Don't know what it is about this colour, but I just love single-tone slate gray pens!

These four are the ones I've acquired thus far. Can you guess what they are?



What about now?

Okay, here they are in their full-size glory:



Left to right:
. Omas Paragon Milord Old Style in "Gray"
. Pilot Prera in "Slate Gray"
. Pilot Vanishing Point in "Slate Gray"
. Parker 51 Vacumatic in "Navy Gray"



The nice thing about slate gray, is that it allows for rich variation in tone. The Parker 51 has a
greenish tint; the Pilot Prera leans towards powder blue; the VP almost looks like a dusky lilac
in some light; and the Paragon is a neutral mix.



Interestingly, even though the Prera and the Vanishing Point are both made by Pilot and both
colours are called "Slate Gray", as you can see, they are considerably different from one another.
The VP is a great deal darker, and even the tone is not the same.

The one other pen I know of that needs to be in this collection, is the Admiral (?) Gray Esterbrook.
If I am not mistaken, this colour is different from the regular gray Esterbrook. It is occasionally
offered for sale, but I always seem to miss it!

So does everybody else find pens in this colour horribly boring? Am I the only one who shuns
multi-coloured swirls in favour of plain, crisp slate?

Hope you enjoyed the photos,
QM2

Lovely pictures of lovely pens. Personally, I enjoy the muted tones and silver hardware, but I rate pens on how they write first, with looks a ways down the list.
Plus, neutral-colored pens don't mind being filled with any color ink, so if that's your thing, you needn't feel limited. I break that rule pretty often, but it does bother me slightly - OCD anyone?

I'd say that the pen's aesthetic appeal and how it writes share the number one spot on my list. Both of these are pre-requisites to getting a pen: If it does not write well, I will not get it no matter how it looks; if it does not look good, I will not get it no matter how well it writes.

I agree about the ink -- any colour goes with gray pens... Of course, I did feel compelled to make the perfect slate mix out of Noodler's Legal Lapis and Lexington Gray to match : )

Great picture, QM2! I like grey color, and I've the same Pilots in my collection, but my Milord is in black. Want to show my P51 vacumatic that I assume it's in Dove grey:



Thank you for sharing.

Thanks : ) Yup, yours is the Dove Gray (looks nice on the red bow!)

Here are the two colours side by side


...and a whole thread arguing about the manufacturing differences : )
http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=68372

Nice collection of pens there QM2. I do like grey pens and think that they often have an understated elegance.

At the moment I am trying to convince myself that I really shouldn't buy one of the new gunmetal grey VPs that Richard Binder has just put on his site - I am losing the battle though and my credit card may be about to take a hit!

I know what you mean. I have the slate and my husband has the chrome, so obviously the gunmetal is just begging to join them. But I really don't need another Pilot VP, must remember that!

that prea almost looks iridescent or at least has some depth! great pics

Yes, the gray on the Prera is very soft and deep; really nice. In general, the slate gray and also the ivory Pilot Preras look unbelievably classy. For $35 per pen, this is probably the nicest looking inexpensive pen from a top manufacturer that you can buy today.

Ahh!!! There is so much gray! What happened to the good ol' days when everything was in black n' white. So bad pun aside... I really like the gray Prera, but the "51" could pass as a very light teal in the right light.

Hehe, the black and white is alive and well right here:
http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=77477

: )

Love them, especially the Omas. They're not available any more, right?

I have and enjoy the grey Pilot Decimo, which is currently filled with Omas silver-grey ink. Lovely!

Very nice. The house I grew up in was Charcoal Gray. Somewhat the color of your VP there. I need more gray pens. Heck. My car is gray.

Gray car -- me too : )



PS: The Pilot VP on the photos is actually a different pen than the gunmetal/charcoal gray VP. They have three grays: slate, charcoal/gunmetal and chrome!

I love grey pens. My VP is the slate grey also - I think it's one of their nicest regular colors. I have 51s in grey and several 45s and an Estie transitional J.

Now I need to get a grey ink.

The old style Omas Paragon has been discontinued, but you can probably still find a few available, even in gray. There is one on sale now new on ebay, from prahaBLEU (who is a reputable seller).

If you're considering this pen, take a look at my review
http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...showtopic=78050

Thank you very much for that information - not sure how I missed your useful review.

great pens