Grass Padrique | The Fabulous Scientist
A few days ago, I ordered several fountain pens from abroad. Some were the latest colorways of the Jinhao 82, which I plan to include in a few “penabling” kits. I also ordered one pen for myself—the Hongdian N1—because its unusual nib had piqued my curiosity.
If you haven’t heard of the Hongdian N1 before, you’re not alone. I discovered it while watching fountain pen reviews on YouTube, where one reviewer mentioned it as one of his favorites. I had been looking into Hongdian pens after a fellow fountain pen enthusiast told me about a rumor that the company had closed down.
I sincerely hope it is only a rumor. Still, my thinking at the time was: if there was any truth to it, I should get another Hongdian while I still could. After all, I already love my Hongdian M2, N8S, and Forest models—although I haven’t written about the last two yet. Perhaps someday!
During Lazada’s September 9 sale, I searched for the Hongdian N1 and, lo and behold, found a seller offering it for only $16. What really caught my attention was its nib, which looked completely different from those on my other Hongdian pens. This model came with a 0.7 mm long-blade nib, and one review described it as smooth and similar to an architect grind.
The moment I read “architect grind,” I added the pen to my cart and checked out without a second thought. I’ve wanted an architect grind on at least one of my pens ever since I tried one at last year’s Pelikan Hub. However, having a nib custom-ground by a nibmeister can be expensive, so this seemed like an affordable way to experience a similar writing style.
The pen arrived the other day, but I didn’t get to open the package until I came home from work last night. Oh, man—what a happy color! Its bright orange, chatoyant acrylic-resin body practically glows. It’s an absolute beauty. The pen came in a large black box with 60-ml bottle of black and a gift bag. The seller was thoughtful! In case you don’t know yet, a Hongdian black ink is a very dark black and also waterproof.
When I arrived at the office today, I filled it with Platinum Carbon Black ink, as excited as a child opening a brand-new Lego set. And the nib? It wrote like a dream!
It has the same subtle feedback I enjoy in my M2 and Forest pens, but its line variation resembles that of an architect nib. Depending on the writing angle and stroke, it produces lines ranging from around 0.7 mm to 0.9 mm. I can already imagine filling it with shimmer ink—the broad strokes should show off the shimmer beautifully on good fountain-pen-friendly paper.
I’m so glad I bought this pen. Whether or not the rumor is true, Hongdian makes wonderful fountain pens, and I sincerely hope the company continues making them for many years to come. ❤️
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