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Hooked on Dip Pens

jbb

By jbb
in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop

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jbb Donor Pen

jbb

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I love fountain pens and use them all the time but when I write a letter or have the time to pay bills at my desk I always reach for my dip pens. The expressive feeling of their flexible nibs goes way beyond my most flexible fountain pens.

 

For a "cheap date" I encourage anyone who is interested to give it a try. Both the holders and nibs sell for a couple of dollars each. It took me a few months to really get the hang of it but it's so much fun! ;)

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p-zero Rare

p-zero

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Where is the best place to buy thses flex nibs? Any particular brand you can recommend? Do any of them have those little ink reservoirs on them so they write more than one or two words at a time? I have dip pens, but haven't found a nib I like.

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jbb

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My favorite nibs are Gillott 404 (very flexible!), Esterbrooks 761 & 453 and Esterbrook Penesco 505 (my favorite.) Pendemonium sells individual nibs. Most of mine came from Ebay.

 

Sometimes brand new nibs have "coating" on them and don't write correctly right away. I aways pass a new nib through a candle flame to remove the coating.

 

The "dipless" dip pens (with the resevoirs) that I have haven't had great nibs on them. They don't seem to be intended to have the nibs replaced either though I was able to force one off once and switch it.

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JBBPensPaper
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p-zero Rare

p-zero

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Thanks for the info! My father-in-law gave me 2 flexy nibs he had ordered from England, but they are soooo scratchy & "catch" on even the smoothest paper. Obviously I need to practice more to get a "feel" for them.

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p-zero Rare

p-zero

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The Funny angled nib (I forget the proper term) says "Mitchell copper plate." The other one he dipped a lot in India ink & I can barely make out what it says..."Imperial," I think. There is also a number that I can't make out. Any way to clean off the old india ink? I have liked the Mitchell nib better than the other one, so far.

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jbb Donor Pen

jbb

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You can fix hard-to-write-with dip pen nibs using the same method we do on fountain pen nibs:

 

Sand it a bit with brown paper bag.

Is this just a grocery bag?????? :blink: Do you just rub it across the surface? :blink: Between the tines???? :blink: :

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kissing Collectors Item

kissing

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Yes - A grocery brown paper bag will do just fine

 

Just "smooth" the nib by moving it back and forth, in circular motions and figures of 8s on the brown paper as if you're scribbling all over it. Calligraphers can also use this method to "sharpen" Italics nibs as they tend to get 'blunt' after lots of use.

 

You don't need to sand it for that long - they get fixed up pretty quick as these dip pens have no tipping.

http://www.youtube.com/kissing88
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sonia_simone Collectors Item

sonia_simone

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I keep trying dip pens but so far I haven't had the patience to build any mastery. I keep frustrating myself.

 

I must try again, I love the look a lot!

Isn't sanity really a one-trick pony, anyway? I mean, all you get is one trick, rational thinking! But when you're good and crazy . . . ooh hoo hoo hoo! . . . the sky's the limit!

--The Tick

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BillTheEditor Collectors Item

BillTheEditor

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The Funny angled nib (I forget the proper term) says "Mitchell copper plate." The other one he dipped a lot in India ink & I can barely make out what it says..."Imperial," I think. There is also a number that I can't make out. Any way to clean off the old india ink? I have liked the Mitchell nib better than the other one, so far.

Those funny angled nibs are called ... copperplate nibs. Sometimes they are also referred to as "elbow nibs," "oblique nibs," or "offset nibs."

 

Everything you ever wanted to know about getting india ink off of dip nibs is here. Basically, scrub with a toothbrush and a cleaning fluid (I always liked what they now call "WAM" -- equal parts of water, ammonia, and mentholated spirits).

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