Does anybody have any experience with Bock #6 (type 250, regular wide shoulder) 14k and 18k gold nibs? (Maybe by using pens from brands that utilise these Bock nibs in their products…)
I would suspect that a 18k nib would be a bit more soft than a 14k in general but I know it’s not necessarily true in every case.
What could the differences be? I’d like to buy one in Fine for a custom pen project, but I’m not sure which one has the characteristics that fits me the best.
I wish I could answer this; I’m curious myself! My only experience with gold nibs thus far has been the 14k gold one on my Platinum Century, and while it’s a Soft-Fine nib, it’s not what you’d call really “soft”, per se. It doesn’t flex or anything. I’ve never owned a Bock nib, so this is a great question!
Bock makes nibs for Visconti and a friend of mine has a bunch of pre-palladium era pens with Visconti (Bock) gold nibs. He has both 14k and 18k nibs. He says the difference is something like Pelikan M800 vs M1000. Both are very nice. He says the 18k is softer and that it is especially noticeable with EF and F nibs.
Interestingly, Steven Brown says in his Visconti nib comparison video that the 14k is springier: https://youtu.be/ajOjG86R6eM
Bock also made nibs for Leonardo and the celluloid and ebonite limited edition pens. If I understand it well, Leonardo may have somewhat altered these nibs so they may not behave exactly the same as the original Bocks. Here are some reviews which test the 14k nib: Steven Brown , Azizah / Gourmet Pens , Frank / Fontoplumo
I suppose the result is still inconclusive? I tend to lean toward the 14k and expect it to be a bit more rigid.