Fountain Pen: Asvine Lorelai 667

VISUAL

The Lorelai is a fun, inexpensive piston demonstrator pen with a splash of color. The finials and section are made of a purple-to-lilac resin. The clip, cap band, and piston cover are gold. This pen features a decently large ink chamber that when full fills about 1/3 of the barrel.

The cap is transparent as well, giving a nice peek at the nib.The feed is a clear plastic rather than black, which looks rather interesting and picks up more of the color of the ink. The two tone steel nib is actually kind of cute, with two little birds on it. I'm not sure if this is just a cute detail or a brand logo that I'm not familiar with. This same bird symbol is engraved on the gold band that covers the piston mechanism, so I've always assumed that it was a brand choice. The pen is visually branded as LORELAI. However, the very little I've been able to find indicates that Asvine may be the manufacturer.

TACTILE

For being a budget pen, it actually feels pretty decent. It's an average Chinese pen, but it's been fairly reliable. Even after a few years, the piston still works fine! The section is decently comfortable, and the threads are not sharp or annoying. It's not a particularly heavy pen, but it's also not so light as to feel 'cheap'.

PRACTICAL

I do find that this Extra Fine nib is slightly scratchy, but doesn't have issues keeping up with writing. The scratchiness is not so bad as to damage paper or interfere with writing. It's sometimes fixable with some tine manipulation, but seems to return after some time. Additionally, it's so very minor but with only light use I'm already seeing the silver chip off this two-tone nib.

The piston works well and functions smoothly. The cap also seems to seal decently, and in the short term I haven't had issues with hard starts.

I appreciate that the cap posts fully over the piston nob and friction-fits to the barrel decently far above the piston nob. I don't have to worry about accidentally activating the piston when posting, yay!

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STATISTICAL

Pen Measurements:

Weight:21.5g

Weight of Cap: 7.48g

Length Capped: 142mm

Length Uncapped: 123mm

Length Posted: 155mm

Nib: 6mm 'Extra Fine' Steel

Body Style: Cigar

Fill Method: Piston

Fill Volume: 1.5 ml

Comparison Pens: Pilot Metropolitan, LAMY Safari

My Fountain Pen Database

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OVERALL

Pros:

• Decent piston pen on a budget

Cons:

• Flaking finish on the nib

• Slightly scratchy nib

  
  

I find that I have more fun with demonstrator pens that have a splash of color to them. Purely clear pens are certainly nice, but even when uninked this pen has some character to it. It also helps with choice paralysis when choosing an ink!

DISCLAIMER: Pens and inks purchased by myself. Photos and opinions are my own.