Splendor Encore Fountain Pen Gm M

I quite like this pen, but there is a fairly large caveat to point out, I will explain this at the end of my review.This is my fifth Levenger fountain pen and the experience very much jives with my experiences with the previous four; simple packaging, a converter included, a generally well made pen and a smooth, well tuned nib that needed no work. This is the second metal Levenger that I own, the other being L-Tech 3.0. This pen does have some weight to it, though the weight is concentrated in a fairly heavy grip section, while the cap and body are anodized aluminum. Quality is good, the threads are well cut, the body fits together nicely with no gaps or issues and as I mentioned the nib arrived smooth, medium wet and ready to write. The concentration of weight in the grip section does mean that the pen is actually fairly comfortable to write with for long periods of time without being fatiguing.The only real con I can point out is that the cap requires a surprising amount of force to remove (it is a slip rather than a screw cap).That caveat I mentioned? Well, upon receiving this pen I was very surprised to learn that it's a copy of the Lamy Studio, and a pretty obvious one at that.. Shiny metal grip section, shiny butt cap and finial, and a matte anodized body. Much more noticeable is that the clip has the exact same 90 degree twist as the Lamy Studio, which is a feature I've only seen on one other pen, the Hero 1088. This is really not obvious from any of the stock/promotional pictures I'd seen of this pen prior to purchasing.Now, does this bother me? No, not all. Copying designs from other manufacturers is a long tradition in just about any manufacturing section, fountain pens included. In fact, I think this pen has some benefits over Lamy pens - namely the ability to use standard #5 nibs as well as standard international cartridges and converters. It was a surprise more than anything else. That said, I absolutely understand if other people don't like just blatant copying, legal or not, so I thought it was important to point out.TL;dr Good pen, obvious Lamy Studio copy.