For that price range and steel nib fountain pens - TWSBI's offers solidness, weight and smoothness. It beats my Pelican m205 in terms of writing experience, anytime. And I paid almost double for the Pelican, mind you.
David - more than your excellent well thought out videos, your genuine interest and enthusiasm for pens is contagious. And I have found your videos encouraging or courage inspiring to go out and get some pens. Three TWSBI pens - may seem excessive, but it's not - and I applaud you for getting them. I ordered one just yesterday. And now my pen collection is now 18! Much thanks to you
I received my second 580 today. It's the RBT model with a translucent red cap and section plus a contrasting blue blind cap. The pocket clip is very loose with a lot of horizontal travel. Mailed Twsbi and within 15 minutes I had a reply. Pretty impressive customer service, something I've heard from others too. The clip issue is a bit of a known QA thing and it seems I can remove the inner cap liner then use a slender 5mm hex wrench to tighten up a nut holding the finial. I've had no issues with my 3 Eco, 3 Go or the other (plain vanilla) 580. Frustrating but the responsiveness to my email has really helped to take the heat out of the situation.
Man! Thank you for your review. I am originally from Taiwan, came to the States since the 90's. Even I don't know how TWSBI name coming from. I know the Chinese name, but I didn't know it was "Sun Wun Town" (Trust me, this spell sounds closer to how it supposed to pronounced) put backwards to TWS. Not sure what BI is though. Even you said it's Writing Instruments, but I only get the "I" part, I didn't get the "B" part. Think of many possible Chinese characters, nothing related to "B". hmmm.
I asked my sister, who is living in Taiwan. She told me “BI” should be combining together for its pronunciation [Bǐ], and that pronunciation means “Pen” in Chinese mandarin. The reason for putting “Sun Wun Town” backward, is to make it looks like “TW’s”. For everything together, it’s “TW’s BI” means “Taiwan’s Pen”. Wow! Whoever think about this must put a lot of thoughts in it.
Congrats on snagging the blue! I didn't get into fountain pens until afterward. I picked up a pink and think it looks awesome with Iroshizuku Tsutsuji in it. Love this pen! Still on the hunt for the blue one though! :)
Haven't seen your earlier reviews. Nice to see how you have evolved your technique but always provided excellent reviews full of lots of useful commentary. Nice to see the various versions. I just have one, the original. First time Janet tried, it was posted, she twisted cap to remove & we now have a purple stain on the couch. Thanks for the warning.
Five years later... thank you David. My Diamond 580 is still my favorite pen. It's in Rose Gold / Smoke with a Rose Gold EF nib. I keep it loaded with Diamine Syrah and it's beautiful. It also has a certain technical appeal. Jack PS... TWSBI does not recommend posting.
I don’t live anywhere near a shop to hold these pens so detailed reviews are oh so much appreciated! I’m a little unclear about the nib grip - is the grip metal or is there clear resin covering the metal? I don’t mind a little aluminum but need resin covering metal. Arthritis in hands is a bummer but resin with a larger grip are perfect & becoming so much more common in affordable range! ECO are darn good but would love a few (ok lots) more choices!
Hi David, I enjoy your reviews! Question: Disassembly of the Diamond is always touted as a cool feature, but is it a *requirement* for cleaning? Seems like a lot of work. Tks!
I got a 580 as my first ‘real’ fountain pen for my birthday. I have a couple old ones of my parents but this is my first piston filled pen and currently the only thing I’m finding is it is a touch wetter than the others I’ve used (I’ve got the EF and F nibs and the EF is better) but that is likely the ink (I’m using Diamine) or the paper.
Great videos! I am new to fountain pens and got a Pilot Metro, Lamy Al-Star and today a Pilot Prera, but I would like a next step pen and wondered which you would recommend; Faber-Castell Loom or a TWSBI 580?
I got the Iris in a stub 1.1 nib and was disappointed. I have two other TWSBI stub 1.1 and they are great with shimmer inks but the Iris gets goggled with shimmer inks.
In my very recent experience, if you leave any ink in the 580, you can expect to have the internal materials degrade and have the top with the nib literally fall off of the pen (this is on their current version). Their customer service agent advised me of this as of today. For around $70, we can do much better than this pen. I do not recommend the pen or the company and really think the retailers should demand more data from the manufacturers on issues before they sell defective products like this. I hate to say this as I love all types of pens, but this one is out for me.
Sorry to hear you had a bad experience. All I can say is that I've had a 580 inked non-stop with the same brand/color of ink for over seven years and have not experienced any issues at all with the structural integrity of the pen.
Figboot on Pens I presume they don’t all fail, but at the same time they are aware of an increased rate of failure by making this statement to me today “As for the nib section breaking, if ink is left to dry internally overtime some may eat away at the materials overtime.” I haven’t had any other pens physically breakdown because of being dry and I own a lot of pens. In researching this a bit after it happened to me, I think it’s pretty clear from the various commentary around the web and their own blog that quality control appears to be an issue. Either way, there are better options by better companies out there...so that’s my view on it.
Thank you for the great video! As a college student, I am looking for a demonstrator pen to use with red ink for making edits. My question is this: is this pen prone to drying out rapidly? I need a pen that can be dependable for a couple weeks at a time between cleanings. I appreciate any feedback!
I haven't experienced much drying with the pen. Mine stays wet just fine. A lot will depend on the ink you use as well, and if it is prone to clumping.
David, you have shown your clear Diamond 580 in some of your reviews in comparison with other pens. But you never told uns what ink you have in that pen. I like the blueish color, so please tell me what ink you had in your clear 580. Thank you!
Great review! Do you find the section of the AL more slippery than that of the plastic 580? I'm trying to decide between the two and am concerned with the grip on the AL being too slick.
Thanks for the Review. Have decided to buy the TWSBI 580 but i cant decide what nib to get. This is my first fountain pen so have no idea what would be a good start. Anyone who can give me a few pointers? Thinking about fine, medium or perhaps stud 1.1. Thanks
It depends on what you will be doing. Are you in school? I like fine or extra fine for note-taking and small writing. Medium is what he is using in this video, good for writing, but not very small writing. Bold and stub nibs are mostly for signing documents, or writing large letters. For drawing you probably want a fine or a medium. But it's really personal preference, and every manufacturer is different. "Fine" isn't a standardized size, for example, it's just what the manufacturer thinks is fine. Experiment and find what you like!
I know this video is old, but I was looking to own one. Would you say it is safe to use a syringe to fill it up, by pulling out the nib? Or would you just use the piston action? I was thinking of Takeda Jimuki Kyo No Oto Hisoku Ink. Thank you for such a wonderful review video.
@@mellowtonin_ Pilot capless (not the gold nib version) is about $80 and you will never lose the cap. But I don't necessarily think that's a good starter pen.
@@clintonleonard5187 I'm one year into the hobby now, haha. Ended up getting the 580 as my first and so far I'm five fountain pens in, but the Pilot VP is definitely on my list!
Ah. That's the case I was hoping for. :) Regarding TWBI 580 vs TWSBI mini...are they same size and which is better all around? Thanks for your help. :)
+Sylvia Catalano The 580 is significantly longer...by about an inch. I personally prefer the 580, mainly for its size. If you are looking for a small, pocket pen, then the Mini (as well as the Kawaco Skyline Sport) are some of the better "mid range" ones out there.
In regard to nib performance, I personally prefer the Loom. They are both very good pens, though. If I was forced to only purchase one, I would pay the additional $15 for the 580. While the Loom is great, the 580 has a lot going for it (clear demonstrator, piston filler, etc.). I really don't feel you lose picking either of these pens.
For that price range and steel nib fountain pens - TWSBI's offers solidness, weight and smoothness. It beats my Pelican m205 in terms of writing experience, anytime. And I paid almost double for the Pelican, mind you.
David - more than your excellent well thought out videos, your genuine interest and enthusiasm for pens is contagious. And I have found your videos encouraging or courage inspiring to go out and get some pens. Three TWSBI pens - may seem excessive, but it's not - and I applaud you for getting them. I ordered one just yesterday. And now my pen collection is now 18! Much thanks to you
Just ordered my first fountain pen in 20 years, can't wait to get my TWSBI 580, thank you very much for the vid. Greetings from the Netherlands
+Bastiaan Ruijs Greetings! Thanks for watching. I'm confident you will enjoy your 580...it's a great pen.
Your mandarin pronunciation is pretty decent. Thank you for learning that.
I received my second 580 today. It's the RBT model with a translucent red cap and section plus a contrasting blue blind cap. The pocket clip is very loose with a lot of horizontal travel. Mailed Twsbi and within 15 minutes I had a reply. Pretty impressive customer service, something I've heard from others too. The clip issue is a bit of a known QA thing and it seems I can remove the inner cap liner then use a slender 5mm hex wrench to tighten up a nut holding the finial. I've had no issues with my 3 Eco, 3 Go or the other (plain vanilla) 580. Frustrating but the responsiveness to my email has really helped to take the heat out of the situation.
Man! Thank you for your review. I am originally from Taiwan, came to the States since the 90's. Even I don't know how TWSBI name coming from. I know the Chinese name, but I didn't know it was "Sun Wun Town" (Trust me, this spell sounds closer to how it supposed to pronounced) put backwards to TWS. Not sure what BI is though. Even you said it's Writing Instruments, but I only get the "I" part, I didn't get the "B" part. Think of many possible Chinese characters, nothing related to "B". hmmm.
cool...thanks for watching!
I asked my sister, who is living in Taiwan. She told me “BI” should be combining together for its pronunciation [Bǐ], and that pronunciation means “Pen” in Chinese mandarin. The reason for putting “Sun Wun Town” backward, is to make it looks like “TW’s”. For everything together, it’s “TW’s BI” means “Taiwan’s Pen”. Wow! Whoever think about this must put a lot of thoughts in it.
+Richard Lee interesting...thanks for the additional info. I find it interesting to hear about how companies come about their names.
Me too! I really like your reviews. You sound very humble and gentle. I really enjoy them.
✒️钢笔的笔
Many thanks for the brilliant review of this pen David. I got it today with a 1.1 stub and it writes like a dream. 👍👍👍👍
Hello, 5 years have passed. Did you have any problems during this process? Pls answer me
Congrats on snagging the blue! I didn't get into fountain pens until afterward. I picked up a pink and think it looks awesome with Iroshizuku Tsutsuji in it. Love this pen! Still on the hunt for the blue one though! :)
Haven't seen your earlier reviews. Nice to see how you have evolved your technique but always provided excellent reviews full of lots of useful commentary. Nice to see the various versions. I just have one, the original. First time Janet tried, it was posted, she twisted cap to remove & we now have a purple stain on the couch. Thanks for the warning.
This is a nice pen. Big, solid built, decent performance. Really attractive when inked, too.
fantastic review. I can't wait for mine to arrive
Great video. Keep up the good work!!!
thanks...appreciate it.
Five years later... thank you David. My Diamond 580 is still my favorite pen. It's in Rose Gold / Smoke with a Rose Gold EF nib. I keep it loaded with Diamine Syrah and it's beautiful. It also has a certain technical appeal. Jack
PS... TWSBI does not recommend posting.
Glad to hear you are enjoying your pen. Thanks for watching.
@@FigbootonPens I watch all your videos and appreciate them!
Bought it, thanks to you ! You are Awesome !!!
I don’t live anywhere near a shop to hold these pens so detailed reviews are oh so much appreciated! I’m a little unclear about the nib grip - is the grip metal or is there clear resin covering the metal? I don’t mind a little aluminum but need resin covering metal. Arthritis in hands is a bummer but resin with a larger grip are perfect & becoming so much more common in affordable range! ECO are darn good but would love a few (ok lots) more choices!
Hi David, I enjoy your reviews!
Question: Disassembly of the Diamond is always touted as a cool feature, but is it a *requirement* for cleaning? Seems like a lot of work.
Tks!
My TWSBI VAC 700R was my first eye-opening experience.
I got a 580 as my first ‘real’ fountain pen for my birthday. I have a couple old ones of my parents but this is my first piston filled pen and currently the only thing I’m finding is it is a touch wetter than the others I’ve used (I’ve got the EF and F nibs and the EF is better) but that is likely the ink (I’m using Diamine) or the paper.
excellent review. learned what twisbi meant today after 4 years haha
thank you for this review. Am gonna order mine now :)
I don't think you'll be disappointed...
Great videos!
I am new to fountain pens and got a Pilot Metro, Lamy Al-Star and today a Pilot Prera, but I would like a next step pen and wondered which you would recommend; Faber-Castell Loom or a TWSBI 580?
twsbi
Shaq is the only human who can write with this pen posted😄
I got the Iris in a stub 1.1 nib and was disappointed. I have two other TWSBI stub 1.1 and they are great with shimmer inks but the Iris gets goggled with shimmer inks.
Great Review!!!
In my very recent experience, if you leave any ink in the 580, you can expect to have the internal materials degrade and have the top with the nib literally fall off of the pen (this is on their current version). Their customer service agent advised me of this as of today. For around $70, we can do much better than this pen. I do not recommend the pen or the company and really think the retailers should demand more data from the manufacturers on issues before they sell defective products like this. I hate to say this as I love all types of pens, but this one is out for me.
Sorry to hear you had a bad experience. All I can say is that I've had a 580 inked non-stop with the same brand/color of ink for over seven years and have not experienced any issues at all with the structural integrity of the pen.
Figboot on Pens I presume they don’t all fail, but at the same time they are aware of an increased rate of failure by making this statement to me today “As for the nib section breaking, if ink is left to dry internally overtime some may eat away at the materials overtime.” I haven’t had any other pens physically breakdown because of being dry and I own a lot of pens. In researching this a bit after it happened to me, I think it’s pretty clear from the various commentary around the web and their own blog that quality control appears to be an issue. Either way, there are better options by better companies out there...so that’s my view on it.
I enjoy using this pen very much.
Where did you purchase the red 580? Thank you
+John Gilman I forgot now. Purepens.co.uk I think
Gateway to glory
what could be cooler than the Diamond 580:
answer: Nothing
Thank you for the great video! As a college student, I am looking for a demonstrator pen to use with red ink for making edits. My question is this: is this pen prone to drying out rapidly? I need a pen that can be dependable for a couple weeks at a time between cleanings.
I appreciate any feedback!
I haven't experienced much drying with the pen. Mine stays wet just fine. A lot will depend on the ink you use as well, and if it is prone to clumping.
@@FigbootonPens Thank you for the response sir!
Good video. Thanks
David, you have shown your clear Diamond 580 in some of your reviews in comparison with other pens. But you never told uns what ink you have in that pen. I like the blueish color, so please tell me what ink you had in your clear 580. Thank you!
It's Pilot Iroshizuku Kon Peki
Great review!
Do you find the section of the AL more slippery than that of the plastic 580? I'm trying to decide between the two and am concerned with the grip on the AL being too slick.
I personally don't find the section of the AL to be slippery at all...and I'm not a fan of slippery sections either.
Thank's for the response!
beside revered san wen tang into TWS, TWS also mean Tai Wan'S, TWSBI is a very thoughtful mean
Thanks for the Review. Have decided to buy the TWSBI 580 but i cant decide what nib to get. This is my first fountain pen so have no idea what would be a good start. Anyone who can give me a few pointers? Thinking about fine, medium or perhaps stud 1.1. Thanks
It depends on what you will be doing. Are you in school? I like fine or extra fine for note-taking and small writing. Medium is what he is using in this video, good for writing, but not very small writing. Bold and stub nibs are mostly for signing documents, or writing large letters. For drawing you probably want a fine or a medium. But it's really personal preference, and every manufacturer is different. "Fine" isn't a standardized size, for example, it's just what the manufacturer thinks is fine. Experiment and find what you like!
What do you think about the length of the pen? I saw that with the 580 unposted, it's only a hair longer than an unposted Metropolitan
While it's only about a quarter inch longer unposted, the 580 feels like a much larger pen.
Figboot on Pens That makes me feel better, I ordered one yesterday as a birthday gift, but I hadn't noticed the size difference until now
I'm confident you'll like it. I had a coworker buy herself one as a reward for a promotion and she really likes it as well.
Figboot on Pens I'm really excited to get it, I'd like an upgrade from my Metropolitan
I know this video is old, but I was looking to own one. Would you say it is safe to use a syringe to fill it up, by pulling out the nib? Or would you just use the piston action? I was thinking of Takeda Jimuki Kyo No Oto Hisoku Ink. Thank you for such a wonderful review video.
I'd only recommend pulling out the nib for cleaning. The pen will fill just fine using the piston. It's a fun pen!
@@FigbootonPens thank you! I am really looking forward to it. Have you had to tinker with the nib since owning it?
@@kataramommy Mine has not required any tweaking at all.
O wow
Cool
Hey David! Would you recommend this pen as a starter fountain pen?
I would. It's a little more expensive than the typical starter pen, but I have recommended it to people as a first pen before.
Is there something that you'd recommend around the same price that is balanced when posted? I feel like I could lose the cap easily. Thanks!
@@mellowtonin_ Pilot capless (not the gold nib version) is about $80 and you will never lose the cap. But I don't necessarily think that's a good starter pen.
@@clintonleonard5187 I'm one year into the hobby now, haha. Ended up getting the 580 as my first and so far I'm five fountain pens in, but the Pilot VP is definitely on my list!
What is a QA issue? Wasn't it supposed to be QC (quality control) issue?
It could be Quality Assurance
Would you say that the TWSBI wrench dos fit a Montblanc 149?
It would not. Completely different designs.
Forgive me...but I'm a newbie. Is the TWSBI 580 pen the same as the TWSBI Diamond 580? Are they one in the same? thanks. :)
Yes, they are the same pen. Some folks just leave out the "Diamond".
Ah. That's the case I was hoping for. :)
Regarding TWBI 580 vs TWSBI mini...are they same size and which is better all around? Thanks for your help. :)
+Sylvia Catalano The 580 is significantly longer...by about an inch. I personally prefer the 580, mainly for its size. If you are looking for a small, pocket pen, then the Mini (as well as the Kawaco Skyline Sport) are some of the better "mid range" ones out there.
+Figboot on Pens There's also the Pilot Prera; the ink capacity isn't great, but it's nicely built, looks good, and writes great.
+ExplosiveRocketTurtle I agree...the Prera is decent as well.
In term of nib performance, how does the Twsbi compare to FC Loom ? Is it worth 15$ more ? Thanks.
In regard to nib performance, I personally prefer the Loom. They are both very good pens, though. If I was forced to only purchase one, I would pay the additional $15 for the 580. While the Loom is great, the 580 has a lot going for it (clear demonstrator, piston filler, etc.). I really don't feel you lose picking either of these pens.
I would go for the Loom because of its ergonomic body. Thanks a lot :)
I'm confident you'll like it.
Does the AL weigh more than the plastic 580
Just barely...only an ounce or two.
Does that plastic body feel cheap or solid?
solid
Small non-cursive writing doesn't give us a good idea of how the pen truly flows.
The pen is not meant for narcissists high on ego😎