Noodler's Neponset Music Nib Pens are Coming...

Soon, #MusicNibMonday might become as popular as #FlexNibFriday on Instagram.

The eagerly-anticipated Noodler's Neponset fountain pen is due to be released on Friday. According to Luxury Brands, the US distributor of Noodler's Ink, we should have a very limited supply of these music nib fountain pens by early next week (November 5th, tentatively).

What's so great about the Noodler's Neponset?

Well, you may have heard about the Neponset through a giveaway that Nathan from Noodler's had done a while back as part of an art contest. The pen was given away, then the person who had received it sent it to two prominent fountain pen bloggers, Azizah from Gourmet Pens and SBRE Brown. To view the pen in action, check out the short video from Azizah below.

The pen's magic is in the music nib. This triple tined nib is affectionately called the the “Vishnu Victory” nib in honor of the 2.5 million World War II allied soldiers of India as well as the reference to the source for the ebonite used in the pen and the original Neponset Blimp. In the demo model that was reviewed, the nib performs smoothly on paper, giving the writer high degrees of line variation and flexibility.

The pen holds a large capacity of ink and sports the largest length of all the Noodler's pens models. You can find more details on the measurements on Gourmet Pen's blog post.

Like we mentioned earlier, the initial release will be of small quantity and will feature 4 different ebonite colors. There will be a Solid Black, Jade, Walnut & Chestnut Ebonite. The price will be $75 USD each. We will have them up on the website as soon as we check the pens in and get them photographed. We are not taking pre-orders at this time, since we are not sure of how many Neponset pens we will have in the initial shipment. Stay tuned and sign up on our e-mail list to be notified of the launch.

UPDATE 10/30/2014 : We are expecting to also have a limited number of "Red Rebellion" Ebonite Neponset pens. These will be the first of a series of limited production red ebonite pens that will vary in their patterns and/or colors from batch-to-batch. Below is what the first edition will look like. We're expected to receive a little over a dozen of these pens, so be sure to be signed up and follow us on social media for updates.

First Look : Pilot Fixion LX Gel Ballpoint Pen

Ok Guys, so I've always taken a fancy to the Pilot Frixion Pen.  You can make a mistake and, just like a pencil, erase and rewrite like you never made it.  But unlike the pencil, the Frixion ink never smudges and you always get a fine point without ever having to run to a sharpener. Best part is, no pencil shavings.

Yesterday, I received the best early Christmas present ever.  The New Pilot Frixon LX Pen in my favorite color "Blue".  Unlike it's inexpensive counter part the Pilot Frixion Clicker, this pen is solid and extremely well made with a beautiful matte sheen.  It holds comfortably in the hand and has a very nice weight to it, giving the impression of higher quality and reliability.

As with most high-end pens, my first instinct was to twist the pen to deploy the tip.  No luck.  After a few seconds of fidgeting I'm delighted to realize the pen simply opens with a click from the precision crafted chrome clip.  And like you'd expect from Pilot, this pen writes like a dream. Smooth and Flawless! Removing the top cap allows you easy access to the Frixion "eraser," which is actually a plastic nub that creates the friction necessary to remove the thermo-sensitive ink.

Pilot is synonymous for quality and writing innovation and this Frixion LX does not disappoint. It is great to see the concept of the Frixion jump from the office supply line into the fine writing category with this high-grade version. This is a useful pen that you will be excited to take with you to the big meeting, that is for sure. 

What's the Difference Between a Waterman Expert II and Expert III?

In the pen world, sometimes manufacturers can take the same model and update it to improve upon the design, tweaking the size, trims, nib or body shape enough that they need to release it as a "sequel" to the original. Such is the case for Waterman with their Expert II & Expert III New Generation.

The Expert II had long been one of the most popular modern Waterman pens. Their business-minded designs and elegant finishes look as nice as a Mont Blanc while being about 1/3 the price. In 2011, Waterman had updated the design ever-so-slightly and introduced the Expert III "New Generation." 

For the most part, Waterman did not mess around with a great pen. Here are some of the subtle differences, illustrated in our photographs below. Comparing apples to apples, we chose the Matte Black with Chrome trim in both Expert Series II & III.

Firstly, let's look at packaging. At the time of the Expert III's introduction, Waterman started shipping their Hemisphere, Expert, Perspective, Charleston & Carene Pens in a deluxe, satin blue Waterman gift box with cream-colored fabric interior. When we had purchased the last of the Expert II's, they arrived in the same presentation box. No difference with the packaging.

Looking at the "top" of the pen, the cap of the Expert III has more metal in the cap band, with "Waterman Paris" engraved into the metal. The same branding is imprinted into the lacquer band of the Expert II, giving the logo more contrast. The same goes for the opposite side of the cap, where you would see the word "France."

The overall body shape and size of the Expert had not changed one bit. Both pens are exactly the same length, girth and dimensions when capped, opened and posted. In fact, while taking the photographs for this post, I had mistakenly swapped the wrong cap on the body of the pen a couple of times. They are that similar!

The nib is really the only other main difference. The material is still the same polished stainless steel with plastic feed, but the nib graphic was updated slightly. Going for a more minimalistic approach, Waterman got rid of the hexagon that surrounded the "W" on the nib and made it larger while shrinking the "Waterman" name underneath.

Currently, we're running a special Weekly Dip (ends October 30th, 2014) that offers our remaining inventory of the Waterman Black Matte Expert II fountain pen at a substantial discount. The difference is price is astounding. Our current price for the Expert III is $134.95, but, for a limited time, the Expert II Black Matte fountain is $99.95, that's a whopping 25% off the already discounted sale price.

October Pen Giveaway

Hey All,

Thanks to our good friends at Luxury Brands, we've got a nice giveaway of two pens to a lucky winner chosen at random. We're giving away one Noodler's Konrad Brush Pen and one Platinum Plaisir Fountain Pen. You can have any color, as long as it is black. :-)

This tandem can be a great match for artists looking to do some sketching or mixed media journaling. While you have fountain pen ink in the Platinum pen, you can have the Konrad brush pen loaded with water, or diluted ink to create beautiful ink washes on paper.

You have (3) possible entries for this giveaway. One is by simply commenting on this blog post. The second and third entries can be obtained via Facebook and Twitter. If you have an account with either social network, simply find our page (details below) and Like or Re-Tweet the giveaway post link.

Here is How to Enter (no purchase necessary) :

1. Comment on this post (1 Entry / person)
2. Click over to our page on Facebook or Twitter. 
3. Find the link to this giveaway post.  It should be the most recent link.
4. "Like" or Re-Tweet the link (1 Entry per Twitter and/or Facebook Account).

...and that's it! We'll keep track of all the entries and then choose a fan using a random number generator to select one lucky winner. Deadline for Entries is Friday, October 17 at 2p ET.

We will contact the winner directly through either Facebook, Twitter or E-mail to obtain the shipping information and send out your Noodler's Konrad Brush Pen & Platinum Preppy Fountain Pen!