one of your old videos. The first one I got is about to get its third refill. They hold a lot of ink, and unlike regular eyedropper setups, they don't burp due to the fiber feed.
I couldn't agree more on the Pilot E95S. Pilot nibs never fail to impress me. I have a variety or vintage Pilot pocket pens and there is just something so seductive about the way the cap slides onto the section and the body when posting the cap.
My most under-rated pen is the Lamy Aion!!! It is one of my absolute favorite pen! There is nothing on the pen to irritate my fingers, or prevent me from putting my fingers where I want. And it writes beautifully!!! Every time I pick it up to write, I smile. It just feels so good.
Drew, if you haven’t heard of it, the Schon DSGN pocket 6 fountain pen is pretty cool. It’s kind of like that kaweco you mentioned. It’s small enough to carry in your pocket, but when you post it, it becomes a full sized pen. It also manages to fit a size 6 nib! Pretty crazy, I thought I’d share.
Seconded! I cannot praise the Schon DSGN pocket 6 highly enough on all counts: style, design, appearance, performance and price. Easily one of my Top 5 favorite pocket pens, ever!
Ohh the supera does looks amazing and it’s underrated. Also fountain pens that I think doesn’t get enough love and are underrated are Faber Castell loom gun, which I really love with amazing Nib and great balanced pen
Thank you for sharing your fountain pen love and enthusiasm! I’ve been a ballpoint baby for a many years and occasionally ventured into fountain pen land, but haven’t really found the love yet. I probably just haven’t found the right fountain pen, so I am hopeful as I watch your conversations. Btw…love your shirt!! 😊
As someone who doesn't like demonstrator pens I love my Plaisir!!
the E95S was my first gold nibbed pen, and I got it as my coming of age birthday present from my parents. It gets carried everywhere and is one of my most used pens.
Oh my god, you just reminded me how much I want the E95. Nothing like a good cap action. The best one I own for that is the Prera. SO GOOD.
I want one too! AArrrgh! - Drew
Nice to see you after long time
Parker Falcon 50, Parker VS, Parker 65, Pilot Grandee, Sheaffer Crest Re-issue.
I have 6 of the 9 pens in this list (the ones from Sailor, Pilot and Platinum). I have the pilot explorer which I love mostly because it takes the CON-70 converter. And for those who don't like the nib, you can swap it for one from the kakuno, penmanship, metropolitan or prera.
Qqaa
I love the E95
It's so good! - Drew
I absolutely love the e95s and the vintage m90
Some Japanese people say Plaisir’s design is like an earthworm. I think that may be the reason why Plaisir is underrated and Kakuno is more popular than that.
I feel that E95S' problem is Vanishing Point. VP is just bit more expensive, but it has that wow factor. E95S' is a beautiful and sexy pen (got it) but when I took it in my hands my wife's VP... It's even more sexy.
Good points! - Drew
7:54 Drew: "I'm curious as to what drew you to these fountain pens" lol nice
I miss my e95s a great deal. That thing was so freaking great. The 823 I replaced it with is my grail but I should get another E95S.
Talking about Platinum Preppy and its upgrades sharing the same nib , actually Faber Castell does exactly the same (from Loom to e-Motion level), but with even higher prices. Maybe the design matters? Also sth to do with branding and marketing stuff🤔.
Initially, I tried hard to avoid buying the Pilot E95s because I really didn't "need" it at the time, but I very glad I succumbed. It's the black one with a Fine nib. Man, o man, do I love that little guy. The capping mechanism is just like you (Brian) said -- and that's actually very satisfying. The "feel" in the hand is far better than I expected from a small pen and that nib could NOT be more perfect. It's smooth, it's quite wet without being a gusher, it's a Japanese Fine (more fine than western fines) and it ALWAYS starts righting immediately without hesitation or skipping and it seems forgiving of hand rotation/angle, plus it needs no extra pressure against the page to write. If I need, or want, a fine-nibbed pen, that's the one I always reach for. I prefer Broads because they're smooth and lay down a lot of ink. I did not expect to be so pleased with a Fine nib.
My Yookers Yooth kept drying out between writing sessions until the "nib" just became too clogged. It was too much trouble to buy another tip that seemed likely to fail the same way.
I desperately wanted to like my Traveler's pen, but the back end popped off and won't stay in place. I suppose I could glue it in place, but that shouldn't be required. It wasn't abused, it just failed. Ah, well.
It's pretty amazing, I agree! - Drew
The E95S cap glide is 🤤🤤🤤
Hi Drew! Does your personal Pilot E95S have an or an nib, please?
I'd say the *most* underrated would be the LAMY Logo.
Inexpensive, very slim profile, pivoting clip, steel nib.... and the Fine point is literally the smoothest nib in my entire Way-too-many Fountain Pen collection. That includes Limited Editions costing several times more than the Logo. And why the excellent pivoting clip is not more common in the industry, I have no clue. Not everything is perfect though. I _very_ strongly recommend using only LAMY cartridges with this pen. Even though the LAMY Z27 converter will fit and work inside the pen.
The Logo has a couple of very thin vertical cut-outs in the very back of the body. I believe they are there to help with placing the cap onto that end of the pen when you want to write with it. Only a small section of the cap fits down onto the body when the nib is exposed for writing. Makes the Logo rather tall, but not ridiculously so. Thing is, LAMY's Z27 is literally the only converter I've had leak on me in my vast collection of converters.
Yes, you guessed it. I nearly ended up throwing away a perfectly good White uniform shirt because the Logo was clipped to my shirt pocket, with a full black ink Z27 converter inside that started very slowly leaking, and the ink then leaked out of those couple of vertical slots cut into the body, and inside my shirt pocket. Yeah, not good. I now only use LAMY cartridges in my Logo to not deal with this issue every again. The defective Z27 leaked from the back of the clear plastic portion.
Also, just for clarification, I did NOT purchase that particular converter from The Goulet Pen Company.
In Canada the word “Métis” identifies an indigenous group. Pronounced may’-tee.
My aunt bought me a kaweco supra in brass from Goulet!
The Yookers reminds me of the paint pens I use at work as far as the tipping material. Now I kinda want one. (ninja edit: spelling)
E95s was one of my first nicer pens. Was torn between the two color options. Ended up picking black and gold.
Thornton's has done some work on the Novice disposable. I'd seen some complaints of hard starts, but the entire 12 pack I got started right up, no trouble. The nib is very smooth and forgiving, and they've got some nice colors, or sets with the typical "office colors" of black, red, and blue. I like them a lot for pens I won't care to lose. If I was in an office with a pen cup on a desk, I'd fill it with Thornton Novices. Wanna steal a pen from my desk? Then you're going to deal with a fountain pen...but not one I'll hate to lose.
Because some of the brands and names of these pens are a bit hard to understand...it would be great if in your write-up you would put them there for us..?
What happened to Parker, Sheaffer, Esterbrook, and Garland pens?
i recently got an e95s, and it exceeded my expectations! Love the look and the nib!
I need one! - Drew
@@Gouletpens Today is the day!!!
I truly appreciate the info here but watching these videos costs me A LOT of money!! 😊. Now I got a wish list I didn’t even know about
I absolutely love my e95s
I bought a Jinhao x450 from you fine folks, and I got an x750 as a bonus with a private sale, and talk about underrated! Both are simply fantastic. That Traveler's brass, though...mmmmm...I do like a good brass pocket pen.
Just like what all the rest say, go for it Drew! The E95S is amazing. I’m not sure, it I thought I saw a video where it said that it was one of Brian’s everyday carrys. I also own a Second hand murex μ 90 I got from Japan off
eBay over 10 years ago and it is wonderful.
Maybe I'll check eBay! Thanks! - Drew
The Sailor Neo also comes in the most fantastic EF nib, which is XXF in real terms
The feed is the same as the italic so the EF is wet
The Pilot pocket pens are great, with a superb nib
I have a bunch of Elites
I have preppy and I really love everything about it except one thing: the grip section. If plaisir had a different (slightly more “curved” like metropolitan grip, i would buy plaisir in every color)
I am seeing a lot of love for the E95S, so I am not going to repeat what I see everyone saying already.
I will say that it is, to my preferences, the best balanced (when posted) pen I own. I found that surprising because I tend to prefer thicker pens and because I was not expecting a pocket pen to be well balanced whether they were clever with the cap or not.
It feels like a luxury item just as much as pens multiple times it’s price and I would say that all the love I have seen displayed in the comments here is warranted.
The only reason that it is not my favorite pen is because I wish that it wrote a little bit wetter. It is not a dry writer by any means; I just prefer really wet writing pens.
Do the springs, tiny balls inside some converters really work? Why some have them vs other don't?
They certainly don't hurt. They not usually necessary but there are definitely time where they could potentially help agitate certain inks or break up surface tension. - Drew
You should review the Flair ink tanker in your next video, I know it will be hard to get where you live, but it writes more smooth than my parker and pilot pens, so I guess you should give it a look
E95S.. I have one in each color.. I love the feel of it. Beautiful feel, beautiful gold nib.
Liking these podcast excerpts. 🌈🌈🌈
Thanks for being so supportive, Giulietta! - Drew
I purchased a Japanese fountain pen a few years ago called “Natami”. The one I purchased is green transparent with rose gold trim and a fine nib. It writes really well. I just ordered 2 more because I happened to see them online. I’m curious to see if this fountain pen is still as good a writer & as pretty in person as I remember. When I moved I put all my fountain pens, inks & specialty paper in storage. It’s suppose to be temporary, but everything is behind schedule, so I’ve been repurchasing the items I miss… The “Natami” is under $20.00 each; I think that’s a good deal… I’m glad you guys brought the “Supra” up. That is one of those fountain pens I keep putting off or forgetting to purchase. Thanks for the reminder. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by all the Kaweco fountain pens I’ve purchased. I saw another fountain pen designed with same concept as Supra, but I can’t remember the brand… I have fun trying never heard of brands. I’m not talking about fountain pens that are say, same as Jinhao, only relabeled cause they are private label. Maybe I am not experienced enough to know if I have quality in my hands, but a fountain pen brand called “Tianzi” which I ordered off Etsy is much nicer than it looks, not that it looks bad. I purchased the transparent fountain pens they offer in the $40.00 range. The acrylic is very nice. The pen feels very substantial & has some real heft. It also writes really well. There are swirl designs inside the clear acrylic which look like they were done on a 3-D printer. Oh & the Prefounte eyedroppers quite nicely + it writes well. I like it quite a bit… Another cool pen is made in China, but I found it in the UK. I don’t think it is a new brand. It’s the “Ted Baker”. There doesn’t seem to be a converter advertised for it, only cartridges, but the Kaweco mini-squeeze converter is a perfect fit. I only own one “Ted Baker” fountain pen which has a cap the same length as the pen… It’s a good writer and unique enough to hold my interest… I know everyone seems to like the Pilot “Vanishing Point”, but I’m crazy about the Lamy “Dialog 3”. I’m waiting for the Lamy “Dialog cc” to arrive with some special edition Diamine inks not available in the United States. I’m anxious to see how this next generation Dialog behaves… I have a love of ink and color. Fountain pens are necessary tools for me to play with all the inks… Fountain pens and inks are my first hobby. I didn’t realize I’d never had a hobby before until one of my friends pointed out my ink addiction. And, of course, paper comes with this addiction or hobby… Lol…
I’m not a pen afficinato, though I can handle a crow quill or a dip pen like few others. I’ve been using Lamy Safari and Vista for years and they are absolutely super pens. The Vista being clear eventually gets brittle but I’ve used my very first Safari every day for the last 25 years. With the adaptor, because the Lamy ink is just okay.
I love my Supra!
Is the stargazer the same as the Stella
I worked so hard to save up for the e95a but unfortunately lost it. I loved it sooo much. Really want to replace it but I almost feel guilty :(
How heartbreaking! - Drew
Oh, I forgot to ask Drew: which is the podcast where you talk extensively about the E95S, how much you like it, how the cap feels different and nice, and that the only thing you dislike is the inability to pull out the nib and feed to clean it, please?
The most recent Pencast, Episode 23. Thank you! - Drew
I carry around pretty nice pens and come across as a kinda serious person. When people ask to borrow one, I bust out one of my many shark pens (ink to match the shark of course).
I love my Yookers. I bought a Yooth just to try it out, and now I'm trying to decide which Metis to get. The one caveat is that the tips widths are not similar to other fiber pens - you will want a wider one than you think.
Thanks for the insight! - Drew
The Kaweco Supra looks really nice! Along those lines, why am I just now hearing about the Ystudio brass pen line? First I was looking at the Kaweco brass sport, then I saw the Y studio, and now Supra.
We just decided to carry YSTUDIO last week - it'll be on our store soon! - Drew
@@Gouletpens Wow, thank you, Drew!
Any bacon recommendations, Brian? 8:32
hey there Drew! I hope by now you are the proud owner of a Pilot E95S burgundy/ivory! 🍷
Not yet! I'm distracted by the 823 now - I think I need one of these too! AARRRGH! - Drew
@@Gouletpens Drew, glad to hear you finally got the E95S! 🥳
Is the Pilot Varsity the same pen as the Pilot Vpen in Europe?
Same pen!
Did you just say “pen-demmic” times?!? :) nice!
Other than my Pilot Vanishing Point, none of my pens write more smoothly than my Platinum Preppy, and it's literally the least expensive fountain pen I own.
Every try a Lamy 2000?
I am waiting to find a Pilot M90, pleeeeeeaaaaaaasssssseeeee someone,please
Well Brian, you just cost yourself $400... I was going to buy a Pro Gear, but since you're out of stock in the one I want AND I just found out I can refill my Varsity... why would I waste the money?!
j/k... definitely still getting the PG when it restocks. But I do appreciate the pro tip!
Fellowship is the best one!
My first yookers came with a split tip so I thought they were made of the same material as sharpie pens 🤔
Great. Another bunch of pens to try and buy. 😬 Too much mustard - too much heat=power.
I know there will be some flak coming my way but never put the cap on the end. It throws the balance way off
You mean posting? You won’t have any flak from me. Posting caps on the back of pens not only mars the finish on many pens, and may or not throw the balance off, but mostly it makes me cringe every time I see anybody doing it in a video or up close in real life.
@@sajjadhusain4146 Thanks.
@@sajjadhusain4146 I'm an artist so performance matters more than anything. You know your tools. Your comment is perfectly said and on point.
@@charlie9ine ..I swear I meant it, too. Posting caps on pens is just a major and total turn-off to me. I wish more people would stop doing it. However, I admit I’m forced to post caps on my few very small pocket pens. I hate it, but there’s no way around it.
So, you’re an artist. How interesting and admirable. I’d trust you to appreciate beauty, form, function, etc…in pens or anything else at all.
9:29 ah! Brian's eyedropper claims about pilot explorer haven't aged well 😆
Gotta hold the man accountable for his transgressions! Lol - Drew
I love the Yookers Metis, it’s nice and solid and works great!
Eversharp slim ventura.
20 Bucks for a dressed up preppy. Bought one because I was curious... and then I realized that if the grip section is the same... I suddenly had the possibility to get nib replacements from preppys! I have a preppy pen I polished as a practice, and I can put its nib in the Plaisir. Also, the preppy-like nibs are getting really good, the new one is incredibly smooth.
MB146
I tried the yookers and returned it not a comfortable writing experience
Sorry to hear that! - Drew
👍
I’ve considered buying a Platinum Plaisir several times but never done it. I don’t have any other Platinum pens and the converter seemed expensive. Didn’t seem to be many colors to choose from in cartridges. I know they have an adapter to be able to use standard international but it just felt so impractical
It's not mustard?
I gotta say it again...
I got TWO Pilot Stargazers!
Mwhahahahahahahahahahaha!!!
Lucky! - Drew
E95S is hard to top.
Lamy 2000. Just kidding.
Best and Worst Cartridges?
The best are usually the Japanese ones by Sailor, Pilot and Platinum. The worst are all the rest. Oh, how I dislike cartridges. 😀
@@sajjadhusain4146 Ha🤣 me too! I rarely use them so it's good to know which ones are worth buy. Thank you😁
@@nicksg3002 …seriously, the Japanese cartridges are easily the best, overall. All of them have a larger than normal opening that clearly enables superior ink flow. They hold a lot of ink and are just well made and reliable.
@@sajjadhusain4146 Flow! yes larger openings because I tend to blame the plastic feed or Fine nibs and it could be the narrowed cartridge or old converter.
@@nicksg3002 …None of my many Japanese pens has ever given me ink flow problems. And I put that down to the clearly larger opening on their cartridges and converters. Of course, the feed is also equally important. The plastic feeds don’t help any pen’s ink flow. So, it must be the bigger opening that saves the Japanese pens flow troubles. Also, many converters have ink sticking to the sides of the plastic walls and need to be shaken to get the ink going. Really annoying. And the cause of flow problems and ink starvation that constantly makes the pen stop writing after a while. Observation and experience teaches you many things. And I’ve used fountain pens for almost all of my life.
Most underrated? Most Chinese pens of course! In the pen world, as everywhere else, never has the quote "They know the price of everything, and the value of nothing" been more apt. If they upped their prices ten fold maybe they would be more "desirable".
I don't like bare metal pens. I can smell the metal on me. Need lemon to wash it away
This is all a matter of opinion...
It certainly is! - Drew
Personally, I don't care about the inners of Platinum Plaisir, my issue with these pens is the exterior design. I would pay 20 dollars for a decent writer in a metal body if only it didn't have that god awful ugly chunky cap ring!
The Godfather Part 3? Horrible
The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone? A bit more decent for me
Maybe I'll give it a shot. - Drew
@@Gouletpens they changed a few key scenes here and there but no matter how much they tried though, Sofia Coppola's acting can never be fixed there
I like the profonte but why spend more when you can get the peppy so inexpensive and so easily available.
They just priced themselves out of sales.
The best modern pen ever is the metropolitan. So why pay metropolitan price for a preppy then have to turn around and buy a converter. They screwed themselves. Include the converter or decrease the price. It's that simple.
Your videos are helpful but one problem with your videos is that at times you act very childish and immature in your facial expressions and responses, almost like you’re trying to be cute. It’s a bit overdone.
We're just being ourselves - not trying to be one way or another. Thanks for the feedback, all the same. - Drew