My last pen purchase at the Dutch Pen Show was this very special Makar Camuflage made of Titanium, with a zircuti roll stop and a Bock Titanium fine nib.
Those unique colourations are achieved by a fascinating Titanium anodisation technique. Applying different voltages result in different oxide layer thickness. The Titanium(IV) oxide layer and the metal beneath refract light differently, giving the illusion of different colours. Imagine that all those colour variations from gold to purple to blue and green are thanks to the change of oxide layer thickness between just 20 – 55 nanometers.
It was great to meet the man behind this unique pen in person. I had the pleasure of talking with Marcin Wójcik and his son during the Dutch Pen Show in Utrecht. Mr. Wójcik seems to me like a very creative and inventive engineer and an artist in one person. He demonstrated a few of his pen innovations. For example, he developed a ballpoint bolt mechanism that blocks the clip when the pen is “on” thus preventing accidentally pocketing the pen with its tip exposed (and staining your shirt). Another of his ideas is a unique pen customisation service he offers. He adds thin and thick colour-anodised groves on the pen representing Morse codes. You can have your name encoded or maybe the date of your wedding anniversary so that you won’t forget it next time.
An interesting feature on his pens is this roll stopper which is both very practical and rather pretty. Instead of a precious stone he uses zircuti. Affectionally named also Timascus for its visual similarity with Damascus steel, zircuti is layers of Titanium anodised in different colours and forged together.
And yes, the nib is made of Titanium and had been anodised. Just look at how detailed and pretty the engraving is.
In general I’m not into those rainbow-colour-anodised steel pens and nibs. But regarding this fountain pen I think everything works well together and nothing is over the top.
As a final twist to the fountain pen buying experience and a testimony to Mr. Wójcik technical background, a secret message is added to the certificate of authenticity that is visible only under black light.
Makar creates not only fountain pens and ball points but makes knives, screwdrivers, chess pieces and many other decorative items as well from Titanium. You can find their website here and their Instagram channel here.
Stay tuned for more photos and a short review of the writing experience sometime in the near future.
Disclaimer: I’m not affiliated with Makar and I’ve bought this pen with my own money.