Review - Greg Minuskin Re-Tip to a Parker 51 nib!

Recently I've changed my tastes in what nib sizes I enjoy. I used to love my fine/extra fine nibs but these days I'm loving broad, 2B, and 3B stubs. The more ink output the better, right!?! Anyway, my Parker 51 had a very nice medium stub on it which I have enjoyed for quite some time. I loved that nib but after I tried my first broad stub -  I never thought the same of that nib again... It was just a little to small for my new tastes.

Buying a new 2B stub for a Parker 51 is very expensive. I was quoted $130.00! Ouch is right... That's far to much for any nib. Along the road I heard about Greg Minuskin. He can re-tip your nib to any size (up to 1.8mm I think) for around $70.00! Not bad at all compared to $130.00! After exchanging a few emails back and forth, deciding on what size I wanted, and then selling the old nib to procure the funds, I was ready to get a re-tip. Let me just tell you this: Greg's work is amazing! The pictures will really tell the story so I'll leave the details to them. His turn-around time was way better than I expected. Less than two weeks! Just to show what he can really do, here are the before pictures of the nib. The tip on this nib was broken! This was (of course) no problem at all for Greg!

A bent nib with the left tine missing the tipping.

Here's another shot showing the bend and the broken tipping.

So, I sent my nib off in the mail to Greg who received it shortly thereafter. What I decided upon for my nib was a 1.3mm stub. This size is perfect for what I need though some people don't like nibs quite this large. After an appoximate 1.5 week wait I receiving it back in the mail, set it up in the pen, and tried it out, I'd say it's as good as a nib can get! Super smooth, excellent line variation, nice and wet! Greg was so pleasant to deal with and was very quick to respond to my questions. If I ever need another re-tip I know exactly who I'm going to.

Now for some pictures of the finished product! As always, just click on the picture for a super-sized view of it. I'll start with the photos that Greg sent me. They are much better than the ones I took, Greg is a great photographer!

There it is! Doesn't it just look gorgeous!

This nib looks good from both sides as Greg is very good at keeping things symmetrical.

Here's all of its 1.3mm of iridium goodness!

Underneath the nib. This is where all the magic happens!

A perfect 1.3mm! Nicely done Greg!

Here are the photos I took of both my pen and the nib compared to some other pens I had lying around. We have the Parker 51 with its 1.3mm stub, an Esterbrook with a 2284 Broad Stub, and a Hero 616 Jumbo with a fine nib.

Here's my favorite pen with my new favorite nib!

Uncapped it looks even better!

Here it is! Look at that 1.3mm tip sticking out! It looks awesome!

Here it is compared to the other pens. Hero 616 to the left - Esterbrook to the right.

Here you can really see the tipping sizes compared. Makes that fine nib in the Hero look so small!

Lastly, a hand-written sample of the nib compared with the other nibs. Greg really nailed down the line variation on this nib. This picture is certainly worth clicking on for a super sized view. You're gonna want to see this one big.

All in all I'm very pleased with my 1.3mm stub nib and the work Greg did for me. I have no doubts about his quality craftsmanship at all. I you ever need a re-tip please, give him a go, he will not disappoint you! His website is Greg Minuskin Nib Re-Tipping.

Please, drop me a comment below and let me know what you think of this review!

A big THANK YOU to Greg Minuskin for his awesome work!!!

Regards,

777 - Tyler Dahl