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Pixelante posted:Questions! It'll take a con-50 no problem.
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Jul 24, 2016 03:23
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when you're dealing with Pilot cartridges and want to use bottled ink you might as well just get a syringe and refill your empty cartridges though
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Jul 24, 2016 03:49
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Anything special about the syringes they sell, or can I just get some from the pharmacy?
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Jul 24, 2016 04:01
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nah, you can use pretty much anything I work in an office that is shared with a drug treatment facility so I decided having syringes in my desk was possibly in poor taste and got a big pack of disposable pipettes which also work very well
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Jul 24, 2016 04:22
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Doesn't the MR use standard international, rather than Pilot proprietary converters? e: actually lets just look at the whole post Pixelante posted:Questions! You can use Pilot converters on the Kakuno. Your MR won't share converters with your other pilots, but it will with basically every other European brand other than Lamy. I've been super impressed with the TWSBI Eco. $30, piston fill, demonstrator, wide array of nib options. Eye dropper pens you just fill the whole barrel with ink, picture below. It's very important that they have a tennon and barrel that are not metal, and preferably not celluloid. Next step pens: The Eco, for sure. It can be hard because this is often where price becomes a factor. Moving from the $15 Metro to a $50ish or more something else can be a hard pill to swallow. If you're okay with $60 or more, the Shaeffer Sagaris is nice, and both the Pilot Falcon and Platinum 3776 are well worth it if you can get them from a Japanese seller on eBay or Engeika for ~$75 USD. The last two retail for $150-$240 in the US, depending on nib selection. I also have two very controversial next step pens, the TWSBI 580, and Noodler's Konrad. The 580 has a million nib options, but TWSBI has historically had problems with their plastic cracking. They'll replace the part for free or just the cost of shipping it no questions asked though, their service is great. The Konrad is a Noodler's pen. Ebonite feed, #6 nib size, a acrylic or ebonite body. However, it will only work as well as you can tinker with it. They have some really pretty acrylics though, and if you have the patience to fiddle with it until it's just right for you, it's a great pen. An eyedropper fill, for reference: 
NeurosisHead fucked around with this message at 15:54 on Jul 24, 2016 |
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Jul 24, 2016 15:29
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Just bought a blue Noodler's Ahab Flex pen, I'm really enjoying it but it smells so terrible. I washed the whole pen with dish soap and left it to air overnight but it's still pretty unpleasant. Has anyone had success in getting it out?
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Jul 24, 2016 16:19
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You can't wash it out, the smell just fades over time. It's common with pens that use the "vegetal resin" from India in their manufacture.
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Jul 24, 2016 16:22
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Yeah, just leave it out disassembled somewhere with good airflow for a few days. It goes away.
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Jul 24, 2016 17:20
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Pixelante posted:Questions! If you're buying it in Canada it will be a Metropolitan and not an MR, regardless of how it's labelled.
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Jul 24, 2016 18:29
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Pixelante posted:Questions! I rather like my Prera. It's another Pilot, and somewhere between $25–40, depending on where you buy it from (the US prices are usually at the upper range, although JetPens is about $30 which is about right.) It's as showy or as subtle as you'd like, depending on what color you get. I think it's a bit lighter than the Metros, but I don't remember. The only caveat is that it is a pretty short pen — I don't think it works quite so well unposted, if that's an issue for you. It's also available as a demonstrator model (sometimes called an Iro-ai), those are usually a bit pricier than a regular Prera. For what it's worth, I don't think the LAMY on the Safari's particularly obtrusive, but I also have a charcoal one, so it's pretty hard to spot anyway. You'd want to double-check, but I think the Kakuno will only take the CON-20, CON-30, and CON-50; there's also a CON-70 but that'll only fit in some Pilot pens, so you'll want to double-check on that. I'm pretty sure the CON-30 will fit in anything that takes a CON-20 or 50, generally speaking. For a properly out-of-left field suggestion, I had a Parker 45 I really liked. The problem there is that in the last decade or so they've suddenly become very near to absurdly expensive for what they are. But they do write nicely and have a good weight to them, if you get one of the stainless models at least. Of course, that's another cartridge/converter you'd need to get (although they also take Aurora cartridges, if those are easier to get your hands on. Plus, Aurora Black is pretty well-regarded as far as blacks go). grack posted:If you're buying it in Canada it will be a Metropolitan and not an MR, regardless of how it's labelled. It's kinda annoying how even on Pilot's US side (I'm assuming pilotpens.us is specifically the US site) they're now calling it the MR or sometimes the Metropolitan somewhat interchangeably. It's not really an issue for the ballpens, but for the fountain pens that's an annoying change, if only because it makes buying things online more confusing. Premature ejacula- posted:Just bought a blue Noodler's Ahab Flex pen, I'm really enjoying it but it smells so terrible. I washed the whole pen with dish soap and left it to air overnight but it's still pretty unpleasant. Has anyone had success in getting it out? Just time. Maybe leave it in the sunlight for a little bit? I forget if that was actually helpful or not, since I never particularly minded the smell. At the very least, the smell stays with the pen, not your hand.
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Jul 24, 2016 19:57
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Hi thread! I picked up a nice matching pair of Rotring 600s - a pen (M gold nib) and pencil (0.7mm lead). Just sharing, really, and wondering - what cartridge will it take? Any thoughts?   
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Jul 24, 2016 20:07
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That'll be a standard international converter!
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Jul 24, 2016 20:11
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The 600 is a hell of a good pen.
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Jul 24, 2016 20:23
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NeurosisHead posted:That'll be a standard international converter! OK, so can I use any cartridges in there? Or just the converter? (I might be over-thinking here. I normally use a Pilot Metro, and re-fill the cartridges with a pipette. I like this, as it lets me play with inks easily. Should I just relax and use the adapter?) The seller also included a nice Rotring leather case, and a bottle of Noodlers brown ink! A good deal.
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Jul 24, 2016 20:47
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If you already have bottled ink, just use the converter. You're over thinking it.
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Jul 24, 2016 20:59
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Thought so. Ta!
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Jul 24, 2016 21:08
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Teach posted:OK, so can I use any cartridges in there? Or just the converter? (I might be over-thinking here. I normally use a Pilot Metro, and re-fill the cartridges with a pipette. I like this, as it lets me play with inks easily. Should I just relax and use the adapter?) Any standard international, yeah. Ranging form short to maxi will fit if a full size converter fits, but proprietary brand carts like Pilot, Platinum, Lamy will not. And what grack said, if you're using bottled ink just use the converter.
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Jul 24, 2016 22:57
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Cheap VP showed up today  No converter either so it's definitely a JDM model, but for $45 I don't give a drat. The white/chrome colour combination looks better than I thought it would.
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Jul 26, 2016 22:45
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Is there a thread like this one for journals, or is this basically the general writing-on-stuff thread? I picked up a Midori Traveler today mostly to use as a school planner/journal/sketchpad. I'm not super thrilled with the quality of the blank paper insert that came with it - it's not bad, and there's almost no ghosting, but the feathering on the ink seems inconsistent and variable. For reference, I'm using Kon-Peki blue with a fine Pilot Metro. It seems like it writes just fine and then I hit the middle of the page and the letters start blooming. I don't know if it's the curvature of the page changing the angle and drawing out more ink or if it's just me, but I don't get that out of my Moleskine (which has the opposite problem of ghosting badly with dark inks.)
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Jul 27, 2016 07:23
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Heath posted:Is there a thread like this one for journals, or is this basically the general writing-on-stuff thread? I picked up a Midori Traveler today mostly to use as a school planner/journal/sketchpad. I'm not super thrilled with the quality of the blank paper insert that came with it - it's not bad, and there's almost no ghosting, but the feathering on the ink seems inconsistent and variable. For reference, I'm using Kon-Peki blue with a fine Pilot Metro. It seems like it writes just fine and then I hit the middle of the page and the letters start blooming. I don't know if it's the curvature of the page changing the angle and drawing out more ink or if it's just me, but I don't get that out of my Moleskine (which has the opposite problem of ghosting badly with dark inks.) I am in Japan and the Midori Traveller is a bit cheaper here so I picked one up too. I also have a Fine Pilot Metro and have the same blank insert. Right now I write on it with Noodler's Walnut and Waterman Serenity Blue in both fine and medium nibs and don't experience any feathering. As a leftie I mostly have to watch out for smearing ink before it dries. I switched over to a Rhodia Webnotebook for journal entries and am just using the Traveller for work notes and stuff. The narrowness of the pages messes with the flow of writing when using cursive.
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Jul 27, 2016 08:56
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How about using it horizontally? The narrowness of the book does strike me as a bit weird, but perhaps it works better for Japanese lettering? It does seem to work very well as a general planner, which is mostly what I bought it for.
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Jul 27, 2016 14:32
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It possible that there's been moisture exposure in that area, somehow. That would explain why it only feathers on a specific part of the page.
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Jul 27, 2016 15:46
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It's also possible that it's oil from your hands; I have that problem, worse on some papers than others. I just use a folded sheet of paper as a guard for where I rest my wrist.
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Jul 27, 2016 18:08
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I've never had that issue with my TN notebooks, so it sounds like either a defect or something got absorbed into the notebooks in that area. I actually carry a passport-sized TN in my pocket as a wallet/to-do list/scratch paper and a full size one in my backpack for journaling (it's the perfect size for my bullet journal) and neither has had an issue like that. Goulet has their Tomoe River paper TN-sized notebooks available now in every combination you can imagine--you could order a couple of those, maybe?
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Jul 27, 2016 18:40
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On further inspection it seems to be limited to just this first page of the book.  The first page. The word "hope" is particularly bad. There are other spots on the page that are a bit worse.  First page again, it's pretty obvious here.  Second page seems completely fine.
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Jul 27, 2016 18:57
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Heath posted:On further inspection it seems to be limited to just this first page of the book. Almost certainly a defect or something got on that page somehow, then. Enjoy the notebook! I love mine.
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Jul 27, 2016 19:14
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Should I be storing my ink pens up, down, or horizontal? A lot of my expensive art markers are fussy about that stuff, not sure about fountain pens.
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Jul 27, 2016 22:52
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My Metro has been fine being sloshed around in my bag (so far.) Can't speak for other brands. I got my orange Lamy Al-Star today so I decided to practice my cursive for the first time since grade school. 
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Jul 28, 2016 02:43
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Pixelante posted:Should I be storing my ink pens up, down, or horizontal? A lot of my expensive art markers are fussy about that stuff, not sure about fountain pens. It more or less doesn't matter. Mostly if I'm going somewhere they're point-up, and possibly (but rarely) clipped to a pocket or something. When I'm at home they're resting slightly point-down horizontally on top of another pen, but I only really do that for pens that are a bit fiddly or occasionally hard to start. Of course, if you're prone to filling a pen and then letting it sit for a while, I'd probably keep it point down so that it'll work when you want to use it (unless it's leaky or something, obviously). Heath posted:My Metro has been fine being sloshed around in my bag (so far.) Can't speak for other brands. It's pretty neat when you realize that the "proper" cursive you were taught ages ago isn't just completely arbitrary, despite how it looked in the copybooks/in ballpoint.  Although I guess you're lucky — after writing in increasingly-narrow cursive through high school, I had to put in a fair bit of effort into not having a blobby goddamn mess when I started using fountain pens. Using a 'fine' Safari (and then a somehow less-fine Pelikan) didn't really help matters, there.
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Jul 28, 2016 03:01
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Can someone break down the steps of rinsing out a pen? I mean, I can't really force warm soapy water through a nib. I'm also not sure if the Metro cartridge is wedged really tightly in there, or if it's screwed in. I'm scared of breaking my new preciouses. On a related note, the 1670 anniversary ink comes in such a swanky bottle with the waxed lid that I can't quite bring myself to open it yet. (I am, however, liberally splashed with Ancient Copper at this point, which looks great with all the cat scratches I already have from my rear end in a top hat cat.) The Noodler Charlie pen keeps vomiting gobs of ink on the page but that might be because I haven't filled it all the way. Wanted to rotate through some samples in it before I pick my standard colours. Also, what's the real difference between a TSWBI Vac 700 and the mini Vac? Just length of the pen body? I think my next pen is gonna be a transparent one but It's hard to get a sense of the pen shape in the 2D pictures, and I don't think anyone sells them locally. I keep getting referred to the same men's luxury goods shop here in Victoria BC but it always comes with some variation of, "yeah, but the guy who runs it is an rear end in a top hat," or "he knows a lot, but he wants to make sure that you know that he knows a lot." He's also the go-to guy for leather driving gloves and artisan shaving tools. I look forward to finding out if he's autistic or just a dick. Incidentally, if anyone else is on Vancouver Island, Monks Office Supply carries reasonably priced Pilot Metros, but only the plain black, with medium nib. Pixelante fucked around with this message at 04:56 on Jul 28, 2016 |
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Jul 28, 2016 04:35
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Pixelante posted:Can someone break down the steps of rinsing out a pen? I mean, I can't really force warm soapy water through a nib. I'm also not sure if the Metro cartridge is wedged really tightly in there, or if it's screwed in. I'm scared of breaking my new preciouses. On a related note, the 1670 anniversary ink comes in such a swanky bottle with the waxed lid that I can't quite bring myself to open it yet. (I am, however, liberally splashed with Ancient Copper at this point, which looks great with all the cat scratches I already have from my rear end in a top hat cat.) 1. The converters/cartridges of Pilot pens aren't screwed in, they're friction fit. Put the converter in, draw a sink of water and just keep squeezing the converter until the water that comes out is mostly clear. Or you can just pull the nib and feed straight out - they're friction fit and the nib and feed are keyed together and easy to replace. 2. This happens with eyedropper filled pens, especially when ink levels get low. Your hand will heat the air in the barrel creating positive pressure and forcing a bit of ink out. This is pretty normal. 3. The Vac 700 is bigger and has a larger (#6 sized) nib than the Vac Mini (#5).
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Jul 28, 2016 06:59
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Pixelante posted:Can someone break down the steps of rinsing out a pen? I mean, I can't really force warm soapy water through a nib. Oh, but you can! I'm at work, so no picture, but look for some sort of cheap lens-blower or similar fist-sized rubber bulb you can fill with water then put the section into the mouth of.
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Jul 28, 2016 12:15
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Yeah, you can use a bulb syringe to force water through a stubborn nib and feed, but the Metro's will just pull right out. For your Charlie, being low on ink can for sure make them burp, but you might just need to jam the feed farther in to limit the amount of air that can backfill. That will help regulate the internal pressure if it's leaky. Like when you're writing, and ink sort of pools on the underside of the nib and then blops off on the page, or will passively slowly aggregate under the nib and drip off. Below is a picture of how far I have mine to prevent exactly that problem.
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Jul 28, 2016 16:51
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Please, do not make a habit of pulling the nib and feed from your pens in order to clean them. It is not necessary. Use plain, cold water to clean your pens, either by drawing it in and flushing it out with a converter, or with a bulb syringe. For stubborn inks, you can soak the section in water. Here's my pen-cleaning regime:
On rare occasions, I might soak the section to the pen for an hour or so or use some J.B.'s Perfect Pen Flush. In 30 years of fountain pen use and maintenance, I can count the number of times I have pulled a nib from a pen on one hand, and it's never been for cleaning purposes.
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Jul 28, 2016 18:46
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There is nothing at all wrong with pulling a nib and feed from a fountain pen for cleaning, it's just personal preference. Pilot pens, in particular, have the nib and feed keyed together and are basically idiot proof to re-install after cleaning. I've done it dozens of times in the last few months alone and never had an issue.
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Jul 28, 2016 19:16
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Pixelante posted:I keep getting referred to the same men's luxury goods shop here in Victoria BC but it always comes with some variation of, "yeah, but the guy who runs it is an rear end in a top hat," or "he knows a lot, but he wants to make sure that you know that he knows a lot." I ran into this guy on my honeymoon, and he is indeed an rear end in a top hat. Kerbtree posted:Oh, but you can! I'm at work, so no picture, but look for some sort of cheap lens-blower or similar fist-sized rubber bulb you can fill with water then put the section into the mouth of. You can also get these at the drug store, they're they same things you use when a kid is too young to blow their nose.
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Jul 28, 2016 19:28
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grack posted:There is nothing at all wrong with pulling a nib and feed from a fountain pen for cleaning, it's just personal preference. In general, pens with friction-fit nibs are not designed for repeated refitting. Doing so can change the shape of the feed and lead to problems later. I'm just frustrated with seeing this advice given to everyone, everywhere at every level of experience with fountain pens. In general, 99% of fountain pen users will never need to disassemble a pen in any way, and are better off not doing so.
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Jul 28, 2016 20:07
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I have a Waterman ballpoint pen - I think it is an "Expert" - that I'm rather attached to. I was carelessly holding it while giving a presentation and I dropped it, and damaged it somehow. When I push down on the tip, the back of the pen now gets pushed out about a quarter inch...you can still write with it, but the tip is pushed back almost all the way into the lower plastic part. The back doesn't push out completely, it just goes out about a quarter inch and stops. Can I get this fixed and if so how?
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Jul 28, 2016 20:07
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atholbrose posted:In general, pens with friction-fit nibs are not designed for repeated refitting. Doing so can change the shape of the feed and lead to problems later. No, it won't. This was an issue with ebonite feeds as they can deform under pressure but 99%+ of modern pens uses molded plastic feeds, not ebonite. More to the point, all Pilot pens that use the "Super Quality" nib and feed system are designed specifically to be easily serviceable and this includes the Metropolitan.
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Jul 28, 2016 20:23
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grack posted:No, it won't. This was an issue with ebonite feeds as they can deform under pressure but 99%+ of modern pens uses molded plastic feeds, not ebonite. More to the point, all Pilot pens that use the "Super Quality" nib and feed system are designed specifically to be easily serviceable and this includes the Metropolitan. Okay, man, pax. We've both clearly outlined our positions, neither of us are changing our minds, and a back-and-forth here isn't helping anyone. You continue to advise people as you wish, and I will do the same. Cool?
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Jul 28, 2016 21:25
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