I just got this pen today, with the clear body and EF nib. Sweet crispy crunchy Christopher, the fit and finish of this pen is amazing. There was a brief white-knuckle period after inking where the pen gave me hard starts and leaks and stained my fingers. But after a very brief break in period, good lord, this pen is awesome. The quality and look of the pen is stunning and I'm genuinely surprised that a pen this nice could possibly cost $30. I will certainly buy more TWSBIs in the future, but I can't imagine that a demonstrator pen could look much nicer than this, at any price. The feel of the acrylic and steel parts is awesome and solid, and it's hypnotizing to watch the ink slosh around in the barrel. This is a real marvel of engineering and should be considered an essential first or second fountain pen.
How much writing did it take to get the pen out of this "white-knuckle period" I just bought this pen with EF nib and I think I am experiencing the same things you experienced.
Update: At first it wrote terribly. Had to use a lot of pressure and skipped alot. It felt sort like a ball point. But after writing with it a bit it has gotten better. It is writing smoother, with considerably less pressure needed and it skips less. But it still skips a little bit. Hopefully it will continue to get better.
@@warblerab2955 My break in period only lasted a few days. The pen had a bit of a sweet spot and I had to find the right angle to write at and try to maintain that angle while writing. But such is life with fountain pens.
@@acrophobe I think I know you mean by that sweet spot. Thing is, I own both a pilot metropolitan and a lamy safari and neither have shut need to stay on the sweet spot. Anyway, thanks for the info.
Fantastic review! My boys (6 & 8) want to get me a pen for Father's Day. The Eco has been on the shortlist, but after seeing this review, it will be my choice (clear demonstrator). Thanks for the great review!
Oh wow that was quick. My local fountain pen store is getting the all clear ecos next week! I think I will definitely be picking one up, now I just need to decide on a nib. I'm leaning towards the 1.1 stub.
I love violette pensee! And I'm getting a TWSBI eco for Christmas, I really like the way that ink looks in the eco so it might the first ink to use in the pen :).
I agree that my Eco and my Twsbi Mini are excellent pens, inexpensive but of good quality. They're great writers and I use them almost every day. Highly recommended. The Eco even writes in reverse mode which is nice for making notes in the margin of a book or any time you need to do some tiny writing.
The Eco is one of my favorite pens. It's so functional and nifty for the price. If I was still a student, it would be permanently inked. But design wise, it's kind of a mess. The hexagonal cap that doesn't use its flat sides to avoid rolling. The mess of fonts on the cap band. The ugly top finial. The rectangular clip. It takes function over from to the extreme. Thankfully, it's an excellent writer and IMO the best starter pen there is if you don't care for cartridge ink. Otherwise, I'd recommend the Faber Castell Loom or Basic.
I just got a twsbi eco extra fine. It is not working well at all. It is scratchy and and skips all the time and feeling like it is dragging. I don't think the ink is flowing properly through it. It feels like in order to write with it, I have to use a some pressure and I know enough to know that you shouldn't need to use pressure to write with a fountain pen. Before i inked it up, I filled it with water and emptied multiple times, so it was cleaned before use. I can't say I am impressed with the pen so far.
Update: At first it wrote terribly. Had to use a lot of pressure and skipped alot. It felt sort like a ball point. But after writing with it a bit it has gotten better. It is writing smoother, with considerably less pressure needed and it skips less. But it still skips a little bit. Hopefully it will continue to get better.
WOW! What a lovely looking pen! And inexpencive too! I sure hope it doesn't have any cracking issues that could make it unusable after a couple months of use :D
In case anyone is interested, the traditional practice/test sentence is "The quick, red fox jumped over the lazy, brown dog." Seems like everyone has turned the fox brown and completely disregarded the dog's color! His feelings are hurt.
Does the pen stay wet, especially when doing long lines or flourishing? For examples in caps if you wish to do heavy cross flourishing or gestural lines? EF nib?
Hi, I just got my TWSBI Eco 1.1. I noticed that there is a SLIGHT GAP between the tines which runs parallel down to the tip. Is it natural or does it need correction? Thanks .. 😊
At first I was worried but then I just about died of laughter. Thanks Figboot for leaving the little blunder in the recording. More importantly, it was a nice review, as usual.
I've been binging on pen info and reviews (mostly yours!) the last few days. 👍🏼 I've been eyeballing this pen since I first learned about it. However, now that I know the use of the term "eco", I'm turned off! That's pretty cheesy for them to use that terminology when it doesn't have to do with an implied environmental friendliness of the pen.
On Eco: Awful pen for its section nubs near nib. Very annoying reminder to write horizontally, which is how poor writers write. Edge of section near nib must be round and smooth, which Chinese manufacturers could have done, if they had any brains (they don't). We are not children that need to be reminded to write horizontally for heaven sake. Some write with grip close to nib and will hit nubs in this case. Smallish nib makes one want to write nearer to the dreaded nubs with Eco. Of course you can grip away from nubs, higher up on section, but what good pen maker ever forces you to do this? Answer: None.
This seems to be one of the best pens for a student. Big ink capacity, good size, and pretty durable. I think I will have to pick one up soon.
Yes! Its a must have!!!
I am so looking forward to receive mine! I ordered the green one.
Yes. If you are a student this is the perfect pen. So much better than a Lamy Safari. I think it writes better and is way more durable.
Don't forget, affordable too
I just got this pen today, with the clear body and EF nib. Sweet crispy crunchy Christopher, the fit and finish of this pen is amazing. There was a brief white-knuckle period after inking where the pen gave me hard starts and leaks and stained my fingers. But after a very brief break in period, good lord, this pen is awesome. The quality and look of the pen is stunning and I'm genuinely surprised that a pen this nice could possibly cost $30. I will certainly buy more TWSBIs in the future, but I can't imagine that a demonstrator pen could look much nicer than this, at any price. The feel of the acrylic and steel parts is awesome and solid, and it's hypnotizing to watch the ink slosh around in the barrel. This is a real marvel of engineering and should be considered an essential first or second fountain pen.
How much writing did it take to get the pen out of this "white-knuckle period" I just bought this pen with EF nib and I think I am experiencing the same things you experienced.
Update: At first it wrote terribly. Had to use a lot of pressure and skipped alot. It felt sort like a ball point. But after writing with it a bit it has gotten better. It is writing smoother, with considerably less pressure needed and it skips less. But it still skips a little bit. Hopefully it will continue to get better.
@@warblerab2955 My break in period only lasted a few days. The pen had a bit of a sweet spot and I had to find the right angle to write at and try to maintain that angle while writing. But such is life with fountain pens.
@@acrophobe I think I know you mean by that sweet spot. Thing is, I own both a pilot metropolitan and a lamy safari and neither have shut need to stay on the sweet spot. Anyway, thanks for the info.
Great pen, great review. It is a work horse. Mine been inked up & used every day since I got it. TWSBI has another winner.
Love your videos!
Fantastic review! My boys (6 & 8) want to get me a pen for Father's Day. The Eco has been on the shortlist, but after seeing this review, it will be my choice (clear demonstrator). Thanks for the great review!
Cool! I don't think you will be disappointed. Thanks for watching.
Oh wow that was quick. My local fountain pen store is getting the all clear ecos next week! I think I will definitely be picking one up, now I just need to decide on a nib. I'm leaning towards the 1.1 stub.
Your comment on the Diamond 580 made me smile. Exactly my experience. Saw it, loved it, got into fountain pens. One of life's sweet surprises.
I love violette pensee! And I'm getting a TWSBI eco for Christmas, I really like the way that ink looks in the eco so it might the first ink to use in the pen :).
I agree that my Eco and my Twsbi Mini are excellent pens, inexpensive but of good quality. They're great writers and I use them almost every day. Highly recommended. The Eco even writes in reverse mode which is nice for making notes in the margin of a book or any time you need to do some tiny writing.
The Eco is one of my favorite pens. It's so functional and nifty for the price. If I was still a student, it would be permanently inked. But design wise, it's kind of a mess. The hexagonal cap that doesn't use its flat sides to avoid rolling. The mess of fonts on the cap band. The ugly top finial. The rectangular clip. It takes function over from to the extreme. Thankfully, it's an excellent writer and IMO the best starter pen there is if you don't care for cartridge ink. Otherwise, I'd recommend the Faber Castell Loom or Basic.
Jim Ramsey Khouri q
waiting on the all clear version...
The Twisbi 580 Diamond was the second fp I ever bought. At $80 it seemed like a tremendous investment in a pen.
I just bought an all clear ECO. Love it. My first “real” fountain pen after experimenting with Chinese knockoffs from eBay for awhile.
The white one, with a nice blue ink, looks amazing!
I just got a twsbi eco extra fine. It is not working well at all. It is scratchy and and skips all the time and feeling like it is dragging. I don't think the ink is flowing properly through it. It feels like in order to write with it, I have to use a some pressure and I know enough to know that you shouldn't need to use pressure to write with a fountain pen. Before i inked it up, I filled it with water and emptied multiple times, so it was cleaned before use. I can't say I am impressed with the pen so far.
Update: At first it wrote terribly. Had to use a lot of pressure and skipped alot. It felt sort like a ball point. But after writing with it a bit it has gotten better. It is writing smoother, with considerably less pressure needed and it skips less. But it still skips a little bit. Hopefully it will continue to get better.
Do you recall what ink was in the 580? Looks like nice blue
WOW! What a lovely looking pen! And inexpencive too! I sure hope it doesn't have any cracking issues that could make it unusable after a couple months of use :D
Good job on the vid , oh my Lamy Al Star arrived and I love it for school
Btw, the 580 uses a 5.5 nib. The Vac 700 uses a 6.
+Jim Ramsey Khoury Thanks...notated.
Nice review!
I will have to try that violet from j.herbin. I love violet inks
In case anyone is interested, the traditional practice/test sentence is "The quick, red fox jumped over the lazy, brown dog." Seems like everyone has turned the fox brown and completely disregarded the dog's color! His feelings are hurt.
I actually got it wrong too. It's "jumps". Otherwise there's no "s".
Does the pen stay wet, especially when doing long lines or flourishing? For examples in caps if you wish to do heavy cross flourishing or gestural lines? EF nib?
Twisbi eco and Lamy safary, best available edc fountain pens for everyone.
Do you have to lube it as soon as you get it or when the mechanism gets cluncky???
I think you present a very good video, easy to watch. Thanks.
Thanks for watching!
i just got this pen today, white color & ef nib
Your reviews are awesome!! I really enjoy them!!
Thanks for watching!
Hi, I just got my TWSBI Eco 1.1. I noticed that there is a SLIGHT GAP between the tines which runs parallel down to the tip.
Is it natural or does it need correction?
Thanks .. 😊
Does both fine and medium nibs are smooth in writing ??
I bought one of these and it was a big disappointment. Pilot metropolitan is far better at this price point. I’m sure there are others
DOH! Dat ending though ;b You alive? Do we need to call for medical assistance? Did the TWSBI hatin' Trolls hunt you down. ;b
It was a close call, but I survived...just barely, though.
At first I was worried but then I just about died of laughter. Thanks Figboot for leaving the little blunder in the recording. More importantly, it was a nice review, as usual.
That's a really nice shirt !
+Jack T Thanks. I picked up a couple while I was down at the Masters. All of the shirts I wear for these reviews are from different golf courses.
Where i Can buy this In Europe?
It appears they are available at a number of retailers throughout Europe: www.twsbi.com/pages/other-shops
And you can also buy it from amazon :)
🇸🇪?
Yes...picked that up on a trip to Sweden a few years back. Beautiful country...hope to visit again someday.
You are moore than welcome!
I've been binging on pen info and reviews (mostly yours!) the last few days. 👍🏼
I've been eyeballing this pen since I first learned about it. However, now that I know the use of the term "eco", I'm turned off! That's pretty cheesy for them to use that terminology when it doesn't have to do with an implied environmental friendliness of the pen.
On Eco: Awful pen for its section nubs near nib. Very annoying reminder to write horizontally, which is how poor writers write. Edge of section near nib must be round and smooth, which Chinese manufacturers could have done, if they had any brains (they don't). We are not children that need to be reminded to write horizontally for heaven sake. Some write with grip close to nib and will hit nubs in this case. Smallish nib makes one want to write nearer to the dreaded nubs with Eco. Of course you can grip away from nubs, higher up on section, but what good pen maker ever forces you to do this? Answer: None.
St
Really good review but the handwriting pisses me of