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Thinking About Buying An Edison Pen


cadfael_tex

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I had about settled down to a comfortable selection of a couple of pens for everyday use - Pelikan 2XX and maybe 4XX and Pilot VP's. They are comfortable to me and I like the fact they have interchangeable nibs.

 

Now a tiny bit of background if you'll bear with me. I've been influenced by a woodworking book I have - Christopher Schwarz' The Anarchist Tool Chest. A very simplified takeaway is supporting an Artisan economy.* When I thought about applying that to fountain pens, Brian Gray (along with a handful of others) seems to come the closest to that ideal.

 

So when it comes time to get my next pen, I'm really thinking about getting an Edison. Not sure which model.

 

So what's the point of this post? One to spread the reasoning behind my crazy aesthetic anarchist idea. Two, to get a little nudge to do it ;)

 

 

 

 

* I know who makes my chisels (Dave Jeske of Blue Spruce), my back saws (Mike Harrell of Bad Axe), and so on.

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For the price, a handcrafted pen from the Edison Production Line is a good value. I recommend buying one of these (whichever appeals to you most) from richardspens.com, to get a thoroughly checked & tuned nib to go with the high craftsmanship of the pen. Both my wife and I use Edisons regularly - in fact I'd say that her Hudson is her very favorite go-to pen.

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I've got a green Edison Hudson. The material is attractive in a subdued way, as is the pen as a whole. I could eyedropper it if I wanted to, but the included converter has a quite adequate capacity. The medium steel nib is a smooth writer. It's a bit larger than I normally like, but still comfortable enough to hold and write with, even posted.

 

And I'm still not sure why I got it. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it, it works fine, but it's somehow not quite to my taste, mainly the excessive size, and by my standards, it's fairly expensive.

 

I think I got carried away somehow by the idea of this pen, the "artisan ideal" as the OP says, and didn't give enough weight to whether the product is really worth it to me.

"So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable creature, since it enables one to find or make a reason for everything one has a mind to do."

 

- Benjamin Franklin

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Edison has a range of custom pens in different sizes. Of the pens sold through retailers, the smallest are the Pearlette and the Beaumont, which are comparable to your Pelikan.

 

I'm no anarchist but I like having pens made by a person. Working with Brian on a custom pen is an excellent experience that I recommend, if your budget allows, but the production pens sold to retailers also are great.

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Never ever, ever though I would have one of these when they were in the process of being made but thought they looked awsome.

 

But you never know what will happen when you start wheeling and dealing at a pen show!

 

#2/20

 

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PAKMAN

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There have been many good suggestions for you already...

 

Our shop is selling the Edison Pens production line. We hand-tune all of our nibs before the pen is shipped to you (please feel free to visit our site for more information).

 

Of course, if you've seen Brian's "Signature" line, you know that those pens, while more expensive than the production line, are wonderfully-built pens. As I'm sure you know, the "Production" pens are built every bit as well as the signature pens. The only difference, really, is the variety of material and shapes that are available.

 

You can shop our site (through the link below) if you'd like.

 

No matter which way you decide to go with the Edison Pens, I wish you all the best with your hunt and with your purchase.

 

Blessings,

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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Tim, thanks for the reminder. I know I've read good things about your work. I'm pretty much decided --- now I just have to save up the money.

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Tim, thanks for the reminder. I know I've read good things about your work. I'm pretty much decided --- now I just have to save up the money.

 

Excellent! No matter where you get it, an Edison pen will not disappoint.

 

Blessings,

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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I used to have the Edison Premiere. It was a lovely pen. Mine was in a satin black finish. The quality of the manufacturing was excellent. However, the the price ($150), the nib (I tried a broad and a fine) was just not good enough. It was a nail, with decent smoothness, but unpleasant to use. My biggest issue with these nibs was inconsistent ink flow. Sometimes the nibs would just dry out during writing. I tried changing converters, to no avail. By the way, to give Edison my full support and trust, I even bought the $150 18k nib, which was softer, but not much better in terms of consistency and ink flow.

 

For $91, I bought a Sailor 1911M with a music nib (14k) that is such a delight to use. It's so far above the level of the Edison nib that it now seems really silly of me to have bought the Edison in the first place. Yes, I do appreciate the small business, the attention to detail, the overall quality of Edison Pen Co, but the nib performance, for me, does not justify the high price.

 

Finally, fountain pens are incredibly personal items. What works for one perfectly, may be a disaster for another. So my experience may be very far from what yours would be.

---

Please, visit my website at http://www.acousticpens.com/

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While I respect Akustyk's comments (and am a bit envious of that Sailor), the last paragraph is most important:

 

 

"Finally, fountain pens are incredibly personal items. What works for one perfectly, may be a disaster for another. So my experience may be very far from what yours would be."

Like some others here, I own three Edisons, all in honor of special occasions/events in my life. Two are custom extended length Pearls, as I usually cap pens to have appropriate (to me) writing balance. The third is a custom Collier, purchased second hand from another FPN'er. I love the look of each pen, and the nibs are turned well for me. In fact, I have the newest one inked right now, in keeping with a promise to hae that in constant use for a full year (I'm a month into that promise). I've not purchased a production line pen, but I would not hesitate to do so, especially if the seller is able to customize the nib to specifications.

Sharon in Indiana

"There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self." Earnest Hemingway

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I have an Edison production Beaumont in EF and it is a decent writer for 150USD. Size comparable to the Souveran M400. But I have to defer to Akustyk...I have better writing nibs on pens much less expensive than what I paid for the Edison.You may want to look at Lyle Ross also, he makes some beautiful pens.

Edited by Edwaroth
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To those who haven't been entirely thrilled with the Edison nibs, may I ask...

 

Did you get your production pens from a retailer who tunes the nibs??

 

That may make a big difference. But, as it has already been said, to each his or her own.

 

At this point, I'm curious and looking for feedback.

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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I'm a big fan of Brian Gray's business model, attention to detail, innovative designs, and really great customer service. I have three Edison pens, 2 Premieres and a Beaumont. I have only one concern but it keeps me from using them daily or from purchasing another. I find that the nibs dry out and are hard starts after riding around in a pocket during the day or sitting over night. Some of the nibs have been "tuned" by a professional and others have not. I've also tried some replacement nibs when I wanted a different size. I'm not sure if this is a nib problem or a cap sealing problem. (I swapped out an Edison nib into a Franklin Christoph to see if there is any difference but I haven't put it in daily use yet.) This has put me off to pens that use JoWo nibs as I have had some not so great experiences with them from other makers as well. When the dried out nib issue is resolved I'd definitely purchase another pen from Edison (and maybe be willing to try other pens with JoWo nibs). All that having been said the aesthetics of his designs are classy, the choice materials of the pens is great (I love the bedrock flake) and Mr. Gray is just one heck of a good guy.

 

In terms of pens that write first time, every time I carry a Pelikan and/or Lamy 2000 every day. JUst my 2 cents.

"A man's maturity consists in having found again the seriousness one had as a child, at play."

 

Friedrich Nietzsche

 

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I have two Edisons: one custom and one production model. Both are beautiful and well made. I'm sorry to say both have been disappointing writers. So, my experience is similar to akustyk, edwaroth, and irish_monk.

 

(Re-emphasizing akustyk's words: "...fountain pens are incredibly personal items. What works for one perfectly, may be a disaster for another. So my experience may be very far from what yours would be.")

 

My pens have both been skippy, inconsistent and hard starters.

 

On the custom pen, I've recently ordered a replacement nib. I gave up on the original nib after (1) it was sent back to Bryan for attention and (2) then later *also* tuned by a nib-meister. It still doesn't perform better than average, even when compared to pens at lower price points. I live in hope that the replacement nib will turn this otherwise beautiful pen around.

 

For the production pen, the price of the pen doesn't justify sending it off for a lot of attention, so it's on the list of pens I'll practice my nib/feed hacking on when I get around to it.

 

Note that my experience might be different were I living in the US, and had access to cheap postage back-and-forth to Brian. He's been keenly responsive, but the pens don't justify repeated trans-Atlantic trips for servicing. That's certainly not anyone's issue but mine.

 

Brian is lovely to work with, and he turns lovely material, but I haven't had good luck with Edisons as trouble-free writers. In fact, when I think of my Edisons, I get that sinking feeling that comes from the gap between hope/expectation/reputation and my actual experience.

 

Absolutely nothing against Edison, and I wish Brian the best and all his customers heavenly writing. But based on my experience, I'll probably look to another pen-turner when I'm next looking for a custom pen.

 

[Edited to spell Brian's name correctly.]

Edited by Houston
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I will chime in as well. I tried several Edisons. They were all awesome except for the nibs. I wish Brian would use another nib.

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Irish-Monk,

 

Thanks for responding....

 

As a seller of Brian's pens, I have nothing but good things to say about Brian. He is a world-class fellow and is very good at what he does.

 

I'm interested, though, in the thoughts about the JoWo nibs.

 

I know that Brian tunes the nibs on his pens before he sends them out. The way he tunes nibs, however, is quite different from the way Richard Binder tunes nibs (and those who he has trained), and it may make quite a difference. I'd be interested to know if "Binderized" nibs were drying out.

 

The several JoWo nibs I have are, in a word, spectacular. I have a very cheap Laban Celebration (well, I bought it cheap). I put a JoWo fine nib into it and it is an exemplary first-time, every-time nib. Also, my Bexley pens (which have JoWo nibs) are stellar as well.

 

At this point, I find myself doubting that it is the nib itself. Of course, there is the potential to get a bad nib or two in the mix. From everyone I've talked to--people who are so-called "Rock stars" in the Fountain Pen world--JoWo is the best nib one can get today.

 

I'm not at all meaning to discount your experience, however. Again, most of my questions are trying to ascertain the source of said pens--and that for my own information.

 

Blessings,

 

Tim

Tim Girdler Pens  (Nib Tuning; Custom Nib Grinding; New & Vintage Pen Sales)
The Fountain Pen: An elegant instrument for a more civilized age.
I Write With: Any one of my assortment of Parker "51"s or Vacumatics

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I have half a dozen or so Binderized JoWo nibs between my Edisons and Bexleys... All are great writers; smooth and no drying out at all. They fit with the quality of the pens.

 

Those JoWo nibs that I own and haven't been tuned by Richard are much less impressive. I had an untuned nib that came in a Bexley Jitterbug with a nasty case of baby's bottom - I have been able to solve that problem myself with careful re-shaping and smoothing. I bought a second-hand 2012 LEE Edison Pearl that had a horrid nib, but it had been used, so I don't know how it came originally. I re-aligned and tuned that to be nice and consistent as well.

 

This year's 2013 LEE Edison Morgan that I bought had the newly available JoWo 1.1 Italic. That nib is still a disaster (inconsistent flow, skipping a lot on downstrokes). I've swapped it for an EF tuned by Richard that I bought as a spare for another pen.

 

I have a LE Edison Nouveau Premiere that I sent off to Pendemonium to have Letta grind the B nib to a C.I. It skipped quite a bit when I got it back, and required quite a bit of fiddling to get it writing properly. It's a great pen now, one of my faves.

 

Brian's pens rock. They really do. The craftsmanship is impeccable. The nibs, as others have stated, are hit and miss. I am such a cheapskate perfectionist, it has been better for me to learn by reading and listening and experimenting how to properly tune a nib so that I don't have to send a pen or nib back to someone else to get it working right. But, I completely agree that when one spends a Benjamin and a half (for starters) on a pen, it darned well better write right. Thus I recommend Richard, based on my experiences. I read good things about Tim G. and Mike & Linda Kennedy, who have learned from the Master, but I tend to go with The Binderizer as he is a known commodity for me at this time. If/when Richard hangs up his loupe, I am very grateful that he has passed on his wisdom to others.

 

So, to answer Tim, your theories seem to correlate well with my experiences. No disrespect meant towards Brian on his nibs. Maybe Brian would consider enrolling in one of Richard's masters nib classes someday (I was very tempted myself when they were offered this summer), but I am not going to tell Brian how to run his business as he has obviously figured out how to make a lot of FP users happy, myself included.

 

Sorry for the ramble...

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