Friday, February 12, 2021

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 150

Happy Lunar New Year! Today we're featuring two colourful Chinese fountain pens that I recently acquired via eBay...

(all photos by Maja ~ please click on images to enlarge)

(top pen ~ Moonman 'S3' "Autumn Leaves"; bottom pen ~ Moonman 'S3' "Marble Brown")

Moonman is the in-house brand of Shanghai Jingdian, an online (Taobao) retailer/designer located in Shanghai, China. The first Moonman fountain pen was the 'M1', I believe, which came out in 2017. Since then, they've come out with a variety of fountain pen models like the torpedo-shaped 'S1', the pocket flat-top 'N2', the Leonardo 'Momento Zero'- inspired 'M800' and others.

The 'S3' fountain pens are cigar-shaped and made of beautiful acrylics (with matching sections 😊) and very shiny, gold-coloured clips, cap bands, section & barrel rings (note: the trim looks silver-coloured in my photos, but it isn't). The pens weigh approximately 20 grams (with an empty converter) so they're light, but they're well-balanced and well-suited for longer writing sessions. Appearance-wise, they are reminiscent of a slightly shorter version of the venerable Platinum '3776 Century' fountain pen.


At 5.25 inches capped, the S3s are what I'd call "average-sized" fountain pens. If you want to post them, I'd suggest the handy "push & turn" technique that Norman Haase of HisNibs.com recommended for pen caps that are a wee bit "wiggly" when posted (thanks for the tip, Norman!)

 

The "Autumn Leaf" was the first 'S3' I bought, but when I saw the "Marble Brown" for sale, I fell in love with the colours and immediately ordered it from the same seller. The pens are cartridge/converter-fillers and both of mine came with converters. They're lovely fountain pens and well worth the $28-$29 CAD (including shipping from China) I paid for each of them.

By the way, I'd highly recommend the eBay seller "esybuy" from whom I bought the pens (and no, I have no afiliation to the seller) if you're shopping for Chinese fountain pens and want fast, reliable service. The pens came in black velvet sleeves (with drawstrings) and were well-packed in lots of bubble wrap. Mine didn't come with boxes, but I don't need more pen boxes!


The S3's cap band is simple and the overall design of the pen is very clean-looking. Regarding the clip  - one reviewer on Amazon complained that it doesn't rotate, but this is a non-issue for me. The clip is very secure, but (in my opinion) a bit tight--something to consider if you plan to clip the pen onto a shirt pocket or thicker sheaves of papers.



The nibs are made of steel and have "Moonman Super Quality" (in all caps) engraved on them, below a symbol/logo. The nib is gold-coloured like the trim, but the nib is a darker yellow shade (which you can't really see in my photo above).  Both F nibs (0.5mm, according to the seller) on my pens lay down a smooth, fine line. If you're looking for flex, though, you won't find it here!


If you are looking for a well-made, attractive, relatively inexpensive fountain pen, give the Moonman 'S3' a try - they come in several more beautiful acrylics (something to suit every taste!). For more information on Moonman pens and other modern Chinese fountain pens, I'd recommend checking out Frank Dong's excellent pen website FrankUnderwater.com

Wishing you & yours good health, happiness and success in the coming year!
~Maja

No comments: