Help for picking fountain pens

[CanadaDoll]

Here are my two new babies! They should be arriving any day now, I am soo excited to test 'em out!

My green Waterman Phileas:
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And my Audace Ethnic Chic, also by Waterman:

 

[Ruby Slippers]

Beautiful!

Next time I go through this thread I will do so while taking notes.
Its high time I treated myself to my very own.

 

[CanadaDoll]

Ya can't go wrong with a Waterman to start! The fine folks on this thread turned me on to 'em and they really perform! The prices are really reasonable too!

 

[zibosco]

Waterman

I too have been helped by the folks here that have reviewed the Waterman line. I now have two Waterman pens. A Phileas Blue Marble and the Phileas Black.

Staples had a 12 percent sale, however I couldn't find the fine point in black after checking with several stores.

Called the Parker Service Center and they invited me to send it in for a nib exchange. No charge. I just hate to part with it for any length of time...but then it needs a fine nib.

Thanks for the information on the Crane Stores, and products...also thanks for keeping me interested in fountain pens.

 

[Ruby Slippers]

I'm definitely going to get my start with the Waterman, as per everyone's suggestions. I've been browsing at the Pen Hospital site all day, picking out about seven different pens I'd like! And I absolutely adore the one Daisy mentioned, the Aurora Talentum Finesse (which is gorgeous, pink, and reminds me of Chanel).

So I'll definitely begin with the Waterman. The Hemisphere and Phileas have both caught my eye. I've also been enchanted with Parker's Latitude and Sonnet collections. I'm charmed by Cartier's Trinity, also their pens with charms (the latter only being ball pens, unfortunately, but still sweet, and handy when having to sign carbonated documents).

This one is a beauty but way out of my foreseeable price range for the next...decade or so.

I am obsessed with writing utensils as it is. I am somewhat surprised at myself for not owning a fountain pen already. But then, I have slacked in the writing department and have relied on pencil for school notes. I am welcoming ink back with open arms.

 

[Classydame]

RubySlippers, that is definitely one beautiful pen! I would be afraid to buy it and possibly lose it!

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

Golly, even if I had gobbs of money, I don't think I'd risk spending it on that pen. It's beautiful, but with the way I misplace things, it'd be quite a risk. I have gone overboard, buying a few pens that I shouldn't have due to their price. Now, I rarely use them. They are great pens, it's just that due to their worth, I'm worried I'll do something horrid to them, rendering them useless, hence money down the potty. I've been reserving my Cartier and Mont Blanc for special occasions.

My dream pen would be the Mont Blanc Greta Garbo Fountain Pen. It has since been discontinued, but can be found at a few places online. Like my Cartier Mini Diablo, it is a small pen and only comes with cartridges. But, I'm assuming that one could use one of the very tiny converters, like the one in my Cartier, if you like to use well ink like me. The price is heavier than most, but not nearly as high as the one Ruby mentioned above, so it's not looking all that expensive anymore lol. I wish I could just buy it, before their aren't any left


Ruby, I love the Telentum Finesse. I write with it all the time. It is now my favorite. I have a Parker Sonnet. It was the first FP I bought after the Phileas. It is a good, reliable, well writing pen, especially for the price.

 

[Ruby Slippers]

RubySlippers, that is definitely one beautiful pen! I would be afraid to buy it and possibly lose it!

Exactly! I would be devastated if I lost this, I'm in no position to buy such a pen but it is quite beautiful (and shockingly expensive).

The way I see it, the pen is lovely. But given the choice between a pen or an apartment, I'd have to go with the apartment lol . Less chance of it getting lost or getting busted in my handbag or something

Daisy, I LOVE the Greta Garbo pen. I think its sooo beautiful and elegant.

 

[yachtsilverswan]

For Miss Daisy - the Greta Garbo Special Edition

Miss Daisy - I share your passion for the Mont Blanc Limited Editions (though the Greta Garbo is of course a bit feminine for my tastes). The Greta Garbo Special Edition has indeed stopped production, but it will be available in Mont Blanc Boutiques for two years after its Sept 2005 introduction (unless the limited editions sell out). After two years, remaining copies of the special editions are returned to Germany and stored in the Mont Blanc vaults unless they are special ordered by a boutique. By the way, did you know that the Greta Garbo Special Edition comes in two versions - the 4810 edition (4810 copies) which was featured in the link you posted; and the 888 edition (888 copies) with diamonds and a mother of pearl Mont Blanc star on the cap. I found a photo of the 888 edition on Mont Blanc's website. (click to enlarge photo)



The next Mont Blanc Special Edition is rumored to be honoring Marlene Dietrich.

While it is true that the mechanicals of these Limited Editions are identical to Mont Blanc's more pedestrian pens, it is also true that writing with a particularly fine instrument, handcrafted with truly precious materials (mother of pearl, platinum, gold, and diamonds) just seems to spark the flow of even more precious words.

 

[CanadaDoll]

I know what y'all mean about the pricey pens!
I want this one soooooo bad!

It's just going to cost me 300 some odd dollars!

 

[CanadaDoll]

Wooooohooooo! My new Phileas and Audace! They're here, they arrived just today! I'm so thrilled!
They're even prettier than the pictures!
I can't wait to put 'em into action.

 

[CanadaDoll]

I've just tested 'em out, and man oh man! the difference between a fine nib, and extra fine is astounding!
I love the spidery look the the extra fine gives, and the fine gives a more sophisticated look to my chicken scratch!lol

 

[Miss Neecerie]

I still say....

buy vintage pens.


You get a in general (there are exceptions), a much better deal, it costs maybe 30 to get them resac-ed and then they last another good long while.

Esterbrooks are out there and are a great pen for a reasonable price, as are Shaeffers and so forth.

 

[Feraud]

It's just going to cost me 300 some odd dollars!

300 clams is a lot of dough. Unless one is a serious writer I would question that purchase. :eusa_doh:

 

[CanadaDoll]

Oh I don't have 300 to spend on it, money must go toward more practical things like school 'Sides I can't wrap my head around the concept of 300 for a penlol! If I could I would, but I just get to dream

 

[Ruby Slippers]

I just got an email from the Fountain Pen Hospital, advertising this.

How wonderful! Monteverde makes a fountain pen that works like a lipstick (and the third one down on the page comes in a heart shaped box. A lovely valentine theme).

 

[CanadaDoll]

I'm just curious how you tell nib size for a fountain pen.
Is there a stamp on the nib, stated on the box?[huh]

 

[Daisy Buchanan]

I'm just curious how you tell nib size for a fountain pen.
Is there a stamp on the nib, stated on the box?[huh]

As far as I know it depends on the brand. Some have it marked on the nib, almost all will state nib size on the box. I know Aurora marks their nibs, but all my other pens are marked on the box.

 

[CanadaDoll]

Thanks Daisy, that helps me out a lot!

 

[John in Covina]

A fine Mess of nibs.

As far as I know it depends on the brand. Some have it marked on the nib, almost all will state nib size on the box. I know Aurora marks their nibs, but all my other pens are marked on the box.

*****
Precisely!
Note that there are no standards as to the line width for nib size so one brands fine maybe more like another brands medium. Since the 20's and 30's the current measure of a fine nib has moved closer to what was a medium back then. Now the Asian brands that make their own nibs tend to be finer by a half step than either the US or Euro makers for the same size / width nib. A Japanese fine is more likely to be closer to the Euro extra fine nib.