The reddish one is a 3776 Platinum with an M-nib, 14k gold; the black one is a Sailor 1911 S with a 21k gold M.
Both splendid writers.
Cheers
Brane
1947 Parker 51.
Restore them myself. Polish the barrels with machines, the full works.
The reddish one is a 3776 Platinum with an M-nib, 14k gold; the black one is a Sailor 1911 S with a 21k gold M.
Both splendid writers.
Cheers
Brane
Wanting to take some steps into getting an older fountain pen. Wanting quality. What brands should I be looking at?
Any sites for potential purchase? All help required! Thought about Mont Blanc and Parker so far but not sure.
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Have you considered a new Parker 51 from Cult Pens. Are you looking for a particular type of filling system? Do you want to keep it simple with a cartridge or a cartridge converter, or something more exotic?
As far as brands are concerned I would look at Parker, Conway Stewart and Scheafer or Waterman if you want to go really old.
There are plenty of filling systems to choose from. The nib is usually where I start from though. With older pens you are mostly looking at gold nibs, especially at the more expensive end. The nibs were generally narrower in older pens. What size nibs do you prefer?
If you are looking for a high quality fountain pen I would look at Platinum, Sailor, Pilot and Pelikan. They all offer great experiences for the money.
My favourite pen is a Platinum Izumo Urushi pen. There is something wonderful about an urushi pen. They feel marvellous in the hand.
https://www.cultpens.com/i/q/PT24227...tain-pen-green
Then I would take a look at the Sailor Pro Gear:
https://www.cultpens.com/c/q/brands/...fessional-gear
I have an Imperial Black Pro Gear with an H-F (Hard Fine) nib that writes beautifully. The Pro Gear comes in all colours you can think of.
Another vote for Namiki/Pilot - my go to work pens are both Pilot - a Sterling Collection Mt. Fuji & Wave plus a Capless (for red ink)
Above not my pics - but you can make them out in this pic...
I'd also mention Waterman - I've had the Etalon for years & it developed a catastrophic leak after 10 years
Waterman fixed it FOC & sent a lovely letter wishing me many more years of happy writing !
(not my pic)
z
Damn it! I got 2 pens on the way! One I’m certain I’ll like and the other I’ve been since slightly put off!
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...and what are the two pens, if we can ask?
A Parker Duofold button fill from the 1950s which I’m certain about
And the one I have become more cautious on is a Conway Stewart No 12
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I am sure that both will be great, but if I could only have one the Duofold would be my choice.
I am thinking of getting a Pelikan M600 at present.
Any recommendations from anyone who has one on best nib size on these for everyday use?
They are in short supply at the moment.
There's an extra fine nib version available on ebay at the moment, and there's a medium on amazon.
Cheers
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Seems a very personal choice to me, and possibly also one that depends on the use. I like to make copious dense notes with small diagrams included and only an extra fine nib will do. On the other hand an extra fine nib will be scratchy on poor quality paper and may be less smooth than a medium or broad nib.
I would go for the larger M800 series. I found the M605 that I bought a little too small, the M805 much better. YMMV.
Pelikan tend to have a wider nib than the marked size suggests. I bought my first, a Pelikan 805, from an online retailer (Niche Pens) who offered to swap out the nib if needed. The nibs are expensive if you want to buy a spare. I bought a spare and it sat around for a long time before I had a custom pen made for me in the style of a Nakaya Long Writer.
Bear in mind that the ink used will make a difference to the writing on the page. An ink with more flow will make it appear that you are writing with a bigger nib. I use either Waterman or Graf von Faber Castell inks as the flow strikes me as medium. Also, the finer the nib the less often you will have to refill the pen, not an onerous job on a Pelikan with its piston filler, but if you travel about it might mean carrying a bottle of ink the broader the nib, the more that you write. Try before you buy the pen is my advice.
Last edited by Templogin; 3rd February 2023 at 03:35.
I’m a former M805 owner, I had an M nib which was perfect for day to day notes, signatures etc, however if you were doing anything detailed, F would be the way to go. They’re great pens, still miss mine but it’s doing great service with a fellow forum member which eases the pain (along with a recently acquired Lamy 2000 which is amazeballs).
I've had two separate 605 limited editions both with B nibs and they have been lustrous, silky smooth writers. I really like B nib pens for the feel and how the writing looks when paired with quality ink.
Thanks for the replies.
Nibs seem to be available readily, albeit at a high cost, so at worst, I can move to a different size if I need to.
I may go with the medium as it's for normal everyday writing / journaling.
Most UK dealers seem to be out if stock of the pen ATM.
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You won't go far wrong with a Medium (M) nib.
Broad (B) nibs are better for signing.
Double Broad (BB) are better for clearing snow from paths!
YMMV
Thank you.
I'm just starting out on the fountain pen journey.
I bought a lower price bracket (£50) brand of pen a few months ago (Scriveiner), which is quite nice.
Fascinated to see what spending a little more gets you!
I can see that it is possible to get a little obsessed, but at least it diverts me away from watches!
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Similar to the watch world, the fountain pen world has marketing departments that spend a fortune on advertising to sell you a plastic pen that is of little substance, but will cost a "small fortune". Don't get sucked in by the hype, ask fountain pen users which are their best pens. If I could only have 5 of my collection I would choose in no particular order: -
- Nakaya Long Writer homage - custom made for me by John Twiss with Pelikan M nib from an M805, vacuum fill
- Danitrio Mikado - raw ebonite, eye dropper pen soon to be converted to cartridge converter
- Pilot Vanishing Point - matt black with a stub nib
- Yard-o-Led Viceroy Grand - barley pattern, solid silver pen
- Pelikan M805 - piston filler, black with silver trim and a medium oblique nib
- Lamy 2000 - piston filler with oblique medium nib, body and cap made from Makrolon
The numerate will notice 6 items in a list of 5 there. It's an example of how it can be difficult to choose, and some of those I have multiples of!
Also, like watches, you can get homage designs. If you want to scratch that Montblanc 149 itch, I can recommend the Jinhao X159, available on Amazon for the princely sum of £12. Literally unbelievably good for the money (I have a Montblanc 146 also)
https://youtu.be/WZ9-rhf-CpE
BTW I'm irrationally obsessed with this currently
https://www.montblanc.com/en-gb/foun...E&gclsrc=aw.ds
It's such an 'un-Montblanc' collaboration to do, is utterly bonkers but I think it looks amazing. It's overpriced of course as it is essentially a 146 - I'll have a look at Heathrow next week if they have one at a duty free price as that could tempt me.
Nib width is a hugely personal thing one persons love is another’s hate.
Pelikan, know a bit about these having just picked up my 17th and have nibs from Extra Fine all the way through to Italic Broad
Pelikan nibs are generally on the more generous side, medium is a safe bet. Nibs are easy to swap as they just screw out.
My daily is generally a broad but I love to see the colour and properties of the ink (skinny nibs ef and f are some of my least favourite) I also write on decent fountain pen friendly paper.
Izods, Niche Pens and Cult Pens all generally have decent stocks.
If you want to see writing samples of different nibs drop me a DM with your email address.
I had to go down to an EF on my 605 which still feels thick to me, but then I like fine Japanese nibs so that’s no surprise. My favourite is the HF nib on my Sailor Pro Gear Imperial Black.
Thanks Lubee
Will go with the Medium. I'm looking for a couple of pens for green (Faber Castell Moss Green) and red (Diamine Oxblood) inks at the moment so I'm thinking of the Waterman Carene Marine Amber and the Pelikan Souveran M600 Green / Black.
The plan is to practice everyday by copying literature / poetry / quotes of the day.
So, I'm going to need a fountain pen friendly notebook...........
any recommendations?
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With regards to the notebook question above, I'd recommend Rhodia - excellent quality paper for fountain pen use and a massive selection to choose from.
I'll second Rhodia. Avoid Moleskine - they are marketed as premium note pads whilst actually being bog standard and certainly not good enough for fountain pens.
Leuchtteurm and Clairefontaine also good as is Midori from Japan.
Another vote for Rhodia, although a pen that puts down a lot of ink (colloquially - a juicy nib) seems to sit on top of the paper for a while, rather than soaking in. Unless you are painting the ink on you shouldn't get any bleed through or show through. Rhodia have a huge range of notebooks. I used their Meeting Books at work before I retired.
The Pelikan green/black is a classic Pelikan colour combination. For some reason I don't own one, and the only colour I prefer is the tortoiseshell, which Pelikan issued a limited edition of the Souveran 800 series in a few years ago. It was beyond the budget at the time.
Doesn’t Rhodia use Clairefontaine paper?
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.
I have never seen them in the same room together
Lol
After a quick web search
Rhodia was purchased by Clairefontaine in 1997 and production transferred to Mulhouse, in Alsace, France. Members of the Verilhac family still work for Rhodia. The Rhodia logo dates back to 1932. Legend has it that the two Rhodia fir trees symbolize the two founding brothers.
Last edited by Saint-Just; 5th February 2023 at 22:09.
'Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain' - Schiller.