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The Nib Acquisitions for 2023.

There is a very slight purple lean to it, but just enough to take the cold edge off.
I surmised this from the way you had them lined up in your picture (blue on the left to purple on the right). The possibility of this fact is exactly what piqued my interest, as I have been looking for just this type of blue (with a pinch of purple). Thanks for confirming this!
 

AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
The Kaweco Brass Sport is nice and smooth. I might not get the converter for it though because of its small ink volume. Might just syringe fill the empties.

It somewhat depends on how much writing you are going to do on any given day. Apologies for the poor pics, but here is a size comparison to a standard cart .

20230418_212544.jpg 20230418_212518.jpg

While it looks like you instantly lose a third of the capacity, bear in mind that with a full converter, you also have a fully primed feed too. When you compare that to loading a cartridge into a totally empty pen, the difference isn't as big as it initially looks.

I got this converter hoping it would fit in a Sheaffer VFM, but sadly it doesn't. I have used it in a "full size" pen though. Usually in a lesser used pen (the "red pen" of the moment). It doesn't last quite as long as a full cartridge, but if you're not writing all day, it might be plenty.

The biggest gripe I have with it, is that it doesn't have an agitator ball, so it sometimes needs a shake to get the ink down to the business end. Again, not a problem for an occasional note taker pen, but can get annoying if writing for any duration.
 
It somewhat depends on how much writing you are going to do on any given day. Apologies for the poor pics, but here is a size comparison to a standard cart .

View attachment 1640400 View attachment 1640399

While it looks like you instantly lose a third of the capacity, bear in mind that with a full converter, you also have a fully primed feed too. When you compare that to loading a cartridge into a totally empty pen, the difference isn't as big as it initially looks.

I got this converter hoping it would fit in a Sheaffer VFM, but sadly it doesn't. I have used it in a "full size" pen though. Usually in a lesser used pen (the "red pen" of the moment). It doesn't last quite as long as a full cartridge, but if you're not writing all day, it might be plenty.

The biggest gripe I have with it, is that it doesn't have an agitator ball, so it sometimes needs a shake to get the ink down to the business end. Again, not a problem for an occasional note taker pen, but can get annoying if writing for any duration.
I think you are right. What I will use this pen might not warrant a larger ink capacity. It will an EDC pen and as such it will be just occasional short use and not my normal work pen I use all day. Yes you do miss the agitator ball once there isn't one. Thank you for the pictures. That helped me.
 

AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
You can't go wrong with some great ink and some great paper!

Indeed! I'm happy to finally have a bottle of Midnight in the drawer. It's my first 80ml Diamine too, and I can now make a judgement call of how many bottles I actually want in that size. They're so much nicer than the 30ml ones, but that's a heck of a lot of ink in each one!

The pads aren't needed just yet, but I wanted to have a couple of spares on standby.
 
Indeed! I'm happy to finally have a bottle of Midnight in the drawer. It's my first 80ml Diamine too, and I can now make a judgement call of how many bottles I actually want in that size. They're so much nicer than the 30ml ones, but that's a heck of a lot of ink in each one!

The pads aren't needed just yet, but I wanted to have a couple of spares on standby.
Oh yes! I do not own any 80ml Diamine bottles myself, but of what I hear and see is that they are much better. I do need to work out which inks that I will/do use a lot of before I commit to an 80ml bottle. I rarely reload the same ink in the same pen. I like to change every time. Who knows maybe I will never settle on a favorite(s).

I do have a handful of Noodler's bottles and they are all 90ml and they are huge! Not only that but they fill them to the very very top. If you ever get one be very careful! Luckily I was warned before I opened my first one so I was very cautious.
 

AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
Oh yes! I do not own any 80ml Diamine bottles myself, but of what I hear and see is that they are much better. I do need to work out which inks that I will/do use a lot of before I commit to an 80ml bottle. I rarely reload the same ink in the same pen. I like to change every time. Who knows maybe I will never settle on a favorite(s).

I do have a handful of Noodler's bottles and they are all 90ml and they are huge! Not only that but they fill them to the very very top. If you ever get one be very careful! Luckily I was warned before I opened my first one so I was very cautious.

Yes, I've had Diamine bottles that full too, and have had it splurge over the top once. :biggrin1:

Since that 80ml bottle landed, I started coming to the conclusion that only getting the primary inks (blues and blacks) in the 80ml bottles would make most sense. My secondary inks, which are other general writing colours (darker greens, browns, and purples), and the contrast inks (reds and brights) would be just fine in 30ml bottles, as I don't use those quite as often.

...then I noticed that Cult Pens currently has 5 for the price of 4 on Diamine inks, till the end of the month... decisions, decisions... :001_unsur :facep:
 
Yes, I've had Diamine bottles that full too, and have had it splurge over the top once. :biggrin1:

Since that 80ml bottle landed, I started coming to the conclusion that only getting the primary inks (blues and blacks) in the 80ml bottles would make most sense. My secondary inks, which are other general writing colours (darker greens, browns, and purples), and the contrast inks (reds and brights) would be just fine in 30ml bottles, as I don't use those quite as often.

...then I noticed that Cult Pens currently has 5 for the price of 4 on Diamine inks, till the end of the month... decisions, decisions... :001_unsur :facep:
I think that makes the most sense to have just the most used ones in 80ml. I did see that they had 5 for the price of 4. I better not look :facep:I just got a bunch so I think that I am good for a while. I usually buys from "The Writing Desk" in the UK. They have great shipping costs to the US. I bought 7 diamine 30ml and 2 R&K bottles and shipping was about $7, which is not bad.
 

AimlessWanderer

Remember to forget me!
I think that makes the most sense to have just the most used ones in 80ml. I did see that they had 5 for the price of 4. I better not look :facep:I just got a bunch so I think that I am good for a while. I usually buys from "The Writing Desk" in the UK. They have great shipping costs to the US. I bought 7 diamine 30ml and 2 R&K bottles and shipping was about $7, which is not bad.

That's a damn good price for international shipping! This last order of mine from there too. They have quite a low threshold for free UK shipping.
 
That's a damn good price for international shipping! This last order of mine from there too. They have quite a low threshold for free UK shipping.
To me they have the best shipping costs to US and their prices are not inflated either to cover it. I am happy and I will use them again. Yeah 20 pounds is not a bad limit either for free UK shipping. It is hard to find anyone here in the US that is at or below $35 for free shipping.
 

nemo

Lunatic Fringe
Staff member
The Kaweco Brass Sport is nice and smooth. I might not get the converter for it though because of its small ink volume. Might just syringe fill the empties.
Or you could always try making one!
 
Or you could always try making one!
Interesting. May have to check that's thread out
 
So far this year I've just about got the "Which fountain pen should I get first?" thread covered. I have a Lamy Safari (F), TWSBI Go (F), Kaweco Sport (EF), Platinum Preppy (EF and F), and Pilot Metropolitan (stub). I also have bottles of Sailor Amamoyoi, Diamine Prussian Blue, and Noodler's Blue Ghost ink and a bunch of ink samples (thepenoutpost.com has a sample sale - most are $1 and they have $4 shipping). For paper I bought a Leuchtturm 1917 hardcover A5 and I already had Clairefontaine, Rhodia, and Apica notebooks. I also made a leather cover for my Apica A7 pocket notebook.
Polish_20230430_102242489.jpg

I was just about to toss the Metro into the drawer because it was so scratchy but then I watched a video on smoothing out a nib and tried it by rubbing it on some lapping film I have. Now the Metro is great. It has Noodler's El Lawrence in it now. I really like that ink. At first glance it looks black, especially from a fine nib, but it has that used-motor-oiley olive tint to it. I like the "Safari" (I'm pretty sure it's a knockoff), but I wish I'd bought an EF. It's my daily carry for work because it has the best clip. The TWSBI Go is nice too, I like that it has the same writing end as the ECO but with no chance of accidentally or absentmindedly turning the knob and pushing ink through the nib. I like the Kaweco, too, and I'm seriously considering getting the brass version.

Soon I'll get a nicer pen, like a Kaweco Brass Sport, Lamy Al-Star, TWSBI Vac 700R, Platinum Procyon, or Monteverde Ritma. I think I'll set aside a few bucks every week and if I'm still regularly using fountain pens a year from now I'll buy a Pilot VP or Falcon, Platinum 3776, or Lamy 2000.

One last observation - Blue Ghost ink is awesome.
 
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I read an article on the origini of the Kaweco Sport, 1935-1938, and that originally was a piston filler. I found one from the early 50s and bought it. it is ever so tiny compared to the modern one!!
On the left the modern one and on the right the 'original' one
 

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