Platinum Preppy PN-900 Fountain Pen Review

[heath]

For all the pics with the full review click here: http://penpaperinkletter.com/platinu...in-pen-review/

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This is the Platinum Preppy PN-900 fountain pen, the predecessor to the cheaper clear multi-color Platinum Preppy sets you are likely more familiar with. This particular pen is the modernized matte black cap and shiny black barrel update to the original. In theory this is also a slightly nicer pen than the cheaper clear (PPQ-200) pen. In reality it is a bit more complicated than that.

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I love the look of this pen. I find the matte black cap with the brushed metal stylized clip and retro “Preppy” logo quite appealing. I find the simple slick black shiny plastic barrel and ribbed section modern and desirable. The nib is a no fuss chrome fine to extra fine steel with the same “P” that is on the PPQ-200 nib. When looking at this pen in my hand it looks every bit as nice, if not more so, than the images I had seen online before receiving it.

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I however am not as in love with this particular pen’s performance. It is much more fine than my clear Preppy’s and so I am sure that adds to this but it is quite scratchy. It is an odd duck though. When I am using slightly better paper than can handle it I can apply a bit more pressure and the lines even out and the scratching seems less. The pen also slips or stutters at times which is my least favorite quality in a pen. However, that too is overcome with added writing pressure. I am on the fence here. I actually like the finer line as it let’s me write in smaller ruled notebooks easier and it limits ink flow letting me use lower quality papers in some cases. The catch-22 here is that on the cheaper paper it also under performs in other areas.

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This pen uses Platinum ink cartridges but will not fit the Platinum convertor. This limitation is the same with the clear Preppies but for some reason it seems like more of a slight in this pen. It’s obviously not a disposable pen but it is cartridge only. You can refill the cartridge if you want to try out other inks though.

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Overall I am at a bit of loss. I’m not ready to write the pen off but I also don’t enjoy using it very much and don’t have plans to add it to my daily carry. I am eager to see if others have had better experiences than I have or if this is typical. I do still love the look and I think with a smoother nib this pen could be a solid contender for a top 5 list of first fountain pens.

-Heath
@WeThePPIL