Lending Pens

[Ryno]

I imagine you've discussed this before, but since I'm new to the forum I'll go ahead and ask anyway. What's your take on lending your fountain pens to someone?

 

I'm somewhat torn. I've heard that you're not supposed to because it'll affect the nib or that non-fountain pen users will not know how to use it and therefore wreck it, etc. On the other hand, I want to spread the good word about fountain pens and I think that if someone who's never written with a fountain pen has the pleasure, they'll become converts (can anyone really ever go back?). I also remember that the first time I used a fountain pen was when a girl I knew in college let me try hers out - and that got me hooked (on fountain pens).

 

I've been "using" for about 15 years now and I've found I always cringe a little when someone says, "hey, can I borrow your pen for a second..." I usually find myself lending the pen - if just for a moment (being a teacher of high school students doesn't help). I ALWAYS keep the cap (thank you Levengers for that tip) though so they don't walk away with it. And they almost always make a few of the same mistakes:

 

1. Most have never used a pen with a screw-top so most try to rip the top off if I don't stop them quickly enough.

 

2. Most have absolutely no idea on how a fountain pen works so they end up holding it so the nib is upside-down or sideways or not flush with the paper or...

 

3. Many think that you have to really push down hard to make a fountain pen work. A almost got sick when a relative of mine tried one of my pens and pushed down so hard that the tines on the nib just about split like a salad fork. That pen has never worked the same since. In another incident a friend of mine encouraged her teenage daughter (who was using my pen to sign a paper) to press down REALLY hard. When I told her that it wasn't necessary she was surprised and didn't think fountain pens worked by capillary action (she's a PhD in biology btw).

 

But I also have friends who have started using (and collecting) fountain pens because I introduced them to a whole new world. So, what's your take? Do you let folks try them out? Will you let anyone try? Are there any pens you absolutely won't let anyone try? Just curious.

 

Again, I'm sorry if you covered this before, but I'm interested to know if others are as conflicted as I am about lending them out.

[John Cullen]

I don't lend. I just tell people, "oh, this pen uses ink and you might get ink on your fingers." Then I pull out a ballpoint I carry in my briefcase.

 

I went into my wife's office once and found her new Platinum Lapis blue fountain pen on the secretary's desk in a jar of pencils and pens. I pulled it out and politely explained it cost $125. I think they all had a hard time wrapping their minds around the idea that anyone would spend $125 on a pen. We sometimes forget that the average person thinks spending ten dollars on a pen is nuts.

 

Someone else once posted a story of having someone yank the cap off a vintage big red. Yikes, that's got to really hurt!

 

So, no lending, for me, unless I have a Phileas or something like that with me that probably can not be hurt.

 

Maybe it is not a bad idea to always carry one cheap pen along. A cross solo would be perfect for this. It is a nice writer, and the nib is firm and probably can't be harmed unless someone really really presses hard.

[Brian Anderson]

While I don't have a hard and steadfast rule, generally, I do not lend a pen to someone unless I know they have used a fountain pen before. I have a few people at work who are FP users, so naturally, they are allowed to use my pens. Otherwise, the general rule is no. I have a pen cup with plenty of nice roller balls and ballpoints sitting at the far edge of my desk specifically for everyone else (they'd have to reach past it to get to my FP's). I do have a desk pen at my desk, but I rarely use it and it no longer has any ink in it, so when people try it, it doesn't work so well. (a nice deterrant).

 

If I'm away from my desk and someone asks (and there's nothing else around), on occasion, I'll let them use it, if so, I'll unscrew it for them, hang on to the cap, and give them the barrel only. That way, they'll have to give it back when done, and no damage can be made by incorrectly pulling off the cap, or posting too hard. The last time I gave someone the pen with the cap, he took the cap and snapped it back on. Thankfully, my OS Balance was ok.

 

Maybe grab some inexpensive fountain pens and keep them around for when someone asks. If they mess up a Pelikan Go or some other inexpensive pen, you're not out. If they really like it, you can always pass it on and buy another. Esterbrook is another good choice, as if they do mess up the nib, you can just unscrew it and get another.

 

Best-

Brian

[Rackness]

i carry a cheap ball point for lending out. i used to carry a nice bp and i would lend it out only to have it dropped, or tossed onto a desk or counter or have a considerate soul turn around at a distance and say "hey thanks" and proceed to throw my pen to me from 10-15 ft away! needless to say my nice ball points and definatly my FP's no longer get lent out.

 

if you want to lend out your FP's i would suggest that you lend a pelikan or VP or someother FP that the nib can be easily and inexpensivly replaced. it WILL get trashed sooner or later.

 

all the best ,

Jason

[Velma]

I have a few pens (Pelikan Future, a Prelude with an extra-fine nib) that I'll let people try, but most of my coworkers won't go near a fountain pen -- they look at me as if I'm a two-headed mutant for using them -- and the ones that will know how to use fountain pens. I try to carry one with me at all times that I can show people and let them use to experiment, but I rarely let anyone take the pens I love most. Too many horror stories, and I, too, have seen the press-hard-enough-to-bend-the-tines. *wince*

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

People can use one of the Reflexes, Vectors, or Pelikan School pens that I reserve for lending.

 

They normally write very smoothly and are very stiff.

 

Dillon

[Rique]

I always carry a cheap BP in reserve, in case someone asks for a pen. But if someone insists he wants a FP (out of curiosity, maybe), I lend him a Reflex or some other cheap and indestructible pen (which I also carry with me all the time). I am a university professor, so there is always a lot of writing around, too many meetings, too many students... so far, I haven´t had any pen lost or destroyed.

BTW, I don´t think a Prelude, a VP or a Pelikan GO are cheap enough to be considered "lendable"... In my country, at least, they are considered expensive; particularly the VP, which costs about the same as a factory worker´s monthly pay.

Edited January 16, 2006 by Rique

[KCat]

depends on the pen and the person. My niece may try my VP. But not my Piazza Navona as "gentle" is a foreign word to her. Her hugs are tackles - OOF! and she's no dainty little thing. Now I gave her a 200 some time ago but she's nervous about using it much. As she practices her Manga, I imagine she'll grow more adept with FPs.

 

My sister, mom and brother I trust completely. Brother doesn't use FPs but knows they deserve some care compared to a bic.

 

I don't usually hand out a Bic or other BP because to me that's like saying "see, only *I* can do this. You are a Neanderthal." But that's just for me and my oversensitivity to how others perceive me. I would not have the same response if someone refused to loan me their uberflexy Waterman. I would understand. A sort of "double standard" in their favor.

 

However, if I do loan a pen, (or buy one for someone) it's a nail. A Phileas, Safari, or similar inexpensive pen with a sturdy nib that would take a gorilla to damage. The Core is another example of a nib that could take a lot of abuse. They are unlikely to know the difference between those nibs and an 18K Pelikan nib so my fears of them being offended are mininmal.

 

if i feel i have an opportunity to teach, then i'll take it with some of my nicer pens. If it's a rush situation and they just need to sign something or check off a box on a form, then it's a nail they get.

[JimStrutton]

As many people think I am using some form of rollerball anyway, (the hooded nob on a "51" or 61 fools 'em,) I keep a box of Papermate pens around and say, "here take this one you can keep it". Does the job and offends no one.

 

Just my .02 worth, but as I get a dozen pens for a GB Pound my generosity costs me a bit more!

 

Jim

 

Edited to remove typos

Edited January 16, 2006 by JimStrutton

[Chris]

The reason for the folklore about not lending fountain pens to anyone is to give you an excuse for not lending fountain pens to anyone

 

It saves grief, which seems to come sooner or later to all who lend their fps.

 

Chris

[TMann]

I work at a hospital, where it is a common for folks to "borrow" other people's pens and then not return them. Thus, my standard response is to say "Hmm...let me see if I have an extra one that you can just keep...", while I fish out a ballpoint or rollerball out of my bag.

 

Most people really have no clue about how to use a fountain pen. So I make it a point to just never lend out one of my FP's. If the person was really curious about my fountain pens, to the point that they would listen to a quick explanation, then I might consider it. But not for just a quick signature or something like that.

 

TMann

Edited January 17, 2006 by TMann

[Dillo]

Hi,

 

There is also a reason why I start lending fountain pens.

 

1. I had too many BIG fountain pens

2. I wanted people to write with fountain pens

 

As a result

 

1. I take damages trivially (That's OK, I will fix it)

2. I learned to fix nibs

3. I take my time to gently teach them to use it (You can hold it like this, and you do not need to press down)

4. I answer all of their questions about them.

 

Dillon

[chupie]

I sincerely hope I am not using mine wrong! I mean, do you all mean that people push too hard or whack on it or something? I know what you mean about the caps. That threw me at first too!

[J. John Harvey]

I once lent my Hero 100 to a teacher. When I got it back, the barrel was slightly loose. *quiver* That was the start of my problems with the Hero - I think that he pressed down too hard, and that if I hadn't lent it to him, it wouldn't have fallen all apart when it rolled off a desk. And the nib was slightly sideways...

 

Before, I never would lend one of my fountain pens to my peers. Now, I have placed a moratorium on lending fountain pens to -anyone-.

 

One of my friends was talking with someone about my handwriting, and I heard her say, "He writes with a quill pen." Such is the level of ignorance among my peers and evidently among some staff at my school. I was quite quick to correct my friend, and explain how a fountain pen works.

 

I liked my Hero 100 - writing with it is discreet, because no-one would suspect that that little point is actually a nib.

[Ryno]

One of my friends was talking with someone about my handwriting, and I heard her say, "He writes with a quill pen." Such is the level of ignorance among my peers and evidently among some staff at my school.

 

Good to see a fellow teacher on the board. I'm guessing there's others. As for the ignorance factor, it's really quite amazing. I've heard people say the same thing about my fountain pens; or if I tell people I use a fountain pen they say, "Oh, you mean like a feather that you have to dip in ink?"

 

I mean, do you all mean that people push too hard or whack on it or something?

 

Yep. That's exactly what I mean. People assume that because it's not a ball poin that they have to press down really really hard to make ink come out. It's incredible how much the ballpoint pen, an invention of the last 50 - 60 years, has changed our perception of writing. Probably as much as the computer has changed our perception of typing.

[garythepenman]

I visit many businesses and often have to "sign in" in their visitors log. I use my FP and often get a comment from the receptionist. I then encourage them to give it a try. I do tell them the cap unscrews and watch them carefully to see that they have it aligned correctly etc. I've converted a few already.

 

My local coffee stop has a young girl who left her FP's in the UK so I found a Parker slimline for her to use to write letters home. I tend to get the odd free coffee and get to talk FP's.

 

I try to convert as many people as possible, generally because I think they are missing out on one of the pleasures of life.

 

Gary

[pvdiamon]

What about the lore that the nib "conforms" to you, and lending it will wreck this? I am getting the impression that is simply lore. But at an upscale pen store, I wanted to the salesperson to try one of my pens to get a sense of what I meant about the feel, and they refused, on the basis of this lore.

[tburke0]

Probably as much as the computer has changed our perception of typing.

OMG! u r rite!!1!

 

lolz!

[JeffTL]

I've lent out my Parker Reflex before; they have good stiff nibs that are hard to damage, especially if I caution people to use light pressure. If I were of less modest means I'd not worry myself with holding onto the cap.

 

 

My usual loaner, though, is a Fisher Space Pen that I don't find very comfortable (as it writes about like a Bic); however, there is no writing instrument more durable -- not a "51," a Round Stic, or a Pentel Sharp.

[Goodwhiskers]

I, too, practice the "keep the cap" trick learned from Levenger.

 

I, too, lend only my stiffer-nib pens to complete newbies: Lamy Safari (broad and medium, but not extra fine), Duke Complete Esteem, and Hero 329. I also tell them, "Hold it with the flat part of the nib facing you. You don't need to press; just touch the page."

 

I don't lend my Cross ATX because its medium point steel nib is too flexible to trust to newbies; I saw what had become of the fine point ATX test-scribbling nib at the store!

 

I don't lend my 14 karat gold nib Pelikan M200. I did once, but only to an artist who knew how to respect it. Another artist I showed the pen to didn't try it and didn't even ask to try it; he just repeated the advice, "You cannot lend this kind of pen to anyone."