In other threads I've asked for help with a fussy Visconti Wall street LE that "starts hard." The main culprits seem to be either the feed, nib or ink...or some combination of all of them.

I dip tested the pen in the shop before surrendering my money and it worked well. Now on reflection, I'm asking myself "What's the point of the dip test beyong looking at line weight and a brief assessment of nib smoothness?'

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the dip test won't tell you anything about the feed system since the ink isn't actually being fed through the pen during a dip, right?

Thanks. I'm just trying to identify where/how I missed this flaw.

Bob

I believe you're correct here. The dip test will not test the flow from the reservoir through the feed to the nib, but I think it will test the nib smoothness and line weight as you said, but also the feed-to-nib flow, at least at the end of the feed. When you dip, the feed holds a bit of ink, so if there is a defect or obstruction in the nib end of the feed, it should show itself. Anything farther back would not be tested though.

I agree with rbrock. Even so, I still prefer dipping a pen to assess nib thickness and smoothness. If these are a no go, nothing else will really matter.

So far I am tracking with the others. Dip testing can give you some idea of nib smoothness and the kind of line, with some feed to nib interaction. But you can never know how a pen performs until you get it home and ink it for the total writing experience. The only thing you can know for sure is how the pen feels in your hand.

IMHO, I believe dip testing yields very limited information. At best you can tell if you have a badly misaligned or otherwise damaged nib. When dipped, the feed and nib are holding much more ink than in a "normal" writing situation, so the pen will write a wetter line and perhaps even a smoother response from the nib because of the extra ink.
You can blot away a lot of the ink, but you are still dealing with an abnormal situation that gives you abnormal data about the pen.

This might not be the case if you are working with someone like Susan Wirth who dips a bunch of pens (at least I assume she does) and probably has a better feel for it than your average brick and mortar clerk. Again, this is all my opinion - YMMV.

I like dipping prior to buying to assess the nib's springiness and sensitivity to rotation as well as the pen's ergonomics (balance, length, section width, etc.).

I like to do it to see how the pen feels in my hand.

Bill

It won't tell you everything but, as has been mentioned, it will give you an idea of handling and nib characteristics.

But dipping has saved me money by identifying real OOTB stinkers, like the ill-fated Pelikan factory italic.

Bill

I enjoy dip testing. It lets you get a good feel for the pen's weight, and feel the nib on paper. The line width, admittedly, is not as reliable, but sometimes, it'll tell a lot. For example, I had no experience with Japanese fine nibs until I dip tested a Namiki VP. That was an enlightening day.

Although dip testing is unreliable, I'd also be suspicious of a store that didn't offer.

Check out Richard Binder's website for Pelikan italics. I have no experiance with his work but read nothing but good things about it. His whole website is full of information.

I live about a zillion miles from any shop that even thinks about having a pen displayed in a manner that it might be tested. So even IF I wanted to dip-test a pen before I bought it, I couldn't, logistically.

That aside, my pens are working tools for day-in-day-out tasks not related to creative calligraphy. So I stick to F and M nibs with the infrequent B thrown in for fun. Watching this list, Zoss, 4Pens over the years, I sure as hell know WHICH PENS to stay the hell away from, after the travails most of you have had with Omas, MB, and some other multi-hundred dollar pens.

And with a vintage geezer found in the wild or at the 'Bay...I know that in 75% of the cases I am gonna have Mr. Binder work it over and it is gonna write just fine, thank you...

So, for me, a dip test is about as useful as you-know-whats on a boar hog...

Bill

Thanks, all, for saving me a few bucks. I will save my money until the Raleigh Pen Show, and hopefully get to check out some good nibs in person, at Richard's table in particular.