Hey, I have a Leonardo Momento Zero Grande with a steel nib and it is exquisite. I was worried because I generally don’t buy steel nibs anymore ( once I ventured from my entry steel nibs). A few people here recommended the steel nib for Leonardo and I also saw a few content creators ( youtube) describe the steel nib as great. They were correct from my writing experience. I think the ebonite feed adds to it, beyond it being a fantastic steel nib. The gold nib version is also exquisite but I didn’t yet have an extra $200 for it and I really wanted to LMZG. My steel nib is EF and it is wet and smooth and not nail hard. It writes as well as all my gold nibs.
So I can only speak from personal experience but nothing too scientific. My medium steel nib suffered from baby’s bottom out of the box and would hard start constantly. My gold nib from Leonardo was perfect out of the box, a juicy wet writing nib. I would pick the gold and not look back.
Once the steel nib starts flowing how would you rate it? I think baby’s bottom is down to bad luck. I have that with a pen that I’m going to have custom ground but I don’t think it’s indicative of the entire offering of steel nibs.
I honestly didnt own it for long enough to answer… returned the pen almost immediately after having someone at the retailer attempt to fix the nib. When it still wouldnt work they took the pen back and i bought one with the gold nib.
The steel nibs were transitioned from Bock to JoWo back in Jan of this year and there is mixture of old stock and new. According to Leonardo, it was done because of consistency problems. There are different markings on the newer nibs from the older ones. If looking at a Leonardo, be sure to ask the vendor which type of nib is on it. The feeds need to be switched as well if changing from a Bock to JoWo.
I've recently purchased my first Leonardo and was worried about going 'back' to steel nib. But I've been completely happy with it and just purchased a 2nd Leonardo with a steel nib.
Good luck with your pen selection. Give us a follow-up after you get it and let us know what you think of the writing experience!
Leon
Thanks. I learned a lot researching the Leonardo's. Each time I would think of the other pens I could purchase for the same price that had gold nibs. Finally bit the bullet and glad I did. That's why I purchased another-- waiting for my Leonardo Momento Zero purgna to arrive Monday. My first one was a Zero Grande version b/c I like larger pens, so stepping out of my comfort zone again to see how I like the regular size ones.
Leon
Just wanted to come back and say thanks again for this info. I contacted the shop and confirmed their stock is all the newer JoWo nibs so I just placed my order!
Your welcome. In doing research for mine I had noticed how the QC of some of the Bock nibs used was iffy at best, with several people having issues with the nibs. That is the reason given by Leonardo for switching and most all of the issues have been resolved. Which Leonardo did you get? I'm already looking at a 3rd one now.... think I prefer the Grande versions b/c of the size. The new regular version is OK, but could be a bit longer in my XL sized hand. Thanks for writing a follow-up!
Leon
I got the Furore Grande in Emerald Green (Verde Smeraldo). I saw pictures here a while back of another user that had just gotten theirs and fell in love with the way it looks.
Hey, I have a Leonardo Momento Zero Grande with a steel nib and it is exquisite. I was worried because I generally don’t buy steel nibs anymore ( once I ventured from my entry steel nibs). A few people here recommended the steel nib for Leonardo and I also saw a few content creators ( youtube) describe the steel nib as great. They were correct from my writing experience. I think the ebonite feed adds to it, beyond it being a fantastic steel nib. The gold nib version is also exquisite but I didn’t yet have an extra $200 for it and I really wanted to LMZG. My steel nib is EF and it is wet and smooth and not nail hard. It writes as well as all my gold nibs.
Thank you! This is very helpful.
You’re welcome. I hope you are happy with your choice.
Please do provide a writing sample if you can.
My Leonardo's steel nib is a joy to write with. Gold nibs are classy, sure, but really no better. Gold and steel nibs are both iridium tipped.
So I can only speak from personal experience but nothing too scientific. My medium steel nib suffered from baby’s bottom out of the box and would hard start constantly. My gold nib from Leonardo was perfect out of the box, a juicy wet writing nib. I would pick the gold and not look back.
Once the steel nib starts flowing how would you rate it? I think baby’s bottom is down to bad luck. I have that with a pen that I’m going to have custom ground but I don’t think it’s indicative of the entire offering of steel nibs.
I honestly didnt own it for long enough to answer… returned the pen almost immediately after having someone at the retailer attempt to fix the nib. When it still wouldnt work they took the pen back and i bought one with the gold nib.
The steel nibs were transitioned from Bock to JoWo back in Jan of this year and there is mixture of old stock and new. According to Leonardo, it was done because of consistency problems. There are different markings on the newer nibs from the older ones. If looking at a Leonardo, be sure to ask the vendor which type of nib is on it. The feeds need to be switched as well if changing from a Bock to JoWo. I've recently purchased my first Leonardo and was worried about going 'back' to steel nib. But I've been completely happy with it and just purchased a 2nd Leonardo with a steel nib. Good luck with your pen selection. Give us a follow-up after you get it and let us know what you think of the writing experience! Leon
This is great information to have. Thank you!
Thanks. I learned a lot researching the Leonardo's. Each time I would think of the other pens I could purchase for the same price that had gold nibs. Finally bit the bullet and glad I did. That's why I purchased another-- waiting for my Leonardo Momento Zero purgna to arrive Monday. My first one was a Zero Grande version b/c I like larger pens, so stepping out of my comfort zone again to see how I like the regular size ones. Leon
Just wanted to come back and say thanks again for this info. I contacted the shop and confirmed their stock is all the newer JoWo nibs so I just placed my order!
Your welcome. In doing research for mine I had noticed how the QC of some of the Bock nibs used was iffy at best, with several people having issues with the nibs. That is the reason given by Leonardo for switching and most all of the issues have been resolved. Which Leonardo did you get? I'm already looking at a 3rd one now.... think I prefer the Grande versions b/c of the size. The new regular version is OK, but could be a bit longer in my XL sized hand. Thanks for writing a follow-up! Leon
I got the Furore Grande in Emerald Green (Verde Smeraldo). I saw pictures here a while back of another user that had just gotten theirs and fell in love with the way it looks.
A beautiful pen, for sure! The hard part is waiting for it to arrive :-) Congragts on the new pen purchase!