What's A Good Pen To Start With?

[Adam.A]

Greetings

 

Hi guys, new member here. Just getting into the fountain pen stuff. I have a fountain pen (really basic) and was wandering what is a solid starting pen.

 

I came across the Namy Al-Star. Any opinions on this or any other, cheaper pens.

 

Thank you for your time

 

[The Blue Knight]

Something like a Parker Frontier or a basic Pelikan like a Twist or style. I wouldn't recommend a Lamy Safari or Al-star as these aren't good pens and I would encourage you to watch you the video review below that takes a critical look at the safari.

 

Edited March 1, 2015 by The Blue Knight

[Clive Andrew]

Hi and welcome to FPN, i have two Safari and two Al-star pens, they write very nice, and they are so easy to maintain. i have 20 pens in total, some costing a lot more than the Lamy range but i find them just as nice to write with.

Edited March 1, 2015 by Clive Andrew

[Matt.Nethery]

Pilot metropolitan is a wonderful first pen, it even comes with a con20 converter so you can use bottled ink. I have a couple Lamy Safaris, they are good pens for what you pay and you can buy different nibs which swap easily.

 

Youtube is your best friend if your new to fountain pens check out Fountain pens 101 by Goulet Pens.

[Buzz_130]

Welcome to FPN!

 

The Lamy Safari and Al-Star are often recommended as inexpensive yet very functional fountain pens. They are rugged, reliable, and easy to maintain. With some care, you can even swap the nibs to a different line width. These pens use either cartridges or a very inexpensive converter if you'd like to try different fountain pen inks.

 

The other recommendation usually is the Pilot Metropolitan. I also think the Platinum Plasir is a very good pen.

 

When you consider getting into fountain pens, also consider you will have to spend some money in two other key areas. The first is paper. Grabbing a stack of office copy paper and writing with your fountain pen will often give disappointing results. You'll need to look for heavy weight paper or search for brands like Rhodia, Clarefountaine, Black N' Red, Apica, and several others. Paper will make a difference in your fountain pen experience.

 

You also should think about buying ink. Only use fountain pen ink, and consider going to several excellent online retailers who offer samples. Most give 2 to 3 ml of ink, which will give you 2 to 3 full loads of ink in your pen to try out with your paper and style of writing. Once you find colors and brands that meet your needs and expectations, then buy the big bottles that will last.

 

The last thing you'll have to learn (and the Lamy pens will help) is a loose grip, a low writing angle, and no pressure of the nib on the paper. A fountain pen will lay down a line dragged across a paper by only its own weight. When you get pen, paper, ink, and writing style down, you'll understand immediately this is a passion for life.

 

Buzz

[perrywang123]

yeah i'd recommend lamy safari along with all the people above because you can play around with the nibs and find which thickness type you prefer more and move on from there (at least that's what i did)

 

=)

[sandy101]

Try the Lamy before you buy - some have triangular grips - which I can't deal with at all - so make sure you are going to be comfortable with the grip before you buy it. If it suits - I'm sure it will be a good choice.

 

Other pens you might consider - the platinum plasir is a nice writer for not much money, the pilot 78G allows you to try different nib types for little money, but you have to order them from Hong Kong. If your budget is a bit bigger - the Faber Castell Loom is a nice writer and quite sturdy too.

[LeonW]

Welcome Adam, beware the suggested YouTube video, the presenter has been privileged to use top tier Pens. At a price to make me weep.

 

The Lamy AL-Star is IMHO a great Fountain Pen at its price point, it is a good tool to start your journey... (into the rabbit hole)

[OcalaFlGuy]

Anyone who says the Lamy Safari isn't a decent pen is being overly critical.

 

WAY overly critical.

 

[EDIT; On that video I could only make it to the 5.25 spot, 1/3 the way in. The whining cause the converter costs a whole $5 blew out my BitchMoan&Complain meter.]

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

Edited March 1, 2015 by OcalaFlGuy

[Tresconik]

For someone living in India, 2000 rupees was a huge amount to spend on my first good fountain pen. I took the plunge anyway and haven't looked back.
If I knew then what I know now, I'd have bought the Jinhao 599. Of course those Jinhaos weren't being produced then but that's besides the point.
PS: I bought the Jinhao for 80 rupees.

[The Blue Knight]

delete

Edited March 1, 2015 by The Blue Knight

[FountainPages]

I'm going to recommend the Pilot Metropolitan.

1. It is constructed from aluminum, very solid and well sorted.

2.For 15USD it punches way above it's weight class.

3. The nib is just fantastic.

4. It will accept both cartridges and converters.

[ac12]

Here is my list of new starter pens that I am familiar with below $50:

• Lamy; Safari, Al Star, Vista (Lamy nibs are easily swapped relatively inexpensive nibs)
  As was mentioned, some like the grip of the Lamy, others HATE it. I think it was made that way to teach German students how to hold a pen.
  The big advantage that I see with the Lamys is the ability to change nibs. If you don't like the M nib that came with the pen, replace it with a F or B nib, or even a 1.1 italic nib. Although the $15 cost of the Lamy nib is about the same price as a Pilot 78G.
  Some of the Lamy nibs are inconsistent, some are dry and may need to be adjusted to flow more ink.

• Parker; IM (M nib, exchangeable for other sizes) $20-30
  If you do not like the M nib, you can send the pen back to Parker to exchange the nib for a different size. But you MUST do this within 28 days of purchase.
  Mine wrote very well with Waterman blue ink.

• Pilot; 78G (F,M,B,BB nibs. the B and BB are stubs) $12-25, Metropolitan (only F and M nibs) $15
  Note that the Japanese pens have a finer/narrower nib compared to the Western nibs. So a Pilot M nib writes about the same as a Lamy F nib.
  Some nibs are dry and may need to be adjusted for more ink flow.
  My Metropolitan M nib was VERY smooth. Totally shocking for a $15 pen.

• Rosetta; Explorer (only available in M nib and a black pen), $10-15

All are cartridge/converter pens. The Pilots and Rosetta come with a converter. Lamy and Parker, you need to buy the converter separate.

 

If you are in the US, here are some papers that I recommend you start with. They are fountain pen friendly and not expensive papers.

• Staples, single subject, wire bound notebooks, made in BRAZIL.
  The country of origin is important, as the papers from the other countries are not fountain pen friendly.
  In the 2014 July/Aug back to school sale, it went on sale for 17 CENTS each. (I bought 30)
  The paper is about 16# weight, so it is rather light compared to other papers. And because of the light weight, WET inks can bleed through the paper. But generally I have no problem with this paper, and it is what I use for my daily journal.

• Red and Black notebooks.
  They come in different bindings (cloth/sewn, and wire) and different sizes.

• Staples, filler paper, made in BRAZIL.

• Office Depot, SUGAR CANE letter size ruled pads.

• Staples, Sustainable Earth, 20#, sugar cane paper. blank paper. 1 ream ~ $8
  This is my standard letter writing paper. It is not expensive and has stood up to almost all the inks I tried on it.

• Hammermill, 28#, Color Copy Digital. 1 ream ~ $12.
  28# paper seems to be the heaviest paper that I can see a guide sheet below the paper.

• HP, 32#, Premium. blank paper. 1 ream ~ $18
  One of the best general papers.
  The only negative is that the paper is so thick that I can't see a guide sheet below the paper, to keep my writing straight.

Inks can be a black hole. There are soooooo many different inks. Pick a base color to try (like blue) then get a bunch of samples, and try them. Don't attempt to try ALL the colors or shades of a base color, you will go crazy. There is an old saying "analysis paralysis." So find one that you like and use that as a starting ink. Then later you can get another pen and try more inks. And don't be afraid to change inks. I went from black to blue, back to black, then to green, as my personal ink color.

[ronniejoy]

I think a Lamy Safari is a great newbie pen. It writes well for the price structure and is very affordable - so I am with many of you above :-) You can find certain colors for as little as $22.

It's a no brainer and you will enjoy it.

 

Ronnie

[The Blue Knight]

Anyone who says the Lamy Safari isn't a decent pen is being overly critical.

 

Touche.

 

I'd argue the with anyone dismissing the Parker Sonnet as bad pen.

[Ecriveur]

Besides the Lamy Safari, Pilot Metropolitan and Platinum Plaisir recommended above, you should also have a look at the Faber Castell Loom.

 

Although all these pens are in a roughly similar price range, they're very different pens in any number of ways and you may just not like the look, feel or weight of some of these pens, even though they're all highly regarded and even though they all write well. The only way to be sure is to try them out at a pen shop or pen show before you decide.

 

Since you're new to fountain pens, I should also mention that nib sizes are not standard, so a fine nib on a Lamy Safari is not the same as a fine nib on the Platinum Plaisir. Japanese fine nibs (Pilot, Platinum) are "more fine" than European fine nibs (Lamy, Faber Castell). Check out the nib size table at Nibs.com for more precise measurements.

[OcalaFlGuy]

Pahleese.

 

The Parker factory Knowingly, For Years, assembling the cap such that it often cracked the inner cap destroying the air seal and making the pen dry out simply FAR outweighs damning the Safari because it's converter costs a whole $5.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[Ecriveur]

And just to cite an example of my earlier point about how you have to decide which pen is right for you, I avoid most Faber Castell pens. That's not because they're bad pens, on the contrary they're very good pens. But I like to write with my pen posted (i.e. with the cap placed on the other end of the pen). Most Faber Castell pens have lightweight bodies made of wood or some other non-metal material, but heavy, metal caps. So they're very top heavy when posted and I don't like that. If you prefer to write with your pens unposted, that won't be an issue for you. This isn't an issue for the Loom because, unlike most Faber-Castell pens, it has a metal body and a plastic cap, so it isn't top heavy when posted.

[The Blue Knight]

Pahleese.

 

The Parker factory Knowingly, For Years, assembling the cap such that it often cracked the inner cap destroying the air seal and making the pen dry out simply FAR outweighs damning the Safari because it's converter costs a whole $5.

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

 

I'm not referring to that. What I am referring too is Lamy puts nibs that seem to lack basic QC. I've even seen nibs that lack a nib slit. Not to mention 4 different problems on the 4 nibs I've owned.

 

But both Sonnets I've owned write perfectly.

Edited March 1, 2015 by The Blue Knight

[SujiCorp12345]

I'd recommend the Pilot Metropolitan. Very fairly priced for about $20.