Pen/Ink/Paper Collecting Thread

I specifically got a TWSBI Eco to be a sort of trash pen for inks that could stain

 

I thought about an Eco for that purpose too but since I already have a 580 I figure why not try the Metropolitan.

 

Score—Office Depot has the Metropolitans on clearance for half off! Still needed to order the piston converter separately but that was $5.

 

Also got in a trio of Jinnah 82 pens so now I’m set on pens with converters. It was $20 for three and they’ve gotten good reviews so why not? I plan on using multiple inks in my planner for different areas (work, individual personal, family personal, etc.) so having several cheapies seems like a reasonable solution, and then the slightly more expensive ones can be used for journal writing, penmanship practice, calligraphy, etc.

 

Nice.
I started out with a handful of Pilot Metropolitans to try out different nibs and inks.
It’s a slippery slope… be careful!

 

Similar to Noodler's BSB, I have a love-hate relationship with Orgnic Studios Ralph Waldo Emerson. I love the blue color with red sheen, but cleaning this ink out of pens requires detergent (along with a bulb, lots of water, and a syringe to rinse the converter). I am glad I didn't use this ink with any hard-to-flush pens, such as my vacuum fillers.

 

Yeah, I think I’m just going to have a pen dedicated to BSB. Right now I have one in a Hongdian 100 with a long knife nib (which I believe is their name for an architect grind): https://a.co/d/1IEjG4g. It’s a bit heavy as it’s a metal pen but it feels balanced when unposted (although the cap does post deeply and securely) and something about a dense metal pen adds a sense of gravitas that I think suits a color like BSB. The special grind on the nib really shows off the qualities of the ink with no effort. I have so much fun writing with it.

 

@Merrick I have an Edison Pearl with a dual grind nib - Architect on the reverse and XF on the primary side. I think Architect nibs are lots of fun and can make some folk's handwriting look cool. Sadly my messy handwriting only looks worse with an Architect nib.

 

can someone rec me a good, comfy, reliable ballpoint pen? i used to be a uniball vision fanatic, but now i am kinda digging the no bleed.

 

Bic

 

Try one of the Uni Jetstreams. They also make a model with gel on the barrel, if you like that.

 

I know a lot of people that swear by Muji pens

 

I tried really hard to like CIs and stubs, but with my grip architect's grinds just work better for daily writing. I ended up liking it so much I cut the nib on my first fountain pen (a Sheaffer Prelude) into an architect's grind myself. This is a random scrap of Midori TN paper I had lying around, and the ink is J. Herbin Emeraude du Chivor:

I find it hard to beat the Pilot Better Retractable as a standard pen. It's really low maintenance IME, and in the context of "nicer" pens it's pretty affordable. Alternatively, the Parker Jotter is a staple for good reason IMO, though it's not the best for me in terms of ergonomics. The LAMY Safari has a ballpoint version and I find the shape good to hold, though I've not used one for any extended period of time.

 

I have found that lots of well known fountain pens have a ballpoint variant. Like the Pilot Metropolitan and Kaweco Sport

 

For ballpoint/rollerball I use bolt action pens, they’re solidly built and the bolt is a nice fidget piece. There are several reasonably priced ones on Amazon.

Meanwhile I’ve gone kind of crazy on the fountain pens. Without going into the full list, my absolute best purchase was a Lamy 2000 which just seems to disappear into my hand when writing and I can literally write for hours with it. My second best purchase was a vintage Pelikan 140 with semi flex gold nib, super fun to write with but too small for long writing sessions sooooo I just pulled the trigger on a vintage Pelikan 400nn with an oblique fine gold nib. Very excited for that one. I also have really been enjoying an Osprey Milano ebonite pen with a variety of Osprey nibs.

For inks I’ve been extremely impressed with the KWZ iron gall inks and the Vinta inks with multi color sheen. The Sandugo in particular is a vivid red with shades of green and orange that looks spectacular on the page.

 

The LAMY 2000 was my second ever fountain pen purchased in 2011 and it's been going strong since. LAMY aftersales is also spectacular, just have to offer a small nominal fee when sending yours in for repairs (well they say repairs but I'm nitpicky enough to recognise that they actually just replace the pens wholesale, the tabs were slightly different on my original one— Ship of Theseus).

It's durable, innocuous, and tuned very well from out of the factory. About my only complaint is that I need to use slow drying inks with it because the cap doesn't seal well— I had KWZ Gummiberry in mine for about a week and that clogged the feed up after a couple weeks. Granted, if I were taking notes more I'd have been able to exhaust the piston by then.

Pelikan's smaller pens are grand! Not a vintage one, but I do have an M101N that just sinks into my hand. I did get a vintage nib to use with it cuz I prefer the feel of older nibs, but then the ink window cracked before I could swap it in, haha. Bad luck. I keep forgetting that I need to get that repaired.

 

Good point on the iron gall being a bad match with the Lamy 2000 because of the way the cap seals. That really my only issue with the entire pen is the cap sealing the entire section instead of just the nib. I tried a Lamy 2000 rollerball because I love the fountain pen so much and on day one I got wet ink from the rollerball on the cap and then barrel of the pen just from having it in my pocket for 20 minutes, so that went right back. The fountain pen is such an amazing writer that I can live with that, I will just have to use it solely as a desk pen, which is fine because for the cost of that pen I wouldn’t want to take it all over the place anyway.

And yeah the vintage Pelikans have so much goddamn charm, and those old gold nibs are simply sensational.

 

Forgot I posted a pic of them here years ago!

https://superbestaudiofriends.org/i...per-collecting-thread.1427/page-2#post-133380

Also, found a photo of the loose nib I got. February 2018, and the M101N cracked just before! Sigh

​

 

Pelikan fans unite! I have an unusual M300 with two custom ground pelican nibs. The pen was meant as a compact purse pen, but i fell in love with it at a pen show. it’s vintage so no idea on actual age. Richard Binder ground one of the nibs into a compact italic

 

i like shitty journals bc i actually use them. Field Notes, Moleskines, Leuchtturm1917, the esoteric Japanese brands, i am jus too precious w them. i like my $4 hardback moleskine clone. bc it sucks. and the paper is thicker. and it's wider.