Fellow Mac user fountain pen users - what do you like? Any great pen values to recommend? Favorite ink? What style/size nib?
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Fountain Pens [Merged]
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I love fountain pens and use nothing but. I like Cross pens, so long as they aren't the stupid quasi-futuristic ones that they make. I wish I had more money to spend on pens, but I'm a college student, so...
But I like a nice, thin nib and the Cross inks seem to work well for me. I'd be open to others enlightening me on other fountain pens, though.
But I like a nice, thin nib and the Cross inks seem to work well for me. I'd be open to others enlightening me on other fountain pens, though.
I too am budget-limited. I have one expensive fountain pen, a fine nib Waterman Edson (blue) that my dad recently gave me. It was a gift he received - I don't think he or I would spend that much on a pen. I use it with Florida Blue Waterman ink cartridges.
As for fountain pens I have bought, two have struck me as great values. The first is a Namiki/Pilot Vanishing Point. This is one of the nicest writing pens I have used, and the price is reasonable. The nib on mine is broad, though Namiki nibs are less broad than, say Parker nibs, at any given width. I have the black carbon model and use it with Namiki black cartridges.
My previous everyday pen was a Waterman Phileas. This is the pen that got me hooked on writing with a fountain pen. At $30, it is an incredible value in my opinion. I think it compares well to pens that cost many-fold more in feel and overall writing experience.
I'm sure there are many many fountain pen users here at MR. Anyone else have suggestions, comments?
As for fountain pens I have bought, two have struck me as great values. The first is a Namiki/Pilot Vanishing Point. This is one of the nicest writing pens I have used, and the price is reasonable. The nib on mine is broad, though Namiki nibs are less broad than, say Parker nibs, at any given width. I have the black carbon model and use it with Namiki black cartridges.
My previous everyday pen was a Waterman Phileas. This is the pen that got me hooked on writing with a fountain pen. At $30, it is an incredible value in my opinion. I think it compares well to pens that cost many-fold more in feel and overall writing experience.
I'm sure there are many many fountain pen users here at MR. Anyone else have suggestions, comments?
Looking at the Waterman website, the pens look too thick for me. Right now, my preferred pen is a Cross Century II.
Nice looking pen. I haven't written with one but will be sure to try. I like writing with somewhat fat pens - less hand strain for me.Macaddicttt said:
Dandaman said:No fountain pens for me as they don't seem to work well for left-handers. Something about us pushing while writing vs. pulling (for right handers). Any left-handers here find a solution for this?
daniel
I think you'd also have to worry about smearing the ink, right?
L
Lau
Guest
And I think (though could be wrong) that the very tip of the nib is slightly angled to suit a right hander.
I love fountain pens I just can't write properly with biros. I use a Lamy which writes beautifully.
amin said:
in baltimore, go to bertram's inkwell... think they still have a store in town. they're top notch folks when it comes to pens.
personally, i prefer an aurora sole with aurora ink. it writes pretty fast, but the pen has the perfect weight for me. i also have an aurora demonstrator that i love. i think they're excellent value for the money.
pretty sure this has been discussed before, but i'm too lazy this morning to search.
I dont know what my pen is. it just says "stypen" on the little clippy thing. bought it many years ago when I was a kid. we were on holiday in France and i needed a new gel pen. only i saw this stunning fountain pen and figured "hey they gotta be good"... i looove gels and fountain pens. so liquidy.
its a kind of vulcanized rubber black thing with silver ends and stuff.
ink? i just use regular fountain pen black! nothing special.
oh, i call it Monty named after my dads old Montego.
its a kind of vulcanized rubber black thing with silver ends and stuff.
ink? i just use regular fountain pen black! nothing special.
oh, i call it Monty
named after my dads old Montego.
I don't use fountain pens because they always seem to smear or explode on me. Personally, these are my favorite pens:amin said:
http://www.pilotpen.us/detail.asp?PenID=7
Plus, all the other free pens my wife gets from drug reps, etc.
A little off topic, I know, but... have any of you tried writing with a quill? I've been joking with a friend that we should write to each other with a quill and parchment ( the whole email/text message thing is getting boring ). Is it as simple as finding a feather and a bottle of ink? Or should I be looking for a particular feather?
). Is it as simple as finding a feather and a bottle of ink? Or should I be looking for a particular feather?Yeah - a Takahe.:*Robot Boy*:. said:A little off topic, I know, but... have any of you tried writing with a quill? I've been joking with a friend that we should write to each other with a quill and parchment ( the whole email/text message thing is getting boring
I am also budget-limited (nothing over $20), and I prefer Scheaffer pens at this level. Scheaffer inks are good too, but I prefer Parker inks due to their standard shades of blue and black inks being very rich yet less likely to bleed through the paper than some others I've used.
I was looking for my Parker fountain pen, and when I found it, the nib was bent. It still writes, but is it still useful? Can I fix this? It's pretty bent though.
Check out...
I always have found great pens at Sharon Luggage. I personally like using the rollarball pens from Tornado they work great. They also carry lots of fountain pens, so find your local sharon luggage. They are usually located in Malls.
Nuc
I always have found great pens at Sharon Luggage. I personally like using the rollarball pens from Tornado they work great. They also carry lots of fountain pens, so find your local sharon luggage. They are usually located in Malls.
Nuc
They did have a nice store. I've been there and they were super helpful, seemed knowledgeable (not hard to seem this way to me I guess), and had a nice selection with good prices. However, I called their White Flint, MD store over the weekend, and they told me the Baltimore store had been closedgwuMACaddict said:
. *EDIT - I was wrong - I went to Bertram's in downtown Baltimore and they are quite open. It was a different site that closed.*I've never had an Aurora fountain pen. I had an Aurora roller that I loved (actually purchased it from Betram's), but it was lost or stolen at work.gwuMACaddict said:
I did search before posting. Found pen threads and threads with fountain pens in the title, but no general threads about fountain pens.gwuMACaddict said:
What about inks? What are your favorites?
I started out using Waterman Florida Blue, which remain's my most-used ink.
I previously used Namiki Black, but since starting this thread found that Aurora Black is both smoother and blacker. This is the black that lives in my Pilot/Namiki Vanishing Point currently.
I like Waterman's Havana Brown, but right now using Private Reserve's Black Cherry instead. I'm sure I'll get back to the Havana Brown before too long, but enjoying the excursion.
Anyone discover a new favorite ink lately?
I started out using Waterman Florida Blue, which remain's my most-used ink.
I previously used Namiki Black, but since starting this thread found that Aurora Black is both smoother and blacker. This is the black that lives in my Pilot/Namiki Vanishing Point currently.
I like Waterman's Havana Brown, but right now using Private Reserve's Black Cherry instead. I'm sure I'll get back to the Havana Brown before too long, but enjoying the excursion.
Anyone discover a new favorite ink lately?
Wow, must really be an awesome pen to be a good value at such a high price. I can't imagine ever thinking that a $500+ pen is a good value!
Parkers are good -- for less than $8 the Reflex can't be beaten.
Also check antique stores for old fountain pens if you want high end on a low budget. Parker 51s, in particular, make for a good quarry when it comes to reliability (especially if it has the Aerometric pressbar filler) and utility.
Also check antique stores for old fountain pens if you want high end on a low budget. Parker 51s, in particular, make for a good quarry when it comes to reliability (especially if it has the Aerometric pressbar filler) and utility.
Another vote for Cross.
My penmanship, lousy as it is, is at its best with a Cross Century II fountain pen.
The clip broke off a few years back and I sent it in for repair, they sent me a whole new pen for the cost of shipping. I came with a new nib which doesn't feel right still after a couple of years.. The old one was worn just right.
B
My penmanship, lousy as it is, is at its best with a Cross Century II fountain pen.
The clip broke off a few years back and I sent it in for repair, they sent me a whole new pen for the cost of shipping. I came with a new nib which doesn't feel right still after a couple of years.
. The old one was worn just right.B