Esterbrook Model J Fountain Pen Review
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- čas přidán 16. 01. 2024
- This pen was kindly lent to me by www.appelboom.com - thank you!
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To me, a better idea is to go to Ranga Pens and order some nice ebonite pen threaded for Jowo, then put into it one of the Franklin-Christoph specialty nibs - like B-CI or BB-SIG. This will be still 50% price of the Model J and much bigger choice of ebonites/nibs. And it will have nothing to do with the original Model J, just like this one.
I just bought this pen. I have the rosewood one and love it.
The brown colour one is absolutely beautiful ❤
Very good and informative review. Thanks!
As always, another interesting video.
Congratulations and regards!
I have a budding collection of vintage J's -and I wouldn't call this a progression in the line - not really a "J" model. Maybe it's just me but I prefer the look of the vintage versions over the modern - and the vintage are incredibly easy to repair and of course all the nib variations! for usually under $40
I readily agree. I own six Js, one LJ, one SJ. And sixteen of the vintage nibs. My favorite vintage Esterbrook pen, though, is the Dollar Pen. I own two.
The modern Esterbrook pens are really well-made. I own three oversized Esties and a Camden (my favorite). However, the pens always struck me as patently over-priced. Indeed, now (since July 1, 2022) it’s even worse, because ALL Esterbrook pens are priced at MSRP, which totally sucks.
Now, I also always like ebonite-bodied pens. This green is really very nice. Looks a little better than the brown one.
The only reason I would not buy this pen is because a generic, boring #6 steel Jowo nib doesn’t interest me in the slightest. The Model J’s price is also an instant deal-breaker. My modern Esterbrook pens have the B, Journaler, Scribe and Needlepoint nibs. To me, the special nib grinds offered (at extra cost, sadly) is the only reason for even buying these pens.
I totally agree with you. They did a great job resurrecting the brand and the pens are good quality, but they are way overpriced. I bought an unbranded version of one of their pens a few years ago that was a third of the price but the exact same pen, JoWo nib and all (that unbranded version isn't available anymore).
@@aaron3890 Good to find somebody who feels exactly the same way I do about ‘reborn’ Esterbrook pens. I bought my Esties at the old, 20% retailers’ discounted ‘street’ price or on sale. Even then the prices felt unfair. But at MSRP now, it’s hard to rush to recommend these pens to anybody else. The pens are excellently made, no question. This Model J’s price is just flat-out greedy cash-grab by the Esterbrook marketers.
I envy your getting the unbranded version of the pen at a far lower price.
Got a Lotus with Techo nib. Pure excellence. Amazing grind.
I agree with what you say but it's kind of what they think the J would be today more than a remake from 1955.
As you said levers aren't great and tiny pens don't sell.
Definitely pricey for what it is but that's modern Esterbrook to me - the higher end of c/c steel nib pens, but they are kind of the top tier of that market - maybe like Tudor is in the watch world.
I agree with the assessment that it is too expensive. I have an Estie with a gold Journaler nib for the same price that I love.
こんにちは ♪ ・Hello ♪, That fountain pen looked very delicious. I'm looking forward to being able to buy it in Japan.👍
I just bought an Esterbrook J for 15GBP and the cost of a sac, and I'd much rather have mine than the new version.
I have a couple vintage Esterbrook Model J’s and this is NOTHING like those. 😂 I agree, it is a tad overpriced for what you get.
~250USD is an absurd price. For that money I would expect at least one of: gold nib, die cast clip, non-CC filling system.
Actually the feel of this pen in hand and writing experience is as good as a good Gold-Nib fountain pen. Check for yourself !
@@varadharajannadarajah It may be, but it should be cheaper. Gold nibs, wether you want them or not, are expensive and go a long way to explaining the cost of a higher end pen. Paying gold nib money and not getting a gold nib OR a nice filling system...I mean I can get a Pilot 823 custom which has both a gold nib AND a vacuum fill system. So much bette value.
Is this the Esterbrook Model J you are selling on your web site now?
Stephen if you read this wall of text, please don't take this the wrong way; I'm just trying to explain in detail why it isn't true that an architect would be suited to print and not cursive. I've heard this statement repeated by many much more knowledgeable people than you or I over the past twenty years, I'm not singling you out or criticising you in particular. Maybe you could make a video about it so this misunderstanding finally gets corrected and the entire community can stop misinforming each other as we have been for decades.
If you want to quickly see for yourself that it isn't true, go grab an italic nib and an architect nib of similar line widths and write a large letter O in print with each nib. You'll see that they will look 100% identical, except the locations of the thick and the thin curves at the corners of the letter are reversed. The italic nib will have a thin bend at the top-left and bottom-right and a thick bend at the bottom-left and the top-right, the architect nib will have a thin bend at the top-right and bottom-left and a thick bend at the bottom-right and top-left. The top, bottom, left and right of both letters will all be the exact same line width, provided the maximum line width of both nib grinds is identical. It's only letters with significant slants to some of the strokes, like the legs of a capital A, that are clearly different between the two nibs.
So why doesn't it make any sense that architects or italics would be suitable or unsuitable for cursive writing(or more correctly, slanted/italic writing)? The orientation of the line variation italic grinds produce depends on two factors: the rotation of the grind(italic, architect or oblique) and the wrist angle of the writer relative to the written line. We are going to assume the wrist angle remains constant, because otherwise you can just rotate your wrist by ninety degrees and turn an italic into an architect and vice versa, and then we are talking about the effect of wrist angle, not the effect of the grind itself.
If you write at a roughly forty-five degree wrist angle between your hand and the written line, like yourself and most other people do, an italic and architect nib will produce greatest line variation on slanted strokes(the letters V and X show this clearly) and no line variation whatsoever between up-and-down and side-to-side strokes(the letter capital L and the + symbol show this clearly). If you wanted maximum line variation in straight strokes, you would need a left or right foot oblique nib cut at a rather acute angle, not an architect nib. The right foot oblique would give thick down strokes and narrow side strokes, whereas the left foot oblique would give narrow down strokes and thick side strokes(downstrokes? down strokes? Wat is Engels is toch consistent met het aan elkaar en los schrijven van zeflstandige naamwoorden). This is obviously why obliques are favoured by lefties with odd wrist positions; they compensate for their overwriting/sidewriting/underwriting wrist angle and allow them to write as if they were writing in a normal wrist position with an italic nib.
To quote yourself: I hope you found this useful!
Solid review as always, just not my cup of tea thanks Steven.👍🇦🇺
A nice pen but for me not even close to what I would pay for it. Thanks for sharing.
Disagree! I write cursive with my architect MB 149 all the time. Works beautifully!
I was disappointed when I saw the "new" J. It looks NOTHING like my high school "J" so NO Nostalgia. I lost interest immediately and I do agree with your thought, that for what it is, the pen is over-priced. Thank you for presenting your experience of this new Esterbrook pen. I will continue writing with my Js until they require sacs/bladders. Perhaps by then someone will design a converter for the lever-feed.
I don't mind modern Esterbrook pens, but THEY ARE ALL OVERPRICED. That's kept me from buying many. :-(
They should have skipped the JR version. The Esterbrook JR has some of the worst nibs that I’ve ever used. I tried the fine, medium, and Broad nibs . All were astonishingly atrocious writers. Each nib required substantial work. One had a misaligned nib, one was incredibly scratchy, and the broad had babies bottom. I expected so much more in nib quality at the JR price point. I think I’m done with Esterbrook.
Looks like a nice pen but should be priced $100 less. Lots of nice pens in this price range with gold nibs. Nice but over priced
Ebonite is more expensive and worth the upcharge.
The reconstituted (or, if one prefers, "zombie" ) Esterbrook pens have little to nothing in common with those made by the sadly departed Esterbrook pen company. The nibs, materials, designs, fill mechanisms, styling are different from the 20th century products. I've got several classic Esterbrook pens, and am the recent recipient of one of the new ones as well. The new Estie is a gift from a lovely Canadian blogger whose broadcast I've enjoyed for some time, and I am very touched and grateful for the generous gift of the big boxed set. Honestly, it is a nice pen. Did the current owners of the brand name really have to use the same model titles on their pens that are certainly not J-models? No. By comparison, Ford Motor Company started making Mustang cars in the mid-1960's. Underpowered, sporty, prone to kill young drivers. Before long the Mustang had grown to be a land yacht. Then it became Mustang ll, possibly a return to its roots. Or its tires. Is it the same vehicle? No. At least it is generally the same company. Draw your own comparisons. Use a fountain pen.
What I like: good fountain pen reviews and I get them most of the times.
What I don't like: that sip of tea that's sounds like it's in my head (I'm one of those people that have strong negative reaction to some sounds, mostly related to chewing/swallowing and when I'm wearing earphones it's like nails on a chalkboard, probably because mic position). I started to type this several times before and stopped, because I don't like to be that guy.
But does that sip really adds anything to a review? Couldn't it be done couple of seconds before clicking record? I just don't get it.
It's to cold, it's to hot, the water is to wet, yes you are that bloke 😉
@@user-zp1tw1gt2s I know, I know. But I still stand by what I said, swallow that tea before you start talking.
And while I'm at it, you know that type of people who are at the table who adress you with "listen", get your attention and then continue to chew for 10-15 seconds before they continue to talk while maintaining eye contact... there should be a law against that!