Faber-Castell is a well respected maker of pencils, pens and art supplies with a history dating back to 1761. For fountain pen enthusiasts, their nibs are among the best in the business.

None of this was on my mind as I breezed into Harrods one evening, for a quick browse around their Fountain Pen arcade on the lower ground floor, prior to taking my seat for a concert at the nearby Royal Albert Hall. I was off to see Sir Mark Elder conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra, massed choirs and four soloists, in a rare performance of Delius’ “A Mass of Life”, as part of the BBC Proms. I say “rare” because the piece had not been performed at the Proms for 37 years.

As always on my also-rare visits to Harrods, it was a triumph to locate the pen department. Once there, I enjoyed making a round or two of the displays, including Montegrappa, Chopard, ST Dupont, Caran d’Ache, Graf von Faber-Castell and of course Montblanc. There were notebooks and stationery from Smithson and Moleskine.

At the Graf von Faber-Castell counter, I spoke to the helpful assistant, Melvyn and chose a bottle of Cobalt Blue ink. I have almost finished my first bottle and this is probably my favourite “posh” ink. The rich dark blue ink, the attractive 75ml heavy glass bottle and packaging are all luxurious.

I then asked to take a closer look at the Faber-Castell Ondoro, in wood with a metal cap. I recalled seeing the pen some years ago with an orange barrel, but was not aware of this wood version. I enquired as to what the wood was and after consulting the catalogue, Melvyn informed me that it was “Smoked Oak”. It is an appealing, mid-brown with a dark grain. I have not yet discovered the significance of the “Smoked” in the title. I wondered whether it might perhaps be a process whereby the wood is heated, altering its enzyme constituents in a way which “ages”, dries and hardens the wood as Yamaha does for certain guitars in its range, to emulate the tone of a vintage guitar. However this was just a fantasy conjecture on my part. Presumably the oak is not smoked to improve its flavour like bacon or mackerel. Is it smoked just to give it a charred look? I am yet to find out.

Edit: Since publishing this post, a Google search revealed that Smoked Oak is a term for oak that has been exposed to ammonia fumes, in a sealed environment, for a number of hours. The fumes react with the tannins in the wood, causing it to darken. The longer the exposure, the darker the wood, until black. The process also enhances the natural grain.

The Ondoro features a hexagonal cap and barrel. It is not very long, but is chunky. Aside from the hexagonal form, another striking feature is the hour-glass shaped grip section. This is a short section and so, if you use a pinch grip around the section, your grip will be close to the paper.

At first, I was undecided how best to hold the pen. A pinch grip around the section is a bit too low and too crowded for me. But if you hold it higher up, at the barrel, you have the issue of gripping around the faceted sides, which may or may not conform to your preferred way of holding a pen. Then there is the option of posting the cap. It does post securely but adds considerable weight and alters the balance such that you would want to hold the pen much higher up.

At £165.00, the pen looked to be a bargain compared to most of the others on display and might have been the most affordable pen in the showroom. I was drawn to the Oak material which may develop a lovely patina eventually. I was also mindful that I had enjoyed good experiences with steel nibs from Faber-Castell in the past with pens such as the eMotion, Grip and Loom. I was sufficiently intrigued by the pen to include it with my impulse purchase of the Cobalt Blue ink and I left with a smart Faber-Castell shopping bag and a smile on my face.

Later at the Royal Albert Hall, before arriving I had switched the pen and ink to my shoulder bag. At the entrance, halting for the security check, a torch was shone into my bag and the man pointed to the box and said “What’s in there?” “It is fountain pen ink” I replied. I got the impression that he did not get that answer very often.

I had the opportunity to fill the pen during the interval. The performance (both the concert and the pen) was excellent. It was necessary to crouch down and put the ink bottle on the floor of the Hall by my seat, as even I was not stupid enough to open an ink bottle in my lap. Once filled, I could take my seat again and test the pen in a small pocket notebook. The nib appeared to be perfectly tuned, right out of the box and wrote smoothly and well, as I have learned to expect from Faber-Castell.

However, within a fairly short time, I began to suffer from an attack of BR or Buyer’s Remorse. This was triggered by the realisation that the pen was lumpy and angular and unusual to grip. I soon discovered that I could have bought the pen and the ink considerably cheaper online. Then thoughts began to crowd in, that I had not needed the pen, that it was arguably not as comfortable, or as good value, as my recently purchased Asvine J16 – a titanium bodied piston filler pen made, we generously assume, as an homage to the Montblanc Meisterstuch 146.

The following day, the BR only got worse, exacerbated by a visit to a home furnishings superstore where I made the realisation that, if it was Oak that I was after, I could buy an attractive table for a modest sum of £99.00.

However, after a few days, I was over the worst of the BR. I realised that it is not helpful, thinking about a fountain pen’s value in comparison to other household items. Even comparing pens from different brands and countries, it is a mistake to think that we should acquire a new pen “at cost.” As for comparing values in recent pen purchases, of course some appear better value than others and it sometimes helps to combine the cost of a few pen purchases and then average their cost.

Happily, I soon grew to fully enjoy the Ondoro once again. The key to this, in my case, was finding a comfortable grip. I found this by resting the section on my second finger, and then gripping the pen between thumb and forefinger a little higher up at the bottom of the barrel. I found that I could hold the pen with the nib at the “sweetspot” (rotated inwards slightly) if I held the pen at the facets, leaving one facet in between.

On my pen, and I don’t know whether they are all like this, when the barrel is screwed on to the section tightly, the nib aligns with a ridge between two facets, not a facet itself. I could hold the pen comfortably with the nib rotated inwards (I am a lefty). Once found, the grip is actually very pleasant and a bit addictive!

It is normal to have both likes and dislikes about the design of a pen. A few of mine are as follows. Let’s hope the likes outweigh the dislikes:-

Likes:

• Bold and unusual, attractive design;
• Facets: the hexagonal barrel with flat sides, is like an oversized pencil; also prevents rolling:
• The use of wood, as a warm and natural material – with a satin finish which may develop an attractive patina in use; I love having a piece of Oak in my hands;
• Short, chunky proportions;
• Weighty metal cap – with shiny plated finish contrasting with the satin finish of the wood;
• Subtle imprint of name and logo on the top of the cap, with the words “since 1761” imparting a sense of history:
• Comfortable hour-glass section on which to rest the pen;
• Well-tuned steel medium nib writes smoothly and with excellent flow:
• A Faber-Castell branded, Schmidt converter is included;
• Fit and finish are excellent: brass liner and threads to barrel; metal threads on the section; plastic liner to cap;
• Slightly domed metal barrel finial, protects the wood when pen is standing:
• Cap can be posted (although making the pen back-weighted and heavy);
• The tough, short and stocky feel of the pen make it well-suited for an EDC pen.

Dislikes:

• Facets: Unless held around the section, gripping the pen at the barrel has a risk that the facets may not necessarily fall where you would wish to grip the pen. You may instead encounter a sharp ridge between two facets, or else have your grip dictated by the position of the facets, rather than by the best rotation of the nib to the “sweetspot.”
• On my pen (and again this may not be same for all), the snap cap is very tight and it needs considerable force to uncap the pen: however this may ease eventually with use; meanwhile, if using the pen intermittently, the pen could be “soft-capped”, to reduce ink evaporation;
• If posting the pen, the hexagonal cap has to align with the facets and, on my model, this means that the sprung pocket clip will either be to the left or the right of the nib’s centre line and not in line with it – a slight annoyance.

Weights and measurements.

The pen looks and feels, chunky, solid and dense! Capped, it measures around 127mm and uncapped, 123mm. Posted, it is around 157mm. The width of the barrel across opposite facets, is about 12mm. It weighs 44.5g capped, or 27g uncapped and 17.5g for the cap alone. Using the pen uncapped, the weight is very comfortable.

Conclusion.

I am fond of Faber-Castell’s steel-nibbed fountain pens such as the Grip, the Basic, the Essentio and Ambition and have in the past enjoyed the writing experience, particularly with a Faber-Castell Loom, in gunmetal grey, a long-term EDC. I recall the excitement of once buying a Faber-Castell eMotion in Fortnum & Mason, and then heading to the men’s room to ink the pen (with Waterman’s Harmonious Green) and on to the British Museum to write with it. Perhaps I was hoping to recreate that new Faber-Castell feeling with my Ondoro purchase.

This time, the purchase was followed by a wobble and a couple of days of regret, but having come through this, and having spent some time experimenting with different grips, I can now report that I am enjoying the pen and that my bond with it is perhaps stronger as a result of this emotional roller-coaster ride.

Naturally, it sometimes pays to shop around before buying. Also it is best to handle a pen before buying to check that it will be comfortable or whether you will need (and be able) to adapt to it and so there are advantages to buying from a bricks and mortar shop, if you have one. Also, it is human nature to forget to be sensible once in a while.