I really appreciate you took the time to create a video to provide an unbiased look at your new offerings. I really appreciate your honestly and consumer focused business practices.

@Gouletpens

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! I'm sure I'm still biased, that's impossible to eliminate completely, but I definitely try to put myself in the mindset of someone other than myself getting these nibs and thinking through what they would experience from it. If anything, I tried to overcorrect a bit on this video and downplay my own excitement, probably being more critical than necessary. -Brian Goulet

@cudaprime813

Жыл бұрын

I was about to write a reply when I noticed TheCrashedMind said exactly what I was about but far more eloquently. Thanks for all you do Brian, I’ve been a long time customer precisely because of just this level of commitment to honest business and VERY helpful videos, kudos.

I have done a lot of calligraphy including with flex nibs. In my opinion, unless someone is willing to spend a LOT of time mastering the very elaborate formal hands, I believe that most people will have more success with stub nibs with a lot less work. Stub nibs provide a lot of line variation and work well with most inks and appropriate paper matched to the nib.

Concerning Jinhao, there are quite a few models compatible with the #6 nibs: X350, X450, X750, X850, 159, X159, 9036, 9056, 100. We can add the Kaigelu 316 or the Moonman/Mojohn M600s.

FWIW: I just used one of these on an artisan pen where the Jowo nib was unusually scratchy. At 71, I’m more confident at switching nibs than at working on them. I can testify it was easy to make the swap and the pen wrote beautifully after that. No there wasn’t much in the way of flex, but I wasn’t looking for flex. I was looking for a smoother and wetter ride. So I’m very happy with it.

I have a couple Jowo "elastic"/flexible nibs. Everything you mentioned is spot on, thank you for your honesty and straightforward explanation. Only thing I would add is that these aren't the nibs you want if you want flex/calligraphy, but the softness let's you get some extra wetness on downstrokes. So if you have a shading ink that's not shading in your other EF/F nibs, this nib will get you the gradient line you're looking for.

while im personally not a fan of these particular flex nibs with shoulder cuts, this is really cool that you have your own branded ones now! people are gonna love this!

Brian, I always appreciate your candor in these videos. Your honesty as the owner and face of the company is valued. It’s one of the many reasons I continue to shop with Goulet Pens. That and the tootsie pops.

@Soul_Watcher

Жыл бұрын

The Tootsie Pops are a nice little bonus aren’t they? 😊 I like the little collection of stickers I now have as well. I have misplaced a few, but they are probably in with all of my fountain pen thingies and stuffs. Cheers

In the 14 years that I've been playing with fountain pens now, I've basically given up on "flex". Noodler's are too stiff, FPR nibs still bend out of adjustment very easily, and while dip nibs have the perfect amount of flex, they dissolve into a pile of rust if you put one in a pen. I've never used a vintage wet noodle but I'm not going to daily drive a piece of history. A good 1.5mm stub gives lots of line variation (no pressure required), always writes smooth, and doesn't constantly run the feed dry. I absolutely adore my Pilot Custom 742 with a dual slotted Music Nib.

@bloody_6.2

2 ай бұрын

Try blewdew flex pen 😉

@budthecyborg4575

2 ай бұрын

@@bloody_6.2 kzread.info/dash/bejne/lpx6qbSPncmtmdo.htmlfeature=shared&t=464 Says it's still stiffer than a Namiki Falcon.

@bloody_6.2

2 ай бұрын

@@budthecyborg4575 maybe , but I think it’s the best modern flex fountain pen you can buy very much like a dip pen but with a good quality nib unlike the disposable ones or something like a zebra g or dip pen but to each their own

@budthecyborg4575

2 ай бұрын

@@bloody_6.2 I'm pretty sure that I would be happiest with a soft fine Pilot 743, the nib is larger than #6, and I would have one already but my intention is to buy it in Japan personally (if you're going to travel anyway then the 743 costs less in the domestic market). And even then I'm in no hurry because it's well established that to this day no one in the modern market makes a wet noodle, there really are no pens worth rushing out to buy if you have a good stub.

Very interesting. I really enjoy my Jowo Omniflex nib, for normal writing I like that it's a bit more bouncy. I can get it to do pretty flex calligraphy too, but the key to that is to be SUPER light handed with the upstrokes. You can't make the downstrokes super wide, but you can make really narrow upstrokes, so you can still get some nice line variation just at a much smaller scale.

The video is spot on and very honest, I absolutely love Flex Nibs but I have to recognize that they are impractical even for fountain pens users, for starters forget about taking notes on the fly with these bad boys, you are very likely to make a mess, especially if you use cheap paper, there is also the matter of ink consumption, I blew through a 30ml Pelikan bottle in 2 weeks of constant flex nib use, that is definitely something to consider if you use more expensive inks. That being said I think flex nibs are great and everybody should give them a try at least once.

This is the reason why I love the fountain pen market. Companies are WAY open compared to other industries when it comes to tweaking and modifying your pen, to the extent some companies ENCOURAGE you to modify and adjust your pen to suit your needs

I just want to acknowledge the very nice video quality. Not that I am surprised, but your video setup is definitely much more professional than the older videos on this channel. Brian's ability to present the video content (and the edition of his presentation) as astounding compared to 8 years ago! Great work Brian, and great work from your team.

Thank you for the very honest statements about what a flexible nib can and cannot do. It will not revolutionize your cursive writing, it's just a tool that is part of being able to do that. The rest is learning the letter shapes and getting the muscle memory through lots of careful practice. This was a great video about what to expect from the physical properties of the nibs.

Good job tamping down expectations! Thanks for the honesty.

This is wonderful to see! Congrats on adding to the selection.

I'm so excited for these nibs!! Thank you for the excellent video reviewing details - great as always!

love the honesty and thorough discussion on what to expect

thank you guys! I love pens, especially fountain pens. I got my first noodler today and the videos on how to adjust the nib and flush it really helped me! I had issues with the nib not performing right it's all fixed now and I'm confident that I can fix it when it starts happening again in the future!

I appreciate this! I used to be a regular customer, but my fountain pen interest turned to vintage, so you didn't have much to offer me. I've experimented with some modern flex nibs, but they just don't compare to the vintage. I appreciate your honesty about what modern flex is. And your discussion of these nibs on different brands of modern pens was interesting. I was honestly surprised by Noodler's! You reminded me of the Pilot Justus 95: I could get almost the same flex on the hard or soft setting, but the feeling was quite different. Interesting to see this!

Nice! Excited for this new addition!

Thank you for this informative video on modern flex nibs. Gosh I am so tempted!

This made my day. So exciting!!!

Dang it, Brian! I just placed an order a few days ago. I'll certainly be picking up one of these the next time I place an order though!

So, the Benu Euphoria DOES work! Well... with a sidestep. The stock feed/housing in my Iced Caramel Latte Euphoria is absolutely too tight to fit the Jowo #6 Flex nibs. But, they fit in the TWSBI Vac 700R very comfortably, and for some reason the Vac 700R feed/housing threads perfectly into the Euphoria. There are 2 o-rings that I did choose to change for a cleaner fit, but it was fine with them as-is. TLDR: To install a standard #6 Jowo into a Benu Euphoria, install the nib in a TWSBI Vac 700R feed/housing and thread that unit into your Euphoria.

I actually really like writing with these jowo flex nibs, but not for the variation. The flex (fine size) is just a really pleasant writer, as you said softer and bouncier to a noticeable degree.

Thank you, I've been wondering about this very question! I just get an Aero from your store. My next order will include a spare flex nib to try it out. The standard fine nib writes wonderfully but feels stiff enough that I don't want to apply that much force to flex it.

These are amazing nibs, but I feel like there'd be less confusion if they were called "Soft" nibs instead of flex nibs. They are definitely a bit bouncier and softer and can be wetter because of that, but... I think calling them "flex" is a bigger stretch than you'll get with these nibs.

Nice, thanks!

I love the Omni-flex . So smooth and such a comfortable nib to use

I have a full set of the original Goulet nibs; they are used mostly with nib holders in order to use thicker inks (like iron gall, Dr.Ph.Martins*, etc.) not suitable for fountain pens. Of course, I also use steel nibs -- my favorite being a Blue Pumpkin -- but the Goulet nibs are great for uses that steel nibs aren't. These new flex nibs are going into my supplies bag as soon as I can get them ordered! *Dr.Ph.Martin's inks are labeled as "Fountain Pen" inks, but I would *never* risk fouling and clogging a fountain pen with any of them.

Thanks for taking care not to overpromise.

Thank you for the quote from George Orwell's Animal Farm.

When I turn my own fountain pens, I use the kits from Penn state industries, and I find that the Goulet #5 works really well. I like a stub, will try one of these flexes.

Great video! I installed the same nib on my Jinhao pen. As far as expectations it's like installing a new set of luxury suspensions on a regular production car. It will write smoother, better bounce but not like a standard Gold Calligraphy flex nib. 😉

It is definitely worth giving it a try, specially in an affordable but still good of a pen such as a Twisbi, and even on a higher end pen such as a Diplomat Aero, for an even nicer writing experience.

It would be nice if you could also offer a version that comes with the nib unit that screws in as that would far reduce the hassle on the models which allow for that. Any chance of this happening in the future or is demand too small?

@SmithQuilts

Жыл бұрын

Or offer replacement nibs for pens since I think the screw-together-bit will be different for each pen brand

Great news and a wonderful review without the hype. Also like that you slipped in some Animal Farm.

Great presentation as always. Putting in an order for both widths. Love that Goulet always has something unique to offer.

I have been incredibly happy with my Goulet EF nib in my Diplomat Aero, so I may try a flex nib too just to play with.

Good for Goulet Pens! Some years ago, I saw a video reviewer demonstrate swapping out nibs -- it may have been Drew or Brian! -- and thought I'd like to try it using a Goulet stub and a Jinhao 159 I bought from Goulet on sale. What did I have to lose at $26 total? The swap has been a very rewarding success. The stub provides exactly the line variation I had looked for. At about the same time I got a Conklin Herringbone with Omniflex from an esteemed competitor. For months I thought I had been taken for a merry ride, but then regular use broke in the nib, if I may put it that way, and it does provide somewhat more line variation than when new, and certainly more than a new regular steel nib. I will say that "well loved" regular steel nibs develop some line variation as well, but less, and not as quickly, than the Omniflex. So, I am happy to support Goulet Pens' intouduction of this nib, with the same caveats that Brian presented.

@Soul_Watcher

Жыл бұрын

I’m glad to have come across your comment. I recently purchased a Conklin All American with a Omni flex. And I was sorely disappointed. It is a very thick steel nib and is hard as a nail. I thought, “Oh wonderful. I’ve gotten a lemon or this is what they consider a flex nib according to Conklin.” Well I do believe it is a Conklin thing. Idk if it is a proprietary nib or if it is a Jowo,etc. I’ll have to look into that and see what I can find. My point is, why would a company start out making a flex nib using such a thick nib, cutting out parts, instead of starting with a thinner steel to begin with? I don’t have the answers and no one is offering them unfortunately. So if what you have and what I have are both the same Omni flex nib, it’s good to here that they start to give a little over time. This thing is so stiff I am seriously afraid I’m going to spring the tines trying to flex it! Because that’s exactly what it feels like is going to happens when I do try. I will just continue to write with it as it is, like I’m writing with a nail and hopefully it will loosen up over time. If you see this and are gratuitous enough to response to this long comment, I thank you and have to ask, how long did it take for your Omni flex nib take to give some flex? Take care. Cheers

@crouserm

Жыл бұрын

@@Soul_Watcher Hi, there! It would be difficult to say how long it took for the flex to emerge with the Conklin omniflex, as I didn't use it steadily. I swap pens in and out of rotation a great deal. But, I'd say it was just a few ink fillings. If you use yours a great deal, I'd hope you'd have the flex in days or weeks, not months.

@CharlesLaughlin

Жыл бұрын

Interesting; I just got my first flex nib in a Monteverde Ritma with Omniflex nib--I assume it's the same as the Conklin Omniflex? I also thought, "what is this?" but am encouraged by your assurance that it might need to be broken in. I used to write italic calligraphy with what I think you're calling a "stub nib" (at the time I bought what I think was just called a "calligraphy pen"), and so I had higher expectations!

Wow... this is why "Goulet Pen Company!" Brian, your (you, your fam, D. Brown and the entire Goulet team) content is always "X marks the spot." Simply love how engaging you make even the most esoteric of any subject regarding this incredible past time, hobby, or any such aspect of our community's seeming remote interests just "eff-ing cool." When trying to pen-able any of those I feel would and should also discover such the love affair as we have with fountain pens and particularly those among us that are also Southpaws such as I am, the only real-world way to trigger these affections is to direct them to anything with your name on it online. Point-blank, period. The sincere honesty and just unimpeachable authenticity herein, and every other therein (you've created) prior, continue contributing as to why fountain pens are even mightier still today than the predominant blade-edge that is digital media that has become the sword of our age. Xerxius Maximus

@acerlazereye1232

Жыл бұрын

Dayummm! I want som-a what ur smokin!

The EF Flex is quite appealing, look fairly juicy, nice way to show off shading. I owned Noodler's Flex, FPR Flex ... but honestly, you gotta be Hercules to "flex" them, even the Pilot 742 FA is only "soft" to me, coming from a dip nib world.

Clean the new nib of any oil and grease even fingerprints. Yes I want one. Very happy with the older pre flex nibs.

Wow!! Congratulations for bringing your own flex nibs! I would love to get them, but sadly I can't.. I live too far away from your delivery range.

Ok, now this is epic

I will definitely try and swap the nib from the all american conklin to this flex

I’ve not had a great time with my flex nibs I purchased. My The Good Blue flex was a great flex, but the tip rips into the paper bad. Then, somehow, the nib got lost in my couch. Haven’t found it in 2 years. Into the black hole it went. Lol. Then my new Conklin Omni flex that I purchased from Goulet Pens, is stiff as a board. I do not blame Goulet of course. I do not want to even try to flex it. Very, very, stiff. It’s a beautiful pen though. It’s the rainbow one. Forgetting the name. But it’s the All-American Conklin. I suppose I should hold off for a bit and choose my next flex nib carefully. Loves the vod. Cheers

I came across a flex nib that doesn’t have the cut outs. I’m blanking on the brand at the moment, but oh do I want it. It looks to flex beautifully. However, it’s well out of my price range unfortunately. Unless I win the lottery, this will remain a dream. Cheers

I just don't understand what's so hard about making nibs how they were made a couple of decades ago. Excellent writers, smooth, flexible. You'd think it was rocket science. A nice vintage waterman that cost a buck on a pharmacy store, wrote better than any 100 of modern pens costing a car payment today.

Very informative and helpful video. I was looking for a source for practice using flex nibs and found Millard Port's Wits and Wisecracks a big help and a lot of fun. Numerous pangrams to practice fountain pen writing.

I'm a calligrapher (copperplate, fraktur) and am new to fountain pens. I'd imagine that these won't get the super fine hairline necessary for calligraphy, but I'm still super interested. 😊

@Gouletpens

9 ай бұрын

Yeah these aren't going to be perfect for you, but you can definitely find something that is! Feel free to email us at info@gouletpens.com and we can help! - Drew

@VierImageStudios

9 ай бұрын

@@Gouletpens Hey Drew, just wanted to let you know that Jessica is a rockstar. Keep her around!

Thanks Brian--very practical and helpful video to help customers manage their expectations. When I bought my Pineider with a flex nib I was enormously disappointed that the after such a meaningful spend the results were barely noticeable at all. I find it easier and more cost efficient to just get a Lamy Joy with a 1.1 nib for more of a semi-calligraphy style script. I look forward to trying one of these, though.

@Gouletpens

Жыл бұрын

That's what I was going for, setting reasonable expectations. What's hard to get across is the bouncier feel of these nibs over the standard non-flex nib, it doesn't show so easily in video but it's quite noticeable in the hand. I'm with you too, when going for line variation in my everyday writing, I'm more inclined to go with stub than flex, but flex is fun for just kinda messing around. -Brian Goulet

About time these were available as loose nibs without having to buy a new pen.

Maiora pens should be able to accept it, as well as new Leonardo (just to mention Italian pens)

I'm deducing that the ink flow is too wet to see the line variation. Perhaps have a lower feed/ink flow in the pen to see more line variation (and of course a very fine point tip).

Cool❤

I just put in an order a week ago for a noodler flex pen.. and now this.. I guess its 4 orders in 6 weeks after all :P

What kind of ink is featured in this video? Is it actually turquoise when thin and purple when thick? Thank you.

I wonder if these will fit on the Diplomat Magnum. I've been using one to ink my drawings for some time and would like the line variety!

@Gouletpens

Жыл бұрын

Unfortunately not, these are noticeably larger nibs than what's on the Magnum. The Magnum nibs are surprisingly bouncy/flexy already though, for a steel nib! -Brian Goulet

@gabrielbruce1977

Жыл бұрын

@@Gouletpens dang! Thanks for replying though!

QUESTION: I purchased a Stipula Etruria Rainbow in Ebonite with titanium nib from Goulet. I called and spoke with r. Brown, and I interpreted the encouragement to be “give it some time” versus “yes, send it back.” In brief, the nibmiester (however you spell it) told me it would be a risk, because it was so bad that only cut outs might work, but he warned me it might fail completely. We had to toss the nib. Anyway, I just replaced it with a Goulet nib in fine or medium (I don’t remember). MY QUESTION: I have been told destroyed any long-term value of the Stipula by putting a replacement nib on the pen. I have no idea how to purchase a replace nib from Stipula. It writes well with the other pen, and I doubt my daughter is going to be patient in selling my collection when I am gone. Do I go with what I have (he non-flex replacement), get the new flex replacement, or try to find some way to get a Stipula 14K or just their steel nib? (A Puzzled old professor) K

Honestly, while watching I was comparing what I see with my experience using FPR ultra flex EF. FPR nibs do what is expected from vintage flex. Just amazing!!! The only problem for me is that I cannot find a decent pen to host FPR ultra flex. Their "native" Himalaya pens are yuck really. Managed to install it into Jinhao 750 with "native" jinhao platic feed, but it was a pain.

Should work on the newer Retro 51 fountain pens which have Jowo nibs/feeds.

Brian, do you have plans for offering gold flex nibs?

Is the Conklin Omni flex made by Jowo or some other company? Cheers

Is the Conklin Omni flex a fine or medium nib? Mine writes like a medium- broad to be honest. I wasn’t expecting that at all. I thought it would be at least a fine or extra fine. Is this the way they are? The Omni doesn’t tell you the size of the nib tip. Any and all info will be greatly appreciated. Cheers

Could you tell whether Conklin/Monteverde JoWo Omniflex #6 Steel Nib Unit is suitable for Kaweco student pen, please?

Thank you, Brian. You have educated me about flex nibs now. I really couldn‘t have said much about them before. Good to know stuff.

How does it compare to pilot falcon nib? I guess falcon being gold nib is more soft than this.

You had my attention at the word flex....

Why is there no B size flex nibs out there? What would happen if you grind the tip as a regular B but all the other structure of the nib is same as Flex ones?

Nice!! What blue ink is that used in the demonstrations?

@lpburrows

Жыл бұрын

Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-Peki

Can I swap a Jinhao x750 nib for one of your flex nibs?

It's not quite the Noodler's flex, but it looks fun enough...

Love flex

Does anyone have experience with putting this nib on opus 88?

HOT DAMN!

How do these compare or an ultra flex from FPR? People that have 0 flex experience would find an FPR nib to be quite satisfying so wonder why all the caveats with these nibs?

I have been looking for several years for my "perfect flex 🖊 pen" Trying to realistically find what MY idea 💡 of the perfect pen is and others idea 💡 of perfect. It is totally never going to happen. Everyone has their own thoughts on what that is .The mythical pink vintage nib. I appreciate and respect the fact you are letting ppl know upfront that a fun $15.00 nib isn't going to be your vintage pink nib that is exactly what you've been looking for. Ppl will still have unreasonable expectations. Like I want a soft,bouncy, flex with thin and thick line variations for around 100.00 bucks. Not happening my dream pen cost as much as my mortgage payment.

I have a Leonardo with what is called an "elastic" nib. I found it to work well. I was wondering if this nib is the same as the nib you are offering. If so, I will be buying these next bs from you shortly.

@lilit3307

Жыл бұрын

Leonardo does use Jowo so I do believe they are the same nibs as these Goulet ones. I have a Leonardo with an elastic nib as well! I like that extra flare and bounce it gives my writing 😄

@paulmchugh1430

Жыл бұрын

@@lilit3307 Thanks for the confirmation

I dream of using a flex nib. But I'm left handed so...

Looks interesting! I'm assuming these will not be as flexible as the FPR ultra-flex nibs, which almost even outdo the Pilot FA nib in ease of flexing. But something a little less flexible can be good when we want to just write normally most of the time. I'm curious enough to order a few! Thanks for the introduction, Brian.

@Soul_Watcher

Жыл бұрын

I enjoy my FBR gold flex nib a lot, even if I have had a ridiculous amount of issues with the pen and the companies owner. That being said, I also have a The Good Blue fountain pen with their flex nib. That is one of the best flex nibs I have. However, they have problems being very scratchy. Or did at least a year ago and idk if that has been addressed yet. They sent me a new one and that too was scratchy. I bought a third replacement and that too was scratchy. I think that because they are so flexy that the tines move away and apart from each other too much when just writing without any pressure at all in a weird and wonky way that it causes problems. On the owners advice he told me to mess around with grinding the first one if I wanted to. I did and took off the tipping. It writes very smooth now and is a great flex nib. The feed has a large channel so ink keeps up great. You can purchase the flex nibs with and without tipping. Cheers

@TheOkazakiGuy

Жыл бұрын

@@Soul_Watcher I've never heard of The Good Blue fountain pen. I'll look it up. Yeah, with FPR, their ultra-flex nib is simply amazing. Their pens, however, are really hit or miss. Quality and control seems low so while most pens work great, the percentage of lemons is way too high. But that great nib...!

Please explain "an older Ahab". Is a 2013 older or newer?

@mf--

Жыл бұрын

That's probably older.

Oh hell yes

Speaking from personal experience, most flex nibs from most companies are garbage. You flex them the tiniest bit, they're fine. Go a hair over a tiny bit, and they bind up with no ink flow for a few seconds. No thank you! Want variation in your lines as you write? Get a dedicated stub nib. If you insist on a flex nib, go with the Pilot Falcon.

I like your posts.. Not any other “version”. I recently received a pen and as I started writing I noticed that the pressure extremely influenced the stroke on the paper. So, after seeing your instructive posts about flex nibs I figured: I might as well have gotten precisely One ❤️ . Still.. I wish ❤️ to tell me: How to see if my nib is a flex nib? - 👸

Well this is encouraging but also disappointing. I would call this really a soft or semi flex nib. It certainly is possible to get a lot of flex out of a steel nib. I mean a Zebra g dip nib is just made of steel, not gold. And there are companies like Bluedew and FPR whose steel flex nibs are pretty flexy maybe not quite the level of a Zebra g but still excellent. I've had a lot of Noodlers flex nibs and honestly they are just not very flexible compared to what is possible. I would love to see Goulet and or Jowo offer something comparable to the FPR nibs because you offer an awful lot of nice pens, the company is awesome and your videos are extremely well done. All of my pens have flex nibs on them btw.

Do the new Noodler's still smell funny?

Do you know if your flex nibs would fit these pens: kaweco perkeo or sport, kakuno, plumix, preppy prera, diplomat magnum, jinhao shark, lamy safary, cross aventura? Thank you.

I would love to see a M/B flex nib 🥲

In summary....it's okay but it's no Falcon.

I still find it appalling that anyone would do business with an unscrupulous company like Jinhao. The way that Chinese companies do business is simply shameful. It wouldn’t surprise me if there was a complete knockoff of Goulet Pens on the Chinese only internet. If you want your design stolen immediately rather than only once it has become successful, have your product made in China. Where are all the fake Mont Blanc pens and fake Rolex watches made? China……

@Rebecca_English

Жыл бұрын

Um ... It's a lot more complicated than what you implied. Jinhao doesn't make counterfeit pens. A counterfeit would be a direct copy intended to deceive buyers. That's not what Jinhao does. They make dupes of pen designs that are in the public domain. Their pens are marketed under their own branding, to a different audience than higher end pen makers. There is nothing unscrupulous about that. People who purchase Jinhao pens basically fall into two categories: The ones who buy inexpensive versions of high-end pens to test out whether they like the design, or those who can't afford an expensive pen. The high-end pen makers actually benefit from the first group. The second group isn't the target audience for those makers, so they lose nothing.

I see literally no difference between the two

Straight up detailed and comprehensive video Brian!! Appreciated it. Thanks!!🤩