What Color Konrad?

[msolok]

Hello, all. I'm new here, and to fountain pens. In fact, I've only been lurking for a few days. But this thread got my attention because the Konrad is inexpensive enough to give me something new to try. But I'm concerned about some of the reviews I've seen here and elsewhere. How difficult are these to get to work? I'm all for paying $20, and love the Irish Brigade look, but want something usable, not something to place in a drawer.

 

It all depends on your expectations. Out of the box most Konrads will work fine writing normally and with a bit of slow flexing. If you want more flexing, chances are you will need to adjust the position of the feed and nib (how far they come out of the Section) and it might be worth heat setting the feed. Some people find this too dry and mod the feed a bit more to give better/bigger flow, while others mod the nib to give bigger or easier flexing.

 

All up, if you are brand new to fountain pens I would put off buying a Noodlers pen for a little bit. There can be a bit of messing around to get things just how you want it, and this can be annoying for newbies. Also, if you aren't a fan of fiddling I would give the Noodler's pens a miss. They really are pens designed for fiddling with.

The MOST I have done with my Noodler's pens has been a thorough clean (including removing the nib and feed from the section to give a bit of a scrub with a soft toothbrush) and then making sure the Nib and Feed are correctly aligned and all mine write perfectly. Some people want more flex than I do though.

[TSherbs]

Well, I pulled the trigger on the Hawaiian Tortoise. It just kept rising to the top of every comparison I made. And I have been to Hawaii (twice), and that has a bit of pull with me....

[CAG_1787]

One may also note that the Goulets are now selling their own branded nibs, which will work with the Konrads. I have the Roaring 20's brown and fleur-de-lis blue, and generally prefer the brown.

[Bogon07]

And California Tortoise also draws my eye -- but maybe too much (it's awfully bright...).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

My California is generally darker than the Goulet photo, like the dark orange-red near the back end cap but all over. As Brian Goulet says they can vary a lot between pens.

[Quarzac]

I have an Irish Brigade Konrad. I really like it. I was also a fan of the narwhal, and when I decided to buy one, it was the one I looked for before finding out it was long gone. I picked up an Irish Brigade since I figured they're also going to sell out soon too. Considering picking up a 1.1 stub for it now.

[papabear16]

Hello, all. I'm new here, and to fountain pens. In fact, I've only been lurking for a few days. But this thread got my attention because the Konrad is inexpensive enough to give me something new to try. But I'm concerned about some of the reviews I've seen here and elsewhere. How difficult are these to get to work? I'm all for paying $20, and love the Irish Brigade look, but want something usable, not something to place in a drawer.

 

It all depends on your expectations. Out of the box most Konrads will work fine writing normally and with a bit of slow flexing. If you want more flexing, chances are you will need to adjust the position of the feed and nib (how far they come out of the Section) and it might be worth heat setting the feed. Some people find this too dry and mod the feed a bit more to give better/bigger flow, while others mod the nib to give bigger or easier flexing.

 

All up, if you are brand new to fountain pens I would put off buying a Noodlers pen for a little bit. There can be a bit of messing around to get things just how you want it, and this can be annoying for newbies. Also, if you aren't a fan of fiddling I would give the Noodler's pens a miss. They really are pens designed for fiddling with.

The MOST I have done with my Noodler's pens has been a thorough clean (including removing the nib and feed from the section to give a bit of a scrub with a soft toothbrush) and then making sure the Nib and Feed are correctly aligned and all mine write perfectly. Some people want more flex than I do though.

 

Thanks so much for the thoughtful reply. I just may pull the trigger, as it seems like a good way to learn how to fiddle with them, and if I can learn how to get a Konrad to align correctly, that will probably teach me something about working with better pens in the future.

 

One may also note that the Goulets are now selling their own branded nibs, which will work with the Konrads. I have the Roaring 20's brown and fleur-de-lis blue, and generally prefer the brown.

 

This intrigues me. Has anyone used them? The stub italics might be fun! And, again, this would be a good way to learn how to change nibs, which I understand isn't too hard.