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laertes22 posted:I think I am leaning towards a Pilot/Namiki, as I was just blown out of the water by the Pilot Metropolitan. Can someone talk about the Pilot Vanishing Point vs. the Namiki Falcon? My Metal Falcon is one of my favorite pens to write with. It's an extra hundred dollars from the Namiki Falcon, but the only difference are the rhodium coating on the nib and the slightly wider metal body. Mine is a soft fine, which draws a fine line normally and has just a bit of flex to it. You won't get the crazy copperplate stuff you can get with a full on flex nib, but I really love the feel of it when writing, and applying just a bit of a heavy hand can make your handwriting look pretty neat. There has been a lot of love for the VP in this thread, and I think it'll be my next big purchase. I'd give it a close look online (and try one in a shop if it's a possibility) and decide if it's a pen you'd enjoy. The big disadvantages as I understand it are drying faster (as was noted just above) and it's harder to clean.
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Aug 15, 2013 00:49
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xilixliadon posted:So I found what appears to be a gold nibbed pen at a pawn shop but don't know the brand. Anyone know much about Levenger? It's gold colored, has a screw on cap, and is a fairly simple design. It is a single taper while closed, thickest part is the cap, and it has engraved lines running lengthwise. It's nice and heavy and super solid feeling. I believe the model number is PI600, but I can't find it on the googles. Anyone know if it's worth the $50they're asking? Also, it's in brand new condition. Levenger is an American company mostly specialising in stationery and office gear, though they started to move into selling... honest-to-god-knows-what pap in recent years. http://www.levenger.com/ You could probably do better for 50 but you could probably do worse for 50.
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Aug 15, 2013 01:38
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I have a guy making me a box for my pens/stationery/etc and he sent me the first progress pic today    Going for #3, rosewood. Here's his site: http://www.diabolus.org/. He also does period music performances! Invalid Octopus fucked around with this message at 04:30 on Aug 15, 2013 |
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Aug 15, 2013 04:27
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My father recently bought me a really nice Mont Blanc for my birthday- it's like a polished gun metal grey, capped with the same metal, with a black grip (I can upload pics of it, because I'm curious to know just how much it's worth). Unfortunately it came with a very light blue ink cartridge, as well as a small pack of the same ink. I'd rather have something darker, so I checked eBay and found these: http://www.ebay.ca/sch/sis.html?_kw=MONTBLANC+FOUNTAIN+PEN+BLUE+BLACK+INK+CARTRIDGE+2+BOXE I was wondering if there were any that you guys could recommend. Without knowing much about pens or ink, I like the classic Black and the Racing Green. Edit: Looking around online, it looks like a "Noblesse" variant:  Mine is in better shape and has gold details, such as the clip and the rings around the MB logo. Professor Shark fucked around with this message at 14:40 on Aug 15, 2013 |
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Aug 15, 2013 14:19
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MB Racing Green is out of production, so don't get too attached to it!
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Aug 15, 2013 15:41
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drat; I'm thinking of just going for the Mystery Black then. The Irish Green is a bit too light for my tastes. Edit: And Burgundy for when I mark papers 
Professor Shark fucked around with this message at 15:59 on Aug 15, 2013 |
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Aug 15, 2013 15:51
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I've been meaning to try Mont Blanc Oyster Grey as the videos and pics I've seen of it make it look like a really interesting colour. The Mont Blanc Blue-Black is supposed to be really nice, though it might be Iron Gall
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Aug 16, 2013 00:28
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Duro posted:The Mont Blanc Blue-Black is supposed to be really nice, though it might be Iron Gall You're not a fan of iron gall? Tell me more. I love 'em, and have some iron-gall blends mixed up by a crazy german pharmacist that aren't plain blue->blue-black (I have green->black, orange->sepia, turquoise->blue-black).
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Aug 16, 2013 06:14
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I've got a bit of a problem that I hope you guys might be able to help me with. I have a black Monteverde Invincia Stylus, which up until recently was one of my favorite pens. The first month or so that I had it, it wrote like a dream. However, lately whenever I put new ink in it, it writes well for a couple of days, then it gets scratchy and stops writing (even though there is plenty of ink left in it). If I clean and flush it and refill with ink, it is ok for a couple of days again, then stops writing. I have not heard anything bad about this particular pen in regards to it not writing well or having problems. Whenever I change inks, I always start with clean distilled water, flush it with Goulet's pen flush, then wash again with clean distilled water, then finally allow it to dry. I have mainly used Noodler's Heart of Darkness, Noodler's Black Swan in Australian Roses, Noodler's 54th Massachusetts, and Noodler's Bad Belted Kingfisher in it. Anybody have any ideas as to what my problem might be or how to fix it?
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Aug 16, 2013 15:25
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Sounds like your paper is gumming up the works. I typically clean up my nib every 24-48 hours just to be proactive. This entails just getting a wet rag and wiping the nib until I guess it's clean. Semi-dry ink could do this too.
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Aug 16, 2013 17:18
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ChickenOfTomorrow posted:You're not a fan of iron gall? Tell me more. Oh hey I have that German pharmacist's iron-gall blend too! I didn't realize he has more colors now. I have the standard vintage iron-gall one, it lays down a very nice tealish blue-black color and after a few days the ink settles into a grayish blue-black.
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Aug 16, 2013 19:19
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ChickenOfTomorrow posted:You're not a fan of iron gall? Tell me more. I've never actually used one, though I'm a big fan of blue-black in general, so I guess I'll have to one day. I'm just not the kind of guy that cleans his pens every 2 weeks, so I probably shouldn't mess around with Iron Gall inks too much, for fear of ruining a good pen. laertes22 posted:I've got a bit of a problem that I hope you guys might be able to help me with. I have a black Monteverde Invincia Stylus, which up until recently was one of my favorite pens. The first month or so that I had it, it wrote like a dream. However, lately whenever I put new ink in it, it writes well for a couple of days, then it gets scratchy and stops writing (even though there is plenty of ink left in it). If I clean and flush it and refill with ink, it is ok for a couple of days again, then stops writing. I have not heard anything bad about this particular pen in regards to it not writing well or having problems. Whenever I change inks, I always start with clean distilled water, flush it with Goulet's pen flush, then wash again with clean distilled water, then finally allow it to dry. I have mainly used Noodler's Heart of Darkness, Noodler's Black Swan in Australian Roses, Noodler's 54th Massachusetts, and Noodler's Bad Belted Kingfisher in it. Maybe you have paper fibres between the tines? I'd get those brass sheets to try and clean between the tines. I think Goulet sells them now
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Aug 16, 2013 20:56
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xilixliadon posted:So I found what appears to be a gold nibbed pen at a pawn shop but don't know the brand. Anyone know much about Levenger? It's gold colored, has a screw on cap, and is a fairly simple design. It is a single taper while closed, thickest part is the cap, and it has engraved lines running lengthwise. It's nice and heavy and super solid feeling. I believe the model number is PI600, but I can't find it on the googles. Anyone know if it's worth the $50 they're asking? Also, it's in brand new condition. Levenger Newton?  (on top) If it is I have a silver/chrome one. It was actually my first fountain pen. I got it for cheap on sale (probably when they had killed the line and were selling off the rest). It's a good solid pen, heavy but feels good in your hand. The nib is just gold plated. Levenger uses Bock nibs I think. The one I have is a M but runs broad to almost a stub. It's nice and smooth though, I still pull it out sometimes. I think I paid $80-ish and it was half off. It's not too common from what I've seen, so if you like the design and it's not too broad for you I'd go for it. PK-Fire fucked around with this message at 08:01 on Aug 18, 2013 |
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Aug 18, 2013 07:58
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I just ordered some Mystery Black- I was tempted by the Lavender, but thought I'd go conservative for now.
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Aug 19, 2013 00:18
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Duro posted:I've never actually used one, though I'm a big fan of blue-black in general, so I guess I'll have to one day. Much thanks! Too bad I just put in an order with them last week, so I will have to wait until my next order to get the brass sheets. On the plus side, my Pilot VP arrived this weekend! I had not realized that paper particules could gum up the tines, but seveal people have mentioned this now, so I suspect this is exactly what happened. Will definitely get the brass sheets on my next order.
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Aug 19, 2013 16:44
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My wife is awesome! She bought me a Visconti Traveling Inkwell and a personalized leather pen holder (holds 3) for my birthday! The inkwell is quite an interesting design if you've never seen one. It's a glass tube that holds, 10(?)mL of ink, and has a stopped at the top. Once you take the stopper off your pen goes in, and there's a thick rubber gasket that seals the pen. Then you turn it upside down, and get a complete fill on your pen, regardless of filling technique. The best part is that the ink pot fits inside the pen holder just like another pen!
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Aug 19, 2013 17:17
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SnakesRevenge posted:My Metal Falcon is one of my favorite pens to write with. It's an extra hundred dollars from the Namiki Falcon, but the only difference are the rhodium coating on the nib and the slightly wider metal body. Thanks for the info! I decided to splurge, and I ended up getting the Pilot VP and a Pilot Custom Heritage 912 (big ups to Kessel for pointing me in the direction of that one). I've only had the VP for a couple of days, but I love it so far. I was actually kind of worried that having the clip down on the grip would get in the way or make holding it awkward, but it hasn't caused me any problems. Still waiting on the 912 to arrived from J-land.
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Aug 19, 2013 17:28
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The pen that comes with noodles heart Of darkness with the ball point tip and the nib. Can I buy it elsewhere and if so where?
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Aug 19, 2013 18:46
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You're in luck that's a Platinum Preppy, their line of disposable fountain pens that comes in a rainbow of colors. Plastic's awful brittle though and it's a cartridge feeder normally. The silicon ring on the Preppy I got with my HoD is already starting to crack and the pen cap has a short hairline fracture up one side now. Wonderfully smoother writer though!
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Aug 19, 2013 18:57
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You probably got a Platinum Preppy, but I think I've seen the Creeper being given away with Noodler's ink as well, and it also has a rollerball option
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Aug 19, 2013 19:42
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Blah, I'm trying to cut down on my pen stuff a little, including getting rid of a few inks. I have both Iroshizuku Asa-gao and J. Herbin 1670 Bleu Ocean, which are pretty close to each other in performance, just that the 1670 has a slightly more purple hue. They both perform great, but they're close enough to each other that I feel like I only need one, and I don't know how to decide 
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Aug 19, 2013 22:40
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Aug 20, 2013 17:50
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404notfound posted:Blah, I'm trying to cut down on my pen stuff a little, including getting rid of a few inks. I have both Iroshizuku Asa-gao and J. Herbin 1670 Bleu Ocean, which are pretty close to each other in performance, just that the 1670 has a slightly more purple hue. They both perform great, but they're close enough to each other that I feel like I only need one, and I don't know how to decide Are you saying that you want to sell the bottle you have, or not buy one of them again once your bottles are finished. I personally don't like J.Herbin inks because I don't find them saturated enough for my taste, but if you have to resell one of the two, the Iroshizuku will surely maintain its value much more than the J.Herbin
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Aug 20, 2013 18:07
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What inks are of a similar viscosity to Waterman's Florida Blue? I made the terrible mistake of putting Noodler's Polar Green in my Carene and oh god. I didn't just get nib creep, the loving thing might as well have goose-stepped around the page with ink-covered boots like some strung-out Nazi.
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Aug 23, 2013 03:39
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Considering Nathan Tardiff's political views that's not far wrong.
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Aug 23, 2013 18:27
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Duro posted:Are you saying that you want to sell the bottle you have, or not buy one of them again once your bottles are finished. I personally don't like J.Herbin inks because I don't find them saturated enough for my taste, but if you have to resell one of the two, the Iroshizuku will surely maintain its value much more than the J.Herbin I don't really wanna go through the hassle of selling and packing and shipping, so I'm probably just going to give my unwanted stuff to the one friend I have who's also into fountain pens. And I do have J. Herbin Vert Empire, which is kind of a light olive color, but the Bleu Ocean is fairly saturated, though still has a little leeway for shading. I might end up sticking with the Asa-gao just because the Iroshizuku bottle is easier to work with.
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Aug 23, 2013 19:14
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I just bought these three Pilot Varisty fountain pens pretty cheaply - they were only around $8 at Office Depo. Does it have to do with the fact of their price or my inexperience in using them that sometimes when I'm writing, the tops of letters or entire letters just won't show up on the paper? It's kind of annoying in that every other word I have a letter not appear, or my i's aren't dotted &c. Do I just have to get used to writing with them to make it go away?
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Aug 25, 2013 05:05
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The Varsity pens put out a ridiculous amount of ink so it's probably your technique. Are you writing with the ball part of the tip down towards the paper (so that you can see the writing on the flat part of the nib)? You're probably just lifting too soon. I don't even like to use my varsity now that I've moved on to an extra fine tipped Safari. They feel like they're pouring ink onto the page but they do write very, very smoothly. You can turn the pen over so that you're writing "incorrectly" and it puts out a lot finer line. This is bad news on more expensive pens with nibs made of more easily bent material but you'll be alright with the varsity.
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Aug 25, 2013 05:12
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JP Money posted:The Varsity pens put out a ridiculous amount of ink so it's probably your technique. Are you writing with the ball part of the tip down towards the paper (so that you can see the writing on the flat part of the nib)? Writing with it upside-down actually worked. And the funny thing is, is that soon after posting that, writing it the normal way didn't make me miss any letters or parts of letters. The problem was sort of like when I just start using a calligraphy pen after not using it for a while - the ink just won't come out. I noticed that in a lower case "t" (which looks like a + in my handwriting), the line straight down simply had no ink on it, but the line across did; as if it was dry for that stroke. I just started using it, so maybe I had to give it some time.
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Aug 25, 2013 05:20
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I may have accidentally splashed some diamine oxblood red and/or waterman blue-black on my bathroom walls while converting the preppies I ordered. Water and/or mr clean magic Market should get it out right?
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Aug 25, 2013 17:50
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Audax posted:I may have accidentally splashed some diamine oxblood red and/or waterman blue-black on my bathroom walls while converting the preppies I ordered. If that doesn't work I've used rubbing alcohol and that works very well
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Aug 25, 2013 17:51
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Well well, look at what just arrived. The Preppy pen came with the Heart of Darkness ink, I had gotten an extra converter but it doesn't seem to fit quite as snugly as I'd like, so it kind of moves up and down the pen when I close it. I haven't gotten around to trying the Lamy yet, I'll probably do it later today.
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Aug 25, 2013 21:10
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So I went to Flax in San Francisco and I got the chance to try a variety of pens in person to find one that felt good. I ended up with a Faber-Castell LOOM Fine, which is a steel body (chrome on the barrel, matte on the grip), black plastic cap. I also ended up getting a Rhodia DotPad, Apica Basic 5B4, Apica CD-5, Whitelines Spiral A5, Rhodia 5 1/2" x 8 1/4" Webnotebook, and three inks: J. Herbin Lie de The, Diamine Prussian Blue, Noodler's Bulletproof Black. I may have splurged a bit.  e: pen 
aldantefax fucked around with this message at 21:51 on Aug 25, 2013 |
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Aug 25, 2013 21:45
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Edmond Dantes posted:Well well, look at what just arrived. You can use the Preppy without a converter since Noodler gives you a silicon o-ring. Fill the bottom with ink and you're good to go.
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Aug 25, 2013 22:45
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A Dirty Sock posted:You can use the Preppy without a converter since Noodler gives you a silicon o-ring. Fill the bottom with ink and you're good to go. Oh, awesome, that did the trick. Now I have a different pen for each one of my inks.  /edit: wow, it feels really weird having the ink sloshing about the insides of the pen without a cartridge. Edmond Dantes fucked around with this message at 23:12 on Aug 25, 2013 |
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Aug 25, 2013 23:03
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Edmond Dantes posted:Oh, awesome, that did the trick. Now I have a different pen for each one of my inks. Yeah it holds a ton more than converter or cartridge. I've stored them upright so that there's no chance of seepage.
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Aug 26, 2013 00:44
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Kheldragar posted:Writing with it upside-down actually worked. And the funny thing is, is that soon after posting that, writing it the normal way didn't make me miss any letters or parts of letters. The problem was sort of like when I just start using a calligraphy pen after not using it for a while - the ink just won't come out. I noticed that in a lower case "t" (which looks like a + in my handwriting), the line straight down simply had no ink on it, but the line across did; as if it was dry for that stroke. I just started using it, so maybe I had to give it some time. That's known as "hard starting" and can be caused by a nib flaw known as "baby's bottom". I'm on my phone right now but Richard Binder's site has a nice discussion of baby's bottom and how to fix it. The easiest fix may be to grab a brown paper bag and draw a bunch of figure 8s. The brown bag is a wee bit abrasive and will smooth out the bum shape. Make sure to test frequently so you don't abrade it too much.
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Aug 26, 2013 02:30
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A Dirty Sock posted:You can use the Preppy without a converter since Noodler gives you a silicon o-ring. Fill the bottom with ink and you're good to go. In addition, the preppies that come with the larger bottles of Noodler's inks are missing the piece of plastic that grips the convertor/Platinum cartridge. They're eyedropper only.
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Aug 26, 2013 03:36
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Would anyone be interested in a bottle of Iroshizuku Fuyu-Gaki? I'm using it with a 1.1m stub nib at the moment, but;   plus shipping to anywhere in Australia or abroad, (it's been decanted into a small plastic bottle for cheaper postage). Please PM me if you're interested.I'm also considering picking up some Noodler's Antietam, since Red-Brown is the most  colour.
Welsper fucked around with this message at 07:45 on Aug 26, 2013 |
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Aug 26, 2013 07:43
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| # ? May 9, 2024 23:29 |
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If you like red-brown and you don't get Tsukushi, you're cheating yourself.
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Aug 26, 2013 08:00
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