Author Archives: dapprman

Pilot Custom Urushi Vermilion

18 Tuesday Feb 2020

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Flagship of the Pilot fountain pen range and a comparative behemoth in size, the Custom Urushi has shown that simplicity and cleanliness of design can be as appealing as complicated art works.  Available primarily in black, it is also made in smaller numbers with a vermilion finish to the cap and barrel.  For a long time it was only available in Japan and the USA, however as of recent it can now be bought from an increasing number of European and UK based retailers. Continue reading →

Pilot Vanishing Point

09 Sunday Feb 2020

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Click, click, clickity, click …. if ever there was a fountain pen to distract the wielder and annoy colleagues it is Pilot’s Vanishing Point/Capless/Decimo (depending on country and width). Until very recently no other fountain pen had been on sale for a long time with a ballpoint type clicker mechanism. Sure it’s not the only retractable fountain pen out there, and even around the time of launch there were JDM rivals, but for single handed ease of use there has been nothing comparable until this month (February 2020) with Platinum’s launch of the Curidas.
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Pens in Rota – Do we use all our pens enough?

31 Friday Jan 2020

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Here’s one to think about on a Friday.  How you decide what pens you use.  I was considering an update on my daily carry, except I realised there was no change from last time, which was back last November.  Personally, where things have changed is at my PC/desk, where the number of pens grows and shrinks depending on what’s new and if I’m reviewing something. Continue reading →

Update on the Yard-O-Led Astoria Grand

29 Wednesday Jan 2020

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Just a few weeks back I posted my review of a Yard-O-Led Astoria Grand I picked up at last October’s London Pen Show.  I mentioned how I had contacted YOL over the history of the pen and the possibilities of replacing the clip band with the correct sterling silver one (with hallmarks).  Within a day I had a reply.

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Worcester Pen Company Serenity

25 Saturday Jan 2020

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People tend to mistakenly think that when Parker moved their manufacturing to India and Platignum (not to be confused with Platinum) appeared to cease to be, that fountain pen production in the UK had halted.  However, even before that time, a number of small craftsmen were already starting up.  One of these, in 2003, was Bryan Lucas at the Worcester Pen Company.
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Yard-O-Led Astoria Grand

17 Friday Jan 2020

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These days most people associate Yard-O-Led (YOL) with a range of sterling silver writing implements hand crafted from a workshop in the Jewellery Quarter of Birmingham, UK, however back before the 2015 buyout from their previous owners Letts, they had other pens in their inventory.

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Apologies for a quiet week …

12 Sunday Jan 2020

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When I started this blog (and moved my travel stuff of old across), not long after the 2018 London Writing Equipment Show I was going to create just one post every fortnight at best. Rapidly it became once a week except during a short period around my operation.

This week I can but apologise for a lack of content, even my occasional musings. Alas work and another of my hobbies (see my bio) have eaten up just too much of my time, so the planned review of either the Yard-O-Led Grand Astoria or Worcester Pen Company Serenity in OMAS acrylic (both bought at the last London Pen Show in October just gone) will have to wait another week.

Now to finish brewing a pot of tea – toodle pip.

Namiki Nippon Art Mount Fuji and Ship

04 Saturday Jan 2020

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I’m far from alone in liking maki-e and appreciating the skills and processes that go in to the creation of this form of art.  As with many I often thought that my only options would be the ‘cheap’ commercial screen print pens, which are approximately £100 a pop, as the far more attractive alternatives I saw were all high end in the four figure price range and with releases been limited to single digit numbers of pens.  Discovering the Namiki Nippon Art range was a revelation.  Sure these pens are still £400+ outside of rare deals, but they are also much more affordable for a hand drawn piece of work.

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Delta Dolcevita Oro Stantuffo (from the last days of Delta)

24 Tuesday Dec 2019

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Delta were around from 1982 to 2016/7.  During that time their most famous model was the Dolcevita.  Traditionally available with an orange body and black cap, grip, and blind cap, a latter day alternative was launched, the Oro, in a stunning crushed orange resin.  Available in silver and vermeil trims, it also should have come with either a 14k gold nib, or the infamous Delta Fusion nib (steel with a gold triangle glued on top ‘for heat dissipation’).  In the last days of the company, pens were fitted with what was available just to try and get money in.  The result, a Dolcevita Oro Stantuffo with a steel nib.

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