I stopped by The Paper Zone, one of our local paper specialty shops yesterday, and picked up a few samples of some different papers to try out.

The two papers I tested were Conqueror 70# Text, and Conqueror sub 26.6# Writing.

The Conqueror range of papers (www.conqueror.com) appears to be a primarily available in the UK, and is a division of ArjoWiggins Fine Papers.

I had never heard of it before discovering it serendipitously at the Paper Zone.

Alas, Paper Zone does not seem to list the Conqueror paper on their web site.

I apologize in advance for the lack of scans. No scanner.

The inks I tested were:

Noodler's X-Feather in a Pilot VP F
Aurora Black in a Visconti Pericle with a Mottishaw'd EF Bock Nib
Noodler's Kiowa Pecan in a Pilot VP F
Noodler's Zhivago in a Lamy Safari M
Noodler's El Lawrence in a Lamy Al-Star F

Results:

The Conqueror 26.6# Writing and the Conquerer 70# Text were both amazing.

The 26.6# Writing had almost NO Feathering with the X-Feather, Aurora Black, or the Kiowa Pecan, and very slight feather with the Zhivago and El Lawrence. There was no bleed through with any of these inks, and the paper is smooth.

The 70# Text, however, was flawless. This paper is as good as the HP Premium Choice 32# Laserjet that, for me, is the gold standard for FP friendly paper. This paper had NO feathering with any of my test inks, NO bleed through, and the pen glided over the paper effortlessly.

The bad news is the price.

At my local Staples and Office Depot, HP Premium Choice goes for around $17.00 for a ream of 500.

At Paper Zone, a ream of 500 sheets of the Conquerer 70# is $26.99.

Is Conquerer better than the HP? No. Not really. According to the Print Industry Newsleter 28# Laser or Bond is about equivalent to a 70# text, so the HP 32# Paper would be about the thickness of an 80# Text, ergo the HP is actually a tad thickler, but if you were to hand me a piece of the 70# Conquerer and a piece of the 32# HP, I probably would not be able to tell them apart based on th thickness of an individual sheet. They are really close, and the brightness of both pages are very close as well.

It is certainly not worth paying a 40% premium for a nearly functionally identical product.

If, for some reason, HP Premium Choice suddenly became unavailable, I would stock up on the Conqueror.

But, to me, there is no significant difference in thickness, smoothness, or performance that would sway me toward or away from either produce, so, a bug thumbs up for the Conqueror, but for now I'll stick with the HP.

This sounds like an interesting paper -- you have no scanner you say.

How about a digital camera? Can you take a picture and post that?

Yes, Conqueror paper is a common brand in the UK. I had a job about 15 years ago where I had to sign letters which were printed on this stuff - light blue vellum (if you can imagine such a thing). With my dry-writing Sheaffer Fashion pen it felt like writing on corrugated cardboard though. Probably nicer with a wetter pen.

Yes Conqueror is lovely, but expensive paper...I might get some when I am there next.

Any advice on good suppliers, please?

Available here and the range is a popular letterhead stock. There is a range of finishes and the one I have tried was a very ordinary writing sheet. Rough finish not liked by the pens I tried.

Roger, Conqueror is a brand, widely available online and at big retailers and even malls (El Corte Inglés). Is very nice paper.

http://www.twenga.es/dir-Suministros,Consu...correspondencia
http://www.areapc.com/papel_y_etiquetas_co...652-----lc.html
Made in Spain brands that I suggest you to try:

Miquel Rius: sold under other name brands also, like Kukumutxu, Agata Ruiz de la Prada, etc.
Galgo verjurado crema/White : Embossed textured, super nice quality.
PIONEER : Number 3 is best. I think this is non national made. But not sure.
NAVIGATOR : The softest. Try this.
UNIPAPEL : Decent quality, very easily available, decent quality.
HIPERCOR : This is a non brand super good paper. And cheap!.
NIARA . Soft but too thin for my taste.
CONQUEROR : The best for my taste, but several finishings change the results with FPn's:
Efecto metalico bronce : Only for party invitations...what a color....
Efecto metalico perla : For special letters only
Contour marfil o blanco brillante : very rought
Texture verjurado marfil o blanco brillante : Textured.
Satin ultra liso : The best, white or cream.
Is made either at the UK or France.

Enri: also decent quality at a good price.
Oxford. made in France, I suspect is Clairefontaine/Rhodia. For sale at Carrefour. From 2 to 8 euros.

Edited to add that Pioneer is a product of Portucel, a Portuguese-Spanish joint venture and is made in Portugal.