It is widely known that Chinese pen manufacturers are renowned for their ability t reverse engineer a pen and then sell it at a fraction of their cost. And one of the better ones at doing that is Moonman/Majohn. They were popular in the past with their eyedropper pens, and some unique designs, but their popularity came to rise after their release of the pilot Vanishing point clones, the A1, A2 and A3, and their infamous spat with Kaweco over the “Moonman” trademark. Well, after that, they’ve released quite a lot of “homages” over the years, and one of them got a lot of attention recently. Based on the Omas 360, I present you, the Majohn V60. Clever wordplay aside, for around 2500 INR or around 30 USD is it a good pen?
Note: I will be using Moonman and Majohn interchangeably in this post because as far as I can tell, even the company isn’t quite sure what to call them. So…🤷
TL:DR#
Yes… it is a good pen. if you want a piston filler with a well tuned fine nib and can deal with the triangular shape and don’t mind how it sits, it is a great VFM pen. And the plethora of colour options are just icing on the cake.
Build and Design#
If you’re not familiar, this pen resembles, or in-fact copies the look of the well regarded Omas 360. A vintage pen famous for it’s triangular body. Well, this pen looks the same as the 360, with a few changes. The first one being the color options, there are simply more options to choose from including gold and silver trimmed as well as demonstrator options. The second being that the nib and feed are the traditional plastic feed setup, and the nib being steel as compared to the gold nib and ebonite feed in the Omas. And the third being some minor differences in the trim is arranged in the grip section and the cap band. For reference, here is the Moonman V60 with the Omas 360.
First the Majohn V60
And now the Omas 360(Credit: Vintage and modern pens UK)
Do you see the resemblance… the word blatant comes to mind.
Looking at the pen as is, I really like the look of it, it is kind of an in between o0f a cigar and a torpedo. and the triangular design is unique. I love the way the clip is curved, not only does it looks good, but it makes it much easier to clip this to your pocket or book, considering how stiff it is. then moving on to the base of the cap, you have a cap band with a cool Greek key motif.
The cap is a push cap, with the section being straight with a slight ridge towards the end. Just before the ridge, there is a similar Greek key motif to that of the cap band. the grip to barrel has a tiny step up, mostly to prevent the cap from going down too far, but is non intrusive. The barrel goes straight for the most part until the end trim piece. Where the knob for the piston is. I don’t know whether it is just my unit, but I did find some play in the piston knob, but the mechanism works smoothly and I have no problems whatsoever with the filling of the pen.
Overall, I’d say t is a great looking pen with an understated yet luxurious presence. It certainly looks the part. And with the unique triangular shape it is bound to turn some heads.
Coming to the size, it is a medium pen which is comfortable to hold. If you don’t mind the triangular grip, it is a surprisingly comfortable pen to write with. The cap barely posts and it sits on top of the knob right above the trim ring. So yes, the piston knob can rotate while posted. so keep that in mind. I’d say don’t post it at all…
Here are the measurements. Measurements:
- Capped: 148.8mm
- Uncapped: 132.5mm
- Thickness of the barrel: 14.4mm from apex to opposite side, 14.6mm from apex to apex
- Cap diameter(dimensions in this case): 16.6mm from apex to opposite side, 16.8mm from apex to apex
- Section dimension: 13mm tapering to 11.8mm from apex to opposite side, 13.2mm to 12.1mm from apex to apex, over a length of 25.7mm.
As for size comparisons. here is the capped and uncapped comparison: From left to right
- Click Renneissance
- Moonman V60
- PLP model 008
- Kanwrite Desire
- Krishna Zuki
And continuing from my last pen review, here is a comparison between my smallest pen the Moonman Q2 and my largest pen, the Woodex #39.
Nib and Writing#
Coming to the nib, it is a traditional Moonman #6 size nib with a plastic feed. The nib looks great, with the moonman stanping and the dual tone giving it a nice touch.
It looks like it should be a screw in nib unit, but either it is glued from the factory, or it is so tight that the feed and nib just came off as though it was a friction fit setup. So… take it for what it is
For ink, I used the trusty Bril royal blue, which, in my opinion is the best value for money blue ink in the market today. And I find this fine nib to be a very good writer. The nib is smooth, the flow is adequate, and the pen is well tuned. And the triangular grip, for me is comfortable to use. The fine nib is comparable to extra fine nibs from the likes of JoWo, or fine nibs from Indian makers like Kanwrite. Here is the writing sample.
Final Verdict#
Overall it is an extremely enjoyable pen to use. And for the price, the pen is a unique offering for the enthusiast who can’t afford the Omas 360, this can be a good alternative. The pen is available on sites like aliexpress or etsy and I’d say it is a steal of a pen who want a good piston filling pen with a distinctive design and is okay with the triangular shape… And hey, it won’t roll of the desk, so that’s a bonus👍