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Little ray
of sunshine
Picture of jhe888
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quote:
Originally posted by xray 99:
Check out nibs.com. I like the Sailor Pro-Gear.


They are good there. They'll set up a pen for you when you buy new from them with a little nib adjustment according to your preferences. It isn't needed but is a nice touch.




The fish is mute, expressionless. The fish doesn't think because the fish knows everything.
 
Posts: 53118 | Location: Texas | Registered: February 10, 2004Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Member
Picture of fizteach
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quote:
Originally posted by Sigfest:
One of my Docs uses fountain pens. He won’t let anyone use them. Says it will ruin them. Seems everyone uses a different amount of pressure when writing. Do any of you share your pen?


No one else touches my fountain pens, although some of my students want to. I cringe when my wife uses mine.



Get over it!!
 
Posts: 669 | Location: Campbell, TX | Registered: September 24, 2006Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Membership has its privileges
Picture of P-220
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I have a collection, but have not added to it in about 2 years.

The hunt is a lot of fun. Visiting antique stores, estate auctions, and flea markets.

Early in my collecting days, I came across some vintage Pelikans. A local Jeweler collected them and was willing to pay me considerably more than I paid for them.

I am a fan of Parker. Vacumatics, 51's, 61's, 75's and more recent Doufolds.

I also have some Waterman overlays, Wahls,Conklin Nozacs, Conklin Crescent fillers, green gold Swans.

My collection is varied, b/c many belonged to my Grandparents and my Dad.


Niech Zyje P-220

Steve
 
Posts: 36834 | Location: 45174 | Registered: December 09, 2001Reply With QuoteReport This Post
His Royal Hiney
Picture of Rey HRH
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by jehzsa:
HOLY C***!

I just saw what Montblancs are going for today.

Jeeesshh...


For reals, the fountain pen I bought for a little over $300 in 1985 is well over $1000 now.

To prevent leakage (especially when flying), When you fill up a pen, let out 2 drops.

I love the brightness of the Montblanc Royal Blue ink.

For your next Fountain Pen, may I suggest any of the Pelikan Souveran Series. I was going to get the Stresemann until I figured I wasn't going to work any more.

Other tips that you many know already:
Don't let anyone else use your fountain pen as the nib takes a set from how you write.

You need the right kind of paper that won't just spread out the ink like tree roots.

You have to wait a few seconds before flipping the page so that the ink will dry.

Write slow, write lightly, and enjoy the tactile sensation of using a fountain pen.

Every so often, like maybe once a quarter, fully flush out the pen with tepid water until clear water comes out. I use a paper cup, half fill it with water, suck the water in, flush it out in the sink. after it seems clear, let the water sit in the pen for a few minutes, then flush it out a couple more times.



"It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946.
 
Posts: 19588 | Location: The Free State of Arizona - Ditat Deus | Registered: March 24, 2011Reply With QuoteReport This Post
His Royal Hiney
Picture of Rey HRH
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by jehzsa:
Question.

Why do 19th century and earlier documents seem to be written in brown ink?

Smile


I don't know if it applies to ink these days but I believe ink turns brown with age. I've seen some papers in my family that were written in ink and was brown looking.



"It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946.
 
Posts: 19588 | Location: The Free State of Arizona - Ditat Deus | Registered: March 24, 2011Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Member
posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by Rey HRH:
quote:
Originally posted by jehzsa:
Question.

Why do 19th century and earlier documents seem to be written in brown ink?

Smile


I don't know if it applies to ink these days but I believe ink turns brown with age. I've seen some papers in my family that were written in ink and was brown looking.

Btw, early 20th century also. 1900...1910...

Oxidation. The ink was originally black. But a component of the compound oxidized and it went to brown. Can't remember now which.

You will very, very rarely see a 19th century document (and earlier) these days where the ink doesn't look brownish.

Blood was a good guess... Big Grin


***************************
Knowing more by accident than on purpose.
 
Posts: 14186 | Location: Tampa, Florida | Registered: December 12, 2003Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Picture of MrToad
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IIRC, many of the pre-20th century inks had iron salts like ferrous sulfate in the mixture, and over time the iron would oxidize.

I have a mixed bag of fountain pens, Pelikan, Aurora, Kaweco, Pilot, Waterman, Delta and Parker.

I also love calligraphic fountain pens and even a few dip pens, including a couple from my great-great grandparents from the 1880s. Nothing fancy, but I stuck a crow feather in one and still use it on rare occasions.

I got reasonably proficient in writing in various early scripts and being able to read them. The ability landed me a well-paying side job in college helping a professor transcribe 16th century Vatican documents into their Nota Bene word processing software. The prof told me that I was one of the first to actually read these in over 200 years, which was pretty cool. I guess you just never know what opportunities offbeat skills will get you.




If you like religion, laws or sausage, then you shouldn't watch them being made.
 
Posts: 3342 | Location: SW Ohio | Registered: April 21, 2010Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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I am into fountain pens. I had over 500 pens, but, after I had the strokes about 7 years back, I kind of lost it, and sold of most of my collection of vintage Parker and Sheaffer pens. Now I have about 20 pens, which I use of a regular basis.
ShneaSIG - please email me( it is on my profile), and we will talk and I just might have some ink for you. Smile


If you think you can, YOU WILL!!!!!
 
Posts: 3833 | Location: Wolverine-Land!!!! | Registered: August 20, 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Picture of SIG 229R
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I like fountain pens but don’t have any at present time.

My Grandmother always used a Sheaffer which at the time was a good grade, however I don’t think they are as good as they once were. She wrote several letters a week to her children. She wouldn’t be found using a ballpoint.

However as someone else already mentioned, keep them clean and don’t let ink dry in them.


SigP229R
Harry Callahan "A man has got to know his limitations".
Teddy Roosevelt "Talk soft carry a big stick"
I Cor10: 13 "1611KJV"
 
Posts: 6066 | Registered: March 04, 2007Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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You Grandma had a real Sheaffer, made in Fort Madison, Iowa. She must have had a genuine Sheaffer, which is perhaps now a model that fountain pen geeks like myself collect and pay good money for them!!!Smile


If you think you can, YOU WILL!!!!!
 
Posts: 3833 | Location: Wolverine-Land!!!! | Registered: August 20, 2005Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Picture of maladat
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quote:
Originally posted by MrToad:
IIRC, many of the pre-20th century inks had iron salts like ferrous sulfate in the mixture, and over time the iron would oxidize.


Most Western ink documents pre-20th century (going back 1000+ years) used iron gall ink which is a mix of iron sulfate and tannic acid derived from oak galls (a weird kind of growth that occurs on oak trees).

It's pretty brownish to begin with and lightens over time.

It is also acidic and has a nasty tendency to eat holes in the paper or parchment it is used on.

The main alternative was ink made from soot and water, usually with a sticky binder added (some kind of tree sap). India ink is an example of this.

The Declaration of Independence was written on parchment with iron gall ink.
 
Posts: 6319 | Location: CA | Registered: January 24, 2011Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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quote:
Originally posted by Gear.Up:
Is Stylophiles still around?


I only have a few photos on my iPad, but some of my favorites:


In the "skinny to HUGE" selection! My favorite here is the orange Delta, its bit, but light enough to write nicely. The two Conway Stewart overlay pens are a bit too much, and the sterling silver Yard o Led is a bit too thin.



In case you are plagued with pesky and annoying "extra money", this one can help. I think they sold at around $2500. Beautiful, though, and actually a nice writer.

And from the vintage world, my 1930s Montblanc 139.


Bill R
 
Posts: 1117 | Location: Wet side of WA | Registered: October 24, 2008Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Picture of maladat
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Nice pictures of beautiful pens, stylophile. I like Conway Stewart pens a lot but haven't ever quite ended up with one of the modern ones.

I need to take some better pictures, but if we're posting favorites...



This one is my all-time favorite, at least so far. Visconti Divina Proporzione.



Pelikan M625, Visconti Opera, Visconti Wall Street LE, Visconti Homo Sapiens (the material this pen is made out of is very pleasant to hold and write with - it's probably #2).



Some old pens I bought as examples of celluloid patterns I like. Waterman, Conway Stewart, and Parker.
 
Posts: 6319 | Location: CA | Registered: January 24, 2011Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Repressed
Picture of ShneaSIG
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Very cool, guys! Very cool!!!


-ShneaSIG


Oh, by the way, which one's "Pink?"
 
Posts: 11059 | Location: MO | Registered: November 19, 2003Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Another one I really like, ST Dupont Mozart LE. Its sterling silver, with music from Mozart's Requiem and his signature engraved on the barrel.



Bill R
 
Posts: 1117 | Location: Wet side of WA | Registered: October 24, 2008Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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And just found this shot, it's a wide selection of Sheaffer Overlay pens. These are both solid gold and gold filled overlays, from the 1920s to the 1960s.



Bill R
 
Posts: 1117 | Location: Wet side of WA | Registered: October 24, 2008Reply With QuoteReport This Post
Dances With
Tornados
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I think I'll order a Pilot Metropolitan pen and give it a try.

What paper should I order? I'd like some sort of sample pack or smaller order at first.

Thanks
 
Posts: 11814 | Registered: October 26, 2009Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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Picture of btgoanna
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Rhodia paper is good
As are the Japanese papers Wink



.
 
Posts: 832 | Location: Central Texas | Registered: November 19, 2006Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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posted Hide Post
quote:
Originally posted by OKCGene:
I think I'll order a Pilot Metropolitan pen and give it a try.

What paper should I order? I'd like some sort of sample pack or smaller order at first.

Thanks


Definitely a selection first. I'd try clairfontaine if you can find a notebook or other inexpensive way to try it out. It's a good paper that sort of works well with "almost" every nib/ink combo....

There are so many variables between the nib, feed, ink type, and writing style that you really will end up trying a bunch. It's like holsters... you always end up with a box of ones that were "not quite right" sitting in the closet!
 
Posts: 1117 | Location: Wet side of WA | Registered: October 24, 2008Reply With QuoteReport This Post
The Ice Cream Man
posted Hide Post
OK, so this ties into my notetaking, which is something I became a bit obsessive about - and I actually need to write up, perhaps. (I cook for a living, more or less. A friend, who's also a creative, understood how I thought out what I did, and thought it was useful. It might help other people with a similar process.)

A) I'm a big fan of very washable inks - I like to fiddle with my fountain pens, and get ink everywhere/wash my pens while in the pockets of my shirts on a regular basis.

B) The very washable inks, and a cheap Lamy safari are a great way to lay out marks on walls, etc - they're much easier to remove (at least, if done fresh), than pencil.

C) I like using a Platinum Iron Gall Cassis for permanent documents, loaded in a 3776. It seems very resistant to drying out, and writes OK, in a very permanent fashion, and a distinct color. (Makes my paranoia feel better.)

D) I like Cult of Pens Deep (Dark?) Orange, the PI orange, and Apache Sunset, but oranges are a bit staining.

E) You can order laser etched, empty, PI bottles. I like them, and keep most of my inks in them - and all my Noodler's.

F) The most practical pen I have, is my Pilot VP. It writes well, and is very convenient to clip onto my shirt pocket, and easy to deploy rapidly for a note during a phone call.

G) I use a Canadian sized passport carrier from gfeller.us and Tomoe River paper "passport" size notebooks, to have a small pocket notebook, with beautifully smooth paper, which exhibits lots of shading, etc.

H) My Franklin Christoff Desk pen with the 1.9MM music nib is the most enjoyable to write with, if I have time.

I) Fountain Pens will help you finally keep a work journal/daily log
 
Posts: 5706 | Location: Republic of Ice Cream, Miami Beach, FL | Registered: May 24, 2007Reply With QuoteReport This Post
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