@Wancher Dream Pen True Ebonite Fountain Pen Review

Thank you to Wancher for sending this pen for a review. This is the final product, unlike the prototype I had reviewed a few months ago.

ABOUT

Body material: Ebonite
Trim: None
Cap: Screw on
Posts: No
Nib material: Two-tone 14kt gold
Filling system: Standard international cartridge/converter
Length (capped): 154.4 mm/6.06"
Length (uncapped): 134.5 mm/5.30"
Length (posted): N/A
Length (section): 22.03 mm/0.87"
Diameter (barrel): 11.3 - 15.3 mm/0.44" - 0.60"
Diameter (section): 10.6 - 12.5 mm/0.42" - 0.47"
Weight (all): 27 g
Weight (cap): 8 g
Weight (body): 19 g
Price: Starts at $200USD - my combination here is $330USD

Where to buy: Wancher

PACKAGING & PRESENTATION

The Dream Pen is presented in a large softwood box with the Wancher logo printed on the top. The box is a little rough to the touch. The lid lifts off and inside, you will find the pen in a small fabric pen sleeve, a little paper envelope with three cartridges, a guarantee certificate, a bookmark, and a few other items on social media and future pens. The pen and cartridges are secured in place by a black elastic. The base of the box is a deep red felt. As I am not someone who likes to keep pen boxes, I don't care much for large packaging and presentation. It is clean and looks nice, though. It suits the pen.

APPEARANCE

The Wancher Dream Pen True Ebonite fountain pen is quite attractive and it has a simple design that appeals to me. It is a round pen with a cigar shape - widest at the cap and tapering slightly towards the ends, with rounded off ends. There are no markings on the cap, barrel, or section of the pen. The cap is shorter than the barrel but it is also wider so I think it looks decent overall.

There is nothing on the finial. The section is short and round, tapering slightly towards the nib before flaring out slightly into a ridge. The back of the section connects to the cap threads on the barrel, which are black. The entire pen, aside from the cap threads, is all black. I love the color and the shape of this pen.

The cap, section, and barrel are all this black. It's such a simple pen - uniform color with understated elegance. It has a depth and richness that doesn't show in glitter or chatoyance; rather a full, fully polished way. Impossible to capture in pictures and (obviously) rather difficult to describe properly.  Ebonite is a beautiful material, and so elegant in black.

NIB & PERFORMANCE

The nib is a #6 two-tone 14 kt gold nib. It has a single slit, a round breather hole, and is engraved with 14K-585 and B for the broad nib size. The feed is plastic, unlike the ebonite feed I had on the prototype Dream Pen. The plastic feed performs well but in terms of having a cohesive unit, an ebonite feed would be preferable as the standard. The broad nib is smooth with fairly generous, wet ink flow. It is well adjusted and tuned - no skips or hard starts, offers a firm writing experience, and dries quickly. You can squeeze out some line variation with pressure but for the most part, the writing experience is a slightly soft one. It works well for fast and long writing sessions, it passes the free weight test, and it can be used for reverse writing. It's a perfectly well-rounded broad gold nib.

The converter provided with the pen was a standard international and worked without issue. I actually appreciate the cartridge/converter system here because it means quick and easy cleaning, which I prefer for relatively delicate material.

There is a double-sealed airtight insert in the cap that helps to prevent ink from drying out. Having left the pen sitting around for days, I did find it helpful. The nib picked up immediately after sitting around. It feels a bit spring-loaded so be careful when uncapping - it doesn't fly off, but you can feel the spring.

IN HAND

There is no clip on this model. The section, although on the short side, is quite comfortable to hold. It's not slippery and the shape holds my grip well. The cap threads at the back of the section are not sharp, nor is the step up to the barrel. If you have larger hands, you might find the section on the small side.

Unposted, the pen is lightweight and comfortable. My hand doesn't tire out using this pen for long writing sessions. It's just an easy writer. The cap cannot be posted.

This pen smells faintly of ebonite and you'll really notice it if you rub the material. I really like the smell of ebonite so I have no complaints here.

Top to bottom: Wancher Dream Pen True Ebonite, Molteni Pen, Molteni Pen Modello 55S, Molteni Pen Modello 55S, Opus 88 Koloro Demonstrator, Opus 88 Picnic, Sailor Pro Gear Hawaiian Ripe. 

PROS & CONS

OVERALL

The Dream Pen True Ebonite is a minimal design with a simple finish. I love the shape and I love the polished glow of the black ebonite. The pen is very comfortable in hand and feels really good. The 14kt gold broad nib is delicious - wet, smooth, slightly soft. I really enjoy the writing experience. The packaging is different from the Nakaya-esque prototype packaging they were offering, so I'm happy to see something different. A great option if you want something classy and simple. You could certainly find a cartridge/converter ebonite pen at a lower price if you look around a bit, but I do not think a starting price of $200USD is terribly obscene either. I would love to see this price with an ebonite feed instead of plastic, at least.



I received this item 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.