Opinions on the Waterman Carene

[Meuge]

I have owned about 10 fountain pens so far... and Watermans have consistently been my favorite choices. I am currently considering the Waterman Carene as my next FP purchase, and I was wondering what the community consensus was on these pens.

[gylyf]

Hi, Meuge. I really like the Carène, both functionally and aesthetically. The nib is extemely smooth and as reliable as they come, though I've had one F that was a bit too dry. The shape is very ergonomic. There are a couple of things to keep in mind, however. First, it's a fairly heavy pen. Second, the nib is a nail. Third, it's a CC filler (which may or may not be a problem for you). If those three things don't bother you, then I say go for it. I'm sure other people will have other advantages and disadvantages. For what it's worth, I've been selling off most of my collection in order to get a couple of new pens, and my two Carènes are amongst the pens I kept. Hope this helps,

 

David

Edited November 14, 2006 by parrhesia

[RonB]

I have two, a fine and a medium and I agree with everything David said. The fine is a little on the dry side, but still nice. Similar to some Parker "51's. It is a very nice, substantial pen that is quite attractive, in my opinion.

 

Ron

[Ruaidhri]

Love mine (black/chrome). Lovely solid feel and writes impeccably (which is more than I do).

 

Regards,

Ruaidhrí

[Badger]

I have a Carene with a medium nib. My local pen shop let me try out lots of different pens, but this just seemed to 'fit' my hand. I like the heavier pen and the feel of the barrel, I have the amber marine. The nib is quite hard, with not much flex but it is also comfortable. You could have problems if you hold the pen too close to the nib, which I don't. I'm very pleased with the pen.

[Rique]

I´ve got one, and besides been well designed and well finished, this seems to be an almost indestructible pen - I´ve dropped it twice on hard floor (once on the kitchen tiles, the other time on the street asphalt), and it survived with just a microscopic nick in the lacquer. My only complaint is that the medium nib is rather too wide; it is half-way between a true medium and a broad. If I were to buy another one, I´d go for a fine nib.

[marklavar]

I have owned about 10 fountain pens so far... and Watermans have consistently been my favorite choices. I am currently considering the Waterman Carene as my next FP purchase, and I was wondering what the community consensus was on these pens.

Also consider the Exception. It's an excellent pen and a great writer.

[N. McKay]

The Carene was my first "good" fountain pen and I absolutely love it, for similar reasons to those above. I find the nib just slightly stiff, which may be a problem if you like a really flexible nib.

[tutelman]

I have the medium nib and can verify that the line is more toward the broad end of the medium scale. For its size, it is a heavy pen; lacquer on brass.

 

As for style, I'd suggest looking at the earlier Amber Shimmer and Sea Green versions. Their translucent lacquers give the pen a nice three-dimensional look that the metallics do not have.

[DWL]

The nib's a nail but generally very smooth. It's a heavy pen, brass base with a variety of finishes to choose from. It's a very good looking pen, great balance & is the quality you'd expect from Waterman.

[Stylo]

The Carene is one of those pens I have on my "possible buy list." The finishes I am interested in are the blue lacquer, the prussian blue, and the silver plate. So many pens, so little time ...

[tomw]

Hi,

 

I have been thinking of one of these as well. FP Hospital has the ones with silver colored caps on sale for $139 (M only) right now. Swisher also has the regular ones (body colored caps) for $169 but in a wide variety of nib sizes.

 

I'd like to know how the stubs write - does anyone have one?

 

Tom

[wspohn]

Given that you can pick one up for around $120, they are a bargain.

 

I was using my Prussian Blue Carene a lot until I got my Edson, which is similar but even more so.

[Maja]

I acquired a used Carene recently for very little money, primarily because there were some small nicks in the finish and the nib had been bent (damaged). The nicks don't bother me and with a little straightening, the nib works fine now. You just have to tap the pen gently on the paper to get the ink flowing after you uncap it. I'm not sure how an unbent nib would write, but the one I have now has some italic quality to it. I didn't grind the nib myself and it doesn't look like anyone worked on it...

Edited November 16, 2006 by Maja

[Will]

I got a silver capped one off ebay for £55 recently (rrp in uk about £125) - it's a great pen imho and has a great weight and solidity about it. I really enjoy using it to write with - very pleased I bought it.

[Glaedr]

I have a black sea gold trim carene and the nib on mine has quite a lot of give! It'n not a flex nib, but it definitely isn't a nail. There is some quite attractive line variation in writing.