Noodler's Charlie, Love Or Hate It? What Do You Do With It?

[DavidtheGnome]

I have a Charlie I'm not really a fan of it due to burping issues and I have no desire to try and heat set it. If someone has a lamy or similar pen I'd be willing to trade a Charlie + a metropolitan or. Sheaffer student

[KellyMcJ]

I received one of these pens today...I had no expectations, and I was not disappointed. *lol*

 

First I inked it, nothing came out. So I put the cap on and let it sit nib down for a few minutes while I inked my other new pen. Came back to it, the cap was full of ink. Blotted the ink off the nib and feed, it just keeps gushing. Pushed the nib/ feed in as far as I could, still gushing. I'm covered in ink at this point. I gave up. It's now I pieces on my kitchen table and I haven't decided if I'm going t try to make it work or not.

 

The nib does write amazingly smooth though. That WAS a surprise.

[antichresis]

I have a Nikita and two Charlies. The Nikita I am not a fan of. It's the most burp-resistant eyedropper I have but I'm just not a fan of how it writes. Feels flimsy too. It's a free pen, I know, but the Carlie feels way better built. Great nib—a very smooth nail—and I have no problems of it leaking except the unavoidable burping when it is running out of ink.

[grilledcheese]

I got the freebie one as well and was very excited to tinker. Never was able to get it to stop burping, and a pen I have to refill in the middle of each sentence is of no use to me, so I gave it away (to somebody who never acknowledged receiving the package, rude).

[KellyMcJ]

So I gave Charlie another shot. I heat set the nib. It seemed to be working well. I was impressed. Then it was too dry. Then I was unimpressed. Then it was flowing better than before. I was impressed. Then I had to blot the nib every five minutes. Then I was unimpressed again.

 

Verdict: Overall Unimpressed. It might be made to work, but I have several other good pens within an arm's reach so I don't know why I should bother.

 

http://i1374.photobucket.com/albums/ag402/klmcjilton/Mobile%20Uploads/20170520_175912_zpsfsejqmxo.jpg

 

http://i1374.photobucket.com/albums/ag402/klmcjilton/Mobile%20Uploads/20170520_175846_zpsdjq6ohoh.jpg

[Tas]

So I gave Charlie another shot. I heat set the nib. It seemed to be working well. I was impressed. Then it was too dry. Then I was unimpressed. Then it was flowing better than before. I was impressed. Then I had to blot the nib every five minutes. Then I was unimpressed again.

 

Verdict: Overall Unimpressed. It might be made to work, but I have several other good pens within an arm's reach so I don't know why I should bother.

 

 

http://i1374.photobucket.com/albums/ag402/klmcjilton/Mobile%20Uploads/20170520_175846_zpsdjq6ohoh.jpg

 

 

Noodler's pens (and inks) . . . some you win, some you lose.

 

When you lose it's no biggy ££. When you win though, oh boy, there is something really special about them.

 

At least we got to see your gorgeous sketch !

[chalkdust]

My Charlie came with X-Feather. I cleaned the nib and feed with a brush and soapy water (and rinse well and dry). The first time I placed the feed and nib, the pen burped a lot. So I tried heat setting with hot water. My inexperienced guess at nib/feed placement and heat setting worked beautifully. My Charlie with X-Feather is extremely well behaved and useful for fine line writing.

[ColdDeadHand]

...the Charlie burps and drips and I think is just too small to be a good eyedropper pen, unless you keep it clear full all the time once the warmth of you hand heats up any little bit of air in the barrel...I keep hoping it's operator error not a pen error.

 

 

I can almost guarantee it's operator error.

You don't just pick up an eyedropper pen and start writing, unless it's a really special one.

The simple, old-school type of eyedropper pen like the Charlie, you have to keep it in your pocket, close to your body with the tip up. Clip it inside a shirt collar, or inside a pen case in your pants pocket. That way your hand will not heat it up, it will already be the temperature of your body. And as any other eyedropper pen, don't let the level go below 1/2 if you can help it. 1/3 full you should consider empty.

[Moonshae]

I have my first on the way as it was unavoidable during a purchase of a bottle of ink. Frankly, I'd rather save 50 cents on the product I am buying than get an eyedropper for free, because I have two of them (eyedroppers) and absolutely hate them. I want to pick up a pen and write, not have to worry about warming the air in the barrel first, burping, blotting, etc. The high capacity is unnecessary as I don't write enough; pens that use a short cartridge last weeks, and if the ED is half full and burping and blotting, there's no point in high capacity. When the Charlie comes with my bottle it's going straight in the garbage like any other junk sent in a package.

 

I don't understand the point of these bundles at all. People buying the ink likely already have a fountain pen, and bundling a cheap eyedropper isn't likely to increase sales except that more ink will be wasted and a new bottle will be needed sooner.

[FPRebel]

When the Charlie comes with my bottle it's going straight in the garbage like any other junk sent in a package.

 

I don't understand the point of these bundles at all. People buying the ink likely already have a fountain pen, and bundling a cheap eyedropper isn't likely to increase sales except that more ink will be wasted and a new bottle will be needed sooner.

Please don't garbage it!!! Send it to me, PLEASE?? C.O.D. or I'll reimburse via PayPal, or with ink samples, etc. I love Charlies and have great fun with the two I own.

[KellyMcJ]

I fit the Charlie nib into a pen with a non -working (bleep) nib and now it is great. Yay! Free nib!

[MercianScribe]

Please don't garbage it!!! Send it to me, PLEASE?? C.O.D. or I'll reimburse via PayPal, or with ink samples, etc. I love Charlies and have great fun with the two I own.

I would definitely ditto this, except I live in Japan, so the shipping would probably render it pointless... but sure, don't waste the things, you're on FPN for goodness sake!

[Honeybadgers]

I have 7 noodlers pens (1 konrad, 1 ahab, 2 charlie, 2 creapers, and a neponset) and none of them have this "hit or miss" attitude that people say. They have needed tuning to set the feed the proper distance and heat set, of course, but they ALL write just fine.

 

At this point, I simply don't buy this widespread "IT DUN WORK" attitude. I think people are simply not doing something right. For the same reason I now know the "lamy sweet spot" was hugely overblown.

 

My charlies NEVER burp until about 1/4 ink level. I keep one with a standard nib and usually empty, and the other has a knox oblique double broad and usually has baystate blue. The cap fits well enough that it doesn't dry out and I can leave it for a few weeks and it'll write immediately.

 

I trust my charlies so much that I use them in a uniform breastpocket without issue.

 

I adore the Charlie. It's simple. it's honest. it performs brilliantly. it's comfortable, and it's easy to modify. It's got all the things I appreciate in a car.

 

If anyone ever wants me to make their charlie write properly, i'll do it for free. just send me the pen and gimme $4 to mail it back.

Edited June 13, 2017 by Honeybadgers

[Honeybadgers]

I have my first on the way as it was unavoidable during a purchase of a bottle of ink. Frankly, I'd rather save 50 cents on the product I am buying than get an eyedropper for free, because I have two of them (eyedroppers) and absolutely hate them. I want to pick up a pen and write, not have to worry about warming the air in the barrel first, burping, blotting, etc. The high capacity is unnecessary as I don't write enough; pens that use a short cartridge last weeks, and if the ED is half full and burping and blotting, there's no point in high capacity. When the Charlie comes with my bottle it's going straight in the garbage like any other junk sent in a package.

 

I don't understand the point of these bundles at all. People buying the ink likely already have a fountain pen, and bundling a cheap eyedropper isn't likely to increase sales except that more ink will be wasted and a new bottle will be needed sooner.

 

The reason it's included is one of Nathan Tardiff's little quirks. After the paris terrorist attacks, Nathan began including the charlie as a political statement as an act of defiance towards extremists who would limit freedom of expression. The fact that the pen has a story and a message is one of the reasons I'm so attached to it. I'd take my charlie over my homo sapiens any day.

 

Edited June 13, 2017 by Honeybadgers

[MercianScribe]

I'm with you, Léof Honeybadgers.

 

Btw, do they still do Charlies? I really like mine, and would like another one or two, notably one to send to my brother, who is a non-FPer but a writer, and whose name is... Charlie.

[Honeybadgers]

They do. I can't promise that an amazon seller won't have some of the older unmarked preppy eyedroppers in an ancient stock, but from Goulet, you always get a charlie.

 

Personally, I highly recommend a charlie bottle of baystate blue. Sure, that bottle is big enough for a lifetime supply if you're only using it in the charlie, but it's just such a glorious ink.

 

I wish Nathan still did his humongous special order 1/4, 1/2, and 1 gallon bottles. I'd have a gallon of dark matter on my desk right now.

[chalkdust]

As of three weeks ago the Charlie Pen accompanied my 4.5 oz bottle of X-Feather from Goulet. Charlie has become my main writing pen, partly because I am curious about its behavior as the ink level drops. Yesterday, at slightly under 1/2 full, Charlie gave its first burp. It was no big deal. I noticed it was writing wetter, so I looked and saw more-than-usual ink at the nib. I paused and dabbed the nib with absorbent paper and then continued with no problem.

 

Charlie's relatively fine nib combined with X-Feather make this pen useful on many papers that would otherwise be candidates for writing. I am amazed. But remember, I am inexperienced, so my amazement may be under-warranted.

[MercianScribe]

Cheers both!

[Honeybadgers]

As of three weeks ago the Charlie Pen accompanied my 4.5 oz bottle of X-Feather from Goulet. Charlie has become my main writing pen, partly because I am curious about its behavior as the ink level drops. Yesterday, at slightly under 1/2 full, Charlie gave its first burp. It was no big deal. I noticed it was writing wetter, so I looked and saw more-than-usual ink at the nib. I paused and dabbed the nib with absorbent paper and then continued with no problem.

 

Charlie's relatively fine nib combined with X-Feather make this pen useful on many papers that would otherwise be candidates for writing. I am amazed. But remember, I am inexperienced, so my amazement may be under-warranted.

 

 

Try setting the feed a little deeper in the body, it shouldn't burp until about 1/3 or 1/4 when you set it correctly.

[ColdDeadHand]

...I want to pick up a pen and write, not have to worry about warming the air in the barrel first, burping, blotting, etc.

On a Charlie, it's not that hard. If you keep it in your shirt pocket, shirt collar, or front pants pocket, it will already be warm enough to go.

If you pick it up fresh off your desk, you can grab the thing, smother it with your hand for AT MOST a ten count, and then go. If you pause to think between sentences, rest the pen with the tip up for that moment to get the air out.

 

I get it. Lots of folks hate them, they're not the most convenient...but I hear that about fountain pens in general all the time.

Please let me know if you want to get rid of them, I'm glad to pay first class shipping on any eyedropper pens you'd like to send my way.