(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)
I own several Franklin-Christoph fountain pens and have reviewed many of them on Pen Addict. I purchased a special edition Intrinsic back in May and realized I had not yet written a review of this model.
The pen is packaged in a simple white cardboard box and Franklin-Christoph's signature zippered pen case. Although these cases used to be made of leather, now they are made of "suit grey" fabric.
The 02 Intrinsic model is unique in its shape, with a barrel that tapers sharply from the center. This is so that the cap can post deeply onto the pen and maintain good balance--something that often fails on other pens when you post caps. This is the first fountain pen I use posted because of the ingenious design.
I was lucky enough to get a special edition Intrinsic in Maya Blue. I love the colors of this model. There are darker translucent blue sections at the finial, top of the grip, and at the barrel bottom. The remainder of the pen is lighter blue and frosted.
The pen is medium sized, measuring 146.1mm/5.75 inches capped, 149mm/5.85 inches posted, and 131mm/5.15 inches unposted. Without ink the pen weighs 20.71 grams. It's incredibly well balanced wither you use it unposted or posted, but I like the balance better with it posted (it gives the pen more heft).
The cap has a relatively small clip engraved with diamonds. The Franklin-Christoph name is also engraved lightly near the bottom of the cap.
The pen comes with two blue ink cartridges and is supplied with a Franklin-Christoph-branded converter. You can also eyedropper the pen if you wish.
The grip is comfortable even though there are threads near the top where the nib is inserted. The threads are raised and serve as a lip to keep your fingers in position. Once again, thoughtful design is evident in the details of the pen.
I opted for a steel medium cursive italic ground by Mike Masuyama. This is one of the best nibs I've received without additional tuning. It is absolutely stellar--smooth with crisp lines that offer good variation.
You can see that the down strokes are wide and the side strokes are thin as you would expect with a cursive italic.
I love how my handwriting looks with this nib.
The nib offers excellent flow and there's no skipping or hard starts. Writing with it is pure joy.
I created a pattern with the pen, primarily using the thin side strokes it produces. Not only is it great for writing, but it's also wonderful for drawing.
Although you can't get the Intrinsic in Maya Blue anymore (unless FC decides to do another run), you can currently get the model in Black and Cinnamaroon, Ghost, and Smoke & Ice. It starts at $175 with stock steel nibs. You can opt for other variations, such as FC's "SIG nib" for an additional cost. Masuyama no longer does special grinds for Franklin-Christoph, but you can now get nibs ground by Nagahara for an up-charge of $25.00.
The 02 Intrinsic might just be my favorite Franklin-Christoph model so far. I love its unique shape and that I can post the cap without disrupting the balance of the pen. Maya Blue is a fantastic color with lovely contrasts between translucent dark blue and frosted light blue. If you are interested in getting Franklin-Christoph pens in special color combinations, you should sign up for their newsletter so you get advance notice of special releases.
(I purchased the FC 02 Intrinsic in Maya Blue with my own funds.)
