Dupe The Expensive Vibes

If you’ve been a fountain pen person for any length of time, you likely know that their prices have a VERY wide range. But, if you aren’t married to a name brand, you can get the feel of more expensive pens for a small fraction of the cost.

Granted, I make no promises on the quality of the various pens and nibs. Some may be great, some may be crap. But, these let you have that expensive look without the dollar outlay. And, if you’re saving enough on the pen, there’s little a good nibmeister can’t fix.

Note: I’m NOT talking about knock-offs today. That will be in a future post.

Laban Skeleton

Let’s start with the pen that inspired this post. I felt the design of the Laban Skeleton has a similar feel to the Visconti Torpedo, at about 15% of the price. With the release of the Laban Formosa, that comparison is even stronger.

Laban Guilloche

While I’m on Laban, allow me to touch on their Guilloche line in comparison to ST Dupont’s Line D Guilloche pens. While the pattern isn’t identical — and the Laban version only comes in 2 colors — the pens are similar, and the Laban is about 28% of the price of the ST Dupont.

LeBoef Pilgrim

The Pilgrim collection, while it only has two color options, is very similar to the Aurora Caleidoscopio series, and only 15% of the price. The closest match is this Desert Yellow Pearl to the Luce Bianca.

Taccia Spotlight

This one is a very specific one-to-one. The Taccia Spotlight in Pure Clear perfectly captures the feel of the Platinum #3776 Century Oshino at 29% of the price.

Monteverde Ritma

Despite slight differences in color and intricacy, there’s no doubt that the Monteverde Ritma bears a striking resemblance to the Faber-Castell Ambition and Graf von Faber-Castell Tamitio. However, it’s only half the price of the Ambition (40% of the OpArt versions) and a mere 16% of the Tamitio.

Penlux Masterpiece Grande

I’m one of those people that feels there is an upper limit to the worth of a basic pen. And the Sailor King of Pen goes far beyond my limit. If you’re like me, then the Penlux Masterpiece Grande might be for you. It has a similar weight (33g vs 34g for KOP resin and 33g for KOP ebonite), length capped (149mm vs 152mm), and length posted (170.7mm vs 165.2mm). However, it comes in many more colors and runs you between 18.5% to 22% of the price of the KOP.

Otto Hutt 06

For some reason I tend to think of Otto Hutt as an expensive brand. However, while not cheap, it’s also not crazy expensive. The 06 is highly similar to the Caran d’Ache Leman, and, at most, will cost you 36% of the price.

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What do you think of these comparisons? What similar pens have I missed? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.

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