Hello everyone. As I am new to the forum, I shall introduce myself.

I'm a junior in high school, and am probably the only person my age that even knows what a fountain pen is (this I know from the odd looks I get when people I don't know see me writing in school/public). My love affair with fountain pens began years ago when I was only 10 or 11. I have no idea what so interested me about them; perhaps it was the nostalgia. My first fountain pen was a Waterman Phileas that I begged my father for after I saw it in Office Depot. He reluctantly paid the $40. That pen has long since mysteriously vanished--the last place I remember seeing it was my previous residence, where it was in a box with some other of my curious belongings--but its memory has not. After the loss of the $40 Phileas, I longed for another fountain pen, and would pine over the glassed-cased specimens at office supply stores. My desire was realized last year when I bought what is probably the cheapest fountain pen known to man (at least it wasn't disposable), which has since been adopted by a friend. The pen, a tiny red-and-gold instrument made by a company with an Italian name I've never heard of, was horrible. The (probably false) gold nib became covered in ink, which transferred to the inside of the cap, which was in turn transferred to the pen barrel from where I placed it during use. The pen, however, was still much better than any ballpoint or rollerball or gel pen I'd ever used, and I loved the pen accordingly; I even used it on the essay portion of the AP World History exam last year, which I scored a 5 on, giving me 3 college credits (I firmly believe the pen had something to do with it). I went through cartridges in only a day or so (they were small cartridges), and found myself out of ink often. This was remedied, however, on my last birthday when I purchased a "starter kit" of fountain pen wares and a fountain pen, and it was, of course, a Waterman. Another Phileas, in fact. This pen has since been the only instrument I will write with (except for assignments for Algebra--my teacher would fail me if I dared use any type of pen). I started out by using the enclosed cartridges, but then I found the joys of a convertor. I now fill my pen nightly from the bottle. It's amazing how long a bottle of ink lasts--I've had the bottle since October and it is only a quarter or so empty. In any event, I hope to one day amass a sizeable collection of vintage and new fountain pens (focusing heavily on Waterman and its history).

On another pen-related note, the friend whom I gave my old fountain pen gave me a steel-nibbed pen for Christmas. It is obnoxiously obstentatious, with a huge plume that my 7th Period AP US History teacher deemed "a distraction." It is actually quite relaxing to use, though I still prefer the smooth and steady flow of ink from my fountain pen above all other instruments.

Among fountain pens, my other intrests of antiquated and (in the eyes of some) "useless" objects inlcude, but are not limited to: Manual Typewriters (I own two--an Olivetti Studio 45 and a Smith-Corona Sterling 12); Shortwave Radio (I must own half a dozen, with the crown jewel being my 1968 Zenith Trans-Oceanic Royal 7000); and, of course, ocean liners.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Hi Matt, and welcome.

Use your typewriters to learn to type properly.
You can get the appropriate 'learn to type' books from your local library.
But only spend 30 minutes a day at it, because your mind and body get tired. If you spend 30 minutes a day, you will be a reasonably proficient touch-typist in two weeks.
You will never regret it.

Writing with a fountain pen is different, and others on the FPN have noted that it helps them write.

And certainly, filling your pen from a bottle is much, much cheaper than using cartridges. I have calculated that if you buy a pack of quality cartridges, you are paying as much per ml of ink as you would for a good quality perfume. Buy ink by the bottle and use the savings to buy perfume for your girlfriend. Your pen will be happy, your girlfriend will be happy, and you will be happy.

Enjoy,
David

Welcome to FPN Matt. Now if we could get the rest of your junior class into fountain pens...

Jim

Congratulations on the good taste to select a Phileas. It was my starter pen and I recommend them highly for years of good service. They write like much more expensive pens, so you now have a feel for how things should be.

Congratulations on the AP exams. The pens do, indeed, have something to do with your score. They're reflections of your love of writing and knowledge. You're already ahead of your classmates. Many of us here have intriguing careers and lives that all began with things as simple as fountain pens and love of learning. You're ahead of your classmates and poised to begin a grand adventure. I predict you'll dive into college like a bird taking flight and absolutely SOAR.

I have to agree with learning to touch type properly. You'll find there are many famous authors who still use manual typewriters. You'll also find some famous authors here on the board who use fountain pens. We recently had a famous SciFi author join in order to ask a question about his beloved pen.

You've come to the write [belated pun alert] place. Welcome!

Hi and welcome, good to see you have started young. I'm old enough to remember that when I was your age lots of us still used fountain pens (I had a couple of CSs and a Parker slimfold), in fact a few years before that we still used dip pens (what a mess).

As you can't afford lots of expensive pens have you tried the Waterman Kultur, quite cheap and they seem to write well (my blue demo does anyway).

Andy

Matt,

My love of fountain pens started when I was ten, as well. My dad gave me his Esterbrook Model J.
I started my daughter with her first fountain pen last year when she was ten.

She 'borrowed' my Royal Portable manual typewriter a few months ago and isn't in any hurry to return it. I think she's on the right track.

Welcome to FPN!

Mike

Welcome to FPN.

Matt- welcome to FPN!!! There are a few other people here on FPN who are in the Jr High- High School age group. I like manual typewriters too,and Ihave a Olivetti Lettera 32, a Lettera 22,and Royal Quiet Deluxe.
Please make yourself at home, look around and participate- and you will be making a bunch of new friends.

Thanks to all of you from your warm welcome.

Today I bought a package of assorted steel-nibs and a new pen holder, along with some India ink. I think I've fallen in love with the ink. I wanted to see if it was truly waterproof, so I wrote a page with it, waited for it to dry, and submersed it in a sink filled with water. Not a word was altered. Now I'm going to try to invent an India-ink-friendly fountain pen and make millions (most likely not).

Welcome to FPN! I remember using India ink in art class with those steel nibs. It was really a lot of fun.
Try some Noodler's ink if you want a fountain pen friendly dark black waterproof ink.