My sister is becoming curious about fountain pens. So I'm thinking of trying to find one suited to her tastes, for a reasonable price. But her states and writing style are a little far from mine.

First off, she's a lefty. That's fine, except the way she holds a pen is nearly vertical. It seems that holding a pen at such a high angle as she does causes it to become very scratchy. She has tried adjusting her grip several times over the years, and holding a pen at a lower angle has never been comfortable to her.

As for pen size, she doesn't like thin pens, like the cheap-o 10 for $2 (or whatever they are now -- and it's only used for size comparison) ballpoints. She does, however, like the thicker barrels of some of the more popular brands of disposable roller ball pens -- I think she's currently using a Pentel. The section on a Lamy Safari is about the size she likes, if not a little too wide, and she like a round pen in stead of

Are there any suggestions for a good introduction pen for her?

Hi Eastree,

I am right-handed, and I hold my pen just like your sis does (the way they taught me in school, decades ago). Don't worry, she won't kill a pen.

Maybe she could try:
Lamy
Parker Vector
Waterman Phileas
Cross ATX
Sheaffer Prelude
Sheaffer Agio

Other people will chime in soon, I am sure.

diane

I'm a leftie as is my best friend (who i've hooked of fp's). Don't worry too much about that angle. You could get her a pelikano or a pelikano junior. Smooth writers, easy on the wallet and no one cries if they break (excelent repair police from chartpak). The juniors have some girth.
I don't have one, but everyone loves the phileas.

If you're after a nice-looking but inexpensive pen, the Vector Stainless steel ("flighter") works every time. They're virtually indestructible, and they look great - and best of all, they have a huge writing ball which can write at almost any angle.

If you're after Vintage, I've also just been experimenting with my Esterbrook J's 2668 nib. I can write at any angle from about 30 degrees right the way over to about 120 degrees - vertical or even significantly over. These pens go for less than $20, and if the nibs break they can be screwed out and replaced in 20 seconds without even flushing it through.

(Aside: Didn't you start the great free Phileas thread a while ago? That was a really fun idea )

I too am a lefty. The angle I hold the pen is almost vertical as well. I would suggest the Lamy Safari as a good pen, with a fine nib, but if your sister wants something more rounded, perhaps a Lamy Studio in stainless steel, which is around $49.00-56.00. Though Pelikan Junior writes incredibly smooth and is an awesome pen for a lefty, I would suggest a regular Pelikano as it has a clip that wont have it fall out of her pocket as the Junior is prone to do, which can crack it's plastic cap. You can get a Pelikano for around $15-16. An Esterbrook J is a fun alternative and is very lefty friendly, you can get one in working condition from $15-40, depending on where you buy and pure luck. A 9xxx nib is a great starter nib for this pen. I have also found 3xxx series pens to be good as well, but they are a bit more expensive and rare. I imagine a 2xxx would be good too. 1xxx would do fine, but may be scratchy.

How about one of those Waterman Phileas sets with the converter and cartridges and book? I told a friend about them who was interested in FP's and that's the one she's going to get. I've never used one but I hear they are pretty good.

Perhaps I should have mentioned that the Phileas just doesn't appeal to her so much.

I'll look over the suggestions, and see what all I can find out about them. Thanks much!

A Parker Vector is not exactly a thick pen, definitely less thick than a Safari. But both are good pens, don't get me wrong. Maybe a Pilot Prera (cool flashy girly colours, not expensive, but I don't know about the diameter...)

Don't know about the lefty issue but the Levenger True Writer has a nice girth and now is available in a range of colors/materials. Some of our southpaw TW owners might want to weigh in on the left writing thing...

As a "northpaw" I tend to hold my pens nearly vertical or maybe at 75-90 degree range. TW pens (F/M/B nibs) always seem to do fine, whether cart or convertor fed..