[phthora]

Uniball vision elite is an all time favorite

I burn through about a dozen of those a year as a teacher. Completely use them up. Since I don't want to leave a pricy fountain pen in my desk to get stolen (far more likely by a sub than a student) or have to worry about re-filling it during class, those Uniballs are a fantastic alternative. I love the pack that comes with all the different colors, even though I end up giving away all the black ones since I can't use those to grade.

 

[shonky2]

Pens are my other addiction, after headphones. I’m left-handed, so I prefer Uni Jetstream fillers because the ink doesn’t smear at all. I use a BigI Titanium pen (holds nearly any filler in existence) and I love the weight of it.

Love the jetstream pens!

Hi All,

I am new to the whole head-fi thing and just starting out with some decent headphones but have been collecting a couple of pens for a few years now. Here is a shot of the collection as it stands at present -

I started out over 20 years ago with the Meisterstuck roller ball and added a Starwalker a few years later -

Then decided to get into fountain pens. My first foray was a Montegrappa which I loved but unfortunately lost it in a taxi one day. The next step was a S.T. Dupont LE "Bogie" -

I have had this pen about 6 years and love writing with it. There was an old lady who ran the shop that I purchased the pen from who also ran writing classes, she gave me a quick lesson in the store and bunch of exercises to do which improved my hand writing dramatically. I now predominantly write rather than take notes digitally, finding the process of writing a bit cathartic.

Next was a Sailor 1911. Where the Dupont is a nice weighty pen that is perfectly balanced and has a super smooth nib, the 1911 is a much lighter pen, still well balanced but has a much "sharper" nib - it provides a bit more feedback when writing.



At the beginning of 2019 I decided to treat myself to another pen. I went back to the same store I had purchased all my other pens from (aside from the original Meisterstuck) with a pretty firm idea of what I wanted as well as a budget, but after about 10 minutes in there, I blew all that away and walked out with this -

Another S.T. Dupont LE - this time one of the Bond / 007 memorabilia pens. Whilst I love the Chinese lacquer finish on the Bogie, the finish on this one is just magic! The Bogie has a fine nib in it which I really like but with the 007, I decided to get both a fine and medium nib. Originally I preferred the fine, finding that it dropped less ink, but after a bit of use, I now prefer the medium!

A couple of other pics -



Cheers all,

Ben

Awesome collection! Any Pilot vanishing point fans present?

 

[Raketen]

I am curious if anyone here has ever seen an ink-refillable ballpoint? (I mean similar to how many fountain pens are refillable directly with ink, rather than by just changing the entire internal cartridge).

Love the jetstream pens!



Awesome collection! Any Pilot vanishing point fans present?

had mine for a few years now after spending over an hour at the store trying various fountain pens out. I have to use ballpoints at work so its sort of my tv-watching doodling pen. As a non-afficionado it seems like a basically perfect pen (Lamy Dialog occasionally catches my interest... it seems I may harbor some unexplored grudge against caps)

 

[shonky2]

I am curious if anyone here has ever seen an ink-refillable ballpoint? (I mean similar to how many fountain pens are refillable directly with ink, rather than by just changing the entire internal cartridge).



had mine for a few years now after spending over an hour at the store trying various fountain pens out. I have to use ballpoints at work so its sort of my tv-watching doodling pen. As a non-afficionado it seems like a basically perfect pen (Lamy Dialog occasionally catches my interest... it seems I may harbor some unexplored grudge against caps)

I like the fact that you can come back to the vanishing point at any time and the ink just flows. I've had some Mont Blanc pens that if they sit for a length of time it takes some effort to get them to flow again.

 

[rodrigaj]

I am not a fountain pen collector but I use them daily.

My favorite is the Pelikan Souveran M600. Over the years I have tried Lamy, Sailor, TWSBI, Vanishing Point, and several others, long ago forgotten. Pelikan Souveran M600 is my favorite. It will always write, its piston fill is superb, its chamber holds lots of ink and if not dropped it will last forever with nib changes. The Pelikan Gold nibs are the best.

Several months ago, I was carrying my favorite M600 in my shirt pocket and it fell out when loading the car with groceries. I got into the car and drove away. I spent two days recreating my steps, got into my car and drove to the grocery store. I looked around where I had parked and saw my crushed pen on the ground. I was probably the car that drove over it. I nearly cried. I graded 15 years of high school chemistry work with that pen. Replaced the nib after 10 years and kept using it til the mishap...

 

[Slater]

I am not a fountain pen collector but I use them daily.

My favorite is the Pelikan Souveran M600. Over the years I have tried Lamy, Sailor, TWSBI, Vanishing Point, and several others, long ago forgotten. Pelikan Souveran M600 is my favorite. It will always write, its piston fill is superb, its chamber holds lots of ink and if not dropped it will last forever with nib changes. The Pelikan Gold nibs are the best.

Several months ago, I was carrying my favorite M600 in my shirt pocket and it fell out when loading the car with groceries. I got into the car and drove away. I spent two days recreating my steps, got into my car and drove to the grocery store. I looked around where I had parked and saw my crushed pen on the ground. I was probably the car that drove over it. I nearly cried. I graded 15 years of high school chemistry work with that pen. Replaced the nib after 10 years and kept using it til the mishap...

Red ink for grading?

And what is the average life of a nib? I’m a ballpoint guy, but plan to get a fountain pen soon.

 

[rodrigaj]

yeah...red ink. That was the old fashioned way, and I'm old fashioned. Green is now the more acceptable color because it is not so "in your face" and still stands out. I never had any parents or kids complain about the color, so I just kept using red.

Average life is dependent on so many factors that I don't think there is an "average". The type of paper, material of pen nib (gold, steel...), pressure, even the type of ink.

Fountain pens are so much better than ballpoints. No pressure is needed as the ink just flows out due to capillary action. The kids I taught were fascinated by my pen - they had never seen refillable pens before, some were familiar with calligraphy nib pens from art class, but never fountain pens. I thought that was odd. Sort of like never seeing vinyl records or record players.

 

[Slater]

yeah...red ink. That was the old fashioned way, and I'm old fashioned. Green is now the more acceptable color because it is not so "in your face" and still stands out. I never had any parents or kids complain about the color, so I just kept using red.

Average life is dependent on so many factors that I don't think there is an "average". The type of paper, material of pen nib (gold, steel...), pressure, even the type of ink.

Fountain pens are so much better than ballpoints. No pressure is needed as the ink just flows out due to capillary action. The kids I taught were fascinated by my pen - they had never seen refillable pens before, some were familiar with calligraphy nib pens from art class, but never fountain pens. I thought that was odd. Sort of like never seeing vinyl records or record players.

Oh boy, hopefully there aren’t parents out there who are offended that their child’s feelings may get hurt by teachers grading papers in red ink. I know the younger generations are much different than when I grew up, when a trip to the principals office meant swats with a paddle, little people were midgets, and mentally challenged people were the R word.

In any event, as long as there’s some contrast (ie not blue or black or pencil), a teacher’s grading notes can be seen so that’s all that’s ultimately important.

Im sure at some point down the road green ink will be non-PC too, so I guess enjoy your red (or green) ink while you have it

 

[rodrigaj]

I knew teachers that would never even write on a kids paper. They used post-it notes, so as not to "mar" a kids work.

I quit teaching in 2012. It's a young persons profession. Kids and parents are too fragile, the young teachers understand that way better than the old. That sounds ageist, but after 15 years in the classroom after a career in Engineering, I came to realize that harsh truth. The pandemic has made things even crazier...

 

[phthora]

yeah...red ink. That was the old fashioned way, and I'm old fashioned. Green is now the more acceptable color because it is not so "in your face" and still stands out. I never had any parents or kids complain about the color, so I just kept using red.

Average life is dependent on so many factors that I don't think there is an "average". The type of paper, material of pen nib (gold, steel...), pressure, even the type of ink.

Fountain pens are so much better than ballpoints. No pressure is needed as the ink just flows out due to capillary action. The kids I taught were fascinated by my pen - they had never seen refillable pens before, some were familiar with calligraphy nib pens from art class, but never fountain pens. I thought that was odd. Sort of like never seeing vinyl records or record players.

I'm an English teacher myself, with about 8 years under my belt. I definitely understand about students and parents (more often parents) being fragile, as I have a tendency to not sugarcoat my commentary when it comes to grading. I always get the most pushback when I write "weak" next to something in an essay, as though it reflects on the character or worth of the student. Needless to say, I also use red ink.

Sadly, this year I was planning to switch things up and go with this beautiful purple Pilot Iroshizuki Murasaki-shikibu ink and a starter fountain pen. Try something different.

 

[rodrigaj]

I tried using violet for a while, then green... I always went back to my trusted Pelikan Red. It just made grading so much easier.

Starter fountain pens can be problematic. Nothing more infuriating than a scratchy pen with a nib that doesn't flow correctly. There are some companies that are consistently good and some that are bad. Even within a "good" brand, like Pelikan or Lamy, you can get bad pens. Make sure they accept returns and only dip your pen to try it out. That way you can clean it easily and send it back if it does feel right.

Or seek the advise of someone like the owner of Goulet Pens. He doesn't carry Pelikan, but he only carries pens he wouldn't mind using himself and his website has a whole category of starter pens.

Good luck with the new school year. It should prove to be an experience unlike any other.

 

[phthora]

I tried using violet for a while, then green... I always went back to my trusted Pelikan Red. It just made grading so much easier.

Starter fountain pens can be problematic. Nothing more infuriating than a scratchy pen with a nib that doesn't flow correctly. There are some companies that are consistently good and some that are bad. Even within a "good" brand, like Pelikan or Lamy, you can get bad pens. Make sure they accept returns and only dip your pen to try it out. That way you can clean it easily and send it back if it does feel right.

Or seek the advise of someone like the owner of Goulet Pens. He doesn't carry Pelikan, but he only carries pens he wouldn't mind using himself and his website has a whole category of starter pens.

Good luck with the new school year. It should prove to be an experience unlike any other.

Thanks! Yeah, the year has definitely been interesting so far. I'm teaching the same content, but everything now is completely online and we've radically changed the way everything is graded. So, tons of planning and re-planning.

Great advice on the pens. Thanks for that! I think my biggest adjustment is going to be to not leave my pen just lying around anywhere. For that, I will absolutely want to start with a cheap fountain pen. Or three. I also need to determine which size of nib I prefer, how to manage the ink, etc. Eventually I'll move up to a proper pen. Any recommendations in the $50 to $200 range? I've been checking out the Lamy 2000, but admittedly only because of its looks.

 

[rodrigaj]

I had two Lamy pens - The 2000 and the CP-1. I still own and use the CP-1 and keep it with my music log - keep a hand written diary of what I listen to. It is a thin pen but very dependable.

The 2000 is a peculiar pen. Absolutely beautiful, with a very elegant piston fill system and "feel". I really wanted to love it and used it for almost 3 years before I sold it. The problem is that it has a very small area of usable writing nib point. That nib is made unlike any other I've seen and has only a small usable "sweet spot". I found myself always having to adjust my hand position to get the flow of ink right. Not exactly the experience you want when grading papers.

If I were to buy another Lamy, I would go with the Safari ($30) as it is quite popular and has a long market history with lots of positive reviews. It uses the same nib as the CP-1, so I know its a very good nib. In fact, with the exception of the 2000, I believe Lamy's nibs are all interchangeable. You will probably need to buy a converter for the pen so as not to have to use the wasteful Lamy cartridges and for you favorite bottled ink. Cartridges keep your hands clean and quick and easy, but they run out quickly and are sooo... much more expensive than ink.

 

[willyboyaudio]

Hi Fellas! Allow me to join the conversation. I am a pen user and I love my fountain pens. Glad to meet fellow enthusiasts in this forum.
My current lineup:
- Pilot Metropolitan, solid matte black, M nib. This is my daily user. Great pen for any beginner or long-time users alike.
- Pilot Vanishing Point, solid matte blue, EF nib. Hello @shonky2
- Lamy Accent 098, gloss black, 14k M nib. Beautiful pen, super smooth nib. As many FP users know, Western M is like Japanese B.
- S.T. Dupont Montparnasse, Chinese lacquer gold dust, 18k M nib. Beautiful pen, unique, durable finish.
- Platinum Preppy, green and red, 0.3 nib. I imagine this will serve as good grading pens. Dependable, smooth, and affordable, so you won't worry too much about it in school environment. Hello @rodrigaj @phthora

Rollerball pen: Muji 0.5mm in various color. Great pen for journaling, to-do lists, and again, I imagine would work great for grading papers.

I bought the plastic Mujis and the Metropolitan, but the other four (I count the Preppies as one) came to me in the most generous and memorable ways, which really add to the value of ownership of these beautiful pens.
Ink wise, I love Diamine inks. Diamine Green Black has been my go-to ink for almost a year now. Thanks for reading, it's a really fascinating subject to me, sorry for the long post.

 

[rodrigaj]

Diamine inks are my favorites as well - Syrah and Oxblood and Denim are some of my favorites.