OT: Fountain Pens

[rp_johnson]

Another pen board is Penlovers.com and go to the bulletin board. There are messages buying and selling pens (with prices). You can also contact the people at Stylophiles magazine (you can find a link on Penlovers.com)as they are "pen nuts" and are located in Seattle. Pen people are as nutty as Leica people. As for Montblanc's...just like Leica people, the official "pen line" is that modern stuff is crap (post 1955) and prewar Montblanc's are to die for (or pay several thousand dollars for).

[SolaresLarrave]

This is weird... I used to see myself as a fountain pen collector a long time ago, just because I wanted to have a few pens to write letters to my wife with. In any event, I have a black Lamy Safari (and my wife loves hers, which is red) and I never graduated to Pelikan or Montblanc, but I managed to snatch a Parker 45 before they were discontinued. I got a Sheaffer Sonnet in gold and another Parker in silver, though.

 

But I never managed to find out about a certain pen Parker put out in the mid-eighties: the Parker Falcon. It had a beautiful, distinctive nib, and it came in a kind of brown polished steel (beautiful veneer). Anybody here ever heard of it?

 

I guess I'll have to check out the websites you guys recommend... What a surprise to see here so many fountain pen users!

[el_fang]

I am absolutely shocked and dismayed that nobody has mentioned <a href="http://www.namiki.com" target="_blank">Namiki</a>.

[brandon_jefferis]

Don't dismiss those older pens, they can be fixed. I just love my 40 some year old

Sheaffer Snorkel. BTW Francisco, are you talking about the original P-45 or the new

version they just discontinued, for $27 those new ones are sure nice!

[joshroot]

<i>"I have a Sharpie collection. I'm not sure that helps.</I><P>FWIW, I use my Sharpie collection WAY more than I use my fountain pens. Sort of like my Canons and my Leica. One for the end result, the other for the joy of doing.

[claudia__]

Guys won't want this, but as a lady pen nut, I am enjoying my latest "lipstick pen" from MonteVerde. The nib rolls out ala a lipstick...pretty classy. I also like the ballpoint click type fountain pen by Nishiki. Click and the nib comes out...click again and it retracts. And it is upside down.. that is the retractable nib is above the clip. Somehow these both seem Leica like pens.

[claudia__]

oops, that is the retractable Namiki! not Nishiki. Must be getting bikes and pens mixed up. Sharpies are nice too, but the give you cancer.

[kim_sherman]

i like fountain pins too....i think i have about fourteen, all told, but...my faves are my sheaffer crest (discontinued several years back) and my OMAS Damas in Arco (tortoise color).

the sheaffer is the pen i use most, for i love its size, weight and nib the best of all my pens. the OMAS was a gift from a friend, and i treasure it, but i'll admit to using the Sheaffer the most...

 

kim

[terry_rory]

I would love to use a nice fountain pen to write letters (using some lovely hand laid paper I have at home) BUT I am left handed and therefore am sentenced to a lifetime of dragging my hand over what I have just written rather than away from what I have just written.

 

I use pilot pens and ballpoints. Even a top quality ballpoint is still using the same refills as a £4 pen.

 

I may just get myself a nice fountain pen one day as a beautiful/historic object but I would like to know that someone of historic import had written with it. (Like Churchill for instance!! £££)

[monochrome11]

Caran d'ache - best pens (fountain, rollerball. ballpoint or otherwise) in the world - made in Switzerland - most of their line up still use brass barrels, beautifully made and built to last forever...

[robert_hively]

if you like this type of forum, try this link to subscribe to the same for fountain pens...

 

http://www.zoss.com/pens.htm

 

I use to collect them, primarily OMAS, but now I just write with em.

[gregory_goh]

The smoothest softest nib I have is on a Faber Castell (alright a Graf von

Faber Castell) - can't remember the model, but I have the one with the sterling

silver cap and the wooden body

[james_reuter]

Parker Duofold is a great fountain pen. It became popular in the 1920's and is still around. Notably, Gen. Douglas MacAuthur signed the surrender with Japan with a Parker "Big Red" Duofold.

[MTC Photography]

Tiffany two tone pen is very nice, with gold tone 'T' clip.

[douglas k.]

You all should really read Thorstein Veblen's <i>Theory of the Leisure Class</i>.

[steve deer]

ahh... the rotring 600. I have six of them, and only one leica!

[joshroot]

Oh Douglas!

 

It's good to have your bourgeois-hating "one shoe for everyone" ideology around.

 

But I have to point out that nobody who owns a Leica has the right to try and call me out for owning expensive pens. My whole case of pens didn't cost as much as your M6 and Summicron.

 

People in glass houses.......

[douglas k.]

Your righteous indignation falls flat: I don't have a Leica.

[joshroot]

Oh aren't you clever!

 

You may not have one now. But you did have one in the recent past.

 

Well I guess you aren't a hypocrite after all. Good for you.

[majid]

I always carry 3 fountain pens with me in my vest pocket. Even fancy limited edition fountain pens in silver are positively cheap compared to camera gear. The best brands in my book are Waterman (I have two Edsons), S.T. Dupont and Pelikan, but then again I like broad nibs.

<p>

One forum not mentioned yet is <a href="http://www.ramblingsnail.net/">Rambling Snail</a>.

[douglas k.]

By the way, mockery and attempts to discredit someone (e.g., by suggesting hypocrisy) are, as I am sure you know, fairly common responses when someone either does not understand an argument or simply cannot rebut the argument. I presume that Josh's problem is mainly the former, since he presumably hasn't read (and probably won't read) the book.

[neil_baylis]

Oh yeah. I wore out my Rotring 600.. and that's saying something. Now I'm trying to wear out a Pelikan 800. I have a bunch of others, but these are the ones I keep using every day. I'll walk to the other end of the house to find my fountain pen rather than write with the ballpoint that's at hand. I must be an idiot, right? The Pelikan is without doubt the most reliable writing instrument I've ever used. But that's not why I use it.. I use it because it's damn cool.

 

I'm also a fan of nice sharp Faber Castell #2 pencils.

 

Maybe there's a 12 step group that could help me.

[Robert_Lai]

Josh,<p>I used to think that you were insufferable after you put down the Nikon F3 a few months ago. However, be that as it may, your interest in fountain pens has redeemed you.<p>A few general observations:<p>Trevor:<p>for Lefties, try a broad point. Or, try a Parker (new) Duofold. They have over 22 nib styles available, some of which I believe are suitable for left handers. My wife has an unusual pen grip which normally isn't suited for fountain pens. She wraps her thumb around the barrel of the pen. Nevertheless, there was a Parker point that was suitable for her. Parkers used to be made in the UK (with Royal Appointment), but I don't know where they are now being manufactured. In the beginning, Parker came from Janesville, Wisconsin.<p>My daily writers are the Namiki Vanishing Point (the ball-point like click retracting fountain pen), and the Namiki Falcon (one of the few with a flexible nib that is not outrageously expensive), and a Lamy Safari. Namiki's nibs, like those of all Japanese pens, tend to write with a narrower line than nibs from American and European pens. This is in order to allow the Japanese language owner to write Kanji characters with a fountain pen. The practical effect is that a Namiki Broad would be everyone else's Medium. The Lamy is plastic with a stainless steel nib. It's like writing with a smooth nail, but it puts out a nice line and can even cope with a few carbons. I do carry a ballpoint, but that is only for filling out multipoint forms. I do a lot of writing in a day - fountain pens remove a lot of the strain that I used to have from using ballpoints instead. You don't need to push down at all with a fountain pen. Just contact the paper and the ink will flow by capillary action.<p>The flexible nib pens may be a bit more delicate, but put out the most beautiful calligraphic line imaginable. They have that wonderful flow between thick and thin strokes that you see in older documents such as the American Declaration of Independence. Most modern pens are rigid nib, and give a line that is basically the same width except for slight changes in nib angle. The BEST writing pen that I own is a 1920s vintage Waterman 52. The #2 flexible nib puts out a gorgeous line that varies from superthin to almost 2-3 mm wide. It's also a common and cheap pen available on ebay for under $40. Modern flexible nibs are found on the Namiki Falcon ($125), and as a special order on the various OMAS models ($500+).<p>The modern Watermans write well, but are not practical for all day use. They have a brass body shell, and are consequently very heavy. The best writing pens tend to be light. I've heard great things about Pelicans. But, my wife put a stop to FPAS (Fountain Pen Acquisition Syndrome) before she decreed a stop to CAS (camera acquisition syndrome), so I don't have firsthand information<p>The Parker Falcon - I had one as a kid. My father gave it to me. It was a one piece pen in which the nib was a continuous extension of the pen body. It was a cheap knockoff of the fabulous and rare T1. The T1 is an all titanium Parker that is worth BIG money now from collectors. As with all rigid nib pens, it is still like writing with a very smooth nail.<p>Montblanc:<p>Montblancs are very expensive for what you get. They are extremely delicate. The resin body will literally shatter if dropped. In fact, one of their ads in the 80s showed a pen shattering upon impact. The points work well, but no better than a comparable one from Parker, Waterman, Omas, Namiki, etc. They are used in some circles as a fashion item "must", similar to a Rolex watch. I have some of the writer's series Montblancs, as well as the Ramses (has a cap of drilled lapus lazuli stone). They stay in the safety deposit box at the bank and never get used. They are very beautiful to look at, but too expensive to use.<p>Other nice daily writers are Parker 51, 61, and 71s. The sterling silver 71s have gone through many variations, and now have a cult following. The 51s were even used as currency during WW2 by soldiers, as they were highly desired pens. The main advantage was a streamlined design with an ink mechanism that allowed the use of a highly basic ink that virtually "dried on contact" with paper. It had a feed designed to allow it to work in varying atmospheric pressures, which was useful for airmen in the days of unpressurized cabins. The 61 was introduced with a capillary filler. You just put the back end of the cartridge into the ink bottle, and the cartridge filled itself in a high-tech sponge fashion. Unfortunately, the 61 shells were rather thin, and susceptible to breakage. The 71s are gorgeous pens which were initially made with an adustable angle nib. You had a little wrench that would allow you to rotate the nib angle until it hit the paper squarely, to accomodate your preferred grip.<p>A few more tips.<p>Fountain pens should be treated like your wife: no abuse and no sharing! The nib wears to YOUR HAND as you write. If someone else uses it, it won't feel right to you any more. Also, flexible nibs are delicate, and a klutzy hand used to ball-point pressures will destroy it.<p>However, if you are kind and careful, you will have a companion that will stay faithfully with you for better of for worse, until death do you part. Then it can be used by your great-grandchildren.

[Robert_Lai]

For those of you who think they've worn out their fountain pens: the nibs are replaceable!<p>Most manufacturers will also let you change points within a month of purchase for free. For example - you think you wanted medium but really wanted a broad oblique nib - exchange it. After all, this is a lifetime commitment.<p>For older vintage nibs, there are craftsmen such as John Mottishaw who will repair, straighten out, and retip a nib with iridium for a reasonable price.

[majid]

To answer Douglas' original question, fountain pens write more smoothly than ballpoint pens, as the nib just glides on paper and deposits ink by capillary action - pressure and friction are not needed. People who have only ever used ballpoint pens have problems adapting to fountain pens at first and tend to apply too much pressure.

 

Not all fountain pens are expensive. You can get excellent pens like the Waterman Phileas for $40, and cheaper yet decent pens are available from Sheaffer, Parker, Waterman or Pelikan with steel rather than gold nibs (less flexible, but still write well). The latter are often used by schoolchildren, who are required to use fountain pens in many countries like in France. Pilot even makes disposable fountain pens for two dollars apiece. Why don't you get one and try it for size?

 

The more expensive pens will bring you more elaborate materials, more precisely ground nibs and feeders, and will usually write better than the cheaper ones, and as you break them in will adapt better to your handwriting, but even a cheap fountain pen will write significantly more smoothly and naturally than a ballpoint pen. And in some cases, as Josh notes for Montblanc, the bulk of the price difference is due to marketing more than a better writing instrument.