Hi, I just recently acquired two cross towsend fountain pens and I feel like the ink cartridges are really small... I mean, it barely fills 1/4 of the pen barrel. Are there alternatives that hold more ink, it is such a waste of space and I would have to refill so much more.... Thanks!

This is one of those questions where it helps to know a little of the history.......

With most oversize fountain pens these days the cartridges are a waste of space. The cartridges were initially designed for placing one in use and a second in reserve in the barrel of a "standard sized pens." Two Cross cartridges appear fairly reasonable in the old Classic fountain pen or a Solo. Two international shorts appear similarily in a Pelikano. The Skrip and Parker cartirdges pretty much filled the barrel of the pens they were introduced with.

However, aren't there aftermarket ink cartridges that fill the whole space?? I would have thought by now there would be... thanks for the reply!

How about using converters? Although for Cross converters, the twist mechanism takes up half the space, and you have to carry a bottle of ink around... but no space is being "wasted" this way

No, it appears that there is no market to warant the capital investment cost.

The ink people don't make cartridges for Cross, Lamy or Sheaffer. (examples of proprietary cartridges) They do for the short international cartridge, but I think that is because so many European school children use them in various school pens.

In the A T Cross brand, two cartridges fit in the barrel of most pen models. Drop the spare cartridge small-end-first into the barrel. Yes, Cross's market share in fountain pens is too small for any competitor to become interested in selling aftermarket cartridges in that brand's shape.