Gravitas - Vac 2.0 Aluminium | Black

The pen is wonderful- a very smooth writer! Emy from Pen Venture wrote a nice note- I really appreciate this thoughtful touch. The pen came fast, writes great, and the service is excellent-what more could I ask for? Thank you.

This has quickly become one of my favorite pens. The aluminum body feels incredibly solid without being overly heavy, and the machining is excellent. The vacuum filling system is satisfying to use and holds a huge amount of ink. I currently have it filled with Diamine Athol Violet, and the combination has been fantastic. The fine nib is smooth, wet, and really brings out the richness of the ink. If you appreciate a well-built pen with a unique industrial design, the Gravitas Vac 2.0 is an outstanding value.

The Vac 2.0 is hands-down the smoothest writer I have. The pen arrived with the nib tuned to perfection, with exquisite machining of every single component. The capacity is massive, yet the pen does not feel overly bulky. The balance in the hand both posted and unposted is right on. You can really tell that Ben pays the utmost attention to even the smallest detail!
Shipping to Australia was very quick and the order arrived with a wonderful hand-written note from Emy. This will certainly not be my last purchase!

I ordered this pen even though I’ve had some issues with two of my six Monster pens—which amounts to a failure rate of nearly 30%. One of my Monsters (black aluminum) suddenly started leaking after three months of regular use (with Artisan Pastellier Rose Cyclamen ink; it still leaks in small amounts, even though I haven’t used that ink in it for months and am now using the fountain pen with GvFC Viper Green; otherwise, the pen works reliably). Unfortunately, two service requests regarding this issue went unanswered.

The other one (TiSinX titanium) is now, unfortunately, completely unusable, as every time I fill it, large amounts of ink immediately ooze out in thick drops from the same spot (though this could be due to using Diamone Desert Rose—I didn’t initially know that such inks might cause problems). I may contact Pen Venture at a later date regarding the purchase of a replacement ink reservoir (if possible with Ultem).

I haven’t had any problems so far with the Ultem Monsters or the Gravitas Exclusive Rainbow Skittle Monster.

The Vac 2.0, which is what this review was actually supposed to be about, is another great pen. Unfortunately, the Diamine Lady Grey ink I bought along with it seems much too dry for this pen, so I screwed in the gold nib from my Gravitas x Kyuseido Kakari, and now it writes like a dream; ironically, the original nib now writes just as beautifully in my Ultemate Vac - so I guess I have to review the new steel nib separately.

The Kraken filling mechanism works extremely well again and feels almost a bit more powerful in this pen than it does in the Monster; and the new ink window is a joy as well.

It's extremely well balanced and although I very much enjoy the girthier (and heavier) monster, fast note taking is kind of more comfortable with this pen—although, purely for aesthetic reasons, I actually like the flat ends of the Monster a little better.

However, there’s a minor flaw (which definitely isn’t due to the new gold nib, since it also occurred with the original nib) that happens when the ink reservoir is full and you screw the Kraken mechanism shut. Sometimes a large drop falls onto the paper then, but I suspect this can be prevented by simply not letting the reservoir get completely full.

That aside, the pen is a pure delight.

The broad nib I orderd it with is pure delight as well. It's nicely soft and writes very consistently with my (fairly standard, I guess) 50° writing angle. The line width is very consistent, which is a nice experience, given that many broad nibs these days have stub-like characteristics. Interestingly, this nib has this kind of character when using it in reverse for very, very small margin notes—something I haven't come across before with round-ground nibs. I kind of like it.

All in all another great and beautifully designed pen - but only time will tell if it's prone to the same problems as some of the Monsters.

The ordering process and shipment was smooth and seamless as always with pen venture and I received my ordering within just a few days. Emy added a kind handwritten note, a Monster maintenance tool and vial of silicon oil.

That creates a kind of personal shopping experience—which is something, also given that the store appears to be expanding quite rapidly.

The construction of the Vac 2 is flawless. The textures of the materials and it's simple lines display an elegant beauty. The large steel nib delivers a pleasant writing experience and also provides a bit of flex.