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[4Tran]

Excellent. Yeah, I noticed that it had settled in the bottom rather finely. Don't know how long it had been sitting before it got shipped, so maybe a healthy couple of shakes a day or so before filling to get everything stirred up again is in order.

No need to do that; just shake it right before you ink up.

I went and got the ECO inked up with the Pilot ink for now, and did a couple test scribbles on one of my notepads. I carry Black n' Red notebooks for most of my RPG notes and ideas, and it writes incredibly well on it. Little guy is smooth and clean, and the lines don't have any weird bleed on the paper, but that was expected since this paper holds up very well to almost everything I throw at it. There is some bleed through on the back of the sheet, but I'll have to see how much that bothers me before switching to a more stout notebook.

It doesn't have much to do with the thickness of the paper, but a question of how absorbent it is. You can have super thin paper like Tomoe River that holds up really well or you can have thick Moleskine paper that bleeds through like crazy. Generally, you'll do well with Rhodia, Clairfontaine, Tomoe River, or some of the other Japanese brands. I've also heard good things about Leuchtturm notebooks, the Sustainable Earth papers from Staples, and you can sometimes find cheap notebooks from India (usually in Dollar stores) that work well. The latter aren't going to have any identifiable markings so it's a case of trial and error.

Gotta say, thumbs way up on the TWSBY. Everything that was said about it holds up, and it is a real joy to write with. And as my first pen with a built in piston filling mechanism everything worked like a complete charm.

I really like my Eco as well. It's TWSBI's newest pen and it's arguably their best one for build quality as well. Just make sure that you don't overtighten the cap too much.

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Pilot Pluminix [Plumix] with broad nib GET! I wasn't a fan of the design from pictures and really got it to give me a cheap broad nib for my Prera. However, in the flesh [as it were] I really like it. It's a cute little bugger. I even like the odd cap. It writes nicely [as one would expect, it being Pilot] and I really like the one I chose: a translucent teal-ish colour. The only drawback is of course the proprietary cartridge/converter but I knew what I was getting into. In fact it struck me that too many of my pens are proprietary and I don't have enough standard fitting pens to get to all these cartridges I keep buying to try out ink colours as frequently as I would like. To remedy that I have just ordered a Jinhao 450 & 750. Two fountain pens for four quid? Don't mind if I do.

Mental gymnastics to justify self indulgent retail therapy?

Don't mind if I do.

 

[4Tran]

I forgot all of my nice pens, so I ended up with my Ohto Rook at work. So far, I've been a bit unhappy with its performance, but I'm not sure if that's down to not liking the ink or that there's something the matter with the nib. I ended up using it on some really crappy paper, and it actually turned out quite pleasant, both the feel of the writing and the way it looks. Sure there's some feathering, but I didn't even hate the color. Goes to show that sometimes you shouldn't be too quick to judge!

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

I forgot all of my nice pens, so I ended up with my Ohto Rook at work. So far, I've been a bit unhappy with its performance, but I'm not sure if that's down to not liking the ink or that there's something the matter with the nib. I ended up using it on some really crappy paper, and it actually turned out quite pleasant, both the feel of the writing and the way it looks. Sure there's some feathering, but I didn't even hate the color. Goes to show that sometimes you shouldn't be too quick to judge!

That has been my experience too; 'good' fountain pen paper does not always equate to better. I have some 'good' writing notepads that I bought for my nice pens but have found that I always just use the £1 A5 notepad with crappy paper for my handwriting practice. Funnily enough I decided to test out my previous impressions with all of these pads with all of my pens. Sure enough I found that I really much prefer using the crappier paper, feedback, feathering, bleedthrough and all. The nicer paper just feels creepy somehow. It gives feedback but the smoothness just feels wrong. That might be that I'm just used to crappy paper so it's confirmation bias affecting how I feel but I'm not going to worry about it. The crappy paper is fine for what I'm currently using it for. The TWSBI and Vista like the nicer paper better so I'll just use them for that. Most of my other pens feel better on the crappy paper.....and the two Herbin pens don't feel good any anything.

Speaking of the Vista I have my first fountain pen casualty. I was flushing my Pluminix and Vista earlier and dropped the Vista nib unit in the sink. Whoops. Worse is to come though so if you are of a delicate disposition where fountain pens are concerned I am giving you this trigger warning now!







The two pens still had moisture in the nib and feed sections so I stuck them in front of the fire to try and burn that moisture out. You can probably guess the rest but whilst the Pluminix seems to have escaped unscathed [with moisture still in place, of course] the Vista looks like it tried to get a bit too friendly with the Ark of the Covenant. Good job I ordered a matte black Safari with an extra nib a couple of days ago . Now, [if the Vista broad nib survived the abuse heaped upon it] I shall have a Safari with a medium, broad and 1.1. mm stub nib. Also, I can pillage the Vista for parts. Sorry mutie scum but you're no more use to me. I might even replace you with another Vista. £11.95 on ebay, you Vistas sure do sell yourselves cheap. Slut.

 

[4Tran]

That has been my experience too; 'good' fountain pen paper does not always equate to better. I have some 'good' writing notepads that I bought for my nice pens but have found that I always just use the £1 A5 notepad with crappy paper for my handwriting practice. Funnily enough I decided to test out my previous impressions with all of these pads with all of my pens. Sure enough I found that I really much prefer using the crappier paper, feedback, feathering, bleedthrough and all. The nicer paper just feels creepy somehow. It gives feedback but the smoothness just feels wrong. That might be that I'm just used to crappy paper so it's confirmation bias affecting how I feel but I'm not going to worry about it. The crappy paper is fine for what I'm currently using it for. The TWSBI and Vista like the nicer paper better so I'll just use them for that. Most of my other pens feel better on the crappy paper.....and the two Herbin pens don't feel good any anything.

I get what you're saying, but it's not like that with me and this paper. It's truly horrid stuff to the point where it feels like the nib of any of my nicer pens feel like they're digging into the paper. Even my other cheap pens perform very poorly on it. Yesterday, I just happened to try it with the Rook and somehow it turned out pretty well.

The two pens still had moisture in the nib and feed sections so I stuck them in front of the fire to try and burn that moisture out. You can probably guess the rest but whilst the Pluminix seems to have escaped unscathed [with moisture still in place, of course] the Vista looks like it tried to get a bit too friendly with the Ark of the Covenant. Good job I ordered a matte black Safari with an extra nib a couple of days ago . Now, [if the Vista broad nib survived the abuse heaped upon it] I shall have a Safari with a medium, broad and 1.1. mm stub nib. Also, I can pillage the Vista for parts. Sorry mutie scum but you're no more use to me. I might even replace you with another Vista. £11.95 on ebay, you Vistas sure do sell yourselves cheap. Slut.

Oh dear! I've certainly never thought about drying a pen with fire! Other than disassembling a pen entirely and letting it dry overnight, I like to put the nib resting point-down on a paper towel. The paper draws in any residual water and speeds up the dry time.

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

I get what you're saying, but it's not like that with me and this paper. It's truly horrid stuff to the point where it feels like the nib of any of my nicer pens feel like they're digging into the paper. Even my other cheap pens perform very poorly on it. Yesterday, I just happened to try it with the Rook and somehow it turned out pretty well.


Oh dear! I've certainly never thought about drying a pen with fire! Other than disassembling a pen entirely and letting it dry overnight, I like to put the nib resting point-down on a paper towel. The paper draws in any residual water and speeds up the dry time.

I like to think that the Vista committed suicide. Overcome with jealousy and ennui that I was intending to cheat on it with a common or garden Safari it just couldn't take it anymore.

The good news is that I get to mess about with pen parts and not worry about ruining the pen .

 

[MR4001]

Stories of pen ruination! - Lets share!

Parker 51, in mint condition dating from the 1950s, just flushed before first filling and now being dried by doing the dart throwing-like movement - nb: a Parker 51 is a pain to flush. One last flick will see us done... pen becomes dart hits window sill at full whack then bounces off to hit floor nib first. *Gulp* Pick it up... a rattle makes itself known but nib - shock! - seems OK. Broke the breather tube of the fabled Aero-Metric system. Got it repaired quite easily, thankfully, and now don't really bother flicking pens to dry them (just leave them open for a day or so).

Pelikan M150, a lovely little pen I had grown a little attached to. Want to take it down for a thorough cleaning. Attempt removal of piston mechanism... *Snap* 'Fuck!' Throw it in the bin. Never attempt stripping of a pen again - it's something that doesn't need to be done, despite what some will tell you (same with regular flushing - all bullshit!).*

*Not counting special circumstances, of course.

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Stories of pen ruination! - Lets share!

LOL

Parker 51, in mint condition dating from the 1950s, just flushed before first filling and now being dried by doing the dart throwing-like movement - nb: a Parker 51 is a pain to flush. One last flick will see us done... pen becomes dart hits window sill at full whack then bounces off to hit floor nib first. *Gulp* Pick it up... a rattle makes itself known but nib - shock! - seems OK. Broke the breather tube of the fabled Aero-Metric system. Got it repaired quite easily, thankfully, and now don't really bother flicking pens to dry them (just leave them open for a day or so).

Phew! You had me wincing for a moment there! Glad it had a happy ending . I had completely forgotten 'the flick' though. I seem to remember that mishap taught me to hold it more like a drummer holds a stick before using the flick technique. It's funny how little memories are surfacing from decades ago. The other night I suddenly had the mental image of an old fountain pen I used in school. Nothing of note pen wise but wow, the 'feels' as internet denizens like to say. I know it was decades ago but it felt like a window of experience into a whole different person, a different lifetime even. Memory am funny.

Pelikan M150, a lovely little pen I had grown a little attached to. Want to take it down for a thorough cleaning. Attempt removal of piston mechanism... *Snap* 'Fuck!' Throw it in the bin. Never attempt stripping of a pen again - it's something that doesn't need to be done, despite what some will tell you (same with regular flushing - all bullshit!).*

*Not counting special circumstances, of course.

That's a shame it's a nice looking pen. Did you ever replace it?

 

[MR4001]

That's a shame it's a nice looking pen. Did you ever replace it?

Not directly, but I have owned several M200s and M400s since. Sadly Pelikan do not offer the M150 with an EF nib - nor are they available for seperate purchase - so I don't think I will ever be buying one again. The M300 is just too small, too. I am suprised Pelikan haven't ceased production of the M150; not many places seem to stock it and I hardly see it appear in reviews and what-have-you.

 

[4Tran]

Not directly, but I have owned several M200s and M400s since. Sadly Pelikan do not offer the M150 with an EF nib - nor are they available for seperate purchase - so I don't think I will ever be buying one again. The M300 is just too small, too. I am suprised Pelikan haven't ceased production of the M150; not many places seem to stock it and I hardly see it appear in reviews and what-have-you.

Don't all Pelikan pens produce really wide lines anyways?

 

[MR4001]

Don't all Pelikan pens produce really wide lines anyways?

The gold nibs do for definite, but the steel ones, I find, are just right - used with Pelikan ink, mind. The steel nibs also have a nice feel about them, I think: they are not nails, they have a bit of give to them. They can be a bit crappily put together sometimes, but when you get a good one you end up wishing the M200 it's in had the quality resin of an M400.

Spoiler

I have put a steel nib in a Souverän...

I had a beautiful M nib that was just perfect - used it with 4001 Blue-black and R&K Salix/Scabiosa. A real outlier for me: normally go for EF in European pens and F or EF in Japanese pens.

 

[Alex_Mexico]

One question: is there any risk on leaving my Pilot Metropolitan with its cap off for an extended period of time? Say, a couple of hours? I fear leaving it off even 20 minutes for fear of something happening to the ink. This is my very first fountain pen so I'd like to know if I need to treat this much differently than I'd do a ballpointer.

 

[MR4001]

One question: is there any risk on leaving my Pilot Metropolitan with its cap off for an extended period of time? Say, a couple of hours? I fear leaving it off even 20 minutes for fear of something happening to the ink. This is my very first fountain pen so I'd like to know if I need to treat this much differently than I'd do a ballpointer.

It is always best to cap a fountain pen when not in use. Remember, the ink is water-based so it will evaporate (relatively) easily. (Ballpoints use thicker oil-based ink.) This will leave you with a pen that won't start - you'd need to get the capillary action going again - it would be drying/dried out, basically. (If you are asking about writing with a pen for hours then that isn't a problem: the act of writing keeps the ink flowing and the nib wet.) Worse case would see you having to flush the pen to rehydrate and remove the now dried ink - a potential headache if using some specialist inks.

 

[Alex_Mexico]

It is always best to cap a fountain pen when not in use. Remember, the ink is water-based so it will evaporate (relatively) easily. (Ballpoints use thicker oil-based ink.) This will leave you with a pen that won't start - you'd need to get the capillary action going again - it would be drying/dried out, basically. (If you are asking about writing with a pen for hours then that isn't a problem: the act of writing keeps the ink flowing and the nib wet.) Worse case would see you having to flush the pen to rehydrate and remove the now dried ink - a potential headache if using some specialist inks.

Thanks for the response but, what does that bolded part mean?

 

[MR4001]

[This is an addition to my post above, rather than an answer to Alex_Mexico's post directly above.]

A picture (from John Mottishaw) is worth a thousand words...

All the water has evaporated leaving just the dye, which has blocked the fins of the feeds - which has blocked the pen. (These are extreme examples, mind. Required ultra-sonic and hand cleaning to fix.)

 

[4Tran]

The gold nibs do for definite, but the steel ones, I find, are just right - used with Pelikan ink, mind. The steel nibs also have a nice feel about them, I think: they are not nails, they have a bit of give to them. They can be a bit crappily put together sometimes, but when you get a good one you end up wishing the M200 it's in had the quality resin of an M400.

Spoiler

I have put a steel nib in a Souverän...

I had a beautiful M nib that was just perfect - used it with 4001 Blue-black and R&K Salix/Scabiosa. A real outlier for me: normally go for EF in European pens and F or EF in Japanese pens.

That's neat to know about Pelikan steel nibs - it's what I feel about Faber-Castell pens as well. The problem is that the Pelikan steel nibs are still pretty expensive; significantly more than I'd pay for a Platinum 3776 or even a Pilot Vanishing Point, so it's tough to justify.

One question: is there any risk on leaving my Pilot Metropolitan with its cap off for an extended period of time? Say, a couple of hours? I fear leaving it off even 20 minutes for fear of something happening to the ink. This is my very first fountain pen so I'd like to know if I need to treat this much differently than I'd do a ballpointer.

Yeah, you really don't want to leave a fountain pen uncapped. The ink they use is basically water, so it'll evaporate and just leave the dye behind. When this happens, the dye can clog up the nib and the feed channel making it either tough to start or to need cleaning. It's the same principle as inkjet printers, except those inks use pigments so they make even more of a mess when they dry. After you use a fountain pen for a while it should become second nature to cap the pen after using it.

 

[MR4001]

Thanks for the response but, what does that bolded part mean?

To quote Wikipedia:

Capillary action is the ability of a liquid to flow in narrow spaces without the assistance of, or even in opposition to, external forces like gravity. The effect can be seen in the drawing up of liquids between the hairs of a paint-brush, in a thin tube, in porous materials such as paper and plaster, in some non-porous materials such as sand and liquefied carbon fiber, or in a cell. It occurs because of intermolecular forces between the liquid and surrounding solid surfaces. If the diameter of the tube is sufficiently small, then the combination of surface tension (which is caused by cohesion within the liquid) and adhesive forces between the liquid and container wall act to propel the liquid.​

Capillary action is basically the way all fountain pens work. The feed - see the photograph above - in a pen draws the ink slowly from the ink source using capillary action to the nib - if it wasn't there the ink would just flow out at once. If the feed dries out you'd need to get it wet and flowing again for the pen to work, either by forcing ink from behind or 'attracting' it by wetting the tip of the nib.

 

[Alex_Mexico]

[This is an addition to my post above, rather than an answer to Alex_Mexico's post directly above.]

A picture (from John Mottishaw) is worth a thousand words...

All the water has evaporated leaving just the dye, which has blocked the fins of the feeds - which has blocked the pen. (These are extreme examples, mind. Required ultra-sonic and hand cleaning to fix.)

To quote Wikipedia:

Capillary action is the ability of a liquid to flow in narrow spaces without the assistance of, or even in opposition to, external forces like gravity. The effect can be seen in the drawing up of liquids between the hairs of a paint-brush, in a thin tube, in porous materials such as paper and plaster, in some non-porous materials such as sand and liquefied carbon fiber, or in a cell. It occurs because of intermolecular forces between the liquid and surrounding solid surfaces. If the diameter of the tube is sufficiently small, then the combination of surface tension (which is caused by cohesion within the liquid) and adhesive forces between the liquid and container wall act to propel the liquid.​

Capillary action is basically the way all fountain pens work. The feed - see the photograph above - in a pen draws the ink slowly from the ink source using capillary action to the nib - if it wasn't there the ink would just flow out at once. If the feed dries out you'd need to get it wet and flowing again for the pen to work, either by forcing ink from behind or 'attracting' it by wetting the tip of the nib.

Thanks, guys. Basically that's the reason why I can write with a pen even when holding it upside down.

 

[4Tran]

Thanks, guys. Basically that's the reason why I can write with a pen even when holding it upside down.

Also keep in mind that you should be cleaning your pens every couple of weeks. It's one reason why you shouldn't have too many pens inked up at any one time.

 

[MR4001]

That's neat to know about Pelikan steel nibs - it's what I feel about Faber-Castell pens as well. The problem is that the Pelikan steel nibs are still pretty expensive; significantly more than I'd pay for a Platinum 3776 or even a Pilot Vanishing Point, so it's tough to justify.

Pelikan really have hiked their prices in recent years. I think they're starting to consider moving into the territory of MontBlanc. The Souveraens (well, the M400 and M600) in the past were like the 5 Series/E Class, now they want to be all 7 Series/S Class. LOL. That M120 they re-released - selling at around 115GBP - when originally released was a school pen...

 

[leakey]

Picked up a Pilot Metro and used it for writing my wedding invitations. It's my first time using a fountain pen, and I'm really digging it. Thanks, Bagels!

 

[4Tran]

Pelikan really have hiked their prices in recent years. I think they're starting to consider moving into the territory of MontBlanc. The Souveraens (well, the M400 and M600) in the past were like the 5 Series/E Class, now they want to be all 7 Series/S Class. LOL. That M120 they re-released - selling at around 115GBP - when originally released was a school pen...

Yeah, it does seem that a number of European manufacturers are moving in that direction. I'm not sure if it's a good idea because it's leaving the market wide open for the Japanese pen companies with their extremely competitive products. It just seems to me like they're telling me they don't want my business. Oh well, I'll just have to console myself with a bunch of Chinese knockoffs.

 

[Alex_Mexico]

Also keep in mind that you should be cleaning your pens every couple of weeks. It's one reason why you shouldn't have too many pens inked up at any one time.

How is one supposed to do that so often? Please tell me its something simple to do.

 

[MR4001]

Also keep in mind that you should be cleaning your pens every couple of weeks. [...]

I am going to, kinda, disagree. If you are using 'standard' inks - eg Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue - and are using the pen regularly then in using it you are cleaning it: everything is always flowing. Even when using 'boutique' inks - eg J Herbin Perle Noire - as long as the pen is always in use, cleaning isn't something to worry about. Of course, if one is using 'specialist' ink - eg Sailor Kiwa-guro, Platinum Blue-black, Diamine Shimmertastic Golden Sands - then the odd clean - a quick flush with water before refilling, every other time - is reccomended. (You should always clean a pen before storage, of course.)

Lots of people, I think, are too pernickety in regards to cleaning. I think a lot of that comes from having an urge to fiddle with a pen, especially if a pen is a 'safe queen' - a collectable rather than a tool. There are people on FPN that strip down their whole collection regularly for cleaning. I'd go as far as saying that is actually damaging rather than helpful. Speak to anyone around during the golden age of fountain pens and they (a) never cleaned their pens unless really neccessary and (b) - Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do - regularly mixed different brands of ink without concern.

Pelikan's advice is best to share, I think: https://www.pelikan.com/pulse/Pulsar/en_US_INTL.CMS.displayCMS.91497./refills-and-care

 

[CheesecakeRecipe]

I enjoy the act of cleaning my pens out. It's very relaxing in an odd way, even when a particular ink refuses to wick out completely, or when Sailor's pungent antifungal solution lingers in a feed long after the ink has been drained out. That said, I typically only do so every 4+ weeks. I've left a pen to completely dry out on accident for a month and still found it very easy to clean - most pens won't come even close to that level of buildup even with irregular usage. Total stripdowns are very rare. I've only done so on my TWSBI, to make sure I scrubbed all of the Stormy Grey/Rouge Hematite out of the feed.

I still recommend being on the safe side and treating the pens well, but so long as you aren't leaving them with the cap off in direct sunlight for weeks, you won't have to be nearly as meticulous as some collectors would suggest!

 

[4Tran]

How is one supposed to do that so often? Please tell me its something simple to do.

All you need to do is to flush water through the feed until it's thoroughly cleaned. The way you do this is going to depend on the pen. If you have a Metropolitan, you can removed the feed and nib from the section and make sure all the parts are clean, leaving it disassembled to dry. I like to do that whenever the pen lets me, and I'll clean them every time I empty a pen.

I am going to, kinda, disagree. If you are using 'standard' inks - eg Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue - and are using the pen regularly then in using it you are cleaning it: everything is always flowing. Even when using 'boutique' inks - eg J Herbin Perle Noire - as long as the pen is always in use, cleaning isn't something to worry about. Of course, if one is using 'specialist' ink - eg Sailor Kiwa-guro, Platinum Blue-black, Diamine Shimmertastic Golden Sands - then the odd clean - a quick flush with water before refilling, every other time - is reccomended. (You should always clean a pen before storage, of course.)

It's not just about the inks though; pens can pick up tiny paper fibers as you write with them so it's still a good idea to clean them out every so often. And of course it's going to be super important if you're changing inks in a pen. If you're constantly using the same ink, it's going to be less important to clean out your converter/cartridge/reservoir, but I'd still clean the nib, the feed, and the grip section.

 

[MR4001]

Yeah, it does seem that a number of European manufacturers are moving in that direction. I'm not sure if it's a good idea because it's leaving the market wide open for the Japanese pen companies with their extremely competitive products. It just seems to me like they're telling me they don't want my business. Oh well, I'll just have to console myself with a bunch of Chinese knockoffs.

I do hope Japanese manufacturers pay more attention to the European market. Pilot have a little it seems: we have the MR, rather than the Metropolitan/Cocoon, and it takes Pelikan - 'international' - format cartridges, rather than Pilot format ones (you won't find those in WHSmith or Heelas!).

It's galling to compare the European prices of Custom 74s, 1911s and #3776s to the Japanese RRPs (and even US prices). *Sob*

 

[MR4001]

How is one supposed to do that so often? Please tell me its something simple to do.

If you're not going to use the pen for a while - and I presume you are just using cartridges, and not a converter with bottled ink - just remove the cartridge, run the nib under a gentle flow of water and then run the water through the pen until it runs clear. When this is done hold the nib using kitchen paper in a gentle pinch until the feed is wicked pretty much dry and then leave the pen somewhere safe uncapped for several hours. Do this too if changing ink colour/type.

I will whip up a fantastic Paint creation to help illustrate what I have written...

*

 

[4Tran]

I do hope Japanese manufacturers pay more attention to the European market. Pilot have a little it seems: we have the MR, rather than the Metropolitan/Cocoon, and it takes Pelikan - 'international' - format cartridges, rather than Pilot format ones (you won't find those in WHSmith or Heelas!).

I think that the Japanese companies have two challenges to overcome. The first is that established European brands carry a lot of prestige, even in Japan, and this makes competing with them rather intimidating. The second is that, on the business side, the Japanese companies just don't have the marketing and distribution channels to put their products in stationery stores. The latter really hurts since Japanese pens are almost universally cartridge/converters so they have to go the route of MR to make much headway.

This is much less of a problem in North America since stationery stores there don't sell fountain pens, so everyone's on the same footing. I think that Pilot is going to take a few notes on their North American division expanding the line of products available there, and bring that over to Europe. It will be a pretty big shakeup when they do.

It's galling to compare the European prices of Custom 74s, 1911s and #3776s to the Japanese RRPs (and even US prices). *Sob*

Never mind Europe with the tarriffs and taxes, even in North America a 3776 has an MSRP double the Japanese prices! At least those Japanese prices are available through Amazon sellers.

Currently, Pilot sells three pens in North America at competitive prices: the Metropolitan, the Vanishing Point, and the Falcon. If they can do the same with the rest of their product line and if they can carry that business practice to Europe, they stand to really dominate the market.

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Not directly, but I have owned several M200s and M400s since. Sadly Pelikan do not offer the M150 with an EF nib - nor are they available for seperate purchase - so I don't think I will ever be buying one again. The M300 is just too small, too. I am suprised Pelikan haven't ceased production of the M150; not many places seem to stock it and I hardly see it appear in reviews and what-have-you.

I'm sorry . I have overlooked Pelikan completely until your posts but now I hanker after an M1005 demonstrator and it doesn't seem to be available anymore :/.

Interesting discussion about pen cleaning and market changes ^^^^. Good stuff .

 

[MR4001]

[...] The second is that, on the business side, the Japanese companies just don't have the marketing and distribution channels to put their products in stationery stores. [...]

This isn't actually completely true. In the UK/Europe, at least, Pilot - along with Mitsubishi (Uni-ball in Europe) and Pentel - is a really big player in the stationery market. All three have European operations and two have factories in France. (Sailor has/had a little operation based in the UK, too.)

Only Pilot with specifically the Capless have ever really marketed a higher-end writing instrument, let alone fountain pen, though. The market is shrinking, and zombie brands Parker, Waterman and Sheaffer along with Lamy (and Pelikan on the Continent), are all squeezed in tight already so I figure the Japanese brands are just using common sense and staying clear (and focusing on their big segments of the disposable/cheaper market). It is sad but that is just the way it is.

Pilot, as I said, do seem to have noticed the niche market. Once it was just the Capless available and then tah-dah the Custom 74, the Elabo, the Justus, the Heritage 92, the Elite, the Prera, the Cavalier... It was all my doing you know... I was after a Custom 74 years ago and, after asking, Pilot started their distrubution in Europe just for me! He-he. (And for a few months there wasn't even such a severe mark-up - £100 for a C74!)

Spoiler

Yeah, I know, it was probably just coincidence.

 

[Bitmap Frogs]

This video from TWSBI demonstrates capillary action in a fountain pen feed https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=x0pNht6vsfE

 

[ChemicalCutthroat]

It's odd that on the Pilot's recommendations when filling they have you turn the pen upside down, then screwing piston back down to 'squeeze' any air out of the chamber that remains. But I never see anyone doing this one the Jetpens guides or things like that. Just an unnecessary step, or one specifically for the Pilots?

 

[4Tran]

This isn't actually completely true. In the UK/Europe, at least, Pilot - along with Mitsubishi (Uni-ball in Europe) and Pentel - is a really big player in the stationery market. All three have European operations and two have factories in France. (Sailor has/had a little operation based in the UK, too.)

Only Pilot with specifically the Capless have ever really marketed a higher-end writing instrument, let alone fountain pen, though. The market is shrinking, and zombie brands Parker, Waterman and Sheaffer along with Lamy (and Pelikan on the Continent), are all squeezed in tight already so I figure the Japanese brands are just using common sense and staying clear (and focusing on their big segments of the disposable/cheaper market). It is sad but that is just the way it is.

Is the market really shrinking, or is it just moving away from brick and mortar stores to online? I know that the fountain pen market in North America has been growing, hence the increased interest in beginner pens. Admittedly, the market has almost been dead in North America the decade before this resurgence.

Pilot, as I said, do seem to have noticed the niche market. Once it was just the Capless available and then tah-dah the Custom 74, the Elabo, the Justus, the Heritage 92, the Elite, the Prera, the Cavalier... It was all my doing you know... I was after a Custom 74 years ago and, after asking, Pilot started their distrubution in Europe just for me! He-he. (And for a few months there wasn't even such a severe mark-up - £100 for a C74!)

Spoiler

Yeah, I know, it was probably just coincidence.

Good going! Two things of note: that you decided on the Custom 74, and the sheer number of pens Pilot makes. Just counting the Custom series, there are 8 pens. Add in the three Capless models, and all of the non-Custom gold pens, and all the crazy nib options, and the number of choices is astounding. I don't think anyone else even close. The Custom 74 might be the most conventional of all these designs, but it can fit the CON-70 converter, and you get as much ink capacity as most piston fillers.

All in all, I think that Pilot is the best pen manufacturer right now.

It's odd that on the Pilot's recommendations when filling they have you turn the pen upside down, then screwing piston back down to 'squeeze' any air out of the chamber that remains. But I never see anyone doing this one the Jetpens guides or things like that. Just an unnecessary step, or one specifically for the Pilots?

I believe that this is done so that you avoid getting any air bubbles in the feed. If you use the inversion method of filling, this shouldn't be a problem. And in general, as long as you're using decent inks in decent pens, air bubbles shouldn't be much of an issue to begin with.

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

This video from TWSBI demonstrates capillary action in a fountain pen feed https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=x0pNht6vsfE

That was a good watch; thanks for posting. The first section had me cringing and Engrish is always good fun but it was especially good to see the capillary action demonstrated. I know that it is due to the surface tension of the liquid but that's as far as my understanding of it goes. I really don't grok it if I'm honest. I was always more of an 'arts' nerd at school so it's almost like magic to me. Probably not the wisest thing to admit to on GAF given the prevalence of 'science! fuck yeah!' types here but there you are .

I believe that this is done so that you avoid getting any air bubbles in the feed. If you use the inversion method of filling, this shouldn't be a problem. And in general, as long as you're using decent inks in decent pens, air bubbles shouldn't be much of an issue to begin with.

How would one use the inversion method unless one had an ink bottle specifically designed to facilitate that, like the TWSBI one? However, since I prefer to google something first rather than just post and expect someone else to do the work I did so and found this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ez7ha_wlzPs

Totally not related to the inversion method but informative nonetheless. I like Brian Goulet's videos especially because he tends to give a thorough examination of a subject.

 

[4Tran]

How would one use the inversion method unless one had an ink bottle specifically designed to facilitate that, like the TWSBI one? However, since I prefer to google something first rather than just post and expect someone else to do the work I did so and found this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ez7ha_wlzPs

Totally not related to the inversion method but informative nonetheless. I like Brian Goulet's videos especially because he tends to give a thorough examination of a subject.

Actually, the inversion method is pretty much the same idea. What you do is:

1. Partially fill a converter and flip the section/converter so that the nib is pointing up with the nib facing away from you.

2. Keep rotating the piston in the same direction you used to fill it. This will cause the ink to flow to the back of the converter and the air pocket to go up towards the feed.

3. Start carefully rotating the piston in the direction to expel the ink. Stop the process when you start seeing ink seep into the feed.

4. Put the feed section back into the ink bottle and slowly fill it.

The idea behind it is that there's generally air trapped inside the feed that won't get expelled when you fill conventionally. This method forces that air out so that you have as complete a fill as possible. It works for converters and piston-fillers, but it's not going to with with the other filling mechanisms.

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Actually, the inversion method is pretty much the same idea. What you do is:

1. Partially fill a converter and flip the section/converter so that the nib is pointing up with the nib facing away from you.

2. Keep rotating the piston in the same direction you used to fill it. This will cause the ink to flow to the back of the converter and the air pocket to go up towards the feed.

3. Start carefully rotating the piston in the direction to expel the ink. Stop the process when you start seeing ink seep into the feed.

4. Put the feed section back into the ink bottle and slowly fill it.

The idea behind it is that there's generally air trapped inside the feed that won't get expelled when you fill conventionally. This method forces that air out so that you have as complete a fill as possible. It works for converters and piston-fillers, but it's not going to with with the other filling mechanisms.

I grok it! Thanks 4Tran . I'll give it a try the next time I'm re-filling but I don't see anything there that should cause me any trouble. It also has the advantage of allowing one to pretend to be a mad scientist expelling air from the syringe before injecting it into some unwilling test subject. This is a good thing.

Ironically however I am currently running down the number of pens I have inked up as I have found eight on the go at the same time to be a bit of overkill :/.

 

[4Tran]

Ironically however I am currently running down the number of pens I have inked up as I have found eight on the go at the same time to be a bit of overkill :/.

Are you trying to make me feel bad? I'm still on eighteen. ;_;

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Are you trying to make me feel bad? I'm still on eighteen. ;_;

I would never do that! *kisses*

No, I just found that it was unwieldy and made me feel a bit anxious about all these pens I wasn't getting to. Once I've run the two Herbin pens dry I'll clean them and put them away until I decide to delve into nib D.I.Y. The Loom I wish to use more because it's a medium nib so that will contrast well with my broad fetish. The Prera and Pluminix can have a break as my new Safari writes well with the 1.1 stub so I'm going to get the 1.5 and 1.9 nibs for that too. Lastly the Waterman can go with the Herbins. I'm very fond of that pen for sentimental reasons but despite being my only gold nib it doesn't write as well as I would like. I think it needs a thorough clean and attention to the nib from someone who really knows what they're doing. That will just leave me with the TWSBI which is definitely staying in use but is currently being neglected for other pens. So that will leave me with: TWSBI broad, Loom medium and Safari stubs. That's the plan anyway but I'll probably just buy more pens :facepalm:. Oh and I've just remembered that I have a Jinhao 450 & 750 on the way :blushes:. Hm, best add on at least one of those as my flex nib pen then. Four is not too bad. Two for writing and two for calligraphy type stuff. No, four is fine. I don't have a problem. No intervention required. Thanks though.

EDIT: I finally got round to trying that 35 ish old bottle of indian ink I had still. I grabbed a used Q-tip as I think you yankee fellows call them and made a little plastic quill out of it. However, not unsurprisingly in hindsight, almost all of the ink pigment had dried into a huge disc of crap. So now the bottle is steeping itself in a glass jar of washing up liquid. Hopefully I can clean it all up okay as the eyedropper lid especially would be really handy for messing around with inks and so on.;

 

[4Tran]

Speaking of TWSBI, I'm giving one as a gift. It'll be the first time I'm giving a fountain pen to a non-fountain pen user, and I'll be tacking on a bottle of Lie de The and a Rhodia notepad. I only filled the pen with a bit of ink so that I can explain the inking process.

 

[Treo360]

Bought a Pilot Falcon with an FA nib, and I dislike it. For a $100 pen it feels cheap. I find it hard to break away from my Lamy Studio (stainless steel). I find it hard to justify the cost. Any other suggestions? I'm looking for a pen with a bit of heft and with some flex in the nib.

 

[CheesecakeRecipe]

Bought a Pilot Falcon with an FA nib, and I dislike it. For a $100 pen it feels cheap. I find it hard to break away from my Lamy Studio (stainless steel). I find it hard to justify the cost. Any other suggestions? I'm looking for a pen with a bit of heft and with some flex in the nib.

The Pilot Metal Falcon is $100 more, but is probably the only other option you're going to have. A semi-flex nib like the Falcon's is fairly niche. Other options from, say, Noodlers, are going to feel even cheaper if you don't like the way the Falcon handles. Metallic-bodied pens are in vogue with smaller pen companies, but almost all of them use standard nibs. I've noticed almost every Kickstarter pen only offers Bock nibs!

My appreciation for resin bodied pens has gone up over the years, but my first pen was a Metropolitan, which trained me very early on to seek the perceived 'premium' weight and feel of metal pens. My favorite pen, the Pilot Stargazer, is brass coated with a nice layer of paint and clear finish, which gives the best of both worlds! On the other hand, I still can't stand demonstrators, despite my TWSBI mini getting used frequently enough. Luckily, there's a lot of variety in the pen world, but when it comes to something like flex or other specialty nibs, you're either stuck with what the manufacturer makes for that specific model (which can, in some cases, be quite extensive), or you'll be paying a nibmeister to modify your nib.

 

[4Tran]

Bought a Pilot Falcon with an FA nib, and I dislike it. For a $100 pen it feels cheap. I find it hard to break away from my Lamy Studio (stainless steel). I find it hard to justify the cost. Any other suggestions? I'm looking for a pen with a bit of heft and with some flex in the nib.

I think that it's a matter of you associating metal-bodied pens as being more valuable and plastic ones as cheap. This makes some sense since cheap pens like those ubiquitous Bics are all plastic. However, in the world of fine pens it's a different story. High end pens, from entry level gold nibs all the way to $1000 Montblancs tend to have plastic bodies because plastic is one of the best materials for this application. Metal may feel nice in the hand, but lighter pens are preferred in fountain pens, heavier pens being more fatiguing to write with for longer periods.

The difference between these nicer pens and the cheap Bics is that they use different kinds of plastic and the construction process is different. The Bics will be injection-molded plastic whereas nicer fountain pens will be turned on a lathe.

I think that you should stick with the Falcon since it's honestly a very nice pen, but if you really need more heft, then you can go get either a Jinhao X750 (lighter) or X450 (heavier) and put on a G-nib or a nib from a Noodler's flex pen. There are a few other flex/semi-flex pens out there, but they tend to be more expensive and they'll also have plastic bodies.

 

[Bitmap Frogs]

Bought a Pilot Falcon with an FA nib, and I dislike it. For a $100 pen it feels cheap. I find it hard to break away from my Lamy Studio (stainless steel). I find it hard to justify the cost. Any other suggestions? I'm looking for a pen with a bit of heft and with some flex in the nib.

You can find fountain pens made of metal if that's your choice. But flex is a niche within a niche and thus options are even more limited. It doesn't help that the most sought after pen material is celluloid, a plastic...

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Speaking of TWSBI, I'm giving one as a gift. It'll be the first time I'm giving a fountain pen to a non-fountain pen user, and I'll be tacking on a bottle of Lie de The and a Rhodia notepad. I only filled the pen with a bit of ink so that I can explain the inking process.

That is a pretty awesome gift! I hope that they absolutely love it .

Bought a Pilot Falcon with an FA nib, and I dislike it. For a $100 pen it feels cheap. I find it hard to break away from my Lamy Studio (stainless steel). I find it hard to justify the cost. Any other suggestions? I'm looking for a pen with a bit of heft and with some flex in the nib.

How disappointing. sorry Treo360.

I am going to repeat some points that have already been made here but for what it's worth I would say:

Many fountain pens use plastic but it's good quality plastic. If it is purely a psychological barrier as 4Tran suggested then you might be able to overcome that by re-framing how you think about it. However, if the issue is also/or the heft of the pen then you are going to want a pen that is likely not made from that material. Goulet Pens have the weight of pens listed in the 'technical specs' tab e.g. https://www.gouletpens.com/pilot-falcon-fountain-pen-red-soft-fine/p/PN71621 so that's a handy resource.

Regardless of all this however, if that's how you feel about it that's how you feel about it so there's no point trying to pretend otherwise. The question is really what you do about it. Do you try and get your head round it and come to like the pen or look for an alternative?

4Tran's suggestion of a Jinhao X450 or X750 is a good one. These take a standard size 6 nib and are easily swappable. There are several online text and video guides out there that demonstrate how easy it is to do. Some people put flexible nibs in them that people use for anime drawing. I have one of each of these on order from ebay that cost me £4 for the pair and that's what I'm going to do. For the sake of a nominal amount it would be a good way for you to ascertain whether your issue is the material used to make the pen, the heft, the nib flex or a combination thereof.

If this does not attract as an option however you might want to consider a pen with an antique nib as this is more likely to give you a decent flex than the majority of modern nibs. You might like to consider buying a new pen from a nib meister such as http://www.fpnibs.com/en/39-nibs or http://meisternibs.com/ with a custom ground nib or a replacement nib to your tastes.

Lastly, if you just want a straight suggestion of "buy this pen" because it's not made from plastic i.e. solid brass covered with lacquer so it has good heft to it then I commend this video from the wonderful Mr Brown to you: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7skrabcAlw I do not have this pen [yet] but it seems to have a fine recommendation online and it fits your criteria. At the end of the video he gives a nib demonstration so you can see the nib flex from that. The website for the pen is: http://www.mrpen.co.uk/contents/en-uk/d184.html The pen nibs are custom ground and there are 18 different options! An alternative from the same company: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drkVfgi530k

Good luck!

 

[Skel1ingt0n]

Mom ordered me my first demonstrator for Christmas! It's a LAMY Vista.

Unfortunately, it didn't come with the converter for my bottled ink, so just ordered some.

What are everyone's recommendations on pens in the $100-$200 range? Last time I splurged, I got a Pilot Vanishing Point, fine nib. It was nice flipping to a gold nib - it does seem to work better for me. But at ~$150, everything else was kind of disappointing.

The matte finish scratches very easily, revealing the copper-ish metal underneath. It's awkward to hold with the "upside down" pocket clip. And it just makes an absolute mess. Almost everytime I use it, I have ink on my hands. If I rinse between inks, it takes a solid 30+ minutes of running water to clear out the previous color... versus 4-5 minutes in my "cheap" Lamys. I grab my first FP, a Lamy Safari medium nib in black that uses cartridges about 99% of the time, still. It's just an awesome workhorse.

So, with that said, what other pens should I be looking at to "step my game up?" I have some Franklin Christoph paper and pen case, so maybe I'll give them a look.

 

[4Tran]

That is a pretty awesome gift! I hope that they absolutely love it .

I think that it went over pretty well. Lie de The is a lovely ink, and I may have to get another for myself - still deciding between that and Pilot Tsukushi.

Mom ordered me my first demonstrator for Christmas! It's a LAMY Vista.

Unfortunately, it didn't come with the converter for my bottled ink, so just ordered some.

What are everyone's recommendations on pens in the $100-$200 range? Last time I splurged, I got a Pilot Vanishing Point, fine nib. It was nice flipping to a gold nib - it does seem to work better for me. But at ~$150, everything else was kind of disappointing.

The standbys are going to be the Lamy 2000, Sailor Professional Gear/1911, Platinum 3776, and the whole assortment of Pilot pens: Falcon, Custom 74, Custom Heritage 92, Elite 95S, Stargazer. Note that the only Japanese pen within your price range that's not a cartrige/converter is going to be the Custom 92. I have one each of the Pro Gear, 3776, and Custom 74, and they all write a bit differently, but they're all fantastic pens.

For the Japanese pens, you'll probably get the best prices from Japanese sellers so note that the Japanese name for the 1911 is "Profit", for the Stargazer, it's "Stella 90S", and for the Falcon, it's "Elabo". Depending of the flavor you're looking for, the Vanishing Point is likewise referred to as "Capless", "Decimo", or "Fermo".

The matte finish scratches very easily, revealing the copper-ish metal underneath. It's awkward to hold with the "upside down" pocket clip. And it just makes an absolute mess. Almost everytime I use it, I have ink on my hands. If I rinse between inks, it takes a solid 30+ minutes of running water to clear out the previous color... versus 4-5 minutes in my "cheap" Lamys. I grab my first FP, a Lamy Safari medium nib in black that uses cartridges about 99% of the time, still. It's just an awesome workhorse.

That's sad to hear. I have never had any problems with my Vanishing Point, but if you don't use the standard 3-point grip the clip can definitely get in the way. I've also never experienced any leaking problems, nor have I ever heard about it as a widespread problem. The Vanishing Point is one of the best selling gold pens in the world so if it's a design defect it should be talked about more often. If the pen is pretty new, you may want to contact whomever you purchased it from - it might need some adjustment, and Pilot has a decent warranty.

 

[Bagels]

Some recent (-ish) pen acquisitions!

 

[woo and indeed hoo]

Mom ordered me my first demonstrator for Christmas! It's a LAMY Vista.

Unfortunately, it didn't come with the converter for my bottled ink, so just ordered some.

What are everyone's recommendations on pens in the $100-$200 range? Last time I splurged, I got a Pilot Vanishing Point, fine nib. It was nice flipping to a gold nib - it does seem to work better for me. But at ~$150, everything else was kind of disappointing.

The matte finish scratches very easily, revealing the copper-ish metal underneath. It's awkward to hold with the "upside down" pocket clip. And it just makes an absolute mess. Almost everytime I use it, I have ink on my hands. If I rinse between inks, it takes a solid 30+ minutes of running water to clear out the previous color... versus 4-5 minutes in my "cheap" Lamys. I grab my first FP, a Lamy Safari medium nib in black that uses cartridges about 99% of the time, still. It's just an awesome workhorse.

So, with that said, what other pens should I be looking at to "step my game up?" I have some Franklin Christoph paper and pen case, so maybe I'll give them a look.

Nice! I loved my Vista; it was the first fountain pen I bought to get myself back into using fountain pens again. Pity I killed it. Fortunately I can pick up a replacement and a spare nib for < £20 off ebay so I expect it won't be too long before I do that.

With regard to your question, my first thought was a TWSBI but I see that they don't get anywhere near $100 even so that's probably not what you had in mind. They are nice though.

I think that it went over pretty well. Lie de The is a lovely ink, and I may have to get another for myself - still deciding between that and Pilot Tsukushi

Good . Lie de The does look like a lovely ink and I'm sorely tempted to pick some up but am trying to try all the inks I currently have before I buy more. After saying that though I do really need more bottled ink....and the bottle has a handy little pen rest! Hm, perhaps I'll treat myself in the New Year. Why don't you try the Pilot? If you're completely out of Lie de The get that as well .

Some recent (-ish) pen acquisitions!

He lives! I have no idea what any of those are apart from the top one though. Tease.

 

[Bagels]

He lives! I have no idea what any of those are apart from the top one though. Tease.

I've been a busy boy!

Top is a ruthenium Lamy Lx.

Next is a copper pen I kickstarted. The dude included a free titanium/copper prototype, too! That is the capped pen.

The rainbow pen is another kickstarter find.

Then a Lamy Safari ballpoint.

Finally a brass ballpoint from Y studios.


I'm probably done kickstarting pens for a while. Everything arrives a minimum of 3 months late and the creators of the pens I have ordered always seem to be in over their heads in their updates. I really like the pens I backed, but I'm spoiled by jetpens et al. Waiting 6 months for a pen sucks.

I do have a weakness for copper pens, so I'm sure I'll get sucked in again. :/

The Lamy Lx is an odd beast, as has been discussed. It's a nice step up from the Al-Star - the little details are nice! - but the price point is weird. I think the saving grace is the nice packaging. It comes in a cool matching tube, which I quite like. This pen would make a great gift. People at work saw the little guide on my desk and several people asked about the rose gold model. That seems to be a winner.


I had to do some training in another department at work, and the guy I trained with - who I have never met - said, "Hey! It's the pen guy!" 700 people work here, but somehow word has gotten out.

(I am also "the Moxie guy" and "the lilbub guy." I guess I go all in on my interests.)