Lanxivi Duke 2009 Charlie Chaplin Commemoration Fountain Pen Medium, Dark Blue 75g Heavy Pen with Small Pen Bag

The most important thing for any fountain pen is how well it writes. I admit I was attracted to the allure of a pen named after Charlie Chaplin. However this pen writes effortlessly, and with a nice line to boot. It is heavy in the hand, and feels important. It feels like luxury. It's a medium nib, and this is the best. I admit I got the one with the bent nib and it was a disaster. Ordering a second time (medium nib) was a matter of faith, and I was not disappointed. It feels like a pen that should be on an English Gentleman's desk. Its a good choice, and would not disappoint as a gift.

This is my second fountain pen (my first was a Lamy Safari, which I've had for years). I never did get used to the Lamy Safari, although I know people who swear by it. By contrast, I've written every day with this pen and love how it writes.First - this is a HEAVY pen. It comes in at a whopping 75 grams (the Lamy Safari is less than a quarter of the weight by comparison) - there are not many fountain pens which weigh more. It is also big - the diameter is 15 mm about where you would hold it, but bigger where the cap joins the body, posted length is 148 mm, 130 mm capped (these measurements are similar to the Lamy Safari). For those who are wondering what 'posted length' is, this is the length of the pen with the cap off to write and attached to the tail end of the pen. You probably won't notice how big it is, but you'll definitely notice the weight.The "Commemorative" part of the pen can be seen around the cab with iconic 'Charlie Chaplin' images engraved into the metal as well as the shape of the pen. I have to admit to not caring much about the 'commemorative' part of the pen - I was looking for a heavy fountain pen that writes well and this pen does a great job on both counts.This pen writes very well and writes better and better with more use (or maybe I am getting used to it?). The shape fits my hand nicely and I really like the weight. Posted, the pen has a nice balance for writing. The clip is sturdy, but I have to admit that I don't carry this around with me. (I'm sure the weight would distort any shirt pocket.) Construction is solid - placing the cap on the pen gives a satisfying 'snick' when fully closed and when posted it is solidly joined.I have only used the converter and doubt I'll switch to cartridges. Removing the converter is easy as is filling (I've only used Parker Super Quink black so far); again, you'll notice the pen has a quality feel to it as you take it apart and put it back together.This is a GREAT fountain for the price. I'm sure there are other fountain pens out there that write better (I'm sure they cost more) and I look forward to adding other fountain pens to my beginners collection. However, I doubt your find another pen with the combination of quality, weight and writes as well as this one. This is probably one of the easiest five start ratings I've every given.

This might be my all time favorite fountain pen. I have, in general, found the Chinese pens to be crappy. Cheap materials, horrid, stiff nibs, leaky converter. Japan, of course, makes some great pens. Parker and Pilot are just two Japanese - made brands. The heart of my collection is made by Lamy, which are cheap, reliable, feature great converters, and have great nibs. But unfortunately they are light as a feather and I love a hefty pen.Weirdly, many of the low reviews of this outstanding pen mention the weight as a negative. Historically, weight has been treasured in fountain pens, one of the virtues metal pens had over quills. Criticizing a pen for its weight is like criticizing a diamond for its clarity. No, one of the best things about the pen is that it is delightfully heavy.The nib - I prefer medium nibs - is an outstanding one, producing an exceptionally smooth, dense line. In fact, I have only one complaint: if you aren't careful in putting the converter in place it tends to leak.Yes, it will take standard short cartridges, but why use a fountain pen but not use the best ink? And most of the fun of a fountain pen is finding the perfect ink. Or inks. Right now I keep bouncing between Levenger dark green and Diamond very dark blue-gray (Forest and Twilight, respectively).I have managed to get a couple of very expensive pens due to drastic markdowns because of damaged packaging, but I prefer this budget pen to any I've ever own. Without question the best pen under $20 in the world.And remember that with pens, HEAVY = GOOD.

I really love this pen. It is heavy, chunky and has a quite unique shape. The metal pieces have a dull finish so avoid looking cheap like some Chinese chrome work can. Around the base of the cap is a tiny engraved design incorporating a boot, a cane and a bowler hat and what turns out to be two rows of bow ties, in homage to Charlie Chaplin. The "Duke" branding is also engraved there. The barrel and pen body are a lustrous shiny black and the little chrome/stainless steel on the pen body manges to make it look extra classy rather than cheap.I thoroughly cleaned the nib and filler with washing up liquid then dried completely. I filled it with Platignum (UK) black ink which is inexpensive and seems to produce good results in all of my pens. I found the plunger to be way higher quality than my other Chinese pens and better than my Cross Apogee. The nib is definitely equivalent to a European medium and is very smooth. The line it laid down initially was quite wet in the same way as every Parker pen I have had but this has improved to the point where after four refills of the same ink it writes more smoothly than any of my other pens including my Cross Apogee and Waterman Laureate. I now use this as my preferred pen when I have a lot of notes to write up as it has been consistent and comfortable to use. I do not often use it with the cap posted though as it is too heavy and the balance is wrong. It came with a felt slip pouch but the pen is too wide to fit in it so it's a waste.I'm really pleased with this pen which cost less than a Parker IM and looks like it costs very much more than it did. It took about a month to ship from China but it was worth the wait.

I like this pen, it has a weighty feel to it, very tactile with curves and different surfaces between the gloss and the metal, a pen that writes well, easy in the hand and to twirl around as you think . The top fits well, snapping into place - although I probably prefer a screw top. The metal of the ink reservoir can rattle against the metal of the case but I resolved that by inserting a small roll of paper around the reservoir . I might is a medium fine , narrower than some other medium nibs - which is what I wanted. I would buy another Duke - inexpensive , possibly less than half what what I would expect to spend on it if I found it in a shop on high street .

I love the way this pen feels and have actually bought two of them. On one of them, the lid was too loose as reported by other reviewed which caused the nib to get damaged when it came off in my bag.On my newest one, the lid is too tight and actually causing ink to be sucked out of the pen when uncapping.Both situations resulted in multiple ink stains.I'm wondering if a third will be "just right"?Would appreciate some advice here. I'm wondering if there should be a "breather" gap in the cap that might be blocked or of there is something I can do to stop the suction?

This pen sems to be of a good quality, it is heavy as a dumbell, but I like it.The nib is medium, and slides nicely on paper. I have get rid of the ink filler, and used standard cartridge in place, which is more convenient.I've read some comments saying that the top falls of. Seeing how it is made, I have some doubt about it. There is a nylon lining inside the top which maintains the seal between the top and the body of the pen.Don't think about using the pen posted, it makes it unbalanced and definitely too heavy.

All the 5 star reviews are correct, a great balance, a lovely product, you know you are handing quality.