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Dipping A Toe Into The World Of Stubs


thesunshine

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Hi all,

 

I'm interested in looking into stub nibs. I'd love to be able to try them out before buying any, but I live in Australia, which does not have a wide range of choice in FPs... and what is available is sold is 3x the price of buying a pen online.

 

So given that trying stub nibs out in an actual store is unlikely to happen, I'd love to be able to buy a stub online and test it out before deciding to commit to a more expensive pen with a stub nib.

 

So... where can I most cheaply source a pen with a stub nib? Bonus points if you can tell me where to find a range of cheap stubs - from M to BB so I can see what nibs I like best.

 

Thanks!

It's quite nice out here in the sunshine...

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Hmm...you could try the Lamy Safari of course, with a 1.1i (broad stub), 1.5i (BB stub) or 1.9i (BBB stub) cursive italic nib. I have a 1.5 nib, great even for everyday writing (if you want to add some character to what you're writing)

Edited by dragos.mocanu

"The truth may be puzzling. It may take some work to grapple with. It may be counterintuitive. It may contradict deeply held prejudices. It may not be consonant with what we desperately want to be true. But our preferences do not determine what's true..." (Carl Sagan)

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There is a Pilot model, the 78G, that would be a good place to start. It's an inexpensive pen, and the B nib is actually a stub. There is not a stub range available for it that I know of.

 

Isellpens.com has black and teal models for $10. His Nibs has more color options, but for $25. No affiliation, just a longtime satisfied customer of both.

Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.

 

Lisa in Raleigh, NC

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on the cheapest end i think the best place to start would be either pilot parallel pens and sheaffer calligraphy pens. both of these pens are available for under $10 usd and can take refillable cartridges.

 

the quality control of the sheaffer calligraphy pens is horrible, so you really have to take time and look at the nibs in person. i have seen crooked slits in the nibs and nibs with one tine longer than the other. the one i got with one tine longer than the other ended up being a broad flexible nib after it was grinded down.

 

pilot parallel pens are much more reliable and are a lot of fun to play around with but i don't care much for the shape. but on the plus side they come with a small sheet that works amazing for cleaning out the tines of your other pens. the pen is really an awkward shape that cannot be posted but for the price is a good place to start out to find out if you have any interest in stubs

 

i have the broadest nib for the safari and i don't care for it much. i don't think it writes as well as their regular nibs and its not very wide.

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You can buy a Dilli with a fine stub nib fountainpenrevolution.com. The Dilli is an attractive and inexpensive piston filler. They will put a stub nib on most of their other pens as well. The Dillis are also available at amazon.com.

 

Ebay seller spearbob carries B and BB factory stub Pilot 78Gs. Both pens are less than $25 with shipping (at least to the US).

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Levenger used to have a True Writer Stub Nib in the catalogue. I picked one up at their outlet store on Ebay. Nice writer. Also have the Lamy 1.1 nib that I currently have on an Al-Star but it fits the Safari,too. I usually keep one of them filled with Noodler's Bulletproof Black and use it to address correspondence. In case it rains or somehow gets wet. Both options are inexpensive enough that if you lose interest in the future you won't be out a lot.

Pat Barnes a.k.a. billz

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The Pilot Plumix also features a stub nib, and is pretty inexpensive. One thing to keep in mind is there are two types of stubs - the more expensive ones will have tipping material ground to a stub, most of the ones mentioned here have no tipping, just the steel tines ground flat at the tip. If you feel adventurous, you can grind your own tipped stub from a steel broad nib. If you screw it up, you aren't out much. It's not all that hard to do with the right materials.

 

Dan

"Life is like an analogy" -Anon-

http://i98.photobucket.com/albums/l279/T-Caster/DSC_0334_2.jpg

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We've got Dillis with stub nibs and also the Pilot 78G here in Australia.

Thanks! I've never heard of you guys before... will have to check it out. Always happy to support Australian companies where I can.

It's quite nice out here in the sunshine...

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Thanks to all - I have many more options available than I had ever expected :)

It's quite nice out here in the sunshine...

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