Review: Italix Viper's Strike Fountain Pen - 18KT Nib

ABOUT

Body Material: Lacquered brass
Trim: Chrome
Length (capped): 140.7 mm/5.54"
Length (uncapped nib-end): 125.2 mm/4.93"
Length (posted): 167.3 mm/6.59"
Barrel Diameter: 10.79 - 12.62 mm/0.43" - 0.49"
Section Diameter: 8.87 - 11.0 mm/0.35" - 0.43"
Nib material: 18KT Gold
Weight (all): 50 g
Weight (cap): 24 g
Weight (body): 26 g
Fill type: Cartridge/converter
Price: £95.00 (excluding VAT £79.17)
Where to buy: Mr. Pen

PACKAGING

The Viper's Strike packaging is simple and straight forward - a clamshell case with a felt bed inside. The outside has a metal plaque to indicate the nib is gold. It's a cute touch. Nothing fancy about it.

APPEARANCE

I can't say this is my favorite looking pen ever. It's simple and attractive - round and straight with blunt, flat ends. The finial is a shiny chrome top with a grooved ring in it. The clip is internally connected, starting just below the chrome top. It's a good-looking clip, matching the body's design well. It ends in an oval knob with a ball underneath it.

The center band is a wide chrome band marked with Italix. It connects to a thinner band on the barrel, making the whole center band look quite large. The end of the pen is also chrome, and this is where the threads for the cap give it that kit pen look. The section changes that kit pen look though, because it's definitely not kit pen shaped. It's smooth, black resin, tapering towards the nib, then flaring out to a smoothed ridge.

The barrel and cap have a glossy black carbon-fiber like pattern that is raised. The chrome trim is an attractive complement to the color and design. Overall, it's not an ugly pen, but the back end throws me off a little.

NIB & PERFORMANCE

The #5 two-tone 18KT gold nib is quite pretty. It has a single slit and breather hole, and is marked with Italix and 18K-750, as well as (the only nib size it comes in) - medium.

The nib was perfectly adjusted upon arrival. It was very smooth but not at all over polished - there were no skips or hard starts. It wrote consistently and reliable. I love that it was a soft nib so it offered a very pleasant, slightly yielding writing experience. The ink flow is good - it is slightly on the wet side. Overall, a lovely performer.

With some pressure, some line variation is possible, but it dried out quickly. Therefore, it was ideal to just stick to enjoying the nib for its softness and not its spring.

IN HAND

The clip is very tight and hard - it's difficult to operate with one hand. I have found this to be the case with all the Italix pens I have used (two Parson's Essential, Churchman's Prescriptor, and the Captain's Commission), so if you rely on a clip, this could be a deal breaker. It could be slid on to a few pages and into pouches, but not without some effort.

The section is a nice, comfortable shape. The threads at the end are slightly sharp should you run your fingers over it, but the section itself is plenty large enough to hold.

Unposted, the section is not slippery but I find the pen fairly heavy and lacking a balance point that works for me. It's not unusable, but I don't find it particularly comfortable. The cap posts by threading, which helps to remove that kit pen look, but it doesn't post very deeply. As such, the pen becomes quite long and way too top heavy for me.

PROS & CONS

OVERALL

The Italix Viper's Strike is a substantial, robust pen with a really pleasant nib. I'm not crazy about the design because it looks a little like a kit pen, but it's not unattractive. The nib though! Really, it's excellent - smooth, wet, soft, and reliable. I thoroughly enjoy it and have actually put it on my Parson's Essential (which is a more comfortable size for me) when I want to change up the broad italic that is otherwise on there. Lovely combination!

I received this pen free of charge for the purposes of this review. I was not compensated monetarily for my review. Everything you've read here is my own opinion. There are no affiliate links in this review.