» Let’s Talk Pens
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I would like you to tell me about your most favorite writing pens. The one(s) that you reach for when you plan on sitting down and staying for a while…. filling page after page of your thoughts, plans, dreams and aspirations, shopping lists and homework.
Before I started writing with a fountain pen, (and I have 14 of them now… I know, it’s a problem… LOL) my #1 go to pen for as long as I can remember was a Papermate Stick Pen. I’d buy them at Staples in boxes of 100 and they are still all over my house from the last box I bought back in 2001. (Seriously) Once I tried my first fountain pen, (a medium nibbed Lamy Safari that I bought at Pendemonium) there was really no going back. Fountain pens allow for such effortless writing that I just had to have another, and another… They are like potato chips – you can’t have just one.
For times when I don’t want to carry a fountain pen, I have 1 new fancy rollerball, (the Pelikan R400 shown above) that I bought used from the Marketplace on the Fountain Pen Network. It’s really nice in the hand, but I’ve found that $1 Signo stick pens seem to write just as nice and come in a plethora of color options.
So tell me… which pens are your favorites?
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As you know, I’m a fountain pen person, and my favorites are my Stipula 22, Visconti double reservoir piston fillers, and Ancora pens. I’ve also been having fun with Sailor’s zoom nibs.
There are times that fountain pens aren’t appropriate, and my favorite pen for that situation is a Visconti Van Gogh rollerball.
I, like you, have fallen in love with fountain pens since I re-discovered them earlier this year. I now have a few, my go to pen for everyday writing is still my old Hero 329, though I also like Lamy Safaris and have had some great results from my white Shneider Base fountain pen.
I’ve also fallen for vintage fountain pens and have a 1940’s green stripe Waterman’s that has to be my favourite pen of all time; at the moment.
If I had to choose something other than a fountain pen, I’d have to go with my Uniball Signo MF3 gel multipen. This was the pen that re-ignited my interest in writing instruments and notebooks, so it really has a lot to answer for! Despite trying a plethora of gel and ballpoint pens, I still find myself coming back to the MF3 time and again; it’s a true winner for me!
My favorites: Pelikan M200, Sheaffer PFM III, Pilot Decimo and the humble Pilot 78G. Super reliable!
Oddly, I’ve got a good relationship with my Pentel Tradio. It works well and writes well. Other faves include Sakura Pigma Micron pens, which I have trouble finding in Taiwan. I prefer 0.2mm or 0.3mm for Moleskine writing.
Conway Stewart Churchill level fillers with italic broad nibs, Montblanc 149 with a broad nib [writes stubbed], Visconti Romanicas – 1 stub, 1 M nib, Yard o Led Grands B nibs, Marlen Aderl or Journal with B nibs, Delta LEs with stubs or Bs, Krone Architecus with stub or B nibs and Waterman Carenes in B or stub nibs.
In case it isn’t obvious by now, I collect AND USE fountain pens. I love the italic broad, stub, or broad nibs.
I’m a writer, so I use my fancy pens all day, every day. They’re tools that give me fantastic results, save my hands because of their ergonomics, make my indifferent scrawl look beautiful, and lay down about 2000 words a day effortlessly so that all I have to focus on is my writing, rather than the implement.
Just as a serious musician will have multiples of their instrument, I own multiples of my pens and some lend themselves to certain tasks. The Carenes travel well and easily change cartridges. The Montblanc, Conway Stewarts and Viscontis hold the most ink from a bottle. The heavier silver pens are actually the most restful after a long day of pen on page, as the weight of the silver in my hand means I barely have to grasp the pen and simply guide it ove the page.
I’m serious about my craft and love using my pens.
I’m a big fan of Pentel pens, and I always have been. I’m using some Energels and some HGGs right now. The ink is fantastic, and my lefty friends fare well with them too. I’m debating buying a fountain pen, but I haven’t been able to rationalize the cost for the one I would like yet (one of the Lamys). Buying a fountain pen would likely force me to buy notebooks with a better grade of paper, and that’s not really cost effective for me.
I also have a few Pilots in my arsenal, which I use now and then. Other than that, I don’t have many high end pens. I find that I get more bang for the buck from the Pentels that I buy than from any other pens.
Pelikan M800 w/ Fine Nib. I also have a sweet spot for the Pelikan M75 GO. ;-)
My favorite fountain pens tend to be the ones I bought used on FPN or via a vintage pen vendor. Each pen I have is a favorite because I do not buy just to buy, and if there is a pen that falls out of favor it finds a new home with someone who will appreciate it. My favorites include the Visconti Ragtime, the old Sheaffer Balance, an old Wahl Pen, the Skyline. Each with different nibs and feel when writing. I use my pens only for writing, not drawing, and I imagine that an artist has different feelings about what makes for a good pen. My intent is to keep my collection small, and I feel strongly about not using disposable pens anymore. I haven’t had a situation yet where I cannot use a fountain pen and am not sure what I will resort to when I do! Cheers.
Bic Ultimates. They’re a tiny bit more expensive than the regular old Bic stick pens, but they are the ONLY pens I’ve found which can keep up with my writing speed and neither smudge nor scratch nor run dry after a few lines. They have an amazingly smooth ball.
Before I discovered that fountain pens still existed a few months ago, my pen of choice (when I wasn’t picking up a pencil every time I wrote) was a Pilot G2. It was so much easier to write with gel/rollerball pens than with ballpoint ones. I hate hate hate ballpoint pens. They make me want to stab things. Now, though, it’s all about my precious Lamy Safari. I have a couple of other fountain pens that I use to keep them from drying out but mostly I stick to my Lamy. Can’t leave home without it.
I’m a recent fountain pen convert, and I’m also pretty broke, so I haven’t had the chance to acquire many FPs yet. I have a set of Pilot Varsitys and a cheap Manuscript calligraphy pen, and I like them very much.
Right now, though, if I’m going to reach for a pen in preparation of serious amounts of writing (like the NaNoWriMo writing I’ve been doing this month), I reach for my Zebra Sarasa 0.7, in either blue or black. I can write for many, many pages without my hand getting tired.
If I win NaNoWriMo this year, I think I’m going to reward myself with my first Safari. Yay!
As a lefty, I have trouble with the ink in fountain pens. I’d love to hear of any suggestions. Personally, I’m a big fan of the UniBall Gel Impact RT. Only on certain types of paper does it smear. Never a problem on my choice of paper, Rhodia, of course !
I traverse back and forth between fountain pens (two Waterman pens that are no longer made), Rotring and Conklin ballpoints retrofitted with Parker Gel refills, and mechanical pencils and leadholders. The only thing disposable of the whole lot are the gel refills.
Depends on it very much depends on what I’m writing and what I’m writing on.
Some of my best pens are the Yafa cartridge roller ball, the Lamy Safari, a Huashilai Tiger Eye [from hisnibs.com], the Pentel Energel BL407 Alloy RT, the Pentel Tradio [in blue] felt tip, and the Sharpie|Pens. I like a smooth write with good ink flow. Noodler’s Eel Blue is excellent!
I fell in love with fountain pens in the late 80s as a college undergraduate–well before the resurgence of fountain pens in the late 90s. I collected for a while, but have tried to curtail such activity and only get pens to mark special occasions. I think I’ve got about a dozen pens in the stable right now, but only really use 3-4 at present:
–a Levenger tortoise shell True Writer rollerball (the one rollerball I consistently use). This is my everyday, on the go jotty pen. I have some Moleskines and other feathery, bleed-thru paper that I’m trying to finish up with and this works. This was a Christmas present.
–a black Namiki Vanishing Point, fine tip. This is one of their older models w/o the silver trimmings. It is entirely black matte. I sometimes use this instead of the Levenger Pen. It works OK on the Moleskines that I’m trying to finish up. This was one I collected in the late 90s.
–a Namiki Falcon, fine tip. This is mainly my journaling pen. Problem is I don’t spend much time these days journaling. I use this with my Rhodia pads at my desk and with a Clairefontaine journal I bought earlier this summer. I’m also planning on putting it to use with a Rhodia Webbie, once I get it. This is my newest pen. I bought it this past summer.
I do also have a few Mont Blancs, a Parker, a Schaeffer, a Rotring, and one or two others. These are currently boxed, but will get put back into rotation at some point.
Currently a toss-up between Staples’ OptiFlow .5mm fine tip liquid rollerball pens in assorted colors or the Pentel EnerGel metal tip in .7mm.
In the past it’s been anything from a Hardhead (remember those?) to a Bic Banana.
I’ve loved my Lamy Safari EF ever since I got it. I haven’t had a chance to invest in the higher priced fountain pens yet…
My favourite is a Wing Sung dragon pen from isellpens.com. I spent about 30 minutes fiddling with it (smoothing it and adjusting the flow) and it writes like a dream. I keep it filled with J Herbin Larmes de Cassis and use it for writing just about everything.
i like pentel easyTouch (fine point) and muji 0.38 gel pens! i have yet to try a fountain pen. i’m worried that my lefthandedness would smudge it everywhere!
I used to be a gel pen hoarder before I found out about fountain pens. :)) My favorites then were my Pilot G2 3-color set, and they’re still with me now, along with a box-full of gel pens and some of my favorite reliable ballpoints.
My favorite fountain pen for writing, whether for planning, or long diary/journal entries is the Schneider Base pen. I got 3 of these! And of course, my Lamy Vista and Safari. All these pens are very, very comfortable to use. When I cannot carry a fountain pen, I go back to my trusty Pilot G2 set, but I got a 6-color set now. :) Cheers!
I have 9 old, cheap Sheaffer fountain pens and dozens of Sheaffer cartridges. I like to mix my own ink colors.
When I’m not using those in my notebooks, I’m using Sanford Uniball micro (0.5), Pilot Precise 5V rolling ball, or the Sharpie pen.
david boise ID
I love my Pelikan M215 (Fine Nib), its great for daily work use, and has a nice look to it as well. As for something that Im likely to throw in my pocket or keep with me while traveling I like my Uniball Signo DX .38 a bunch, but also the Uniball Jetstream ballpoints, and the ever popular Sharpie pens. That pretty much does it for me…for now.
I have an orange and red Rotring Core fountain pen with a fine point that I keep filled with J. Herbin Bleu Nuit cartridges. I cannot go anywhere without this pen. It looks very, very good next to a Rhodia pad. I used to do a lot of calligraphy, so I have about 100 dip pens and/or points; my favorites are the Mitchells. For quick calligraphy I use a Panache because it takes cartridges and also flows fairly well. I also like the Pilot Varsity and the G2, but apparently so do all my friends, because mine are always disappearing. But nobody else has a Rotring–another reason to love it!
I’m a collector, and have amassed a pretty large collection. Family and friends got involved. It bled into being an “accumulator,” which is why I dialed it back considerably. With a few exceptions, I regard my collection as a working collection, even the vintage pieces.
By and large, I regard Parker 51s as the best “user” pens. They write well and reliably, can be had without breaking the bank, and, in spite of being about fifty years old, do not look entirely un-contemporary. They leave enough ink to look good on the page, but not too much to get too wet. Really, these are among the last pens made when fountain pens were the rule rather than the exception, and so functionality was king. I carry one at least once a week. The Parker 61, which I regard as a derivative, writes well but requires more TLC. The Parker 21, another 51-derived pen, usually writes well, but is a good bit more fragile.
I think the Namiki Vanishing Point is another good pen to tote around to write. Really, it is a great-writing fountain pen, not a bad price for a new gold-nibbed pen. Oh–and it happens to be retractable–it’s not like they skimped on the pen in the interest of some gimmick. And the “gimmick” is quite functional.
I think the Lamy 2000 probably has one of the best nibs of pens you can get on the market today. The modern Duofolds are good, as well. Both are pricier than the other ones I mentioned.
For non-founts, I like Retro 51 Tornados. They feel good in the hand, are a good size, and take a variety of fairly standard refills. They run about $25. They are nice enough to be a nice pen, while still fun enough not to be stuffy. I own two, and my wife and I have given about ten as gifts for a variety of purposes (bar mitzvas, graduations, etc.).
For serious write all day work, either of my Pelikans, my Parker Big Red or my Lamy Safari w/gold nib (it is a special order and well worthwhile).
For a “stick it in the pocket and don’t worry about it” pen I’ve settled on the Zebra F-701. Writes well and is virtually indestructible.
The Big Red is also a great “trump the guy with the Mont Blanc” pen for meetings!
I’m a fan of vintage fountain pens, and use one every day. I usually take one of my Parker 51s, but sometimes have a Parker Striped Duofold, First Gen. Vacumatic, Visconti Van Gogh, Namiki Vanishing Point, or similar.
I love my celluloid pens, like one of the Vacs or the Striped Duofolds. The faint scent of camphor rises to my nostrils when I take it out of my pocket and I’m immersed in the experience of writing with a work of art that is older than me.
I also have a Platinum Preppy and a few other inexpensive pens that I leave at my desk. I don’t leave my good pens at work.
Once in a while, I’ll use a roller ball or gel pen, but seldom a ballpen. Can’t stand them. :-)
hmm. never heard of a Pelikan R400- is seems a bit thick- is it like a Waterman?
I’m not very familiar with waterman pens, but if it’s any help, my R200 is very similar in size to my M200 Pelikan Fountain Pens
Well, I also recently became a fountain pen buyer. I had used a couple of the Pilot Varsity fps before but recently discovered jetpens.com and immediately began purchasing fps. I just ordered the Lamy Safari efp and absolutely love it, just need to get my convertor out so I can put some ink that i’ve been wanting to use but haven’t had the time. I also recently bought a Sailor’s fp from them as well and was pretty amazed how well it wrote for the price. It is a slender pen and great for carrying in your planner if you like to write with a fp in your planner. I prefer a sharpie.
I’m interested in purchasing a Lamy rollerball just to see how they work. And also have a Waterford bp which I replaced with a bold refill and have to admit that I like the way it writes. Also like the Uniball jetstream and that’s the one I have on my desk for clients to use cause God forbid they walk off with one of my good pens. I’d have to hunt them down…. :) jk.
I am a big fan of roller ball pens and I am just starting to use a fountain pen. I bought a Lamy Safari yesterday but have not used it yet (have to wait till I fly home Saturday….speaking of that, will an airplane ride cause FP ink to come out???).
I make pens, so I have a wide range, usually around 100, pens to choose from.
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