Stealth Varuna Appears Suddenly

[ethernautrix]

Steve, luckygrandson, surprised me with this Varuna fountain pen which can be used as an eye-dropper or with a converter and has an amazingly smooth and fabulous fine steel nib. WOW.

 

It's a flat-top (my favorite design) that's just a smidgen longer than my Danitrio Komori and a bit thinner that looks heavier than it is. It's actually very comfortable to hold... and have I mentioned the amazingly smooth nib? Wow does it lay down the line I love! Crazy. It's the kind of smooth, thin, cursive (?) italic fine that I was trying to file my P51 Special's nib into... but went a little too far and now have a semi-cursive italic extra-fine (that I love! I love it! I overshot a bit, okay, but it's all good. I don't have a little pen workshop, ya know. And I still don't have a loupe. What I have is a four-sided nail buffer... and IT WORKS!), so I'm kindv chuckling to myself that here, from out of the blue, I have this handsome black-and-green swirly ebonite Varuna with the perfect nib (*laughs*) -- I mean, talk about no effort!

 

Steve even included a small bottle of his own green ink mix. Gosh.

 

Friend at work is looking over the pen with a glint in her eyes. And she really, really likes the green ink. (This friend doesn't bother buying ink, she jokes, cos whenever I get ink, she fills her pens with whatever has arrived. This week it was J. Herbin Poussiere de Lune (which she loves!) and Montblanc Racing Green (although she filled that from the stash I gave her a month ago). I will cave and give her the Varuna Green (because, Steve, she really, really likes it!)). She really, really likes the pen, too, and the nib. We'd been talking about nibs with this line, about how I was startled to realize that this is my line preference, and that conversation (along with trying out my Sheaffer's Tucky and Pelikan M215 with JMKeuning's Monster Nib) got her interest in these nibs piqued, too.

 

I used to insist on fine round points, but now I'm greedy for a bit of italic. I embrace change, yes, change is the nature of life, yes, yes, but I have preferred fine round nibs for more than twenty years; it's been one of the very few voluntary constants in my life! And now... italic? WHO AM I?! *Shakes fist at FPN. Laughs.*

 

Steve, thank you so much for your kindness and thoughtfulness. This is reminiscent of when rroossinck sent me the P51 (mentioned above) from out of nowhere last year. I will do my utmost to prevent a Varuna Saga!

 

By the way, I love that this Varuna smells like my Edison Pearl -- EBONITE!

 

 

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2465/3682784690_ceb44fc945.jpg

 

 

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2550/3682784742_6968f1d477.jpg

Edited July 2, 2009 by ethernautrix

[Wolverine1]

Lisa- there are wonderful people on this board, arent there?

 

BTW, your handwriting is really beautiful ,I wish I could write like that. I attended Catholic School, and still cant write that well.

[ethernautrix]

Lisa- there are wonderful people on this board, arent there?

 

This bears repeating. This is true. Period.

 

*Grins*

 

 

BTW, your handwriting is really beautiful ,I wish I could write like that. I attended Catholic School, and still cant write that well.

 

Thank you, Wolverine1. Maybe smacking hands with a ruler wasn't effective for encouarging nice handwriting. But what do I know? I didn't go to parochial schools. Saaaay... You could try a Varuna with a fine steel nib...! Couldn't hurt!

 

 

(Not at all like being smacked on the hand with a ruler. A Varuna with a fine steel nib is like the opposite of that!)

[Brian]

Nice review and color choice (pen and ink). I like your handwriting. A kind of casual but practiced cursive italic.

[rwilsonedn]

Wonderful enthusiasm! And a wonderful pen to be enthusiastic about, imho.

ron

[jmkeuning]

These pens are at the top of my list. You can do anything with them. Versatile, bomb-proof, good looking, and ebonite.

 

I am going to put mine back in the rotation tonight.

[D.C. in PA]

I feel a bit out of the loop.

And I do not mean to hijack this thread, but I've not heard of Varuna pens previously.

Would anyone be willing to enlighten me? New or vintage (looks contemporary in vintage style), who makes them, any location to learn about them?

In any case, it's a beautiful pen, and the gesture is truly kind.

D.C.

[ZeissIkon]

I feel a bit out of the loop.

And I do not mean to hijack this thread, but I've not heard of Varuna pens previously.

Would anyone be willing to enlighten me? New or vintage (looks contemporary in vintage style), who makes them, any location to learn about them?

In any case, it's a beautiful pen, and the gesture is truly kind.

D.C.

 

Current manufacture, they're made in India and sold in the United States by AllWriteNow.

[Wolverine1]

It is named after "Varuna" , the God of the Seas and Oceans, from ancient Hindu Mythology.

 

About the Hindu God Varuna

[Silvermink]

Now I want to get one of the bakul Varuna Vishals even more. Probably will sometime soon.

[D.C. in PA]

I feel a bit out of the loop.

And I do not mean to hijack this thread, but I've not heard of Varuna pens previously.

Would anyone be willing to enlighten me? New or vintage (looks contemporary in vintage style), who makes them, any location to learn about them?

In any case, it's a beautiful pen, and the gesture is truly kind.

D.C.

 

Current manufacture, they're made in India and sold in the United States by AllWriteNow.

 

Thanks, ZeissIkon.

Very interesting and attractive pens, particularly for the price.

D.C.

 

[ZeissIkon]

Very interesting and attractive pens, particularly for the price.

 

Indeed they are. To my eye, India and China are going different directions in pen manufacture; China's made fountain pens into a mass production, mass market operation, applying 21st century manufacturing techniques to produce pens that write as well as the run of 1950s units for ridiculously low prices, while India appears to be running more in the direction of handmade pens, semi-custom work, and still producing them at prices that would look right in a 1970s print ad in this country. I've got a couple Chinese pens and will likely have more before long; I've got one Pakistani pen (which, interestingly, doesn't really resemble either Chinese or Indian offerings) and will likely acquire a Wality and/or Varuna of some kind in the foreseeable future. Good pens for not much money warms the cockles of my underpaid little heart...

[maria322]

Really beautiful pens for the price!

 

BTW - where do you find the silicon grease for the ED's? How much does it run?

[godan]

Really beautiful pens for the price!

 

BTW - where do you find the silicon grease for the ED's? How much does it run?

 

I found the silicon grease for about $4 in the plumbing supply section of my local Ace hardware. I agree with others that Steve is honest, ethical and reliable - a fine dealer.

[rwilsonedn]

Really beautiful pens for the price!

 

BTW - where do you find the silicon grease for the ED's? How much does it run?

 

I found the silicon grease for about $4 in the plumbing supply section of my local Ace hardware. I agree with others that Steve is honest, ethical and reliable - a fine dealer.

+1 on both counts. A little tub of silicon grease at ACE is only a few dollars, and will last ages. Just be sure you are getting pure silicon grease, without additives. And very definitely +1 on Steve at allwritenow.

ron