It squeaked, but not in a cute little kitten kind of way; rather it squeaked in a chalk-on-chalkboard kind of way.

I’ve written about my Namisu Nexus Minimal fountain pens before. When I first started using them, the aluminum barreled, steel-nib version quickly became my favorite, partly because the steel Bock nib was smooth and well tuned. It also became one of my workhorse pens whilst the titanium version became a secondary pen that often stayed at home and was filled with inks I thought might damage pens I liked better.

However, over time, that preference has begun to change.

The titanium version sitting next to its cap.

Out of the box, the titanium version had two problems: the tines were crooked and the titanium nib squeaked. I had the nib tuned at Euro Box and although the tines were straightened, the nib still squeaked. The squeak was the main deal-breaker for a lot of people but I found it went away after a while, the same way the soreness caused by new shoes eventually goes away as the shoes/your feet break in.

Even without the squeak, the titanium nib still didn’t feel right. It had a lot of feedback or scratch, even on smoother Tomoe River paper. However, during last year’s NANOWRIMO, I finally used the titanium version enough on cheap copy paper that the scratch went away. As a result of that, it’s become a daily carry and use pen that is always inked with something.

Detail of the titanium Bock nib and how it writes on Tomoe River paper. The bead-blasted body looks great.

I like the weight of the pen. With the cap its about 45 grams (1.58 ounces). Without the cap it’s 39 grams (1.38 ounces). That’s just enough weight that the pen does all the work, especially as the design put’s a lot of metal toward the front of the pen, but not so heavy that I feel as if I’m trying to write with a baseball bat.

The pen looks great. The bead-blasted titanium has just enough grip to keep the pen from being slippery and keeps it from getting marked up with greasy fingerprints. Some users have complained the large grooves that serve as grip and section hurt their fingers, but I’ve found them mostly comfortable. Cleaning the cap threads after refilling the ink can be a pain, but I like having the threads forward of my fingers.

I do wish the cap was larger, though, as if I’m not careful when I put the cap back on, I can feel it bump the nib. (Also, I’m not sure it was necessary to have three full twists to get such a small cap on an off but that’s a small complaint.)

Although the nib has grown on me, I’m still not fully sold on titanium nibs. They are nice over time, and have some of the features of more expensive gold nibs, but they still seem like a gimmick more than an innovation, the same way a glow-in-the-dark nib would be. I’d rather have either gold or steel. (Note: I would totally try a glow-in-the-dark nib.)

I like the titanium body, though, and am interested to see if titanium’s corrosion resistant properties will allow it to be used as an “eye-dropper” filled pen. I’ll let other people try that and write about it first, though. 

(Note for non-pen people: “eye-dropper filled” means the barrel is completely filled with ink rather than using a converter; this allows for a greater ink supply and greater opportunity for making a great mess.)

I’m not sure if I’m going to keep the pen or try to sell it. I like it, but I have others I like better (and a couple on the way). Now that it’s broken in and doesn’t squeak, it might be time to give someone else a chance to try it.