Thread: More fountain pens!

It depends on how much I'm writing. If I'm taking notes and they're coming fast, no, I don't re-cap. I'll usually re-cap if the pen is sitting open after a couple of minutes. If the ink on the nib gets a little dry, I start it back up with two or three left/right swipes.

I will have to see how it goes. I do a lot of testing at work and have to write down my results after each test.Sometimes the sections of testing are long and some short.

Got my alstar and it is nice. I decided on the silver/blue and it looks real nice. So far I am impressed.

Originally Posted by zenshaver

You guys have problems leaving your caps off in between writing? I am wondering if I am going to have to recap everytime I am done.I should get my pen today after work.I just got some lamy cartridges for now.

The AlStar can go for about 5 min uncapped before it won't write the first time you put it to paper. It has a good feed, and that helps. Some pens dry out after just a few seconds, the AlStar is very utilitarian in that regard.

Originally Posted by maplemaker

It depends on how much I'm writing. If I'm taking notes and they're coming fast, no, I don't re-cap. I'll usually re-cap if the pen is sitting open after a couple of minutes. If the ink on the nib gets a little dry, I start it back up with two or three left/right swipes.

This also depends on the pen some are good for awhile ohers are not and also include in that the ink.

Here is one thing I have noticed since going to a rollerball and now a fountain pen. Is how different all these types write. The rollerball forces you to slow down and write neater. The fountain seems to be along those lines but you can be more loose in your writing style. The ballpoint seems to slide all over the place in comparison to the other two. I tried my wifes cross ball point a couple of nights ago and it felt like the pen was slipping all over the paper. I didn't like it. I never noticed that before. Strange.I have used ballpoints for so long I never realized that different pens write in different ways. I guess you learn something new everyday.

My wife tried my alstar last night and said she didn't like it. She said it writes like a magic marker. go figure.

3rd day at work with my alstar and I am loving it. Thanks again guys for introducing me to a new way to write.

Originally Posted by zenshaver

She said it writes like a magic marker. go figure.

??? if you are feeling any resistance at all, you are pushing too hard, or your nib and feed are not adjusted correctly. with a steel nib like the AlStar, you should be using extremely light pressure, if any. with a gold nibbed pen, you should only be using the weight of the pen.

do not push hard like you would with a ball point.

I know. my wife doesn't know what she was doing. She just grabbed it from me and tried it once. I told her that you hardly use any pressure at all. She said she would like to try it for writing checks but I am not sure if it would go through for duplicate copies.I love it. I feel like I am writing on air basically.I am a lefty too and have not had any problems yet.

Originally Posted by zenshaver

I know. my wife doesn't know what she was doing. She just grabbed it from me and tried it once. I told her that you hardly use any pressure at all. She said she would like to try it for writing checks but I am not sure if it would go through for duplicate copies.I love it. I feel like I am writing on air basically.I am a lefty too and have not had any problems yet.

1. if you are using a steel nib, it's safe to use enough pressure to make a carbon check work. don't do this with a gold nib, you'll bend it. ask me how i know this
2. don't write checks at all with a fountain pen unless you are using VERY permanent ink. any Noodler's Bulletproof is safe for checks. Shaeffer's Scrip and Parker's Quink are NOT SAFE for check writing.