Omas Bologna Review: A Revival Fountain Pen with Real Personality

Introduction

The revived Omas has been building momentum, and the Bologna is its latest addition. After an early revival model that felt like a misstep, the brand followed up with a release that earned genuine praise. The Bologna now sits in that lineage, and it makes a strong case that the company has found its footing again.

Omas, an acronym for Officina Meccanica Armando Simoni, was founded in 1925, and the Bologna name carries real history: the original company produced a model under the same name. This new pen is not an exact replica of that older version, though. The original had a different clip, a different ring on top of the cap, a different band, and it was a lever filler. The modern interpretation is a piston filler with its own distinct character.

Design and Materials

The Bologna is made from diamond-cast resin, a material created by Tim Mackenzie of McKenzie Pen Works. That material is the star of the show here. The gray version has more personality than almost any gray pen seen in recent memory, with shimmering, pearlescent qualities throughout. That shimmer comes from actual diamond dust, a standard feature of diamond-cast resin, and specks of blue, brown, and white are mixed in to give the material a look reminiscent of a star-filled night sky. It brings vibrance without going over the top.

Not everything about the cap is a highlight. The branding engraved on the side of the cap is carved by hand rather than laser-etched, but the quality of the execution still falls short of the rest of the pen. The saving grace is that on the gray material the engraving is nearly invisible unless the light catches it at exactly the right angle. It is a minor blemish on an otherwise well-executed design, and some would prefer the engraving be left off entirely.

Cap Band and Bologna Heritage

Below the engraving sits the cap band: a larger band surrounded by two thinner ones. The wide band features a design honoring a prominent architectural site in Bologna, Italy, where the company was originally founded. These are the porticos of Bologna, an important cultural symbol of the city. No other city in the world has as many porticos, and they cover more than 24 miles of the historic city center, stretching to roughly 30 miles if surrounding areas are counted. It is a meaningful and well-chosen design detail.

From the cap, a tapered step down leads to the slightly bowed barrel, which is at its thickest in the middle and tapers toward the end. Another band marks the start of the piston knob, and the knob itself finishes in a rounded conical point, matching the top of the cap.

Size and Handling

The Bologna sits on the thinner side, close in size and girth to a Sailor 1911 Large, which despite its name is not an overly large pen. It is long enough to use unposted, and the cap posts securely, though not especially deeply. A thoughtful touch: when posted, the cap makes contact with the barrel past the piston knob, so posting and unposting will not accidentally engage the piston mechanism.

The #6 Gold Nib and Section

The cap twists off with two rotations to reveal what may be the real highlight: a 14k gold number six nib. The nib is available in extra fine, fine, medium, and broad, and the fine unit tested here left a strong impression. Fines are not typically a favorite, but this one was not scratchy, offered decent feedback, and delivered very good ink flow. Below the nib sits a low-profile, swooping ebonite feed that looks as good as it performs.

The section begins with a short flare before angling up to meet the resin threads and transition evenly into the barrel. It is a bit on the short side, but still comfortable to hold. Even if a grip lands on the threads, they are not sharp, and there is no large step to get in the way.

Filling System

The Bologna is a piston filler, and the mechanism operates very smoothly while providing a decent fill. Combined with the gold nib and the diamond-cast resin construction, it rounds out a package that feels considered from end to end.

Writing Sample and Performance

The fine nib proved to be the most pleasant surprise of the testing period. It offers decent ink flow for a fine point, and it is possible to get a bit of flex out of it, with lines starting thin and thickening under light pressure. Reverse writing is not a particular strength of this nib, but at speed the feed keeps up very well. For anyone who has avoided fine nibs, this one makes a convincing case.

Buying Advice

The Omas Bologna retails for $384, and that price is reasonable for what you receive. There are not many pens on the market today offering a number six gold nib in the under-$400 range, which makes the Bologna a compelling option in its class. It is available in four colorways: Azuro Diamante (diamond blue), Smeraldo Elegante (elegant emerald), Grigio Luminoso (bright gray), and Ametista Profondo (deep amethyst).

If you are considering one, think about the size first. This is not a small pen, but it is thinner than many of its revival siblings, so writers who prefer generous girth may want to look elsewhere. Everyone else will find a comfortable, distinctive writer with a nib that punches above its price point.

Conclusion

The Omas Bologna is an interesting and welcome addition to the revived Omas lineup. The diamond-cast resin breathes life into the pen, the new cap band design honors the city it is named for, and the 14k gold fine nib is genuinely enjoyable to use. The hand-carved cap engraving is the one misstep, but it is easily overlooked on the gray material. Outside of that detail, there is a lot to like here, and the Bologna confirms that the revival is on a promising path.