Pirre Paul and Duke

[merkur59]

Before the advent of ballpoint, I was using cheap FP (hero, pilot, etc).
Then came ballpoint pens and their convenience (for schoolwork) simply swept FP completely from my mind.

Until recently when I realised that I wasn't that happy using ballpoint and roller pens.
(Even though I use a computer for my work ALL the time - writing is reduced to scribbling a task list for the day )

Until today, I was thinking of getting a pilot 78G or metropolitan (their converters remind me of my school days ).
However I ended up with these (ebay):

Duke 209




Pirre Paul F828 (with 5 cart blue ink)



Reviews are scarce but these got thumbs-up (for cheap pens)

The combined total price is a hefty US$14

So, fountain pen aficionados (or is it peniacs), with regards to the performance of these pens: did I do OK?

 

[ChefJohnBoy-ardee]

You should be fine. The test will come when you get them in the mail! Welcome to the Nib!

 

[merkur59]

The pirre paul arrived. Very fast shipping - less than 10 days, from Hong Kong






As i did not expect to receive delivery this week, I did not have any ink to test with.

 

[Slivovitz]

...As i did not expect to receive delivery this week, I did not have any ink to test with.

You could try the cartridges that came with it. Unless you can find a suitable converter, you would be refilling them with a syringe anyway when you go to bottled ink. Looks like a metal bodied pen, so eyedropper filling would be out.

For the price you mention, you aren't risking much with these pens, and they might turn out to be okay. Just don't be put off fountain pens if these don't work out.

 

[merkur59]

Tried the cartridge - not working. Ink not coming out to the feed...

Went to a bookstore 15 minutes away from house. Got hold of a bottle of Pelikan 4001 (dark blue) for SGD3.20 a bottle (they also have it in cartridges: 6 for SGD1.55).
Will test it later.

 

[Lexbomb]

Maybe try flushing them with a bulb syringe and then letting them dry out then use the cart. Be patient with is as it can take a while for the ink to get to the feed. I had that issue when I bought my first pen (a Lamy Safari) and i pushed the cartridge in and went to write and nothing happened. I squeezed the cart a little and that got the ink flowing. Good luck

 

[merkur59]

Thanks Lex, for the suggestion.
I just bin'ed the used cart since I got hold of the bottled ink. And replacement Pelikan cart are cheap .

Have tested the pen - nice. But depending on the pressure I use, the results could be wetter or drier (and angle of the nib against the paper). No skipping though.

Unposted, it feels a little short. Posted, it feels long enough but top heavy.

One thing I noticed - if I dot the end of a sentence and leave the tip on the paper for a few seconds (cheap, photocopy paper), the 'dot' blotches more than my pilot v-point pen.
While I am sure this is not an issue with good writing paper, can anyone tell me why this happens - I mean the ink quality should be similar to those found in roller pens and v-point, right?

 

[ChefJohnBoy-ardee]

The ink will keep flowing if you leave the nib on the paper regardless of pen or paper. Its how the feed works on a fountain pen. It is easy enough to train yourself to pick the pen up the teensiest bit to have it not contact paper and have ink flowing.

 

[merkur59]

Thanks for the feedback.

I made a trip to the same bookstore and got myself some A5 Japanese note paper.
And wrote a whole page (without any blotching).
I realised that I have lost much of my handwriting skill. Will need to spend time just writing to get most of it back, as well as to lose the tendency to grip the pen too much and writing with pressure.]

I'm glad I stumbled into this forum.

 

[merkur59]

Managed to get the cartridge to work last night. It needed more pressure to open up the outlet, so I used a screwdriver.

It flowed well and I got a nice blue. However the writings faded away within an hour or so. Barely readable unless I brought the paper close to my face.

 

[nemo]

It flowed well and I got a nice blue. However the writings faded away within an hour or so. Barely readable unless I brought the paper close to my face.

That's peculiar. Any idea what brand of ink that cart is? I hope you don't get discouraged, it really shouldn't do that.

 

[merkur59]

It came with the pen as in the pics on first post, and sold under the name 'poky'

I believe the quality of Chinese FP inks are not there yet, and should not reflect the quality of cartridge brands like pelikan, which i intend to get.

 

[Slivovitz]

It came with the pen as in the pics on first post, and sold under the name 'poky'

I believe the quality of Chinese FP inks are not there yet, and should not reflect the quality of cartridge brands like pelikan, which i intend to get.

Disappearing ink is certainly a new one to me. Some will fade badly in direct sunlight, but not usually that fast.

Almost any name brand of ink should be fine. You can refill the cartridges with a syringe. And if you wanted actual invisible ink, there's this.