fountain pens – Whoa… Wait a Minute! Say What?

Stewart, Conway Stewart No.12 …

Just when I thought I weined myself out of a fountain pen addiction I find another to add to my collection. There is a good reason for it though. This particular pen has a feature I had yet to experience. That my friends is a stub nib. In a nutshell, a fountain pen with a stub nib provides line variation without the need of providing pressure on the nib that is found with flex nibs.. In saying that, this pen is my first pen with a stub nib and I find exciting and even more when I write with it. Hopefully soon I’ll have some pics up with a writing sample. For now you can see some really nice pics of the pen. By the way, the pics below are from the Fountain Pen Network provided by the person of whom I bought the pen from. Enjoy!

Resolutions…

Seems like every new year I attempt to keep a resolution. Of course, the keyword here is “attempt.” Personally, the reason I believe that people have trouble keeping New Year’s resolutions is because they are either unobtainable or is a goal that can not be simply acquired over the course of one year. With this in mind I have chosen two simple resolutions.

My resolutions are:

1. Enhance or improve my hand writing.
2. Record daily entries in my journal.

This year might may very well be my first successful resolution to follow. Early last year I bought my first fountain pen. Since that time I have become obsessed with fountain pens. Sadly I have to find reasons to use them. I know it doesn’t make sense; however, I decided to keep a journal. Thus with the use of my collection of fountain pens i have the means and desire to fulfill and keep my resolutions for this new year.

Snorkeling under Copper Burst…

I just received in the mail today my first Sheaffer Admiral Snorkel and I must say it lays down a beautiful wet line. I was so excited that I went out and bought a bottle of Private Reserver Ink’s Copper Burst. I think I’ve found my new daily writer. I think at this point I’ll back off modern pens and stick with the vintage for awhile. So far I’ve seen equal or better results with the olders pen than the more expensive modern pens. Although, I still would like to get my hands on a Pilot Vanishing Point I think I’m satisfied for now.

Reformation…

Here recently I’ve began using fountain pens as you may seen from some my previous posts. I aquired a new pen that is the Reform 1745. I’m quite impressed over the overall handling taking into account its size since it is considerably smaller than my Van Gogh Midi. In the same respect it is a piston filler, therefore it holds alot more ink than most of my other pens. The nib seems to lay down a smooth wet line and works really well with my small handwriting. Finally, the price was incrediable. Under $10 you can own a fountain pen like this one for your own enjoyment. While, I paid a little bit extra for the nib to be grounded it was worth every penny and writes almost as well as my Pelikan M400- White Tortoise.

New Pen Update…

Well, I received my new pen in the mail on thursday, the Pelikan M400 (White Tortoise). Lo and behold it writes beautifully. This pen is a piston filler; therefore, I will have to use bottled ink. Fortunately, I had Sheaffer’s Skrip in blue waiting for it. One thing is for certain is that the pictures do not do it justice. This a beautiful fountain pen.

New pen…

It’s been awhile since my last post, but I would like to take this opportunity to share that I have purchased another pen. YAY! Anyways, my brother in law shakes his head whenever I start talking about fountain pens. Well, fortunately for him I won’t be buying another pen for awhile, yet I will be showing off my new one when it comes in. Hopefully, I’ll have pictures to show when I do get it. But if you care to look it up it is a Pelikan M400 White Tortoise fountain pen with a medium nib.

Below is a pic from the ebay auction I won the pen from.

When the nib hits the road…

Finally, I was able to get some ink for my first pen. I’ll admit I was quite nervous the first time I put the nib to the paper when I came home to try it out. I’m glad to say that I’m very pleased. If your ever passing through Memphis, TN and you want to see an awesome selection of FP’s check out Tobacco Corner. At first, I thought the tobacco shop would be all tobacco and have very little selection of pens and I was wrong. This shop is 50% tobacco and 50% pens. Very friendly folks in there.

Recently, I’ve become a member of the Fountain Pen Network. I was actually amazed from the amount of responses I received and how helpful the fellow members were.

Fountain flowing and ink dribbles…

Well I did it. Not only did I purchase my next pen, yet at the same time I purchased my first fountain pen. I love ebay! I came across a seller that is closing down his retail shop and selling his pens at a remarkable price. The Visconti Van Gogh Midi’s color and design is fabulous. I’m so excited that I’ll probably check my mail box every day next week. Although I got a good deal on it ($68 for a $165 regular price, even on eBay) it is going to be difficult not purchasing the rollerball counterpart. While the rollerball is exceptionally affordable as well, I am going to have a hard time purchasing two pens within a week of each other. Normally I would wait for another deal, but this opportunity is rare. The rollerball version is $60 with a regular price of $145. Not only is the price tempting, yet I will have to choose between two colors. Classic black or the same color of the fountain pen I purchased. While I like the idea of having a matching pair, yet part of me wants the black. The real deal is I still need a pen to carry with me. While the fountain pen would work, I believe I may need some time adjusting to the feel of the nib.

I would like to thank, The Noble Savage, for the detail review of this line of fountain pens. I would not have been able to make a decision without his help. When I receive my pen I will post pictures of it, but in the mean time I will give you a peek of it from the eBay auction site.