Pen Review: TWSBI Eco with Extra Fine Steel Nib
This is the first fountain pen that will be reviewed on the blog. An attending that I had a few months ago was the first person to introduce me to fountain pens. After I saw him using them, I was intrigued and started with a Pilot Metropolitan, which will be a separate review. Then I upgraded to this TWSBI ECO. This was the pen that got me hooked into fountain pens.
First Impressions: The pen comes in a clear plastic box that is nice for gifting and also storing the pen when not inked. It comes with a wrench and silicon grease so you can maintain the pen by yourself, which is always a plus. I chose the black cap and end piece, but white and clear options are available.
Design/Features: The pen has a hexagonal cap that is the color that you choose when buying it, a clear body (no matter what color you choose), and the corresponding color end piece that operates the piston that fills the pen with ink. The barrel is smooth, which, when uncapped allows the pen to roll, but when capped the hexagonal design of the cap prevents rolling.
The section (part that you hold while writing) is tapered and has 3 flares near the nib (metal part). The section is not able to be removed from the barrel, but is also clear, which is cool when inking up your pen, you can see the ink flow through the feed.
This is a piston-filling pen, which means that you dip the pen in a bottle of ink, usually, turn the end of the pen, and through suction pulls the ink into the pen, where the ink is stored in the barrel. It is nice because it holds a good amount of ink, you can see how much you have left, and it’s cool to see the ink flow in the barrel.
Feel in the Hand: The pen is light, but not too light that it feels cheap or feels like there is nothing in your hand. It is a screw-cap pen, but the threads are smooth and don’t cut into your skin if you tend to hold this pen further from the nib. Also, the step-down from the barrel to the section is minimal. The section is tapered so I feel most people can enjoy writing and just adjust where you hold the pen, however, I like thick sections and this feels a tad too narrow for long writing sessions, like journaling, even at the widest part.
Writing: I chose the extra-fine nib, which normally has some “tooth” (you can feel friction while writing) but is not scratchy. I chose the smallest nib because I wanted to be able to write as small as possible. This nib is quite “wet” (the ink comes out pretty thick), so with the J. Herbin Pearle Niore ink that I use, the line width on paper, other than Rhodia, is thicker than extra fine, but using a drier ink would remedy that. Otherwise, it is a great writing experience. I chose the Pearle Niore ink because I love the dark black color and while you write there is a nice sheen in good light before it dries. I have had no issues with hard starts or skips, even when not using it for a few days. One other issue is that you cannot write on coated paper with most fountain pen ink, so your writing material options narrow a little, but it still can write on most paper.
Use in clinic/hospital: While I was using this on the wards, I loved it. The pen writes when you want it to and, except on coated paper (brochures and some business cards) it writes on any paper you can find. I did not have any trouble with ink bleeding through he paper, but that depends on the ink more than the pen. I had no troubles with ink leaking out of the nib. One issue is that it is a screw cap so it takes a little longer than click-top pens to get the pen out and start writing.
Price: The pen costs $28.99, which is actually very reasonable for a piston-filling fountain pen. This pen is meant to last for a long time and you just need to get ink to refill the pen. Also, this is not a pen that most people would even want to borrow, since most people in the US have never used a fountain pen, so you don’t really need to worry about it being borrowed and never given back.
Overall, I really like this pen on the wards. It never hard starts or skips, I can fill it with any color or type of ink that I want (as long as it is safe for fountain pens), I can maintain (clean) the pen by myself, the ink capacity is large so I don’t have to refill it every day, it is relatively affordable, and there is something about writing with a fountain pen that just makes writing more enjoyable for me. Writing with a fountain pen makes what ever I’m doing at least a little better. I definitely like this as my every day carry on the wards, even though the screw cap does slow down the time it takes the get writing. The flaw I find is that the section is a little narrow for me, so it is not my pen for long writing sessions (more than a page). If you are new to fountain pens, I would say this would be a good introduction since the price is not exorbitant, and you have a larger ink capacity than most other inexpensive fountain pens.
Dr. Penz and Paper 