His Nibs.com update -- Pennsylvania Slims

His Nibs.com Update --
Pennsylvania Slims
August 12th, 2006

This week I thought I'd turn the spotlight on a few of
the slimmer fountain pen models that we carry. The
particular ones I selected are all quite inexpensive
models, so would serve well as 'starter pens'
for those that you'd like to introduce to the joys of
FPs!

It's been nice to see that the discontinued
Cambria http://www.hisnibs.com/cambria.htm,
Charisma http://www.hisnibs.com/charisma.htm and
Invincia http://www.hisnibs.com/invincia.htm
models have found new homes among customers
this week. As I hadn't carried the Charisma on the
website for some time, it's been a new model to
many, and its unique design has produced a whole
new following.

I'd down to two finishes for the Cambria now, and
just a few of each pattern on the Charisma. So, if
you've been on the fence, now's the time to act.

On the blog...Scientist says dolphins are dim-wits. I
beg to differ!

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in this issue
* Hero Tartan
* Duke 209
* Hero Silver Pandas
* Uranus LE series
* Uranus Gray Pinstripe
* Hero hooded nibs
* On the blog...Scientist claims that dolphins are dim-wits.

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Hero Tartan

The first of the slim models profiled this week, the
Hero Tartan is part of the '90' series and at only
$10.00, is a true starter pen. It has a gold-plated nib
in a fine and comes with an
international ink cartridge. It will take an international
style converter, such as the one full-sized Schmidt
one shown here http://www.hisnibs.com/ink_refills.htm.

The pen is of plastic construction and its Tartan
pattern in purple is an eye-catching look (if you are
partial to tartan, take a look at the Monteverde Tartania
http://www.hisnibs.com/invincia.htm Invincia as well).

Although Hero pens -- and Chinese pens in general --
are known for quite stiff nibs (designed for use in
writing their more intricate characters) -- this nib
has a slight amount of flex, due to its longer-than-
usual tines.

See more photos here... - http://www.hisnibs.com/'90'_series.htm

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Duke 209

The Duke '209' series comes in four models/finishes.
Two of the pens have conventional western nibs,
while the other two sport Chinese calligraphy nibs, as
pictured here. These nibs are not designed for
western style calligraphy, but rather to approximate
the traditional brush used in Chinese calligraphy, in a
fountain pen form. An even closer approximation can
be found in the
Multifunction http://www.hisnibs.com/uranus_2018.htm pen, with its faux brush.

Read more here... - http://www.hisnibs.com/duke_209.htm

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Hero Silver Pandas

The Silver Pandas pen is part of the Hero '50'
series....slim pens all....that take their design cues
from the Parker 75 -- although as a smaller version of
that iconic pen (a full-sized version, with a 14K gold
nib, can be found in the '200' http://www.hisnibs.com/'200'_series.htm series).

This sharp-looking steel pen features 6 frolicking
Panda Bears - but with the addition of eucalyptus
leaves - all engraved in silver-relief, with 3 pandas on
the cap and 3 on the barrel. On the cap, one panda
is kicking a ball, the next is lifting barbells, and the
3rd is rowing a boat! On the barrel, the 1st is playing
with a soccer ball, the next is running with a ball and
stick (I think!), and the last is riding a bicycle! The
pen is of slender girth, and measures 5" capped and
about 5-3/4" posted, and sports a gold-plated steel
nib in fine, with a stylized "50" symbol in the center,
and the Chinese characters for "Hero" engraved upon
the sides. The clip is engraved with the Hero "H"
symbol. Engraved around the bottom of the cap are
the Chinese characters for "Hero" again, as well
as "Made in China" and a "50" on each side. This is a
real conversation piece of a pen!

Read more here... - http://www.hisnibs.com/'50'_series.htm

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Uranus LE series

Offered in a Matte Black or an all-steel finish, the LEs
are slender pens which measure 5-1/8" capped and 5-
1/2" posted. They sport gold-plated, semi-hooded
nibs (reminiscent of the Parker 45), in an x-
fine, (bordering on xx-fine).

See more here... - http://www.hisnibs.com/uranus_le.htm

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Uranus Gray Pinstripe

A slim, understated pen design, gives the Uranus GDF
Gray Pinstripe a very classy appearance. Measuring 5-
1/4" capped and a full 6" posted, it adapts itself to
any wardrobe, from business suit to casual wear. The
three simple, silver bands at barrel-base, cap top and
midsection nicely accentuate the sedate feel to the
exterior of this pen. The clip is subtly adorned with
the Uranus 'star' symbol, which is reprised on the cap
top (along with 'Uranus').

It's when you remove the slip cap (which re-seats
itself with a satisfyingly secure 'snap'), that things
heat up a bit, as the rakishly-styled nib reveals itself!
The beautifully sculpted nib, which comes in a fine,
has large cutouts on each side, revealing much of
the feed beneath. It's an interesting, and surprising,
match to an otherwise conservative pen design.

More.... - http://www.hisnibs.com/uranus_pinstripe.htm

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Hero hooded nibs

Although I've only mentioned a few of the slim,
inexpensive models on His Nibs, no list could possibly
be complete without the '329' and '330' that started
it all!

See more here... - http://www.hisnibs.com/'329'_series.htm

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On the blog...Scientist claims that dolphins are dim-wits.

The dim-wit here isn't the dolphins. Apparently
this 'scientist' has never read *any* of the
voluminous research conducted on dolphin
intelligence. Read about some of my personal
experience with dolphins here
http://hisnibs.blogspot.com/2004/08/beam-me-in-scotty.html

Read more here... - http://hisnibs.blogspot.com

Regards,

Norman Haase
His Nibs.com
www.hisnibs.com
Blog: http://hisnibs.blogspot.com