And the story goes on ... A family tradition. Leonardo is a forge, a laboratory where experience and craftsmanship are mixed giving life to "pleasure", the pleasure of writing. The pen comes in the larger sized Leonardo Officina Italiana box that holds the pen and a 40 ml bottle of excellent Leonardo Officina Italiana fountain pen ink. The Writing Experience The Momento Zero was lovely to write with. I loaded it up with my Papier Plume Ivy Green and away I went. The nib was smooth right out of the box, and wrote beautifully with no rough starts. While the pen is gorgeous and I can’t stop looking at it, I have to admit that it might be a little big for my hand. (Remember – I have small hands and the Pro Gear Slim is totally my speed!) I can’t decide whether I care for the section, which is somewhat graduated, or whether I would prefer one that was a consistent circumference.

The Momento Zero Grande is a large size pen with fitted with a number 6 nib and holding one of the largest piston fills available. It is a pleasure to hold and and write with the Grande pen. The size and appearance of the pen reflects simplistic style. They have a timeless look.In October 2021, Karen and I, while in Rome, met with Salvatore Matrone and discussed the new 2021 release - the Momento Zero Grande Mosaico Chiaroscuro. The pen is made in a version of the spaghetti resin in the sand (Chiaroscuro), the Mango and Hawaii. I believe the name Salvatore has given the pen is very apt. Chiaroscuro means the arrangement of light and dark shades without the regard to colour - that exactly is th is pen. Larger nibs tend to write broader lines. This M #8 nib writes about the same line as the Leonardo broad steel #6 nib. So if you want a line true to size, make sure to size down. I was honestly surprised by how much I love this material. I think all of Leonardo’s materials look every better in person than they do in photos online, and this one is no expectation. The white portions of the material are a swirly mix of slightly transparent areas and a pearlescent shine. That extra depth to the material is what makes so many of the Leonardo materials special. Salvatore showed us the magic of alighment. Turn the cap on the body of the pen. In up to three times, you will have the cap and body aligned. The magic of three.

What I will comment on is the difference in feel between the Zero and the Magico. Despite both pens being made of acrylic resin, the Magico is about 20% lighter, weighing in at about 20 grams. The difference in weight is noticeable with the Momento Zero feeling denser than the Magico.The pen also has an ebonite feed that is made in-house by Leonardo. Flow can be can an issue when you get up to nibs of this size, but with the ebonite feed the pen has great flow and leans towards the wet side. Why "Nuvola"? Inspired by the tranquility and elegance of clouds, the Nuvola reflects a sense of calm and contemplation. Just as the clouds move gracefully in the sky, this pen glides across the paper with the same lightness, offering an unparalleled writing experience. The name Momento Zero, absolutely evoking, means a new beginning, a start from scratch; the first pen made by a new company, based on experience and passion of a strong team. The Leonardo Momento Zero collection is inspired by the world-renowne Italian vintage style. It is a classic pen, perfectly sized and well balanced, decorated with metal trims. The Momento Zero Grande pens come with an in-house designed and created 1.5 ml piston fill mechanism. The size of the piston capacity is one of the largest available. I like the large ink capacity. I can fill up the pen and take it for a serious writing excercise! Cap Band

The internal piston mechanism, designed and created by Leonardo, is accessible through a cap at the end of the body. The piston is one of the largest on the market, giving the Momento Zero Grande an ink capacity of 1.5 ml of ink.Over 45 years of experience in the field of writing instruments, handed down from father to son, from generation to generation.

The pen is light to hold despite the large size. I have written with the pen in both cap off and cap posted. I generally like to post my pen for a little extra length and also safety (the clip prevents the pen from rolling off the desk). The cap nicely posts onto the body of the pen but I found I could write with the pen capped or cap less. Compared to two of my other favorite gold nibs, the oversize #8 is a little softer than the 823 but has less “give” than the Sailor King of Pen that tends to produce a bit of line variation. It’s also a little broader than the M nib counterparts of those pen models.A few months ago, I did a review of the Leonardo Momento Magico which I affectionately called “The OG” because there is a new Magico in town! Earlier this year, Leonardo Officina Italiana released an updated version of the Momento Magico, which I will refer to as the Momento Magico 2022. I won’t go into the same level of detail as in the previous writeup and instead, will highlight the differences. I’ve teased this in the last couple of posts, so I’ll come right out and say it: the Leonardo Momento Zero has blown me away. In this review I’ll explain why. The Momento Zero Giada (Jade) is afresh and contemporary color which matches perfectly with the vintage style design of the pen. I have been bugging Dan on a regular basis about when the oversize nib version would drop since Dan first mentioned the possibility to me. He was kind enough to loan the Leonardo Momento Zero Grande in Blue Fiodacqua to me for review, and it was worth the wait. And the story goes on… A family tradition. Leonardo Officina Italiana is a forge, a laboratory where experience and craftsmanship are mixed giving life to “pleasure”, the pleasure of writing.