The Jinhao X450

Darkbulb

Darkbulb

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California
After having read so much, often very positive, about the Jinhao fountain pens I decided that I had to at least try one. Considering the fact that these pens often sell for under $5 it was a gamble the size of a fru fru drink at Starbucks.

I spent $2.91 on mine and shipping was free from China to California so the cost was closer to a cup of drip coffee.

It took 13 days and it arrived safely in a well padded envelope.
(How do they do this for three bucks shipped? Do I even want to know?)

Taking it out of the padded envelope the very first impression I had was 'wow, this thing is substantial'! It had a very nice, rather heavy weight to it and it felt like a high quality pen just holding it in my hand. Well impressed at this point.
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Posted, with the cap on, it lies very comfortably in the hand and feels, as far as my novice self can tell, very well balanced.
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It came with a rather attractive looking medium duo-tone nib.
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Opening up the pen reveals a converter ready to be filled up.
Really? Not even a new Lamy Safari comes with a free converter :)
Still, well impressed.
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Filling it up with the converter was just like using a Sheaffer converter where you twist the piston down, shove the tip into the ink..and twist the piston up et voila - it's full of ink.

There was really only one test left..how does it write?
Me, I have found that I prefer XF/F nibs and these Jinhao pens seems to be impossible to find with anything finer than a medium. So apart from fearing that it wouldn't write at all - to that the nib simply would be too wide for me - there was a full spectrum of hesitation as I put pen to paper.

With the risk of sounding like I'm being paid by Jinhao (not sure how much they could pay me really though as their pens are $3...) - all I can say is:
"If you haven't had a chance to try one out - do it. Get one tonight"
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Great write-up. Seems like it's a bit of a lucky dip whether you get a good one or not but you seem to have struck lucky there.
I had a very similar experience with my Jinhao x750. Amazing it travelled so far in a thin bubble-wrap and plastic bag without damage.
Easy to disassemble too with the benefit that you can swap the nib with a Goulet Pens #6 nib (if the nib had been too wide)
 
fancontroller said:
Great write-up. Seems like it's a bit of a lucky dip whether you get a good one or not but you seem to have struck lucky there.
I had a very similar experience with my Jinhao x750. Amazing it travelled so far in a thin bubble-wrap and plastic bag without damage.
Easy to disassemble too with the benefit that you can swap the nib with a Goulet Pens #6 nib (if the nib had been too wide)
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Thanks :)
And, the bonus is you get a converter you can use in any FPs that take international sized cartridges/converters :)
 
Darkbulb said:
Thanks :)
And, the bonus is you get a converter you can use in any FPs that take international sized cartridges/converters :)
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I've changed my X450 into a flex nib pen by swapping the nib for a Japanese Zebra G. It wrote very nicely anyway, so I bought myself an X750 in the chequered finish for everyday use.

I despair at the downgrading of good handwriting and the use of fountain pens in English schools ( both state and private). With decent pens like these at rock-bottom prices, every child in primary could be provided with one.
 
Ferrum said:
I've changed my X450 into a flex nib pen by swapping the nib for a Japanese Zebra G. It wrote very nicely anyway, so I bought myself an X750 in the chequered finish for everyday use.

I despair at the downgrading of good handwriting and the use of fountain pens in English schools ( both state and private). With decent pens like these at rock-bottom prices, every child in primary could be provided with one.
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Is there a chart somewhere that you, or anyone, know of that shows all the various Jinhao models and the differences?
There seems to be a slew of them....
It seems, however, that most people talk about the 450, 599, 650, 699 and 750.

Closest to a list I've seen is this one but it doesn't really give any details apart from visuals.

I rather like the Lamy copy (599)....I wonder if there's a Dark Lilac one for three dollars ;)
AND...the 599 v3..is as far as I know the only Jinhao with an EF nib....

Update: Seems like the 599s sell for around $1.50-$2 w/ free shipping.
Oh, what to do? :D
 
I'm slightly vexed by the Lamy knock-off.

Most of the Jinhao pens look like generic old-style fountain pens, and some, lavishly decorated with dragons etc., have their own Jinhao style and personality.

The "Lamy" isn't anything as subtle as an "hommage", but is just a blatant copy, at the expense of the original designer and manufacturer. That would never happen with, for example, razors, would it? :)


Ferrum
 
Ferrum said:
I'm slightly vexed by the Lamy knock-off.

Most of the Jinhao pens look like generic old-style fountain pens, and some, lavishly decorated with dragons etc., have their own Jinhao style and personality.

The "Lamy" isn't anything as subtle as an "hommage", but is just a blatant copy, at the expense of the original designer and manufacturer. That would never happen with, for example, razors, would it? :)


Ferrum
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You know you are absolutely correct in that the 599 is a blatant copy of a current production item.
I despise when that happens in other areas so I should try to be consistent and not support products that rip off other, current models when it comes to pens as well.
 
As an avowed pen snob, and given the price point, I cannot believe these Jinhao pens are any good...o_O

However, they do appear to have a small, but nevertheless dedicated, following in certain pen circles. And now, even such a collector of fine goods like Richard @Darkbulb swears by them!

There's only one thing for it.

So, at the risk of throwing £1.73 down the pan, I've ordered a new Jinhao X750 Deluxe Black FP all the way from downtown Honkers. Here we go then...:cool:

EDIT - I've also taken a 99p punt on a new Jinhao 599 Demonstrator - the Lamy Safari clone.
 
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Nico1970 said:
As an avowed pen snob, and given the price point, I cannot believe these Jinhao pens are any good...o_O

However, they do appear to have a small, but nevertheless dedicated, following in certain pen circles. And now, even such a collector of fine goods like Richard @Darkbulb swears by them!

There's only one thing for it.

So, at the risk of throwing £1.73 down the pan, I've ordered a new Jinhao X750 Deluxe Black FP all the way from downtown Honkers. Here we go then...:cool:

EDIT - I've also taken a 99p punt on a new Jinhao 599 Demonstrator - the Lamy Safari clone.
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I do like a high-roller.
When I'm in Jinhao mode, I like to consider myself an inverted pen snob.
 
Nico1970 said:
As an avowed pen snob, and given the price point, I cannot believe these Jinhao pens are any good...o_O

However, they do appear to have a small, but nevertheless dedicated, following in certain pen circles. And now, even such a collector of fine goods like Richard @Darkbulb swears by them!

There's only one thing for it.

So, at the risk of throwing £1.73 down the pan, I've ordered a new Jinhao X750 Deluxe Black FP all the way from downtown Honkers. Here we go then...:cool:

EDIT - I've also taken a 99p punt on a new Jinhao 599 Demonstrator - the Lamy Safari clone.
Click to expand...

I will be most interested in hearing what you think about them. I have the 450 with me in my bag today as we head out for the annual cinco de mayo festivities (always on the following weekend) and can't wait to do some mindless journaling with it [emoji3]
 
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I have mixed feeling about it...but I did end up ordering a Lamy clone...

An orange-and-black metal bodied 599A model from 2014....
(I believe all the ones with the ink-window have plastic bodies)

This is the model that has the Lamy styled nib as well to really hammer it home and make me feel even worse :(

But I mean...it's orange and black!
Uh...Go Giants!....

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Picked up ten converters for $3.25 w/ free international shipping
My first Jinhao came with one of these and it's actually working really well and I THINK/hope that these converters is international standard size so they will fit some other pens I have. If not, I have a lot of spare converters for Jinhaos :)

The $3.25 w/ free shipping (so 32 cents/per converter) seems to be about the norm.
Here's some options;

Five for $1.85
Ten for $3.32

One can also try out once luck at auctions as there are always some sitting below three bucks :)

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Have a number of the 450's. How can they do it for the price. Say what you want about it being govt subsidized, there's just no way to make, package and sent it for what they are asking!


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