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View Full Version : Review: Noodler's Konrad



Jimmy James
May 20th, 2012, 11:13 PM
This review is also kept at my infant pen blog, The Inked Nib (http://theinkednib.com/post/23465597251/review-noodlers-konrad).

I’m a fan of the idea of the Noodler’s pen. I own more than a dozen between the three fountain pen models (Nib Creeper, Ahab, and Konrad). I have the artwork from each taped to the wall in my office. They’re not always easy to work with, and they’re not my best pens. They are a lot of fun to mess with in my book.
Page 1: Staples Sustainable Earth Legal Pad

Page 2: Staples Signa Legal Pad

Page 3: Norcom (USA) Single Subject Notebook Paper

Ink (Jade Ebonite): Noodler’s Henry Hudson Blue (FPH exclusive)

Ink (Roaring 20s): Noodler’s Rome Is Burning

Ink (Red Mesa Tortoise): Platinum Mixfree Leaf Green

I bought three Noodler’s Konrad pens from three retailers. The first is a Jade Ebonite from Fountain Pen Hospital. The second is a Roaring 20’s Brown from Goulet Pen Company. The final Konrad is a Red Mesa Tortoise from iSellPens.

The most interesting thing about the Konrads to me is that the ebonite pen is about 1/2 inch of length longer than the others. The styling of the pens is quite similar. Each one is a piston filler with a blind cap covering the piston. I have not taken any of the pens apart, but I hear that the pens are completely user serviceable like all Noodler’s pens.

Each one of these pens came to me in 100% perfect shape and were ready to write. I know not everyone has had that experience, but I hope most people get good ones.

The non-ebonite pen is about 5 inches capped and about the same length unposted. It is about 5 1/2 inches posted. The ebonite pen is maybe 5 1/4 inches unposted, 5 1/2 inches capped, and about 6 1/4 inches posted. The ebonite pen is maybe 7/16 inch while the non-ebonite pen is about 3/8 inch.

I’m a fan of Noodler’s Pens. I own about 20 total pens, and none of mine have been terrible. The Konrad is the best pen yet. The flex nib is #6 size just like the Ahab. The Knox nibs available at xfountainpens.com should fit the pens. I really like the flexibility though it should be clear that I do not possess the skill necessary to make the most of the nib.

Handwritten review:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7075/7213436804_8c095c31c8_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213436804/)
Review (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213436804/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5465/7213439898_cdd51ef2c2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213439898/)
Review (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213439898/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7228/7213441946_13fc6683b2_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213441946/)
Review (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213441946/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

Photos:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7094/7213379916_fe53849498_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213379916/)
Konrad (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213379916/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5338/7213382044_14ec245d45_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213382044/)
Konrad (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213382044/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7071/7213383314_0e5112b08d_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213383314/)
Konrad (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213383314/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

Ahab and Konrad:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7239/7213385518_72dabd479b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213385518/)
Konrad (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213385518/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

Ahab, Konrad, and Nib Creeper:
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7093/7213387718_89c5131fd0_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213387718/)
Konrad (http://www.flickr.com/photos/erechtheus/7213387718/) by Erechtheus (http://www.flickr.com/people/erechtheus/), on Flickr

goldiesdad
May 21st, 2012, 05:55 AM
Thanks for the great review ... I too am very interested in the Conrad and this helps ...

Truppi327
May 21st, 2012, 06:21 AM
My Mesa Red Konrad is my first of about a dozen Noodler's pens that wrote absolutely, perfectly flawless right out of the box without a tinker or adjustment. Not a complaint, just good luck. I love the Noodler's pens and this is definitely my favorite so far. Posts wonderfully and the piston is awesome.

Do you know if the ebonite Konrads are still available/ will be made available again?

Jimmy James
May 21st, 2012, 07:20 AM
My understanding is that the ebonite pens are at some point coming back.

KrazyIvan
May 21st, 2012, 09:02 AM
One of these days I am going to get a Noodler's pen. :p

lovemy51
May 22nd, 2012, 03:13 AM
one of these day i will stop buying these................ they work great with some other nibs -like the Knox or the Walities.

thx for the review, JJ. i like the look of the ebonite!! oh, oh, here we go again!!! maybe this one last time!

etoyoc
May 22nd, 2012, 04:54 AM
I keep saying no more Noodler pens, and yet I had to buy this one. Actually, I am glad I did. This is the first one that worked well out of the box without any fiddling or adjustment. I still don't care that much about flex, so I may end up eventually putting a different nib in. However, for now it has worked well with the stock nib. So maybe I will play with flex some in the summer.

goldiesdad
May 22nd, 2012, 04:51 PM
Great review ... I am looking into getting the Konrad ...

Jimmy James
May 22nd, 2012, 07:03 PM
Just to update, Brian Goulet seemed to get new information on the ebonite pens because he posted something in response to me today that indicates they'll be a different pattern than what I have (and the other FPH run of ebonite pen ones). I for one cannot wait to see the new pattern or patterns.

Freddy
May 22nd, 2012, 08:29 PM
I find Noodler's pens way over-hyped. I have the original Flex and the Ahab and was so disappointed in both that I didn't even consider the Konrad, though I really like its styling. And don't even get me started on the Noodler's roller ball...a great idea that turned out to be useless because the balls themselves jammed or the ink flow just wasn't there. It's sad because I really wanted to like the Noodler's pens as much as I like so many of the Noodler's inks. :( I guess I'll just wait until I can be assured of better quality control. I can only assume that is the problem since so many sing the pens' praises.

lovemy51
May 22nd, 2012, 10:33 PM
Just to update, Brian Goulet seemed to get new information on the ebonite pens because he posted something in response to me today that indicates they'll be a different pattern than what I have (and the other FPH run of ebonite pen ones). I for one cannot wait to see the new pattern or patterns.

ooooooh, me likes it! i'll be checking their site regularly!

on a separte note: my Ahab and Konrad are now fitted with different nibs -Wality and Knox, respectively.

melissa59
May 30th, 2012, 07:15 PM
The Noodler's Konrad is the only fountain pen I've ever owned or used. Not having anything to compare it with makes it impossible for me to give it any sort of review, but I did want to comment.

I rinsed my pen according to the directions in the box, filled it with ink and got blobs. I wasn't surprised, what with all I'd read about the Konrad's having issues. I took my pen apart and inspected it. I found a tiny sliver of plastic on the tip of the plunger. I plucked that off, rewashed everything, let it dry, put it back together and filled it. This time, I hardly had any ink flow. So, I played around with the nib and feeder (just learned that word!) until I got the ink to come out but not drip out. Now, I LOVE playing with my new Konrad.

I have to admit, it was great fun taking this pen apart and putting it back together again. That was part of the fun. Of course, I watched a video that showed how to do it before I even ordered my pen.

Konrad works well with one of my cheapie composition books. But he HATES the rough textured paper in another cheapie composition book that I picked up. It bothers him so much that he won't release even a drop of ink as I try to write. Next, I hope to try out some different inks and maybe a good quality paper, like Clairefontaine.

Melissa
P.S. Is it strange to refer to Konrad as "he"? :-)

writingrav
May 30th, 2012, 07:35 PM
I too had to readjust the nib on the feed. No problem since.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

PSmith
June 1st, 2012, 11:36 AM
I find Noodler's pens way over-hyped. I have the original Flex and the Ahab and was so disappointed in both that I didn't even consider the Konrad, though I really like its styling. And don't even get me started on the Noodler's roller ball...a great idea that turned out to be useless because the balls themselves jammed or the ink flow just wasn't there. It's sad because I really wanted to like the Noodler's pens as much as I like so many of the Noodler's inks. :( I guess I'll just wait until I can be assured of better quality control. I can only assume that is the problem since so many sing the pens' praises.
More or less the same story here. I bought the Flex and the Ahab and although I have no real problems with them, they simply did not live up to all the hype. So, even thought it might be a great pen, no Konrad for me either.

My roller ball writes too grittily to be of much use. I'm constantly examining other roller balls, hoping to find one with a "nib" that might fit the Noodler's pen. No luck so far.

jor412
June 2nd, 2012, 10:43 PM
Actually, I've seen a lot of criticism against the Ahab. I have two Ahabs. One worked out of the box after cleaning and the other needed more than one washing to get it going. I have two regular Noodler's flex pens. Neither had any problems. The newer one seems to have an improved nib. They're daily work pens that I don't have to worry about because they're inexpensive. Anyway, I ordered the Konrad because I like the way it looks.

IWantThat
June 3rd, 2012, 09:10 AM
A friend bought 2 Konrads. One wrote perfectly out of the box, and she loved it. The other...was a problem child. I reset the feed for her, per the video instructions from Nathan, because it dripped ink. She still had trouble with it and gave it to me because she didn't want to mess with it. I think the pen writes nicely. It still drips a bit, so I may need to reset the feed again and try for a better fit. It's a fun pen to play with, but if you just want a pen that writes reliably and doesn't need a lot of tweaking (say, if you're a newbie like my friend), it can be a pain. I'm having fun 'fixing' it and learning more about how to adjust nibs :)

duende
June 3rd, 2012, 11:58 AM
In terms of ergonomics (i.e., writing for extended periods) which pen do you think comes out on top- Ahab or Konrad?

jor412
June 3rd, 2012, 06:08 PM
The Konrad is one of the pens I'm waiting for this month so I'll have to get back to you on that. But unless the pen weighed a ton or had terrible balance, wouldn't ergonomics also depend on how you hold the pen, how big your hands are, how you sit, etc.? I find the regular Noodler's far too light and slim. The Ahab is big so I'm forced to let it rest in my hand instead of gripping it tightly -- which I think is ideal. (Bigger pens have taught me to relax my grip.)

duende
June 3rd, 2012, 10:13 PM
@jor412

Interesting. Please let me know what you think of the Konrad once you get it. I'm still holding out for the all-black Konrad, which is surely being developed by Nathan in his secret alchemical laboratory. A black Konrad filled with Heart of Darkness would open a portal to a new dimension of fountain penning.:laser:

jor412
June 3rd, 2012, 10:43 PM
Will do. I was going to get the Roaring 20s Tortoise but I couldn't resist the Pequods Smoke. :)

KrazyIvan
June 3rd, 2012, 10:45 PM
I almost bought the blue demo, but it was out of stock at the Goulet's.

jor412
June 3rd, 2012, 10:52 PM
Again, that was fast! If I remember correctly they had just offered the 2 demo colors on May 30.

KrazyIvan
June 4th, 2012, 09:07 AM
Yes. Last time I looked the smoke was still available.

KrazyIvan
June 4th, 2012, 10:44 AM
isellpens.com has the blue demo. :D

jotterius
June 4th, 2012, 12:04 PM
I really look forward to the ebonite one

goldiesdad
June 4th, 2012, 02:31 PM
I had a blast playing with my Ahab over the weekend ... My redish fingers can attest to getting just the right ink flow and flex ... Loved playing with it
and can't wait to get the Conrad today to try different ink ...

You are right this pen is not for everyone but for 20 bucks I had fun playing in the ink ... I think that is what the designer had in mind a pen that requires
some playing and fine tuning to get it right for your writing style. He got that one right for me ....

melissa59
June 4th, 2012, 05:07 PM
My Konrad wrote beautifully for three weeks. Now, it's starting to skip. I'm not worried, though. I figure it's time to take it apart, clean it and put it back together again. Personally, I think a pen like this is a good way for a beginner like me to gain a better understanding of how fountain pens work.

I played with the nib placement and feeder placement, tips close, tips far. Ink all over the hands. Great fun! But as you said, it's not a pen for everyone. When it comes time for me to buy that one special pen, I will be very disappointed if I have to tinker with it like I've tinkered with the Konrad.

duende
June 4th, 2012, 05:48 PM
When it comes time for me to buy that one special pen, I will be very disappointed if I have to tinker with it like I've tinkered with the Konrad.


On the other hand, you might be disappointed that you can't tinker with it and get your fingers nicely stained with ink. :)

jor412
June 24th, 2012, 08:48 AM
I got my Konrad last week. It's great value for money. The size is perfect for my hand and I like that it's slightly heavier than the original Noodler's flex pen. Now I want another one. :p

KrazyIvan
June 24th, 2012, 11:18 PM
While I like the Konrad, it is not working for me with the flex nib. I just can't get the flexing right. I use it without flexing just fine. I may swap in a Knox nib.

jor412
June 25th, 2012, 08:10 AM
I should've mentioned that. I don't use it as a flex pen either. I'm using it now as a work pen.

TonicLime
July 4th, 2012, 02:23 AM
I use my Konrad almost daily with Noodler's Army Green. Rome burning looks like a must have ink! Great review.

FP_GaF
July 11th, 2012, 02:22 PM
I have got a Konrad coming my way from the Goulets. Should arrive any day now but after having read this review I cannot wait one second longer. Curse on you... Just kiddin' :jester:

Great review, well done!

KrazyIvan
July 12th, 2012, 06:13 PM
Now that Gclef gave me a few pointers on flexing nibs, I am getting the hang of it. It really makes it a nice pen when you actually can use it the way it was meant to be used.

southpaw52
July 13th, 2012, 05:42 AM
I have been disappointed in the Noodler's pens, to a point where I won't purchase any additional pens. I agree they are over-hyped, for the most part have been problematic and a disappointment for many. If one was to compare them to pens made in India, there is a striking resemblance.

For another $10 you could buy a Lamy Safari.

jor412
July 13th, 2012, 09:40 AM
From what I've read, some of the parts are sourced from India so the resemblance is understandable. What I like about Noodler's pens in general is that you can completely disassemble them and I also like that even pale inks write darker in them. So far, I've been lucky in that the ones I've had write the way they're supposed to after one cleaning, though I have heard that others have had difficulties with their pens.

manoeuver
July 14th, 2012, 07:34 PM
Wasn't thrilled with my Ahab, I gave it to me wife.

Will probably try the Tortoise Konrad though.

Seems like the noodlers pens are inconsistent and fixable if you like fiddlin with pens. I'd rather have one that just works (my ahab kinda didn't.)

I detect a niche market: reselling noodlers pens after making them work. What kind of markup could you get if you offered a 'writes like you want it to' guarantee?

jor412
July 14th, 2012, 08:29 PM
Here's an update on my Konrad experience. Overall, I still like this pen more than the Ahab and original piston fill flex. The size works for me and I find the pen itself good-looking. The smoke pequod offers the fun and ink view of a demonstrator but hides discoloration or staining. If you're obsessive compulsive about demonstrator stains like I am, this is a plus.

I have one con versus my pros for the Konrad: Disassembly is harder for this pen than for the other Noodler's pens.

Some notes on this:

1) The filling unit turns in the same direction as the blind cap. A Goulet pens video mentions the possibility of accidentally removing the unit while unscrewing the blind cap, but there's also the reverse. Because you screw the blind cap and filling unit in the same direction, it's possible to accidentally over-tighten the filling unit, which makes it harder to remove later on when you want to clean the whole thing.

2) The piston has 2 o-rings and 3 parts:
a) A threaded sleeve that fits into the barrel
b) A large-threaded screw (I don't know what else to call it) that moves the piston up and down
c) The piston or the part that moves up and down

The sleeve has 2 barely visible notches opposite each other. These are the guides for re-inserting the piston. If the piston is inserted wrong, it will get stuck, will not function properly, and will need some effort to remove.

About resale: I've seen at least one mark up but the pen included extra Knox nibs.

About clear demonstrators: It seems Noodler's might release a clear demonstrator version. I had a clear Ahab I tried out as an eyedropper. The whole barrel was discolored pink-orange by Sailor epinard. I had previously read that epinard was safe for demonstrators. Anyway, I couldn't remove the discoloration regardless of what I tried. I think the plastic used is more prone to staining than the Kaweco sport and TWSBI.