Favourite pens and inks?

[SimonS]

Have a Lamy Nexx as my first fountain pen since school a long long time ago, quite nice and ideal for work, i have been looking at getting the The Parsons Essential for home http://www.mrpen.co.uk/index1.html , the reviews look good and its not silly money

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7skrabcAlw

 

[chrisbell]

I didn't like to be the first one to mention Montblanc, but...:angel: You may remember that my grandmother passed away earlier this year - she left me some money in her will, and I'm intending to buy myself something to act as a remembrance. Our local independent department store (Jarrolds of Norwich, which I've mentioned before for their shaving and EdT selection, has a rather nice pen area. I had a browse a few weeks back, and they had some rather nice pens, but the chap behind the counter, who seemed to be the manager for that department, informed me that, as of October, they are due to be granted Montblanc outlet status. I'm thinking of paying a visit next month and trying a few pens, amongst which I'd like to think might be a Meisterstück 146.:angel:

Isn't it funny I should mention that - we went into Norwich yesterday and I tested a few pens. I was a touch disappointed with the feel of the Waterman Carene - the nib seemed very stiff for a gold example and the balance (even unposted) seemed rear-end heavy. I liked the finish of the Montegrappa Espressione in blue, but found the step from barrel to section a bit awkward and had my heart set on a gold nib (the Montegrappa has a steel nib). In the end, I had a difficult choice between a Parker Duofold Centennial, and the Montblanc 146. If anything, the nib on the Duofold was even nicer than that on the 146 - a touch smoother and a bit more springy - however, the fact that it was a converter-filler, whereas the Montblanc was piston-filled, and the fact that I preferred the design of the Montblanc meant that I did something incredibly rare and bought something well into 3 figures. I am now, therefore, the proud owner of a Montblanc 146 which is a stunning pen to gaze at and use.:icon_cool:

 

[tarbyonline]

Always fancied a Faber-Castell fountain pen so this seems a good place to start. For my wallets sake I hope it doesn't lead to many more!

They don't like being alone :icon_razz:

That being said, it was not really needed to remind me of the Loom ... I also still want to have a Faber Castell pen in my "small" collection!

Had the Loom a few days now and I would definitely say its a step up from the Lamys but seems quite a bit heavier. The nib was extremely smooth out of the box with the included ink and also Diamine Pumpkin - I would go so far as to say it makes the Lamy nib seem rough. However I would put the FC fine nib line width on par with Lamy's medium.

Only criticism of the Loom is I prefer the grip on the Nexx. On the loom it is not only a round grip area but its also quite smooth despite the lines in it. Needless to say I think my next pen purchase will be another loom! I paid £20 on Amazon for the orange (my favourite colour) capped fine version, which is about £5+ cheaper than elsewhere. Also picked up a Schneider iD set up on eBay for 6 quid posted yesterday, but doubt the Loom is going to be replaced as my favourite pen anytime soon!

 

[tarbyonline]

Always fancied a Faber-Castell fountain pen so this seems a good place to start. For my wallets sake I hope it doesn't lead to many more!

They don't like being alone :icon_razz:

That being said, it was not really needed to remind me of the Loom ... I also still want to have a Faber Castell pen in my "small" collection!

Had the Loom a few days now and I would definitely say its a step up from the Lamys but seems quite a bit heavier. The nib was extremely smooth out of the box with the included ink and also Diamine Pumpkin - I would go so far as to say it makes the Lamy nib seem rough. However I would put the FC fine nib line width on par with Lamy's medium.

Only criticism of the Loom is I prefer the grip on the Nexx. On the loom it is not only a round grip area but its also quite smooth despite the lines in it. Needless to say I think my next pen purchase will be another loom! I paid £20 on Amazon for the orange (my favourite colour) capped fine version, which is about £5+ cheaper than elsewhere. Also picked up a Schneider iD set up on eBay for 6 quid posted yesterday, but doubt the Loom is going to be replaced as my favourite pen anytime soon!

OK, so my next pen purchase wasn't a loom - it was a Lamy Logo Fountain Pen/Pencil set from eBay (£18 delivered), followed by a nameless white Schneider fountain pen for £2.69 delivered (let's see if it really is a Schneider tho as don't recognise the model tho cap resembles some of their fine tip marker lines), and finally a Platignum Studio fountain and ballpen set which cost £9 with free post - all from eBay. I only purchased the studio set because the price was right and my first ever fountain pen was a lilac platignum bought in the local supermarket (it was the only fountain pen they had and I had to have one for school the next day) so I felt I had to own one again! Now I need to stop buying pens!!!!!!!!!! Doubt any of the new arrivals will replace the Loom as my favourite though.

 

[FrankieG]

After all this talk about fountain pens I finally caved in and bought a minty Sailor 1911 Large with rhodium plated 21K gold nib and trim from fleabay. Arrived in the post today! The Hard-Medium nib glides effortlessly across the paper and it's a joy to hold and use. My old Parker 17 may well be taking a back seat...

 

[chrisbell]

After all this talk about fountain pens I finally caved in and bought a minty Sailor 1911 Large with rhodium plated 21K gold nib and trim from fleabay. Arrived in the post today! The Hard-Medium nib glides effortlessly across the paper and it's a joy to hold and use. My old Parker 17 may well be taking a back seat...

Nice!

 

[tarbyonline]

After all this talk about fountain pens I finally caved in and bought a minty Sailor 1911 Large with rhodium plated 21K gold nib and trim from fleabay. Arrived in the post today! The Hard-Medium nib glides effortlessly across the paper and it's a joy to hold and use. My old Parker 17 may well be taking a back seat...

REALLY nice. Love the detail on the nib.

The first of the new purchases to arrive was the Platignum set this morning. Must say I am presently surprised by the fountain pen and tho its not a match for the Faber-Castell I can see me using it often. The ball pen is nice as well, feels much better than my Parker for example. So far as build goes the all metal body and cap make it feel like a pen that costs much more, though I had a little difficulty inserting the included cartridge into the feed which when peering into it looks almost agricultural and somewhat unfinished. Very pleased for £9 - just wish I had got the blue instead of red as the blues are no longer listed but the red is. Maybe I got lucky as have heard mixed reviews of this pen, but at this price point I wouldn't expect quality control to be fantastic.

Regarding the earlier post someone made about a rough lamy nib, I have heard the quality control can be a bit patchy so you may need to make a few adjustments to the nib (google is your friend)

 

[Johnus]

Lamy safari . The medium that I receives a few weeks ago was a little scratchy. Ran it over a page of superfine micro mesh and it corrected the problem.
I ordered and received a white left handed medium safari for my daughter and received it today. This one has no scratchiness to it. (Like the white colour better than the lime).

 

[FrankieG]

Just found a companion to my Sailor 1911 on the Bay of Fleas... a Sailor Professional Gear (Regency Stripe) with Medium-Fine 21K nib. With all that rhodium it doesn't look out of place next to my razors Now the hard part, what ink to use it with?

(stock photo)

 

[mrdoodge]

Isn't it funny how one thing can lead to another. I recently felt the need to get back to traditional shaving and found this site. With a little research I plumped for a Merkur HD safety razor. Now after reading this thread I have had the urge to get back to a fountain pen and just ordered a Lamy Safari in matte black. I had better not read any more threads. Who knows where it might end! :icon_rolleyes:

 

[ChillBill]

Guys, seriously why did I come here. I have put off coming to this section for months as I knew I would get the urge to buy a pen. I've finally given in and now there are about 3 or 4 I want lol.

I won't give in to the urge though.

But ... Not that I am... But if one were to buy their first decent ball point pen since high school, is there a relatively inexpensive one
which could be had?

I'm not very knowledgeable on this subject, but Parkers come to mind.
Cheers

B

 

[chrisbell]

Guys, seriously why did I come here. I have put off coming to this section for months as I knew I would get the urge to buy a pen. I've finally given in and now there are about 3 or 4 I want lol.

I won't give in to the urge though.

But ... Not that I am... But if one were to buy their first decent ball point pen since high school, is there a relatively inexpensive one
which could be had?

I'm not very knowledgeable on this subject, but Parkers come to mind.
Cheers

B

Ball point? Oh dear.:icon_rolleyes::angel::icon_surprised::icon_sad:

 

[ChillBill]

Is a ball point the writing equivalent of a Mach 3? Lol I'll get my coat...

 

[chrisbell]

Is a ball point the writing equivalent of a Mach 3? Lol I'll get my coat...

If it's what you feel comfortable using, then why change? I'm afraid I can't advise you in choosing ballpoints as I hate the things (my handwriting suffers badly when I use one). That being said, you can get a decent fountain pen for relatively little money, add a pack of cartridges and you can experiment to see if they suit you. Have you ever used an FP before?

 

[Exapno]

Is a ball point the writing equivalent of a Mach 3? Lol I'll get my coat...

The biro is a mach 3. A ballpoint is one of those fancy expensive razor handles with a mach 3 head on it :icon_razz:

 

[ChillBill]

Lol good analogy there Exapno, I've never quite understood why someone would want to get a nice handle and spoil it with a cartridge. I can only assume they don't know there's a better (and cheaper) option by going DE.

I've never used an FP Chris, but would be willing to take a punt on something to see how it goes. Any suggestions guys?

Cheers

B