(Kimberly (she/her) took the express train down the fountain pen/stationery rabbit hole and doesn't want to be rescued. She can be found on Instagram @allthehobbies because there really are many, many hobbies!.)
Sorry not sorry about the earworm but if you don’t have any idea what I’m talking about, Mahna Mahna. Anyway, read on...
When I first saw IG stories and teasers about the in-house nib that Ian Schon of Schon Dsgn was making, I knew that I wanted one. Now, let’s be clear, I’m less of a “nib person” than others. I am not too picky as long as it writes out of the box and doesn’t write like pants. I am also not usually an early adopter. After a career in Quality Assurance in software, I came to the conclusion that it isn’t always the best to be the first to market, nor to be the first to own it either. But then you throw in the fact that Ian and his team make some absolutely great products and I changed my tune!
I pre-ordered the Monoc in December and picked it up at the Philly Pen Show two weeks ago. After immediately inking up the pen and writing with it for a while, I wanted to chat with Ian to better understand his latest creation. And since pictures are worth a thousand words, I decided to handwrite this review so you can see writing samples.
What is the Monoc?
The Monoc is the name of the in-house nib and feed system designed and created by Schon Dsgn. The nib is cut from a rod of titanium and the feed is made from Ultem, which is an extremely durable engineered plastic. Making the nib from a rod of titanium versus stamping from a sheet means that you can have the nib and housing as a singular piece, so there is no need for a separate housing to hold the nib and feed as a unit.
You can unscrew the nib and feed for use in any Jowo 6-compatible pens.
Why “Monoc”?
The name “Monoc” is derived from monocoque construction which is more common in car racing and airplane manufacturing. Basically, it means that it is made from a single “shell” of material which provides strength, giving it a technical advantage from being single piece versus being constructed from multiple parts.
Why make this nib?
While known mostly as a machinist and engineer, Ian is also a designer and an artist of sorts. Maybe not in the Van Gogh kind of way (although this nib is a work of art), but in the way he approaches product ideas and designs. The Monoc is not out to solve some nib or writing experience problem; it’s about “bringing something new and different to the pen world.” The whole process around coming up with a new design, workflow, cutting out the nib from a rod of titanium versus sheets, figuring out how to angle the nib and feed so that it flows well, making something unique, even if it is extremely difficult, expensive and time-consuming - this is what gets Ian jazzed up. While he loves all the products that he makes, the Monoc is really his passion project.
Inking up the pen.
If you use a standard international converter, you just dip the nib into a vial or bottle of ink and use the converter to draw up ink as usual (which I just had to do because I was writing the pen dry at the bottom of the previous page) and you’re ready to write as the feed is already primed with ink. If you’re using a cartridge, however, you will need to get the ink to flow to the feed and saturate it so it can start writing. To do so, orient the pen nib down after inserting the cartridge until you see ink flowing to the tip of the feed and nib, then invert it nib up for about 5 seconds. Repeat a few times, blot and you should be good to go. More detailed instructions are included with the nib.
How does it write?
The Monoc is a wet and smooth writer, with just a hint of feedback; not wet like a fire hose but definitely not a dry writer. Widthwise, I would describe it as a “wet medium”, almost broad. Ian designed this nib to give you “a consistent, predictable writing experience.” Traditionally, titanium nibs (most notably by Bock) were bouncy and prone to being sprung if you bounced them a little too hard. The Monoc is made from a different grade of titanium, which is stronger, and the nib is also thicker than stamped nibs. This makes it a much stiffer nib than gold, titanium or even steel nibs, such that when you put it to paper, you won’t get as much tine movement (at the microscopic level), resulting in a more consistent writing experience for a wider range of writers. Because it is a firm nib, do not expect it to be bouncy or flexy. If I had to compare it to something already on the market, I would say it has the stiffness of a Jowo steel nib, with the wetness of a Pelikan gold nib and the slight feedback of a Platinum gold nib.
Here are some writing samples with nibs of different nib sizes/grinds.
Is it easy to clean the nib?
Yes! You can use a bulb syringe or converter to clean the nib, like you would with any other cartridge/converter fountain pen, but Ian and team have included a specially-drilled syringe since most syringes don’t fit on the end. You don’t have to use it, it just helps with cleaning if you don’t already have a bulb syringe. Because the nib and feed are hand-set and tuned, do not try to take the nib and feed apart. For this reason, I would advise against using shimmer inks with the Monoc.
How much does the Monoc cost?
Right now, there is an introductory price of $400 for the nib, which includes a black, full-size aluminum Schon DSGN pen. You can also get a different pen body and apply $100 towards the purchase of that (please read the website for more details on the offer). I picked the black Ultem feed and blue anodizing for the nib engraving. At some point, the nib will be offered separately, but right now, this is a good deal since this price includes a pen. Lastly, the nibs are made to order, so you won’t get your nib & pen right away. There is a limited number of nibs that can be made each month, so you will need to select a month for future delivery (currently, February and March are available delivery options).
Wait, how much?
Yeah, $400 for a nib. It is a lot, but why so much? Nibs like this aren’t easy to make. Designing and engineering a new nib and feed system is a lot of work, requiring a lot of design and manufacturing time, making and testing prototypes, not to mention taking away resources from making other products. In addition to the R&D and manufacturing time, each nib is individually (and manually) inspected, assembled and hand-tuned - does it even write, do all of them write correctly, are the feeds delivering ink properly? Once it is put together and all tuned up, every nib then needs to be cleaned, polished, anodized, and all of that takes a lot of time. Each nib takes countless hours post production to make. To put it into perspective, Ian said they can only make hundreds of these nibs each year, not thousands.
So, should I get a Monoc?
First of all, this is definitely not a product for everyone. It is an expensive purchase. It will not miraculously make your handwriting stunning (though with regular practice, it certainly could help). You would get this not only because it writes well, but because it is a gorgeous nib. Because it is a technical marvel. Because titanium is cool, but also because this titanium nib won’t spring on you. And I’ll be honest, because it is sexy as heck. It’s like the Pilot Myu or Murex - people don’t love them because they are necessarily the best writers out there, but because they look and feel amazing. And while I really like how the Monoc writes, I love how it looks even more. This is definitely an emotional purchase as opposed to a functional one and I have zero regrets.
If you are looking for a Fine, Extra Fine or Needlepoint, the Monoc is not for you, though one can hope that other nib sizes will be offered in the future. Ditto if you’re looking for a flexy nib or an inexpensive “instabuy” product. But if you value creativity and ingenuity of this project, the pushing of boundaries of what one man and his team can do, the inevitable “holy crap, that’s gorgeous” or “oh wow, this is nice!” responses that you’ll get when you bust it out at a pen meetup, as well as a really nice writing experience, the Monoc just might be for you.
(Disclaimer: All products shown were purchased by me, at regular prices. I preordered the Monoc from the website in December and picked it up in January.)
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