Platinum 3776 Century

[dgator]

Hi all,

Does anyone have hands-on experience with the Platinum 3776 Century? I have my eyes 👀 on the Bourgogne (burgundy) model, while the new Chartres Blue looks fantastic as well. Which nib did you pick?

As a point of reference, my Asian pen experience has been limited to a Pilot VP (medium & fine nibs) and 78G (fine, medium & broad nibs). All of my Pilots have been great pens.

Thanks in advance & happy holidays!

[Shashinjitsu]

I have a 3776 Celluloid with a 14k Broad nib. It has replaced my Sailor 1911 Standard as my favorite pen. I'm guessing the century has the same nib and only the body material has changed. This was my first Platinum pen (not counting the Preppy) and I love it.

[MrClockWork]

I have a 3776 Celluloid with a 14k Broad nib. It has replaced my Sailor 1911 Standard as my favorite pen. I'm guessing the century has the same nib and only the body material has changed. This was my first Platinum pen (not counting the Preppy) and I love it.

Can you explain a little more as to why the 3776 replaced your 1911? I have been looking between the 1911, 3776 and a few others. Any details are appreciated.

[IWantThat]

I have the 3776 Bourgogne, and as others have pointed out on FPN and elsewhere, it uses the same nib as the Nakaya standard models. I think what impresses me the most about my 3776 is the nib. It's very smooth and writes beautifully. The finishes are also nice for the price point (less than $200). It has me wanting more Platinum pens now. I have my eye on the Chartres for sure.

[maiboo]

I have the Bourgogne in broad that turned into a stub by Pendleton Brown (he did a fantastic job btw). I also have the Shoji and the new Chartres Blue, both in medium nib. I am going to get one of the medium turned into a cursive italic or stub. I really love them so far. They write very smooth and wet, just the way I like my pens. It's fantastic out of the box. The reason why I have turned to these is that I get pretty annoyed when I take my pen out after a week and it doesn't write right away. It's a pet peeve of mine and the pens that does that gets shelved. I'm not saying that only these pens will do that, I have a Pilot Custom 823 that is a very reliable writer and one of my favorites as well, that one is always in my rotation.

[KarloT]

The nib and feed on the Century are different from the older 3776s. The nib appears to be longer and slightly wider.

I was able to handle one at a shop and for my grip, the threads were hard to ignore. Not something I have felt on the Celluloid series or the President.

The Platinum nibs tend to have more feedback than Sailor or Pilot but I like this quirk. Also, the nib on my 3776 Zogan stays wet even after 10 minutes uncapped. My Sailor 1911 Large would dry up in under two minutes.

[liapuyat]

I saw and tried out KarloT's Chartres F pen, and eventually ordered a Chartres M. The ink flow is more generous than I am accustomed to in a Japanese pen, and I like it. The M nib writes like a Pelikan F and I like that about it, too. The translucent blue of the barrel is lovely, and I enjoy looking at the pen as I write.

[jor412]

I have the 3776 Bourgogne, and as others have pointed out on FPN and elsewhere, it uses the same nib as the Nakaya standard models. I think what impresses me the most about my 3776 is the nib. It's very smooth and writes beautifully. The finishes are also nice for the price point (less than $200). It has me wanting more Platinum pens now. I have my eye on the Chartres for sure.

Me too @ Bourgogne & hankering after the Chartres now. I really like this pen though I think I've so far spent more time admiring its looks then using it.

I saw and tried out KarloT's Chartres F pen, and eventually ordered a Chartres M. The ink flow is more generous than I am accustomed to in a Japanese pen, and I like it. The M nib writes like a Pelikan F and I like that about it, too. The translucent blue of the barrel is lovely, and I enjoy looking at the pen as I write.

I had been eying the Bourgogne for some time and when you referred to me KarloT's blog post and wonderful photos, that was the last push for me. hehe

[KrazyIvan]

I have a Platinum 3776 with a BB nib. I still have to review it for my blog.

[jor412]

Oh I forgot. I have the fine nib. Love the way it writes. I've loaded my Bourgogne with Noodler's Burma Road Brown which tends to dry up quickly in other pens. So far, the slip and seal mechanism works perfect.

[gwgtaylor]

I had a shoji century and returned it uninked due to the very poor build quality so I don't know about the nib. She shoji is a demonstrator and mine had a nasty looking injection molding mark on the section. Really ugly.

I recently got a Platinum President with a broad nib. It also has poor build quality with a protruding end cap trim ring and an overall feeling of cheapness. The nib is nice but doesn't quite save the pen.

I would say don't get a century unless you can inspect and try the pen befor you buy it or if the seller has a good return policy.

I've had markedly better results with multiple pilots and sailors. What an odd sentence.

Hope this helps.
-gerald

[jor412]

I've had markedly better results with multiple pilots and sailors. What an odd sentence.

-gerald

Too bad about your Shoji. But that is one hilarious sentence.

[Rollo the Cat]

Can anyone tell me if the Platinum nibs give any line variation? Not flex, just the abiltity to create wider lines with pressure. Are they nails or springs?

[jor412]

They're not exactly nails but I didn't notice any line variation. Nibs.com offers the 3776 Century pens with soft fine nibs at the same price as the usual nibs.

[UK Mike]

I would agree with you there - I have three Platinum 3776 Century's and although you can see the nib springing, there is not very much line variation.

Contrary to gwgtaylors experience, all my Platinums have been in perfect condition and have written excellently straight out of the box. I also have a Falcon and a Sailor 1911 with 21k nib and I prefer the Platinums because they are smoother - although the Sailor does have a lovely sound on the paper, it costs twice as much as the Platinum with no real difference in the finish.

[RudyR]

I had a shoji century and returned it uninked due to the very poor build quality so I don't know about the nib. She shoji is a demonstrator and mine had a nasty looking injection molding mark on the section. Really ugly.

I recently got a Platinum President with a broad nib. It also has poor build quality with a protruding end cap trim ring and an overall feeling of cheapness. The nib is nice but doesn't quite save the pen.

I would say don't get a century unless you can inspect and try the pen befor you buy it or if the seller has a good return policy.

I've had markedly better results with multiple pilots and sailors. What an odd sentence.

Hope this helps.
-gerald

I have to confirm the section marks on the Shoji. I was also going to return it until I wrote with it. Thats what saved it from being returned. I find though, that the build quality of the Sailor pens are quite a bit better than the Platinum. On the other hand, my Sailor does scratch and the sweet spot is extremely small. I demoed a Sailor Pro Gear and the nib was wonderful. Maybe Sailor Nibs are hit or miss. I should buy more Sailor pens. For science you know.

[gwgtaylor]

I had a shoji century and returned it uninked due to the very poor build quality so I don't know about the nib. She shoji is a demonstrator and mine had a nasty looking injection molding mark on the section. Really ugly.

I recently got a Platinum President with a broad nib. It also has poor build quality with a protruding end cap trim ring and an overall feeling of cheapness. The nib is nice but doesn't quite save the pen.

I would say don't get a century unless you can inspect and try the pen befor you buy it or if the seller has a good return policy.

I've had markedly better results with multiple pilots and sailors. What an odd sentence.

Hope this helps.
-gerald

I have to confirm the section marks on the Shoji. I was also going to return it until I wrote with it. Thats what saved it from being returned. I find though, that the build quality of the Sailor pens are quite a bit better than the Platinum. On the other hand, my Sailor does scratch and the sweet spot is extremely small. I demoed a Sailor Pro Gear and the nib was wonderful. Maybe Sailor Nibs are hit or miss. I should buy more Sailor pens. For science you know.

:-) for science. You owe it to the community!

I've got a large 1911 with a 21K H-MF nib and the thing is a masterpiece. Pound for pound as well made as my Mont Blanc 146 at a fraction of the vost

[Waski_the_Squirrel]

I own a Shoji. As another poster noted, it has lots of injection marks and other funny cracks and marks of other kinds. It writes all right, but I'm not overly impressed. The best thing about it is color. There is some flex to the nib, but not a lot. It also seems a lot pickier than my other pens about exactly how it is turned in my hand while I write.

[KrazyIvan]

Odd, my Platinum 3776 has no unusual injection molding stuff. Is it possible that eBay versions could be factory seconds?

[jor412]

Maybe only the Shojis have the injection molding problem. Several of us here have the bourgogne and chartres versions and none of our pens have such defects. I know someone who's waiting for a Motosu, the Shoji's predecessor. Will ask him about it.