Fountain pen users, rejoice!

[Ollé]

After a lon hiatus from the world of fountain pens, I finally jumped back in picking up a cheapo Lamy Safari, quite nice for the price. It's good to have a fountain pen back in hand too.

Although, I get weird looks at work when I pull it out in meetings to jot notes or sign things.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

After a lon hiatus from the world of fountain pens, I finally jumped back in picking up a cheapo Lamy Safari, quite nice for the price. It's good to have a fountain pen back in hand too.

Although, I get weird looks at work when I pull it out in meetings to jot notes or sign things.

Enjoy writing with it.

Writing with a fountain pen in hand - especially one that fits your hand nicely and is comfortable to write with - is a really lovely feeling.

 

[cambookpro]

Just bought one of these as I found one new for around 50% off RRP:

In two minds whether to keep it or to return it. I absolutely love the design and have always wanted a Visconti, the spring-loaded clip and magnetic cap are great and the colour's quite nice. However it doesn't write absolutely amazingly (though it does write well), and it's about twice the amount I've ever spent on one pen before. As a student, it doesn't seem a very frugal purchase - I'm the type of person who usually researches and compares prices for weeks for even the most banal of items, and this was a fairly impulse-driven purchase.

Maybe I should just keep this for this one time. I'm very indecisive at the moment

I'll see how I feel after a few days...

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Just bought one of these as I found one new for around 50% off RRP:

In two minds whether to keep it or to return it. I absolutely love the design and have always wanted a Visconti, the spring-loaded clip and magnetic cap are great and the colour's quite nice. However it doesn't write absolutely amazingly (though it does write well), and it's about twice the amount I've ever spent on one pen before. As a student, it doesn't seem a very frugal purchase - I'm the type of person who usually researches and compares prices for weeks for even the most banal of items, and this was a fairly impulse-driven purchase.

Maybe I should just keep this for this one time. I'm very indecisive at the moment

I'll see how I feel after a few days...

Lovely looking pen.

Ask yourself some of the following questions, and the answers might help you arrive at a decision whether o not to keep the pen: How do you enjoy the physical feel of holding it in your hand? Does it sit easily and comfortably in your wrist?

And, as for writing: Does it write easily? Do you enjoy writing with it, or, do you have to work at it? (And yes, some of the expensive pens that I had bought over the years were pens that I found required work to make them write).

 

[cambookpro]

Lovely looking pen.

Ask yourself some of the following questions, and the answers might help you arrive at a decision whether o not to keep the pen: How do you enjoy the physical feel of holding it in your hand? Does it sit easily and comfortably in your wrist?

And, as for writing: Does it write easily? Do you enjoy writing with it, or, do you have to work at it? (And yes, some of the expensive pens that I had bought over the years were pens that I found required work to make them write).

It feels great in the hand - very well balanced unposted, posted it's a little back-heavy - though I do worry slightly about the metal section as I think it'd get quite slippery during longer writing sessions.

It glides across the page when you write with the sweet spot of the nib, though that's slightly smaller than I'm used to and seems to work best when it's rotated slightly to the left. Not by a lot, but it's enough that you have to adjust when you first pick it up.

I'm leaning towards keeping it as it was a good price and a Rembrandt/Van Gogh had been on the list of pens I'd like but didn't think I could afford at this time. The fine nib is also a nice change of pace from my wet mediums and broads which most of my pens consist of.

 

[dyn]

With pens (and some other items) it is very easy: if you are not "in love" with the pen then return it. These are items that you'll stop using if you don't really love them and that would be a waste of the money you spent on it.

 

[Markjkc]

Recently picked up a Parker Fountain pen, nothing too fancy but its my first and I like it so far. I want to get some green ink for it but having trouble finding some. Checked eBay and amazon but no luck!

Any recommendations where I could ge some?

 

[1madman1]

There should be local stationary stores that carry various bottled inks. I'm not sure how common they are around the world, but I can think of 5 small independent stores and two chain stores in my area. There are also a few online specialty sites - in Canada we have stylo.ca which also happens to be cheaper than most of the local places.

 

[dyn]

Check with some of the online fountain pen stores. Just to name a few: there is The Goulet Pen Company for anyone in the US and there also is a Dutch company called PW Akkerman which sells their own ink in very cool and useful bottles. You can also buy ink online from fountain pen manufacturers such as Montblanc and Caran d'Ache. They all have green inks, some only 1 kind of green, others have multiple (mostly dark and normal). You can also try stores in your vicinity.

 

[AVBeatMan]

Mine's a Waterman. I'd love a Mont Blanc though.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

With pens (and some other items) it is very easy: if you are not "in love" the pen then return it. These are items that you'll stop using if you don't really love them and that would be a waste of the money you spent on it.

Agreed. If the pen does not feel completely comfortable on your hand, you won't find yourself using it.

As @dyn has observed, fountain pens are the sort of items you will stop using unless you really feel that they are a sort of extension of your hand and can write almost effortlessly with them, without tiring your wrist.

Check with some of the online fountain pen stores. Just to name a few: there is The Goulet Pen Company for anyone in the US and there also is a Dutch company called PW Akkerman which sells their own ink in very cool and useful bottles. You can also buy ink online from fountain pen manufacturers such as Montblanc and Caran d'Ache. They all have green inks, some only 1 kind of green, others have multiple (mostly dark and normal). You can also try stores in your vicinity.

Yes, Caran d'Ache and Mont Blanc both manufacture their own inks, both of which are of an exceptionally good quality.

Mine's a Waterman. I'd love a Mont Blanc though. View attachment 631404

I have had Waterman pens. I bought a gorgeous one in Heathrow airport in 2000, and I have to say that I loved the look of them - they were very nicely made, but they were never quite as comfortable to write with as I had hoped they might have been when I bought them.

 

[cambookpro]

Agreed. If the pen does not feel completely comfortable on your hand, you won't find yourself using it.

As @dyn has observed, fountain pens are the sort of items you will stop using unless you really feel that they are a sort of extension of your hand and can write almost effortlessly with them, without tiring your wrist.



Yes, Caran d'Ache and Mont Blanc both manufacture their own inks, both of which are of an exceptionally good quality.



I have had Waterman pens. I bought a gorgeous one in Heathrow airport in 2000, and I have to say that I loved the look of them - they were very nicely made, but they were never quite as comfortable to write with as I had hoped they might have been when I bought them.

Having written with the Visconti solidly for a day, I've come to the conclusion that I do love it - though perhaps I'm not in love with the nib. Trying to sell the nib it at the moment and will buy a medium or broad instead, they're surprisingly affordable, even if they are only steel.

I also owned a Waterman briefly and just couldn't get on with it - it was a Carène and, whilst absolutely beautiful, kept 'burping' ink and its gold nib wrote worse than steel nibs on pens a tenth of the cost. A pen reseller bought it off me for a little more than I paid, so everyone ended up happy, but I was a little disappointed considering how fantastic it looked and felt before the nib touched the paper...

@Markjkc depending where you are, there are a wide variety of green inks! You'll probably need a converter if you don't have one already (I know most of my modern Parkers didn't come with one). If you're in the USA, Noodler's is a good bet for relatively cheap ink with a wide colour selection. If you're in Europe, Diamine also have a great selection of inks which are exceptional value for money.

Here is a comparison of a few I found online, but this is only a small sample of green inks you could find:

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I also owned a Waterman briefly and just couldn't get on with it - it was a Carène and, whilst absolutely beautiful, kept 'burping' ink and its gold nib wrote worse than steel nibs on pens a tenth of the cost. A pen reseller bought it off me for a little more than I paid, so everyone ended up happy, but I was a little disappointed considering how fantastic it looked and felt before the nib touched the paper...

My experience with Waterman was pretty similar; the pen was physically truly beautiful - an absolutely gorgeous object, but writing with it was never a comfortable, enjoyable or reliable experience.

 

[bunnspecial]

Recently picked up a Parker Fountain pen, nothing too fancy but its my first and I like it so far. I want to get some green ink for it but having trouble finding some. Checked eBay and amazon but no luck!

If you take an interest in fountain pens, you WILL end up with more inks than you know what to do with or will ever use. Goulet's "ink of the month" club along with their inexpensive sample vials can take some of the sting off of it.

Even within a given color, of course, opinions are quite varied on what particular shade of a color you like aside from the usual ink properties.

For myself, when it comes to green inks, I've found that I tend to prefer medium darker, more blue-green colored inks.

My favorite green ink is the old Sheaffer washable green(in the inkwell bottle). Unfortunately, there's no reliable supplier of this short of watching Ebay and antique shops. I was fortunate to find two unopened bottles of it.

The new Sheaffer green is nice, but somewhat different than the old ones. I like the color of Pelikan green, but like all Pelikan inks it's a fair bit drier than I like.

Among the "boutique" brands, I'm probably somewhat in the minority, but I find that on the whole I really like Private Reserve inks. I have more from them than I do anyone else. I LOVE "Sherwood Green" from them. Noodlers, of course, can supply you with a broad range of greens.

If you don't want to jump into bottled inks, you are at somewhat of an advantage because with your Parker. Parker does make their own "long" cartridges that fit their pens, but the "mouth" on them is the same as the standard, widely available international cartridge. Two of the inks I've suggested-Pelikan Green and PR Sherwood Green-are available in cartridges.

 

[Markjkc]

Thank you for the replies.

I was not aware that the smaller international cartridge would fit in mine - I will have another look at this size and the inks recommended

Failing that I will go for a converter and some bottled ink

 

[cdcastillo]

Here in México city is difficult to get different colors for ink cartridges, however, there is a myriad of colors and providers in ink bottles (so I would recommend to get an adapter). Just in the Montblanc boutiques, there is at least 3 different greens (Irish green, palm tree green and the other one I can't remember). I would highly suggest to get a 5-10 USD converter.

 

[bunnspecial]

Failing that I will go for a converter and some bottled ink

If take enough of an interest in fountain pens, you will get into bottled ink eventually. Some pens only come as bottle-fill designs(usually piston fill these days) and MANY inks only come in bottled form.

Aside from that, off the top of my head I can think of three companies with their own unique cartridge-Sheaffer's, Lamy and Pilot plus the international cartridge. It can start to get really expensive and tedious if you have pens from these companies and want to keep a stock of ink on hand. Plus, you are generally locked into using only that company's ink if you want to use cartridges.

For that reason, I have ink converters in my cartridge pens(although my main, every day pen is a piston filler). If a cartridge converter isn't available, I simply use a syringe to refill an empty cartridge with the ink of my choice.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

If take enough of an interest in fountain pens, you will get into bottled ink eventually. Some pens only come as bottle-fill designs(usually piston fill these days) and MANY inks only come in bottled form.

Aside from that, off the top of my head I can think of three companies with their own unique cartridge-Sheaffer's, Lamy and Pilot plus the international cartridge. It can start to get really expensive and tedious if you have pens from these companies and want to keep a stock of ink on hand. Plus, you are generally locked into using only that company's ink if you want to use cartridges.

For that reason, I have ink converters in my cartridge pens(although my main, every day pen is a piston filler). If a cartridge converter isn't available, I simply use a syringe to refill an empty cartridge with the ink of my choice.

I'm pretty certain that Mont Blanc make there own cartridges - my Mont Blanc pens are designed to take Mont Blanc cartridges, - which is what I use most of the time when travelling - and they certainly make their own ink (in bottles).

 

[dyn]

He means proprietary cartridges. Parker makes those too but at least the international ones do fit Parker pens as well as the Lamy ones (the long ones). Now, if we would include gel/ballpoints and rollerballs as well we can add a lot of other companies too, even Montblanc.

Many of the fountain pen companies that also have their own inks will offer them in bottles and in cartridges with most of them using the smaller version of the international cartridge. Most pens will take both a cartridge and a cartridge-converter so you can choose if you want to suck ink from a bottle or use a cartridge. I'd suggest using a bottle as it is a bit more environmental friendly (you don't throw away lots of plastic) and a lot cheaper. And no, using a bottle isn't difficult, especially once you get the hang of it you can do it in a matter of seconds.

Whatever you do make sure you get fountain pen ink and no other kind of ink! Other kinds of ink are well-known to destroy fountain pens (especially inks used for calligraphy and other art). Also be aware of iron-gall inks because those require very regular pen cleanings (about once a week in general). If you have a demonstrator pen (they are clear plastic) you also want to check if the ink stains in order to prevent colouration of your pen.

 

[bunnspecial]

I'm pretty certain that Mont Blanc make there own cartridges - my Mont Blanc pens are designed to take Mont Blanc cartridges, - which is what I use most of the time when travelling - and they certainly make their own ink (in bottles).

Mont Blanc cartridges are international cartridges. They will work in any international cartridge pen(I have used their cartridges on occasion).

I like Mont Blanc inks as a whole, and IMO they have one of the best current production bottle designs out there. Montblanc Midnight Blue(blue-black) is my primary ink, and I keep the bottle sitting on my desk because it looks so darn good.

With that said, Montblanc is on my "not nice" list now. For quite a while, the formulae of the bottled and cartridge Midnight Blues were different. Specifically, the bottled Midnight Blue WAS an iron gall ink. Iron gall inks are very traditional inks that actually oxidize and darken on exposure to air. They are effectively permanent. All iron gall inks have a dye component to them now(generally a dark blue) as the iron gall is colorless on initial application. The dye can be partially washed away with water, but the iron gall component remains behind.

I have used quite a few iron gall inks, and they tend to be fairly dry as a whole. Midnight Blue is different-it is quite lubricating and overall is one of the nicest writing inks in this category. It goes down as a very dark purple blue color that over the course of a week or so will turn a very nice blue-black color.

About two years ago, Mont Blanc started using the same ink formula for Midnight Blue bottles as they'd been using in their cartridges. It's not a bad ink, but is quite different from the old Midnight Blue.

As I watch my old bottle drop perilously low, I've been desperately searching for a bottle of the old stuff. In fact, at one point I found a seller on Amazon who listed it under the old p/n and confirmed it when I asked. I bought four bottles(over $80) only to have bottles of the new p/n show up. Needless to say, they went back.

I've since been watching Ebay hoping some bottles of the old stuff will turn up. Although I don't have any MB pens, they had a faithful ink customer in me because-as I said-it's in my go to, every day, general purpose pen.

 

[dyn]

Iron gall inks also are notorious for being very acidic and eating up pens and paper (which is why you need to clean so often; as for paper, you can't do much about it). Modern iron gall inks are not as bad as the old ones though but these are not easy and friendly inks. Probably the reason why the formula was changed and certainly the reason why there aren't that many iron gall inks left.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I know that standard international cartridges will fit Mont Blanc pens, and that the Mont Blanc cartridges will fit any 'international' pen; my point was that Mont Blanc made - and make - their own ink.

Anyway, in ink, my preferences are very predictable. I use the black, midnight navy (and yes, that is a favourite of mine, too), and blue.

A Mont Blanc dealer gave me a bottle of 'permanent grey' as a gift a while ago, but, as mentioned earlier, I use mostly cartridges rather than bottled ink (although in my student days, I tended to use bottled ink, and carried a bottle of ink to lectures in my briefcase.)
[doublepost=1463415585][/doublepost]

He means proprietary cartridges.

Precisely. That is exactly what I meant - not that the size or dimensions of he cartridges are - or were - in any way unusual.

 

[bunnspecial]

Iron gall inks also are notorious for being very acidic and eating up pens and paper (which is why you need to clean so often; as for paper, you can't do much about it). Modern iron gall inks are not as bad as the old ones though but these are not easy and friendly inks. Probably the reason why the formula was changed and certainly the reason why there aren't that many iron gall inks left.

From my own experience(using the same pen and ink combo for over 5 years now) I think that cleaning weekly is overstating things quite a bit at least for a relatively new pen that's used daily and has a constant flow of ink through it.

I wouldn't let a pen sit with an iron gall ink in it(I've cleaned up the mess enough old pens) and wouldn't use it in an occasional use pen. Again, though, for my daily use pen I think I'd do more harm than good by doing a "deep cleaning" at your stated once a week interval.

I do take mine apart completely and clean it in the ultrasonic cleaner every couple of months, but that's the extent of what I do with it.

I'll also say that if you like iron gall inks, there really is no substitute for them. That's why I'm so upset at Mont Blanc discontinuing what was, IMO, one of the best on the market.

 

[dyn]

I think you're the one overstating things. Cleaning just means cleaning, it doesn't mean deep/thorough cleaning. In this case a simple flush with tap water is enough. The entire point is to prevent ink from building up in the pen. Flushing is something you should always do after a certain amount of time but with iron gall inks and the ones that can stain you need to do it more often. There is no need to bring out cleaning solutions and/or to disassemble the pen (if at all possible).

The Goulet Pen Company has a good video on cleaning if you want to see some different cleaning techniques.

 

[bunnspecial]

I think you're the one overstating things. Cleaning just means cleaning, it doesn't mean deep/thorough cleaning. In this case a simple flush with tap water is enough.

And, like I said, in 5 years of use with the same pen I've never found this supposed weekly flushing to be even remotely necessary.

I know this isn't exactly the perfect model of cleanliness, but again this pen is used daily and the only thing I've done in the last couple of months is refill it with ink. I do wipe the nib and feed pretty thoroughly when I do that, but that's it.