6 fountain pens tested by Wired magazine

[Toothpick]

http://www.wired.com/reviews/2013/08/pens-on-pens-with-pens/

Ranging from $3 to $175.

the pens tested:

Aurora Style Classic
Parker Urban Metallic Chiseled
Pilot Vanishing Point (Black Matte)
Lamy Safari (Fine Nib)
Pilot Varsity
Waterman Expert Deluxe

Thought some of us might be interested. I've always enjoyed Wired's reviews and testing.

 

[nemo]

I think Wired is geeking into their uncharted territory. I never would have chosen those six and don't necessarily agree with their findings but ... it was interesting nonetheless.

Any exposure is good.

 

[cursethis]

I think Wired is geeking into their uncharted territory. I never would have chosen those six and don't necessarily agree with their findings but ... it was interesting nonetheless.

Any exposure is good.

I agree. A rather odd selection of pens.

 

[the_edski]

I think Wired is geeking into their uncharted territory. I never would have chosen those six and don't necessarily agree with their findings but ... it was interesting nonetheless.

Any exposure is good.

+1 to this. The Pilot Varsity and Lamy Safari were the only 2 I agreed with showing. The "bargain basement beginner" and the "first decent pen". Like Doug said "interesting nonetheless"

 

[rider4life]

I think Wired is geeking into their uncharted territory. I never would have chosen those six and don't necessarily agree with their findings but ... it was interesting nonetheless.

Any exposure is good.

Definitely nice just to see the exposure on a site like Wired. Here's hoping more people pick up on the joys of FP writing and owning.

Cheers,

M.

 

[BRuhling]

The author is still trying to figure out where to plug these pens into the wall...

 

[purerockfury]

I want the person's head who wrote this article. To rate the Safari so low, DAMN HIM! In all seriousness not a bad article, I wonder where he got his info on top selling pens? I know we are not the prominent pen site but I like to think most of you have a sense of what pens are good or not good. I guess too the article is not about having the best pens but more to show the different styles and feel of pens. So what pens would you all have chosen for the article?

 

[Eeyore]

"Let's face it, if you're going to be spending almost $200 on a pen, it's probably not because you want to write with it every day."

I'm really flabbergasted by this statement from the review.

I do agree on the assessment of the Aurora Style though, one of my favorite modern pens.

 

[Dave258]

I am still trying to figure out what he meant by "nib leaked?????"

Did he mean nib creep, or did ink just pour out of the pen???

 

[Slivovitz]

The writer is a her, not a him. At least, Karissa seems like a woman's name. Anyway, some dubious comments. I suspect she's doing something wrong with that Vanishing Point, if it isn't just damaged. And it's not the best selection of pens for an article meant to give FP newbies a place to start. Hopefully, anyone whose interest in fountain pens is piqued by this article will seek information elsewhere before buying.

 

[nemo]

So what pens would you all have chosen for the article?

A couple of different filling systems would have been nice ... at least a mention that other types exist. Noting the recent popularity of vintage pens would have helped the cause in my opinion, too.

 

[ChefJohnBoy-ardee]

Written by someone that doesn't know much about pens geared towards people who don't know much about pens. It is blind leading the blind... Granted it doesn't take much internet research to learn more about pens and and and and yeah, mind boggled.

 

[nemo]

Written by someone that doesn't know much about pens geared towards people who don't know much about pens. It is blind leading the blind... Granted it doesn't take much internet research to learn more about pens and and and and yeah, mind boggled.

Hey, it's always helpful to know what the uninitiated are thinking.

 

[cursethis]

I'm happy that they didn't encourage buying vintage... that would be more people bidding against me on eBay.

 

[ChefJohnBoy-ardee]

Hey, it's always helpful to know what the uninitiated are thinking.

I quite agree I'm just surprised a geeky article didn't do more research than was necessary before buying and trying something.

 

[LouieGrandie]

"Let's face it, if you're going to be spending almost $200 on a pen, it's probably not because you want to write with it every day."

I'm really flabbergasted by this statement from the review.

I do agree on the assessment of the Aurora Style though, one of my favorite modern pens.

She would be stunned to know that a number of doctors I know routinely write with pens costing $400-$600. My ear/hearing doctor uses a really nice Pilot sterling silver fountain pen. Plus she gets the Pilot-Namiki thing backwards. Pilot is the name of the company world wide. In the US they use Namiki so people will not confuse the high end pens with their cheaper pens. And based on what she wrote about the Vanishing Point it is my guess that she did not put the nib section far enough into the ink bottle so that the fill hole was fully submerged and the result was she did not fill the converter but just got the nib and feed wet.

 

[cursethis]

She would be stunned to know that a number of doctors I know routinely write with pens costing $400-$600. My ear/hearing doctor uses a really nice Pilot sterling silver fountain pen. Plus she gets the Pilot-Namiki thing backwards. Pilot is the name of the company world wide. In the US they use Namiki so people will not confuse the high end pens with their cheaper pens. And based on what she wrote about the Vanishing Point it is my guess that she did not put the nib section far enough into the ink bottle so that the fill hole was fully submerged and the result was she did not fill the converter but just got the nib and feed wet.

One of my dad's doctors is a big fountain pen collector, apparently. He has a flock of Pelikans.

 

[Jut]

She would be stunned to know that a number of doctors I know routinely write with pens costing $400-$600. My ear/hearing doctor uses a really nice Pilot sterling silver fountain pen. Plus she gets the Pilot-Namiki thing backwards. Pilot is the name of the company world wide. In the US they use Namiki so people will not confuse the high end pens with their cheaper pens. And based on what she wrote about the Vanishing Point it is my guess that she did not put the nib section far enough into the ink bottle so that the fill hole was fully submerged and the result was she did not fill the converter but just got the nib and feed wet.

ya, but she did look close enough to see that the vanishing point had a 14k nib

 

[cursethis]

If I were writing the article, I'd choose something along the lines of:

1) Pilot Metropolitan ($15)
2) Kaweco Sport ($25)
3) TWSBI 580 ($65)
4) Pelikan M200 ($100)
5) Lamy 2000 ($120)
6) Sailor 1911 ($155)

Maybe swap in the Conklin Mark Twain Crescent Filler, just to mix thinks up and make it interesting. And maybe swap the Vac 700 instead of the 580, just so I could get another interesting filling system in.

No use mentioning anything in the $200+ range.

 

[jzuzphreek]

If I were writing the article, I'd choose something along the lines of:

1) Pilot Metropolitan ($15)
2) Kaweco Sport ($25)
3) TWSBI 580 ($65)
4) Pelikan M200 ($100)
5) Lamy 2000 ($120)
6) Sailor 1911 ($155)

Maybe swap in the Conklin Mark Twain Crescent Filler, just to mix thinks up and make it interesting. And maybe swap the Vac 700 instead of the 580, just so I could get another interesting filling system in.

No use mentioning anything in the $200+ range.

Filling system? The writer apparently think that was much of an important factor to discuss. :/