I was captivated by the vacuum filler in this pen and read reviews that this pen had a buttery smooth nib. It wasn't until I wrote with it that I truly understood why this pen is adored by the fountain pen community.
Model:Custom 823
Year: 2010's
Nib:14k gold Medium, 'Architect grind' (R.Binder)
Colour:smoke w/ gold trim
Appearance & Design
The Pilot custom 823 has a traditional cigar shape with gold accent trim. It is available in clear, amber, and smoke colours that all demonstrate the filling system with smoke being the darkest of the 3. I am not a big fan of demonstrator pens but find ink windows a useful feature in pens, this smoke model is a perfect balance of clarity for me without looking cheap. It has a large gold nib with eloquent scroll work, clean lines and smooth transitions of between components result in a pen that looks refined and well polished.
Construction & Quality
The pen is well built, the components feel solid and even the plunger rod has a presence about it that looks durable. The threads are smooth and all components fit with precision. Even though the body and cap are plastic, it is thick enough to exude quality.
The diameter is larger than most pens I own and it is similar to the Ahab in comparison. The 823 is a big pen and I was happy that the cap posted deep on the barrel keeping the length a manageable size. It is a really well balanced pen and comfortable to use for long periods of time with and without being posted. I do prefer to post my pens but this one doesn't matter to me, it feels great both ways. The section nib combination distances my hand far enough from the surface that it keeps my grip on the section.
The nib is available in a variety of sizes, this medium is exceptionally smooth with a little bounce. This makes for a pleasant experience when writing. The flow of ink is on the wet side and did bleed through cheaper copy paper. The medium line thickness was more close to a fine which is common when comparing a Japanese grind to North American. Just recently while attending the Ohio Pen Show I had the opportunity to meet Richard Binder and have him work on this pen with me, I was looking to have the nib shape changed to an ‘Architect grind’. This could be called a reverse italic nib when looking at how it produces a fine line on a down stroke and wider cross strokes. A great experience having met the man and watching him work. The only drawback that the large Custom 823 nib has presented is full submerging the nib when filling, ink levels need to be high and there are only a handful of ink bottles that will support it when levels are low. I have read that disassembling the nib/feeder/section will void any warranty work so to date I have not tried removing the nib, but I haven’t had the need yet.
The filling system caught my attention when looking at this model, it is a vacuum plunger style that is a pleasure to use and watch. The barrels ink container flares closer to the section, as the plunger is moves towards the flare the air pressure builds. When the plunger meets the flare all the pressure is released creating a vacuum that pulls ink into the container in one quick burst. This chamber holds a lot of ink, the highest I have seen 2.2 mL. It will take two plunges to reach this capacity, typically the first fill of ink is 75-80% of the chambers capacity. The mechanism is threaded into the barrel end and cap be removed easily for cleaning and maintenance. One feature that the system is that when the plunger cap end is screwed down into the locked position the plunger head with the ink chamber seals off the feed from the container. With the plunger cap in the locked position the pen is able to use the remaining ink in the feed/section of the pen, it is not until the plunger cap is loosened that the ink will flow as intended. I have read this is good for traveling in airplanes but have not had a chance to test it.
Cost & Value
I found this pen from my local classifieds for about half the retail price and at the time of purchase it was hard for me to justify that much money for a pen but after using and owning the Pilot Custom 823 I would buy it again in a heartbeat. It is certainly a great value for a pen that has just so much to offer.
It is difficult to imagine a better writing experience, filling mechanism, and capacity of what this pen brings to the table. All in all it is a perfect writing instrument in my opinion and worthy of call a grail pen. A must buy!
Love my 823 in medium as well, just so buttery smooth it's such a joy to write with no matter to occasion! Definitely what I would call a grail pen, I do a lot (alot) of writing so I end up refilling the pen every other day and that's with the 100% 2.2ml fill technique. What other pen can match it purely on that alone AND it's amazing writing character? Very very few pens or none at all. Out of the top of my head I can only think of Visconti Opera Master but those weigh over 60 grand!
ReplyDeleteWell, I have a Visconti Titanic LE, writes at least as well as the Pilot 823 and has aprox. 2x ink capacity.
DeleteThat one would be for me.
The 823 has so many great qualities that there may not be a comparable in that price range. I was amazed to hear you fill your pen every other day, it must be difficult for you to use most modern pens as the majority are cartridge converters with limited ink capacity. -GA
ReplyDelete