October 4, 2024
Fountain Pen nibs
Nibs are the heart of the pen -- where the ink meets the paper.
Gold nibs
Fancy pens often have nibs made from 14K or 21K gold.
Do these write any different (particularly, "better") than steel nibs?
Not necessarily.
At one time gold nibs were important because inks corroded steel nibs.
Now with the advent of stainless steels and other metals this is not an issue.
But gold nibs are often a sign of a high quality pen and are likely to have
more careful quality control. Steel nibs are likely to be made by the tens of
thousands and dumped into big bins. It doesn't have to be so, but probably is.
Iridium nibs
Some of the best pens have gold nibs with some kind of platinum group metal alloy
plated onto it. The platinum alloy is much harder than gold and will last much
longer being rubbed on paper. It does seem a pity to hide that gold though,
and some nice pens have bicolor nibs for just this reason.
The "iridium" nib thing can just be a marketing word. I once read an article by some
fellows who worked at an aerospace lab and were able to take their pen in and put
the nib on some instrument (probably a mass spectrometer) and found that there was
no iridium whatsoever in the so called iridium nib.
As with all things, the reputation of the manufacturer and the price of the pen
tells you an awful lot. Sailor pens for example have nibs that are 21K gold plated
with Rhodium (which is a very hard and silvery metal). I am confident that these
are just what they say they are.
Japanese nibs
The first thing to know is that a Japanese F is really fine, like an EF in a "western" pen.
Likewise a Japanese M is like a western F.
I think this is wonderful and really like the fine nibs, but you have to know
what to expect.
Take a look at those tiny complex characters the Japanese people write and you will
understand why.
The following claims are made about nib sizes:
- Pilot custom 74 medium -- 0.44mm line
- Platinum 3776 medium -- 0.39mm
- Sailor 1911S medium -- 0.36mm
Nibmasters
These are people with skills and experience in nib tuning.
Mr. Masuyama gets mentioned often. He says he has 23 years of experience with Sailor!
He charges $30 to $40 for general adjustment and straightening along with a $20 charge
for a "batch" of up to 5 pens which includes return shipping.
Feedback? Questions?
Drop me a line!
Tom's Pen Info / tom@mmto.org