Artist Review: Duke 209 Fountain Pen with Fude Nib 

+Joel Ryan Thanks 😁

+The Mind of Watercolor I would usually recommend Lamy Safari because it's an affordable fountain pen. That pen uses the standard nibs such as EF, Fine, M so the lines are going to be of uniform thickness. Recently Twsbi released the Twsbi ECO which is also quite affordable and that one looks tempting to me. You want line variation, the Duke 209 with fude nib (bent) is good. It's very affordable on eBay. Downside is the slippery body. If you get the Duke 209 with either Lamy or Twsbi Eco, it should be under $50. Lamy does not come with the ink converter so that adds a bit more to the price. I use Noodler's Bulletproof ink. It's waterproof, but slow to dry. Other waterproof fountain pen inks are Platinum Carbon and Sailor Kiwa Guro. You can search for reviews online for them.

+Teoh Yi Chie Fantastic! Thanks for taking the time for such a detailed response.

+Teoh Yi Chie How long does it take for each of the three inks you mentioned to dry? At $10 the Duke 209 sounds like nice fountain pen aside from the slippery grip. Thanks for your review of it too. :-D

Thanks :-)

Glad to hear that you're enjoying the pen. 😁

It's 2019 and I just got one off eBay for $4 US.

This should work on 32gsm paper. No reason why it won't work

@@teohyc You are right. I received it today. I tested it on gampi 32 gsm paper with Sketchink. The pen works great. I love the variation of the lines.

Noodlers ink come in 90ml bottles. It should last a few sketchbooks. Only the Bulletproof version is waterproof.

+Teoh Yi Chie Great -thanks for the advice.

+Bartholo Clumpdink Thanks. I'll try them and hopefully make a video in the future.

They may come with different types of converter. To refill, just submerge the nib below the surface of the ink, and pull the ink up.

I'm not sure if you can remove the nib. You can try twisting the nib clockwise and anti-clockwise to see if you can loosen the nib and feed.

+N Diehl The ink should not dry so fast when the cap is put on properly. Just wash and fill with ink again.

Thank you Teoh.

This is better. The Sailor bent nib is an sharp angle bend

@@teohyc thank you very much!

+Bartholo Clumpdink I'm thinking of buying cheap pens with rubber grips and use the grips from those pens.

+Cyril Jayant Thanks 😊

You have to draw really slowly when it's upside down as ink flow is not good. To get thin lines, it's better to draw with the pen vertically rather than upside down.

@@teohyc you've got such great content and great replies! Thank you very much! Speaking of flow, I read that these dry up very quickly. So much so that it becomes a clog and has to be cleaned with even a small amount of inactivity. Has this or leaking been a problem? I ask because I really want to buy a fude nib fountain pen and this was looking like the answer.

@@newbietubie It does dry and the first stroke will usually produce no line. But once the line gets going, ink flow is alright. It doesn't leak. Anyway, it's a really cheap pen (on eBay) so it's worth exploring.

@@teohyc it really is so economical that if it doesn't work it'll still be fun to try. Thank you so much!!!!

551 ink flow isn’t that good. So it’s better to get a normal fude nib pen

+April Mathis More than a year. So far so good.

That's to move the ink and air bubble around in the convertor. Don't remove it. It's better to have it, than not to have it.

The amazon listing said that the spring is intentional and there to keep ink from "Freezing".

+James Jacocks Duke produces other fude nib pens as well. Is it the Duke Confucius pen? ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-GAii3lFAIu8.html

Sir, it is. That pen was too heavy but the nib was quite functional.

I don't know if this can be dismantled. Maybe you can get fountain pen cleaning liquid to try first.

@@teohyc Thanks. I will try getting some cleaning liquid, as the old pigment ink is polluting all other inks i put in the pen/converter.

The converter should be removable. It's probably too tight. Try twisting it clockwise anti-clockwise.

@@teohyc Aaah, now it has worked, thank you! You're right, it's removable, I just did not dare to really pull, I didn't want to already break it 🙂 Thank you for your quick help!

This is better because it’s very affordable

If you draw too fast, then the ink will not come out that fast. Normal drawing speed is okay.

thank you so much!

It can be used with ink convertors. As for brand I am not too sure. Look for ink convertors for Duke or Hero fountain pens

@@teohyc Thanks so much Teoh! I've watched a lot of your videos in the last few days, they've helped so much.

Get this pen. It's very affordable and worth the money

You have to hold the pen more vertically for thinner lines, or turn to the opposite side of nib to drawing really thin lines

Thanks a lot for taking time for me! Shall practice this! 🙏

Good idea

Disposable cartridges? Not sure about which brand can fit. This already comes with an ink convertor

@@teohyc I was thinking more of refillable. Sometimes easier to use a syringe when ink is low in bottle rather than using the converter

I don't think so. This pen, on eBay, sometimes sells with two nibs.

It might be. You apparently need to get size 5 nibs, which seem rarer than the size 6 you get for say a JinHao x750, but you can get them if you hunt around. Not sure if size 5.5 will fit - annoying cos I'd love to add a flex nib to this.

+Thisnamestillsucks You just need to learn how to drawn from observation first. It's not difficult to learn.