Saturday, October 1, 2022

REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN

REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
Yes, it's no surprise that Gravitas has quickly become a sort of personal catnip for me - every new release looks more impressive than the last, and for the life of me I can't keep my wallet shut whenever I see a new Instagram post from Ben... When would this be considered an addiction?

Perhaps you're thinking: "Another Gravitas review? Didn't he publish a review of the Gravitas Sentry just a month ago?" And you'd be absolutely right! But at the dizzying pace that Gravitas produces fantastic new releases, with new products around the corner seemingly every week, I can barely keep up buying them... let alone getting them reviewed! 
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
L to R: Black Delrin, white Delrin, Polycarbonate 'Big Dropper', Stainless steel Sentry
In an effort to keep up, I figured I'd bundle two of the more recent Gravitas products together since they share most stats anyway, differing only in the material they're made of. So in this review, we're taking a look at two additions to the Sentry lineup: the Gravitas Delrin and Big Dropper fountain pens. 

For those of you that liked the design of the Gravitas Sentry, but were put off by the sheer weight of these solid metal pens, these two might be right up your alley. The Big Dropper and Delrin fountain pens follow very closely on the design of the Sentry, carrying over the flattop design with pointed finials, curvy cap, and elegant long tapered body.

The real difference obviously comes from the use of clear translucent polycarbonate for the Big Dropper, and Delrin for the... well, Delrin version. 
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
The Big Dropper is made from clear translucent polycarbonate with a matte frosted finish. The machining and frosting is very uniform and provides a pleasant texture to the pen. As the name suggests, the Big Dropper lends itself perfectly to eye-droppering. I typically stay away from eye droppers (I don't care for the potential discoloration on clear pens, and I rarely ever need or want the ridiculous large ink capacity they provide), but this pen comes fully prepared, should you wish to eyedropper yours. 
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
O-rings ready for eye-droppering!
They even added o-rings to the threads on both the section and cap to ensure an airtight seal (though you might want to add a dab of silicon grease on the section threads, just to be safe). It's difficult to say how the stainless steel section will react to prolonged contact with ink, but I'd assume it'll be fine as long as you don't go for very acidic iron gall inks or the like.
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
A subtle detail separates the regular black Delrin on the left, from the Delrin orange Cerakote on the right.
The Delrin option is perhaps my favorite (at least until I get my hands on the new Ultem version!). Delrin is a rather unique 'engineering plastic', meaning it has special characteristics and high durability that make it useful in industrial applications. It is slightly more dense, and has a super-slick and smooth (Delrin is often used as a liner in moving parts, because it's low-friction) feel in the hand. Just like the Big Dropper, the Delrin version comes outfitted with o-rings, ready to be eyedroppered!
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
The two standard colors of Delrin are opaque black and opaque white (interestingly, the white Delrin is the only pen without an etched Gravitas logo on the cap, because the material doesn't work well with laser-etching!). For a hint of color, there's also a black delrin version with an orange logo on the cap (though the color is quite faint) and an orange cerakote section. If you want even more color, Ben has also found a way to dye the Delrin into whatever color you like. If you've already bought a Gravitas pen before, you're automatically a Gravitas member and have access to a members-only area on their website where you can find some of those more experimental and flashy finishes! 

The one downside of Delrin is that it is highly susceptible to scuffs and scratches, so you might want to look elsewhere if you want to keep your pens looking pristine! This is especially noticeable on the black delrin, scuffs are harder to see on the white version.
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
L to R: Namisu Nova, Ensso Piuma, Gravitas Pocket, Gravitas Delrin, Gravitas Sentry, Gravitas Entry, Gravitas Flagship, Lamy 2000, Lamy Safari
Dimensions - at least on the outside - are identical to other variants of the Sentry, with a capped length of 14.6 cm/ 5.75", and 13.9/ 5.47" cm uncapped. At the widest point of the cap, the Sentry measures 15.5 cm/ 0.61" in diameter, and the barrel is 14 cm/ 0.55" at its widest. 

Of course, polycarbonate and Delrin - while both durable plastics - can't be machined as thin as their metal counterparts. This is apparent in the changes to the thickness of the cap, which meant that a slight redesign of the internals was necessary to make it fit together properly 
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN
Sentry Delrin on the left, Sentry aluminum black anodized on the right
So while the section remains equally long to the one found on the Sentry, you'll notice that it is in fact a bit narrower (12mm at its widest point versus 13 on the metal version of the Sentry). This puts the Big Dropper and Delrin Sentries in between the Entry and (metal) Sentry in terms of section size, striking a good balance in my opinion. 
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN - www.pencilcaseblog.com
Those millimeter differences might not sound like much, but they do make the plastic versions to the Sentry feel noticeably less bulky in the hand. Also due to the increased thickness of the cap, there's a more visible transition from the barrel to the section, though in the hand it's still barely noticeable as it steps down very gradually from the tapered edge of the barrel to the rubber o-ring, then the threads, and finally the section. 
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN - www.pencilcaseblog.com
The plastic cap and barrel of course make for a substantially lighter pen. The polycarbonate big dropper weighs in at 29 grams (uncapped 26g), while the slightly more dense Delrin version weighs 32g (uncapped 26g). Since the metal section provides most of that weight, both plastic Sentries have a very clear balance towards the section, and feel much more nimble in the hand. I know a lot of people have strong feelings against metal sections, but Gravitas consistently implements them very well on all their pens, with a strongly pronounced taper and ridged machined texture to provide a comfortable grip.
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN - www.pencilcaseblog.com
I got these back when Gravitas still equipped their pens with JoWo nibs. There's no point in telling you how a JoWo nib writes (you probably know this already, anyway). BUT, the new nib units are still backward-compatible with JoWo housings, so you can swap them out with spare nibs you may have lying around. In my limited experience with the new Gravitas steel nibs, I was quite pleased with how they perform, they can certainly hold up against JoWo.
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN - www.pencilcaseblog.com
The Gravitas Sentry Big Dropper and Sentry Delrin are enticing new additions to the ever-expanding Gravitas catalog. They offer the same streamlined-yet-robust design of the Sentry, which I enjoy a lot. Will you mistake the Big Dropper or Delrin Sentry for a small pen? Probably not. But the combination of lighter weight and balance, and more average section width, definitely strikes a better balance if you're not that into oversized pens. 

They're priced fairly reasonably as well, at just 95€ regardless of which plastic version (polycarbonate, Delrin, or Ultem) you choose. As always, Ben Walsh has even more material options to choose from on the horizon (most noticeably, a Micarta version is currently in production), so there's no lack of options!

Some of the products featured in this review were sent to me by Gravitas. 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 affilate links.
REVIEW: GRAVITAS SENTRY BIG DROPPER & DELRIN FOUNTAIN PEN - www.pencilcaseblog.com

3 comments:

  1. Son muy hermosos,todo el Arte de Escritura Gravitas, Pero me Gustaría Ver un Nuevo Diseño De Bolsillo pero con un Clip muy bien diseñado y fuera de los clips tradicionales.

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  2. I just ordered my first two Gravitas pocket pens, in Delrin and Titanium and cannot wait to use them. I noted the reference to Delrin picking up scratches. How bad does that get? The good thing for us FP users is that it adds to the pen's character. Thank you for the review. I have found it useful.

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    Replies
    1. Hey Sam, Delrin is a very soft plastic so it's going to be impossible to keep scratch free. On the black delrin you'll see them, the white one not so much. It'll indeed be like a patina the more you use the pen!

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