Well, all, I've decided to delurk and introduce myself.

My name is Jaya. I'm a Ph.D. student in materials engineering. I've always found fountain pens so intriguing, and my husband was nice enough to buy me one as a Christmas gift. A lovely blue Parker Sonnet (fine, though in my book, it seems to write more like a medium than the fine I had hoped for)

It seems like there's a lot of really knowledgable people here, and I hope you don't mind me popping in.

Welcome aboard! Glad you popped in and hope you do so frequently. Great gift from your husband - congrats! See you around.

Hi Jaya,

Glad you decided to join us. It's a nice bunch here, and there's lots of help available when you have a question.

I have a couple of Parker Sonnets and I agree with you that the "fine" nib is a bit on the wide side. If you are looking for a really narrow "fine", than it seems that some of the Japanese brands, (Pilot/Namiki, Sailer) are going to run a bit narrower than your Parker.

TMann

Hi Jaya,

Welcome! Yep, the Sonnets are pretty wet writers (I've described my 100 as a firehose!) and therfore lay down a broader line than their rating would seem. All the Parkers I own are this way, save two that are no longer in production; The Ellipse and the Falcon 50.

Parker has a nib swapping service, so you can always send it to them and ask for an XF, or just order an XF nib assembly outright. (That way, you can switch back if it turns out not to your liking.)

-Bruce

Hi Jaya, welcome!

I have several Sonnets and the fine nibs are pretty close to a medium. The one I use most is a stainless model with gold trim and a fine nib. When I want finer line, I use the pen with the nib upside down. Mine is still quite smooth and the line is more like an extra fine. Works great for margin notes and the like.

There are a lot of good people here, help is usually just a post away. Enjoy!

Larry

Thanks everyone for the tips. I'm going to try and call Parker on Monday to figure out if I can swap out the nib, or just order a separate one.

Right now, I'm reading all kinds of posts. I guess I never thought about how many different types of ink there are. My dad always used black or blue, so it was sensory overload to find out about all these different shades!

I think it's part of the husband's plan though. He told me I was more than welcome to order more bottles of ink, as long as I'd let him add a couple in.

Welcome!

I don't know much that much about Sonnets, but I think they are beautiful pens.

welcome to the board!!!

The Parker Sonnets are niiiice pens [my screename aside]. I'd like to get a red or blue one next but my current one is black with silver trim. The medium nib is closer to broad, though. If you do switch to an extra fine nib, let me know how it turns out. Enjoy your new pen!!!

Hi Jaya and welcome to FPN!

Oh, by the way...does your name rhyme with Maya (as in the Mayan culture) or May-a (as in the month of May)? My name is pronounced like the former, so I was wondering about yours...

Lovely website you have! I love the monochrome photos..... Perhaps you can snap a shot or two of your Sonnet? That was really sweet of your husband to buy you a pen....What a nice start to a new hobby!

It's like the month of May. so it would be May-ah (or in this case, Jay-ah)

Thanks for the compliments on the photos. It's been ages since I took any, as school keeps me so busy. One of these days, I will get around to shooting some black and white film (about the same time I find to come visit)

Your husband has excellent taste.

Hi,

Welcome!!

Dillon