Those of you who own multiple fountain pens, which one is your favorite? What makes you choose that one (and yes, you can only choose one) over the others? Imagine you *have to* throw out all your pens but one. Why’d you keep that one?
Your favorite in the collection?
- Thread starter Dominic
- Start date
Those of you who have multiple children, which one is your favorite? What makes you choose that one (and yes, you can only choose one) over the others? Imagine you *have to* throw out all your pens but one. Why’d you keep that one?
tankerjohn
A little poofier than I prefer
Okay, I'll play along. I admit, its a tough call. I'm still in a "honeymoon" period with my recently acquired Pilot 912 and Lamy 2000, and my Platinum 3776 is such a dependable and amazing fountain pen. But I'm going to have to go with my West German-made gray-marble Pelikan M200. I guess you could say its my most personal pen. The black, gold, and gray color scheme reminds me of my alma mater, West Point. Moreover, the gray marbling resembles the granite that West Point is famous for and that adorns my class ring. I have it filled with Pelikan Edelstein Tanzanite, a grayish blue-black that matches the pen perfectly and also happens to be my birthstone. Pelikan doesn't make a gray-marbled pen anymore, M200 or otherwise, and being quasi-vintage, it would be very difficult to replace. I'm sure they pop up on-line here and there; after all, that's how I found this one. But its not a sure thing at all, and I sure wouldn't want to lose this one. The M200 model itself is a great daily pen. Tidy size fits easily in a shirt pocket, uncaps to a nice and useable length, holds a ton of ink, and has a lovely, springy nib.
If I had to have only one pen based one having owned written with 50+ pens 3.00 to 200.00 in value (Pilot Metropolitans/Lamy Al-Stars/Sheaffers from school type to fancy with 14 kt nibs/entry level Pelikans and Watermans/Parker 45s with 14 kt nibs/Esterbrooks/Conklin/Moonmans/Pilot Varsities/Platinum Preppies/Kawacos and one offs)
I could narrow to one of three:
Platinum Preppy-6 ish max. They simply work. Their cap design keeps the pen writing well forever and they can be converted to an eyedropper such than you can write dozens of Xmas cards with a shimmer ink and never have to refill. IMHO, there is not a pen on the planet that offers the same in terms of performance/versatility/value/capacity. It is everything a Pilot Varsity is one steroids.
JetPens.com - Platinum Preppy Fountain Pen - Black - 03 Fine Nib - https://www.jetpens.com/Platinum-Preppy-Fountain-Pen-Black-03-Fine-Nib/pd/24021?gclid=CjwKCAjw_JuGBhBkEiwA1xmbRYFPKaKm_MI1EF_hwnVxmie7ZyA-h14pIQL1xHEjCkRHFBuVJ36I_RoCq5YQAvD_BwE
Conklin -60 ish shipped. My daughter bought me one of these along with some Field Notes this past March with her own money for my birthday. Complete surprise. It is even assembled in the USA albeit from overseas components.
It writes well, the converter snaps in and the pen has an old school vibe with new school performance. Kind of like if you took an older muscle car, put bigger disc brakes all the way around, a few suspension tweaks and a modern Michelin tire on it. Looks just like OEM but night and day different for the better in terms of grip and handling.
www.penboutique.com
Lamy Safari/Al-Star@20ish-45ish shipped
Look good, feel good. Triangular portion of pen really does help you write more legibly. Nice enough to keep track of, not the end of the world if they get lost etc. Wonderful writers. Easy to maintain. the Pen/Converter/Bottle are a seamless system in form and function. Any color you like. Any nib style you like. I am partial to the aluminum Al-Star though I acknowledge that the finish of the plastic Safari model is much less susceptible to picking up scratches and handling marks. The clip holds well and the cap posts well. Finally, the shape of the pen is such that it will not easily roll off a flat surface. Lamy for the win!!!
I could narrow to one of three:
Platinum Preppy-6 ish max. They simply work. Their cap design keeps the pen writing well forever and they can be converted to an eyedropper such than you can write dozens of Xmas cards with a shimmer ink and never have to refill. IMHO, there is not a pen on the planet that offers the same in terms of performance/versatility/value/capacity. It is everything a Pilot Varsity is one steroids.
JetPens.com - Platinum Preppy Fountain Pen - Black - 03 Fine Nib - https://www.jetpens.com/Platinum-Preppy-Fountain-Pen-Black-03-Fine-Nib/pd/24021?gclid=CjwKCAjw_JuGBhBkEiwA1xmbRYFPKaKm_MI1EF_hwnVxmie7ZyA-h14pIQL1xHEjCkRHFBuVJ36I_RoCq5YQAvD_BwE
Conklin -60 ish shipped. My daughter bought me one of these along with some Field Notes this past March with her own money for my birthday. Complete surprise. It is even assembled in the USA albeit from overseas components.
It writes well, the converter snaps in and the pen has an old school vibe with new school performance. Kind of like if you took an older muscle car, put bigger disc brakes all the way around, a few suspension tweaks and a modern Michelin tire on it. Looks just like OEM but night and day different for the better in terms of grip and handling.
Conklin All American Collection Ballpoint Pen - Southwest Turquoise - Default Title - Pen Boutique Ltd
Conklin All American Collection Ballpoint Pen - Southwest Turquoise Buy Conklin All American Collection Ballpoint Pen - Southwest Turquoise with Confidence from Pen Boutique - Authorized Dealer of Clairefontaine Notebooks and refills. Guaranteed Quality and best price.
Lamy Safari/Al-Star@20ish-45ish shipped
Look good, feel good. Triangular portion of pen really does help you write more legibly. Nice enough to keep track of, not the end of the world if they get lost etc. Wonderful writers. Easy to maintain. the Pen/Converter/Bottle are a seamless system in form and function. Any color you like. Any nib style you like. I am partial to the aluminum Al-Star though I acknowledge that the finish of the plastic Safari model is much less susceptible to picking up scratches and handling marks. The clip holds well and the cap posts well. Finally, the shape of the pen is such that it will not easily roll off a flat surface. Lamy for the win!!!
- Thread starter
- #5
Well...except for children are your offspring, and pens are inanimate objects.
- Thread starter
- #6
Wow, that video! That is a lot of automation to make a lot of pens. That many pens, you'd think everyone on the planet owned a Lamy.
I honestly prefer my Pilot Metro Medium nib. I only have a couple that would be considered higher-end than the Metro, but the Metro just works. The nib doesn't hard start, flow is perfect, and I tend to like friction fit caps.
Lamy 2000 Fine
Great pen, flies under the radar and never misses a beat. Classic design, platinum plated gold nib, piston filler, easy to disassemble, interchangeable nib, large ink capacity, click cap. What’s not to like?
Great pen, flies under the radar and never misses a beat. Classic design, platinum plated gold nib, piston filler, easy to disassemble, interchangeable nib, large ink capacity, click cap. What’s not to like?
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- Thread starter
- #9
I saw that the Lamy 2000 was in the JetPens.com "The Last Pen You'll Ever Need" video.
I would agree with that comment. I also have a MB 146. A great pen but the Lamy is much more versatile.
- Thread starter
- #11
I looked up the inks you mentioned you like, the Carbon Black and the one in this photo, De Atramentis. From the picture online (Goulet Pens site I think), I preferred the De Atramentis.
It’s very good ink. The colours are pretty dull but the black is solid and crisp. It’s totally permanent. Doesn’t fade in light, totally waterproof and doesn’t dry smudge. I never had an issue with clogging but you wouldn’t want to let it dry in a pen. Good writing performance and bleed resistance too. It took a while to find these but my search for the perfect ink is over.
Iroshizuku Take Sumi was good too but in my line of work (construction) I need a permanent waterproof ink. The permanent inks can stain over time so keep that in mind. My Lamy ink indicator window is pretty much unusable now. There is almost always a trade off with ink. You need to decide which factors are the most important to you and how you use your pens.
tankerjohn
A little poofier than I prefer
That might be true if you're ideal pen is a Bauhaus-designed piston-filler with a hooded nib. Don't get me wrong, the 2000 is a great writing instrument that ticks a lot of boxes. But the "last pen I'll ever need"? Ever ever? Let's not get hasty...
- Thread starter
- #15
I'm not a fan of the look of the hooded nib. Since I've been looking at all these pens, I've discovered I'm not a huge Lamy fan. I'm just talking about the visual appeal. The pens probably function and write wonderfully. The Safari, LX, and the AL-Star look the same to me.
tankerjohn
A little poofier than I prefer
The Lamy esthetic isn't my jam either. Having recently acquired a 2000, I get why guys like @Tomo love it. Its a very functional, no-BS pen with a pedigreed design and storied six decade legacy.
My Scribo 'Feel the Flex' is without a doubt my most popular (to me) in my collection. I grab it about 95% percent of the time. It is a lot of fun to be able to add personality to my otherwise mundane handwriting. It can be used as a daily writer (with the right ink, cause the nib in itself is juicy), and you have the ability to flex with little pressure. - No, I am in no way affiliated with Scribo, just one happy customer.
Not much of a fountain pen afficiando. I do have the Lamy Safari black fountain pen. A few comments about the triangular shape of Lamy Safari, but in the case of the fountain pen, it is rounded on one side, that makes it even better to write with. I travel a lot, and usually carry 4 pens. For this trip, I have a black and Silver Pelikan 400 with black Schmidt 950 pressurized cartridge, a simple Jotter with a blue 950 refill, and chunky Monteverde bullitt ball pen with the same refill, and a Cross Townsend ballpen with the textured grip and broad Cross black refill.
- Thread starter
- #19
Had to look them up. They weren't available on the pen sites I've been looking at. I found this video, though:
Feel the Flex Writing with the SCRIBO Feel Fountain Pen - YouTube
Goldspot is where I bought mine. I've had it for a few months now. Another video, Scribo Feel Fountain Pens - 14kt Fine Flex & 18kt Broad - YouTube
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