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December 29th, 2024, 12:44 PM
#1
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Two inexpensive vacuum/plunger fillers
Okay, here's the Asvine P126 vacuum filler and the TWSBI Swipe plunger/vacuum (sort of?) filler. Both IMO are excellent pens and both are under $29. The pics show them new and un-inked, then stripped so one can see their operating innards, then inked and in use.
Review 1} This Asvine has an M nib and is incredibly smooth, ~it's nib ranks up there among the smoothest I've written with. However the pen has got a bit of weight on it to push around and is also a very wet writer, so when using it my handwriting tended to wander some on the page.
Review 2} The cheaper Swipe is much lighter overall and has a somewhat cheesy feel to it with it's fragile metal spring (an extra is provided) and skimpy plastic plunger. However I enjoyed writing with it more than the Asvine! ~The Swipe is also very smooth, with slightly more feedback, but I found it's quite good stub nib a delight to write with! ~I suspect that for strictly utilitarian purposes I could be quite happy with just owning a few Swipes (with stub nibs) to use as daily writers...! Clean pens.jpegOpen pens.jpegInked pens.jpeg
Last edited by Skip; December 29th, 2024 at 12:56 PM.
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The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to Skip For This Useful Post:
carlos.q (December 29th, 2024), catbert (December 29th, 2024), dneal (December 29th, 2024), FredRydr (December 29th, 2024), Lithium466 (December 30th, 2024), Robert (December 29th, 2024)
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December 29th, 2024, 08:16 PM
#2
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Re: Two inexpensive vacuum/plunger fillers
On second thoughts I guess it might be more accurate to call the Swipe a cartridge/convertor pen rather than a vacuum type... It's plunger 'convertor' is essentially a cheaper-made version of Pilot's Con70 convertor and it works quite well; several repeated pumps easily filled the Swipe about 7/8's full. It also comes standard with a regular type convertor that's top twists like a piston filler, a cartridge filled with black ink, and also an extra spring for the plunger option. So it's rather elaborately equipped with 'spares'! (~And then it can also be eye-droppered if one chooses...) ~Options galore!!
An interesting quirk with this Swipe tho; -when I dipped it's nib into my bottle of J. Herbin's supposedly 'red' Rouge Caroubier (it's orange ink damnit!) it wouldn't fill using the plunger option even tho it's nib was fully submerged. I had to tip the bottle and submerge the Swipe in over the nib's connection to the barrel and then it filled just fine!
The Asvine P126 vacuum filler with it's long metal plunger handle also needed several pumps and releases to fill to where I wanted it, but then it finally did fill about 3/4's full with my go-to primary ink, Pilot's Iroshizuku Syo-ro (turquoise) ink.
Some conclusions: I thought the TWSBI Swipe was a fun pen that had interesting and novel ideas on how to fill a fountain pen. It's plunger type convertor is unusual and works well, and then it also provides several good alternative options. At under $30 it's inexpensive and writes smooth and good IMO, especially with it's enjoyable stub nib. ~I would buy it again in a second, funny spring and all!
The Asvine P126 is IMO an excellent vacuum filler type pen. ~Attractive looking and sturdy, good quality, and with one of the smoothest M nibs I've written with to date. But with so many good piston pens (such as TWSBI's excellent Eco?) available, I'm not sure why any vacuum filler is worth the option? They're generally bulkier and heavier and more complicated to fill and (especially) to clean... After trying one my principal reaction is ~meh, why bother with all that plunger fussing? For example, now I'm fairly certain I would rather have (of Pilot's top Custom pens) their 743 Con70 convertor type pen rather than their much-raved-about 823 vacuum plunger...!
Last edited by Skip; December 29th, 2024 at 08:45 PM.
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Woody (January 3rd, 2025)
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