Thursday, July 25, 2019

REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN

REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
Here's something you don't see pen brands do everyday: The vintage Japanese fountain pen project by Wancher! After their successful Dream Pen project (a final follow-up post of that will come soon), Wancher set out to breathe new life into a collection of vintage fountain pens of Japanese origin. The pens are supposedly part of the private collection of Wancher's founder mr. Okagaki and a group of collector-friends.
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
What they are doing is gathering a selection of ebonite and celluloid fountain pens and giving them a full service and repair. I don't know how they select which pens will be restored and sold, but they are going batch per batch (with a next batch being released for sale soon) and they listen to the community through social media for which types of pens, nibs and filling systems are most requested. The first batch consisted of some black ebonite fountain pens and a couple different celluloids including this green flecked one. 

The pen that was sent to me for review is marked "Record" on the clip, but I couldn't actually find anything on record (I love a terrible pun every now and then, sorry) about it. The nib imprint isn't much of a help either. It says "AMBA", but I assume it's something like an unbranded warranted nib. 

Now, to be honest I don't know much about vintage pens, but I do know that it actually looks like a direct copy of the Parker Vacumatic (third generation). It has a pointed cap finial jewel and plain rounded barrel finial. The clip and cap band also show a strong resemblance to the Vacumatic. Wancher calls this material green fleck celluloid, which is a really nice dark material with large, chatoyant green flecks. 
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
Right out of the box it's clear that the servicing was aimed at fixing structural damage and creating a functional, user-grade pen - not a pristine MINT collector's piece. You have to be a fan of Wabi-Sabi for this one, and I don't know if I am. I feel like the barrel should've received a quick buff to bring out the shine and depth of the green fleck celluloid, which is honestly a really good-looking material. The gold-plated trim is quite weathered and brassed, especially on the clip. There's no plating loss though. For a pen that's well over half a century old, it certainly held up quite nicely but it's not perfect.
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
L to R: Edison Beaumont, Pelikan 100n, Wancher vintage pen, Lamy Safari, Lamy 2000
Being vintage and Japanese, it's no surprise that this is a rather small pen. Capped it comes in at 12.7 cm (5") and 11.5 cm (4.5"). The diameter around the section is about 9 to 10mm (0.4"), not too wide but comfortable enough for me. The all-plastic construction makes it a really light pen. As someone who normally almost never posts his pens, this does balance absolutely perfectly with the cap on the back. It posts securely to a total length of 14.4 cm (5.66") while still being very light and balanced. Threads are super-shallow and completely flush with the section and barrel of the pen,very pleasant to hold in the hand.
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
The pen fills via a bulb-filler mechanism. With the brass sleeve over the latex sac, it reminds me a lot of the type of squeeze converters that -in my case- never seem to work very well. This one however,  works a treat and fills up completely in a couple of squeezes.
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN
The steel nib (about #5 in size) has a two-tone design with arrow imprint -again, almost identical to the nib imprint on the Parker Vacumatic. It was slightly out of alignment on arrival, causing it to be quite scratchy. However with the tines properly aligned, it's a pretty decent writer and puts down a relatively wet, fine line about the size of a western fine/japanese medium. 

Overall, despite me not being an absolute vintage pen freak (Luckily! it's worse enough of an addiction with just modern pens!), I think it's a very nice pen overall. Although be it slightly on the expensive side considering the steel nib and overall condition of the pen. Prices vary depending on the material, but start upwards of 100$, especially the celluloid versions like this go for a bit more. If you're looking to adopt a vintage Japanese fountain pen and give it some more love, keep an eye out on the Wancher website for the next round vintage pens (at the bottom of the page you can sign up to get notified by email when the sale starts). On instagram you can follow Wancher and give your opinion on which vintage pens you'd like to see restored next!

UPDATE: The second round of sales will start August 1st at 9:59 EST!

NOTE: This product was provided by Wancher, so I could write this review. I was in no way influenced in the making of this review, the opinions shared in this review are completely my own. This post does not contain affiliate links.
REVIEW: WANCHER REVIVE VINTAGE JAPANESE FOUNTAIN PEN

No comments:

Post a Comment