Great Shootout. I've got spendy pens I like better, but honestly, I have always loved the Jinhao 992 and I have all three of the one's you show here. Now I note Monteverde keeps trying to sweeten the deal on their Monza by doing the omniflex and by doing boxes with 3 nibs etc. This is the best writing/looking/feeling/dependable cheaper pen I have had and I've had plenty! I've also worked on them at times to make them a tad wetter writers, as per your and other video's online! Love your reviews! Thank you for the work you put in!
really enjoying your videos! youve inspired me to start writing again and purchase some pens to get me going. studied calligraphy at art college and then just got lazy...so, thanks to you, im now back into the hobby i used to love!
Last july, I bought a couple of Monzas from an online pen company in Virginia. Fortunately, they were on closeout for $13.99. Little did I know they were just rebranded Jinhao 992s worth $ 1.89. Had I paid the full price, I would have felt really ripped off. Now I only feel a little bit cheated. Then I find out that Monteverde is really a made up brand from Yafa. I'm kind of an old fashioned guy and I'm not sure I'll ever buy a Yafa product again.
I think the policy of Monteverde company is disgraceful. Just cheap rebranding of Chinese manufactured Jinhao and a huuuuge profit margin. Of course - you may say Jinhao is also not very fair as 992 is a ripoff of Procolor but still..... I am very disappointed by Monteverde business strategy.
I would agree with the choice of the 992. The Monza is just way overpriced and is clearly a rebrand. My Lorelei is an all metal pen that is otherwise identical to the one in the video. I do like the all metal version, it feels like it should, not too cheap or expensive. The texture on the all metal one is quite nice. It's my favorite of the three, the Monza is last.
Stephen thanks for another interesting review and dare I say "enlightening" regarding the different price points. One thing worthwhile mentioning, is that if you are in Canada and order a Jinhao directly from China it will take "a while" to get here (seem that in the US this is not an issue). So if a person is in a rush, then the Monza might be an option. BTW loving the background sounds, so soothing😊
Stephen. Thank you for an interesting review. It's why I love the site. One minute we're looking at a pen for hundreds of dollars, and the next a group of 3 that are very inexpensive. A clear demonstrator-type pen doesn't do much for me as I think it lends itself to seeing ink blotches/marks/flecks, etc. somewhere along the pen, and cheap or not, it's a sloppy look. Nonetheless, your review was excellent as usual, so thanks for that. One of the pens looked like it had a gap between the clip and the body such that it wouldn't adhere too well to a shirt pocket, but I guess what can one expect for such a reasonably priced pen.
The jinhao 992 takes a #5 nib, Goulet makes nice #5 nibs that are an easy swap. Also these pens are inexpensive enough that tuning (flow/aligning/polishing) and grinding carry very minimal risk. If you like to tinker on a budget ... Jinhao is fantastic. X750 may be a bit better since they use #6 nibs, which can be had on US Amazon for about $13 a ten pack. Tuned up and inked they make nice gifts for the not yet fountain pen people.
Fun! It’s neat to see them side by side. I have a couple of the 992’s on order, and it’s interesting to hear your observations. Thank’s for the shootout .
Nice comparison! So interesting to see the pens side by side. Don't think I'll buy one, but if I were in the market, very glad to know that the Jinhao would be the best (and cheapest) bet. Thank you!
Another good video. Thank you. I have just converted two Jinhao 992s (see what I did there?😎) to eyedroppers. So far, no leaks. My issue with Jinhao, in common with all Chinese pens in my experience, is the thickness of line. Too thick for my liking. Having said that, the reverse writing on both my Jinhao eyedroppers is absolutely on point. No foul.
My Monza (3) was a ... "disappointment" ... at first. The "Omni Flex" nib doesn't flex, the two "German" nibs (fine and medium) needed tuned, and the three included (clear) feeds or the housings were/are defective; the pen shi* a blob of ink every 5 to 10 words using a cartridge or any of the included converters. Swapping in a Jinhao housing, feed, and nib from Jinhao 992 and using it as an eye dropper fill cured all the problems. The clear feeds in a black Jinhao housing doesn't leave blobs of ink on your work. I'll buy more Jinhao pens, but never another Monteverde pen. After checking the barrel finials for leaks, and glueing one finial, I use all my 992 Demonstrators as an eyedropper fill. Only the solid color 992's I have get a converter or cartridge. Oh, the section on my white 992 developed a crack. I glued it, and replaced it with one of the translucent red Monza sections. I haven't re-inked it yet; I still have 20 some pens inked. I took three 992's I don't carry (too bright) out of service to make room for three X450's that are incoming.
Great video as always! Ill never buy another Monteverde pen. They had some nice pen models in the past but now they're just running a scam. I was disappointed that their sister company Conklin did the same with their Victory model which is a rebranded Baoer pen. I really like Conklin so I hope Yafa won't completely ruin that brand also.
Yeah I bought a set of the 992s when they came out and within 1 month everyone of them had cracks at the end of the barrel. I do have some of the Lingmo pens as they come in better colours and none of them have cracked.
Bit of a no brainier in my view. Why spend more than a Dollar fifty? Demonstrator pens aren’t my cup of tea but the Jinhao is a real solid pen for the money compared to the other two.
@@limmoblack usually carry them in my jeans pocket. They get hit and stuff. The Jinhao 159 is the one that has withstand the test of being mistreated (:
