Fountain Pen: Faber Castell Essentio

VISUAL

The Faber Castell Essentio is a very interesting pen. The body is a brush textured aluminum and the cap is a matte blue sparkly plastic. The two different materials work well together, but aren't perfect matches.

The cap has a bit of an egg shape to it, whereas the barrel is fully straight. There is a moderate band of semi-translucent plastic between the cap and the body of the pen. In perfect conditions this can function as an ink window, but it's dark enough that it's tricky to see anything.

TACTILE

The cap is a nice satin matte. It features a decently large and deep embossing of the brand and logo on one side.

The section and barrel are made of brushed aluminum. The brushed texture is very light, almost imperceptible. The very long section is also ribbed with deep groove. Bizarrely, even considering the two different types of texture, this pen is still pretty slippery in my grip.

PRACTICAL

This medium nib is surprisingly a very wet writer. It just glides across the page with little to no feedback. I think this is the first pen that I've used that was so smooth I started to have some troubles feeling the paper, since I'm used to having at least some slight feedback.

I've been syringe-filling cartridges for this pen. While I found that Schmidt converter technically fits in this pen, it sits so snuggly in the barrel that I worry it may get stuck. Rather than deal with that concern, I find it's easy enough to use cartridges.

There is a silver indented finial at the rear of the barrel that is the perfect size to slip the cap over. However, it only barely resists motion and the cap just precariously rests on that spot. I'm not sure if it is intended to post; I'm assuming that the silver is just a design choice. Posting also makes the pen ridiculously long. It's plenty long enough to use unposted and I know that has to be the intent, but I'm also a habitual poster. I've definitely used this pen with the cap haphazardly posted many times with no issue, but I recognize that it looks ridiculous.

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STATISTICAL

Pen Measurements:

Weight: 23.02g

Weight of Cap: 6.14g

Length Capped: 139 mm

Length Uncapped: 135 mm

Length Posted: 202mm

Nib: 5mm 'Medium' Steel

Body Style: Bat

Fill Method: Cartridge

Fill Volume: 0.8ml

Comparison Pens: Pilot Metropolitan, LAMY AL-Star

My Fountain Pen Database

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OVERALL

Pros:

• Very wet medium nib that glides across the page

• Interesting mix of textures and an intense blue

Cons:

• Posting makes this pen absurdly long

• Posting is also poor and precarious and I assume it is not intended

• Seemingly cartridge only while being a long pen, unless I can find a narrower converter

• Slightly challenging to maintain a grip

I am rather ambivalent about this pen. I do enjoy it and appreciate many aspects - it looks unique and is well built, but I also find myself questioning many design choices. It's a great length to use unposted, so commentary on posting is just due to my personal preferences.

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