Number One Priority

[Blue_Moon]

When looking at characteristics of a fountain pen, what is your number one priority? Is it aesthetics, reliability, ink capacity, smooth nib, no hard starts or skips, able to be tossed around and beaten up and still writes, or what? For me it's the smooth nib. I hate a scratchy nib. This would be followed closely by no hard starts or skips. However, the smooth nib takes first priority. I test a pen by writing in all directions, and can't tolerate any scratchiness. I think there's a difference between feedback and scratchiness. Some people want to feel the pen on the paper. I like very little, if any, feedback. So what's the number one priority you look for in a pen?

[jar]

No number one priority other than it should not be something I find butt fugly, rather the sum of all the characteristics is what I consider.

[senzen]

1. Reliability, including no bad starts and continuous flow.

2. Aesthetics, including letting me see the ink.

3. Ergonomics.

4. Price. While I've purchased a $250 pen (marked down) I'd rather have sub $50 pens, nice ink and nice paper; so buying a pen is only part of this bigger equation.

5. Easy to clean.

6. Good quality. I got a Kaweco Sport as a gift, the gold came off the nib the second time I used soft tissue paper to clean it. On the other hand the gold also eventually came off my Laureat but that nib is so smooth I could forgive it - except it's a gusher and ink would come out each time I uncapped it - doesn't inspire much confidence in Waterman either.

 

Ergonomics should be number 2 but I'm being truthful, my pearwood ambition is gorgeous but I'm just coming to grips with it...

[Runnin_Ute]

No number one priority other than it should not be something I find butt fugly, rather the sum of all the characteristics is what I consider.

I find this sums it up pretty well for me generally speaking. Can't be to heavy or it won't get used.

[sandy101]

Grip (if it doesn't sit well in my hand, there's no point)

 

nib (I like smooth, but don't mind a bit of tooth)

 

price

 

filling system (proprietary cartridges turn me off)

[zaddick]

#1 for me is nib characteristics including size, flexibility, smoothness

 

#2 is the feed and flow it provides

 

#3 is the overall look of the pen and materials (aesthetics)

 

#4 is feel in hand, which I can generally estimate from reviews and pictures.

 

#1 is necessary but not sufficient for purchase. If I can get #1 and 2 of the other 3 that is usually enough.

[Sasha Royale]

Is it neat ?

[zaddick]

Is it neat ?

Or the less sophisticated one I sometimes use.... me see, me wantee

Edited June 14, 2016 by zaddick

[sidthecat]

I'm rather obsessed with what I call "expressiveness," a quality mostly found in old pens with flexible nibs. I like the thick-and-thin character of those nibs, and it shows up in some interesting places (a recent purchase came with a Waterman's "Accountant" nib, which turned out to be semi-flexible and surprisingly fun to write with). I've bought mostly ringtops, because I like to wear them, but I have a few full-size pens. It's primarily the writing quality, because most of what I have is old and brownish.

[thygreyt]

The priority is the sole reason for using fountain pens: Writing experience

[pajaro]

It should be a Parker 51.

[ISW_Kaputnik]

With modern pens, at least, I look at all the things that make a pen a pleasure to write with. Dividing this into individual characteristics kind of misses the point, for me. Having the most amazing nib I'd ever tried wouldn't do me any good in some oversized monstrosity that's awkward to write with. Getting the size and balance perfect is pointless if the nib is junk. A great nib in a perfectly balanced pen is no good if the materials it's made out of aren't reasonably durable, or if the piston starts leaking.

 

So basically, I want a combination of characteristics that add up to a good writing instrument. That does not include the appearance of the pen. Not that I don't consider how a pen looks, far from it, but I consider it only after thinking about how it's going to be to write with it.

 

But then, with some of my vintage pens, I think about the spot it's going to fill in my collection. I bought a Sheaffer snorkel filler and Parker capillary filler because the filling mechanisms intrigued me, an Esterbrook Dollar Pen because all I had up to that point were J series, Pilot MYU and Murex because of the integrated nib, and so on. Mind you, I still want a pen that will write well, and with some of the older pens I'm looking for the sort of nib that isn't made any more. But I'm also looking at where it fits into the history of fountain pens, and "I don't have one of those yet" becomes a factor.

[Uncial]

In reality there is no 'one' thing. However, I have to like how a pen looks. That is the first thing that draws me in. The beauty of a design can consist of many things, but for me it must be beautiful, I must enjoy looking at it, holding it and enjoying it. Of course it has to have a great balance, a butter nib and a sturdy filling system, but it still must please me aesthetically. If I don't like the design but it has an incredible nib I will simply lament that the experience and feel of writing is in some way mismatched by what I see. It's the same question I always ask myself when I buy a pen - do I like how it looks? Of course, some pens can be beautiful but have ugly aspects and in such cases I find I can simply never love the pen.

[shawndp]

I view all pens as writing instruments and so their functionality is paramount! Any pen that does not write "well" is worthless. That being said, "well" is something of a balance between smoothness, reliability and flair - in that order. I value a smooth writing and reliable pen over all else - even if it is a tad boring. I will forgive some smoothness for greater reliability for my daily beaters and if a pen has some awesome writing characteristics it will get some leeway in the other two departments.

[Bluey]

For me the number one priority is that it will have to have it's own personality and character relative to the pens that I already own. Say I buy Pen X tomorrow then even if it writes perfectly and looks great, if it looks or writes the same as Pen Y(which I already own) then it's a waste.

 

One of my future pens that I'm considering is an Aurora because they make their own nibs, so I'd like to try them and because this should mean that they have their own writing character. Plus I would like to try one in a colour different from the pens that I already own. I've heard they're not the smoothest but that doesn't matter and they're definitely not very good value for money (they offer a plain pen with a steel nib for around £55, which is shockingly poor value!), but if their nibs write with a unique character that I like and it's different enough to my other pens, then it's a worthwhile purchase.

Edited June 15, 2016 by Bluey

[Sailor Kenshin]

When looking at characteristics of a fountain pen, what is your number one priority? Is it aesthetics, reliability, ink capacity, smooth nib, no hard starts or skips, able to be tossed around and beaten up and still writes, or what? For me it's the smooth nib. I hate a scratchy nib. This would be followed closely by no hard starts or skips. However, the smooth nib takes first priority. I test a pen by writing in all directions, and can't tolerate any scratchiness. I think there's a difference between feedback and scratchiness. Some people want to feel the pen on the paper. I like very little, if any, feedback. So what's the number one priority you look for in a pen?

 

It has to 'disappear' in my hand, so that I am not aware of any aspect of the pen itself, just my writing.

 

Other than that: fat, lightweight, nib smoooooth (touch-o-feedback okay, as in Sailors, but no hypodermic needles, please), wet. Don't care about flex.

[ridiculopathy]

#1 is aesthetics because that's what I'm pickiest about. I can adjust pretty easily to different pen sizes, weights, and grips. Of course nib smoothness and flow matter as well, but it's not necessarily a dealbreaker because it can always be worked on by a nibmeister (or myself, if I ever get around to practicing).

[FOUR X FOUR]

1. Reliability, including no bad starts and continuous flow.

2. Aesthetics, including letting me see the ink.

3. Ergonomics.

4. Price. While I've purchased a $250 pen (marked down) I'd rather have sub $50 pens, nice ink and nice paper; so buying a pen is only part of this bigger equation.

5. Easy to clean.

6. Good quality. I got a Kaweco Sport as a gift, the gold came off the nib the second time I used soft tissue paper to clean it. On the other hand the gold also eventually came off my Laureat but that nib is so smooth I could forgive it - except it's a gusher and ink would come out each time I uncapped it - doesn't inspire much confidence in Waterman either.

 

 

Ergonomics should be number 2 but I'm being truthful, my pearwood ambition is gorgeous but I'm just coming to grips with it...

There are some 250 + pens out there that will change your mind

[NinthSphere]

Aesthetics is the primary, I suppose. If I don't like the way a pen looks, I won't even get around to caring about the rest of a pen.

[PabloAU]

#1 - "Ooh! Pretty!"

#2 - Refer to number 1

 

In truth there's a bit more to it than that. I consider what "newness" the pen can bring to my collection. Sometimes that's unique materials. Sometimes it's the artistry in it's creation (e.g. maki-e). Sometimes it's a unique nib or filling system.