Jinahao 82 vs. Sailor Pro Gear Slim! Fountain Pen Comparison Dupes or the The Real Thing?

[@timewithtata8004]

Welcome back! Today I'm showing you some of my new Jinhao 82 fountain pens alongside my Sailor Pro Gear Slims. Which is the better value? Are Sailors worth the money? Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Thanks for watching. xo Lori

[@fbales]

I’ve been collecting fountain pens for about 7 years now, and I can confirm the dangers of that rabbit hole. Even though I own many expensive fountain pens, I’m always testing cheap pens, mostly Chinese. They are, for the most part, much improved from 7 years ago. Sometimes they are so good, I ask myself why I buy expensive pens at all (the rabbit hole). Still, though they might good, they are never excellent, in my experience. Of course you can work on the nibs if you want to do that, but I don’t. Expensive pens rarely write poorly, and as you mentioned, their build quality is superb. That said, I never recommend Chinese pens for a new fountain pen user. Risk of failure still too high. I always recommend a major company’s entry level pens. Usually Pilot or LAMY, but even Sailor Kaweco, TWSBI, and others. I usually recommend LAMY Safari’s because they are easy to maintain (especially the changing of nibs-none easier.) They do cost more than most Chinese pens, but are well worth it. For newbies: if you shop on Amazon for pens, beware of “Luxury” fountain pens. If they claim to be luxury they never are-especially Chinese pens. I apologize for being so wordy, but I love talking about fountain pens. This is the first time I’ve watched one of your videos. Well done. I’ve subscribed. 😊

[@chishopastik]

Yes, I also think that the best beginner pen is Lamy Safari. Chinese versions of lamy that I've seen - all trash. I saw about 10-15 variants of this and all of them wen to trash. I own Jinhao X159 now. And I can say that is the best chinese pen I've ever seen. But I've also ordered Jinhao 82 and plan to order Jinhao 82 mini. But for my experience even it is good, feel from Lamy, Kaweco is different! I can't say that feel is too different even from Pilot E95S, for example, but I feel the difference. I can't explain it but I feel it. About Jinhao 82 that on the way to me and also X159 - I also don't like that it copy/replica of known pens of known brands, but want to try build quality/writing feel.

[@myelifeinvideos]

Love the jinhao for fun. Love their colors esp the translucent ones, and the fact you can change the finials. The ones I have all write very good. But I have a diff reason of buying them -- I want to test inks. I could actually do that with preppys and kakunos, but these jinhao 82s are just pretty 😊 Its a good starter pen.

[@timewithtata8004]

Yes, they are so pretty!! Love the idea to test inks with them!

[@nickworley4308]

I’ve tuned the 82 nibs making them wetter and smoother. They all right like a dream now. As you say the Sailor nibs have feedback and out of preference I will use the 82.

[@ivodesafreire6854]

I have done the same with my 9019´s. They are fantastic.

[@donhall-aquitania1025]

I have a Jinhao 80 and put a Lamy EF nib on it and I love the writing experience. It’s not better or worse than my Montblanc 146, just different.

[@timewithtata8004]

That's incredible. I say my pens are like my kids...all so different, but I love them all!

[@jppenandink]

I don’t have any of the Jinhao 82 but have other Jinhao’s in my collection that I enjoy using. I do love my Sailor PG Slims x2 and Sailor PG Slim Mini which have been recent purchases and now understand all too well why people fall in love with them 😊 But think these Jinhaos are great and give people a good writing experience at a fraction of the cost. Happy Easter 🐣

[@timewithtata8004]

Happy Easter! Sailors are easy to fall in love with, for sure!

[@chineseadobo051]

I’m a big fan of jinhao 82. I always interchange all the colours. You can also interchange the top and bottom finial. 😊

[@timewithtata8004]

I love swapping the colors! Thanks for watching!

[@jls3220]

You can’t compare F nib vs B so I’m not sure your outcomes are very accurate.

[@HandmadebyLorelei]

Aren’t these Jinhao pens so much fun!! Now these I could get on board with in terms of collecting! I just did my own video review of the transparent versions. I really liked them, mine were pretty consistent across the board. The ones I got were medium nibs but one I got with a bent nib and it’s fantastic. I also had the same experience with shimmering ink… clogged it up. Thanks for sharing your experience! Happy Easter!

[@timewithtata8004]

They are so much fun!! I should check out the transparent style. They're getting a lot of love in the comments! Happy Easter!

[@AmberUnfinished]

I have a 2 Jinhao 82’s and I find that my EF is much, much better than the F. So it’s interesting that you have the same experience. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I have not pulled the trigger on the PGS yet but it is on my wish list and I look almost every week at them. 😂

[@kaytee-zs1ue]

Hi there! I just bought a limited edition Sailor. My first Sailor! YAY! Pro gear style. Cap is dark turquoise and barrel lighter turquoise… milky look. I was wondering if you find Sailors write wet or dry? I use tomoe river paper (Sterling Ink). Do you have any suggestions for ink? As a point of comparison the turquoise is like the Blue Train Pro Gear currently available but more translucent. I want an ink that’s not too light as I want to see what I’m writing. I appreciate any suggestions that you might have. Thank you! 😊🙏

[@profaltman]

Thanks for a fun video. When you do the curly S's, maybe consider going a bit slower and try applying gentle gentle pressure to evaluate potential flex and line variation? Happy Easter colors!

[@LisePlansandJournals]

Jinhao 82s have zero flex

[@adrianmuino3412]

IMO they are different animals. Anyway it is incredible the value offered by the Jinhao 82.

[@CreatingCuteArt]

I really enjoy my Jinhao 82 translucent purple and jade, which I switched around to make color blocked versions. But nothing will or can compare to my Sailor Zoom nib in 21k! My favorite nib I own!🎉

[@timewithtata8004]

I love the Sailor nibs! I haven't tried a zoom nib yet!

[@CreatingCuteArt]

@@timewithtata8004 if you love your broad nib, you'd probably get a kick out of a Zoom!

[@wendy00278]

I am a Chinese, and I just don't understand why Jinhao copies other company's design. Jinhao has a line looks just like Lamy, and another looks like Sailor. Jinhao is a big brand in China, if it can make good pens, why not have its own design? I am just sad. I wish Jinhao to learn from TWSBI, a Taiwanese company, and to creat something unique. Untill then, I rather use one Sailor pen instead of owning 10 copies.

[@chishopastik]

I agree. I want to see original pen models from Chineese companies. And they could provide desirable quality for most of the people.

[@athanasiosmigdalas1295]

Jinhao I believe has plenty own designs. X450 series is a beautiful such series of very good pens.

[@aaronlycan9861]

I have a Kanwrite Zoom #5 nib on my Jinhao 82. Very thick and smooth. I can’t stop using it everyday its that good.

[@timewithtata8004]

That sounds great! I would love to try a zoom nib! I love that we can swap nibs with the Jinhao 82! It opens up so many options! Thanks for watching!

[@wittwittwer1043]

Sailor 21k nibs are their premium nib; their KOP (King of Pen always comes with a 21k nib). I don't use shimmer or glitter inks because of problems they cause with FP feeds.

[@ichirofakename]

Recently I wanted a couple more fude nibs and was delighted to learn that you can get 82s with fude nibs. They perform just fine. The red one is nice and bright and the lavender/green one is gorgeous. Bargain price. Highly recommended. I hope they come out with dups of the Pro Gear full size and the King of Pen, so I can spend more money. I have several real Sailor Pro Gears, which are my faavorite pen, but at ever-increaasing prices they are awfully expensive.

[@matildedelgado6647]

Some Jinhao 82 have a difficult start. They get better with time

[@Gehtdichnixan876]

If you polish the jinhao nib with micromash it writes like the Sailor. And a so cheap pan its ok to work on the nib 20 minutes.you can make the jinaho morenwet too

[@timewithtata8004]

I just ordered some micromesh. I'm going to give it a try! Thank you!

[@elude3808]

What grit??

[@Gehtdichnixan876]

@@elude3808 @elude3808 3000 Up 5000 micromash

[@kattz753]

I have lots of Jinhaos and generally like them. But, I am not a fan of their #5 fine nibs. When my 82 arrives, I will swap that out for a medium before I even ink it. There are a lot of generic #5 calligraphy nibs on Ali Express and even those are better than Jinhaos fine nibs.

[@MitaliChouksey]

where did you find sailor pro gear slim in 90$?

[@distaff2935]

I'll have to try these Jinhao's. Thanks!

[@timewithtata8004]

They are a great value

[@Jay_Bird]

Thanks for the comparison, I've been curious to see how the Jinhaos stack up, and the results you got are pretty predicable, I think. Jinhao has questionable quality control, lower quality components, etc. The only point I would raise that you sort of touched on in the video, but not very deeply, is around the ethics of purchasing something that is clearly stolen intellectual property. Sailor has spent a lot of money designing, marketing and standing by their products, and I struggle to purchase an item that is a clear rip-off of Sailor's designs. On the other hand, I've recently been very bummed out at what I view as greedy practices by Sailor. They have almost made a science of creating inflated prices for their products by severely limiting demand, issuing limited edition after limited edition and then placing HUGE mark-ups on their products. I've seen many of these pens being sold for more than $300 each, and some exceeding $500-600!!! (And if you dare get into the KOP market, you're now into 4 figures!) Long gone are the days were you could regularly pick up one of these pens for $150. And I'm not talking about on the secondary market, these are the prices their authorized dealers are charging. Those kinds of prices for a plastic pen are just ridiculous, and so I totally see why people are turning toward the knock offs.

[@tomshult3044]

I think the Jinhao 82 is much closer to the Sailor LeCoule.

[@awaken77]

I need to try these Jinhao. I love Sailor pro gear slim form-factor, i have rather small hands and more comfortable with pen size like this. But my Sailor have intermittent problems with the ink flow. It writes nicely only first day after it's washed and refilled. Then it's getting worse and worse.

[@cherylr6621]

How silly. If I had a Sailor I wouldn't even watch this video or be slightly interested in the cheap Chinese knockoff.

[@jacobus57]

Jinhao makes some great entry level pens, but just because the 82 looks like a Sailor doesn't mean they in any way compare to Sailors.