sensibly priced fountain pen

[vuk]

when i see an eclosed/constrained nib like that, it makes me suspect there is no flex. any experience?


vuk.

 

[vuk]

p.s. i see that lamy also made captain kirk's pen:

that one is kind of cute, but all the other lamy styff looks like cheap "office suplies" to me.


vuk.

 

[Alex N]

when i see an eclosed/constrained nib like that, it makes me suspect there is no flex. any experience?


vuk.

vuk, It's certainly not as springy as something like a Waterman, though my regular pen is an ancient Parker 51, with a similarly small and enclosed nib. My 2000 is also pretty old, and like the 51, it's good for writing fast, which I almost always do. I don't know, I'm not much of a pen geek, but maybe it depends what you're used to and what you'll be using it for?

You really need to see one up close and write with it to fully appreciate it, and as it's now available with plenty of different size nibs, try a few if you can. It's a really well-balanced pen, and thanks to the brushed casing, nice to hold and unusually tactile. Another big plus for me with the 2000, is unlike many fountain pens these days, it's not at all showy.

 

[-alan-]

Joe, best thing to do is just pop down to a decent pen shop and try a few. It really is that simple. I've got plenty of fountain pens and the one I enjoy using the most is an old Shaeffer which is probably the least valuable. Cartridges are probably better/easier if using on the move; ink pot probably best if pen is staying at home or in the office.

You'll need to think about ink colours etc, writing is a fundamental part of communication, if you choose to write or sign in ink then that becomes part of your character, and the colour you use is a similar form of personal expression.

Almost the same here - though as I had to buy mine as a 'vintage item' off ebay (to replace my original one claimed by a music teacher when he found it left behind in his classroom one day), turned out to be a little more expensive.

As an 'investment' it has failed me miserably, having had to have the nib replaced at some expense after I dropped the first, the rubber sac in the plunger mechanism replaced after the original one failed, and finally a mysterious crack in the body of the barrel which started to leak ink located and repaired.

All told, a nice thing to write with though. Slightly O/T - but on the ink front, the local supplier recommends avoiding constant use of black ink, as the carbon particles which give it the depth of colour gradually coat the innards of the pen and nib. Advice given was to cycle it with a fill of blue (or similar more translucent colour) every 2nd or 3rd fill to allow the solvents/dyes in those inks to flush the carbon particles out. Could have been B/S of course, but sounded fairly plausible..

 

[GTM]

I've never got on with fountain pens. To be honest most ball points are pretty horrible to write with also. I can honestly say that the most "pleasurable" things (if writing can ever be such a thing) I've ever written with have been pencils. No other writing utensil comes close to the smoothness of layers of graphite flowing off on to paper.

 

[Have Fun]

when i see an eclosed/constrained nib like that, it makes me suspect there is no flex. any experience?


vuk.

no personal experience but I've read it has a soft nib if its gold - not sure about flex per se

see also parkers of the same ilk

 

[Have Fun]

I've never got on with fountain pens. To be honest most ball points are pretty horrible to write with also. I can honestly say that the most "pleasurable" things (if writing can ever be such a thing) I've ever written with have been pencils. No other writing utensil comes close to the smoothness of layers of graphite flowing off on to paper.

How True

Should suit Left handers as well

 

[avole]

Thanks. I'm a left hander. No problem with Cross, Parker or Waterman.

Waterman and Cross have class, Mont Blanc have bling, take your choice.

 

[TPA]

Almost the same here - though as I had to buy mine as a 'vintage item' off ebay (to replace my original one claimed by a music teacher when he found it left behind in his classroom one day), turned out to be a little more expensive.

As an 'investment' it has failed me miserably, having had to have the nib replaced at some expense after I dropped the first, the rubber sac in the plunger mechanism replaced after the original one failed, and finally a mysterious crack in the body of the barrel which started to leak ink located and repaired.

All told, a nice thing to write with though. Slightly O/T - but on the ink front, the local supplier recommends avoiding constant use of black ink, as the carbon particles which give it the depth of colour gradually coat the innards of the pen and nib. Advice given was to cycle it with a fill of blue (or similar more translucent colour) every 2nd or 3rd fill to allow the solvents/dyes in those inks to flush the carbon particles out. Could have been B/S of course, but sounded fairly plausible..

Interesting about the ink, though I have never used black. My favourite pen is a Carbon fibre Senna pen by Montegrappa but despite going back to them for fettling just doesn't write as well as the old Sheaffer.

 

[-alan-]

It's actually not that difficult to fettle a nib - despite what the internet experts would have you believe.

If you have the nerve - a common or garden nail-pad with the different graded surfaces can transform almost any scratchy or underperforming nib into a smooth flowing thing of beauty and writing pleasure. Or vice versa..

Fine grade jewellers rouge paper is the recommended tool, but anywhere I've tried to source that I just get puzzled looks. Ladies nail finishing blocks like the ones shown above are perfect for the job. They generally come with 4 different grades of abrasive pads - one on each side. I find Levels 1 and 2 generally too coarse for the gold nib on the Sheaffer, but 3 for initial shaping and 4 for fine polishing of the nib tip is perfect. That and a decent magnifying glass or a magnifying loupe borrowed from a jeweller or local stamp collector to give you some idea of what you're at in the early stage, and you're in business.

Best to practice on something other than you favourite pen first. Very doable al the same.

 

[James]

It's actually not that difficult to fettle a nib - despite what the internet experts would have you believe.

If you have the nerve - a common or garden nail-pad with the different graded surfaces can transform almost any scratchy or underperforming nib into a smooth flowing thing of beauty and writing pleasure. Or vice versa..

Fine grade jewellers rouge paper is the recommended tool, but anywhere I've tried to source that I just get puzzled looks. Ladies nail finishing blocks like the ones shown above are perfect for the job. They generally come with 4 different grades of abrasive pads - one on each side. I find Levels 1 and 2 generally too coarse for the gold nib on the Sheaffer, but 3 for initial shaping and 4 for fine polishing of the nib tip is perfect. That and a decent magnifying glass or a magnifying loupe borrowed from a jeweller or local stamp collector to give you some idea of what you're at in the early stage, and you're in business.

Best to practice on something other than you favourite pen first. Very doable al the same.

Interesting. My Waterman's medium nib has become rather fatter with mileage. Will the use of nail abrasives sharpen the nib?

 

[-alan-]

Depends on what has actually caused the tip to get 'fatter'. I'm no expert - so please treat all of this with due caution - but it could be simply due to the tip haven gotten a knock which has caused the two halves of the nib to separate, or perhaps a flat or 'burr' having formed on the tip due to wear. Perhaps worth getting hold of a magnifying glass and having a closer look.

If the two halves of the nib (left-right) have just spread over time, a gentle bit of 'fore/aft' manipulation of the nib halves can help close up the gap and realign the nib.

If the tip shape itself has changed either to getting a knock or the tip just having flattened over time, gentle (careful) use of the softest grade of abrasive might do the trick. On the Shaeffer, once I had used the coarser pad to get the scratchiness out of it, I just used the softest nail-file pad - drawing repeated figure of 8 doodles on the pad itself with ink in the pen, with exactly the same pressure you would use in normal writing - and then testing it on paper until I got the result I wanted. With the light pressure, gentle abrasive and the ink as a lubricant it's more of a polishing process than dramatic re-shaping.

If you have an old fountain pen kicking round the house - worth playing around with it to see how much/how little effort is required to change the way the nib works, before doing anything irreversible on the good hardware.

 

[vuk]

joe

do you have a pen yet?

vuk

 

[Joe P]

Vuk,

I bought a Lamy Studio today for about $100 Cdn. The Pelikans were nicer but four times the price.

Joe

 

[PaulMB]

Just bought a 18 Euro Lamy plus a 5 Euro converter, to be able to bottle-fill, and it writes very nicely. I also have a Pelikan that is very pleasant to use, and only cost around 100 Euro. It is a souveran, maybe an M200 or M150, can't remember.
But it is good advice to go to a serious pen shop, not a yuppie-jewellery pen shop, and see what they have.

 

[auric]

Joe, what colour ink for your newest writing machine?

 

[Joe P]

auric,

Sorry for the delay in replying. I couldn't decide between black or blue, so the shop bloke suggested I get a blue-black Waterman ink to start.

Joe

 

[kasperhauser]

Joe P,

Here is my humble setup. Esterbrook J Double Jewel model with palladium-silver (I think) 9284 nib, produced from 1948-? and bought by me at an estate sale for $3. Lamy blue and Higgins black ink, which more often than not I mix.

Suits me.

 

[Joe Hutch]

Joe P,

Here is my humble setup. Esterbrook J Double Jewel model with palladium-silver (I think) 9284 nib, produced from 1948-? and bought by me at an estate sale for $3. Lamy blue and Higgins black ink, which more often than not I mix.

[Withnail] You fool! Don't you know you should never mix your inks? [/Withnail]

 

[TOFFEEMAN1878]

I have several early Waterman & Parker pens.
I also have some boxes of dip nibs
G Brandauer& Co's Ltd
Glengarry & Clan Ivor Pen Nibs
Hinkswells & Co Birmingham pen nibs
& some Italic fountain pen heads.

When I find the Pens I will post some pics