Review: PENBBS 469 dual nib fountain pen

PENBBS is a company based in Shanghai, China, that makes fountain pens. For some reason, they don't have an official website so their pens are sold only through Etsy and eBay.

PENBBS fountain pens go by model numbers and the particular one that I find interesting is 469, the fountain pen that has pen nibs on both sides of the pen.

I bought my pen for less than US $29 through an eBay auction that I won without other bidders. The more commonly seen price is usually more than US $35.

The pen comes with an eye dropper and a rollerball point section.

While on eBay, I also found a cute US $9 pen holder.

PENBBS 469 is available in different colours, and you can choose from a combination of different nibs. The body seems to be some sort of plastic or acrylic.

The body is glossy and very smooth to the extend it's slightly slippery. So be careful not to drop the pen.

Having two pen nibs on each end is an interesting concept. This allows you to use two inks in a single pen.

The pen is lightweight and comfortable to hold.

I bought this with a M and F nib.

The M nib design is kinda simple. The M seems to be used as a design element here.

The F nib is duo-tone.

Both nibs are stiff and don't flex.

The ink reservoir can probably hold as much ink as a typical ink convertor.

The pen can be dismantled fully for cleaning.

This particular nib section here is difficult to disassemble though. The feed seems to be stuck in the section. I guess I can pull it out if I use force but chances are it's going to bend the fins of the feed. I can already see some bent fins inside the section, probably there because of how the feed was pushed inside.

This particular section has screw threads. For the other nib, it's just nib and feed.

Since there's no piston or ink refilling mechanism, you'll have to use the eye dropper provided.

Don't fill the ink all the way to the brim because you still need to screw on the grip section.

When drawing or writing quickly without capping both ends, chances are you'll leave ink on your hand.

The writing performance is smooth and ink flow is good.

The difference between the M and F nib seems minimal to me. The line thickness looks very similar to me.

Being able to have two inks in a single pen is actually quite convenient. This allows you to write and draw with two colours. If you have two pens, you can have four colours. This two-nib feature is definitely not a gimmick.

The writing performance is quite good too so it's kinda good value for money.

Only downside is the body which I feel is fragile so I'll be sure not to drop the pen.