First Impressions
The pen itself has an outstanding appearance and it comes in a substantial, leather-grained box. The first thing you notice when you open the box is the gleaming polished ebonite finish of the Staccato. There are several versions of the Taccia Staccato. The other pens are identical, except the bodies are made of acrylic resin.
Appearance
The appearance is excellent. The highly polished woodgrain ebonite is beautiful and the trim is what you would might see on a significantly more expensive pen. There are 3 cap bands and 2 jewels. The top and bottom jewels are made from the same ebonite as the pen. Overall, this looks like a very fine (and expensive) writing instrument. I was told that the ebonite is the same material used in the Krone Lincoln edition. Although the Staccato contains no replicated presidential DNA and does not have sterling silver trim, it costs about $1,500 less than the Krone.
Design/Size/Weight
It is a very large pen, larger than a Pelikan 800, but not oversized. I like big pens, but this one could have been just a little smaller. However, it is very comfortable to hold, and while it may be larger than an 800, it is lighter than one, probably because of the C/C filler. The clip is very sturdy and has an attractive curve to it. However, it is a bit stiff and I wish it had been spring loaded. The only real negative to the design is the four full turns it takes to uncap the pen. I spoke with Shu-Jen Lin, president of Taccia, at the D.C. pen show. She explained that some colors in the Staccato line required a longer thread in order to properly align the cap and barrel and that his pen was run on the same line as those pens. The explanation makes sense because the initial run of these ebonite pens was quite small and needed to be combined with the other pens. However, four turns is still four turns and because of that, this isn’t a pen for quick note taking.
Nib
Most of my fountain pens have gold nibs, but I’m not a nib snob. In my (somewhat limited) experience, stainless steel nibs can be just as good as gold nibs. I think that because fabrication methods are probably more refined for most gold nibs, they often write better than their stainless steel counterparts. I felt a little trepidation when I saw the “Iridium Germany” inscription on the Taccia’s nib. That disappeared when I wrote with it. It is a two-tone, gold-plated stainless steel nib. It looks quite attractive, is sized properly for this large pen, and writes very smoothly. While an 18K nib is available for this pen, I see no particular reason to spend another $100 for that nib. This one is quite excellent. Like most fine nibs these days, it seems to run just a little wider than I would prefer.
Filling System
It comes with a large international converter that holds a fairly generous amount of ink, more than most converters. Converters are convenient.
Cost and Value
Very good to excellent. When you consider the appearance, finish, size and performance of this pen, it is undoubtedly well-worth the price. I believe the retail price of the acrylic Staccatos is $139 and that the ebonite version is $189. I purchased mine from Swisher Pens at the D.C. Supershow at a significant discount.
Conclusion
I can see more Taccia’s in my future.