Whats a cheap fountain pen with a fine nib I can get so I can determine if I like fine or medium nibs better? Right now I just have a phileas medium and parker frontier medium next I want a pelikan m600 but I don't know what nib size to get so I want to try cheaper pens that will be close to what a medium and fine pelikan will feel like.



tnx

Cheap and fine usually don't go together very well...

Check out the inexpensive Chinese pens on eBay or elsewhere (Hero, Duke, Dewen, others). Some models will only set you back eight or ten dollars, and they are usually medium fine to fine nibs (the Asian nibs are finer for a stated size, usually).

Often rather garish, but they write pretty well, by and large, so a good way to try out different nib sizes.

They are usually metal, and rather heavy for their size.

Hero makes copies of both Parker 51's and 45's, some of them fairly good although not exactly like the originals

Peter

Try a Hero 329. They're cheap - 4.99 at isellpens.com, and definitely fine. There are a bunch of variations of the basic model. Most of the less expensive Hero's specify fine nibs. The 82-1 is the model I bought last. It is fine, and can also use cartridges. The 329 is bottle only.

I have no relationship to the site, other than as a satisified customer.

Hisnibs and Isellpens, for example, have a wide selection of fine nibbed Chinese pens that are under $25usd down to under $5usd. I find the Hero 616 to be a very fine nibbed pen, and there are several that are even finer.

You have to accept one thing about fountain pen nibs and that is there are no standards. One makers fine is another makers medium. This has been discussed at length on this forum in the various sections.

I consider the Phileas Medium a very wide Medium to thin Broad. However, I think Waterman will sell you a replacement Fine w/section for something like $21usd and I consider it a rich fine.

Also, the Pelikan Steel nibs tend to run finer per grade than the Gold ones. If your willing to spend the money, buy the pen through a full service dealer like Binder or Molitshaw. It will cost you more, but you will get exactly what you want.

I just reviewed the Hero 100. That is a good pen to try out a fine nib, if you know anything about nib smoothing.

I've got a couple Wality's that work well. Isellpens.com sell these too.

Lamy Safari! Around $20. Tons of cool colors. Very reliable pen. Nice nibs. Proof that good does not need to be expensive.

Hero 100s don't need nib smoothing. If you have a scratchy one, it's a faulty product. If that's the case, the seller would be happy to replace it.

Second on the Lamy. Great pen for the money. Just wish they were more widely available, i.e. office supply retailers, etc.

The Safari fine is a little on the medium side, though. (How is the Safari EF? I'm thinking about picking one up.)

I love my Lamy Safaris--I have both an F and M nib. I think there is a big difference between the Lamy M (which seems to run a little wide to me) and the F (which seems F enough for me, though it's probably not as fine as a rollerball F). However, these Safari nibs are much stiffer in feel (to me) than Pelikan nibs, either in the Pelikan steel or Pelikan gold. So I don't know if trying the Lamy Safari will be helpful to you. But you might like it for what it is--a very sturdy and inexpensive fountain pen (converters sold separately).

I think it's also important to mention the role that ink plays in choice of nib. I have several fines that definitely write like mediums with certain inks but write like extra fines with other inks. Noodler's black, for instance, has good flow but makes my fines work like fines whereas Levenger inks make them seem more like mediums.

A decent pen store will let you dip a pen and try fine vs. medium in the models you like.

If you ultimately want to buy an M600 I would also suggest that you buy from somebody like Richard Binder and tell him how you want the pen to write. Not only will he adjust the nib for smoothness, but flow can also be adjusted. Many people here recommend his services and I can say categorically that he or another nibmeister such as John Mottishaw are well worth the few extra dollars when you buy your next pen.

As someone previously said also, different brands have different definitions of medium and fine. There is a very nice comparison table on the Mottishaw website at:

http://www.nibs.com/Tipping%20Sizes%20page.htm

This is a good starting point for certain brands, including the Pelikan you're looking at. I have several Pelikans in both fine and medium and can't honestly say that I prefer one over the other. Really depends on how they're inked and what kind of paper I'm using.

I recently bought my first EF nib, on a Safari. I was a little hesitant because I like really quick starts and a wet line, and my pens are used intermittently through the day. The Safari EF is a champ. It is every bit as reliable and smooth as my other (F and Safari's, just finer. The EF is finer than a Sonnet F, and about the same as a Namiki VP F.

Thanks much for the EF report! I think I will pick one up then.

I can see clearly now. Our brains are gone. I don't know why this hasn't occured to any of us, but Jim if you are looking for whether you prefer a Pelikan Fine or Medium, it occured to me that you should go a searching for Pelikanos, Pelikans cheap school pen. They are availible, as far as I can tell, in fine and medium, come with cartridges, but a converter is made for them. Who knows, perhaps they will satisfy your want. But regardless, the best way to gauge what Pelikan defines as medium and fine are to look at Pelikans. And Pelikanos, inexpensive as they may be, are still Pelikans.

You can always get a Pelikano with fine nib. (Only righthanded version has a Fine nib obtion. )That way you'll find out the Pelikan fine nib size at a cheap prize.

-edit-
Sorry, Green Maned Lion's post wasn't there yet when I hit the reply button.

Hi Jim. I would recommend the eBay market. You can find a refurbed Sheaffer etc from the 1950s with a fine nib that was a fairly expensive pen in it's day for only about 30 dollars now. It will also be a 14k nib so you'll get a good idea of what a nice pen should write like.

As for the Pelikan, I own the 650 Pelikan with Medium nib (the 650 is the version with a gold plated sterling silver cap). Pelikan nibs write rather wet and wide so mine is more like an almost broad.

PeteWK

I would agree with the posts about trying a Pelikano....I picked one up a week ago for $13 - it's a great little fountain pen and I don't worry about losing it.

The line size of the medium Pelikano is the same as my Pelikan M205. The M205 is a much smoother writer - I just got mine 2 weeks ago and it is quickly becoming my everyday pen. It blows away my old Phileas that I used to use.

Also as mentioned ink (and paper) make a difference too, when I fill the 205 with Noodlers, I think it is slightly finer than then when I use Private Reserve Ink.

Mike

I picked up a couple of Sheaffer School Pens on eBay for $5 or $6 each and these have a Fine point that it is a nice size. These write reliably and smoothly, although I always have issues with ink leaking into the cap and then getting onto the pen when it's capped.

Another recommendation for either one of the Chinese manufacturers, Hero or Duke, or a Lamy Safari. Even Dukes and Heros described as M nibs are pretty F to me. The Hero 100 is a fantastic pen.

Of course, Heros and Dukes are always a bit of a gamble, sometimes you get a stinker, but based purely on my readings about these pens around FPN, more often then not you get a good quality pen. Most Dukes are heavy pens, same with a lot of Heros, but the Hero 100 is plastic, well made, and not heavy: I would consider it a light weight pen.

Tons of options for inexpensive FP's in an F nib! My problem is I want more inexpensive Chinese pens in M nibs.

Another recommendation for www.isellpens.com, Todd is a great seller. No affiliation, just a satisfied customer.

I wonder if anyone has seen/used the Pelikan P470 steno FP (about €20 in Germany), which has a very fine and elastic steel nib...

I don't know what you consider "cheap" but you can pick up a Pilot Knight for $40. The nib is labeled medium, but it writes like a fine. Best of all they're readily available if you have an Office Depot near you.

Pilot Knight's "M" nib writes exactly like a typical Fine!

Review right here by me

http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=19768

available at swisherpens.com and pendemonium.com (happy customer)