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If you want smooth nibs you might want to check out Pelikan
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Aug 20, 2023 01:15
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Just spotted something I've not seen before on Aliexpress - unless this is a knockoff of someone else's design, this is a new design of retractable? Looks to come in 'regular' clicky and bolt-action. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004064160932.html I approve of the neon lime colour, although I've gotta say the method of stopping it from drying out is novel. 
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Aug 20, 2023 08:53
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Sankis posted:If you want smooth nibs you might want to check out Pelikan Well, you got me intrigued as I was under the impression that Pilot was the standard in smooth nibs and now I learn Platinum and Pelican are doing a pretty good job. What is the affordable Pelican 14K pen? The M405 seems to be their entry model gold nib and it starts at basically €250. Or is the difference hardly noticeable? The M200 is steel nibbed but already 120. Keetron fucked around with this message at 19:36 on Aug 20, 2023 |
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Aug 20, 2023 19:26
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The M400 is their entry level for the Souveran brand, I believe, which is probably most comparable to the Montblanc Meisterstuck 140 line in terms of price. I'm not sure if there's a cheaper gold nib that they offer though searching for cheaper vintage models, especially if you're in Europe, might be a good idea. The M200 line is still really good though, imo. I have one and I probably use it more than my M800.
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Aug 20, 2023 19:39
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Sankis posted:The M400 is their entry level for the Souveran brand, I believe, which is probably most comparable to the Montblanc Meisterstuck 140 line in terms of price. I'm not sure if there's a cheaper gold nib that they offer though searching for cheaper vintage models, especially if you're in Europe, might be a good idea. Thank you for supporting my financially crippling purchase, I got an M200 in brown marble as I have no brown pen yet but I do use a lot of inks in that spectrum. If I like it, I'll add an M400 to the line up later. Now to wait a few weeks for it to arrive, always painful.
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Aug 20, 2023 20:06
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Jinhao launched a new line of pens called the 9019 under their new Dadao series (which I think is them attempting a 'luxury' sub-brand) and I have to say it's really impressive. The one I got is in a strawberry-colored translucent acrylic, but it also comes in a clear demonstrator, translucent blue, opaque black, red, and blue. It's a huge pen, larger than even the X159. Since I have both, I took a few comparison photos:  It uses the same #8 size nib as the X159, but has a larger grip section:  The thing that really sets it apart is the huge screw-in converter, which is (as far as I know) made just for the 9019. Much larger both in dimensions and ink capacity, it even has a gold plated metal piston knob:   Overall I love writing with this thing and it's well worth the couple dollars asking price. If you like big pens check it out!
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Aug 21, 2023 22:50
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Oh that looks fantastic. Where did you buy it?
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Aug 22, 2023 01:37
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Dang, that is pretty sweet
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Aug 22, 2023 02:32
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I got mine from Aliexpress as I didn't mind waiting a bit, but they are also available through retailers like Amazon and Etsy. Prices from Ali or eBay are around $6 US, but you'll have to wait a few weeks to get it; Amazon or Etsy are usually $12 but have much faster shipping.
Chip McFuck fucked around with this message at 04:08 on Aug 22, 2023 |
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Aug 22, 2023 04:04
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Chip McFuck posted:Jinhao launched a new line of pens called the 9019 under their new Dadao series (which I think is them attempting a 'luxury' sub-brand) and I have to say it's really impressive. The one I got is in a strawberry-colored translucent acrylic, but it also comes in a clear demonstrator, translucent blue, opaque black, red, and blue. I've had a chance to play with one of these, I quite liked it. It's a copy of the Namiki Emperor
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Aug 22, 2023 17:59
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So my dad dug up an old Omas of his, pen from the '90s at a glance. Unfortunately he left an old pelikan turquoise cartridge to dry in it and so far I've been bathing the nib and flushing the feed for 3 days and still get blue-ish water lol. I can't really tell what model is it because I don't know jack about old pens, all I know it's a slim all metal pen that used to have a polished metal effect (that's all scratched and crumbled away mostly now) Anyway it looks pretty cool and I can't wait to try it. He also dug up some old pelikan cartridges that surprisingly seem to have a lot of ink in them still. I'm kinda tempted because from the way it colors the water it looks like an absolutely gorgeous ink hahah Keep it in mind for my next ink haul
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Aug 23, 2023 16:46
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Not fountain pens, but I thought yall might appreciate some stuff my mom just gave me. The gold Cross ballpoint is probably the one really nice thing in there, if eBay prices are reflective of that. I don't really like ballpoints or retractables so these probably won't get much use but they belonged to my fussy engineer grandfather and I don't have much of his stuff so I'll keep them. I do like the Papermate and Parker pencils. The Papermate matched set will probably just live in a notebook somewhere that gets occasional use rather than my everyday walking around notebook.
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Aug 23, 2023 17:47
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Is this the thread that got me all hot about fountain pens years ago? I think it might be. I've been using a Noodler's Ink pen for years now, I'm attaching a photo. Love it. But it dries out really quickly, like, a couple times a week I take it over to the sink and slurp up some water so I can keep writing. Is this normal? I live in the desert, stuff dries out pretty quckly. Maybe it's normal. I'll try using the Al-Star for a week or two, so I'll know for sure, but I might keep using this Noodler's pen because it looks so drat cool. Thanks for motivating me to check into it, thread! And thanks for getting me into this ludicrous technology ten years ago! cruft fucked around with this message at 23:06 on Aug 23, 2023 |
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Aug 23, 2023 23:00
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complete speculation, probably unfounded and wrong: Maybe it's an issue with the feed not delivering enough ink rather than it drying out? Those noodler's pens (yours looks like a Creaper?) use an ebonite (vulcanized rubber) feed, you could try resetting it. You basically dunk it in boiling water for a short time to soften the rubber and then put pressure on it while it cools.
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Aug 23, 2023 23:07
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SixteenShells posted:complete speculation, probably unfounded and wrong: Maybe it's an issue with the feed not delivering enough ink rather than it drying out? Those noodler's pens (yours looks like a Creaper?) use an ebonite (vulcanized rubber) feed, you could try resetting it. You basically dunk it in boiling water for a short time to soften the rubber and then put pressure on it while it cools. It's definitely drying out. I can see the volume go way down in the little reservoir window, adding water gets it back up to near-full, next week it's practically empty again. It's my main pen, so I notice when the ink is getting too watered down: after maybe 6 weeks of reconstituting it every couple of days. When I bought this, I got a couple other Noodler's pens, including one that uses a bladder you squeeze with your thumb. This one has a screw with a plunger. I also bought a fountain ballpoint, which is cool, but it leaks really easily. I suppose I should post a photo of everything, that seems to be what you do here.
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Aug 23, 2023 23:15
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Trying to figure out which day this weekend I’m going to go to the SF Pen Show. Might take Friday off and go to get the first look at stuff, or might try first thing Saturday morning. I’m pretty well set on pens though I think there will be a couple of Bokumondoh urushi pens which would severely tempt me. Otherwise I definitely want some inks and a notebook.
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Aug 24, 2023 01:57
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cruft, I have a Noodler's Neponset that's a big old hunk of ebonite. I just use Burma Road Brown in it. I've had it dry on me, but not that fast. I also have an Ahab that I tried for Bay State Blue, it was just about as finicky as any other pen taking on Bay State Blue, with a bonus round of dripping the last bit of its ink on some linoleum tiles that I then had to desperately clean. This all came from a notion of trying Noodler's pens with Noodler's inks.
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Aug 24, 2023 06:43
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So last night I was cleaning out MY GIRLFRIEND'S Kaweco Sport because she'd let ink dry out in it and while I was trying to draw the last of it out of the feed with a paper towel held against the nib the entire feed just....slid out? I had a momentary freak-out, rinsed more elderly ink out of it (R&K Solferino is a fabulous colour but oh my is it persistent) and then slid it back in to the section, where it seems to have stayed. Is this....normal?
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Aug 24, 2023 13:21
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It looks like it's fine for the Kaweco Sport feed/nib to come out - I found a few "how to clean" videos where they pull it out. I'm guessing the fiddling from cleaning might have gotten it a little loose/unseated to where it slid out, so hopefully if it fit back in snug it's OK. DurianGray fucked around with this message at 13:31 on Aug 24, 2023 |
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Aug 24, 2023 13:28
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I guess you're not supposed to take the nib & feed out a lot because it might stop friction fitting at some point and that's really the only bad thing. It is SO much quicker to clean out that way, though!
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Aug 24, 2023 13:52
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cruft posted:It's definitely drying out. I can see the volume go way down in the little reservoir window, adding water gets it back up to near-full, next week it's practically empty again. It's my main pen, so I notice when the ink is getting too watered down: after maybe 6 weeks of reconstituting it every couple of days. Oooof. That's a shame. Yeah sorry, no idea then. At least they're not expensive pens to replace.
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Aug 24, 2023 15:53
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SixteenShells posted:Oooof. That's a shame. Yeah sorry, no idea then. At least they're not expensive pens to replace. The Noodler's guy, at least when I bought them, was very up-front about them being el-cheapo fountain pens. And, whatever, I can reconstitute the ink, it's not a big deal. It was probably a $14 pen and it's lasted me 10 years. It was a good purchase. I have two more of these. I should try the others to see if they dry up as quickly. Maybe it's just a manufacturing defect. I'm probably going to go right back to the aqua one, though. It's sort of my pal at this point. Anyway here's a pen photo. I should probably start giving these away to people, I'm never going to use most of them. cruft fucked around with this message at 16:14 on Aug 24, 2023 |
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Aug 24, 2023 16:12
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Yeah the Noodler's pens should not be treated like a genu-wine Writing Instrument but more like a toy you can play around with. If you happen to get one that is good enough quality to be a daily driver, you are the exception, not the rule.
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Aug 24, 2023 16:24
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Mad Hamish posted:So last night I was cleaning out MY GIRLFRIEND'S Kaweco Sport because she'd let ink dry out in it and while I was trying to draw the last of it out of the feed with a paper towel held against the nib the entire feed just....slid out? I had a momentary freak-out, rinsed more elderly ink out of it (R&K Solferino is a fabulous colour but oh my is it persistent) and then slid it back in to the section, where it seems to have stayed. Is this....normal? Yes.
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Aug 24, 2023 16:28
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I have a Charlie around that I don't mind how it writes, but the smell... I don't mind it much myself but I work around other people.
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Aug 24, 2023 16:45
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Heath posted:Yeah the Noodler's pens should not be treated like a genu-wine Writing Instrument but more like a toy you can play around with. If you happen to get one that is good enough quality to be a daily driver, you are the exception, not the rule. This is a very helpful thing for me to read, thank you. I'm going to give up trying to get these pens to work as well as the Lamy, and see if I can give them away. I don't need five crappy unused pens. I also just realized my dad gave me this fancy-rear end fat Mont Blanc pen. Makes me feel like I need a cigar before I should touch it, but I might give it a shot. e: oh holy poo poo, this is a $1000 pen, no way in hell am I writing with this thing ever cruft fucked around with this message at 18:54 on Aug 24, 2023 |
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Aug 24, 2023 18:35
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Heath posted:Yeah the Noodler's pens should not be treated like a genu-wine Writing Instrument but more like a toy you can play around with. If you happen to get one that is good enough quality to be a daily driver, you are the exception, not the rule. I had an Ahab for maybe a year and could never get it working quite right. Think I sent it to my brother and I have no idea if he ever got it working well.
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Aug 24, 2023 18:51
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I've heard your brother bought his own to experience it's smells from new. It's always worked okay but not great.
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Aug 24, 2023 19:03
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stealie72 posted:I may be remembering wrong, but weren't they specifically marketed for tinkering with? Like a near promise that they were going to be C+ out of the box, but could be messed with to eventually get an A+? yeah i think that's how the marketing copy goes but that also feels like... some real marketing bullshit.
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Aug 24, 2023 19:09
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tater_salad posted:I've heard your brother bought his own to experience it's smells from new. It's always worked okay but not great. I actually like the smell of my ebonite pen. I find it, I dunno, comforting? Relaxing? It makes me feel like I'm going to take some time to write some stuff. I know some people find certain plastic and rubber outgassing scents incredibly offensive (thank you Amazon). Maybe I'm just a weirdo.
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Aug 24, 2023 19:24
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SixteenShells posted:yeah i think that's how the marketing copy goes but that also feels like... some real marketing bullshit. No, that's the point. You're meant to fiddle with it until it writes the way you'd like, and it doesn't require anything beyond some fingers to do so. I've got an FPR pen that's the same way. The real issue with the pen (in my case an Ahab), is that a cruft posted:Is this the thread that got me all hot about fountain pens years ago? I think it might be. In the other picture, the endcap on the cap is flush, and here it isn't. Are the threads hosed or something? Assuming there's just a hole behind it, all that extra airflow is definitely contributing to it drying out so quickly. Caps generally aren't actually airtight, but it does seem like that's drying out especially quickly, even for a desert.
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Aug 24, 2023 23:29
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Zenostein posted:In the other picture, the endcap on the cap is flush, and here it isn't. Are the threads hosed or something? Assuming there's just a hole behind it, all that extra airflow is definitely contributing to it drying out so quickly. Caps generally aren't actually airtight, but it does seem like that's drying out especially quickly, even for a desert. I broke the top off the endcap fidgeting with it and superglued it back on (poorly). But it doesn't matter: the hole doesn't go all the way through, and there's no way that any gas could escape there even if the endcap were completely removed. e: well, no obvious way. Clearly the pen is venting somewhere, my guess is through the threads. But it had this problem before I broke the endcap.
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Aug 25, 2023 01:00
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The marketing behind the pens hinges on the word "tinker" which makes you sound like a cute li'l guy making precise adjustments to work out something cool and unique when in reality it means you're taking an X-acto to a pen to get it to the baseline level of function that any of the dried out $3 Jinhaos in the pile on your desk have, except you paid $30 to Goulet to get this one shipped to you with the full knowledge that you will need to let the thing aerate near an open window for 48 hours before you are advised to try writing with it
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Aug 25, 2023 12:39
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Heath posted:The marketing behind the pens hinges on the word "tinker" which makes you sound like a cute li'l guy making precise adjustments to work out something cool and unique when in reality it means you're taking an X-acto to a pen to get it to the baseline level of function that any of the dried out $3 Jinhaos in the pile on your desk have, except you paid $30 to Goulet to get this one shipped to you with the full knowledge that you will need to let the thing aerate near an open window for 48 hours before you are advised to try writing with it Edit: It seems like Nathan's little anti-Semitic oopsie and general weirdness has really killed most/all of the buzz he had. stealie72 fucked around with this message at 12:44 on Aug 25, 2023 |
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Aug 25, 2023 12:40
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I considered some entry-level Noodler's pen when I was window-shopping for my first non-disposable fountain pen, and ultimately settled on a white Lamy Safari, and I really feel like I dodged a bullet there. Having to gently caress around with a pen new out of the box to get it to work right sounds hellish. Like, is "Oh, it's made so you have to tinker around with it" just an excuse for lovely manufacturing? We got a sample vial of Ottoman Rose in one of those Wonder Pens ink sample blind bags and it's a serviceable ink I guess?
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Aug 25, 2023 15:43
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stealie72 posted:That's a good summary. I don't think it's just that, though neither helped him. It's also that there are so many more boutique brands making ink and pens that aren't really more expensive, and the hobby seems to have just grown quite a bit even since I got into it, so a lot of pens and inks are more available and affordable than they used to be. Combine that with Noodler's always having had a problem with color consistency in some of its lines (plus Nathan being a weird libertarian who is just vocal enough to be offputting to a lot of people) and Noodler's is just kind of another brand in the bunch--I think I'd still buy a Noodler's ink if there's nothing else out there like it, but there's about a dozen other brands I'd take over his stuff at this point if the option is there. Basically when a hobby is small, you're a plucky self-starter making the hobby accessible by keeping costs down... when it gets bigger, you're the weirdo brewing inks in your garage and screaming about check-washing while competing with serious companies with actual graphic designers and marketing departments
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Aug 25, 2023 15:56
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It's hard to make the usual argument for Noodler's ("the value!!") when you just end up getting an ink you may or may not use or even like except now you're stuck with an absolute shitload of it. Now that there are so many boutique brands out there with better presentation and quality control
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Aug 25, 2023 16:00
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Mad Hamish posted:I considered some entry-level Noodler's pen when I was window-shopping for my first non-disposable fountain pen, and ultimately settled on a white Lamy Safari, and I really feel like I dodged a bullet there. Having to gently caress around with a pen new out of the box to get it to work right sounds hellish. Like, is "Oh, it's made so you have to tinker around with it" just an excuse for lovely manufacturing? I dunno, seems more like "build your own pen from a kit". MockingQuantum posted:I think I'd still buy a Noodler's ink if there's nothing else out there like it, but there's about a dozen other brands I'd take over his stuff at this point if the option is there. I've been using the same jar of Noodler's Forest Green for 10 years. But would you mind listing a few of those other brands for when I run out in 2034?
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Aug 25, 2023 16:06
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cruft posted:I've been using the same jar of Noodler's Forest Green for 10 years. But would you mind listing a few of those other brands for when I run out in 2034? MockingQuantum posted:I don't think it's just that, though neither helped him. It's also that there are so many more boutique brands making ink and pens that aren't really more expensive, and the hobby seems to have just grown quite a bit even since I got into it, so a lot of pens and inks are more available and affordable than they used to be. Combine that with Noodler's always having had a problem with color consistency in some of its lines (plus Nathan being a weird libertarian who is just vocal enough to be offputting to a lot of people) and Noodler's is just kind of another brand in the bunch--I think I'd still buy a Noodler's ink if there's nothing else out there like it, but there's about a dozen other brands I'd take over his stuff at this point if the option is there. Also, what's trendy in ink just doesn't seem to be anything Nathan is interim chasing. Things like shimmer and sheen. I'm sure he's still doing great business selling gently caress off huge bottles of Heart of Darkness to the silent "majority" of FP users, but the bleeding edge Instagram crowd has moved on.
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Aug 25, 2023 16:39
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cruft posted:e: oh holy poo poo, this is a $1000 pen, no way in hell am I writing with this thing ever You should at least try it! Absolutely put something reliably easy to clean in there and keep it safely at your desk if you're worried about it; expensive pens are fun, though, especially if you weren't the one to pay for them. They usually have nice nibs, too. I have handled and written with pens that are absolute nightmares to care for, but Montblanc fortunately doesn't make their pens out of 1920s black hard rubber that turns green if you look at it wrong. Also, about Noodler's pens: They look alright but the build quality is average-to-poor and the smell of them is just awful. I do generally like how ebonite smells but Noodler's "vegetal resin" pens smell like a pier at low tide. Janky vintage pens are a lot more fun to tinker with than a newly-made stinkpen that markets its problems as "ideal for fountain pen enthusiasts who enjoy tinkering with their pens."
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Aug 25, 2023 20:20
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