A closer look at the Leonardo Momento Zero:
Color: Dutch Pen Show
Specs:
- Description: A quality feeling mid size pen that is reminiscent of some older Italian pens with a modern flair.
- Nib: #6 Steel
- Material: Marbled Resin
- Filling Mechanism: Screw in converter
- Weight: 25 grams
- Measurements: 5.6 inches capped, 6.6 inches posted
- Ink Capacity: about 1ml
History & Origin:
The company Leonardo Officina Italiana was born out of the closing of the Delta pen company, another very prevalent and well known Italian pen maker. Delta dissolved in 2017 and as a result of this, Ciro Matrone, one of the founding members of Delta decided to make his own pen brand. Leonardo was born in 2018 and is now headed by Matrone's son and daughter Salvatore and Mariafrancesca. Even though they are a relatively new brand, the Matrone family has over 45 years of pen making experience and that history shines in the products coming from Leonardo. During this short time they have come up with many successful models of pens but my personal favorite are the Momento Zero and Momento Zero Grande. The name Momento Zero means Zero Moment and really means New beginnings which makes sense when you look at Leonardo in relation to Delta, a sort of new beginning for the Matrone family! Anyways, that's enough history lets get onto the pen!!!
Appearance & Packaging:
The packaging for the Momento zero is smaller than the aforementioned grande version and is a relatively plain clamshell box for most editions. The Dutch pen show came in a larger box but this isn't common and most will come in a black clamshell with a nice velvet like lining to keep the pen scratch free. Some of the Grande models will come with an ink bottle which is a nice touch and what makes the boxes for the Grande bigger. Aside from the packing each pen is gorgeous and often times the materials Leonardo uses makes each pen unique. Each Leonardo pen is designed, and made by them in Italy which shows the attention to detail they have and that the pens are exactly up to the standards they've set for their products. The pens have some interesting design features as well like the screw in converter which is seen on other pens as well and is just a nice touch to ensure the converter works as best as it can.
The pens also have a removable faux piston knob at the back which, when its unscrewed, comes off and exposes the back of the converter which means you don't even have to unscrew the barrel from the section to fill the pen. I said this pen felt vintage before and I think that most of that vintage look comes from the clip which utilizes the classic roller deign found on a lot of vintage Italian pens from brands like Delta and Omas. I tend to like a flat ended pen compared to a rounded end so the Momento zero hits that spot for me as well but fear not, Leonardo also has their Furore model which has rounded edges. These pens are made in resin usually but sometimes you will see a special edition model in either ebonite or celluloid and if you thought the resins looked good just take a look at their celluloid, they have even made a few pens in the coveted Arco celluloid material! Anyways, I think we've covered the look of the pen but how does it write?
Nib & Performance:
This pen is not only beautiful but incredibly functional as well! The steel nibs on my Momento zeros have all come to me well adjusted right out of the box, I've only had one of them worked on and that was to get a custom grind, not to fix anything having to do with the nib. The steel options are available in all the standard sizes but it really gets interesting with their gold nibs which are found on the Grande models. They offer an elastic fine nib and a triple tined music nib which are both eye catching and offer a whole new level of personality to your handwriting so if you have the chance, definitely try out both of those crazy nibs. I haven't had a problem with ink flow or skipping from over polishing or anything like that so you should be able to pick one of these up and start writing with them same day if you want! The section has a very interesting shape which is ergonomic and I find it pushes my grip to a point that is comfortable and provides the optimal writing angle so I really don't have any complaints with how this pen has written for me in the past! Speaking of Complaints let's take a look at some of my pros and cons for the Leonardo Momento Zero.
Pros:
- Beautiful materials
- Vintage look
- Nice mid size
- screw in converter
- ebonite feeds with gold nibs optional
- Fairly priced
Cons:
- Some people have expressed QC issues but its nothing I've had to deal with in the 3 that I own
Price & Conclusion:
The Leonardo pen brand is an anomaly amongst new pen brands in the quality that they have achieved and the following that they've amassed thus far. The amount of special edition and retailer specific editions alone is more than any other brand of the same or similar age. The prices of these pens are rather reasonable I feel, the Momento Zero with the steel nib is going to be around $170 which I feel is quite a reasonable price for the pen you get. I understand some peoples apprehension to pay over $150 and not get a gold nib because I was the same way but this nib writes exceptionally. I even had mine worked on and got an architect grind which makes me love the pen even more! In short, I know you will be happy with a Momento Zero, if you are worried about the size I would recommend the Grande model as these pens and this brand have sky rocketed to the top 5 of my favorite pens and companies! Divertiti e continua a scrivere!!!
-Kyle
