Just bought another Lamy Joy, but with 1.9mm nib, and three Diamine bottles--Sargasso Sea, Silver Fox, and Blue Lightning. Quivering with anticipation.
Diamine's J.Herbin-ripoff Shimmertastic inks are really fun! I got the sample pack from Goulet and have been having fun using them in my Hobonichi. Brandy Dazzle is wonderfully understated, while Blue Lightning is ridiculous and fun.
My Lamy Safari arrived today along with the converter and ink. The Rhodia pad will arrive in a few days. Using it in a regular pad seems OK, but I've always bought decent pads in the past.
The ink does seem to be very light, a lot lighter than I expected. I'll take some photos and maybe pop some under the microscope
Edit, some photos:
http://imgur.com/KyAHuZl
http://imgur.com/SVciNbd
http://imgur.com/XKr5MR4
http://imgur.com/gTOAlzU
Beautiful! Love your writing!
Your threads always pique my interest. I've been dabbling in digital art for years but recently I've come to enjoy doing pencil + paper work again (in part thanks to your paper thread!) - there's just that nice friction feel that can't be replicated on a tablet screen.
Unfortunately I'm a leftie, so fountain pens will just mean bad times
Lefties seem to find a way to make it work, but I don't really know how. But hey, at least you liked the paper thread!
Plenty of Lefties in here pretty much denouncing the use of fountain pens!
My guess is that this ground in hatred comes from being forced to use cheap pens and toilet roll grade paper at schools when we were younger. Surely there are pens out there that are goo to use...
I've found a few sites witch are interesting.
Firstly, how do you write:
http://www.nibs.com/Left-hand%
20writers.htm
Ive come across all these. Personally Im a side writer pretty similar to #8.
Now on to the pens. You can go for a rounded nibbed pen that doesn't 'dig up' the paper as much or just go for it! Personally I'm just going for it with a standard nib. Still undecided which.
Kaweko DIA2
Lamy Studio
or
Faber E-Motion.
Can anyone advise on the above?
Thanks
I really like Kaweco's offerings and want to add a Lilliput soon. I know people adore the Lamy Studio, but I don't have experience with anything higher-end than the Safari.
Tell us about whatever you pick up!
Your writing is so awesome, Lombax!
Holy shit at the price increase on the Raden editions of the Vanishing Point...I got mine (the first they made) for less than half...
It kills me. My matte black Vanishing Point is one of my favorite pens. I'd kill for a Raden and, at that price, I would have to to get the money for one.
I almost went with a Safari then a Metro but then just settled on a Preppy. Can't wait to try it out. I would've went with the Metro but I couldn't get over that ugly zebra stipe down the center of it. I'll probably upgrade to a Safari just because of the plain, clean look of it.
I use a pen all day so it's about time I got myself a nice one. Now that I think about it, I should re-learn how to write.
The basic Metros are solid black, solid silver, and solid gold. See Lombax's pic, above!
I used to have a Lamy Studio. Most amazing writing tool I've ever owned. But someone stole it from me and I've been super reluctant to buy another expensive writing device. I still have my bottle of Mont Blanc blue-black ink, too.
I should hunt down a cheaper alternative, though. I like really heavy pens with a M or B nib.
The Pilot Knight is one of my heavier pens. They retail for around $55, but Pen Chalet often has them for $30. They are a matte silver and only come in M nib. They have straight ends, unlike the rounded ends on the Metro. The nib is a step up, as well. That might be an affordable option to wade back into these (inky) waters.
Edit: Knight vs. Metropolitan.
It's funny, I'm trying to get back into cursive myself because using the fountain pen made me realize how much more efficient it would be.
I take a lot of handwritten notes every day and after stumbling onto this thread a few weeks back, ended up buying a Pilot Metro, and WOW it's incredible. I'm still getting used to it, but I loooove the way it writes. I ordered two 12 packs of the ink cartridges so I'll hopefully be good for a while.
Few questions:
- One minor annoyance I have is if I lay the pen down on it's side, when I go to use it again, it sometimes takes like 5 or 6 strokes before the ink comes back. I'm assuming this is just due to the design of the pen? I'm assuming the capillaries have to let the ink flow down them before hitting the tip. If it's just something I have to deal w/ it's fine I just wondered if there's anything I can do to avoid this.
- 'Ink splash'. I've noticed sometimes the tip of my nib will get pretty inky and there can be a tendency to have little ink droplets fall out onto my desk of I leave the pen laying there. Is my best bet to just cap the pen any time I'm not actively using it? I tend to lay it down for minutes at a time and haven't been putting the cap on, but maybe that's best bet to stop this from happening.
Otherwise I love how the pen writes and plan to use it as my daily driver for the foreseeable future. I never would have even thought of trying a fountain pen out if it wasn't for this thread so much thanks to the OP!
Some of my pens are more prone to that initial ink flow blip than others. I often give them a gentle shake with the cap on before writing. Otherwise, writing a quick line on a separate sheet of paper before writing helps prime things.
For the ink drops on the nib, I'm not sure. This is usually more of a thing with my pocket pens. Having them bang around in a pocket or bag can shake a little ink out. I don't really see this with my pens just lying on my desk, though. I keep my pens nib up when I am storing for any amount of time. That could help.
Otherwise, run a paper towel, tissue, or monogrammed handkerchief (for maximum classiness, have your butler do it) gently over the nib to catch those errant drops of ink.
Really glad you are enjoying your pen! It's a simple change to make in your writing that can make it so much more enjoyable!
