As a ystudio fanboy, I was a little concerned about the Resin Fountain Pen when I first saw pictures of it. How would it stack up to my favorite Brassing models? Would the plastic barrel take a way some of the magic of the brand? My fears have proven to be unfounded, as this is a pen I want to use all of the time.
I will admit that it took me a couple of days to warm up to it. While it shares some of its design DNA with the Brassing Fountain Pen, it really is a different beast altogether. It sat on my desk. I stared at it. It stared back at me. I picked it up. I uncapped it, posted it, and capped it back again. And then I decided ok, time to ink it up. That’s where I ran into trouble.
As much as I am going to rave about this pen in a moment, there is a flaw in its design that must be mentioned: For a cartridge/converter pen, it doesn’t fit standard international converters. Or I should say, it doesn’t fit most of them.
I should have known something was up when it didn’t ship with one, but that’s neither the first - nor last - time a c/c pen won’t ship with one. I thought well fine, the ystudio Resin Fountain Pen uses Schmidt hardware for the nib unit, so I’ll just grab one of the dozens of Schmidt converters I have laying around. I attached it to the feed post, dipped it in the ink bottle, and drew up the ink just fine. Then I tried to screw the barrel back on.
If it doesn’t fit …
When standard international converters fail to fit into barrels it is usually a length problem. Not here, as the barrel is more than long enough. With this pen, it is a diameter problem. The metal ring around the barrel is too wide to fit inside the barrel.
My first thought was oh, there is something wrong with my converter - let me try another. And another. Until I realized it wasn’t the converter that was the problem. How could this be, seeing that other ystudio pens use the same Schmidt hardware and Schmidt converters fit those pens just fine? I’m guessing that the microscopic measurement that the barrel needed to be expanded by would have altered the entire design? I don’t see how, but I find it hard to believe that this was an oversight. Manufacturing tolerance maybe?
The workaround I found is either to use cartridges - short or long international sized - or a narrower converter, like the one in the picture. Mine is from Kaweco, which looks like this one from Monteverde. Is there a name for this style of converter that we can pass on to ystudio so they can package them with future pens to avoid this unnecessary angst?
Ok, I’ve prattled on long enough about an issue that in the end is a minor annoyance on a pen that gets everything else right. Here is what you really need to know: I cannot put this pen down. I’m not sure if it is the shape, the feel, the weight, the nib, or the tactile-ness of it, but I love using it. I have to set it out of reach sometimes just so other pens get a fair shake.
To try and describe it I’d say it feels close to a large marker in the hand, but it allows for the fine control of a technical pen. These aren’t words I normally use to describe a fountain pen, but they work for this one. It’s different, in a good way.
The way the resin hexagonal barrel smoothly transitions into the the brass grip section is a joy. Brass discs also adorn the top of the cap and end of the pen as an added touch of flair. The cap posts, although not with the same snap as when capping the pen. It could come loose if you set the pen down, for example, or fidget with it.
I’ve said it before - earlier in this review even - that the best compliment that I can give any product is that I want to use it, and that I miss it when I’m not. The ystudio Resin Fountain Pen is a perfect example of that. And at $72, I feel very comfortable recommending it, converter weirdness and all.
(Kenro Industries provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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