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High-quality break-resistant Ballograf graphite refill. Compressed and double-polymerized graphite refill, ultra-precisely drawn and calibrated.
Specifications:
- brand: Ballograf
- type: Pencil 0.5mm Led Refill
- color: Black
- thickness: 0.5 mm
- hardness: HB
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This is a nice upgrade to the original Aluminium body / steel section Entry. The capping experience is much more premium, and the whole pen feels premium too. The weight is exactly the same as the old one (both 24g on my scales inked and unposted) but the balance is more traditional as both body and section is Ti rather than a heavy steel section with light alu body. Also raw Ti has a slightly tacky feel so the section is grippier than the black coated steel which is helpful. I enjoy the high quality minimalist look of it a lot. The gravitas extra fine nib is also, unexpectedly, a joy. It is a little broader and wetter than I was expecting but has a touch of very pleasant feedback. I’m glad I got the EF as I think the F may have been a bit too much for my diary with normal paper.
For those looking to use this as a platform for swapping in Jowo nib units be aware that whilst the threads are the same the section is precision machined to fit the body of the gravitas/kanwrite nib unit which is a hair slimmer than most Jowos. Therefore some Jowo nib units will just about squeeze in and work fine, while others will not fit at all. So far two out of the three i’ve tried have fit with a little encouragement initially, but a third has not. I expect I can get that nib working in it by swapping it into a nib unit which does fit. So not the end of the world and I can use my other nibs but not a perfect fit for all Jowo nib units. I’m glad that the Gravitas nib is nice. Also note that I think the converter nipple is a hair thicker on the gravitas nib unit as the included converter is tight on that nib but loose on my Jowo nibs, so best to swap to a standard converter when swapping nibs, and vice versa if you put a gravitas nib in another pen, use the gravitas converter too, as my normal jowo nib converter is too tight.
Brass was actually one of the earliest alternatives to Ebonite when fountain pens were the only game in town. As a matter of fact, many modern fountain pens (and Biro pens) still have a brass body, but they hide it under paint or lacquer. Brass is an ideal metal for pen makers, because it has a relatively low melting point, is easy to shape, and relatively corrosion resistant. But...copper has a strong smell when it comes into contact with fingers. Brass is 80%-90% copper, so you get that smell with brass, as well. The good news is that you may not care much for the smell of copper, but many microbes find the presence of copper to be absolutely fatal. And after a couple of weeks to a couple of months, depending on how frequently you use the pen, the smell will be almost completely gone. The microbe-killing part will still be there, without the smell. As far as writing with this microbe killing weapon of mass decontamination, it's nearly perfect. The Gravitas produced nib is very smooth, and it's as good as, or even better than, an equivalent sized JoWo (or Bock) steel nib. I have several Sentry pens, and the feeds on all of them are nice and juicy. If you find that your pen is too juicy, try using Pelikan 4001 Königsblau ink, which is rather dry. The metal body is free of blemishes and scuffs, but that won't stay like that for long, especially if your pen comes into contact with other metallic objects. So, if you want to keep your pens looking like new, make sure to store them in the provided carrying case when you're not actively writing with them. For me, I don't mind that scuffs and scratches, because they all add to the "lived-in" look of objects and that are not only treasured, and loved, but used daily!
Would definitely buy again.
Let me begin by saying that this pen is nearly perfect. The Gravitas produced #6 steel nib is very smooth, and the plastic feed provides for excellent ink flow. The pen is massive; the body (of the very similar brass version) weighs 58.4 g, the whole pen weighs 88.5 g. HOWEVER...don't let that weight scare you, when writing with this pen, most of the weight will rest on the web of your hand (between index finger and thumb), and the inertia combined with the smoothness of the nib makes this a very pleasant writing experience. The grip section is relatively girthy, 11.5mm at its most narrow point. I find small diameter grip sections to be much more fatigue inducing than sheer weight of the pens.
Correction on the cap threads: they are double-start, not triple starts, are Acme threads, and the cap is released in 3/4 of a turn.
There are no O-rings to act as seals, or friction brakes for parts that randomly want to disassociate themselves from the rest of the pen. Also, there is no Delrin liner inside the cap, meaning that you might want to avoid posting the cap on the back of the pen to avoid scratching the pen body.
Last item: appearance. The pen is flawless when it arrives, but it will start to accumulate scratches and scuffs as time goes on. Also, it will take longer for a patina to form on this pen than regular brass or copper pens. That's to be expected. Unless you get run over by a herd of Velociraptors, or you drop the (uncapped) pen on its nib, this pen is unlikely to be so damaged as to be non-repairable. You can replace the nib unit, you could even replace it with a JoWo produced nib unit, although the Gravitas nib units are as good as any JoWo #6 Steel nib. NOTE: make sure that you check clearance between your non-Gravitas nib and the inside of the cap. Not all JoWo produced nibs are identical; and you assume the risk for nib damage due to lack of internal clearance.
Would definitely buy again.
This pen is everything hoped for, and everything I had heard it would be. With a little bit of luck it will be a go to pen for many years to come. Minimalistic yet beautiful and sleek in its design. I love this nib (medium) as it is smooth and writes like glass. Well worth the price point in my mind and it shipped quickly to boot. It has been in my EVD carry bag since I filled all 7ml up. Long journal sessions are a joy with it as it is not too large for my hand and just feels perfect weight wise. You might get the sense I sort of am gushing a bit. I am. I haven’t found much about this pen so far I don’t like. Hope this helps! Happy writing!!
The fifty4t sl is a a smaller, but no means small pen from Fifty4t. Its about the size of a Pilot 823 ( just a tiny bit longer and wider). The grip section is made of stainless steel, but it's very grippy due to the textured finish. The writing experience is smooth and is a pleasure for long writing sessions. The filling mechanism is a fun change of pace. It's easy to use and packs a large ink capacity.
So, you want a pen that’s tough enough to handle all of your emotional write-ups at 03:30 GMT, is harder than woodpecker lips, has better corrosion resistance than stainless steel, while weighing significantly less? And you want it to write really well, for a long time, and you want to be able to do your own maintenance on it without breaking the bank?
Well, the Titanium Sentry will not disappoint. The nib unit is compatible with a JoWo #6 nib unit. The Gravitas nibs are very good, with a performance indistinguishable from a #6 European made nib. The fit and finish is excellent, there is no machining residue anywhere. The pen arrived with no scratches or marks of any kind. Don’t worry, it won’t stay that way for long, because life happens. But rest assured, short of gratuitous violence directed at this pen, there’s not much that would damage this pen to the point of unrecoverability.
Dependability, reliability, user serviceability, in a virtually bulletproof titanium shell. What’s not to love?
