Fountain pen, someone?

[rbiemer]

Since I last posted in this thread, I bought some more pens and some ink. I am waiting on a Noodler's pen--their demonstrator piston fill pen--and two Chinese pens; one glass pen and a Haolila 0305. And I am going to try some of Noodler's ink as well.

But as with cameras, I feel less and less need to have many to choose from.

Roger, I'll be happy to get to that point but I'm inexperienced enough with fountain pens to still be trying out new ones until I find the one that serves me best. And I won't be too surprised if I end up with the Kaweco anyway--I like how it works for me.
Rob

 

[PlantedTao]

just a pen: zebra F701.
Cheap, practical, easy to carry in my pocket and not worry about; reminds me of my Oly OM's, gets the job done.

 

[urban_alchemist]

Come on guys, it's a camera forum; how about you put those cameras to good use and show us some of your fountain pens!

 

[deirdre]

Photos here.

 

[ederek]

Wow deirdre! I saw your boxes of inks previously and that was amazing. Curious, do inks have a long shelf life, and should they be gently agitated before filling a pen?

I only have a small collection acquired while I learned about different pens and experimented. My primary goal is a set of "writers" loaded with inks that flow well and I enjoy writing with.

I arrived home from a long weekend and the Pilot Iroshizuku ink had arrived - selected the Tsuki-yo (Night Sky) color. This is nice ink, and flows as well in the Namiki VP as others I've tried - very pleased. Seems pretty thin and dries fairly quickly. It has a color similar to the Noodlers Legal Lapis.

Any suggestions for nib repair / rework? I think my M800 could be smoother, maybe it needs a proper evaluation. I bought it new and it's never been 'quite right'.

 

[Santtu Määttänen]

Any suggestions for nib repair / rework? I think my M800 could be smoother, maybe it needs a proper evaluation. I bought it new and it's never been 'quite right'.

I've had amazing results from Richard Binder, might not be the cheapest guy around (specially if you have to send pen to him from Europe and pay taxes and so forth at return) but well worth it. I have three nibs, two grinded by him and one smoothed out by him, all amazing performers.

There are others of course, search around Fountain Pen Network to find one from the same continent then you. I've not tried anyone from Europe yet, although I've been about to for some years now 🙂

 

[deirdre]

Ink has a pretty long shelf life so long as no mold spores get in it. Some people regularly use inks 20-30 years old. I do generally shake my inks -- the Noodler's bulletproof inks really need it, and the habit carries over.

I'm currently re-taking all my pictures again again because I didn't like how flat and yellow-grey the last batch came out. My collection's constantly in flux, so I keep a gallery to remind me what I actually have at any given time.

 

[ederek]

Santtu Maattanen and deirdre - thank you for the follow-up responses!

 

[pagpow]

I use a goose feather that I choose myself and shape the nib to my needs. I find that the computer does not allow anything like the "touch" I need to support meaning with both pressure and thickness. Even fountain pens are subject to failure and loss of ink at critical times, and rollers, while greatly improved over the first several generations, simply do not always work, sometimes leak, do not allow variations in the letters as they should. For my B&W writing especially, only a duck feather with self-made ink will do. I carry several with different styles -- when I find one that "draws" just how I like, I
describe the variation in drawing using a self-generated six-dimensional description and label it for easy retrieval. Color, of course, is something else entirely; there I use a roller.

Sorry, guys, couldn't help it -- and now that I read some of the later postings, I wonder if I am unintentionally insulting anyone. Apologies in advance.

 

[Brian Levy]

Goose feather is so middle class. Want a 1st rate pen? Go to the local zoo and get a nice pheasant tail feather. The nibs are longer lasting, smooter and only limitation is they are difficult to carve them to a fine or ex-fine nob point.

 

[Thardy]

I tried fountain pens back in the late eighties when I was attempting to improve my hand writing. I had to write so much in school that it had almost completely deteriorated.

When my kids got old enough to get into things, my collection slowly disappeared.

 

[Brian Levy]

That's what happened to me, also, However, that is a good thing.

 

[Water Ouzel]

Another lefty here. My solution to the challenge of writing with a fountain pen is twofold:

1 - Turn the paper clockwise enough that I can write with my wrist straight.

2 - Never let anyone else, particularly a righty, use my pens.

It's worked so far.

All I've got now is a Shaeffer 585, which I've had for about 35 years, after a series of cheap Esterbrooks and Parkers. Actually, it's the second one; the first being snatched out of my hand by a too-clever admin who needed to make a note about something. The pen came unshipped from its cap, and ended up several desks over, hitting on its tip, bending the nib 90º up. She bought me a new one to replace it.

There was also a lovely Pilot .5mm retracting-tip mechanical pencil that I used for the better part of ten years, until it fell apart internally. It had gone out of production, and I've never found another to replace it.

I've got to look for some of the interesting inks mentioned upthread...

 

[Chris101]

Other: pencil

 

[ZorkiKat]

Quills and Corrosive Inks.

Quills and Corrosive Inks.

I use a goose feather that I choose myself and shape the nib to my needs. I find that the computer does not allow anything like the "touch" I need to support meaning with both pressure and thickness. Even fountain pens are subject to failure and loss of ink at critical times, and rollers, while greatly improved over the first several generations, simply do not always work, sometimes leak, do not allow variations in the letters as they should. For my B&W writing especially, only a duck feather with self-made ink will do. I carry several with different styles -- when I find one that "draws" just how I like, I
describe the variation in drawing using a self-generated six-dimensional description and label it for easy retrieval. Color, of course, is something else entirely; there I use a roller.

Sorry, guys, couldn't help it -- and now that I read some of the later postings, I wonder if I am unintentionally insulting anyone. Apologies in advance.

Quill pens are good for use with iron corrosive inks. Nothing metallic in them which will get to be eaten away by the ink. Corrosive inks are permanent- they become part of the paper itself. Lovely velvety blacks unseen with the aniline dye based inks in use now.

Corrosive ink is mediaeval. It's easily made with ferrous sulphate (available from pharmacies as diet supplementaries), tannic acid (bark boiled as tea will do), some sugar and a bit of gum arabic.

Goose feather is so middle class. Want a 1st rate pen? Go to the local zoo and get a nice pheasant tail feather. The nibs are longer lasting, smooter and only limitation is they are difficult to carve them to a fine or ex-fine nob point.

Quills from crows can be cut to a really fine nib. But where can one find a crow willing to part with a piece of its wing? 😀

 

[Eric L]

Parker 51 (everyday kinda writer)
Pelikan 100N (my favourite looks-wise, but I fear losing it. the nib was re-tipped by nibs.com. great job!)
Pelikan 140

 

[coelacanth]

I'm new to the hobby/obsession/cult/culture, but will be attending to SF Bay Are Pen Posse's Get-together this Thursday. I can't wait. I've been going back to the Nakaya website quite obsessively in past couple days.

 

[amateriat]

I'm new to the hobby/obsession/cult/culture, but will be attending to SF Bay Are Pen Posse's Get-together this Thursday. I can't wait. I've been going back to the Nakaya website quite obsessively in past couple days.

Wow...makes me wish I was on the Other Coast for a day. Say Hi to Lisa when you're at the get-together (yep, know her form another "list"). Also hope the weather's nicer than it is here in Gotham at the moment.


- Barrett

 

[raid]

I have only a few nice fountain pens from the time when I lived in Iraq.
When I graduated from high school, some of my relatives gave me gifts, which included a Parker gold tipped pen, a Schaeffer gold tipped pen, a Lamy pen ... etc. They have never been used. At that time, each Iraqi Dinar was worth 3.3 US$. Now, each US$ is worth 1500 Iraqi Dinars.

 

[amateriat]

^ Would that be from FPN? 🙂

Yep. 🙂


- Barrett