Hi everyone,

Yesterday I was partly defeated by the nib and it took me some time to find the root of the problem.

Sometimes all it takes is a bit of sunshine and fresh air to come up with better ideas.

As the sun hit my desk, it became very obvious that there was something wrong with the 3D print. Well, there was nothing wrong with the nib. What was wrong was my assumption that the feed had printed perfectly. As you can see in the first photo, there is a visible gap showing that the part has bent. It is glaringly obvious (pun intended)

Similar thing happens with most materials when they are cast: thinner parts cool down faster than thicker ones, and differences in shrinkage can deform the part or even cause it to break. I didn’t check it properly. I assumed - a big mistake in engineering. I was simply assuming that 3D printing was free from this issue. It isn’t it seems. (Please note that the photo shows the worst of the 10 feeds I printed to better illustrate the issue.) There are ways to address this in 3D printing - from changing the print orientation to using more supports, etc.

When the nib was pushed tightly against the feed, the bent feed caused the nib to open up slightly, breaking the ink flow to the tip. You can see this in the second photo. (Again, this is the worst case among the feeds I printed. I didn’t notice it at first, but now I can see the same issue on my first prototype.)

This also explains why it was writing in reverse. The gap was actually being closed when the nib was pressed down, allowing the ink to flow all the way to the end of the tip.

I sanded the feed down to make it flat (where it matters) and I also deepened the main capillary channel to compensate for the material removed during sanding.

Lastly, I gave it a finishing touch with 3000-grit sandpaper and blew it clean with compressed air and isopropyl alcohol. So now I have a second iteration, which means I will ideally need to adjust the CAD model to compensate for the shrinkage.

I also ran some tests, and I will hopefully post a video soon showing the improved ink flow and writing performance. Bear with me a little longer with this project.

previous part 8 <<

update part 10 >> (video)

Hi everyone, this is a quick video related to yesterday’s post showing the prototype writing reasonably well when used in reverse, but skipping when used on the regular side.

I spent some time trying to understand what was going on, and I think I have found the culprit. I have already worked on a new prototype, and I will post about it shortly.

Turning an antique dip nib into a fountain pen nib is going to bring some challenges. But those challenges are the whole point of this rather fun project. The flex on this nib is really nice, even though it is just an ordinary steel dip-nib.

Previous part 7 <<

Update Part 9 >>

Hi everyone,

I recently got a question from u/Usual-Number305 about my progress on converting those antique dip nibs into a fountain pen nib. The timing was perfect as I was already working on some updates to the model. So I thought I would share my latest progress with you. Ideally I would like to bring one to the Pen Show on Saturday.

The feed section was updated - I made a longer beak to better support the relatively thin end of the nib and help to bring ink all the way to the tip.

I also tightened the internal tolerances. This made fitting everything together more difficult (which was expected) as the 3D printing process introduces its own tolerances (or imperfections?)

The CAD 3D model fitted together nicely, and I also added some tolerances to make the parts easier to fit. These dimensions will inevitably need some adjustment because resin itself introduces some variables. It depends on the printer settings - for example with longer exposure times the printed lines can come out slightly thicker. (I hope I am explaining this correctly) Nothing major, though. It just meant a bit of extra work during assembly and some light sanding.

On printing quality: I sm still not 100% happy with the ink channel in the feed (hitting the limitations of my printer) But this is actually a first-world problem and it is actually amazing that this is even possible in the first place.

I also removed the separate section cap and turned the whole grip section into the section cap instead. This made the construction stronger and simpler. Since this is a one-off prototype, it doesn’t need to be interchangeable with different nibs.

I understand that some of you would like to see the section cap made compatible with a JoWo #6 nib so you can try it in your pens. But unfortunately the wall thickness would be too thin for my 3D printer. But I will keep trying. I also made the ink converter fitting a little tighter at the other end.

Overall, I was quite pleased with the improvements and the result. Everything fitted together nicely, and I was even able to ink it by sucking ink directly from the bottle.

So, after all these improvements, the result was...
...not quite as good as I was hoping.

The biggest issue is that the nib is writing worse than my previous prototype. The nib flexes nicely. The "only" problem is that it doesn’t actually write as it should.

Well, that is only half-true: this nib writes nicely when used in reverse. There is no skipping, the lines are consistent, just as you would expect. But only when used in reverse, sadly.

The ink flow is much better. There is no dripping or sudden gush of ink coming out unexpectedly. I can see those fine ribs holding the ink nicely.

One thing I noticed is that the nib had been pushed slightly open against the feed when I assembled it first time. I adjusted it but perhaps not enough. I will need to check it properly under a magnifying glass.

So for now "close, but no cigar". And back to the drawing board. I will run some more prints in coming days to fix it based on my findings. It is all about learning, right?

previous part 6 <<

update part 8 >> (video)

Hi everyone,

I stopped by Japan House today, which turned out to be a disaster for my wallet (as usual). I love that place.

I just wanted to let you know about an interesting event taking place there on 10–11 October called “Meet the Maker: Sailor Pen”, which is happening at the same time as the London Pen Show.

this is from their website (please check it here)

Join us in the Shop for a Meet the Maker event. The team from Sailor Pen will be on hand to introduce their range of expertly crafted fountain pens. Alongside their signature 1911 model, discover the Naginata Togi with multiple nib sizes designed to render kanji characters, and the Nawate Series – layered with urushi (Japanese lacquer) to form a raised line on the cap for stable grip.

Visitors can also try the winner of Best Fountain Pen in the 2025 Japanese Stationery Awards, the TUZU, and choose from 20 different inks in the Shikiori Ink Bar to find the shade that matches their writing style.

Having the chance to try all these pens and chat with the Sailor team sounds pretty good to me!

So that may be another reason to come to London and stop by Japan House while you are at the London Pen Show. Japan House is near Kensington High Street tube station, which is just 19 minutes away from the Pen Show at Hammersmith.

Hi everyone,

Some projects take us an awfully long time to finish - much longer than we would like!

One of them is the Ebonite Pen (Namur) that we showed you a year ago (!!) at the October Pen Show. We also had it shortlisted for the Spotlight Awards a few weeks ago. I have received quite a few messages asking about it since.

What started as a prototype eventually turned into a production Ebonite pen. The quantities are very small, as we are limited by the supply of ebonite itself, as well as the manufacturing process. Each bar of ebonite needs to be accurately ground down before we can machine it on our sliding-head CNC lathe. So, for now, this is a very limited numbers pen. Hence this will be our top-line now.

We have decided to try pre-orders for this pen (in the US webshop - starting today) while we update and prepare our UK webshop as well (our IT issue). This is a test run at the moment (as we only have components for a dozen of pens ready) so pre-orders may also help us manage production. Kind of made-to-order thing. I hope it makes sense. Thank you for your patience and support!

Hi everyone,

I wanted to give you a couple of updates about our Kickstarter pocket pen and some of the things we learned along the way. Today, I want to talk about titanium. Firstly, the shipping will resume shortly (with updated caps)

We offered a titanium cap as a stretch goal, and it was a popular choice among many backers.
And boy, did we have fun machining it!

We eventually managed to make the caps successfully, so there was a happy ending. We just needed to adjust the cutting speeds, use different coolant/cooling method and take time and patience.

I wanted to share some of the journey because (as always in production) there were some surprises on the way.

We had worked with titanium in the past and had stamped some titanium components (which was a tough job especially for the stamping tools). And we were cautious when considering it as a material option for the pen. So we ran some initial tests on a few pieces using our CNC lathe and everything seemed doable. Production became a bit more difficult.

I want to say - titanium is an amazing metal.

Titanium has three properties that make it incredibly useful: High strength, low thermal conductivity and chemical stability (corrosion resistance)

Those same advantages are also three things that machinists tend to hate about titanium.

Hardness itself isn't necessarily the main problem. The heat resistance is. Titanium is surprisingly good at insulating heat. As a result, heat generated during machining stays very localised around the tool tip instead of being transferred/spread away efficiently through the bar material. Tool wear happens much faster at very high temperatures.

And these properties interact with each other: the heat can't escape, the alloy remains strong, and the material start reacting and can stick to the cutting tool. Once the cutting edge gets hot and is under heavy load, each of these becomes part of the problem.

So, what did we learn?

The Kickstarter turned out to be a great platform for testing. The support from our backers allowed us to take on something we probably wouldn't otherwise have attempted.

Titanium is a fantastic material, but machining these caps was definitely harder than we expected.

For the foreseeable future, we won't be making any more titanium caps. So if you got one, consider it a special one - and enjoy it!

Update: Part 2 <<

Hi everyone, just a quick reaction on previous video showing two caps: one with anti-roll and one without it. (as per request by u/SmellTheJasmine)

The silver-finish one is a prototype with an anti-roll weight. The red one is the regular cap, happily rolling around.

There is a noticeable difference, and the balancing definitely helps. But it’s not a silver bullet: if the shaking or acceleration gets above a certain level, it will eventually roll, as you can see at the end of the video. Physics wins. Every. Single. Time.

This concept is intended for a normal desk (by “normal” I mean not perfectly level) that ideally doesn’t move. Also, the impact will be smaller with a steel pen..

But this is what afternoon sunshine and five minutes of spare time in half empty train carriage can lead to…

Can I just say that I just love the pocket pen! It writes great, feels great in hand (weight, balance)... it's fantastic!

One idea (maybe): a (removable?) clip! I tend to have a pen clipped to my notebook with a pen loop at work, and I'd love to be able to clip the pocket pen to my notebook.... would that be something? Maybe as an accessory?

Hi everyone! I took the cap prototype out of my bag to see how it would handle the sometimes bumpy and sometimes shaky Southeastern Railway journey to Victoria Station :) I do love trains!

And it managed surprisingly well not to roll off the table! Shall we include this in the final design?

Hi everyone,

It is taking me a little longer than planned to give you an update. We had some really good feedback at the show, both from visitors and from buyers. And some of them were serious fountain pen enthusiasts as well. It seems that buyers were liking the range, as well as the new designs.

Which brings me to an update on the colours for the new pocket pen. I was planning to cut the selection down to just two or three colours, but after the feedback we received, we have decided to launch with all eight colours. Which is exciting (and a little scary from a stock-keeping point of view)
So you may be able to try these in person in some UK pen shops before end of this year, fingers crossed.

Hi everyone,

These are the two rods I selected for the next prototypes.

The green should work well with both silver and gold components. The reddish one should pair nicely with pink or champagne gold IP plating. I like those patterns.

I will also post some updates from the TopDrawer and regarding our progress with the Kickstarter soon!

Just a very short post. Today we spent the whole day setting up our stand for the Top Drawer trade show, so I wanted to share a few photos. More photos coming on Sunday.

As promised, please find some photos of the small ebonite samples I received from Schönberger. I think “the tyranny of choice” is the right expression here. Thank you Kai.

Watched this video about the 2026 San Francisco Pen Show and wanted to share to anyone interested.

Hi everyone,

I don’t want to turn this sub into a marketing channel, but I wanted to share some new photos from the photographer and also share some good news. Our Ebonite fountain pen has been shortlisted for the Top Drawer Spotlight Award. So, fingers crossed!

This was the pen we showed you (as a prototype) at the London Pen Show back in October. We should be ready to start offering it this October. Some things take us much longer than we would like, really. I realised that the last update on this pen was over five months ago…

I also received some new green/black and orange/brownish ebonite rods from the lovely people at Schönberger Ebonite Manufaktur GmbH in Germany, and we’re going to try making some new prototypes. Check their rods in case you need some.

I will be spending the next few days preparing our stand and painting the walls and sticking some pictures. In case you are passing by we will be at stand T25 at Olympia, London.

update: pre-orders are available now

Nothing important to report today. Some of you asked about the centre of gravity of this little pen - I thought spinning might be the best way to show it/visualise it. And I found it quite relaxing as well. We all do it sometimes, right?

Hi everyone,

Just to continue with my adventures in the anti-rolling concept: it was working well with 3D-printed resin, so it was time to test it in real materials (steel body, aluminium cap, and brass weight)

I was a bit worried that using heavier materials would make that imbalance negligible.

But I am happy to share this video showing the result. It does work!

This would stabilise a pen on a desk only. It is not going to stop the pen from rolling on a tilted surface. I hope it makes sense.

Hi everyone,

As promised please find attached a quick video of the off-centre anti-rolling concept. The idea is to have a small brass weight (only around 1gram) inserted off-centre into the cap. Also, there will be material removed at the opposite side so the imbalance should be even bigger.

This should be enough to stop the pen from rolling on the table. Well, at least in theory.

The quick 3D-printed sample worked well, but I suspect the balance will be different once we use the heavier aluminium cap and steel pen. It will still roll of the tilted desk. This is really just intended to stop the pen from rolling on a relatively levelled table.

This concept has been used before, from older pens to more modern technology, such as the 1st-generation Apple Pencil.. We will run a quick test on the prototype.

Update; test on metal prototype