We all know that there are lots of FP's out there that are much more expensive than their function would suggest. Take away the expensive metal, intricate details, lacquer finishes, marketing expenses to pay for, etc., and what is the best writing instrument out there, based purely on the writing experience itself? I've heard it said that once you pass the $200-$300 mark, you're really paying for some of these aforementioned qualities. All pertinent qualifications are acceptable--nib grind, nib material, material used to make the body of the pen, the comfort of holding it, all of that. I know I'm opening up a can of worms here, since there may be as many different recommendations as there are replies. That's OK, just qualify your picks. This will be a learning experience for someone still a newbie. Thanks.

I'd have to confess my best writer is a Parker 21 I bought with a Big Red ballpoint for $15 on eBay. It may just be a fluke that it writes so well, but that's what I'd have to go with.

If we're talking something you can buy new today, I'd have to go with the Parker Frontier. All 3 I own are near perfect writers. They blow the Waterman Kulturs I own out of the water because the Kulturs can be hard to start.

Your question lends itself to highly subjective answers but in my experience (or relative inexperience) the Pelikan M1000 that I bought on the secondary market is far and away the best pen I have tried. I bought mine for $150.00 out of the bay, which was an incredibally good deal since these usually go for $230-270 range on the secondary market; new they run in the low 300's and they retail in th $400's, but who pays retail?. Anyway, this pen has it all for me - size, weight, balance, huge springy nib, piston filling system, and if anything ever goes wrong with it, I can still take advantage of Chartpak's excellent customer service. It has performed well with every kind of ink I own, never skips, and writes the first stroke every time, even after sitting for a few weeks. Again, my experience is limited since I have never spent more than $400 on a pen ($380 on a M1050), but I have tried Sailors, Parkers, Watermans and Platinums in the $200 price range and none of them measured up to this Pelikan.


Greg~

Well, Bubba, you asked for my two cents and that is about what my opinion is worth. There are certain pens that I like because of their size, shape, weight, reliability and the joy they give in writing. My picks are:

modern Duofold Centennials - size, shape, factory italic nibs
Stipula O/S Etrurias - size, shape, factory italic nibs
Pelikan M-1000 and M-800 - size, shape, reliability and durability
MontyB 149's and 146's - size, shape, reliability
Parker 51's - size, shape, reliability and durability, and because they are a life long habit
Bexley - various models - size, shape, reliability and durability

Taccia - various models - economy, size, shape, reliability and durability

i have more than 300 pens. the pen i reach for, most often, is my namiki orange vanishing point. for me the big advantage is that it does not leak. pens leak because they get jostled in my handbag--even though the are stored upright in a piquardo case--but the vanishing point stays clean as a whistle. i love my vanishing point.

A Pelikan. I have a Future I haven't inked yet. But the "writing experience" qualifier made me think of the M150 that I got on clearance for less than $60, I think. That nib on paper was just plain dreamy. I have maybe seventy five pens, all major brands, new and vintage. I mostly buy for design aesthetics and I haven't paid more than $200 for a pen. When I put that nib to paper I often say, "Wow". My Lamy 2000 is close and I have an Esterbrook J model that is like butter, but for a new pen, out of the box, that M150 takes it. I have a new appreciation for Pelikan since I received a 1938 100N that had been sitting for several decades I'm sure. Rinsed out the old dried up ink, filled it, adjusted the nib and it writes beautifully. Certainly not as smooth as the M150, but I just couldn't believe I didn't have to send it off for repair.

Yard O Led, Waterman Carene, Visconti, Krone, Delta, Marlen

I'm looking for wet, juicy, B nibs that are comfortable to write with for all day marathons.

I think my favorite writing pen is my Bexley 10th Anniversary. First, and this is important, it fits my hand perfectly. Second, it has a fine, smooth Bexley 18K nib. Third, it has excellent balance and it's fairly light. This doesn't mean that it's my best looking (subjective) pen or that I use it all the time. My Pelikan m605 might take the prize if it were the size of an m800. I like my m800, but the m605 seems to have a better nib/feed combination.

For me it's the Pilot Prera, M nib. I find recent Pilot nibs to be just about perfect for my needs. The Pilot Knight comes a close second, but alas is a bit heavy: fine if there is no alternative, but now the Prera offers one. I do wonder what Pilot does to make its low-cost mass-produced nibs so good.

Cheers,
Eric

I own over 50 fountain pens at this point, not counting school pens and Parker Vectors. Seven or so of these pens are equally my best writers: the Aurora Talentum, Visconti Van Gogh, Sailor Sapporo, Pelikan M215 Lozenge, Namiki Maki-e "Mt Fuji", Motblanc 145 and Montblanc Greta Garbo. The first four of these each cost me around $100. The last three cost over $300. The two tiers are, overall, equally good writers.

The MB Greta Garbo (which is one of the most expensive pens I own) is very possibly the best writer of all, after I had the nib reground to a .35mm italic by Richard Binder. However, I hold myself back from using it too often and out in public, because it is so delicate and expensive-looking (the clip has a real pearl on the tip).

I can also say that I have bitterly regretted buying any pen in the $35-100 price range; they have all been reliably bad, or at least unremarkable writers for me.

So in my case, there does happen to be some correlation between price and which pens are the best writers. But the difference in writing quality between the MBs/Maki-e and the Pelikans is too small to account for the difference in price. So obviously, part of the price reflects expensive materials (silver, pearls, maki-e) and of course the infamous "brand appeal".

I've gotten quite a few suggestions from you all, and I'm very appreciative. I'm still looking for that favorite "go to" pen, and I'm sure it is out there somewhere. I definitely have some research to do now, to see where I can find some of these pens that have been suggested, at reasonable prices. Thanks (more suggestions are certainly welcome).

My best writer is my Omas Paragon old style and it cost me used 160$.
If you want to go to ultra cheap then I used to own a Sheaffer School pen with a steal nib.It had no value but it was an amazing writer.It wrote better then many other expensive and non expensive pens I owned or used but boy this pen was,felt and looked cheap.

I use my Pelikan 215 with the xxxf Binder nib all day every day. I have other pens that get hauled along, but right now if I'm working with one pen, the Pel is the one of choice. This fall I gave a decimo to a friend of mine and she uses it every day because it works like a champ.

The pens I seem to use most often are my Pelikans. I have two M200 with steel nibs and two M600s with gold nibs. I seem to gravitate toward the M200s more often than not. There are probably about 150 other pens in my accumulation that I do use from time to time, but the Pelikans just seem to fit my hand the best. Light weight and super reliable. I love my Sheaffer Targas, but you would have to hunt for one of those as they were discontinued in 1998. In fact, there are a lot of vintage Sheaffers that make excellent user pens today, particularly Touchdowns, Snorkels and Imperials. (The Touchdowns and Snorkels would most likely need to be restored before using, but that's not horribly expensive and they're wonderful pens.) And I certainly couldn't argue with Jimmy James, my Parker Frontier is an awfully good writer for an entry level pen. It puts a lot of more expensive pens to shame.

I choose to disagree with you.
ANY pen over about $40 had better put ink reliably onto paper, you start paying for "extras" above that point.

A good condition (restored if necessary) Parker "51" will cost $50 to $100, write perfectly, and last many many years.

I am very partial to Pelikan. My everyday writer is the Pelikan M400 with the Extra-Fine nib writes everytime and never skips! All though I am thinking about get another one from Richard Binder. Maybe a Pelikan M600 (Blue, Green, Red, or Black) not sure yet?

It's a very reliable pen, holds a lot of ink more than enough for the whole day. Converters don't hold enough ink for me.

I think you can probably cut that down to $25 or less if what you're looking for is a reliable pen. I have a ton of pens I have paid under $10 for, under $15 for, and under $20 for that write very well. Then again, the most expensive pens I have purchased have been a NOS Parker 21 on its way to me now, a Parker Inflection, and a Waterman Phileas. I got the three combined for less than $100.

For Pelikans the quality stays the same from the 400 to the 600 to the 800 the increase in price is for the pen size. I buy on ebay or the marketplace and the 800 is about as nice a pen as you will find in the price range mentioned.... my 2 cents

Good question. I had to think about it for a while. My pen collection is certainly well above 70, about 30 vintage and the rest a broad collection of most major brands. I have to say after thinking about it, unequivocally Montegrappa 1930 Extra. Montegrappas tend to write similarly (Prestige, Maya, etc.). Way better than OMAS, of which I have quite a few (old and new). There is a remote possibility that there is a pen in my collection that is similar, but the size or weight somehow makes it feel not as good. I have searched for better writing pens, and occationally think I am getting close (I just bought a couple new old stock OMAS Paragons), but I pull out one of my Montegrappas and instantly am overwhelmed by how much better they write. btw, I like Esterbrooks with medium nibs, and I have a couple Asian knockoffs that aren't so bad, so don't think I am just a snob. JD

A pen that writes better then Omas Paragon old style imposible (just kidding).I never tried Montegrappa pens soI must try one and then decide if indeed it is better then my Paragon.

Glenn, exception noted, but keep in mind that, this is what I was told, not necessarily my conclusion.

My Montegrappa Symphony is the best writer I have. The Stipulas are up there. I have several Omas pens. Love the way they look, but they are not really great writers. I do not like Asians pens at all.

Only one's opinion.

Happy New Year to all

Harv