Sailor 1911 Brush Pen Review
24 May 2016A brush pen needs to have good flow and good line variation while maintaining a crisp line and allowing lots of control. How does the Sailor Brush Pen stack up?
This version of this review was originally posted on the Pen Company’s blog. The Pen Company sent me this pen in return for that review. These are my own opinions.
Price: £21.50
Barrel options: black with gold trim
Ink type: black brush pen ink (permanent and waterproof) but takes a Sailor converter and so can be used with any ink
The Sailor 1911 Brush Pen has the same barrel design as Sailor’s 1911 fountain pens. It’s quite a wide barrel by drawing pen standards and it’s very comfortable in the hand. The finish and the quality of the plastic befits the price of the pen: far from luxurious but plenty good enough. Although the design is the same as the 1911 fountain pens, the quality of the materials is not the same (and nor is the price).
The cap screws on to close and pushes on to post (which it does securely). The folded metal clip is fairly strong and clippy.
Sailor make cartridges specifically for the brush pen and this ink is a true black. It’s waterproof and permanent. If you use to do something different you can put a Sailor converter in there and use any ink you want.
The brush is synthetic and is replaceable should you wear it out. It gives a very strong and crisp line. The ink flows very well and keeps up no matter how hard you’re pushing the pen. In fact it flows perhaps a little too well: although it’s possible to get a lot of line variation, it takes a lot of control to draw a very fine line. Every line in this picture was made with the Brush Pen.
This is a great pen.
Pros
Can use any ink
Excellent flow
Great line variation
Comfortable size
Cons
Tricky to get a very fine line
This is one of my favorite brush pens, too! I opted to put a water-soluble ink in this one (sometimes it’s fun to deliberately wash the ink for shading), and I keep waterproof ink in my Kuretake (for use with watercolor). I carry both regularly. Would love to hear your opinion on the various “non-hairy” (my term) brush pens — the kinds with compressed fiber or felt tips? There are so many available, but I don’t have a hands-down favorite because they each seem to have high points and drawbacks. Most are not refillable, unfortunately. I like them for certain types of sketching because they are firmer and easier to control. Would be interested in hearing of your experience with these and whether you have a fave.
– Tina
I think Platinum make a refillable version, Tina;
http://www.cultpens.com/i/q/PT22652/platinum-fude-brush-pen-cftr-250
(I have one, but have yet to ink it up).
Thanks — I do have one of those. It is one of the only refillable ones I know of. However, the point mushed down so quickly that it hardly needed to be refilled. 🙁
I’m not sure that I can justify one, having Pentel, Muji and Platinum brush pens, but those Sailor ones really are lovely.
Yes it’s a lovely looking pen and it works well too, although I slightly prefer the Pentel and Platinum ones I have. I’ve not tried the Muji one although now I mention it I think I might have one somewhere. Which do you feel is best, of the ones you have?