Fountain Pens

Lamy Safari Fountain Pen Review

2009-03-07T05:18:00.000-08:00

Red Lamy Safari

Lamy Safari is available in several colors at a very affordable price ($30). While being an inexpensive pen, it's got a bunch of pros:

Cheap - for such a well made pen, the price is very reasonable;
Replaceable nibs - $10 and very simple to replace;
Easy to flush and refill - change color ink whenever you need;
See through ink window - lets you know when ink is running low;
Durable plastic available in different colors;
Very firm nib - no flex - great for drawing;
Nice grip - the handwriting is better when you can hold the pen securely.

And even though it's quite superb and a great first fountain pen to have, there are a few things that some people don't like about the Lamy Safari.

It's large - when posted (cap on back of pen) it can be too large for some people;
Plastic can get stained - especially white or yellow pens;
Grip is annoying for some people because of its angle;
Nibs run wide - too wide for some people;
Moreover, they're inconsistent. Same size nibs can write differently than another. Once in a while, you can get a scratchy nib.

First Fountain Pen

2008-09-12T10:46:00.000-07:00

First Fountain Pen

A classical fountain pen is a writing instrument with a water-based liquid ink in the reservoir contained within. The fountain pen ink is delivered to the nib through a feed; thanks to Earth gravitation the liquid flows down.

It is believed that the first fountain pen ever was made by the order of the caliph of Egypt.
The progress of perfecting fountain pens took centuries because the limited knowledge of physics did not allow to understand the role of air pressure in the fountain pens, and because inks were of highly corrosive nature.
Petrache Poenaru, a Romanian inventor, received a patent for inventing a fountain pen with a replaceable ink cartridge. Since 1827, the development of fountain pens went at a faster pace thanks to this invention. Fountain pens now allowed for smooth writing without so much hated dripping or paper scratching.
However, it took three more key inventions to create a first fountain pen as we all know it to look like. Hard rubber, gold nib with iridium tip, and new formula of fountain pen ink made these writing instruments easy to use and reliable.
The first fountain pens that incorporated all these technical improvements appeared in the very middle of the XIX centiry. Thirty years later, the epoch of fountain pens finally began – and continued for decennaries. Waterman became first fountain pens mass-manufactured, reserving a huge portion of the growing market for his company.
New types of materials allowed to produce fountain pens with better characteristics, but one problem still remained; it was the absence of self-filling mechanism that would not leave stains on hands. Waterman found a solution and called it ‘twist-filler’. Sheaffer and Parker, closest competitors, invented their own.
Waterman offered its non-leaking pens at the beginning of the XXth century. Technological innovation made since that time changed the look and feel of fountain pens. Hard rubber was replaced by celluloid, which allowed to produce pens of more colours. Parker introduced new filling systems in Parker Duofold and Vacumatic series.
Until 1960s fountain pens successfully competed with ballpoint pens, that were expensive and had irregular inkflow. Fountain pens benefited from attention on part of craftsmen. Parker 51 was a notable model launched by the time.
Unlike first fountain pen, nibs of modern writing instruments are mostly made of stainless steel or gold (in premium models).

Unique Fountain Pens

2008-04-04T04:54:00.000-07:00

Unique fountain pens aren't that easy to find – or to afford. Come to think of it, there are two options to get an absolutely like-no-other pen: either seek for some Mont Blanc Limited Edition with diamonds, produced in quantity of 3 items ever and never to be found in places other than high-rolling auctions like Sotheby's, or.. order the one for yourself. Surprisingly, the choice is nearly endless, and, unlike Mont Blanc works of art (I can't really refer to their diamond-encrusted models as to simply 'pens') costing hundreds thousands dollars, you can order a completely customized and unique fountain pen for under $200.

And for that price you're going to have a whole lot of aspects to control and choose to your liking. An experienced, skilled wood turner can create a wood fountain pen exactly to your highest expectations. You choose the origin of exotic woods – be it India or Africa.

Unique fountain pens made of wood, antler, rattlesnake skin and lots of other materials are guaranteed to have no duplicates. Imagine two hand-crafted pens – one is in slight details different from the other one. The engraving, the carving, the font and style patterns will differ slightly. Of course, hand-crafted fountain pens take time to create, so be prepared to give your patience a good training. In return, you get a totally awesome piece of art, item if elaborate craftsmanship.

However, it is unfair to say that hand-crafted fountain pens are just good lookers, but bad performers. Not at all! With solid nibs and quality plating these unique fountain pens are as good at writing as any other bearing the logo of a world renowned manufacturer.

And remember to add the personal attitude, face-to-face talk, customer-oriented support (usually a wood turner doesn't have thousands of orders pending simultaneously), and ability to discuss all aspects of pen producing on-the-fly, as things occur. Even if you can't make up your mind to decide what you exactly want to be transformed from wood into reality, the wood-turner will help you!

Probably you won't believe that for this type of service and quality of production you'll be charged a couple hundred dollars at most (often you can get by for under $100) – a price comparable to excellent performers by German Pelikan pen manufacturer.

So unique fountain pens can be literally like that – at an affordable price.

Beauty of Wood Fountain Pens

2008-04-01T17:18:00.000-07:00

Dedicated pen collectors, passionate amateur lovers and all other "in-the-know" can easily draw a solid distinguishing line between professionally manufactured, mass-produces, mechanically engraved and encrusted writing instruments, and hand-crafted wood fountain pens. The latter items are pure gems in the eyes of connoisseurs treasuring the delicate uniqueness of each of the crafted pens.

When you buy a pen from a world-renowned manufacturer like Sheaffer or Waterman, you can't really expect to get a unique piece of art. With wood fountain pens crafted by passionate amateurs it is a whole lot different story.

You can communicate directly with the craftsman who produces wood fountain pens per order. You can order the material, the type of wood, the nib, discuss patterns of texture and shape, choose the filling mechanism (piston of converter), participate in designing the gift box, etc. That is, your input is significant at every stage of crafting the wood fountain pen. And you are in control of every step, from developing the concept idea into the final piece of art to presenting it to someone you care for.

If you choose a wood fountain pen as a gift to someone dear, a friend or a colleague, you may be 100% confident that your present will be like no one else's. It is just impossible to carve two identical pens from wood – at least the texture pattern will be different on each piece.

Another great thing about personalized wood fountain pens is that people tend to care more for such fine writing instruments because of the uniqueness the latter possess. Every such pen intensifies the emotional ties, accentuates the personal attitude, signify the strong friendship or respect, and lets everyone stand out from the crowd.

With the help of Internet, it is easy to find a skilled woodturner to do the job of creating a stunning wood fountain pen. Of course you should plan your order well in advance – a wood fountain pen can't be made in a hurry, it is a living material that needs special conditions to be prepared for crafting process. So if you think of presenting someone with a memorable gift, I suggest that you consider ordering a wood fountain pen.

History Behind Sheaffer Pens

2008-03-14T05:38:00.000-07:00

Sheaffer pens were one of the "Big Four" American pen manufacturers of the classic era, and is probably the only one that today survives close to its original configuration. Although Sheaffer's ownership changed (it is currently owned by French based Bic Pen Company), they continue to design and manufacture the majority of their pens.

It should be noted though that why Sheaffer is the original spelling, many people write it as 'Shaeffer' or even 'Schaeffer'.

The Sheaffer story begins in 1907, when Sheaffer began work on his own unique fountain pen design. The invention of the lever filling fountain pen in Fort Madison (Iowa) gave a kick-start to a newly born penmaker. The fountain pens of the day were cumbersome and messy to change refill inks, requiring an eyedropper and a steady hand. Sheaffer's disliking of the inconvenience made him seek a refilling method that would be as simple and clean as possible.

The result, the first practical lever filling fountain pen, earned Walter Sheaffer a U.S. patent in August of 1908. By the next year, he had his first patent. A single stroke of a slim metal lever filled the pen reservoir directly from the ink bottle. Local reception was so enthusiastic that Sheaffer decided to risk his life savings to establish the W.A. Sheaffer Pen Company in 1912.

Early fountain pens were rather expensive, and were regarded as not always perfectly reliable. Sheaffer designed a fountain pen that carried a nearly unconditional lifetime guarantee. The "Lifetime" pen, as it was called, was launched in about 1920 for prices starting at $8.75 - twice of what Sheaffer charged for comparable non-Lifetime models

The Sheaffer lever fill system would go on to become the standard of the industry in the U.S. and abroad for several years after the Sheaffer company itself gave them up in the 1940s. However, despite the firm's vigorous legal defense of its patents, the lever filler soon spread to most of the rest of the industry. and the company's offerings were no longer unique. It was time for more innovation.

Sheaffer developed its own aniline based "writing fluid," which was marketed as "Skrip, the successor to ink." It could be that Sheaffer wanted to banish the bad reputation of early acidic ink formulations (which were never intended for use in fountain pens), or it could be that they just tested a new marketing strategy, but in any case they took great troubles for many years to avoid using the term "ink" in connection with Skrip writing fluid.

Quick facts about Sheaffer Pens:

The shimmer of Sheaffer's unique inlaid nib is created by a special blend of material ranging from alloys to pure gold.
One of the foremost technologies Sheaffer pioneered in the 1920's was a way to make pen caps and barrels of plastic.
Sheaffer began with just seven employees in 1912, crowded into the small back room of a jewelry store in Fort Madison, Iowa, USA. Sheaffer was incorporated in 1913.
The United Nations Charter was signed with a Sheaffer pen on June 26, 1945.
The first Sheaffer ballpoint pen was manufactured and sold in 1946.
In November 1951, the 50 millionth Sheaffer pen came off the assembly line.
W.A. Sheaffer was 45 years of age when he risked his life-savings to start the Company that would grow into a world-renowned brand name.
On December 18, 2001 Sheaffer employees opened a 50-year old time capsule sealed in the lobby wall in the Fort Madison, Iowa facility. Among other predictions, nearly 70% of the employees of a half-century ago thought a cure for the common cold might be found by 2001!
Walter Sheaffer was 45 years of age when he risked his life-savings to start the Company that would develop into a world-known brand name.
There were already 58 other established pen companies when Sheaffer made history with his patented, high quality, self-filling fountain pen - which revolutionized the writing world.

Since First Fountain Pen Was Invented

2008-02-14T01:36:00.000-08:00

There’s something very sensual about writing with a pen that uses liquid ink. Indeed, when writing with a fountain pen, the nib seems to positively glide across the page with such effortless grace as to make the physical act of writing a joy. Nowadays, if you like, you can buy plastic cartridges for a fountain pen. These little fellows practically eliminate any chance of a mess.

So how did fountain pen start its history and made it into our high-tech era with wi-fi and keyboards?

Hassan El Basha Mamoud an Egyptian scholar translated a manuscript from Fatimid dynasty dating to 969 AD, which talks about using a pen without an inkpot.
This earliest historical record of a reservoir pen goes back to the 10th century. In 953, the Caliph of Egypt ordered a pen to ba made that would not stain his hands or clothes, and was provided with a pen which held ink in a reservoir. This time, there was no ink spill when the pen was tilted to all sides. The pen wrote fluidly on contact with paper, and ink disappeared as soon as the pen was lifted from the surface of paper to the amazement of the onlookers. Except for the writing on the manuscript, there was no other evidence that such a writing implement was ever used.

It is probable, however, that attempts to make a safe and easy to use fountain pen go back many years and centuries further.

The oldest surviving reservoir fountain pens date to the 1st century. It was only after three key inventions were made before the fountain pen became a widely used writing instrument. Those inventions were:

The iridium tipped gold nib
Free flowing ink
Hard rubber

There were many producers of fountain pens in the early 1800s. John Sheaffer, a Britishman, manufactured fountain pens that were half quill and half metal. The ink was stored in sheep’s gut.

"Necessity is the mother of invention," and it’s amazing how civilization breaking inventions are made. Lewis Waterman, the inventor of the fountain pen we know and still use occasionally, decided to do something after a valuable contract document was destroyed by spilling ink from the pen he used. That was how an insurance salesman became a fountain pen inventor. Waterman patented the fountain pen in 1884, and launched its mass-production. Many historical documents, treaties and agreements in 19th and 20th centuries were signed by fountain pens.

Are you after uniqueness? Wood fountain pens will inspire you

2008-02-11T15:46:00.000-08:00

Why wood fountain pens?

Wood fountain pens have become very popular because of 3 main factors:
1) Unlike mass-production pens, wood FP's are hand-made and each item is absolutely unique by the nature of its manufacturing;
2) wood is the healthiest material out there, far more eco-friendly than those made of plastic or acrylic substance;
3) Wooden fountain pens can be customized exactly the way customer wants. Engraving, colouring, type of wood, filling mechanism, nib - everything is up to customer's wishes.
Wooden fountain pens are hand-turned using a lathe, and the essential tools necessary to create beautiful wooden products. The wood pens are made from exotic wood from countries such as Africa, South America, and Central America. They are finished with the highest quality craftsmanship.
And of course wood pens makers offer responsive service and friendly support - something that not every big manufacturer can provide its customers with.
All this makes wood fountain pens really awesome gifts. Hand-crafted pieces keep the traces of uniqueness and proximity to nature.
The production of wooden fountain pens require special attentions and care to ensure the quality of the finished writing instruments. Because wood is a naturally 'live' material, it needs proper treatment on the part of the craftsman.
Individual craftsmen carefully select special cuts of wood and resin-based materials to handcraft the finest writing instruments and unique gift sets. From elegant fountain pens to desk sets, from wine bottle stoppers to unique key chains, you WILL find that perfect gift.
Normally wooden fountain pens are made from a variety of top quality domestic and exotic wood. They are individually turned by hand, hand sanded seven separate times, buffed with polishing wax and creme for a smooth, glass like finish. However, these fine writing instruments are available in a multitude of other natural and exotic materials such as antler, ivory, Old World resins and metals.
Pens can be covered with lacquer by the request from the customer.
Usually wooden hand made pens are sold with a 1-3 year warranty.
Currently there's a demand for Mont style wooden pens. It is because of the highly popular Mont Blanc pens, which are known to be pricey. Wood fountain pens of the Mont style can give the feeling of belonging to Mont Blanc owners, while significantly cutting the cost of such writing instruments. Mont style exotic wood fountain pens make a great gift for anyone who appreciates the classic look, feel, and appeal of fountain pens. Mont style wooden fountain pens are hand turned with a special all natural oil & wax finish that brings out an incredible depth and luster in the grain of the wood.
Handcrafted wood fountain pens have earned the interest and satisfaction of the meticulous businessman. Parker style pens, meanwhile, are favorites of yuppies who want to excel in their first job after college.
Rare and exotic handcrafted pens will not disappoint the pickiest of a collector. What collectors are looking for are brand, rarity, craftsmanship, and of course, longevity. All of these characteristics can be found in many hand-turned wooden fountain pens. Each pen is made by the hands of experienced master craftsmen who work wonders to turn a simple item such as a pen into a work of art.
Pen lovers will greatly appreciate handcrafted unique wood fountain pens.
Whether you are looking for a gift for a special friend or associate or simply adding to your own collection, you may rest assured that receivers will be pleased with custom-engraved, carefully handcrafted wooden fountain pens.

Omas 360 Collection of fountain pens

2008-02-10T14:33:00.000-08:00

The Omas 360 Collection is the most revolutionary collection of writing instruments of our time. The Omas 360's triangular body is based on ergonomic principles, and combines a perfect grip and nib angle to permit fluid, uniform calligraphy with uninterrupted ink flow. The Omas 360 is streamlined and aerodynamic and equipped with a sprung and rigid nib. This Omas fountain pen is unique and guaranteed to attract interest and curiosity.

First conceived over 12 years ago, the OMAS 360 with its triangular shape has remained a revolutionary design offering technical perfection, refined aesthetics and pure writing pleasure. OMAS now upgrades the oversized 360 with a few modifications: a flattened and tapered crown and pen end, a triangular clip that lies flush on the cap, and a grip that subtly goes from a triangular to a circular shape for easier manageability. The fine black and bordeaux cotton resin barrels are trimmed with streamlined, platinum-plated fittings. The 360 is offered as a fountain pen with a flexible, 18K gold and platinum nib engraved with the 360 triangle logo, a capped rollerball and a ball pen. Fountain pen is bottle fill only.

The original triangular fountain pen was made in the 1930's by the Triad Pen Company which stayed in business only a few years. lasted a few years. Because of the delicate nature of the plastic, as well as the unique design, the Triad is very rare today. Omas improved on the Triad design by incorporating the Greek Key design around both the cap lip and the barrel section; these bands offer greater strength, especially to the cap lip.
We recommend the caps not be posted on any 360 pen. They are big enough so that they do not need it.

All of the 360 Collection pens on this page are the "large" size 5 7/8 inches long, capped.

Nibs are normally available in fine, medium, and broad sizes, with additional sizes available as exchange from OMAS in extra fine through double broad oblique sizes. The medium nib on this sample is very nice, if a bit on the ordinary side when it comes to line width. After all, with a pen that looks this bold, you sort of expect a nice, flashy extra bold line!

Or it might just be my taste for a broad line surfacing. As with all of the other OMAS pens I've tried, this one looks to have an ebonite feed, which might contribute to the reliability in terms of ink flow.

For one thing, it is very large (a full 7-1/2 inches/190 mm with cap posted, a full inch longer than the Montblanc 149 in similar configuration).

Other distinctive touches include the flat spring clip (which, on the ballpoint and roller ball models, have different raised symbols to allow you to tell them apart by feel). and the pin through the filler knob, which conveniently lines up with the top of the pen to keep you from over tightening.

The OMAS 360 has been around a while now, and since it's introduction has been one of the most distinctive fountain pen designs around. The bold triangular shape tends to leave people either loving or hating this pen, but one thing is for sure, OMAS definitely didn't play it safe design-wise.

The 18k (750 ppt) rosy gold point gets the obligatory expensive-pen two-tone treatment with a rhodium mask. This point is marked as an "EF" (extra-fine) but writes about like a medium Sheaffer or Parker Arrow pens from the mid century years, providing further support for the conjecture that modern fountain pen nibs run broader than their older counterparts. The point and its big hard-rubber feed are press-fitted into the big barrel, so removal can be a bit of a problem (nor can the section be screwed out, as it can with other OMAS pens like the Paragon or the Ogiva). As with other OMAS pen points, this one is claimed to be unusually flexible.

The newest color to join the celluloid 360 is called Burkina, and it's a clear departure from anything I've seen used before. It's a mixture of what I would call a bronze-green marble, with a pattern of black lines running along the length of the cap and barrel. It's difficult to describe, it might almost be called a "snakeskin" pattern. It's one of the most striking materials I've seen used in a modern pen, and while it does take some getting used to, I'm finding it quite attractive in person.

I would encourage you to give the 360 a good test-drive before buying; it's the sort of pen that one either loves to hold or else can't stand (I must fall into the forme category, since I now own four 360s). If you have a finicky hand, you might benefit from a small tweak of the set to the point in order to bring it to the proper angle for your writing; this is something best done by a dealer or a technician, since the point and feed are press-fitted into the pen and not easily removed.

The OMAS Vegetal resin is very soft and scratches quite easily, so don't toss this pen in the junk drawer or carry it in your back pocket.

Is a three-faceted pen more comfortable and easier to use than a traditional round pen? That's the theory behind the Omas 360 fountain pen collection. Ideal for writers with smaller hands, the pen is designed so that the nib touches the paper at an angle that consistently releases ink for smooth flow with minimum effort. Omas makes the fountain pen in a variety of models including a see-through demonstrator, one made of rare snake wood and the latest addition the Mezzo Melange, three bright pens in blue, orange and yellow made from cotton resin with silver trim.

The Omas 360 Diamonds, with precious diamonds set on the clip, represents the more exclusive version of the Omas 360 mezzo collection of fountain pens.

Omas 360 Snake Wood Fountain Pen

2008-02-10T14:20:00.000-08:00

The Omas 360 Snake Wood Fountain pen combines the triangular form and full size of this pen with a snake wood overlay. Omas has solved a problem that plagued their wood pens in the past. Because wood is a natural material that shrinks and expands with the time because of changes in humidity, it was vulnerable to cracking, especially at the cap lip and at the edge of the barrel. This new wood fountain pen is banded at the cap lip and secured at the barrel edge, greatly minimizing this possibility. Even though snake wood is hard and dense, and the wood is sealed with varnish, please note that all wood pens need special care to avoid staining the wood with ink.

Notice how different the color of the barrel wood is from that of the cap and from the filling knob. Even though it is cut from the same block of wood, this pen illustrates the range of appearance within this organic and variable material.
The OMAS 360 isn't the most expensive wooden fountain pen in OMAS' regular series, but it is certainly the most distinctive and radical-looking. While most Italian pen makers these days (including OMAS, to a large extent) have settled into a comfortable routine of ornate "throwback" designs, here's one pen that you definitely don't see every day.
The distinctly triangular shape of the 360 makes it a pen you either love or hate because of the way it fits your hand (or doesn't fit) for writing.

Wax will help protect this natural wood grain from incidental stains and hand oils. The change to the surface is hardly noticeable.
The fit and finish on these caps and barrels is remarkable. The milled wood surfaces beautifully match the metal. If you want a perfect gift for a colleague or friend, then have a look at this marvelous Omas wooden fountain pen!

El Grande Wooden fountain Pen

2008-02-09T14:02:00.000-08:00

El Grande Fountain Pens

El Grande Fountain Pen is known because of it's bold large barrel which has real therapeutic value for those who suffer from arthritis in the fingers. The larger barrel not only accommodates a more comfortable grasp with ease, but it also shows off brilliant colors and patterns more than other pens of smaller diameter.

As with all of wooden pens, craftsmen hand-craft (cut, drill, turn, sand and polish to a smooth finish) this fountain pen from pieces of Camphor Wood, Black Ebony Wood and Green Malachite trustone and assemble to make a pen a complete unit.

Wood fountain pens are individually handcrafted free-style, and not produced en mass.

Materials used include, but not limited to Camphor Wood, African Ebony, Green Malachite trustone, metal.
Enhancements includes large therapeutic pen barrel to ease the pain in fingers and lower tension in hand muscles.

As for ink refill for El Grande wooden fountain pens, it is standard European Ink cartridge for fountain pens with universal Schmidt Non-Dry Refill. Replacement refills are available from any good office supply store.

Titanium Gold plating is extra durable, and guarantees to last for many many years to come! This makes purchase of El Grande a pleasure to write, and guarantees your enjoyable experience with wood fountain pens.

Fountain Pens have lived till modern days

2008-02-09T13:35:00.000-08:00

Fountain pens have started regaining the popularity they once enjoyed.
In this era of mass production, a $100 writing instrument needing refill might well seem an extravagance. Yet a good fountain pen will last a lifetime. It lends character to the signature of its user, and makes writing a much more thoughtful experience.

A fountain pen contains a reservoir of water based liquid ink. The ink is provided to the nib through a feed via a combination of gravity and capillary action. Older fountain pens had an internal rubber sac that was squeezed and released to create the suction needed. The more modern fountain pens can utilize a converter, or screw or piston mechanism, or a disposable ink cartridge.

Despite the perceived heightened prices in the modern niche, good quality steel and gold pens are available inexpensively today and there are even some disposable fountain pens available. The main reasons people seek fountain pens in recent times are for: ease of writing and comfort (some sufferers of arthritis are unable to use ballpoint pens, but can use fountain pens), healthy experience for heart (yes, doctors say writing with a fountain pen puts a relief on heart), expressive penmanship and calligraphy, enjoyable pleasure (enthusiasts make writing with fountain pens a spiritual activity), longevity, professional sketching, wide range of ink colours available, hobby collecting, and social status. Many users also mention that fountain pens retain a sense of timeless elegance, personalization and sentimentality that computers and ballpoint pens seem to lack. Fountain pens have also always been thought of as works of art.

Fountain pens are sometimes made of precious metals and jewels with artful designs; others are inlaid with lacquer designs in a process known as maki-e (Maki-e is lacquering, a centuries-old technique in which multi-layered patterns are drawn on the barrel and cap with urushi - sap from Japanese lacquer trees). An avid community of pen enthusiasts collect and use vintage and modern pens and also soak and exchange information about old and modern inks, ink bottles, and inkwells. Rare fountain pens are persistently sought of by collectors.

The cheap Sheaffer fountain pens that Natalie Goldberg recommended in her early writing books were fun, but aren't on the market anymore. It was pity to know that Sheaffer's production facilities were closed and auctioned by French-based company BIC, that made the market for cheap, highly affordable products.

Fountain pens, whether used in offices as a disposable fountain pen or an executive's favorite, are timeless. Used for calligraphy or art style writing, they can make memories last forever.

Although fountain pens are still in common use, a few modern manufacturers (Mont Blanc seems to be the pioneers in the segment of posh pens as upscale status symbols) depict the fountain pen as a collectible item or a social prestige symbol, rather than an everyday writing tool. In spite of this, a majority of modern fountain pen users use fountain pens as their primary writing instruments over ballpoints and rollerball pens for reasons related to writing ease, friendly penmanship, comfort, longevity and investment funds. It is a well-known fact that a considerable increase in price over time is typical of fountain pens.

Never touch My fountain pen

2008-02-07T15:08:00.001-08:00

Do not use MY fountain pen!

I am not unlike many others... I have a certain fountain pen I use that I consider Mine and only Mine. It isn't an expensive Namiki, or a Cross pen... it's a simple straight forward Parker Duofold fountain pen. But it is MY pen, and that's the whole story.

For years I've carried a stainless steel Parker Duofold pen. I will not lend it to you, or even to My mother, unless I am standing there watching, and make sure I get it back. I know... it's an object and can be replaced, but I am anal-retentive when it comes to My pen.

I don't know or remember when I became so anal about My pen. I did for years keep with Me a brown and silver fountain pen, but went through a "pen identity" crisis. I was searching for the perfect pen. I tried Cross pens, but found them too thin, and the black ones I liked wore off the finish too easily, leaving Me with a tiger striped ugly pen. The prohibitive cost of near 20 dollars for the pen was another deciding factor, and went to using cheap BIC Click pens. They were cheap, and wrote fairly well, but left me wanting something better. I wanted a pen I could see across the room, and identify the thief who stole it on me.

Then one day I stumbled upon the Parker. It was silver, brushed from what I could see, and it was as unique as a 2 legged fish. I knew right then and there. I had found MY pen. I bought my first one and quickly while in the car, unwrapped it. It felt fat at first, but it wrote like I had always wanted a pen to write. No more twisting the cap as I had to when using the Cross pen. nope, this one had a pushbutton, like all pens should. I firmly believe if you need to twist the pen to get it to work... you probably twist the cap off a Starbucks soy latte too... and we all know what that means if you have had a soy latte on your lips, if you don't know and want to... see the blog about "The Man Test". I didn't like having to use two hands to get a simple object like a pen to function. I want to push the little button, write, click, and put the damn pen away.

Unfortunately, I lost that first pen. I went on a hunt for a replacement. I was heartbroken when I couldn't find one right away. They were that unique. I searched WorldLux, Pendomium, Pen Hospital, Walmart... no pen. Just as I was about to give up and go back to another lesser quality writing instrument... I happened upon one of my pens... while walking the aisles at the local Office Depot. They had just stocked the shelves and there was MY pen! I grabbed the two that they had, and whisked them off to the check out counter. I was as happy as I could be. I not only found a replacement for My poor lost pen, I had found a replacement in case I lost the replacement.

I have handed My pen to people to write or sign something with, but I will not let it out of My sight. I have been known to accidentally leave it with someone and drive back there either the same day or the next day, regardless of the distance I had to travel... just to get back MY pen...

After all, it is MY pen. I'm not completely anal about everything that's Mine... mostly just My pen. I will watch the use of My fountain pen, and chase down anyone who tries to keep it on me.

I'm paranoid about many things, and have no clue why... I'm especially anal about MY pen... and being on time.

I've already decided when I die... I had better be on time for My funeral... and I damn well better have my fountain pen with me if either of those wishes aren't honored... I didn't think so.... just don't ask to use MY FOUNTAIN PEN!

Refills

2008-02-05T15:09:00.000-08:00

It was only a matter of time before we added refill and ink products by Parker to the on-line pens and writing instruments shop. So, now available are Parker ballpen refills in black, blue and red, Parker rollerball refills and Parker Gel pen refills. We have also added Parker / Quink writing ink to the site.

It was of interest for us to note that the Parker ballpoint pen refills and the Parker Gel pen refills are both of an identical size and shape, which apparently fits over 90% of all ball point pens and are therefore interchangeable - you can convert your ballpen to a gel pen - or the other way around!

Moreover, we noted that, being the standard international size means that they can replace many seemingly identical - but much more expensive - pen refills supplied by other manufacturers such as Faber-Castell, Porsche Design and Pelikan. In some cases the Parker refills are less than half the price of the other makes even though Parker claim their ballpoint refills can write for 3500m and their gel pen refills 600m.

A Google search for Schneider topball refills will, incredibly, show up only something like only 8 suppliers in the whole of the USA. If you know your exact pen model and make your search even more specific (e.g. search for Schneider Topball 850 rollerball Refill), it only shows 2 different USA suppliers! Add in quotes around that search phrase (so as to force the search engine to search for sites containing exactly that phrase) and, at time of writing, only one site pops up in the results. Quite incredible. It seems to have a very nice pen refills niche!

Bear in mind that Schneider is one of Europe's most popular brands and you really have to ask yourself how come they're so sparsely represented on the web. The answer lies in the fact that, while big in the rest of Europe (and certainly growing nicely in the US), they have only been represented in the UK in very recent years and, it seems, writing instrument retailers are a little slow to catch on.

Let's try another make on Google, this time for a Pelikan fountain pen refill: type in "Level L5 refill" and, again, who are the ONLY result in the whole of the UK. And a search for (incl. quotes) "Porsche Design Ballpen refill" turns up the same result. Did I mention the phrase, "nice niche"?

So, what other difficult (and easy) to find pen refills do they sell? Just about any Caran d'Ache refills, Faber-Castell and Graf von Faber-Castell refills, Pelikan refills, Porsche Design, Schneider and Tombow writing instrument refills. So, if you're having trouble locating that illusive refill for your favourite writing instrument, you know where to look first.

Entry Level Fountain Pens

2008-02-04T16:45:00.000-08:00

Waterman has some entry level fountain pens, available at our local Staples for $50-70, so probably yours too, or other office supply store. I have a nice Platinum pen (brand name, not what it’s made of…) I got from Levenger for $60. This is my “everyday” pen. Sheaffer makes some cartridge-only fountain pens for under $30, if you just want to try one out and see how it goes for you.

Generally speaking, the more expensive pens have very artistic outsides, flexible and precisely-crafted nibs, and better-quality materials for the inner workings. As in all things, 1) you get what you pay for, and 2) each person has his/her preferences.

Fountain pens aside, just thinking about all the Bics in landfills everywhere makes me want to be able to use writing implements that are at least refillable. I’m moving toward this at my own desk.

Never Share your Fountain Pens

2007-11-17T12:27:00.000-08:00

Why Not Share Fountain Pens with Anybody

Fountain pens must not be shared.
It is true that each one has his peculiar way of holding the pen and that the nib gets used to the angle at which it is held.
So it is a good practice not to share one's fountain pen with others.
But refusing to lend your fountain pen would have made you unpopular.
But I would never lend my Mont Blanc or Parker to any one. I never had to. These expensive pens are usually not carried in one's pocket. They are usually for private and limited use and kept safely in one's drawers in the desk. It was too risky to carry it around. Chances were you would lose it. I have lost several "Heroes" in my lifetime.
I have met people with extraordinarily neat handwriting who used very expensive pens and who flatly and without fear of unpopularity refused to lend them to others. But I wonder if they thought of mundane mechanical and geometrical factors like wear and tear or the angle of the nib etc. It was more due to the desire to have exclusive rights to something they were proud to possess and were fanatically attached to.
It's like never wanting another person to drive your Mercedes car.
Any way there are no hard and fast rules about this.
But I agree that it is wise not to share one's expensive pen with others.
To avoid embarrassment, it is practical to keep handy an inexpensive ball point pen also and lend it on occasion.
Refusing to lend your expensive fountain pen may lead to some unpleasantness, particularly when the borrower does not know it is expensive, and does not know why a pen deserves a single owner.
In a public place, when someone wants to borrow your pen, lend it but take the precaution of unscrewing the cap and keep the cap with you. Chances are he will be less likely to sneak away with your pen. Without a cap a fountain pen cannot be kept in one's pocket without soiling the shirt. The man is more likely to look around for you in the crowd and return this "half object" which has just served his immediate purpose.
Fountain pens went out of fashion in America and nowadays even I have almost stopped using them. Ball point pens were horrible in the early days and we were not allowed to use them in schools. It was claimed that they spoil our handwriting. But over the years there have been great improvements in design and nowadays, for sheer convenience, it can't be beat.
I still prefer a fountain pen when I need to write a whole page or two.
But nowadays I type more than I write.
All writing is limited to a quick jotting down of info in my scribbling pad or signing on forms.
For this a ball point pen is definitely more convenient.

Find Misspelled Fountain Pens Bargains with eBay

2007-11-17T12:13:00.000-08:00

Misspelled Fountain Pen Riches

Most luxurious fountain pen seekers take a quick search through eBay looking for great bargains. However, one secret to sweetest deals are fountain pens up for an auction that are spelled wrong. There are a lot of people that have no clue what that fancy pen they found at home or inherited is worth, so they put it on eBay in the hope to sell it for a couple of bucks if they're lucky enough.

Many people misspell words describing the lot in the title. They wonder why there are no bids. Here's why . . . the item does not show up in eBay searches . . . nobody knows it's there. Many times you could be the only bidder.

People have no idea what they are actually offering, not only do they misspell the name, they haven't a single idea how to describe the pen or take a compelling photo. It's recommended that you email the seller any question you might have.

However, make sure the pen has at least one bid (preferably yours) on it . . . before you tip off the seller that they actually have a fountain pen of substantial worth up for an auction. Once a bid has been made, the seller cannot change the price or description of that item.

You can find many of these pens in great condition, minimal brassing, clean and correct nib, a lever box in great shape, properly cared for, looking mint, etc.

There is 'safe trading' advice offered by eBay team that you should pay attention to by all means. By reading this advice you will be able to eliminate the anxiety of buying a product you can't personally check out, while buying it from some stranger.

Warning: there are a lot of fake pens up for an auction on eBay. Do you know how to spot one?

- Does it have a serial number? (with all fakes flood going on, many manufacturers put serial numbers on fontain pens);
- Where should the serial number appear on the pen?
- Is the country of origin spelled correctly?
- Name of a manufacturer spelled correctly?

If you are still unsure on what you are looking for, there are many fountain pen forums online. These experts will be more than happy to answer any question you might have, just type in "Fountain Pen Forum" into any search box and then look around. Or look for blogs owned by fountain pen collectors - most probably you will get an expert advice in no time by leaving a comment for blog owner.

Not only should you be aware of fake pens, but be aware of bidder scams. While rare enough in luxurious pen auctions, it still does take place sometimes, unfortunately. But you can and should avoid being scammed! This type of scam is run by one person in control of two eBay accounts or two people with separate accounts. One eBay account will place a small bid on your fountain pen. Then another eBay account will place a very high bid. Right before your fountain pen auction is about to close, the high bidder will cancel or withdraw their bid, leaving the low bid as the winner. Setting a "reserve price" on your fountain pen will avoid this scam.

Hopefully, this information will be of help to you in your struggle to find a great bargain and not get taken or scammed (which is worse) when using the world's largest e-auction for shopping for fountain pens.

Afraid of buying a fake fountain pen?

2007-11-17T11:16:00.000-08:00

Spotting a fake fountain pen

I am offering the following tips ( which I hope are useful ) and would welcome any additions on how to spot fake fountain pens (Mont Blancs, Parkers, Pelikans, etc).
1. Ask for a picture of the underside of the nib section. A genuine Mont Blanc's black section will be aligned perfectly with the ink aperture between the tines ( a genuine article is accurately produced down to the smallest detail ). If the black section is not aligned and is either side of the aperture, then it is likely to be a fake.
2. The nib is the most difficult aspect to fake. Always ask for a close up picture of the nib section - iridium tip and 'made in germany' stamped on the nib is a dead give away. To my knowledge, most fountain pen manufacturers do not stamp 'iridium tip' on their nibs. The exception to this is the Genuine Mont Blanc Starwalker pen - it does have the words 'iridium' stamped on the nib section, is nearly always silver ( hence, this pen is faked more than any other ). Always ask for a pic of the floating star on the cap, if it appears to be irregular or not dead centre, it is likely to be fake. The best tip I can give is go to a genuine dealer and actually take a picture of a starwalker ( barrel and cap ). That way you know what to look for.
3. Before you bid, get an emailed assurance from the seller that it is a genuine fountain pen - because if turns out that it isn't , you can ask for your money back or get ebay involved. If you get a vague response to your question - don't bid.
4. Another dead give away, ask the seller if he has more than one item and if you can purchase more than four. A faker always buys in bulk and then sells them individually. Many genuine fountain pens (especially of Limited Edition series) are rather expensive, and if a seller has more than four - it's likely that he has bought in bulk.
5. Hold the pen up to the light. The black plastic should be somewhat transparent.
Montblanc's pens are made of resin (except for the solitaire line) and this natural material is able to hold an electric charge (much like amber). This material also feels more animate and doesn't feel cold to the touch.
6. Look under the clip, and you can read Pix. Thats always a good first look to see if it is fake. A fake will not have it.
7. Counterfeit Limited Edition pens won't usually be in their original special boxes or cases, instead they might come in an ordinary Montblanc box that someone has sold on eBay
8. When buying on eBay, always send seller email with a few questions before placing bid. Also pay attention to feedback ratio and number. So, a seller with over 20 positive feedback score and no negatives deserves trust.
9. On the fountain pens, the number "4810" is on the nib, representing Mont Blanc's height in meters. Mont Blancs all have serial numbers, which is how one can distinguish a fake from the real fountain pen.

How to care for fountain pens

2007-11-17T11:06:00.000-08:00

Fountain Pens Need Special Care

Fountain pens (almost all of them) are comprised of the same basic components: a nib (also called a point, this is the decorative metal writing tip of the fountain pen, available in stainless steel, rhodium gold and other metals), a feed (the ribbed component attached to the back of the nib), and the ink supply (various options here include: cartridge, piston, converter, plunger, vacuum, and sac). Many people do not realize that there are certain care requirements for Fountain Pens and that if they are followed many “problems” can be resolved or never start.
Fountain pens come in many finishes and are constructed of a wide variety materials, so their care varies from material to material. Silver, sterling and plated: use a store bought polishing cloth or glove infused with silver cleaner. For hard to clean patterns and finishes such as “barley etched”, use a liquid silver polish with a soft brush to get the polish and tarnish out of the crevices.. Remember silver is a soft metal and will take on a patina and will show scratches and even small dents.
Platinum, palladium, rhodium, stainless steel and chrome: These finishes generally do not tarnish and remain “mirror like”. While they can show scratches and wear, they are much more durable than Sterling and/or silverplate. A soft cloth will remove fingerprints and dirt.
A fountain pen should be cleaned after every second filling of either ink from a bottle or cartridge. Which means, if you use the pen and you replace the cartridge, insert another and then run out, clean the fountain pen before you install the third cartridge or fill from an ink bottle.
Fountain pens should only be cleaned with clean, cool water. IMPORTANT: NEVER USE HOT WATER. Hot water can easily damage the feed. If your fountain pen is excessively dirty, a teaspoon of ammonia can be added to a cup of water, then soak the nib section overnight. You can also use a window cleaner like “Windex”, just be sure it has ammonia as this helps break up dry ink and dirt the best.
Drying After Washing. Cover the nib section with a soft dry cloth and shake it a few times to force the water out. It is best to do this right before bedtime and leave it to dry overnight. In the morning just pop in a cartridge and you are ready to write! We use a store bought toothbrush rack with a soft paper towel folded where the nib will rest. You can put the freshly cleaned pen in one of the slots and let the capillary action from the towel draw the wetness out. This is very effective and we clean our pens like this in the store. If your pens are piston fed only (only bottled ink can be used) you can soak your pens first in water then suck fresh water into the chamber and evacuate the water. Do this 3x or until the water runs clear.
Never store your fountain pen lying down. The ink will coagulate and dry in the nib section and make it difficult for the ink to flow and for the pen to write properly. Keep your pen capped with the nib pointed up in a pencil cup or other type of holder. Toothbrush holders work great at our stores. Find one that suits your pens size(s). If you are not going to use your pen for a week or more, evacuate the ink or remove the cartridge. Pen cases where the pens lie flat are great ways to store unfilled fountain pens.

6 Tips before you start collecting fountain pens

2007-11-17T10:41:00.000-08:00

Going to collect fountain pens?

Many people like to collect antique or vintage fountain pens, while others like collecting the modern limited edition pens, or pens from a specific country. Collecting by brands, such as Parker or Sheaffer is also popular. Many people just collect what they like, resulting in a beautiful, eclectic mix of fountain pens.
1. Decide if you want to focus your collection on one specific area of fountain pens, or if you want to collect a mixed variety of pens. This is important because you should define the purpose and area of your young hobby before you start joining forums of special interest in fountain pens.
2. Read articles and books to learn about your favorite fountain pens. When you become familiar with pictures of the various fountain pens, you'll know when you to find a good buy at a yard sale, auction website (like eBay), flea market or thrift store.
3. Join a fountain pen collectors group, such as the 43folders.com, to share your interest with others that also enjoy fountain pen collecting.
4. Visit local antique stores (if any happen to be in your residence area) and let the shop owners know the types of pens you want to add to your collection (or to begin the collection with). The store owners will look for the pens you are trying to find when they are in other antique stores, at auctions and on buying trips.
5. Purchase a fountain pen collector's price guide at a local bookstore or online. I recommend going to Amazon as it is the world most trusted online bookstore.
6. Go to online web auction sites, such as ebay.com, and online antique and collectible stores for fountain pens to add to your collection. When looking for listing on ebay, be sure to learn how to spot fake fountain pens!

Epitomy of Fountain Pen Usage

2007-11-14T09:38:00.000-08:00

Your time planner is probably the most important and critical piece daily ballast that you carry with you. I highly recommend buying a very expensive planner. I've tried them all. I use a filofax cover. It's the classiest. It will make you feel that the planner is highly valuable, which it indeed is. You should invest in the finest leather that you can afford. So that everytime you open it, you feel a sense of pride and prosperity...you are programming you mind for prosperity. Then invest in a very expensive pen..like a Mont Blanc. Again, you are programming your mind that time management is highly valuable and that you are properous. You also will send that vibe to others who see you in meetings with this set up. Don't go for electronic devices..the English leather filofax and Montblanc pen is the epitome of taste.
As for system and fillers, I'd suggest studying all of the systems. Choose the one that is most effective for you and then hole punch into your planner what works. Create YOUR system. The best system is your own custom one. GTD has extremely valuable strategies, as does Tony Robbins TOYL and Franklin Covey. You can't afford not to buy them, study them and use them. THIS IS CRITICAL. Build you own custom planner with whatever is effective and works for you.

Fountain pens filling system

2007-11-12T11:47:00.000-08:00

Fountain Pen Filling Systems

Unlike ballpoint pens, fountain pens contain a lot of detail and expensive craftsmanship in the nib. Thus, nearly all fountain pens are designed to be refillable. A number of different refill mechanisms exist, including piston fillers, sac fillers, lever fillers, and cartridge-converter fillers.

Fountain pen ink cartridges date back to the 1950s. Some early models were made out of glass, but various plastics quickly became the material of choice. Some manufacturers experimented with refillable cartridges, but these were messy and unpopular; disposable cartridges quickly became the norm.

Cartridges are considered by some to be more convenient than bottled ink. This depends a lot upon the pen's filling mechanism — whilst a good cartridge pen is less prone to mess than a bad bottle filler, a modern piston filler is very clean. Cartridges may also be easier to carry around than some ink bottles.
There are downsides to cartridges too. They are typically more expensive than bottled ink and are available in fewer colours and styles. The ink flow from cartridges tends to be slower, which can be a problem with some nibs. Also, pens designed to take cartridges carry less ink than a dedicated sac filler of similar dimensions compared to fountain pens.

Cleaning the Nibs

2007-11-11T11:51:00.000-08:00

A new nib of a fountain pen should be cleaned from grease and factory-applied anti-corrosive lacquer before the ink will flow evenly. Some artists recommend sucking on a new nib to get it ready for ink. Manufacturers recommend immersing the nib in boiling water. An alternative is holding the nib briefly in the flame of a lighted match — but be careful — the heat can alter the temper of the nib.
Nibs must be kept clean during use or the ink will not flow freely. They should be wiped with a soft rag and afterwards washed and dried to prevent corrosion. The best way to clean lettering or drawing nibs is to scrub them gently with a wet toothbrush. Crusted pen nibs should be scraped or brushed clean before using. Use a scalpel or an X-acto knife. A fiberglass brush and a Swiss Army knife is also useful.
From nibs and brushes: Clean wet brushes with soap & water. Clean dried acrylic paint with acetone, denatured alcohol or equivalent product.
From clothing: While paint is wet, clean with water and/or window cleaner. Dried acrylic paint is permanent on fabric when applied to fountain pen nibs.

Pilot Fountain Pens

2007-11-05T22:31:00.000-08:00

Murex is the ultimate modern fountain pen. You can carry it everywhere, travel with it, sit on it, toss it in your bag, knock it around, and it never fails you. This is the pen you'll want to grab as you go out the door. And this is the pen most likely to grab everyone's attention when you whip it out to jot a note.
The first two short models were actually named "MYU" by Pilot. The later models full size models were called Murex. These were two distinct pen lines, although related. While western pen collectors lump both of these together under the Murex banner, most Japanese collectors do just the opposite and refer to both groups as "MYU" pens, short MYUs and long MYUs.
Pilot MYUs and Murexes were only sold here in Japan, intended for the Japanese market, which explains why they are so highly valued in the west. Even in Japan they are difficult to find since Pilot no longer makes them. But they are such tough pens, the ones that do turn up are usually still in great condition. These are workhorse pens.

Seeing their popularity today, it's an amazing fact that Pilot stopped making these pens over twenty years ago. I asked Pilot pen craftsman Mr. Hirosawa if they ever considered making these pens again. He acknowledged their popularity right now but smiled and shook his head "no" at the suggestion.

They are often compared to the titanium Parker T-1 pen which was introduced in 1970 just before the Pilot MYU came out, and was produced for only one year.
The first Murex appeared in 1971, and was called the "MYU 701" in Japanese and identified by the Greek letter for "m" in Pilot's advertisements. Its model number is M-350SS. This pen is displayed in the Pilot Pen Museum (now called "Pen Station") in Tokyo. This one of those ingenious Japanese short style pens with long cap and short barrel that made the pen short when capped, and full size when the cap was posted. It was an extremely streamlined design with no markings anywhere except for the small Pilot name engraved on the cap. There is also a tiny date stamp with month and year on the barrel.

This model is considered the quintessential MYU/Murex, and therefore the most popular model today. It has also been called the "ultimate travel pen" because of its small carrying size as well as its sturdiness and reliability. It retailed for 3,500 yen when it first came out over 30 years ago, but an original MYU with price sticker (identical to the one in the photo) was sold last year on an internet auction for over 500 dollars. The market value of all the MYU/Murex models has been increasing dramatically as more collectors show interest in them, and those that remain will continue to grow in value.
In 1973 a black striped version appeared, also a short type pen. Its model number is M-500BS. The letter "M" (for "MYU") plus the Pilot name was stamped on the cap. The black enamel stripes are recessed, away from exposure to rubbing. The finish was brushed steel. It retailed for 5,000 yen. This model is very difficult to find today.

In 1977 the integral nib steel pen was radically redesigned to be a full sized pen with textured section, flat nib and black stripe in a spring type clip that adjusted to any thickness of pocket fabric. This model was the first "Murex" pen. Perhaps this new name was meant to designate this bigger, improved MYU as the king (Rex) of the MYUs. It could also be a reference to the sea shell of the same name. Its model number is MR-500SS, and it is also displayed in the Pilot Pen Museum (Pen Station) in Tokyo since it represents a new line. On the cap the black letters "MR" (for "MYU-REX") plus the Pilot name are engraved. It retailed for 5,000 yen, much more than the price of the original MYU 701, and its design was technically superior to the original MYU, although not as radical in its looks. This model was designed for comfort and effortless writing.

Stainless steel Japanese fountain pens such as these MYUs and Murexes tend to come with tiny scratches. I have rarely seen one without scratches, especially on the barrel of pocket pens. This is because of the metal piece inserted into the cap which grips the barrel and keeps it firmly attached to the cap by friction. As soon as they put the cap on a new pen, it receives a tiny scratch, the first of many. This also explains scratches on the barrels of brand new plastic pens.

There is no need to be upset if you find scratches on your steel pen. If you look closely at the stainless steel surface you will see that it is brushed steel, which is basically a pattern of microscopic scratches covering the entire surface. Each scratch reflects light, so the more it's scratched, the more the pen sparkles. The longer you use your pen, the better it looks. You don't have to baby your MYU or Murex or any other stainless steel fountain pen.
http://www.stutler.cc/pens/murex/index.html

Japan fountain pens

2007-11-04T22:29:00.000-08:00

Nakaya fountain pens of Japan have caused quite a ripple in the fountain pen community in Japan and around the world lately. These custom hand-made pens seem to be the topic of discussion almost daily on Pentrace and other discussion groups as well. It's amazing to think that this company was only started around two years ago, and consists of only a few retired pen craftsmen.

The company didn't even have its own office until recently, but borrowed a room in the current Platinum Pen company building. A few months ago, in March, they finally became completely independent by setting up shop in a small office in one of the older neighborhoods in Tokyo.

Recently I visited their office, camera in hand.

I took the subway (the Ginza line) to Inaricho station which is located in Higashi Ueno. This area retains the atmosphere of old Edo, its ancient streets and buildings stubbornly resisting the winds of change, and is a very fitting location for Nakaya. The Nakaya Pen Company is located on the second floor of a building surrounded on both sides by old shops filled with the smell of incense, and specializing in Butsudan and other Buddhist articles.

By coincidence, directly across the street from Nakaya's office is the old Platinum Pen Company building, which has not been used by Platinum since the company out grew it many years ago. The current Platinum building is several blocks away.

Many have asked what is the relationship between Platinum and Nakaya.

Platinum was founded in 1919 by Shunichi Nakata, and the original name of the company was Nakaya. Later, the name was changed to the Platinum Pen Company. The current president of Platinum is Toshihiro Nakata, son of the founder.

The old Nakaya name was revived a few years ago, and given to this newly formed company which is directed by Toshiya Nakata. Toshiya the grandson of Platinum's founder, and son of the current president. The old globe logo of the original Nakaya company once again adorns the nibs of the current Nakaya pens.

The name on the nibs, incidentally is the name of the founder, Nakata, rather than the name of the company, Nakaya. The Nakaya Pen Company employs 3 retired craftsmen from Platinum who specialize in handmade fountain pens. While the old Platinum building across the street is no longer used for producing pens, the upper floors are still the residence of founder Shunichi Nakata's widow, now 98 years old!

When I opened the door the Nakaya office, I was greeted by Mr. Watanabe, the nib craftsman who always represents Nakaya at pen clinics.

I also met Mr. Maruyama who specializes in metal work including nibs, clips and bands. I had not met Mr. Maruyama before, so this was a special priviledge.

Mr. Matsubara the barrel specialist whom I have met several times in the past, works at home. His huge foot powered lathe would not fit in this small room!

Also in the room was a new member of the Nakaya staff, Mr. Yoshida, who was formerly a pen designer at Platinum, and now does the same work for Nakaya. He entered Nakaya in March, on the same day they moved into this office.

Inspite of the traditional nature and feel of fountain pens, Mr. Yoshida does all his work on a computer using an auto CAD program. Now Nakaya is re-examining every aspect of their current pen designs from a scientific viewpoint to make them even more efficient inside and out, while retaining their traditional look and feel. There was a beautifully rendered new pen design on Mr. Yoshida's monitor, but I am allowed to publish a photo of it here, since it is still is the works.

Nakaya's hard working president, Toshiya Nakata
I took some photos of the room, but tried not to ask too many questions as the craftsmen were obviously extremely busy. I discovered that they have so many orders these days (one third of these orders coming from overseas), that they have to work straight through Saturdays and Sundays.

It was very difficult to tear them away from their work even for the few moments I needed to get a shot of their faces.

These craftsmen do not receive a salary, but merely receive commissions on the pens they create. So they are happy to be so busy. They even laughed when I apologized for the part which Pentrace has played in this recent flood of orders.

After a few minutes, Toshiya Nakata, president of Nakaya came in, so I was free to ask all the questions I wanted without being a nuisance.

His "day job" is at Platinum, and he gets no salary or commissions from Nakaya at all. This is a labor of love for him. The whole reason he started this company was to allow these retired craftsmen to continue to use their skills after they left Platinum.

He also wanted to promote the use of high quality traditional fountain pens. He once confided in me that he is happy to see people using fountain pens even if those pens were made by other pen companies.

He is a bit of a pen collector himself, as are the other Nakaya craftsmen.

Wajima-nuri Pens

We discussed the amazing success of the Wajima-nuri pens. These are ebonite (hard black rubber) pens which have been coated with several layers of urushi (lacquer). At first these were produced in the traditional Japanese urushi colors of black or red, but have recently become available in green and blue. In response to requests from customers, there are now plans to produce a purple Wajima-nuri pen. Right now they are experimenting to get the perfect shade.

The most sought after urushi finish is still the tamenuri, which has an undercoat of red which is later covered with black or natural brown urushi. As the finish ages, the top coating becomes translucent, allowing the color underneath to shine through like a dark pool of water. Some models have an undercoating of green or blue.

These pens have no gold band or clip; just solid unbroken color. A few months ago Nakaya did start producing a red and natural brown tamenuri pen with band and clip. During this visit, I was surprised to see among the newest pens a blue wajima-nuri pen with gold band and clip. The gold contrasted wonderfully with the dark blue color.

I asked Mr. Nakata where the idea for these unique pens came from. He told me that last year, he received an unusual order from an urushi craftsman in Wajima, Japan's most well known urushi and maki-e producing town. This man wanted to buy an ebonite pen with no clip or band or any other trimmings; just plain unadorned ebonite. Such pens were not yet being produced by Nakaya, but they went ahead and made one for him and sent it to Wajima. He then coated it with many layers urushi, and had created for himself a fine one-of-a-kind treasure. He later showed this creation to Mr. Nakata who was so impressed that he asked him if he could produce more pens of the same type, and thus Nakaya's most unique and successful pen was born!

I have been asked not to mention the name of this urushi craftsman as he is the head of a well known urushi business which has been passed down from father to son for many generations, and many of his fellow craftsmen would take a dim view of applying this ancient Japanese art to such a distinctly western product as the fountain pen.

http://www.stutler.cc/pens/nakaya_visit/index.html

Keeping Fountain Pens Right

2007-10-07T16:36:00.000-07:00

Just finished an interesting morning at Parker Pen. Very helpful folks there; everyone wanted to get a look at the pen in Fred's pocket. As these were the same people who repair all the Parker pens they were very helpful. The consensus was that the pen is a "Vacumatic" (apparently spelled several ways) and I will prepare a report on the models of pens available at that time, as well as the measurements. Look for it next week.

I am about to fly out to Europe for a while and am bringing some pens with me (of course) . I know that most ink rollerballs and fountain pens like to leak but do felt tip pens? I'd like to do some drawing during the flights and it would suck if my pens started getting all drooly.

Yes, gel pens work fine. Smile My Micron pens were just fine on a plane trip, too.

Actually, I haven't had a pen leak on me on a plane yet, but I haven't brought any fountain pens on board, since those are known to drool.

Keeping the pen empty is an obvious way to avoid leaking; keeping it full is because most people say air pressure won't act as harshly on the ink as it will in the air. But when a fountain pen leaks on the plane, it's because the increased pressure in the reservoir is forcing the ink out of the pen. This means that even a completely full fountain pen can flood if there's a sharp increase in air pressure/turbulence, so it's best to leave it empty if you have the choice.

If I have to travel with my fountain pens full, I usually put them in a tissue and then in a ziplog bag to put inside my bag just in case. I've been lucky enough not to have anything leak on me, even if it was only half-full. But it has nothing to do with the quality, I've heard the chances of a very good pen leaking are as great as a cheaper fountain pen.

That's about the long and short of it. I fly a lot and have only had one pen consistently leak-- a vintage Parker 51... oddly, that was the one pen everyone said I would have no problem with.

With fountain pens, you have to either fill the pen completely or leave it totally empty to make sure pressure changes won't cause the pen to leak.

Also, you should always keep your pens facing up. And take caps off of suspect pens that might be susceptible to air pressure changes.

I just got the Petit fountain pens from Parker writing company! I'm just wondering, what is the correct way to write with them? Is the metal part supposed to face up, sideways, or down? I tried writing all these different ways and each has a different effect.

If I write with the metal side facing down, it is more scratchy, but also makes a finer point. If I write with metal side facing up, then it's smoother, but also a bolder line. I LOVE these pens! I don't want to write wrong and break them.

The "proper way" is metal side facing up (for the smoother writing). I don't know if it harms the nib or not, but I've seen even fountain pen gurus use them upside down for a different effect.

Generally, the correct way to write with a fountain pen is with the metal part of the nib up. But some pens will write when flipped over- some are even designed to do that so that you can in effect get two nibs in one. There are also some Japanese nibs that vary widely depending onthe angle. I had a great little Japanese "fun pen" that I have since lost which went from xtra-fine to VERY broad depending on the angle.

I have many pens, and I don't really use all of them every month, especially old ones. Some of them strangely spoil when I do a pen test once every two months...

Once I had this New Pastel set and they all sort of dried up at the same time.

Then I had this Pilot V-Pen and the nib sort of clogged up after not using it for about 3 weeks. How should I store these pens properly, and how to increase their 'Life'?

Don't store them upright. Also, a touch of rubbing alcohol rubbed on the point with a q-tip will often free up the flow again.

I've had very little problems of regular pens spoiling. Only some markers dry up after time, but that's a very long time since I've had those markers.

I just store my pens flat in a plastic shoe box or some pencil bag. They don't require any very special care at all. Just don't expose them to direct sunlight or heat which might dry them I guess.

Care and Cleaning for Fountain Pens

2007-10-06T16:41:00.000-07:00

Care and maintenance are important to keep any pen a “good writer.” Here are a few points to remember:

1. Never leave a pen filled and unused for more than a couple days.

2. When not in use, place the pen in a nib up position or at angle where ink leaves the nib. (Do not store roller ball or gel ink pens in point up mode or be prepared to buy a new refill.)
3. If the pen is to be stored, thoroughly clean it and ensure all ink is drained from the nib and reservoir.

4. Always use first quality fountain pen ink. (Never India ink or technical fountain pen ink). Generally, the age of the stock is not a concern.

Cleaning is always a good idea and there are some proven techniques to help. Any pen left unused several weeks with ink in it is likely to become clogged, to one extent or another. A partial blockage can be indicated by gaps in ink flow to the paper. Soaking in lukewarm water will loosen the clog adequately for a flow of water to further help eliminate it. I have a small, deep bowl I’ve adopted for this purpose. A slow stream of water seems to help and also keeps the water clear so you can better see what’s going on. This approach works well for nibs that are standalone, meaning they use a cartridge or converter. For piston fillers it gets a bit more complicated. Soaking the nib should free the clog adequately to get some flow to the reservoir. During soaking you might want to use the slow stream of water to assist. If this doesn’t work, it’s a trip to the pen repair nearest you. I don’t use ammonia or other chemicals to free a clogged pen, some people do. My only venture in this area is to add a little mild soap to the water, mix thoroughly, swirl the nib around in it a little, then let it soak.

Rotring had a very nice fountain pen cleaning container out a few years ago, designed for technical fountain pens but I removed the basket to adapt it to other pens too. It works nicely if you can find one. Alternatively, a small jar or plastic container with a sealing top will serve the purpose. If you use one of these containers and want to agitate the water some it helps, but don’t get too active about it. Just a nice gentle turning motion to move the nib through the water (or vice versa).

I generally rotate my pens, keeping two or three active at one time. Remember though, I use the pens daily. When they have been cycled through, I clean them and put them in their appropriate place in the cases. The pens with sterling silver barrel and cap require more attention and polishing, but all the materials benefit from care. A jeweler’s rouge cloth works well. They are offered by some of the pen sites at a reasonable price.

An Inside into Fountain Pen Forums

2007-10-06T16:22:00.000-07:00

I am bereft. I wanted to recommend a writing pen to someone, so dug out my favorite cheap one — a Berol Fontaine — and then went looking for a source on the web.

Doesn’t exist. So not only can I not only not suggest it to someone else, I must face the end of my relationship (something like ten years old) with this charming pen.

And then, adding insult to injury, I discovered that Berol purchased the Osmiroid company. From my days at Reed, that was the calligraphy pen; now I see that most models have been canceled.

Do any of you in Europe or elsewhere have sources for these fountain pens?

I think several European manufacturers still make cheap fountain pens with a range of nibs for calligraphy, but at the moment I can't remember their names. The names Stadler and Swan occur to me, but I don't think the one I threw away (it was worn out) came from either.

Ballpoints and their many variants seem to be universal these days, but are the enemies of decent writing.

Try the names I have suggested by searching for a non-American domain (e.g. co.uk or de).

The Berol Fontaine, however, is a cheap but wonderful-writing plain fountain pen, meant to be used and thrown away. I suspect I bought it in Paris, perhaps ten years ago, used it for a while, and then set it aside. I was a little surprised that it still wrote when I noticed it recently, but it is now drying up, and the model seems to have disappeared.

That was a suggestion going back to my schooldays. Another suggestion, going back to my children's schooldays in Germany, is Pelikan (a very old manufacturer), which I've now remembered was the maker of my old 'calligraphic' pen set, which was very like the set offered by Osmiroid at $11.97. Osmiroid is now made in China, by the way.

Berol is known to me only as a maker of fiber pens; it does offer an 'italic' fibre pen, but that doesn't give the variable spread that you get with a split nib; it may be what you mean though.

That was a suggestion going back to my schooldays. Another suggestion, going back to my children's schooldays in Germany, is Pelikan (a very old manufacturer), which I've now remembered was the maker of my old 'calligraphic' pen set, which was very like the set offered by Osmiroid at $12.95. Osmiroid is now made in China, by the way.

Berol is known to me only as a maker of fiber pens; it does offer an 'italic' fiber pen, but that doesn't give the variable spread that you get with a split nib; it may be what you mean though. Pelikan is sold here at art supply stores — I have many of their pens, including flat-nibbed styles.

Osmiroid was acquired by Berol. And the Berol pen I have (and want more of) is, as I said, a fountain pen — not a felt-tipped or other modern sort of thing. It may also be as dead as the dodo, alas.

I use a Waterman fountain pen - in UK we have Parker, Scheffer and the expensive Mont Blanc pens.

All the talk of pens brought back childhood memories of inky fingers and blots: I am left-handed, and for many years had a "real" Osmiroid refillable pen in silver pearly plastic, with a left-handed italic nib, which has a 45 degree angle in it to try and counteract the inherent awkwardness of pushing the nib instead of pulling it. You'd never think so seeing my crabbed scrawl today, but I used to win prizes for my immaculate italic handwriting in my youth. Years of keyboarding and slight arthritis have put paid to that !

I use a Waterman fountain pen - in UK we have Parker, Scheffer and the expensive Mont Blanc. Montblanc sure is expensive (we have those here too), and I was never able to persuade myself they were worth the money (to me, I mean).

We also have Parker and Schaefer (I think those are American brands, or were, back in the day when countries produced most of their own goods). And I have three Watermans I like, all acquired in France. I suppose someone here must sell them, but in Paris they are like low-hanging fruit, dangling in front of me wherever I go!

Waterman was the chap that invented fountain pens, but the company he founded in England is now owned by Gilette, as is Parker and Rotring.

Years of keyboarding and slight arthritis have put paid to that !Same here! I used to get lots of praise for my handwriting as a schoolchild, but can now barely sign my name. My mother, who is almost totally blind with immaculate degeneration still has a beautiful signature and legible handwriting, and my father, who had Alzheimer's, could still sign credit card vouchers legibly until the time he had to be institutionalized, fairly late in the progression of the disease. I've always favored Rotring fountain pens as being well made - though not necessarilly cheap.

Do any of you in Europe or elsewhere have sources for (Berol Fontaine) pens?

I have had a bunch of these (5 blue, 8 black) in my desk for years. I think I ordered them because I liked the Pilot disposables when I was in Japan, and the Berols were the only ones available in our stationery catalog. I can't remember why I stopped using them. If your address hasn't changed since the last time I sent you something (about six years ago), I'll send these, too.

I have had a bunch of these (5 blue, 8 black) in my desk for years. I think I ordered them because I liked the Pilot disposables when I was in Japan, and the Berols were the only ones available in our stationery catalog. I can't remember why I stopped using them. If your address hasn't changed since the last time I sent you something (about six years ago), I'll send these, too.My address has changed. I’ll send the new one to you.

It is difficult to see why you don't invest in a small bottle of ink then, or if you want to keep it simple, why you don't add to that a ordinary dip pen (though then you might really be scratching around for a supplier).Maybe it would make things clearer if I explain that I have thousands of pens, all types: fountain pens (calligraphy, writing, drawing, ruling), stick pens, with nibs for show card lettering, calligraphy, drawing, and writing), bamboo drawing pens, goose quill pens (very hard to use), felt-tipped pens of all sorts, and more.

This particular pen, however, is a nice sketcher and decent writer — and happens to be disposable, which means the ink is sealed up inside, so I can throw it into my handbag without fear of a leak. I want more, but cannot have them. The Pilot disposable, to my recollection, is much less wonderful, but I guess that’s all there is for now.

The Pilot disposable is okay; the unavailable Berol Fontaine is wonderful. But that’s always the way: the one you want is the one you cannot have!

I wonder if the modern Osmiroids even have left-handed nibs as an option. They must, I suppose — there are enough calligraphers around to support that, especially as they already have the tooling.

My handwriting is also pathetic now; some days I can scarcely sign my name legibly! But I still try, and when thinking about typefaces, like to start with pen-written characters. Helps keep the computer in its place!

Still not looking for calligraphy pens though — I just want my simple fountain pen, one that doesn’t leak, that writes (and draws) smoothly, and doesn’t call for any fuss.

A little while ago a supplier sent me a Rotring Core fountain pen as recompense for a delayed order. It looks a little odd but is superb to use and very comfortable to use. It's quite chunky and that makes it easy to grip -- in fact it's the most comfortable pen I've ever used.

It's not designed to be disposable. Though rich people might treat it as such the rest of us would use standard ink cartridges.

A little while ago a supplier sent me a Rotring Core fountain pen as recompense for a delayed order. It looks a little odd but is superb to use and very comfortable to use. It's quite chunky and that makes it easy to grip -- in fact it's the most comfortable pen I've ever used.

It's not designed to be disposable. Though rich people might treat it as such the rest of us would use standard ink cartridges.

5 Tips For Fountain Pen Gift Giving

2007-10-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

Fountain pens make great gifts. They're personal, stylish and fun, not to mention very useful in everyday life.

There are so many fine pens to choose from, and you can guarantee personalization by having them engraved. However, because there are a lot of options, choosing the "right" pen for that special person on your gift list can be intimidating. Here are some tips for making it easy and enjoyable instead.

1: Focus on the other person's preferences, not your own.
If you like the same things, you've got it made. But that's usually not the case. Put yourself in the other person's shoes and you're off to a good start.

2: Decide how much you want to spend.
This can help you narrow the field and not get too distracted. But give yourself a reasonable range so you'll still have plenty of choices. Sometimes a slightly more expensive writing instrument will make a big difference in quality, performance and appearance.

3: Evaluate a handwriting sample of the person.
This is especially helpful if you're going to pick out a fountain pen. And it's easier than it may sound. For instance, a fine nib is your best bet for smaller writing or writing that has slimmer lines. On the other hand, a medium to broad sized nib works well for writing that's larger and darker. If the sample wasn't written with a fountain pen, it will either confirm or change the decision you made as a result of Tip #2.

4: What type of writing instrument?
There are four choices: Fountain Pen, Ball Point Pen, Roller ball Pen and Mechanical Pencil. What type is used as an everyday writing instrument? How about for special occasions like signing documents or writing personal correspondence? What is his or her profession? Answering these questions will help you determine the type.

5: What's the person's style?
Is he or she traditional, a trend setter or somewhere in between? Get your clues from personal or business attire, accessories such as watches, jewelry and eyewear, even what the person drives. These answers will help you pick a pen brand, finish, color and more, until you've made your final selection.

Discover How To Find The Best Fountain Pen On The Planet!

2007-10-05T15:43:00.000-07:00

A fountain pen is a pen that has a reservoir of water-based ink. Like something forbidden, has the thought of owning a fountain pen left you feeling like you were out of your league? Captivated by the art of writing, the type of pencil or pen you use makes a tremendous impact on your penmanship. Are you intrigued by the classic elegance of artistic, well engineered fountain pens that can seduce, as well as intimidate you at the same time?

Today the fountain pen is not used as much anymore with the creation of the Bic pen and the pens that come with ink in them and when they run out, you simply throw them away and use another. It was not until the early 1920s that fountain pen improvements not only gained in popularity but also in reliability.

The first mention of fountain pen can be traced to the Egyptians. If you take good care of your fountain pen, it will last you a lifetime.

There are two techniques that allowed fountain pens to be self-sufficient: The lever filler and the button filler. If traveling by plane, it is a general rule to follow with fountain pens to fill or empty them completely and keep them stored in vertical position with the point upward.

When not using the pen, keep it stored vertically with point upward to prevent ink from settling in and clogging the feed. When ink doesn’t flow properly, the gap between the tines should be checked and cleaned with a razor blade. Pen cases are available in the shape of an easel, upright-standing frames, cheroot box-like cases with transparent glass tops, cups and many more.

Pen cases are made of wood, leather, metal and glass with detailed attention to aesthetics. Fountain Pen innovators created filling systems that gave optimum performance in their reservoir designs. International cartridges of all makes can be used in some fountain pens, while others accept only cartridges of their own brand.

The progression of writing apparatuses has taken a profound leap of success since the quill pen. The eyedropper filler ink pens have the maximum capacity to hold ink, with the least capacity attributed to the piston refills pens.

Beware of fake fountain pens on eBay

2007-10-04T19:39:00.000-07:00

Most fountain pen seekers take a stroll through eBay looking for great deals. However, one secret to huge bargains are fountain pens up for an auction that are spelled wrong. There are a lot of people that have no clue what that fancy pen they found at home or inherited is worth, so they put it on eBay.

Many people misspell words. They wonder why there are no bids. Here's why . . . the item does not show up in eBay searches . . . nobody knows it's there. Many times you could be the only bidder.

You can find numerous "eBay Misspelling Tools" available online.

People have no idea what they are actually offering, not only do they misspell the name, they haven't a clue how to describe the fountain pen or take a compelling photo. It's recommended that you email the seller any question you might have.

However, make sure the pen has at least one bid (preferably yours) on it . . . before you tip off the seller that they actually have a fountain pen of substantial worth up for an auction. Once a bid has been made, the seller cannot change the price or description of that item.

You can find many of these pens in great condition, minimal brassing, clean and correct nib, a lever box in great shape, etc.

There is 'safe trading' advice offered by eBay that you should take to heart. By reading this advice you will be able to eliminate the anxiety of buying a product you can't personally check out, while buying it from some stranger.

Warning: there are a lot of fake fountain pens up for an auction on eBay. Do you know how to spot one?

- Does it have a serial number?
- Where should the serial number appear on the fountain pen?
- Is the country of origin spelled correctly?
- Name of a manufacturer spelled correctly?

If you are still unsure on what you are looking for, there are many fountain pen forums online. These experts will be more than happy to answer any question you might have, just type in "Fountain Pen Forums" into any search box and then look around.

Not only should you be aware of fake pens, but be aware of bidder scams. Although rare in fountain pen auctions, it still happens. This type of scam is run by one person in control of two eBay accounts or two people with separate accounts. One eBay account will place a small bid on your fountain pen. Then another eBay account will place a very high bid. Right before your fountain pen auction is about to close, the high bidder will cancel or withdraw their bid, leaving the low bid as the winner. Setting a "reserve price" on your fountain pen will avoid this scam.

Hopefully, this information is beneficial to you in your quest to find a great bargain and not get taken when shopping for fountain pens at the world's largest flea market.

How to Choose a Nice Fountain Pen

2007-10-04T17:42:00.000-07:00

How to Choose a Fountain Pen

So, you're not happy with your pen, eh? Or perhaps you thought that Parker in the window was the perfect one until it tossed its cookies at the very moment when you were signing that special contract. Either way, you seem to have come to the right place. Here is what to look for when choosing a fountain pen.

Size: A big barrel alleviates pressure on the fingers (read: you don't have to grip the barrel as tightly), but if you have small fingers, a big barrel will feel awkward.

Weight: Most of us like the initial feel of a heavy barrel, but if you are planning to write for a prolonged time, the extra weight will tire you faster.

Filling device: Most modern pens can be filled with converters / cartridges. This is great, as it seriously decreases the time taken to fill a pen. If you have difficulty in filling your fountain pen, click here.

Nib Type: People with small handwriting should choose a fine nib. People like bold writing should choose a medium nib. As broad nibs are difficult to find, I won't comment on these. You should basically balance the advantages of a nib with its disadvantages. A fine nib is not as smooth as a medium nib, but creates a finer line.

Remember these tips and you will get yourself a great fountain pen!

My grandfather was a R&D for Parker back in the 50s through 70s. He actually left all his pens to my father, but he gave me a few(about 50), the one I really hope my father gives me is the prototype Parker Space Fountain Pen. The actual pen used by astronauts is made by Fisher, and uses an internally pressurized ink well to write in Zero g, but when the space race was just starting up NASA held a bidding war among pen companies. Parker's engineers knew they needed a pressurized well but at the time couldn't make one. So they developed a small thumb pump that would be manually pumped to pressurize the well before writing. I guess NASA thought it was too much for their astronauts to pump the pen so they turned down the bid. A couple of years latter Fisher submitted their design and it was ultimately accepted.

Why do you love nice pens?

2007-10-03T19:42:00.000-07:00

Parker is still my favourite. My school insisted that we should use fountain pens, not ballpoint or rollerballs or any of that nonsense. I probably went through a dozen different makes of fountain pens before I settled on a Parker Frontier, which has been serving me well for several years now (I don't think they're being made any more though).

I've always found that when writing on paper, the only choice that feels right is a fountain pen. Ballpoints seem to skitter across the page uncomfortably, but you get a nice feeling of traction and flow with fountain pens.
Any one who doesn't carve their own quill pens using feathers from an ostrich they raised themselves has never actually written.
I like nice pens, but usually stick with whatever ball point is on my desk. I'm not sure I agree that ballpoints skitter across the page, but that's just me.
I collect fountain pens and focus mostly on Parkers. Of the ones in my collection, my personal favorite is the L'etalon.
How is this different from keyboards? Professionals who write a whole lot tend to buy good pens (ie. doctors and lawyers). Professionals who type a whole lot are more likely to buy decent keyboards rather than the $2 mush clone PC keyboard. Doesn't conceptually sound that different other than a keyboard doesn't need refills.
Now, Miguel, don't look askance on a nice gel, they write smooth as supermodel-skin and can be had in quantity cheap as Superfund-site dirt. But I'm lucky, in that the company I work for contracts Parker to manufacture our corporate leave-behind pens (nice thick twist-barrells with a rubber grip and brass accoutrements) that I steal mercilessly from HQ and use almost exclusively. They are a nice massy ballpoint, with a distinct heft and solid, conservative semi-gloss black ink - not a smear in a case. I typically carry two at all times, one to write with, the other to offer to damsels-in-distress or colleagues-fumbling-for-crappy-bics as necessary. Email me a dropstop and I'll send you one :)

At my desk, I also employ a selection of Sharpies, black blue and red, for day to day markups.
I can't remember the last time I handwrote more than a paragraph in a sitting.

I enjoy a good pen, but convenience far outweighs any other factor. I have a $60 Lamy, but I prefer to use something I'm not afraid to lose. Being left-handed, though, it is very important to me that the ink dry very quickly. I'm not one of those lefties that wraps the hand around to fake being a righty. I'll be pushing my hand through the ink just after I write it.

If it is an ink that is going to smear, it isn't a pen I'm going to use (which rules out most of the really expensive, nice pens). Further, I find 90% of fountain pens to be so thick that they are completely uncomfortable to hold for more than a couple minutes.
Right-handers have no idea what we lefties go through. Which reminded me of another Spenglerian sign of decay: 20 years ago, all manufacturers (even the good cheap ones, like the marvellous Osmiroid) had left-hand nibs readily available. Now it's almost an extinct industry...

I solve the ink-drying problem by huffing and waving and not minding looking like an idiot, btw. I also have permanently inked-in hands, like manipular tatoos, of course.

I'm not one of those lefties that wraps the hand around to fake being a righty

Fountain Pen Terms

2007-10-02T17:05:00.000-07:00

Fountain Pen Terms you may not know
Pen Terms:

Ink supply:
Reservoir: area within the pen which holds the ink.
Built-in-piston: installed device to draw the ink into the
reservoir.
Converter: removable piston attached to the feed.
Cartridges: disposable, pre-filled ink containers
which attach to the feed.

Fountain Pen Body:

Nib: actual writing tip of the fountain pen; usually has two equal sides
[tines] separated by a slit.
-sizes: fine, medium, broad/wide
-tip is usually rounded and made of gold flexible,
softer]or of iridium [more durable, harder].
-nib may have an angle [oblique nib and reverse oblique];
good for left-handed people if you “push”, use the oblique
nib and if you “pull” your pen, use the reverse oblique.

Feed Unit: located underneath the nib.
-regulates the flow of ink from the reservoir.
-usually made of hard rubber [vulcanized] and usually has
multiple grooves to increase the surface area and
decreasing the chance that ink would flood the pen.

Barrel: the largest part of the body and it will hold the reservoir
and does connect to the nib.

Fountain Pen Questions and Answers

2007-09-22T13:04:00.000-07:00

Brief History of The Fountain Pen

The fountain pen was invented by Waterman in 1884. Inspired by the old tradition of the feather quill, Waterman came up with a way to use the concept without having to be seated at a desk to keep the pen inked. The fountain pen became a staple of society until the ballpoint pen was invented in 1947. This limited the sale of fountain pens in the U.S, but not in Europe. The fountain pen has recently made a resurgence in popularity mainly due to technological advances. Many people are now longing for the nostalgia of the had written note. Nothing makes you feel better than to receive the personal touch of a note that someone took the time to sit and write.

Why a Fountain Pen?

Many people wonder why they should use a fountain pen. Fountain pens offer an expression to a person's handwriting. Through a change in pressure of thepen to the paper, you can achieve a variety of lines, from thick to thin. The ballpoint and rollerball will not give you this variety of line.

Many people also believe that fountain pens improve their penmanship. The basic nature of a fountain pen forces the user to write a little more slowly, hence creating neater, more legible handwriting.

Unlike a ballpoint or rollerball pen, a fountain pen allows for more choices when it comes to ink colors and shades. With a ballpoint or rollerball, blue is blue and black is black. That is not the case with fountain pen ink.

Writing With a Fountain Pen

The proper manner to hold a fountain pen is in the triangle created by your first two fingers and your thumb. The nib of the pen should be up, so that you may see the engraving (if any) on the nib; the black portion of the nib (the feed) should be down. The fountain pen nib is a piece of metal, either steel, gold or titanium, that is split down the center. On the underside of the nib, on both pieces of the split, is a half ball of iridium. If the fountain pen is held properly, both tines of the nib should hit thepaper at the same time, allowing for a smooth feel and a consistent flow of ink.

There are two different ways to handle the cap of a fountain pen. Probably the most common manner is to post the cap on the back of the pen, aligning the clip with the nib. If the pen is held properly, the clip will be out of the way of your hand, and the cap will help with the balance of the pen in your hand. If the fountain pen feels uncomfortable in the hand, you may decide to use the cap in the "European" style, setting the cap on the desk as you write. Rather than setting the cap down, many people may decide to hold it in their nono-writing hand.

Picking a Bottled Ink

Ink Should always be chosen by color preference, not by brand. You should only use ink that is designed for fountain pens, and you should NEVER use India Ink. India ink contains a lacquer that will seize the mechanism in a fountain pen and cuase permanent and irreversible damage. If you choose to use bright colored inks, such as pinks, purples, and reds, use them in a dedicated pen. In other words, pick a pen and use that color only. Bright colored inks have the tendency to stain the barrels and converters of fountain pens.

Some ink varieties would include:

Aurora - Black or Blue
Private Reserve - Lake Placid Blue, Midnight Blues, or Fiesta Red
Waterman - Purple or South Seas Blue

These ink choices are consistently less problematic and require low maintenance.

Filling A Fountain Pen

Cartridge

Cartridges for fountain pens come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Some brands, such as Parker, Waterman, Aurora and Lamy use full-sized cartridges, cartridges that fill the entire barrel of the pen. Most other fountain pen brands including Mont Blanc, Cross, Visconti and Delta, use mini cartridges. When using a full-sized pen that requires a mini cartridge, you should drop one cartridge, narrow side down, into the barrel, and plug the other cartridge into the nib. This piggy-back system serves two purposes: you have a spare cartridge when your pierced cartridge runs out, and it creates a snug fit for the cartridge you are using.

Converter or Piston

A pen that fills from a bottle requires a little more care than a cartridge pen; however, it is not as intimidating as most people would think. Most converters operate using a piston system. This requires a knob to be turned counter-clockwise to move the piston forward, immersing the entire nib into a bottle of ink, and then turning the knob clockwise to draw the ink. Once the converter or reservoir is filled, you should lift the nib out of the ink, turn the piston knob counter-clockwise to bleed out two or three drops, turn the pen nib up, and then turn the know clockwise again. Bleeding the pen will allow for the normal expansion of liquid that occurs with a fountain pen. when cleaning the nib after filling your fountain pen, you should always use a paper towel. You never want to use tissue or cotton clothes, as they will leave lint in your nib, and you may experience ink flow inconsistencies.

Clean Up Your Fountain Pen

Absolute Best:
Remove the Nib from the feed and section. Place all parts including cap in an ultrasonic cleaner. Then take the filling system apart and lubricate all moving parts. Brush clean the feed and then reassemble the pen taking care to set the nib square on the feed.

Hint: By leaving the cap on the back of the pen and cleaning it last, you can use it as a guide to reposition the nib in its original Slot or key.

Note: Most modern convertors and pistons can be dissembled with the right tools and "know how." This does not include a hammer.

Best:
In the store we use an ultrasonic machine (jewelry cleaner) with a mix of three parts water to one part
sudsy ammonia. Do not let the water get hot. Do not clean any part of the pen that is celluloid in this solution. It is advisable to rinse before and after with cool tap water. Allow all parts that will come in contact with ink to complete dry.

Hint: In a pinch Windex with Ammonia works as a cleaning solution straight out of the bottle.

Note: I have seen jewelry cleaners in stores like K-Mart or Walmart for as little as $25.00 in the Jewelry Department

Second Best:
Cleaning your Fountain Pen
There is a regular monthly maintenance procedure that you should follow with your fountain pen. It is recommended that you flush your fountain pen with cool, clear water on a monthly basis. The easiest way to flush a pen that has a converter or piston is to draw clear water as you would ink, expel the water, and repeat this until the water coming out of your pen is clear. It is a repetitive process that may take a little while, but it is necessary. You should also do the flush whenever you change ink colors or brands. You can also remove the convertor clean that part on its own by filling and emptying, Then run cool water from the tap through the back of the pen blowing through it until the ink color is gone. Remember to blow dry or air dry the nib section and convertor completely.

Hint: When you blow through the pen keep your head deep in the sink to avoid splatter.

If the water you expel from the fountain pen doesn't lose color after persistent flushing, and your pen and it is NOT made of celluloid, you may use a mix of 3:1 solution of water to sudsy ammonia Fountain pen ink is ammonia soluble and this solution will break down any dried ink that cannot be loosened with plain water. Be advised: Celluloid is also ammonia soluble, so DO NOT use this solution if you pen is celluloid. When in doubt, just use the water.

Hint: Clean out the cap of the pen too, If you don't and ink is present, it might flow down on the nib and make the pen appear to be leaking even if the ink appears to be dry on the inside of the cap. Moisture (evaporation) from the ink in the pen will hydrate the ink in the cap after filling and capping.

Best Of The Best
(I suggest you do this once a year or on extremely clogged pens)
Getting the pen back to square one option.
Let me clean, inspect, adjust the nib and lubricate the pen for $15.00 plus $6.95 shipping and insurance. I can usually get them shipped back to you via UPS in one or two days.

I am factory trained by Montblanc, Aurora, Visconti, Omas and Delta. I have a good working knowledge of Pelikan, Lamy, Stipula, Waterman, Parker and several other brands.

Hint: Send in several pens to amortize the shipping cost.

Note: If you break the pen it is your problem. If I break it, it is still your problem, but it costs you far less because I have to pay to fix it. After all, at that point I am the one who made the mistake, not you. I do not want to make it seem that stripping down a pen causes them to break, but stuff happens.

Your Hands
When it comes to getting ink on your hands, there are several options that you have to remove it. Amodex is a product available on the market that will remove fountain pen ink from skin and many fabrics. It has a lotion consistency that is gentle on your skin, and works like a dream! Soap and water is always an acceptable way to remove ink from hands. It may require some scrubbing, depending on the water resistance of the ink. In a pinch, when neither Amodex nor a sink are available, spritzing your hands with a little Windex will also help to remove the ink. As previously mentioned, fountain pen ink is ammonia soluble, and Windex has enough ammonia to remove the ink without having other solvents that would damage your hands.

Fountain Pen Storage

Filled fountain pens should always be stored nib up, as they would be in a shirt pocket. You should never store a fountain pen nib down...GRAVITY WORKS. Filled fountain pens should never be stored for an extended period of time. When you fill a pen, consider it a commitment to use it. Storing a pen that is filled with ink could cause the ink to dry in the pen, and create flow problems and possible piston damage.

If you plan on storing your fountain pen for an extended period of time, you should always empty the pen and flush it before putting it away. This will ensure that the barrel is clean and there is no ink inside that will lock the piston and create a problem that may need a professional repair.

Writing with fountain pens

2007-09-22T10:56:00.000-07:00

In 1884 the fountain pen was invented by Lewis Waterman. It was designed after the feather quill pen. Waterman found a way to use the concept of the feather quill without having to constantly "re-ink" the pen. Here are some tips on how to write with a fountain pen.

Step One
Assume the position. The proper way to hold a fountain pen is to form a triangle with your index finger, middle finger and your thumb. Place the fountain pen in that grip.

Step Two
Make sure the pen is in the proper position. The nib, which is the tip of the pen should be pointed in the upright position. The feed, which is the base of the nib should be down. Holding the pen "upside down" so that the tip is in the air, will naturally place the pen in the correct position.
3
Step Three
Place the cap on the pen. Believe it or not, the balance of the fountain pen is partially dependant on placement of the cap on the back of the pen while you write. The clip of the pen should align with the nib and face out from your grip of the pen.
4
Step Four
Write with your fountain pen! You are now ready to place pen to paper. Write until the ink begins to become thin. If it becomes thick, tip the nib up, wait a moment, and then replace it on the paper. If it becomes thin and dry, you might be ready for a new ink cartridge.
Tips & Warnings

* Fountain pens come in a wide variety. Some brands, such as Parker and Lamy use full-sized ink cartridges. These are cartridges that fill the entire barrel of the pen. Most other fountain pen brands including Mont Blanc and Delta, use smaller cartridges called mini-cartridges. Check your brand name to see how to properly refill your pen.
* Do not use "India Ink!" Fountain pen ink is a water based ink. Indian Ink is lacquer based and will seize the pen by clogging it.
* Don't place the pen in your pocket. While high priced fountain pens should not leak, don't take the chance. Because ink is always wet at the nib (the tip), fountain pens have been known to leak. Make sure it is carried in a case, placed upright in your pocket, or left on your desk!

Return of Waterman Pen Manufacturer

2007-09-21T10:59:00.000-07:00

Return of the Penman

When debonair, mustachioed Elisha Hudson Waterman last week became king pen of L. E. Waterman Co., the 2,000 astonished employees of this famed old fountain-pen concern could well imagine his father, Frank Dan Waterman, turning furiously in his grave. Thirteen years ago, crusty, conservative President Frank Dan kicked Elisha out of his $6,500 job in the company and banished him from the family. Last month, when bitter old Frank Dan died, he left Elisha a mere $100. Scarcely was the Waterman ink dry on the will when Elisha quietly played the trump card he had held up his sleeve for 13 poverty-stricken years as dishwasher, wine steward and hack writer. While the rest of the Waterman family sat around in speechless amazement, he not only returned but took undisputed control of the $4,500,000 (estimated) Waterman business.

After three years of war, Elisha Waterman could "only stand one year of Yale," then joined the family company to be groomed as his father's successor. But Frank Dan was dictatorial. Elisha progressive and pushing; they got along like cat and dog. In 1925. Frank Dan, just defeated by Jimmy Walker for the job of mayor of New York, went back hurt and angry to the job Elisha was all set to take over. Their row on policy was terrific; they never spoke to each other again.

To support himself, wife and baby daughter, Elisha washed dishes for $12 a week, read copy on a newspaper, for years could not afford a new suit. His only money was tied up in a $1,200 savings account his great-uncle had started in 1899. One day Elisha's wife begged her father-in-law for this puny sum. Legend has it that when he refused, she produced a horsewhip, thrashed him soundly in the lobby of his swank Manhattan office building. In 1928 she died, and Elisha sent his daughter, Audrey Bridget, to live with his parents while he gradually began to succeed as a detective story writer for pulp magazines and newspaper columnist under a pen name.

When Frank Dan died last month, he left his estate to his widow with the proviso that Audrey Bridget and Frank Dan Jr., "the good son," inherit it later. Thereupon Elisha and his second wife marched out of their small flat in Greenwich Village, reminded his relatives of the will left in 1901 by his great-uncle, Inventor-Founder Lewis Edison Waterman. None of the Waterman clan but Elisha had remembered that this sage greybeard bequeathed 60% of the fountain-pen stock to Frank Dan Waterman with the proviso that on his death it go to Elisha. Said Elisha last week as he became executive vice president and director: "It is quite clear that my great-uncle meant me to be his ultimate heir."

Sure of his destiny, Elisha kept tabs on the fountain-pen business during his exile, will now handle advertising and employee and public relations preparatory to "running things before long in cooperation with my brother." His chief ambition is to restore Waterman to the No. 1 position in the industry now held by Parker Pen Co. He hopes this will not prevent his writing a novel or two on the side. When he writes he scrupulously uses a Waterman fountain pen.

Restoring Fountain Pens. Amateurs

2007-09-17T13:07:00.000-07:00

Fountain Pens in Recent History

In its heyday, the fountain pen was the principle instrument people used for written communication. During the past century, fountain pens evolved as inventors developed various mechanisms and methods for pens to hold ink and fill them. Dip pens were finally relegated to the past.

But as filling and ink-storage capacities became less of an issue, pens also became more colorful, first in hard rubber, then in plastics, offering even more decorative possibilities. Fountain pens fully developed as advertising and design became paramount in the mass production of products. Pen manufacturers competed on quality and branding, offering models ranging in cost from the inexpensive and utilitarian to the expensive and exquisite.

Once there were thousands of fountain pen repairers. Today there are only a few of us. We are continually rediscovering how tools were designed, what techniques were used, and how pens were adjusted to make them a joy to use. We take pride in that tradition and believe that if something worked well in the past, it can be made to work just as well today.

Dallas Pen Celebrate 60 years

2007-09-16T13:09:00.000-07:00

Dallas Pen is turning 60 and will be celebrating this milestone at the Dallas Pen Annual Fall Show at the end of September. The special show is being staged at the Doubletree Hotel on Valley View Lane in Dallas, Texas. The dates of the event are September 28 and 29. An anniversary party will be held immediately after the show hours on Friday evening. The annual golf tournament precedes the show on Thursday, September 27.

President & CEO Pat Melugin said, "The company is 60 years old as of this year and still growing strong. We're excited about the business and are looking forward to the changes ahead of us."

"There's no question that this is a significant milestone for Dallas Pen," said Vice President Bobbie Melugin. "Our people and our customers have given us this grand opportunity and we want to show them our gratitude by sponsoring this special event."

Dallas Pen "Shop" was founded by Lyman Short in 1947 as a retail card shop and fountain pen repair center. Lyman was a traveling salesman for both Sheaffer and Parker Pen for many years. The invention and development of the ballpoint pen led Lyman to more and more writing instruments and fewer cards and fountain pen repairs. In 1955 Lyman hired Ed Melugin as his first outside salesman. Ed called on all commercial accounts and began developing the wholesale side of the business. Soon the wholesale side of the business began to outsell the retail side.

The business was incorporated in 1967 and sold as Dallas Pen Company to Ed Melugin. Ed immediately converted the business to 100 % wholesale and sold to drug stores, office supply stores, college bookstores and specialty shops. He built a 10,000 sq ft. warehouse and relocated. Ed then began to expand the product offering to include more items that could be sold to his existing customers. This meant more office supplies. He also expanded by hiring sales people to cover Texas and Louisiana.

In 1975 Ed brought his son Pat into the business who continued to develop and expand the company. He increased the sales force to 12 and expanded the states covered. In 1986 he began to bring in school supplies. Ed Melugin retired in 1990.

In June 2004 Dallas Pen Company produced its first Big Book of Learning Materials catalog and launched its website. In 2005 additional employees were hired to help produce catalogs and flyers in house. Dallas Pen now publishes 2 Big Books a year, the Little Big Book once a year, Spring New Product Flyer, Fall Seasonal and New Product Flyer and the Inspirational flyer.

Today, Dallas Pen Company occupies a 49,000 sq ft. warehouse with 33,000 inventoried items. There are 6 full time sales people covering Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, New Mexico, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Missouri, and Kansas with an additional 8 customer service specialists.

Paul Fountain Pen Factory

2007-09-15T13:10:00.000-07:00

The Paul E. Wirt Fountain Pen Company began manufacturing fountain pens in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania in the early 1880s. They may have been the largest producers of fountain pens during the next two decades. At that time, only L. E. Waterman Pen Company reached similar production levels.

Early Wirt pens were all eyedropper fill pens in black or red & black mottled hard rubber. These early pens were overfeed models - having the feed located on top of the nib. Later, when Wirt offered a traditional under feed pen, it was fairly unique in that it did not have a breather hole in the nib. It was vented through a hole in the feed. While some people have speculated that Wirt may have fell behind in the pen race because he was slow to offer self-filling pens, this information is simply not correct as Wirt was offering self-fillers as early as 1903.

Thankfully, not all Wirt pens were to be plain black or mottled hard rubber. They also produced many pens with gold or gold-filled overlays, filigree pens, and pens covered with mother of pearl or abalone slabs. Among these higher-end pens is Wirt’s version of the "Snake" pen. Wirt also offered many unique filling systems and was one of the first companies to offer a pocket clip as an option.

Sears, Roebuck & Company were the leading retailer of Wirt Fountain Pens. For many years they purchased huge quantities of pens to sell in their catalogues. However, they did not, at any time, purchase Wirt’s entire production. In addition to Sears, Wirt sold many pens to smaller retailers and even sold single pens to individuals. Wirt had a several names he used on his pens - one of them being "Phenix". Some of these pens were labeled for use by other pen companies and some were labeled to be sold by chain stores or stationary stores. The Phenix pens were all black or mottled hard rubber.

Competition in the pen business became fierce after 1910. Other pen companies were cutting costs by purchasing ready-made parts from suppliers. However, Paul Wirt was still making all parts himself. This is when Wirt sales began to lag. Eventually he began buying many of the parts just to stay competitive.

Wirt eventually switched all production to lever fill pens, with his distinctive "W" on the lever.

By the 1920s, Paul Wirt was in his 70s and had probably lost interest in the declining company. It was at this time that he turned control of the company over to his son Karl. Karl Wirt died in 1921 & Paul sold the company in 1925.

The Wirt Company eventually switched production to plastic, but the depression really took a toll on pen companies and probably put an end to all production. The Paul E. Wirt Pen Co remained open for many years doing pen repair work and probably many pens were assembled from leftover parts. Eventually the factory was closed and the remaining inventory was sold off.

Aurora Optima Pens

2007-08-17T18:20:00.000-07:00

The new Optima Aurora has remained true to its unmistakable look and its charm to become the cult object for men and women that know how to choose.

The resin version of the Optima range has been created using handcrafted acrylic resins and features hand-finished trims with great attention down to the smallest detail. The cap and barrel in all Aurora Optima resin pens are made of acrylic resins, with gold or chrome-plated trims.

The fountain pen features a solid gold nib and the traditional piston refill mechanism and hidden reservoir. Matching roller-ball pen and twist-action ballpoint pen is also available.

The Optima resin pens come in a stylish velvet presentation case.

Fountain Pens Deluxe Ebook

2007-08-06T04:49:00.000-07:00

A Book about Fountain Pens

This deluxe second edition has been expanded and reformatted to be almost one third larger than the first edition, a book that is already regarded as one of the most authoritative and entertaining books on the subject of pen collecting. Outlining eight major manufacturers and their classic model pens, the book is colorfully illustrated with photos and advertisements. You will find current collector values; new photographs including hundreds of additional vintage and contemporary writing instruments; new tips on buying, selling, and trading; and a new 'Collectibility Status Chart' identifying over 100 brands and models of fountain pens and their relative values. In addition, there are new sections on individual artisans and their unique creations and a revised section on contemporary manufacturers, double the size of the first edition. Discussions are included on building your collections, storage and display, refurbishing and repair, paper and inks, and valuing your pens. 2004 values. REVIEW: This book is a revised edition with current collector values and new photographs and catalog reprints. It contains valuable facts and insight from Frank Fenton himself. This book looks in-depth at the regular line production of Fenton's major patterns over four decades. It is divided alphabetically into four major chapters covering the specific patterns - Coin Dot, Crests, Hobnail, and Spiral Optic. Each chapter is also divided into the various colors in which the pattern was produced.

Fountain Pens Make a perfect lesson scenario

2007-08-05T04:57:00.000-07:00

# Many teachers say they don't deduct points for bad handwriting in class, but Graham says that is not what the research tells him. When adults are given the same composition written in good handwriting and poor handwriting, they give lower grades if the text is less legible, he said.
# While only 15 percent of students wrote their 2006 SAT essays in cursive, 85 percent of students who did use cursive had higher test scores than those who printed their essays.
# When researchers recently discovered a poem, they were able to determine that the poem was written by Robert Frost because it was written in his handwriting. But what if Robert Frost had typed his poem on a computer? There would be no way to prove if the poem was his, the researchers noted.

More About
Fountain Pens

Many years ago, writers used feathers or quills as writing tools. They dipped a sharp end of the quill into ink. Some noticed that a “reservoir” of ink welled up inside the end of the sharpened quill, so they tried to create a manmade pen that would hold more ink and not require frequent dipping into a bottle of ink. People tried to create such an invention as early as 1702. In the 1880’s an insurance salesman, upset after ruining a sales contract with a leaky pen, created a fountain pen much improved over its predecessors. That man, Lewis Waterman, added an air hole in the nib (point) and three grooves inside the feed mechanism. Waterman gave birth to the modern-day fountain pen!

Revisit the Anticipation Guide at the top of this lesson; ask students to respond again to the statements in it.
# Handwriting is an important skill to learn.
# People who write neatly are smarter that people who have sloppy handwriting. (Hopefully, discussion of this point will result in an understanding that neat handwriting might equate to a person who takes more care, but does not reflect “smartness.” You might mention that many very smart people have poor handwriting.)
# Students should get more handwriting instruction in school than they get now.
# People judge others by their handwriting.
# I should work hard to improve my handwriting.
Did your students’ opinions change at all after reading the article?

Discuss the Think About the News question that appears on the students’ news page. This might be an ideal question to pose to students as an opinion/persuasive essay question. Students must decide how to answer the question and provide two or three strong supporting ideas to persuade you to their point of view. If you teach younger students, you might help them to organize their ideas:
# Create a 2-column class chart. Label one column Handwriting is very important and label the other column Handwriting is not very important.
# Have students share ideas on both sides of the debate. Write their ideas in the appropriate columns.
# Let students draw ideas from the chart as they write their essays.

Science. Now that students have some idea of the history behind the fountain pen, have them choose another object and explore its history. Have them share what they learn about the object’s history with their classmates.

Fountain Pen Makes a Comeback in Scotland

2007-08-05T04:55:00.000-07:00

Before reading, ask students to agree or disagree with each of the statements below. You might poll students and record the number of students who agree and disagree with each statement. (Note: After reading this week’s news story, you might take the poll again to see if students’ opinions change.)
# Handwriting is an important skill to learn.
# People who write neatly are smarter than people who have sloppy handwriting.
# Students should get more handwriting instruction in school than they get now.
# People judge others by their handwriting.
# I should work hard to improve my handwriting.

# fountain pen -- a pen that contains a reservoir of ink that automatically feeds ink to its writing tip (If this is your students’ first exposure, you might share with them one of these pictures of fountain pens.)
# old-fashioned -- something that is characteristic of a past era (period in history)
# cursive -- a type of handwriting that flows smoothly across the page; not printing

# Bryan Lewis, principal at the Mary Erskine and Stewart's Melville Junior School in Edinburgh, Scotland, says using old-fashioned fountain pens has helped boost the academic performance of his 1,200 pupils. Out in the real world, he says, students still need to have proper handwriting skills. “The pens improve the quality of work because they force the children to take care, and better work improves self-esteem,” Lewis told ABC News.
# At his school, students begin to use fountain pens as young as age 7. By the time they reach age 9 (grade 5), they write mainly with fountain pens. Ten-year-old Cailean Gall told ABC that it was hard to learn to write with a fountain pen because he kept smudging, but now he finds it strange to use a pencil. He says he likes using the fountain pen because it makes him concentrate much more on his work.
# Students at the school still do their math work in pencil.
# Is cursive handwriting a dying art? In 2006, handwritten essays were introduced as part of the SAT college entrance exams. Essay-graders noticed that only 15 percent of students wrote their essays in cursive handwriting.
# Many of today’s students have not been taught to write cursive style; they struggle to read cursive too. Instead, they are taught keyboarding skills starting as young as kindergarten. In the upper grades, many students take notes on laptop computers.
# Writing experts say that students who have weak handwriting skills produce simpler, shorter writing samples. Children who don't learn proper handwriting find it harder to write by hand, so they avoid it. Data shows that the better students are in penmanship, the more they write. And the more students write, the more they are able to improve as writers.
# A 2003 survey of primary-grade teachers found that most now spend 10 minutes a day or less teaching handwriting. The goal is to produce legible handwriting instead of perfect handwriting, teachers said.
# Researcher Steve Graham did an experiment with first-graders in Maryland. At the start of the experiment, the students could write 10 to 12 letters per minute. After nine weeks of handwriting lessons (three times a week for 15 minutes) the kids had doubled their writing speed, were writing more complex thoughts, and had better sentence construction skills.

Israeli Fountain Pens Manufacturing

2007-08-05T04:53:00.000-07:00

Brothers Walter and Eric Kornfeld, who escaped from the Nazis in Austria, established a factory for the manufacture of fountain- and mechanical pencils in Ramat-Gan, a suburb of Tel-Aviv, in 1938. The factory was located on 30 Bialik Street on the second floor of a two-story building. They were not connected in any way to the writing equipment industry but nevertheless established a successful business, trading under the name of KATAB. The name, as written in English is not a Hebrew word but rather Arabic and the meaning is either "wrote" or "a written document", while in Hebrew the word as spelled may mean, as a verb, "has written" or again "a written document". If the Kornfeld family had only aimed at the Jewish customers, they would have written KATAV.

By using KATAB they had in mind the Arab population, which at that time was at least twice in size as compared to the Jewish population. Many of the Arabs were illiterates, but those who could afford quality pens would have liked, and still like, nice objects - preferably incorporating gold metal. Therefore, the very first KATAB models were of very good quality, with gold plated accessories, in particular a small embossed golden seal on the screw cap, about where the clip ends. Examples of these pens are very rare.

During WWII, raw materials were scarce so the family re-cycled used plastics and managed to continue production. Obviously the recycled plastic pens are not of the best quality.

The factory owners were quite innovative and made pens that used bottled ink or cartridges (their own standard). The filling systems were chiefly button fillers but they also made lever fillers and twist (piston) fillers. Katab was basically a good manufacturer due, most probably, to the skill of its workers and the serious attitude of its owners. The nibs were always made of 14 Karats gold with iridium tips and carried the letter K. As far as I know, they were all imported, though I have heard that some nib manufacturing (or repair) was taking place locally.

I have in my collection examples of several designs - although not of the very rare and expensive ones which can cost as much as 10,000 Israeli Shekels (approximately US$ 2000)! Middle range models are available for about half that price and the third category can be found for about 2,500 Israeli Shekels.

Two knowledgeable gentlemen still live in Israel. One is named Moshe Hacohen of Tel-Aviv who followed the Israeli (Palestinian) pen manufacturing industry more closely than I have, being engaged all his life with pens. However, since he expressed his desire to write himself on Katab, I got only some pieces of information although I offered to compensate him for his time. The other is Mr. Yair Nachmani of Haifa who maintains a pen shop in partnership with his son Avraham, from whom I bought several unused Katab as recently as January 2003! Those pens were made in Israel for a period of time just before the closing of the factory. Incidentally, Mr. Yair Nachmani was good enough to give me, free of charge, all his junk of pen parts he collected during the years. It was in that junk that I discovered the Katab ball pen refill. These pen parts still hide a lot of information, which I intend to write about in the future in updated issues of my article. In addition, the son of Yair Nachmani who is an expert in repairing pens, seems to find new lots of pens every so often. Unfortunately, Yair Nachmani's memory is not too good, so I get from him only little information. Nevertheless, his contribution to my knowledge is substantial.

Some pens can still be found in their original cases with a label of "Mass Knia" (Purchase Tax) or "Mass Motarot" (Luxury Tax!). If the small label is intact, or if a pen bears the original price tag, I consider it never to have been used.

As the ball pen became so popular, during the early fifties, the Katab Company wanted to go into ball pen manufacturing. Actually I found one ball pen marked “KATAB” and also a brass ballpoint refill marked “KATAB”. However, the young State had its own ideas on private industries, which were not to the likings of the Katab owners. Thus, I assume, the ballpoint pen was manufactured for Katab by another firm. The family left for the U.K. and the factory closed its doors in 1954. Its last location was on Bialik Street in Ramat-Gan on the second floor of a two-story building, with shops on the street level. The form and shape of both the pen and the refill are very similar to the Globus ball pen refills, thus, I presume, it was manufactured for Katab by the other Israel ball pen manufacturers and indicated Katab's intention to go into ball pen manufacturing.

I could not find as yet any printed information concerning the Katab factory, except two advertisements attached at the end of this article. The verbal information from the two sources sometimes varies. Thus, for instance, Mr. Hacohen claims that all Katab pens had nibs embossed with the letter K (there is one little exception to this) while Mr. Nachmani senior claims that not all pens had gold nibs and not all the nibs carried the letter K. I saw one example of a genuine Katab nib, which was not made of gold.

Once the war ended in May 1945, they continued production. After the State of Israel was established (15th of May 1948) there was a big shortage of foreign funds (ships loaded with grain for flour waited outside the harbors until their cargoes were paid for). The Katab factory had to adapt once again to a further shortage of raw materials but managed to continue production. The obvious difference in the products was the inscription:

Moleskine Fountain Pen

2007-08-05T04:51:00.000-07:00

A Moleskine (pronounced mo-leh-skeen'-eh) is a small pocket size blank book with black cloth cover textured to resemble leather, a permanently attached ribbon bookmark, a pocket on the inside back cover and elastic band to hold the cover closed when not in use. Moleskine pages are thread-bound, and this allows them to lie flat.

Moleskines are made by Italian manufacturer Modo & Modo, and are based on a style of blank book which used to be made by several manufacturers until the last one ceased operations in the mid 1980s. These blank books were called "les carnets moleskines" and were apparently popular with artists and writers -- some quite famous -- for two centuries, so the story goes. Modo & Modo began manufacturing the current version in 1998 and registered the name Moleskine as a trademark.

These feel classy, and are less conspicuous than a big spiral bound sketchbook when sketching around people since they will most likely assume you are just reading a book or making journal or calendar entries.

Of course, hardbound sketchbooks, even black ones, have been around for a long time. Moleskine does have an advantage over many other hardbound journals and notebooks because it is thinner and more portable. It will actually fit in your pocket, although it might not be comfortable unless it is a coat pocket. Its small size makes it the perfect traveling companion. Now you can carry a nice a sketchook with you everywhere, which means sketching may happen in your life more often. And most importantly, the Moleskine pages do lie flat when open, which I think is their biggest selling point. It's much easier to draw on a perfectly flat surface.

Modo & Modo have expanded current Moleskine line to include a variety of formats including ruled, unruled, and grid ruled notebooks, sketchbooks, address books, weekly planners, musical notation books, story board books, and even offer them in a larger version.

For line drawings and dry media (pencil, pastel, etc) most sketchers prefer the Moleskine sketchbooks or plain (unruled) notebooks. Some artists also favor the grid ruled notebooks. For watercolor sketches, Modo & Modo has recently come out with a Watercolour Notebook Moleskine. They call it a notebook instead of a sketchbook I suppose to keep it distinguished from their regular sketchbook. Also, they put a "u" in watercolour, so I will do the same when referring to the product, but not the media (watercolor) since I am in the habit of using the American spelling.

Apparently this new addition to the line up was in response to all the complaints that the regular sketchbook paper was very difficult to work with watercolor. Let's look at those problems to see why a new product was necessary. First watercolor beads up on the regular sketchbook paper. Then if you rub it a bit with a brush it settles down. It's still unpredictable and hard to control, but some artists might actually like the effects it gets. Another option is using watercolor pencils (the sketchbook was created with pencil in mind after all). Here are the results of an experiment:

On the left page I brushed on Winsor Newton watercolors with a waterbrush. On the right half of these swashes I worked the watercolor into the paper by going over it with the waterbrush until it stopped beading. It took about 4 or 5 successive strokes before the color settled down. If you stroke too many times, the paper surface will start to break up, and you'll have new problems. On the right page I scribbled with Mitsubishi UNI watercolor pencils in similar colors to the Winsor Newton paints. I went over the right half of the swashes with water from the waterbrush . These only required 1 or 2 strokes to convert the pencil strokes to a smooth wash. You can see how the color from the watercolor pencils actually behaves well.

For watercolor sketchers this was the best we could do until they came out with the watercolour notebook.

There was great excitement and anticipation when this new addition to the lineup was announced. I had to wait a bit longer than many of my artist friends, since these products usually don't show up in Japan until several months after their debut in the west. There were mixed reviews about these. For one, some people loved the landscape format (binding on the short end) while others were disappointed that they didn't stick with the traditional vertical book format. Also there were a lot of complaints about the perforated pages which made this version less "Moleskine-like" than its predecessors since the pages could now be easily torn out.

I recently received several of these watercolor notebooks from a friend in the west and was finally able to try them out myself. The first thing I noticed to my surprise (and delight) was the absence of perforations on some of them. The packaging used the term "detachable pages" on all the notebooks but some were not perforated. You can tell without opening them which ones are perforated because they are clearly visible on the side of the pages. The pages lie flat when you spread them out, which as I have said is their best feature, and one that Moleskine imitators don't seem to understand. The paper itself worked great with watercolors, and I found myself unconciously emphasizing the watercolors rather than line work in my sketch. So now there is truly a Moleskine for watercolor sketchers, and this looks like it will be my main sketchbook finally since I do love watercolor.

The watercolour notebook even took fountain pen ink very well as one would expect since it is intended for wet media. Those who like to sketch in ink may have difficulty with the regular Moleskine sketchbook, depending on what type of ink they use. Of course if your ink tool of choice is a ballpoint pen, then you can sketch on just about anything. Pigment pens such as the Micron also work fairly well, as do gel pens. However, those who sketch with a fountain pen will find that most inks will bead up in the regular Moleskine sketchbook. The only fountain ink I've used successfully with the sketchbook is Platinum's Carbon black ink, and even this ink does feather slightly, and doesn't go on as black as it should.

You will have more success with the fountain pen if you use either the regular Moleskine notebook or the watercolour notebook instead of the sketchbook. With the regular notebook, the challenge is finding a fountain pen ink that is compatible with the paper since many inks will bleed through or feather terribly on the paper.

There are several fountain pen inks which do work well on regular Moleskine notebook paper. I've found Platinum black ink and blue black ink work very well. Noodlers black also works well, and it becomes waterproof when dry. I haven't tried Noodlers' other colors. It also helps if you use a fountain pen that writes on the dry side, or one with a fine or extra fine nib. I'm sure there are other fountain pen inks out there that work well with Moleskine notebook paper, but since I have found two brands that work so well, I stopped searching. Over the past few years I've also filled several Moleskine notebooks with written notes using fountain pens one of the above mentioned inks and have had no problems at all. Remember, if you want to use these inks, you will need an ink converter for your fountain pen, which will allow you to use bottled ink instead of a cartridge, unless you are using a Platinum pen, in which case you can just use their cartridges.

Sometimes I sketch with a brush pen filled with either Platinum Carbon black ink or Kuretake ink for brush pens. Brush pens work great on Moleskine notebook paper since the line goes on relatively dry.

The paper in the regular Moleskine notebooks - and most other hardbound notebooks and sketchbooks for that matter -- is fairly thin, so you may want to just draw on the right hand pages when using ink. Even if the ink doesn't bleed through, drawings on both sides of one page can compromise each other's impact. You can save the left hand pages for notes (done preferably in light pencil).

So if you are primarily a pencil sketcher then the sketchbook will suit you fine. If you are an ink sketcher, either the notebook or watercolour notebook will be your choice, and if you use watercolors, then the watercolour notebook is your obvious choice.

The Moleskine in its past and current incarnations has enjoyed a long history of association with famous artists and writers, and its image has been greatly enhanced in recent times from a very effective marketing campaign. The current Moleskine is well made, and being used all over the world by dedicated fans. It has become a classic - an icon - and can often be seen in coffee shops and subways where they are recognized and acknowledged by other users as if they belonged to some sort of universal secret order. When you open a Moleskine, you do feel somehow connected to a great family of artists and writers from the past and present. For these reasons the Moleskine has taken on a magical quality, and its very apperarance seems to thrill and spur us on to greater creative activity. That little psychological "jump start" may well be the deciding factor in how big a role sketching plays in your life.

Stainless Steel Fountain Pens

2007-08-05T04:48:00.000-07:00

We used photolithographic microfabrication techniques to create very small stainless steel fountain pens that were installed in place of conventional pens on a microarray spotter. Because of the small feature size produced by the microfabricated pens, we were able to print arrays with up to 25,000 spots/cm², significantly higher than can be achieved by other deposition methods. This feature density is sufficiently large that a standard microscope slide can contain multiple replicates of every gene in a complex organism such as a mouse or human. We tested carryover during array printing with dye solution, labeled DNA, and hybridized DNA, and we found it to be indistinguishable from background. Hybridization also showed good sequence specificity to printed oligonucleotides. In addition to improved slide capacity, the microfabrication process offers the possibility of low-cost mass-produced pens and the flexibility to include novel pen features that cannot be machined with conventional techniques.

Why buy a vintage fountain pen?

2007-08-01T17:07:00.000-07:00

Why would someone wish to buy an old fountain pen? Simply because they are beautiful writing instruments made of such high quality that would be uneconomical to produce nowadays. A restored fountain pen quickly becomes one of our most prized possession.

The first fountain pens were first created in the 1890's after L E Waterman had devised a method for allowing ink to drip down to the writing nib as and when it was needed.

Arguably some of the best vintage fountain pens were produced in the period 1900 up to the Second World War. The earliest pens were made from black hard rubber and then red hard rubber and then 'red rippled' which was a mix of both black and red.

By the mid 1920's a new product called celluloid used for making pens first saw it's appearance. The celluloid meant that fountain pens could then be manufactured in many colors. The Parker fountain pens ( just to name one fountain pen maker ) of the early 1930's are stunning.

Of course the detrimental effects of the 'Depression' years and the Second World War were nothing to the major impact of the ball-point pen in the late 1950's. Those fountain pen companies who took this new innovation into their business plans managed to survive but the fountain pen manufacturers who saw the ball-point pen as a fad quickly declined and ceased production.

How Fountain Pens Appeared on the market

2007-07-03T14:24:00.000-07:00

Lewis Waterman patented the first practical fountain pen in 1884. Writing instruments designed to carry their own supply of ink had existed in principle for over one hundred years before Waterman's patent. For example, the oldest known fountain pen that has survived today was designed by a Frenchmen named M. Bion and dated 1702. Peregrin Williamson, a Baltimore shoemaker, received the first American patent for a pen in 1809. John Scheffer received a British patent in 1819 for his half quill, half metal pen that he attempted to mass manufacture. John Jacob Parker patented the first self-filling fountain pen in 1831. However, early fountain pen models were plagued by ink spills and other failures that left them impractical and hard to sell.

The fountain pen's design came after a thousand years of using quill-pens. Early inventors observed the apparent natural ink reserve found in the hollow channel of a bird's feather and tried to produce a similar effect, with a man-made pen that would hold more ink and not require constant dipping into the ink well. However, a feather is not a pen, only a natural object modified to suit man's needs. Filling a long thin reservoir made of hard rubber with ink and sticking a metal 'nib' at the bottom was not enough to produce a smooth writing instrument. Lewis Waterman, an insurance salesman, was inspired to improve the early fountain pen designs after destroying a valuable sales contract with leaky-pen ink. Lewis Waterman's idea was to add an air hole in the nib and three grooves inside the feed mechanism.

A mechanism is composed of three main parts. The nib, which has the contact with the paper. The feed or black part under the nib controls the ink flow from the reservoir to the nib. The round barrel that holds the nib and feed on the writing end protects the ink reservoir internally (this is the part that you grip while writing).

All fountain pens contain an internal reservoir for ink. The different ways that reservoirs filled proved to be one of the most competitive areas in the pen industry. The earliest 19th century pens used an eyedropper; by 1915, most pens had switched to having a self-filling soft and flexible rubber sac as an ink reservoir. To refill these pens, the reservoirs were squeezed flat by an internal plate, then the pen's nib was inserted into a bottle of ink and the pressure on the internal plate was released so that the ink sac would fill up drawing in a fresh supply of ink.

Several different patents issued for the self-filling fountain pen design:

* The Button Filler: Patented in 1905 and first offered by the Parker Pen Co. in 1913 as an alternative to the eyedropper method. An external button connected to the internal pressure plate that flattened the ink sac when pressed.
* Lever Filler: Walter Sheaffer patented the lever filler in 1908. The W.A. Sheaffer Pen Company of Fort Madison, Iowa introduced it in 1912. An external lever depressed the flexible ink sac. The lever fitted flush with the barrel of the pen when it was not in use. The lever filler became the winning design for the next forty years, the button filler coming in second.
* Click Filler: First called the crescent filler, Roy Conklin of Toledo commercially produced the first one. A later design by Parker Pen Co. used the name click filler. When two protruding tabs on the outside of the pen pressed, the ink sac deflated. The tabs would make a clicking sound when the sac was full.
* Matchstick Filler: Introduced around 1910 by the Weidlich Company. A small rod mounted on the pen or a common matchstick depressed the internal pressure plate through a hole in the side of the barrel.
* Coin Filler: Developed by Lewis Waterman in an attempt to compete with the winning lever filler patent belonging to Sheaffer. A slot in the barrel of the pen enabled a coin to deflate the internal pressure plate, a similar idea to the matchstick filler.

The ink cartridge introduced around 1950 was a disposable, pre-filled plastic or glass cartridges designed for clean and easy insertion. They were an immediate success. The introduction of the ballpoints, however, overshadowed the invention of the cartridge and dried up business for the fountain pens industry. Fountain pens sell today as a classic writing instrument and the original pens have become very hot collectibles.

There are nine standard nib-sizes, with three different nib-tip cuts: straight, oblique and italic. The early inks caused steel nibs to quickly corrode and gold nibs held up to the corrosion. Iridium used on the very tip of the nib replaced gold because gold was too soft. Most owners had their initials engraved on the clip. It took about four months to break in a new writing instrument since the nib was designed to flex as pressure was put on it (allowing the writer to vary the width of the writing lines) each nib wore down accommodating to each owner's own writing style. People did not tend to loan their fountain pens to anyone for that reason.

Fountain pens

Fountain pens manufacturing millionaires

2006-09-20T20:34:00.000-07:00

Fountain pens manufacturing became one of Janesville's most lucrative enterprises. Most important in this sphere was the formation and gradual expansion of the Parker Pen Company. In 1891, George Parker incorporated the Parker Pen Company and began producing quality fountain pens - beginning with the "Lucky Curve" fountain pens. Over the next two decades, the company flourished and expanded, moving to larger accommodations on several occasions.

by 1920, the Parker Pen factory was built at East Court and Division streets. The factory was expanded in 1930 when employment reached over 700 workers. By 1950, the company had offices in Canada, France, England, Africa, and Scandinavia, and Parker Pens rivaled the best in the world.

At its peak, the Parker Pen company had a 212,000 square foot factory with over 2,000 workers, making it one of the largest employers in the county. By the 1980s, the production of cheap ball point pens and disposable ink pens had a negative impact on Parker Pen. Eventually the company was sold to overseas interests and the factory was shut down. However, Parker Pens are still used today for ceremonial bill and treaty signings at the White House.

The Rock County Historical Society collects and preserves a large collection of original Parker Fountain Pens - some dating back to the beginnings of the industry in Janesville. In addition, the Historical Society also maintains a substantial collection of other Parker Pen-related photographs, advertisements, and other related artifacts

Why write with a fountain pen?

2006-09-20T20:32:00.000-07:00

Why write with a fountain pen?

I use fountain pens for three reasons:

(1) Comfort. A fountain pen trains you to write with light pressure and is much less tiring than a ballpoint, rollerball, or pencil.

(2) Legibility. Except for my signature, I no longer use cursive (longhand); my ordinary handwriting is a simplified form of italic calligraphy. It is every bit as fast as cursive and much easier to read.

The pen, with an italic (stub) point, helps.

(3) Low cost. Fountain pens need not be expensive, compared to other usable pens. (I exclude disposable ballpoints that require super-hard pressure and produce ugly writing.)

A cheap but serviceable rollerball or ballpoint pen costs at least $2, and you're likely to lose it or have it wander away within a month or two. That means that in two years, you'll spend perhaps $25 on pens. That same $25 will buy you a quite usable fountain pen and enough ink for several years.

Even a high-end fountain pen, allowing $200 for pen, ink, and possible repairs, is cheaper over its useful life (20 to 40 years) than cheap ballpoints. After all, $200 spread over 20 years comes to 19 cents per week.

Fountain pens