# Fountain pens- any fans on KKF?



## Jim (Mar 10, 2011)

I enjoy using my fountain pens from time to time.

Any ink a favorite? 

Any other aficionados?


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## apicius9 (Mar 10, 2011)

No aficionado but I enjoy using the few I have. For practical reasons, I Have two Vanishing Point Pilots and love them, but I use the cartridges right now - less mess in the office. I also have a Montblanc but hardly ever use it, not happy with the tip, too wide. I picked up a Parker 51 just oit of curiosity last year but then got sidetracked and totally forgot about it, never even tried it out. So, just a practical user, no collector.

Stefan


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## brianw (Mar 10, 2011)

Legal lapis, and yes very deeply love Fountain Pens. Mostly vintage , but have quite a few Edison Pens.. If anybody here has not tried Fountain Pens....you are missing out on truly a great writing experience.... lets see , by last count 142 pens


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## Jim (Mar 10, 2011)

apicius9 said:


> No aficionado but I enjoy using the few I have. For practical reasons, I Have two Vanishing Point Pilots and love them, but I use the cartridges right now - less mess in the office. I also have a Montblanc but hardly ever use it, not happy with the tip, too wide. I picked up a Parker 51 just oit of curiosity last year but then got sidetracked and totally forgot about it, never even tried it out. So, just a practical user, no collector.
> 
> Stefan


 
I am more in this catagory Stefan,



brianw said:


> Legal lapis, and yes very deeply love Fountain Pens. Mostly vintage , but have quite a few Edison Pens.. If anybody here has not tried Fountain Pens....you are missing out on truly a great writing experience.... lets see , by last count 142 pens



Than in this one! hahah. 

Brian, whats a good inexpensive pen to start with?


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## aaronsgibson (Mar 10, 2011)

Been meaning to try one for a while but I've read that left handed people might have a slight problem in writing because you might drag your arm over the ink. Still would like to give one a shot.


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## brianw (Mar 10, 2011)

Jim said:


> Brian, whats a good inexpensive pen to start with?


 
Well lets see.... Personally I love my vintage Parker "51"s. they have a hooded nib... hold a ton of ink and are easy for a ballpoint user and roller ball user to make the transition. They are a Iconic design, made of lucite, the bladders in the aerometric style are nearly indestructable. I took a 1949 model that someone had not flushed out in 1960, then threw it in a drawer, and it did not see the light of day for at least 45 years. The ink was totally dried in it. I soaked it for a couple of hours, flushed it repeatedly and it is just as good as it was in 1949. Writes like a dream. the "51" can be had for 40 to over 100 dollars. Depends on what you want....gold caps, etc. 

Pelikan pens as a current model are also a great starter starter pen but these are fully exposed nibs and can take a little getting used to. NO pressure when writing. 

There are a plethra of chinese pens on the market that can be had for a couple of dollars to 30.00, the only problem is quality control and the useability of them can be hit or miss.

Now inks.... hoo boy.... the real fun begins....Noodlers, J. Herbin, Omas....the list goes on and on and on, in about any color you could ever think of.

Personally my favorites are Noodlers and Herbin

I could write for hours on this.....but this is a keyboard and not my journal and FP....so I will stop here


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## Jim (Mar 24, 2011)

Thanks Brian!


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## qvindtar (Mar 27, 2011)

Fountain pen fan checking in! My current daily writer is a Pilot Vanishing Point (extra fine nib) with black Noodler's Ink. If I were to recommend a pen to someone wanting to test the waters? Pilot Varsity - disposable and pretty cheap. For the next step up I really like Lamy pens - the Safari is less than $20 and has a pretty nice nib. Between knives, fountain pens and now mechanical keyboards, I am lucky to have an understanding wife.


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## heldentenor (Mar 27, 2011)

I've frequently wondered about whether collectors and users of knives were also interested in fountain pens. Same interests in aesthetics, variation, collectability, and the user experience that results when a person uses a tool that helps them express precision and creativity. 

I use two fountain pens predominantly these days, a vintage OMAS 1930 with a flexible nib for correspondence and a Pelikan M400 for everyday writing. I'm also an amateur calligrapher, and have a set of old Speedball dip nibs as well as various gold and steel nibs that I've acquired over the years. I'm left handed, and for the person who inquired about compatibility for left handers, the combination of what ink and what paper you use will make all the difference. A slow drying, dye-rich ink can pose problems for lefties, and using dip nibs, which lay down a wetter line, can take practice. With good paper (Clairefontaine is my favorite) and reliable ink (I use Aurora black for rich lines, Pelikan blue and green, and Parker black when I want something that requires absolutely no fuss at all) lefties should have no problems adjusting to fountain pen use. 

The problem for me is that the two interests conflict for priority. One day I really want to own a Nakaya that has been custom-tuned to my hand, but that's comparable to all but the most expensive custom knives in price. If I won the lottery, I'd have no trouble spending it!


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## brianw (Mar 28, 2011)

OMAS nice pen... ! have a 1912 Conklin with a full flex cursive, what a pleasure to write with....can't beat a M400 as well.


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## Bill Burke (Mar 29, 2011)

Been meaning to make some fountains but just haven't gotten around to it. I have made a couple of ball pionts I have a picture of the last one if anyone is interested.


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## Jim (Mar 29, 2011)

Bill Burke said:


> Been meaning to make some fountains but just haven't gotten around to it. I have made a couple of ball pionts I have a picture of the last one if anyone is interested.



I certainly would!


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## Bill Burke (Mar 29, 2011)

Ok Jim You asked for it.

This is Mokume Gane that I made myself. It is brass and copper with Titanium fittings. Hope you all like it.


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## SpikeC (Mar 29, 2011)

Very elegant!


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## Jim (Mar 30, 2011)

SpikeC said:


> Very elegant!


 
Ain't that the truth!


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## Rotary (Mar 30, 2011)

This thread inspired me to dig my Waterman out of my desk draw at work. I opened the case and . . . gone. :what: 

I keep re-searching the desk every forty five minutes but no luck. But I did find a two year old package of oyster crackers. So I've got that going for me.


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## Pensacola Tiger (Mar 30, 2011)

OK, this thread made me dip a toe in the water. Now, don't laugh, but I have a Lamy Safari coming in from Amazon. Yeah, I know that's like having a Forschner paring knife in a group of Shigefusa owners...


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## brianw (Mar 30, 2011)

or a Moped parked in Hell's Angels garage


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## qvindtar (Mar 31, 2011)

Pensacola Tiger said:


> OK, this thread made me dip a toe in the water. Now, don't laugh, but I have a Lamy Safari coming in from Amazon. Yeah, I know that's like having a Forschner paring knife in a group of Shigefusa owners...


 
Nothing wrong with a Lamy! I got a couple of year's use out of mine, and if I hadn't given it away to someone trying to convert them to fountains I'd probably still use it once in awhile today. What are your ink plans? IIRC the Lamy ships with a cartridge or two, but you may want to pick up a converter so you can refill from a bottle.


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## Pensacola Tiger (Mar 31, 2011)

qvindtar said:


> Nothing wrong with a Lamy! I got a couple of year's use out of mine, and if I hadn't given it away to someone trying to convert them to fountains I'd probably still use it once in awhile today. What are your ink plans? IIRC the Lamy ships with a cartridge or two, but you may want to pick up a converter so you can refill from a bottle.


 
I've got a converter in my Amazon shopping cart, and I'm considering a bottle of Noodler's Black. What's your opinion about the ink?


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## rahimlee54 (Mar 31, 2011)

I'll check these things out too, I pretty much hate every pen at my home desk anyway.


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## jheis (Apr 11, 2011)

I've got about 2 dozen vintage fountain pens, mostly Parker Duofolds & Lucky Curves from the twenties and thirties, along with a few Wahl Eversharps & a couple of other odds and ends of similar vintage. I was going to upload a photo, but it doesn't look like I can upload directly from my computer... pity, they really are quite pretty to look at!

The only modern pen I have is a Pelikan. I had one of the older style Black Namiki Vanishing Points that I really loved, but I managed to lose it somehow. Replaced it with a new style limited edition Mandarin Yellow Vanishing Point, but don't like the new style nearly as much & ended up selling in on eBray for a nice profit!

James

Fountain pens & knives seem to attract many of the same collectors for some reason. Maybe it's the penknife connection.


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## jheis (Apr 11, 2011)

Well, let's see if I can link to where I posted the photo on another site ...





Cool! It worked!

James


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## Jim (Apr 12, 2011)

Here is my meager collection. 












Cross -which was a wedding present from my bride.











Esterbrook - marked " Bell System Property"





Hero 616's and Reform 1745's





















Kaigelu #316 -










Parker 51 set










Parker 17


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## rahimlee54 (Apr 15, 2011)

If I got a Lamy to try out would I need anything besides the pen and ink or would I need a cart converter to fill it with?

Thanks
Jared


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## Jim (Apr 15, 2011)

rahimlee54 said:


> If I got a Lamy to try out would I need anything besides the pen and ink or would I need a cart converter to fill it with?
> 
> Thanks
> Jared


 
The lower end pens do not come with a converter they are 5 bucks or so.

Are you looking for a pen to just give it a try? Todd at ISELLPENS.com has several that are less expensive and better writers than the Lamy.


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## Pensacola Tiger (Apr 15, 2011)

Jim said:


> The lower end pens do not come with a converter they are 5 bucks or so.
> 
> Are you looking for a pen to just give it a try? Todd at ISELLPENS.com has several that are less expensive and better writers than the Lamy.


 
Now you tell me. Oh, well, I've had my Lamy for a couple of weeks, and like it well enough. Almost used up the cartridge that came with it, so I'll be switching to a converter and Noodler's.


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## rahimlee54 (Apr 15, 2011)

Ya I want to give it a try, I always wanted a really nice writing pen so FP might be the way to get me there. I want to try it on a very entry level model though in case I can't handle it. I'll check out that site, or if you want you can just tell me which way to go on that.

Thanks


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## jheis (Apr 15, 2011)

As someone else mentioned, a good pen to try if you just want to get your feet wet is the Pilot Varsity. It's a disposable fountain pen and is actually a pretty decent writer. It's only a buck or two & I've seen them at Border's Books.

Here's a link to a site which is pretty much the mecca for fountain pens in the US - if you want a good overview of what's available on the market today:

www.fountainpenhospital.com/

James


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## Jim (Aug 9, 2011)

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...p-B-s-First-Ever-Limited-Edition-Fountain-Pen


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## jm2hill (Aug 9, 2011)

Man this forum makes me crazy.. I love fountain pens. Don't own many (really only own cheap stuff) but I love fountain pens. Love 'cross' pens/pencils too. 

I realized a while ago that I am a collector, I can never just have one.

Pens
Coins
Shoes
Sunglasses 
Hats
Knives
Golf Stuff
Computers/Electronics
Razors

you name it and I've probably tried to collect it at some point.
I always need the new stuff but can't get myself to sell the old stuff. 

I have laptops from 1992 (IBM Thinkpad 700) that I power on every once and a while. Nothing like having a 128mb hard drive that only works in ms-dos. 

All this collecting sure is expensive!


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## JBroida (Jan 3, 2018)

Thought i would resurrect this thread... just been getting into fountain pens myself... ended up with quite a few...

TWSBI Eco (Stub)
TWSBI Vac700r (Stub)
Lamy Studio (Medium Nib)
Pilot Vanishing Point (F and Stub)
S.T. Dupont Montparnasse Chairman in Black Lacquer and Gold Trim (Medium Nib)
Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black (Medium Nib)
Pilot Custom 912 (FA Nib)
and a Sailor King of Pen (Medium Nib) on the way

Anyways, anyone else getting into this yet? If so, what are you using nowadays?

-Jon


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## gaijin (Jan 4, 2018)

I was really into fountain pens about 5 years ago. Bought a bunch. Sold some, kept the most. The only one I'm still using is a big hunkin' Sailor King of Pen - I love that pen. Perhaps I should list the rest for sale? 

And then I have those two big boxes of ink bottles. Should really use or let go to new owner before everything dries up... 

But the nice pen I actually a ball point pen - Sailor Professional Gear in Chrome. That gets used daily, and I've exhausted four or five refill cartridges on that already.


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## txtrqdrt (Jan 4, 2018)

I love fountain pens. Got into them a couple of years ago, probably about a year before getting into knives. Excellent for those who either love or want to improve their handwriting. 

I learnt my lesson about taking nice pens out and about with me after losing my Franklin Christoph cursive italic (gold nib) last year. Now I only carry around either a Pilot Metropolitan or Lamy Safari. 

I also own a few vintage vintage pens including a Waterman 52 with flex nib and a couple of Conway Stewarts.

One of the great things about using fountain pens is the world of colourful inks that opens up to you. The Fountain Pen Network (forum) has some great threads on ink reviews and comparisons. 

A few inks I particularly like: Bung Box Sapphire, J Herbin Rouge Hematite and KWZI Old Gold.


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## gaijin (Jan 7, 2018)

This thread made me realize I should sell some stuff. After sorting through the boxes, I have some 30+ bottles of ink and six pens that will probably be offered for sale. Once I figure out if I'm able to pack bottles securely enough and if I think I can get enough money for the stuff to make the packing effort worthwhile... At least it made me re-activate my account on FPN to ask for valuation help.


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## DamageInc (Jan 7, 2018)

I have a 1993 Mont Blanc Platinum Le Grand Meisterstück.

Barely ever use it. Too afraid of forgetting it somewhere, so it just stays home.


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## Bill Burke (Jan 8, 2018)

did someone say pens?


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## Wdestate (Jan 8, 2018)

Bill Burke said:


> did someone say pens?



damn, if i had anything important to write, id want to use that


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## mille162 (Jan 12, 2018)

Although the Mont Blanc Oscar Wilde is the nicest fountain pen in my small collection, the Montegrappa-Panerai special edition ballpoint is my favorite writing instrument

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...10153004111378103.1073741835.513228102&type=3


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## Chef Doom (Jan 16, 2018)

Although I have lost a couple of pens by accident (one at the bank window when I was doing some transactions) I find that pens, like knives, are meant to be used. A cheap preppy or any other equivalent are good for carrying in your pocket if you don't want to worry about losses. A small 2 or 3 pen case is great for keeping your pens from disappearing. It makes you keep track of them similar to a notepad or a book. I will never carry a pen around my neck. My level of nerd is not on that level.


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## gaijin (Feb 4, 2018)

This thread, in combination with purchases inspired by this forum, has made me check what to sell from the pen collection. Some things were easy, like the limited edition Lamy Safaris who all went to California for some reason. 5 year old ink bottles are hardly worth shipping overseas, so I've started listing some on the local eBay clone. 

But perhaps the Pharmacists Urkundentinte (some small batch custom iron gall ink sold in 2012 at least) could be of interest to someone? Any takers here? Don't really want money for it, but postage covered and a small donation to your favourite charity or to this site would do. 

The keepers are for sure: 

The Sailor King of Pen. Wowzers. The most used of all my fountain pens. But the smaller Sailor pens (1911 and Professional Gear Mini) are perhaps not needed. 

The Pelikan M1000. Don't really use, but I like it when I do, and a bent and repaired nib does not really make wonders for the value, I guess. The older M400 set seems a bit redundant now. 

Some NYC special from the Fountain Pen Hospital and the vacation in NYC five years again. Ahh good times. 

And why oh why do have I have a VERY fancy pink and rhodium colored ball point pen from Caran d'Ache? 

And the Montblanc 149 with a stub/italic modified nib by "Mike it work" Matsuyama - hesitate to sell but never use... decisions, decision. 

Pens and ink bottles where also a good testing ground for product photography.


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## JBroida (Feb 4, 2018)

Yeah... sailor king of pen is by far my favorite right now. Just started playing around with grinding and adjusting nibs too... lots of fun. Mike Mastuyama is located here in LA, as is John Mottishaw, so if all else fails, i've got a local safety net 

What did he do to your MB 149? With the KOP being so similar, i could see not using that as much.


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## sloegin (Feb 5, 2018)

I dabble (that is an understatement). I prefer vintage to modern.

The only pen I currently have inked is a Parker Black Giant...





gaijin, the ink probably won't go bad. I tend to use old ink without issue.

Jon, you really should go to the LA Pen Show in a week or two. Get the trader pass so you don't have to deal with the chaos of the public day.


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## JBroida (Feb 5, 2018)

sloegin said:


> I dabble (that is an understatement). I prefer vintage to modern.
> 
> The only pen I currently have inked is a Parker Black Giant...
> 
> ...



i'm planning on it... thursday is my only day off, so i was going to go then... its a new hobby for me, so it should be interesting


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## gaijin (Feb 5, 2018)

JBroida said:


> Yeah... sailor king of pen is by far my favorite right now. Just started playing around with grinding and adjusting nibs too... lots of fun. Mike Mastuyama is located here in LA, as is John Mottishaw, so if all else fails, i've got a local safety net
> 
> What did he do to your MB 149? With the KOP being so similar, i could see not using that as much.



I know that living in a far corner of the world puts me far away from most skilled craftsmen of this type... But I've found a nibmester here in Sweden too that fixed my Pelikan M1000. 

Mike did his work for a previous owner, and the remaining effect is the nib which writes crazy good and also has a very nice stub typ, on the border of italic. Oh no... now I'm back in love with this pen. Not selling this year. :O


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## sloegin (Feb 6, 2018)

JBroida said:


> i'm planning on it... thursday is my only day off, so i was going to go then... its a new hobby for me, so it should be interesting


Richard Binder, wrote this years ago about going to your first pen show, and it is still worth a read: link. Here is a show report from last year.
And if you get bitten by the vintage pen bug let's talk possible trade.


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## Neko (May 1, 2018)

Have a look at a Naginata Togi grind, Mike Masuyama specializes in it - it's very smooth and versatile, great line variation depending on writing angle. 

If you like stubs, Pendleton Brown in Georgia is known for his butterline stubs, I have a Pilot ground by him and it's smooth with nice shading. If you order anything from Classic Pens, you must specify John does the grind, otherwise his apprentice will do it and there's a good chance you'll need to send it back to have John work on it. There will be a note to say if John worked on the pen. 

Here's one of mine, it's a Nakaya Long Cigar with a standard soft fine. The urushi finish is tough and feels tactile when writing.


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## Nelson_Baboon (Jun 10, 2018)

funny that there seems to be this connection. I was absolutely fanatical about fountain pens when I was younger, and still have a couple of pretty good ones - (too lazy to try to evoke their names, which reveals that I haven't been using them much in recent years) - a Parker and a Pelikan. 

But it's not that I don't still have a fascination for them - it's that I just so rarely find a use for them, which may or may not sound silly. Occasionally, when drunk, I still google search what's available....

But kitchen knives seem to fulfill the same 'primal need'. I do prepare my own food, and have always wanted to get it over with as quickly as possible, but I'm finding that nice knives, a nice cutting boards, and upgrading my cookware has gotten me much more into the process. And the artistry of the knives seems somehow similar....

it's funny because I had already thought of this subjective connection, and then I found this thread. It's making me think about trying to resurrect my fountain pen fascination again, meaning, that if I think hard enough I can probably find uses for 1/2/3, etc. 

This place will be the ruin of me.


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## daveb (Jun 10, 2018)

You'll find coffee nuts, cigar nuts, camera nuts, razor nuts, watch nuts, audiophile nuts, var nuts and yes pen nuts on here. 

My only "splurge" on pens was a nice Waterman back in the day. Lost the top in a move and have since traded pens for sharpies.


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## Chef Doom (Jun 26, 2018)

gaijin said:


> This thread, in combination with purchases inspired by this forum, has made me check what to sell from the pen collection. Some things were easy, like the limited edition Lamy Safaris who all went to California for some reason. 5 year old ink bottles are hardly worth shipping overseas, so I've started listing some on the local eBay clone.
> 
> But perhaps the Pharmacists Urkundentinte (some small batch custom iron gall ink sold in 2012 at least) could be of interest to someone? Any takers here? Don't really want money for it, but postage covered and a small donation to your favourite charity or to this site would do.
> 
> ...


They make the King of Pen seem a lot bigger online than it actually is. It is a great pen to use.


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## Chef Doom (Jun 26, 2018)

daveb said:


> You'll find coffee nuts, cigar nuts, camera nuts, razor nuts, watch nuts, audiophile nuts, var nuts and yes pen nuts on here.
> 
> My only "splurge" on pens was a nice Waterman back in the day. Lost the top in a move and have since traded pens for sharpies.


What I find difficult to locate with many of these hobbies is the safe middle ground. There is the extremely cheap option for the budget concious, or the premium options for those with expensive taste. 

Something of good quality and fairly priced is hard to come by. It is usually a cheap constructed product masking itself as good quality, or it is the lower end version of a premium company and said product doesn't live up to the companies reputation.


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## Bensbites (Jun 26, 2018)

I thought about making matching pen body/knife handles. Is there a market for that?


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## daveb (Jun 26, 2018)

Bensbites said:


> I thought about making matching pen body/knife handles. Is there a market for that?


With a matching cigar cutter and espresso tamper I'm in[emoji41]


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## JBroida (Jun 26, 2018)

I ended up with a Pilot Justus 95 and i've been enjoying that one a lot lately


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## Bensbites (Jun 26, 2018)

daveb said:


> With a matching cigar cutter and espresso tamper I'm in[emoji41]



Do you have a photo of the style cigar cutter you are thinking of? I can easily imagine the tamper. I have to make friends with a lathe now.


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## kkat (Jul 3, 2018)

Bensbites said:


> I thought about making matching pen body/knife handles. Is there a market for that?


Maybe hit up the fountain pen network forum? Have you thought about making pen 'sayas'? 

In response to the op's and Jon's questions, yes, very into fountain and dip pens. I generally use a soft fine (SF) pilot 912 or sailor hard fine (HF) pro gear as daily writers. Prefer the SF for the huge converter, as I don't have to refill as often. The sailors seem to be inconsistent with their nib alignment, and my purchases have reflected this. A little time with watch tweezers, shims, and 10k/15k lapping film turns the 21k sailor nibs into butter. 

Also have 2 falcons from pilot--one's a 912 with a spencerian mod from John @ nibs.com. The other's a namiki metal body. Almost done with a parker 51 restoration too. What about y'all?


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## panda (Jul 3, 2018)

my go t: the clip keeps breaking though, is there a more durable alternative?


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## Chef Doom (Jul 4, 2018)

Cheap Japanese pens are far superior to cheap American pens. Hit up the closest Japanese market or stationary store.


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## panda (Jul 4, 2018)

doom, just link me on amazon


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## JBroida (Jul 5, 2018)

jetpens.com


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## sloegin (Nov 2, 2018)

Today is Fountain Pen Day. Here is a Parker Senior Duofold:


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## Ochazuke (Nov 2, 2018)

Happy fountain pen day! I’m looking forward to trying a Pilot Decimo.


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## Vladimir (Nov 3, 2018)

I had :
montegrappa , pelikan m805, m400, monblanc jules verne.
now I use sailor 1911 (this is the best for $), but I still look at nakaya


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## alanhuth (Nov 3, 2018)

I seem to go through the EDC thing serially. Watches, pocket knives, flashlights, pens. Once I find the one I really like, I lose interest and move onto the next. Sometimes it's painful, sometimes not. The knife I settled on, Sage 2, costs $200. The flashlight, I can't say in case somebody knows me sees this, but it was in high-end Shig territory. If you know flashlights, James Bond is a good hint. In pens, I spent a lot of money on lots of fancy pens and settled, finally, on what many here also liked: Pilot Vanishing Point. Not too expensive ~150, very practical, and you can get your nib customized to anything you want. I love the colors, particularly with gold trim. The basic gold nibs for this pen are among the easiest to customize, so you can get several of them and find the exact feel you want. And, of course, Noodlers ink. I sent my nibs to Richard Binder and richardspens.com. Very satisfied - excellent work and modest prices. He's a true pen lover.


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## Curmudgeon (Nov 3, 2018)

I’m an aficionado and write daily with a Visconti, but often use one of a couple of Pilots, TWSBIs, and Parker 51s. My ink of choice is the Iroshizuki Kon Peki. 

Start with the Kon Peki and don’t look back.


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## JBroida (Nov 3, 2018)

i like the konpeki a lot... lately, i've been using noodlers Liberty's Elysium blue in my Opus 88 Koloro Demonstrator with a custom ebonite housing and feed from the flexible nib factory. It holds a zebra g dip pen nib, provides plenty of ink flow, and because of the ink, the nib doesnt rust or deteroiate so quickly (weeks without drying, cleaning, etc. and it still writes). Doesnt hurt that the pen holds almost 4ml of ink, as the nib/feed combo blasts through ink like crazy.


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## nevin (Nov 4, 2018)

It's so interesting to see many people here also into fountain pen (me included). My set is a mix of German / Italian / Japanese pens.


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## Gorrion (Nov 5, 2018)

Looks like fountain pens go hand in hand with kitchen knives. Could it be that the pen is mightier than the sword? I'm a bit of a collector and still use my first fountain pen (Conway Stewart 86) my father gave me in 1956. Since then I have acquired any number from Waterman to Rotring via Parker 51 and 61. In the old days you could buy oblique cut nibs for left handers (of whom I count myself) but not sure nowadays. Still use Quink ink or Conway Stewart. Sadly Rotring have stopped making ink as it was very good.


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## playero (Nov 7, 2018)

there you go


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## playero (Nov 7, 2018)

2 nd one


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## Chef Doom (Nov 7, 2018)

panda said:


> doom, just link me on amazon


 The cool part about Japanese stationary stores is that they let you try the pens before use. A total free for all. They have 3 dozen pens and a bunch of pads with a "Good Luck On Your Journey" type of attitude. I will send links to my current favorite brands.


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## Chef Doom (Nov 7, 2018)

panda said:


> doom, just link me on amazon


Uni-ball signo

https://www.jetpens.com/Uni-ball-Signo-UM-151-Gel-Pen-0.5-mm-Black/pd/3246

Zebra Sarasa Clip

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TEXLC88/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I have 2 other pens I'm using at home. I don't know if the brands themselves are Japanese based but they cater to their market and are better than any Bic pen or other cheap gel pen you will find at Staples or Officmax.


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## Chef Doom (Nov 7, 2018)

Just saw these brands on Staples.com but the models are different and more expensive than the links just in case anybody was curious.


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## panda (Nov 7, 2018)

cool, i opted for the zebra .7mm in red.


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## sloegin (Nov 14, 2018)

Today's pen mail, a safety with music nib, and a 51:


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## pennman (Nov 14, 2018)

The small pen in the photo is a 149 Meisterstück. The middle is a Namiki Emoeror with a #50 nib. The top one is a Montegrappa. It’s about 11” posted like this. 







Three music themed pens and two of my custom belts and custom ranger buckle set with Schroder. The yellow is a Sailor 1911 with a music nib the red hard rubber is a Bexley Stradivarius. The Mont Blanc is a George Solti. He Started his musical career as a pianist. 






The Krone Freud special edition. 







A beautiful Namiki yukari royale. 







4 Namiki emperors with Urushi lacquer. Prices range from $5400 to $16,000. I got to fondle these at a Namiki pen event. 






A DuPont Orpheo with a bent nib I repaired for a customer.


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