2025 state of the scholar, tray one
This post is part of a series of reflections, each focused on one of six trays comprising the current state of my collection.
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I last took inventory of my pen collection back in 2022. My collection changed considerably over the following three years, driven by evolving needs and workflows as I moved cities and jobs. A check-in reflection on which pens continue to suit my needs and which might warrant re-homing is a worthwhile reflection.
The check-in process involves measuring each pen against three guiding principals.
Do I regularly use the pen?
Does the pen spark joy when I ink it up?
Is it well-suited to the kinds of writing I most commonly take up?
As I wrote about collection-level check-ins back in 2022,
“I hold the same rule for my collection as I do for technology (new apps and the like): each pen should work for me, not me for it. As the kinds of projects I take on change, the pens and inks that serve me best also change. Moving targets.”
Nippon Nibbage
This week, as proof of life after many weeks away from mnmlscholar, I’m sifting through the topmost of my collection’s six 13-pen trays. A tray populated by Platinums and Sailors. The tray of nippon nibbage.
What’s the plural for “platinum?”
Platinum Preppy Wa. The Preppy is my go-to model for a pen-ableing gift. While the green checkerboard Wa has survived the ‘great gifting,’ it has not yet been inked. A result that speaks to the Preppy’s excellent design — a design that lives outside my current preferences.
Platinum 3776: Star Wars Kylo Ren, Laurel Green, Uroko-Gumo, Tsuki Kusa, and Nice Pur. The 3776 is a design replete with happy mediums. Moderately wide, moderately long, and moderately light. The slip-seal cap lining keeps the pen ink-secure.
All five 3776s are understated colorways, flying below the attention of students, colleagues and parents; all minimizing distraction. Two of my favorite F and one of my favorite EF nibs reside in these 3776s.
The Laurel and Uroko-Gumo have not yet entered rotation in 2025’s eight months. The Nice was inked last March, the Kusa in April, and good ol’ Kylo in May. Recency is my clarifier. Two 3776s might be better served rehomed.
The navy, in port-of-call
Sailor Pro Gear: Imperial Black, Graphite Lighthouse, Slate, Blue Moon, Bora Bora, and Blue Train. Sailor’s resinous plastic has an oily feel that I find pleasant. I tend to rub the cap with a thumb while thinking. My sextet is a rainbow of black, grey and blue. Somber and cool tones with tiny pops of humor: a translucent finial or section, silver shimmer in a silver-grey colorway.
I drifted away from heavily using Pro Gears since 2022. Only the Blue Moon has been inked in 2025. Only the Blue Moon passes Rule 1.
Do my Sailors warrant so much pen case real estate? My colorways all pass Rule 3. The answer depends on whether they continue sparking joy when reintroduced to regular rotation. I clearly need to put my Pro Gears to the Rule 2 Test this Fall. Anticip … ation.
Sailor King of Pen. My collection’s only Sailor demonstrator is the only pen with an expansive metal converter sheath to show off. The B nib is crispy, offering consistent, if feedbacky, scribbling.
The King of Pen also passes Rule 1, having seen regular use as recently as the beginning of this summer. I consider all bases (read: rules) covered.
Sheath-like skeleton
Sailor 1911 Large. The lone 1911 in my collection is a true accent in its bright tangerine orange, offering the only bright color in Tray 1. The 1911 is also the longtime home for my only Sailor architect nib. Flair enough for a Chotchkie’s.
The 1911 also sees regular use, inked only a few weeks ago in June. Passing on all cylinders.
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Note — You can check out my entire collection over at my pen database. I use the Google Sheet to track details about each pen in my collection. Where I got each, which nibs are compatible, when each was last inked, etc. The database updates live to mnmlscholar as my tinkerings continue. A system that sounds organized when I describe it like this but functions more like a chaos filter.
