Deli Xtream pen review

This basic plastic pen takes inspiration in its design from the famous Jetstream. The pen is affordable and decent looking. 

The color of the pen indicates the color of the refill, blue in this case and 0.7 mm ball point. The refill is actuated by a click mechanism. The body of the pen is completely made out of plastic including the clip which doesn't inspire too much trust in the security, but on the bright side the pen is not much more expensive than a disposable.

The body of the pen is translucent which allows to see the level of ink inside the refill. And the grip is covered in rubber, making the pen very comfortable to hold and easy to write with.

In this regard the pen did well, having good ergonomics, good price and a somewhat modern, ok looking design. But one of the most important things in a pen is the ball point and how does it write.

Upon first inspection the line of the pen writes thin. I suspect it is under the claimed 0,7 mm, and the blue tone of the ink is appealing. But the smoothness can't be compared to the Jetstream. 

When taking the pen apart it is more clear that the pen uses a more regular refill that can be found in most of the cheap pens.

It is not by any mean a bad pen, but it is in a close competition with the Jetstream either.

Bad pens

A pen set, is a good and considerate gift, but can also be a bad gift if you do not buy a good one, especially the bad quality of a fountain pen is going to ruin the hole experience of such a gift. These sets (fountain pen +  boll point) are popular among people with not a lot of knowledge about fountain pens. Shoppers gravitate towards these kinds of sets because they usually come in a nice box, this fact alone makes it a nice gift, and also the set will offer the best of both worlds, a "sophisticated" fountain pen and a "high quality" ball point (when I say high quality I mean it is not the generic plastic disposable pen). Be aware and don't judge a pen by the box it came in.

In the previous post, I said that even unknown brands can have a decent offering with quality products, but this is not always the case. Many times, getting a brand name guarantees a certain level of quality.

I have to apologize about the quality of the photos, I only realized now that the white balance is everywhere, but I will consider my in existent photography skills the icing on the cake when it comes down to these pens.

I am starting the year with cleaning and decluttering, so without any further ado the first spot in bad pen sets gifts is going to Alfa branded set consisting of a fountain pen and a ball point. The pen and fountain pen come in an interesting looking case, made out of metal that opens to revile the pens inside.

The set is kind of old, but it hasn't been used. The metal bodies don't look that good. The finish that was supposed to protect the metal didn't do a good job, and the gray finish is now doted with dark spots of oxidation (I think).

The clip works great, and this is the only thing great about the fountain pen. The nib and feed didn't work properly, and after a few letters the nib was starved of ink, skipping every other line.

Don't pay attention to the current condition of the nib, it was mangled in frustration a long time ago. The cap is a screw cap with 2 and 1/2 turns to take it off. The grip section is metal, same as the rest of the pen.

Not much else to tell, except the ball point pen works as intended. But the body has the same problem as the fountain pen regarding the corrosion.

 

All I can say about this writing set is, case closed.

Moving on to the next gem, which comes in an impressive wood box. This writing set was a corporate set. The box is branded with the name of a company. I deleted the name from the photo, as the idea here is not to point fingers.

The box is padded on the inside with a foam covered in a green soft material. The contrast between the shade of the lacquered wood and the green velvet like material looks very nice. The set has a fountain pen, a ball point and a letter opener?!? It was intended for someone classier than me, that is a fact.

The fountain pen and ballpoint are made out of the same wood as the box, and have nice gold looking trims. I usually don't like gold color, but in this combination I am convinced that it looks better than silver would.

The cap is a snap cap that fits securely on the body. When you take it off, it will reveal the section which is on the thin size, made out of black plastic. At the end it has a gold collar and a golden nib. The wooden barrel has a metal threaded insert that screws on the nib section. The fountain pen takes standard cartridges.

Unfortunately, the fountain pen doesn't write, the nib has a severe baby's bottom.

The packaging is interesting and this is why this kind of products are gifted. It is obvious the money went in the packaging rather than in offering decent writing experience. Gifting a pen in a plastic bag might look underwhelming, but make sure when you choose a gift, the products actually works and is not just a decor piece.

Daco fountain pen (writig set or solo fountain pen)

This is not a known brand, but it is one of the no name that are available around where I live. The most common, the DACO products, are available as gift packs with a ballpoint pen and a fountain pen. They offer low cost products that look decent, usually metal construction, and can make a good gift that does not cost an arm and a leg. Probably for the most people who are not big into fountain pens, a heavier pen might be associated with a quality one, made out of good materials. And because we are right around the time of the year when Santa is doing his thing, I am going to share my thoughts on this kind of giftable writing sets that usually come with a fountain pen and a ballpoint. (not an actual gift from Santa).

The price range for a DACO pen is around 10 - 25 euro, which is not a lot but at the same time the upper models get in the same price range as more known brands, like Pilot or Faber Castell.

I do not know the name of this model and I do not think it would be very relevant, it was part of a set with a mechanical pencil and a ballpoint pen. It is more a review of how does a pen like this holds up to a more reputable brand.

 

The fountain pen as I mentioned is all metal construction. It feels nice in hand, not too heavy, not too light. The body is a dark gray / olive that looks classic and nice. The metal cap has a couple of rings on it to break the monotony of the shiny metal. The first place where you can tell this is a budget pen is the clip, which is not that great. Once you pop off the snap cap, you can see underneath the tip of the clip the name is branded. It is not that visible. 

Once you remove the cap, you are greeted by a decorated fine nib and a shiny metal grip section that has the same couple of circles for a more interesting design and for better grip. The grip is not that bad, taking into account the section is made out of shiny metal. What I am not fond about is the small diameter of the section. It is not the easiest to get along with if you plan to write more than a page.

 

At the opposite end, the body has a shiny plain metal finial that is well integrated in the overall design of the pen.

 

The threads on the body are well-made. The pen takes international cartridges, long or short, which is convenient. Especially for people who are not that deep in the fountain pen hobby. Changing the cartridge when you are out of ink is a great, hassle free operation. The cartridges are widely available. And if you want, you can always get a converter for the pen and use bottled inks

For testing purpose, I used Pelikan 4001 black ink. It is a quick drying ink. The pen lays a fine and dry line. But it does write nicely. It doesn't need pressure and there is almost no feedback. On standard paper you can feel a hint of feedback, but on a quality paper the pen glides effortless. I would say this particular model is smoother than my Faber Castell Loom or the Metropolitan.

Even though this pen writes really well, I don't know if this applies to all their pens, or it is a wheel of fortune. I can imagine that producers like this one don't have the same quality control in place as bigger brands.

For a casual writer, a drier pen is great, as it means you can use it on any kind of surface.

If you want to gift someone a writing or a fountain pen like this, I think it will be fine, especially if the person you are giving it is not an enthusiast. The pen writes well out of the box, no intervention on the nib is required, the materials are of good quality and for most people a metal pen might scream quality opposed to a plastic/acrylic pen which will just feel plastic. The fine nib is great, as the pen can be used in any scenario, even in a regular office where quality paper is rarer than a pink unicorn.

Metal mechanical pencil AMP37202 from Aliexpres

Recently I tested a few fountain pens that I bought on AliExpress, and now I went for an all-metal mechanical pencil. The pencil I am testing doesn't seem to have a name beside AMP37202. It isn't the catchiest name out there, for sure. On AliExpress, you can find it if you search for metal mechanical pencil. The pencil cost me $3.65 including shipping, and I chose the metal gray color 0.7 mm lead thickness. You can also find it in black, green, ivory, salmon, white in all sizes from 0.3 mm to 0.9 mm.

The appearance

The pencil has quite a nice look, and it has an all-metal body, which I think is made out of aluminum. At first glance, the pencil punches way above its price level, having a clean design, solid construction, knurled grip and nice colors.

The pencil has quite a pointy tip that would make it good for drafting. It has a sliding sleeve that works. The grip of the pencil is knurled, but not too deeply. It isn’t extra grippy. But it looks very nice with the 5 parallel rings that offer the pen a premium look.

The barrel is hexagonal and on the side it has a big sticker with a bar code lead thickness and model number. The clip is metal and very sturdy. On the part that connects to the body, it has a cutout that shows lead size, 0.7 mm.

The barrel seems to be made from one piece of metal and the tip is screwed on the mechanism. Even though the pencil looks nice, I have the feeling that the proportions of the parts are a bit off. The grip seems very long and in comparison, the body seems a bit short. So does the clip, which can be annoying in hand. If you grip the pencil close to the tip, the clip rubs on my hand quite a bit.

The cap is flared to the connecting and seems to be a bit loose. It doesn’t go over the mechanism too deeply, and I believe there is a high chance that it will get lost sooner rather than later. Under the cap there is an eraser.

The lead advance clutch mechanism is made out of brass, while the internal barrel that holds the leads is just plastic.

How does it perform?

 The pencil sits very well in the hand as it has a long knurled grip section. Having such a long grip section gives you a lot of hand positions, allowing to have a close to the tip grip or a further back one.

The lead advancing mechanism feels snappy and secure, but also has a faint feel of friction.
10 clicks will give just over 8 mm of lead.

End to end, the pencil measures 146, and the diameter is 9 mm.

Fake Wingsung 3008 fountain pen

I have seen a lot of talk about the cheap and very nice Wingsung 3008, and I decided to give it a try. Being my first piston filler fountain pen I was very intrigued by it. I ordered it along with other pens from Aliexpress and waited... and waited

One eternity later ... (to be fair the local postal service is not the fastest, so this contributed to the wait as well)

The fountain pens arrived in the mail. The fountain pen was in this orange cardboard small box. I took it out and after a short inspection, I realized it is a fake Wingsung 3008. I went back on Aliexpress and indeed the pictures presented by the seller were correct, only the description was misleading.

Right from the start, I could see the quality of the fountain pen was sub-par even for a Chinese fountain pen.

I will start with the exterior and the feel. The barrel is made out of clear plastic which has molding lines on the side. If you pay attention, you can see and feel them. The cap is made out of nice to the touch black opaque plastic and has a chromed trim at the tip and a nice and secure clip.

The cap is screw fit and comes off after 1 and a half tuns. Inside the cap, there is some sort of white plastic lining. I do not like the feeling when you screw it back on, there is no clear point at which the two sections are perfectly screwed, it always feels that you can twist it a little bit more. After you take the nib off you are presented with a clear nib section and feed, a very nice look. The grip has three flat sections for a "better" grip. one at 6 o'clock and the other two in the mirror at 10 and 2.

From this point forward, things look a little iffy. The nib is plane and has no decoration on it whatsoever. It sits very far from the section, it is like it is missing something, or it is a size smaller than the feed. Because of its position, I feel that I am writing with a wand. And it has a weird look  The metal in it is very thin, and after I pushed it a little bit it bent, which is not a good sign... Out of the box, the nib was ok-ish, but had a squeaking sound on paper. After a bit of tweaking and writing with it, the sound is not so obvious. Now it is writing fine, it is smooth and has a low to medium ink flow.

The piston filling mechanism offers a lot of ink capacity. I think the piston can't be disassembled for cleaning. To actuate it, you turn the nob on the top of the pen. It doesn't have a locking system, there is a bit of play in it when it is fully closed. Inside the barrel is a dimple over which the piston has to travel. You can feel that bump, as it requires more pressure to go over it, so I can consider it a "locking" mechanism. I do not know how other pens do it, but I don't think this is the best system. I am not worried that the ink will come out accidentally, but because the gasket has to travel over that hump over and over, make me think it's more of a disposable pen. 

The fountain pen is comfortable in hand, and it can be used for long writing sessions. The size is good, and it can be used without posting it. The cap posts shallow but really well and secure, without the risk of activating the piston.

So far I hadn't had problems with burps from the fountain pen, but at the same time, the fountain pen was never with me on a plane or on a desk where the sun is shining all day. But just from holding it in the hand and writing for moderate periods of time.

Baoke pen

This is not a known name, but you will find here and there reviews mostly of fountain pens over the internet. It is a Chinese brand, usually found on eBay but I found this pen in a local shop. It intrigued me as it was rather cheap and it seemed like a nice pen at the same time. The Baoke B33 1.0 (I guess 1.0 is the thickness of the refill) 

The pen is inspired by Parker Jotter, I wouldn't call it a copy but the design definitely has some Jotter vibes.

The body is a very nice plastic that has a soft feeling, giving it a more premium feel and look. The plastic didn't deteriorate over time, as I have this pencil for a couple of years. I do not use it very often, it stays at the office most of the time and I use it to take notes, sign stuff if I don't have other pens on me, or lend it to colleagues.

The barrel is on the thinner side, but it is a nice size for short sessions. 

The upper section has a metal sleeve to give a more sturdy and premium look, underneath if you force it off you will find plastic.

The clip is strong and secure, as well as the mechanism which has a good feel.

The refill is Parker style, and it writes ok, no complaints here. The color of the ink is a nice blue. And I would rate the writing experience above average from what you would expect from a Chinese pen cheap ballpoint pen.

Gel Pens Pelikan, Pilot vs cheap brand

There are many products with very different price points and you can't just wonder, why the difference? You can tell yourself, it is the quality what you pay is what you get. But really?
I am bringing in to the ring an incredible threesome of gel pens.
Pelikan Soft Gel, Pilot Super Gel and no name brand Forster.

Cold start test. 

After a long period of sitting on the shelf. It is the first test because I had to get them started.
Pelikan, Pilot Super Gel 0.5 had no problem starting right away. Pilot 0.7 had some issues and Forster needed convincing.

Line width and saturation. 

I am testing only general purpose writing colors (blue, black)
Black color, test between Pilot 0.7 and Pelikan. I can say that Pelikan produces a hair skinnier line (the size is not advertised) and it seems to be a little less saturated compared to Pilot 0.7 mm

Blue color, test between Pilot 0.5 & 0.7 and Forster. Forster does not specify the width but is around 0.5. It is a lighter blue compared to Pilor but nice color. The width is very close to Pilot 0.5. The 0.7 mm Pilot has a darker color and a thicker line.

Bleeding

I tested all this on cheap copy machine paper, because it is most likely to use this pens in an office environment where this kind of paper is the norm.
No surprise the thinner the point less bleedthrough.
Worst performance order:
Pilot Super Gel 0.7 black. Bleedthrough but can be used
Pilot Super Gel 0.7 blue. Bleedthrough but can be used
Pilot Super Gel 0.5 blue. It has decent performance and can be used
On the same place Pelikan Soft Gel and Forster with very little bleedthrough.

Comfort and ergonomics

The best in class is the Pilot, which has a grip section with smooth circles spaced closely. It is comfortable and you can use the pen for long hours
Second is the Pelikan with a rubber insert. It is at the same level with the plastic body. It feels good but I do not think offers to many benefits.
Last is the Forster which has the grip identical with the rest of the barrel just a bit thicker. It is not uncomfortable to use but for sure they cut some corners to be able to produce them for cheap. It has a sharper edge if you're gripping the pen close to the lead.

Writing experience

The writing is the most important aspect of the pen after all. I can say that all right ok, but my opinion is that Pelikan is the smoothest. Pilot has a bad feel to it, it's like the ball is wobbling inside, it does not seem a quality assembly. And this aspect is true to all of the tested Pilots. Even the Forster felt better to me.

Quality

Forster is cheaply made, the cap is not as secure as the other. Also, the clip cannot be used as if you pull it slides out of the cap. This is not valid for all the ones I have only for the blue color. But it shows that the quality control and the design are not the best.

Value

This is a very interesting section. Because I don't think it is a surprise to anybody that the quality on a cheap no-name brand is lower compared to Pilot or even Pelikan.
But the real question is a cheap product a good value to the customer. Well, it can be a very good value sometimes.
In this case, I think you get 90% of the quality for a lot less money
It's not the most scientific test you can make but sometimes you need to simplify the process and admit that your mileage might vary.
How long will the pen write depends on the level of ink inside. Of course, other factors influence the mileage, like the line thickness, reservoir diameter, and ink viscosity. So the 0.5 pens will last longer than 0.7.
But to compare the pens (0.5) without writing until the pen is out of ink I measured the ink inside. I assumed the diameter and viscosity of the gel holder are similar so I did not take this into consideration while doing the measurements. Pelikan and Forster do not say the line thickness but I consider them to be a 0.5 as they are very close to the Pilot in width.

Brand	Ink level	Price	Ink	Price
	cm	eur	comparison	comparison
Froster	9.7	0.24	benchmark	benchmark
Pelikan Soft Gel	10.7	0.64	+ 10.3%	267%
Pilot Super Gel	9.9	0.99	+ 2%	413%

In this situation, Forster is cheaper by a mile. It holds less ink but it is cheaper between 2 and 4 times than Pelikan and Pilot. That in my book is called a good deal. But there is a catch. The ink levels between my Forster pens vary a bit. One of them has 1.5 cm less than the one I measured. Another one is 0.9 cm less. So this is not very consistent. But even if I would redo the test, and I would use the one with the smallest amount of ink the test will still look great. The Pelikan would hold ~ + 30% more ink but still costs 2.67 times more. The Pilot would hold around + 20% more ink and would still cost more than 4 times as much. So you can buy for each 2 Pelikans 5 Forsters, And for each Pilot 4 Forsters.

Annoying is the fact that not all pens are filled up as they should be, and again this is the lack of quality control with this ones.

All discomforts aside they are good value. Pelikan is the second on the list and Pilot get the disappointing 3rd place as the product is very expensive, and the writing experience is not as good as the cheaper products tested.

Tianhao mechanical pencil

At the last visit at the local supermarket, I saw this mechanical pencil somewhat copying the design of the Pentel Graphgear 500, that came along with a pack of 20 2B leads, all for 0.50 $. If interested you can see some more look-alikes in the post Copy cats.

My thoughts were, I can not go wrong with the package, if the mechanical pencil is crap, at least I get an almost free pack of leads.

The design of the mechanical pencil is interesting, I would call it nice. I like the fact that the grip is a separate piece of plastic with a silver color while the barrel is black.

The mechanical pencil looks ok with the condition you look from a distance. At a closer glance, you see the pencil has a bend in the shaft. The fixed sleeve is a little larger than the diameter of the lead so there is play in the lead, and this causes the lead to break a lot. Also, the lead advances too much at every push. In combination with the soft, easy to break leads it came with it is a disaster to write.
But I found later why the sleeve is so larger, maybe ...
The led it came with branded as microled even though is 0.5 mm it is larger, or at least some of the mines are. I tested various leads in the post "Mechanical pencil lead", including the one that came with this pencil to see if is there a real difference in quality between known brands that have decent quality products and cheap no name leads. Biiiig mistake. I used a Rotring Tikky and first the lead broke. Not a tragedy but it got stuck in the sleeve and I could not get it out. It was stuck like glue in. I had to use a needle and pliers to push the led out. After a bit of struggle, it came out with a plastic bit that is inside the sleeve of the Rotring Tikky which has the role to keep the lead tight with no wobble when you write.
It does not come with an eraser, but this is not a problem for me as I do not like to use the erasers that come with my pencils. Not because they are not capable, but because I do not like the look after use. I always have an eraser block with me.
The clip rotates around the barrel and does not inspire confidence. But I think this is the greatest feature of the mechanical pencil. At least you can have the hope of losing it sooner rather than later. But probably this will not happen as the clip is not that problematic.

In conclusion, the mechanical pencil is bad and it's not usable.