Hello,

I would like to use a fountain pen in my car. Will heat do any harm to the ink or the pen in the car? Has anyone had any problem in using fountain pen in a car?

Thanks for your time,

I keep a Pilot Varsity in my car for filling out my logs. No problems yet.

I do it all the time. No problems. I even carry one with a MiquelRius notebook in the car all the time.

I would keep it off the dash.

Put it in the glove box, and out of the sun....or in your center console.

I have 2 that I keep in my coat pocket, why is this simmular to the car? I work over 3 ovens and stove top where the temp is always about 120deg. So far I have not seen any issues arise. At first I worried that the air in the chamber would expand enough to push out the ink in the feed. So far not enough has pushed out to worry about. In my VP it looks like a tab more nib creap that usual.

I keep one within easy reach on the dash - wedged between a can of beer and my Smith & Wesson.

Having just read your post about the the RNC coming to town in another thread, I just about split a gusset laughing.

Back home in England not an issue, however here in Phoenix it's a different story.
I have seen a Lamy warp/bend and dump its contents. A friend recounted the story of a split P51 shroud after a day in his car glove box.
Interior temps can hit 160 deg F and above, the heat is brutal on dash boards and other trim. Trunk temps are high enough to soften High shear Epoxy on golf clubs to the point where heads can come off during use.

I keep my Pelikans with me out of the car for peace of mind.

Kind regards

Stubnut

Dang nab it! I thought I was the only one who did this.

It's perfectly safe to use a fountain pen in the car (if you can contend with all the jolting!), just remember NOT to put your pen on the car's dashboard (or anyplace where it might be exposed to strong sunlight). When not using it, put it into your pocket or into the glove-compartment of your car.

Hmmm.... what about keeping a Pilot Varsity in the car during cold weather? Surely freezing is an issue?

Well, where do you live and what season is it?

I've never left a pen in the car during winter long enough for it to freeze, but in the depths of an Alberta winter, even half an hour or so is enough to chill the pen so that when you bring it back to room temperature, there is considerable ink explosion.

Or, did you mean writing with an FP while the car is moving (presumably with someone else driving)?. I wouldn't do that. I'd be afraid that a jog or swerve would bump/bend the nib, or worse, cause me to impale my own leg.

I do not have a car, but I want to say this: If temperature around your car ever goes below zero degrees centigrade during year and you want to keep some fountain pens in that car, you’d better have those fountain pens filled up with Noodler’s Ink Polar Black or Polar Blue.

Living in a place of extreme temperatures, I'd say as long as you feel capable of using your pen in the car, it's safe. If it's so hot your brain won't function properly, you probably shouldn't use the pen. Likewise, if it's so cold that you lose your sense of touch, you'd best not do it. I'd not leave a pen in the car as a permanent fixture, any more than I'd leave a pet.

edited out overly-twee wording.

Yeah, where I live the ink would occasionally freeze. I'd never even thought of a polar ink option! I think I'll keep the nasty car pen -- I admit it -- a ballpoint.

Pick a fountain pen that has a strongly airtight seal. No problems with a Lamy Safari in the glove compartment of my car in the summer in Pasadena, CA (not as hot as Phoenix, AZ). Safaris and Al-Stars have some of the most airtight seals of all current-production fountain pens.

Take the Phoenix warning seriously if your climate is that hot in the summer.

That said, I keep a black ballpoint and two Sanford Uni-Ball rollerball pens (fraud-resistant pigmented inks, black and blue) in my glove compartment because they are reliable and able to press through multi-layer forms.

I had an Esterbrook SJ with a 9561 manifold nib that worked great on multi-layer forms, but it was too wet for my needs, and jostling it around deposited lots of ink inside the cap. I gave it to my girlfriend, who loves using it at home.

I would not keep any type of pen in the car through a central New York winter. I've had roller ball and even ball-point pens go ka-blooey. What a mess, especially if you don't discover it until spring...

Wax-based (not chalk, not watercolor, and not erasable) colored pencils leave marks or writing that are difficult to remove without any trace