Ackerman PensManga G Zebra Classic Pump Pen, use any ink, even India ink, slip nibs and feeds in and out

Update. I like this pen so much that I placed an order for two more directly through Ackerman's website. This second order took 3 months to arrive. This is not unreasonable for a handmade pen. I have waited several months for other handmade pens to be available. What was uncomfortable was the complete lack of communication or response to inquiries and the fact that payment had already been made. These days, are all rather wary and cynical about online commerce. Rightly so, there's a lot of sharks. Collecting payment and then not responding is a bright red flag. If you Google this pen you will find a lot of angry, frustrated reports. However, in this case, it's just that, a flag and no more. If you have the patience for this, I say it's well worth it. You get the pen in the end but there's no hand holding in the meanwhile. If you have low tolerance for this sort of thing, skip it. There are alternatives.I just received my pen. About 8 days from Amazon order date. There was an error on my part which needed to be corrected by email. Vendor responded the following weekend and resolved the problem.Dip nibs have extremely variable flow demands. The line swells from hairline to full in a short distance. A modified Jinhao or similar will still have a fixed flow rate. But with this pen, the pump allows you to regulate the ink flow to thirsty nibs like Manga G. Unlike most pens where the flow rate is automatic, this is a manual transmission - you get more control at the price of more attention and skill on your part. It remains a dip pen but the dipping is 'built in'.The ink reservoir has no piston and must be filled with an eye dropper.. That's usually enough for one drawing. I am tempted to try this w/o the reservoir.After prepping the nib, the pen worked flawlessly. It feels like a dip pen, you have to stay aware of the ink charge but instead of dipping you just squeeze the pump. And just like a dip pen, it can drop a blot if you aren't careful.It seems to accept any full size dip pen nib that has a straight back. The nib pulls out like with a dip pen. The whole pen comes apart easily.The pen is very solidly made. You could probably drive over it and suffer no more than scuffing. It's also quite small without the cap posted. The pen is much more slender than it appears in the pix. The look is austere. It's a matte delrin rod. It's designed as a tool, not a piece of jewelry. I really like it. Others may find it too austere.The cap posts with a friction fit which is very stiff at first. Be careful you don't splatter ink when popping it on or off.This is a one man, weekend business. His pens have been steadily improved and now seem to work very well. I find a lot of complaints from earlier times about non responsiveness or slow orders. Perhaps he has someone to help with the management now, in any case, the recent reports are much improved. Expect to wait for the weekend to get a reply.The upside is a handmade specialty pen for $45 is an amazing deal. Especially when it includes an important innovation. There is no other pen like this available.

This is a tricky pen, and there is a LOT to know about using it that is not on the web site anywhere.A piece of paper comes with the pen but it's kind of confusing. It didn't even cover all the little details I found by cruising reviews on pen sites. If you lose it, you have no resources.The web site is a zero, by the way. All sales, no support.It does NOT "work with any ink" because a mysterious part called a "feed" comes in three sizes and you have to have the right one for the thinness or viscosity of the ink you use. Surprise!The replacement parts page on the web site is empty.There is a small part called an "overfeed" that is an important accessory and I only found out about it by looking at reviews.Apparently there's a tiny o-ring that goes with the cartridge (according to a reviewer). Since I didn't know it existed, it probably fell out without me noticing.There's a tiny hole in the cap that needs to be covered or not, depending (you cover it by rotating the pocket clip piece).Disassembling it is a little mysterious because there is no diagram of the parts and no instructions on whether parts screw apart or pull apart.Leakage, including heavy, completely-dump-out-the-cartridge leakage, is apparently a thing, according to reviewers and commenters. What a mess it made for me.It's too late for me to return it (I didn't really start to use it until after the return period). Maybe I will save the nib to use on another pen. The pen itself is dead to me.

Great concept:Turn any dip nib into a fountain pen.Problems:Extra ink drips off the nib every couple words. Ruins whatever you're trying to create.When stored with ink, whichever end it stands stored, and whichever end you uncapped, cartridge end or nib end, ALL of the ink has completely emptied and runs all over the table, the paper, the hands. What a mess!!!The "so-called" cartridge doesn't fit snug. Ink runs out. Nib end isn't tight. Ink runs out. I've wasted so much ink and papers I've worked on.I hope they figure out how to make this idea work. It's a great concept. It don't work.I've been trying to tweak it every day for a week. Even fashioned an overfeed like on a tutorial I watched. Still leaks everywhere.Wasted a lot of bucks buying extra nibs and overfeeds and pens, because, it's just a great concept, I was sure I could get it to work. I'm pretty handy and mechanical, and can figure things out. Not this mess. The parts don't fit securely.