Need a good journal for fountain pens

[Plano]

I just bought my first fountain pen that should land at my door tomorrow and am looking for a journal that will have a good quality paper in it. I know alot of people talk about the moleskine and could be a great option but after reading some older post I am begining to question if that is the best choice due to bleed through.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[thebikingengineer]

I haven't had any bleed-through problems with my Lamy Safari (M nib w/Lamy cartridge) or my Hero (Fine nib w/ Pelikan ink). Much of it depends on the pen, but it's worlds better than the cheap notepads I use for class notes.

 

[djh]

I haven't had any problems with the 15 or so Moleskines that I have filled, but you might also like to check out Clairefontaine.

 

[Bertilak]

I just posted this link a few days ago.

 

[Dennis]

Rhodia or Clairefontaine.

 

[ajkimmins]

I just bought my first fountain pen that should land at my door tomorrow and am looking for a journal that will have a good quality paper in it. I know alot of people talk about the moleskine and could be a great option but after reading some older post I am begining to question if that is the best choice due to bleed through.
Thanks for the advice.

I've never had any problems with my Moleskine's and bleed through. I use Lamy Safari EF's and Noodlers ink.

 

[ajkimmins]

In fact here's a shot of two of my Moleskine's. The one on the left is a large ruled notebook, with Noodler's black. The one on the right is a pocket Cahier, with Noodler's Bad Blue Heron. You can see thru the page a little, but once you've written on the other side it really disappears.

 

[maxman]

though I haven't tried them, I've been looking at the Renaissance Art leather journals.
currently I use a journal I got at (gasp!) the dollar store.
but it seems to work fine.

 

[Pescara]

I generally use Moleskines but if you want an inexpensive alternative for practice, the Black 'n Red journals at Staples, Rite Aid, etc. are pretty good.

 

[mark the shoeshine boy]

I just received four alwych in which i will try this week...


has any one tried the Allan's journal ???? i hear good things about tem

 

[LeverTime]

It depends on the ink and the individual moleskine. One of my friends and I (both FP users) each got moleskines. His worked fine, mine feathered like crazy with most ink.

I would recommend either Exaclair (makers of Clairfontaine & Rhodia) or Kokuyo (Japanese brand). I've never had a problem with any paper from either company. I prefer Kokuyo, but it's harder to find.

 

[Uncle Erik]

I've always loved Rhodia tablets.

 

[Miles]

Rhodia or Clairefontaine.

+1

Here's a link to a good review doing a "torture test" of sorts on three different types of fountain pen friendly journals. Ink Nouveau Review

 

[benvh]

Just picked up a couple Rhodia pads because my Moleskine had a lot of bleedthrough with my new FP. Paper quality is better and no bleeding!

 

[Zyx]

I don't like Moleskines. My pen/ink combinations tend to feather on them. Also, I don't know why, but the paper always feels a little softer/toothier than I like.

Heretic that I am, I just use Staples wide-ruled composition books and 8X10 spirals. Maybe if I had a pen worth more than $150, I'd be a little more worried about the potential effects on my nibs, but I find the feel of the paper quite acceptable. There's bleedthrough, of course, but as long as I don't use dark ink on one side of a page and light ink on the other, I don't mind. (You could avoid this altogether by using only one side of the paper.) I'm not writing anything particularly important most of the time.

For some reason though, it does have to be regular Staples paper, and it does have to be lined. Copy/printer paper is too rough and somehow sticky, and other brands (especially recycled paper) don't feel right either.

 

[cbird]

Check out Smythson's. Their paper is intended to work with fountain pens and the general quality is very high.

 

[RoyalKooparillo]

Apica. Take my word for it, it's amazing. I never thought I'd find paper that I preferred to Rhodia and Clairefontaine, but this is it. And the kicker--it's cheap! Absolutely fantastic. No bleedthrough or feathering, even with wet writers. Smoother than silk, and a soft-white color that won't burn your eyes if you look at it for too long. I've been using them for the past several months and I'm still flabbergasted, they're that good.

Also, they come in many sizes, so if you're fed up with the feathering/bleedthrough or inconsistency of Moleskines or other Cahiers, look no further.

 

[Bertilak]

Apica.And the kicker--it's cheap!

Maybe I'm looking in all the wrong places, but the cheapest one I saw was $40 (a tiny 3x4 inch "mini" journal) and they quickly went through the low to mid hundreds and eventually settled in at $2200.

 

[texbilly]

Maybe I'm looking in all the wrong places, but the cheapest one I saw was $40 (a tiny 3x4 inch "mini" journal) and they quickly went through the low to mid hundreds and eventually settled in at $2200.

Bob, try here >> Apica at Amazon

 

[Bertilak]

Bob, try here >> Apica at Amazon

Now that's more like it!