Tips for a college kid?

[Jswin]

Hi,
I just recently bought a Pilot Metropolitan to try out fountain pens and maybe be inspired to improve my horrible handwriting. I love the pen and the experience of writing with a fountain pen, but I have only been using it at home and only on a few assignments/notes. I want to branch out so that I can start to take notes with it in class and be able to use it for assignments but I have a few questions.
When I bought the pen someone told me to be careful not to carry it around in clothing I care about because fountain pens can leak and stain your clothing. Is this true? Are there any precautions that I need to take before I carry it around in my pocket or book bag?
Also, I was wondering what ink would do well in an average spiral bound notebook (the kind you buy from staples) and is a fairly quick drier?
Another question I had was are there any good notebooks that are fairly cheep that I might be able to use for notes in class?
And my last question is what's next? I am enjoying my pilot but I don't know what I should be setting my sights on for a future pen.

Thanks in advance,
J

 

[showcattle]

I dont have much to add but Ive been carrying a FP in my backpack the last week and haven't had any problems. Finally found a pen that I like the line on to use for class, but am interested in the notebooks and ink choices.

 

[Brek81]

Staples has a bagasse (sp) paper that is pretty economical, and seems to work with most inks. Definitely love my metro.

 

[todayilearned]

Just be careful with temperature. I once left a FP in my car during the AZ heat and ink came out.

Any jostling movement might also do it.

You want good paper to write on since bleeding is a problem. Also test the ink for water resistance. I once wrote a few pages of notes and turned the pages with wet fingers. The ink smeared everywhere!

 

[andrew98]

If you carry the pen "nib up" in a leather sleeve or case, you shouldn't have a problem carrying it in a bag. The case is more for protecting the pen, rather than preventing leaks. If you carry it nib up in your pocket you also shouldn't have any leakage problems. I would imagine a quick temp change from cool to hot could make a pen leak. My Parker 51 develops a little bubble under the nib when I use it sometimes, presumably because the heat from my hand is warming the grip. I've carried pens in jeans and jacket pockets with no problems. Normal movement in a bag or whatever shouldn't cause it to leak.

-Andy

 

[PFP_Dad]

I recently attended a course for work that involved a ton of note taking. I recommend bringing at least 2 pens inked up and a backup ballpoint, as more than once I ran out of ink and refilling mid-class can be a bit impractical. I primarily used a Parker 51 (fine) and 21 (fine) with Parker Quink ink and had no issues with dry time. All notes taken in the cheapest notebook I could find.

A good pen won't leak on you, so no worries there. As for your next pen, I have a TWSBI 540 that I really like and holds a ton of ink, but I haven't really had a chance to test it out in a similar situation yet.

 

[cstephens]

I have been carrying fountain pens in my shirt pocket, jacket pocket, jeans pocket, and shoulder bag for years. I've never had one leak. Regarding pens/ink for note taking...I am quite fond of Pelikan inks and Levenger inks. and I also use several inks by Private Reserve. My experience is that finer nibs are better for note taking and quicker ink drying.

 

[Shutterbug57]

I carry pens in my pocket all the time. I cannot remember having one leak in 40 or so years. My only advice would be to have a backup pen as you never know when you may run out of ink in your fountain pen. Travel ink pots are probably not in the college budget and even if they were, refilling and not missing notes would not be practical.

 

[strop]

I've never had a pen leak in my pocket that was capped. And the only pans that have leaked at all had problems. A cracked section on a Phileas,and a worn out seal on a 51 vac leaked into the cap.

My son (grad school) carris his Lamy in his jeans pocket all the time. I have a Kaweco ALSport that goes in my jeans pocket. a little more expensive but nearly bullet proof. Only downside to the Kaweco is the ink capacity of the small carts.

 

[airmech]

I will chime in on notebooks, NORCOM composition books but you want the ones "Made in Brazil" as they are FP friendly. I got mine at Wally world for a quarter during back to school sale.

Tom

 

[Dave258]

I have a Kaweco ALSport that goes in my jeans pocket. a little more expensive but nearly bullet proof. Only downside to the Kaweco is the ink capacity of the small carts.

Unless you eyedropper fill it. The only way I use them now, and they hold a good amount of ink! I also carry them in my jeans pocket with no problem at all.

 

[jzuzphreek]

I will chime in on notebooks, NORCOM composition books but you want the ones "Made in Brazil" as they are FP friendly. I got mine at Wally world for a quarter during back to school sale.

Tom

The Roaring Spring composition books work well too. And they're made in the USA. You can just only expect to be able to write on one side of the page.

 

[strop]

Unless you eyedropper fill it. The only way I use them now, and they hold a good amount of ink! I also carry them in my jeans pocket with no problem at all.

Except the AL which is metal so I can't eyedropper it.

 

[showcattle]

Except the AL which is metal so I can't eyedropper it.

Why cant you eyedropper a metal pen?

 

[HeartsKing]

Unless you eyedropper fill it. The only way I use them now, and they hold a good amount of ink! I also carry them in my jeans pocket with no problem at all.

Most people recommend against eyedroppering the metal (aluminum) Kawecos. No problems with the plastics ones.

 

[syngent]

Ink and metal pens do not go well with one another.... there is a chemical reaction that will apparently destroy the pen... but no one will donate a metal pen to me to test it out lol... but I did kind of see a bit of what happened when my cheap converter went caputs inside a chinese pen I had.... was not pretty