Fountain Pen: Majohn M8 Multicolor

Pardon the dust as I practice with different styles and formatting for these reviews! I'm hoping to find a style that works best for me and is easy to navigate for others. Let me know what you think works and doesn't work and I'll keep improving the format!

For the first review, I decided to choose a sparkly pen. The Moonman (now Majohn) M8 is a decently large, cigar-shaped acrylic pen. I purchased this pen in early 2020, which I believe was right around when they were rebranding. I'm not certain if this pen is currently available anywhere, though that's not hugely surprising as some of the these Chinese pens have a bit of a shorter production run.

VISUAL

This version of the M8 features a beautiful scattering of green and purple shell fragments on a black background. This model also came in a foil flakes version, but I'm very happy with my glittery shell bits. It makes me think of confetti or fireworks, which is why I chose it for my celebratory New Year's Day post.

The floating gold clip and lack of any cap band or other adornments really lets the material take center stage. I think a cap band or even a clip band would be distracting from the overall look.

I'm not sure if gold is the color I would have chosen for the clip, nib, and cap threads. On the one hand, it does stand out and contrasts sharply with the rest of the pen. On the other hand, silver would have more synergy with the cooler tones of the shell pieces.

TACTILE

I like wider pens in general, and this pen is very comfortable to hold. It has a decent weight to it, and the fact that it has metal threading brings the weight to the front. The clip functions well and has enough flex to it that it's not hard to clip onto fabric, but feels secure when it is used.

The straight section is decently long and pleasantly wide. The cap threads are wide and smooth, making them barely noticeable when writing. There is a slight step up to the body.

PRACTICAL

This Moonman nib is from what I call the 'Monteverde Imitation' era - it's almost a direct copy, down to the mountain-shaped embossing and the moon-shaped breather hole. It is friction fit into the pen, making it rather easy to take apart and clean.

The nib itself writes well! It was marketed as a Fine nib, but in my experience it writes more like a solid medium. This is acceptable if you don't have a preference on your nib, but if you were looking for a fine nib, I'm sorry. This is definitely a medium in all but name. On the plus side, it has a pleasantly pencil-like feedback, and writes pretty wet. This makes it ideal, in my opinion, for fun shimmer and sheen inks.

The M8 can technically post, and it grabs well enough that it is usable posted. However, the way the cap sits is wibbly enough that it doesn't feel reliable. I prefer to use this pen unposted, especially if I'm using it for longer writing periods.

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STATISTICAL

Pen Measurements:

Weight: 29g

Weight of Cap: 11g

Length Capped: 139mm

Length Uncapped: 124mm

Length Posted: 161mm

Nib: 6mm 'Fine' Steel

Body Style: Cigar

Fill Method: Converter

Fill Volume: 0.6ml

Comparison Pens: Pilot Metropolitan and LAMY Safari

My Fountain Pen Database

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OVERALL

Pros:

• Very pretty material - It's like a confetti explosion

• Comfortable in the hand

• Satisfying pencil-like feedback in the nib, wet writer.

Cons:

• Posts loosely

• A small scratch is present on the barrel and the clip scuffed easily - may not be the most durable.

Given the choice again, I would definitely repurchase this pen. If I was a stickler for nib sizes being as advertised, the fact that this is definitely a true medium nib would be an issue. However, if this pen had been SOLD with a medium nib, that would have been what I would have selected - I love having a juicier nib in a sparkly pen, as it seems so appropriate to put a shimmer ink in this pen. Additionally, the friction-fit nib makes it so much easier to clean out the shimmer afterwards.

The Moonman/Majohn M8 seems to be currently out of production, but potentially can be bought used.

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