Review: Jinhao 601
The 601 is another of Jinhao’s
brass-constructed fountain pens with a painted finish. This one differs
from the ubiquitous X750 and X450 by being decidedly less thick and
weighty, though it still has enough heft to avoid feeling as inexpensive
as it is.
The snap cap reveals a textured metal grip section which feels good in the hand to some users but that is not a universal opinion. That same textured section also seems to capture a lot of ink while inking this pen. Interestingly, the section appears to be threaded where it meets the body but these are in fact just rings which are stacked as a design element, not threads. The cap posts securely and doesn’t make the pen too heavy but does make it unbalanced for my taste.
The snap cap reveals a textured metal grip section which feels good in the hand to some users but that is not a universal opinion. That same textured section also seems to capture a lot of ink while inking this pen. Interestingly, the section appears to be threaded where it meets the body but these are in fact just rings which are stacked as a design element, not threads. The cap posts securely and doesn’t make the pen too heavy but does make it unbalanced for my taste.
As usual, this Jinhao comes with their quality standard international
converter and no cartridges, so I inked it up with my usual Pilot
Iroshizuku Murasaki-Shikibu and hit the Rhodia *80 DOT pad running.
The nib is Jinhao’s standard silver #5 with their nice ornamentation, though this one came in Fine and as usual, I much prefer their Medium. The writing experience is fairly smooth, I would classify the feedback as moderate, but not scratchy. There was an issue with slow starts on this one, however. There is some line variation available, though reverse writing yielded the thinnest, scratchiest, most unusable line I’ve achieved yet in a fountain pen.
The ergonomics of the pen are comfortable, if just on this side of thin and short. Thankfully it is not too light as this occasionally reads as “cheap”, particularly for an all-metal pen. The 601 is a bit shorter in length than some of their other models, but it fits in my medium hands unposted.
In the end, I didn’t end up spending a lot of time writing with the Jinhao 601, mostly due to my preference for Medium nibs over this Fine nib. In the coming weeks I plan to order a pack of 2-tone Jinhao #5 Medium nibs to put on my Jinhaos which came with Fine nibs. When that happens I will give these another shot and update the reviews. I really enjoyed the rest of this pen, as I have all of my Jinhaos thus far. My rating is based on that, given the nib is personal preference and is easily corrected.
Highly recommended. 4.5 Stars.
https://amzn.to/2JOvjgU
The nib is Jinhao’s standard silver #5 with their nice ornamentation, though this one came in Fine and as usual, I much prefer their Medium. The writing experience is fairly smooth, I would classify the feedback as moderate, but not scratchy. There was an issue with slow starts on this one, however. There is some line variation available, though reverse writing yielded the thinnest, scratchiest, most unusable line I’ve achieved yet in a fountain pen.
The ergonomics of the pen are comfortable, if just on this side of thin and short. Thankfully it is not too light as this occasionally reads as “cheap”, particularly for an all-metal pen. The 601 is a bit shorter in length than some of their other models, but it fits in my medium hands unposted.
In the end, I didn’t end up spending a lot of time writing with the Jinhao 601, mostly due to my preference for Medium nibs over this Fine nib. In the coming weeks I plan to order a pack of 2-tone Jinhao #5 Medium nibs to put on my Jinhaos which came with Fine nibs. When that happens I will give these another shot and update the reviews. I really enjoyed the rest of this pen, as I have all of my Jinhaos thus far. My rating is based on that, given the nib is personal preference and is easily corrected.
Highly recommended. 4.5 Stars.
https://amzn.to/2JOvjgU
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