Another fountain pen thread

[Quick Orange]

I'm looking to get a decent fountain pen on the cheap. The aim is to get a classy writing instrument that will look good and help me improve my handwriting for little money.

On the extreme end, I've seen the Pilot Varsity online- is it any good? I like the idea of a $2 pen to get me started. I've surfed a few of the pen sites suggested on here like pen trace, but I don't know what I'm looking at. There are sites that talk about tuning the nibs, etc...I want to be able to open this thing up and start writing, not wondering whether my nib is good or other such flimflam.

If anyone has a good pen they'd like to sell, by all means, let me know. I'd rather buy from someone on here anyway.

[jnich67]

I don't know a lot about FPs, but after some research, I went with a Lamy Safari. I don't know if I'd call the design "classy" - maybe more industrial. It writes really well though and at $30, I'm very pleased.

Jordan

[Quick Orange]

I was checking for those Varsity pens and found I could get them delivered to Staples free for a total of like $3, so I ordered one. I'd still be interested in any advice people can give me!

[Tonsor]

Varsities are nice pens. They are inexpensive and write well. Unfortunately, they only come with a medium nib, but it's a Japanese medium, so it's closer to an American / European fine. I have friends that pull the nibs when they are empty and refill them with a syringe or eyedropper.

A better pen is the Platinum Preppy SWISHER PENS Shopping Cart It is $4 and uses a Platinum cartridge or converter (to fill from a bottle). Swisher also has a modified eyedropper (ED) model, $6, that fills with an eyedropper or syringe. It's modified by Nathan Tardiff (Noodler's Inks). I have some Kawecos that he modified to ED and they work well. I just use the standard Preppy with carts. I prefer them to the Varties because the Preppy has a Japanes fine (Am / Euro X-fine). I also like the availabilty of the converter, so I can use whatever ink I choose.

These are both disposable pens. I agree with Jordan on the Lamy Safari. I have about 5 or 6. They use Lamy cartridges or converters. If you do not want to use Lamy ink, you must buy a converter and use botled ink. Lamy offers a wide array of nibs, from XF through broad, italics (1.1, 1.5, 1.9 mms), and some specialty nibs. Safaris can be found at Swishers. I recommend Safaris to friends that are looking for a good beginner's fp, in XF, F, or M. The broad and italic nibs may need some fussing and tuning.

Hope this helps.

[jakoblah]

I got a little crazy collecting fountain pens a long time ago.

Firstly, let me say that I wouldn't expect a fountain pen to improve your handwriting much. Best case is you'll enjoy writing more and thus do it more, perhaps with more care, which will eventually cause some improvement. It's a bit like SR shaving, I suppose (though I'm a total newb and can't really say).

The Lamy Safari is a great functional pen, though it is a bit more on the modern/industrial side design-wise. I had one with a wide nib that was great for big, bold writing.
Looks like Levenger has their True Writer pens on sale right now, if you like a more traditional look. I've always had fairly good luck with the pens Levenger sells.
One of my all time faves is a Japanese Namiki/Pilot "vanishing point" retractable FP. Great ink flow and a nice feel with the bonus of the old ball-point clicky action!

I don't know anything about the Varsity pens, but I suppose it's worth a shot if you just want to see what FPs are about. I doubt they will have very nice nibs, though, so I question how pleasant the writing experience will be. Hard to go too far wrong for $3, though, so let us know.

[mlangstr]

Hey Quick Oange,

I just started with a quest for a readable handwriting.
My handwriting is really bad.. I hold my pen the wrong way to start with and my hand can not keepup with the speed I would like to write resulting in a terrible mess.

So here is my plan.
-I got in contact with a foundation that tries to improve writing skills and they sent me a font that is suitable for handwriting. They also gave me some tips on holding the pen (I shouldn't do that right away all the time, but just every now and then and then expand it.
-With this informations I will just practice half an hour every day until it is acceptable..

Here I am.. 35 and a masters degree learning how to write again...

I used to think that a fountain pen would improve my handwriting so I have some nice pens (waterman and Parkers) the good thing about fountain pens is that you can ease up on the pressure and relax your muscles as you write.

Maarten

[gugi]

well, you certainly have been around long enough to know how straight razors work, apply all that to the fountain pens and you've got it.

you want classy and utilitarian - get yourself an aero parker 51 and be done with it.
yeah, it's not $5, but should be absolutely doable in the $50-$100 range for nice looking one.

don't want to worry about the edge, er i mean the nib? - get it from somebody who knows what they're doing. see it's easy. you just have to decide on what kind of nib would suit best your handwriting, fine or medium, the color scheme of the pen and then look for it.

the buy/sell/trade at the tfpn is a nice place to look for these. people there take their pens almost as seriously as we take our straights - they'll often provide writing samples so you can get an idea of the result too.

did i mention i love my parkers

good luck

[junkinduck]

First you must define cheep. Thirty dollars is about where cheep starts for a new pen. I have a Lamy Vista that I use more than any other. I like my vanishing point better but I am a mechanic and the Lamy is more expendable than the VP. I can advise you to not get a Retro 51. They look ok but write poorly. I have a Parker 21 I picked up for .50 at a flea market and it is a good pen. Parker 21's can be had reasonable on Ebay. The 21 is no where near the 51 but is a usable pen with a little class.

The best advice is don't waste money on an inexpensive starter pen as I did. I bought the Retro 51 not to be confused with the Parker 51. It is 35.00 a wish I had used on a Lamy of put toward my Vanishing Point.

For a lot of good info on pens as well as a man that will sell you a great writing pen go to richardbinder(dot)com.

Don

[kevint]

Off Topic a little- sorry.

Is drying out a sign of a bad pen.

"Hero 100" or something like that is what I have- after a couple of weeks it is always dry. any advice on how to keep 'em writing?

[Bluepunk18]

In my opinion, DO NOT BUY a Levenger pen. I purchased one and it cracked where the nib screws onto the barrel meaning I couldn't use it without it leaking everywhere. Worst waste of $40 or so dollars ever. I'm glad others have had good luck with these, and maybe I got a bad one, but never again will I buy one of those. YMMV, of course.

and +1 for sure on the Lamy Safari. Basic, easy to use, just great pens. For something a little more stylish without spending a lot of money, the entry level Watermans, like the Phileas, are great.