Asvine V200 Titanium Fountain Pen Vacuum Filling, Germany Bock Fine Point Clear Transparent Acrylic Smooth Writing Pen Case

Bought the V200 <EF> Asvine nib about two weeks ago as my first fountain pen. Paired it with the Pelikan 4001 Brilliant Black and a 24lb cotton paper. I am extremely pleased with the purchase. So much so that I bought my wife the anodized version of the V200 for her first pen, two days after this one arrived. Both have written excellent out of the box, with no tuning required. The piston rod on mine did have a slight warp. My wife's was flawless, so I think it was just a fluke, since I haven't seen it mentioned in any other reviews. The only impact this has is when the tiny O-ring on the end of the rod intereacts with the end of the feed. This one takes a little fiddling to seat the O-ring properly and get a complete shutoff. Again, my wife's pen functions perfectly, so I have something to compare against. That is literally the only negative I have to point out, though. Everything else is immaculate. Fit and finish are, with the obvious exception, impeccable throughout both pens. Operation of the vacuum filler is flawless, even with the curved rod. The section is comfortable with the kind of micro-grip you only really get from brushed metals. The thread profile here is also very easy to the touch. No sharp edges or burrs. Solid, well-built feel, right down to the cap. I haven't had any trouble feeling where I should stop twisting, but if over-tightening is a problem for you, it does not have any kind of thread stop. It is metal to plastic, both top and bottom. I don't recommend being hasty with the blind cap in particular. That would be possible to cross thread pretty severely. Simple solution is to treat it like a fine instrument and it should serve admirably. It is also quite simple to unscrew the section from the barrel and fill the reservoir with a dropper or syringe, which is what I like to do.The writing experience has been smooth and problem free. The few exceptions to that have been my own lack of knowledge or experience and not really anything to do with the pen. No hard starts or skipping. Really nice, super-fine line writing in reverse. The nib itself is beautifully polished and engraved with some decorative scroll work and the size of the point. The Asvine produced nib and feed have worked without a problem, right out of the box. I have no experience here, but I would personally say that it feels pretty stiff. Little to no line variation, which is a desirable trait for me, at least in this context. Asvine also offers replacement nibs in all four colors, for a little over $5 each. Replacing them is as easy as unscrewing one and threading another one in. I have only traveled with it once, but that was by bicycle and not over perfectly flat terrain. No leaks or burps during that trip.Would absolutely recommend and have plans to buy another in the next few days. If you are into demonstrator type pens, this one is offering some phenomenal value.

Asvine V200 pen with a medium Asvine nib. Silky writer in the paper, good flow, and a good fit in the hand. Before inking I placed a tiny amount of silicone grease on the vacuum plunger, threads on the nib to body, and cap to body, with a touch inside the ink chamber north, south, east, and west. Cycled the piston and cleaned any perceived excess. I wrapped a few turns of pipe thread seal tape on the metal threads on the vacuum rod to ensure longevity perhaps since plastic and metal threads can wear over time.The medium Asvine nib is nice with very good tuning on the tines. Inked up the pen getting about a half full barrel, and I thought that was plenty for the maiden voyage. The pen in hand and nib on paper produced buttery smooth lines with perfect ink flow. The pen was excellent in hand with a nice girth. I highly recommend the pen without any hesitation.Great pen. Great design and execution of detail by ASVINE and workers. Good price. Fine experience. A fine writer and that is the key! Someone asked about centering the nib directly under the clip for a clean aesthetic look that appeals to fountain pen lovers. I found a way that worked for me out of the box.SEATING THE NIB TO THE CENTER OF THE CLIP. Screw the cap slowly in place until it seats. Is it centered? If not, slowly unscrew the cap with the slightest amount of downward pressure on the pen body until you hear the tiny click of the threads. Screw it back in place and the nib should be centered under the clip. It worked for me.

This pen was a big good surprise for me!Yes, I admit I'm biased against cheap Chinese knock-off products, especially when they're sold to you as the original product. But this pen is neither a knock-off, nor cheaply made, and it doesn't try to pass itself off as something that its not.The Asvine V200 is visually similar to the Conid Bulkfiller, a $900 fountain pen made in Belgium. But that's where the similarities end. The Conid is designed to be filled with an eyedropper, and has a somewhat complicated (and patented) mechanism to maximize ink reservoir capacity, and a shut-off valve seen in some Japanese eye dropper pens (like the Opus 88). The Asvine V200 has a vacuum filling system, similar to what the TWSBI Vac 700 R, the Pilot Custom 823, and the Visconti Homo Sapiens use. The V200's filling mechanism is unremarkable, except that it works flawlessly, just like its more expensive competitors'. The clear acrylic of the V200 is crystal clear, allowing you to see the inside of the pen. Finial, clip, dual cap band and filler knob are made from titanium, which is perfect for the modern, industrial, esthetics of this pen. I opted for the Asvine #6 <F> nib; I could have opted for a Bock #250 nib, but decided to give the Asvine nib a try. I'm glad I did, because the Asvine nib is very good. Very smooth for a Fine nib, it provides an almost Japanese <F> line width, with no hard starts or skips. The nib is quite hard with virtually no line variation when pressing the nib against the paper. The nib and feed have performed reliably and flawlessly from the first stroke.The cap can be posted securely on the back of the pen, but pen length and weight distribution make this unnecessary, for me.The Asvine V200 has served notice to the "established" pen manufacturers that Chinese companies are capable of making products as good as "Western" products, at a fraction of the price, without resorting to simply imitating or cloning those "Western" products. If you're in the market for a good fountain pen, and are not fettered by nationality or brand loyalty constraints, this Asvine pen will definitely meet your expectations.