That's definitely the way to go about it. Testing it out with an affordable pen until you're ready to start altering your prized pen. Glad it's been helpful! - Colin

Interesting. I wouldn’t have thought that the opposite-side of the Micro-Mesh would have ANY effect, either positive or negative. I guess it does make sense though as you describe a different type of grit or mesh being on that side. If that’s not a uniformly distributed mesh, I could definitely see it as a potentially HUGE problem! I’m actually surprised it didn’t do more damage as Brian was saying that the correct-side is 3-microns, and Mylar Paper goes far smaller than that (up to ~10x smaller)! So, yes, you’re very lucky you didn’t destroy a nib, whew! 😅 I also have a Diplomat Magnum, though mine has a Broad nib, which is most appropriate to use with wet, sheening inks. I’ve been using a few sheening inks, but my favorite right now is KWZ’s Sheen Machine (I’m using the original, though their #2 is very nice too). Smaller nibs don’t tend to bring out the sheen as you really need certain qualities such as the wetness, having enough surface area on the nib itself, and using a good quality paper that won’t feather the ink or anything like that. My point regarding the above paragraph is that I am considering another Magnum, but either in Fine or Extra Fine, as I tend to write on the smaller side. I found that going a “size up” for fountain pens used for note taking flow better this way. By going a size up, you’ll allow more ink to flow, less false starts, etc. So, I’m wondering if that factored into your problem at all. Diplomat tends to make very good products, which is why I was wondering if this was a simply anomaly or something else altogether. Be well. ✌

Jay Rose, I just stumbled into the Diplomat Magnums rather blindly. I tried them, and I liked them, especially because I am a marathon writer and the pens are light to hold. I am happy with both the fine and the extra fine. The extra fine puts down a line that is very fine, perhaps as fine as the Pilot Metropolitan fine, which, like most all the Japanese brands, puts down a line finer than the one put down by the German brands. I would say that the only line I have seen that is finer than the one put out by the Diplomat Magnum EF is the one put out by the Pilot EF.

​@@barbarajloriordan2697 Many thanks! I may just try it as when I write notes, it could be for hours. I am primarily using a Sailor Compass right now and I personally love the thing! I’m using it with Pilot Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo ink at the moment. I wrote a pretty extensive comment about the Sailor Compass on the Goulet Blog just a few days ago, but just now noticed that it was “Detected as Spam.” So, I just flagged it for review as “not spam.” I was going to share the link as I can’t say enough about such an affordable Sailor! The last pen I was this happy with was the Pilot Explorer with a Fine nib. I did find the nib most comparable to a Pilot Metropolitan, but the feel of the pen is entirely different to me. The Pilot Explorer just feels more comfortable and streamlined, especially for long use! BTW, I only tried the Broad nib on my Diplomat Magnum for the same reason that I tried a 1.1 Stub nib on my Monteverde Ritma - it was the fountain pen included in a monthly subscription box - I found it ideal to force me to try products that I would never otherwise order on my own! It’s good because I’ve learned a lot as a result of this, such as why sheening inks work ideally with Broad nibs. Prior to that I had no clue why my Extra Fine or Fine nibs wouldn’t put out a good sheen, if any at all! You’re also spot on as “Eastern nibs” do tend to run smaller than “Western nibs.” German nibs are the odd one out, IMHO, as they’re great, but each company has aspects specific all to themselves. I like Kaweco and LAMY for writing, but even though I own at least a half-dozen LAMY fountain pens, my lone Kaweco is currently one of my primary pens that I use. I generally keep the LAMYs organized by color, so if I need a red pen, I could quickly grab one. You get the idea. My next fountain pen will surely be the Goulet USA exclusive Prismatc Purple Diplomat Magnum, probably in Fine, for the thoughts stated earlier and I’ve just had better luck with Fine nibs recently. I made an order Friday and wanted to get one, but forgot to include it in my order. I did get a second Sailor Compass though! If you haven’t tried the Pilot Explorer, I’d urge you to give it a shot. It’s on the less expensive end, so not much to lose at all! If you’re interested in looking at the monthly subscription box that I’m subscribed to, just Google “Inkredible Box” and it should be the very first ‘organic’ hit. I get the $30/month box, this way I get a full-size bottle of ink with every order and have not been disappointed yet. Just sharing in case you wanted to see what I’m talking about. Be well. ✌

Sathishkumar S did you find the micro mesh in india ??

If I wanted to *deliberately* smooth a sharper, more calligraphic stub into a more rounded, easier-going stub, would this be a good way to do it?

It'd be at the expense of the pen's warranty if you wanted to try. I'd say using a nibmeister to tune a nib to have more feedback might be the way to go. - Colin

That's a very good idea and I would also like to let you know that you could hand wash it with good soap and rinse it out very well. Let it dry overnight and it is ready to go again.

It depends on the pen I suppose! Not every pen has easily swappable or replacement nibs available. - Colin

The Goulet Pen Company good to know

Did you try ? I have the same question 😊

I never got a reply from Goullete or anyone. I still never tried the mesh on plated nibs. Thanks for your reply

@@brettthorndike1079 thanks 😊

The Goulet Loupe video (kzfaq.info/get/bejne/oLdibMRiyNqZiHU.html ) touches on tine alignment a bit further if you're curious. - Colin

You just have to be very careful because you're right, it will impact the metal much more than it would a steel nib. With it voiding any warranty, we suggest only the most experienced nib tuners do it. But overall, if you're light with the touch and not doing it often, it shouldn't alter the nib that drastically. - Colin

The Goulet Pen Company this raises a question. In many videos it is said that the writing surface is neither gold nor steel. It is 'iridium' which is quite strong. So how does nib smoothing affect gold nibs more than steel nibs while we are only working on the iridium? Keep up the videos :)

the tip is not gold

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