Why No Two Esterbrook Esties Look Exactly Alike

Most Esterbrook Esties are turned from patterned acrylic, and the pattern runs differently through every one. That is what makes each of these pens unique: it is what happens when a pen is machined from patterned material rather than molded. Two Esties in the same colorway share a color family; they differ in where the pattern falls. This can make the appearance of each individual pen vary quite a bit.

That can create a small problem when buying your pen. You choose Sea Glass, and what arrives is a Sea Glass, not necessarily the one you were picturing.

What Esterbrook says

Esterbrook describes its material this way: "We use the highest quality acrylics to create bold, interesting, and often eye-catching patterns."

Many Esterbrook Esties and Niblets are turned from acrylic. Each pen begins as a blank, a solid bar or rod of patterned acrylic. In pen-making, turning means shaping a pen on a lathe. The blank spins at high speed while cutting tools carve away material until the barrel and cap take their final shape; the pieces are then drilled, threaded and polished. Because the pattern runs all the way through the blank, each finished pen reveals whatever part of the pattern happened to be hiding inside. Esterbrook describes its Amber Tortoise release as turned from acrylic with natural variation, adding that no two Amber Tortoise Esties are exactly alike. That wording belongs to one release, but the variation it describes is visible across every patterned colorway.

A molded pen works differently. Molten plastic is injected into a mold, so every pen that comes out is a copy of the one before it.

How different is different

Patterns can vary enough that two pens side by side can look very different depending on whether a particular shade dominates. One has more light color through the cap; another has a band of color exactly where your fingers rest. Neither is more correct than the other.

Some shipments of Esties and Niblets arrive with pens so alike that I can hardly see a difference at all. Others hold pens that vary widely. What fascinates me most is how differently people see them. Customers often notice distinctions I can't, and their preferences split in every direction. Sea Glass, the colorway people have the strongest opinions about so far, is a good example: for every customer who wants more green, another wants more teal. Matching the pen to the person is the most fun part of what I do.

Choosing the exact pen you receive

If you are investing in a pen, you probably have an idea of exactly what you want, and the usual way of buying a pen does not offer that. You choose the model; someone else chooses the pen.

At MT2 on Paper, you can choose. Through my free concierge service, you tell me the colorway and nib size you want, by the contact page, email, or a DM on Instagram or TikTok. I film a short video of up to six pens in that colorway, each one lettered. You reply with the letter of the pen you want, and that exact pen ships to you with the nib you chose. The concierge covers Esties and Niblets, and it costs nothing beyond the listed price of the pen.

Here's what a concierge lineup looks like:

Watch on Instagram: @mt2onpaper

That is a small-shop advantage, not a criticism of larger retailers. A warehouse filling hundreds of orders a day has no practical way to do it. Even brick-and-mortar stores may not have the time to provide this service. I can, because I am small enough to.

While we're here: the nibs

The other question people get stuck on with the Estie is nib availability, so here is what exists.

Esterbrook offers seven standard nib sizes on the Estie: Extra Fine, Fine, Medium, Broad, Stub 1.1, Extra Fine Flex and Fine Flex. It also offers specialty grinds at additional cost, among them the Journaler, Scribe, Needlepoint, Techo and Fude.

The nibs are JoWo #6, an industry-standard size, and they unscrew from the pen. They are interchangeable across the Estie and the Niblet, which means the pen you buy is not locked to the nib it came with. Our Esterbrook Nib Guide walks through how each size writes.

One caveat from Esterbrook: its replacement nibs are made for cartridge and converter models. A piston button-filler Estie needs a different housing, and a nib bought without requesting it will not fit.

The cushion cap

The Estie's cushion closure is an inner cap that seals around the nib. In Esterbrook's words, it "keeps the ink wet and ensures your pen is ready to write anytime." If you ink a pen and then leave it untouched for a week, this is the feature that matters most to you, and it rarely gets mentioned.

The short version

The pattern varies because the pen is turned from patterned acrylic rather than molded, so no two are laid out the same way. The nib is not permanent; it is a standard size and it comes out. And if you care which specific pen you receive, ask, because I can show you.