TWSBI Vac 700 fountain pen review

TWSBI Vac 700 fountain pen.

1. Damage

I got it at a ridiculously undisclosable price from a seller on gumtree in mint condition. My version is clear demonstrator with a stock  M nib. By the way the pen retails at SGD85 at straitspens with free shipping to Singapore and Malaysia. For value for money I give 5/5

2. Looks aesthetics and presentation

The pen comes in several colors all in demonstrators with a good selection of nib units and it comes interchangeable nib units and you can swap them freely, May be u can buy one body n two or more nib units say an M and an 1,1 so as to try different writing styles, separate nib units retail for aboutSGD30.  This is really handy to try different writing styles without buying a new pen,  The pen looks neo modern with clear space age look and does not look goddy.  It is aesthetically pleasing though feels a bit oversized for a very small hand. Among the twsbi demonstrator pens this is the largest. The plus side is that it holds huge amount of ink being a vacuum filler. For the packaging TWSBI won an award for the apple style packaging and it comes with a wrench to dismantle the pen if necessary, two O rings to vacuum seal, and a small bottle of silicon   grease. A nice gesture from TWSBI. For looks and presentation I give 4/5

3. Build quality construction and ergonomics

The pen is made out of quality plastic and does not feel cheap. The construction is top notch with the nib unit and the vacuum plunger feels steady. Any part of the pen including cap, clip, ring, barrel or blind cap does not feel cheap. I have heard of units cracking but in my case it feels solid. For ergonomics the pen is on the large side and should fit un posted in most of the hands unlesss you have very small hands. The pen is postable but I do not recommend it as it gets heavy,  The vacuum mechanism is top notch and this is the only sub 100 dollar vacuum filing pen in the market. For build quality construction and ergonomics I give 5/5

4. Writing

This is where the pen performs some what mediocre.  Out of the box it is a dry writer and the medium nib needs more pressure on the paper to lay an even line. As recommended by twsbi we need to open the vacuum piston valve for extended writing sessions and periodically we need to loosen a bit to get good ink flow. I get irritated with this at times. As for as the nib it is steel M nib and it is almost a nail with no line variation. As far as smoothness it is not the smoothest but not scratchy.

Considering all these weaknesses I give 3/5  for writing

 

5. Conclusion

Other than the vintage pens this is the only modern vacuum filler under 100 dollar mark and it is a statement of technical marvel. But for the little quirks in writing it is a neo  modern pen not to be missed, I give this pen an overall score of 4.25/5 and recommend it strongly for anyone building a good arsenal of pens.