Another "lending Your Pen" Thread....

[inkstainedruth]

So, I got email this evening from a friend of mine. She wanted to know if I would be willing to lend one of my fountain pens for something in about a week and a half (just for the evening). It's on behalf (sort of) of another friend (I don't know if that person has asked for this or the person who contacted me is doing this on her own), in regards to my other (non-pen) hobby. The second friend is going to be having a sort of reception in anticipation of getting a major award for the organization we belong to. Basically, the first person (the one doing the asking) is looking for me to lend a pen that is "easy writing", "nice-looking" and "Nothing so dear that it would be a travesty if it went missing..." (those are all direct quotes, BTW). Part of me wants to say no, on the grounds that I'd go spastic and bat[expletive deleted] crazy if even the Vectors went missing. But it is for a friend....

A couple of years ago, when something similar was happening for me, I brought four of my pens (all inexpensive Parker Vectors) for people to sign the reception book. *But* there were some significant differences: (1) for my event, I had brought the pens because *I'd* wanted them (and didn't think twice about it, because they all had different colors of IG ink in them and because I'd be RIGHT THERE -- and my husband would be as well, for the most part); this is a case of someone asking for me to bring a pen on someone *else's* behalf; (2) in my case it was being held indoors; this upcoming one will be outdoors (and I think at night) at a campground; and (3) there may be a whole lot more people going to this (the overall event will have thousands of people at it) -- so not only is there more chance of the pen "growing feet" but also of the nib getting damaged -- even the general possibility of just plain running out of ink (I mean, converters only hold so much, and at times like these people can get verbose in what they write).

I will be there for part of the evening, but I have other commitments that night as well, so I can't be the one keeping track of the reception book (and/or the pen); in my case, the person co-ordinating things was right there the whole afternoon, and there were a lot fewer people just in general.

So the questions I have for all of you, are (a) do I agree to this? and, if so ( what pens do people recommend? I need to consider pens that I have (a lot of which are in the $40 US and under range, but I really am leaning). I'm thinking something with a smooth F or M will be best. This may not be the time for people to start playing around with that 1 mm Pelikan M100 -- or even one of the Vector calligraphy nibs (even though there will be some people who do scribal stuff). And cheap eyedroppers like the Noodler's Charlie pens don't look all that great (plus, have the downside of being eyedroppers -- meaning that they burp).

I'm already in the process of weighing pros and cons for the pens I have -- not the least of which being "which ones would I hyperventilate the LEAST over if they get lost...?"

Thanks in advance for all advice (even the inevitable "DON'T DO IT!" posts.... ). Please be advice that I will need this advice within the next week, so no necroposting 3 years (or even 3 weeks) from now -- it won't do me any good then.... And I have to limit this to pens I already own, so don't pile on with suggestions for 78Gs, TWSBIs, etc.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Chouffleur]

After you exempt every pen that 1) You'd miss 2) Costs too much or 3) Isn't suited to amateurs, take the remaining pens and rank them by ease of replacement.

 

Somewhere in the middle of all that the winners will emerge. Leave plenty of time as trundling through your collection will take you down a number of blind alleys. ;-)

[praxim]

Here is your inevitable post.

 

I would lend to a friend who asked me almost unhesitatingly, for their own use. I would not lend for use by a third party, and I do not care how big or small is the event or what is the item or who the intermediary friend. The principle works for me, lending anything from small tools to cars.

 

If a cheap pen or pens are desired, suggest the original requester buy a $20-$30 calligraphy set which can be found with a few pens, nibs and cartridges.

[lionheartlee]

When you consider the amount of people that might use your pen, and then go out on their own and join our little "world" because of it...that might be worth a little bit of worry...with that being said there are a number of Jinhao s that not only look flashy, but can also lay down a steady line. It might take some tinkering but when all said in done you will only end up worrying about 5$. If you don't own one, I know Goulet has a sell and are usually fast with the shipping...or I have a number of them I would gladly loan you so that you could loan it to your friends event.

[mitto]

Do not lend. In this specific case.

[Barkingpig]

You WERE alive in the 1980's............so "just think back..........."

 

AND Remember: "JUST SAY NO!" (MY first suggestion)

 

Seriously, if you aren't going to be "happy" to "say goodbye" to a Vector, don't think a Charlie Pen is suitable, & want one to "make a statement" you have seriously taken most pens "out of the running."

 

Perhaps?..........

 

"I am so honoured you thought of me for this great honour, BUT .........you might not know that most pens are adaptive to the user's personal hand & so many of mine are just tempermental ole' cusses that sometimes only I can get to perform; why my OWN Husband often tries to use one & is sometimes stymied..........I would just feel SOoooooooooooooooooooooooooo BAD..............IF one of my silly ole pens just......stopped working when it was called upon...........

 

Really it was SOooooooooooooooooooo nice of you to consider me (AND MY PEN!) for this honour..............BUT.............unfortunately I must decline with great regret." *

 

* in case you have a problem with answer #1; this is from those of use with Southern Mothers, Grandmothers, etc. They felt "so honoured" when asked to borrow their flat silver, cut glass, table linens, etc............BUT.............FEW ever boxed them up & NEVER did they feel a moments guilt over turning down a "person who was the SORT who would ask in the first place."

 

(A rollerball was invented for this sort of situation & undoubtably it would not be "out of place"in an OUTDOOR setting.)

[inkstainedruth]

Wow, that was fast!

@ Chouffleur -- I have started a table of pros and cons (and yeah, to save time I'm doing it on the computer ).

@ praxim -- the problem with calligraphy sets is that a lot of people will *not* know how to use them (plus I'm assuming the the "vigil book" will be a fair amount like mine was -- not necessarily large enough for people who don't know what they're doing to be using a broader nib). Although the fact that I have no clue what the book will be (and the quality of the paper therein) is a factor I hadn't considered -- for mine, the book was commissioned from someone who had done lots and lots of calligraphy (and used Rotring pens a lot) so I could specifically request FP friendly paper from her. Unfortunately, she is no longer with us (although one option I have considered was the Cross Solo I bought from her estate). Thanks for making me think of that.

@ lionheartlee -- I actually do have one Jinhao. But it's a 599 (the Lamy Safari knockoff) so it looks obtrusively modern (I should perhaps have explained that this is part of a medieval recreation group, and the "vigil" is where people come and talk to the award candidates about the responsibilities involved, and give advice and generally tell the person to say "Yes" -- this is not 100% a done deal, and the candidates *can* decide that they will say "no", which has happened on occasion but usually not that late in the process) and of course has the triangular style Safari grip. (I'm not considering my Safari, for the same reason). Plus (and no offense to the person who gave it to me) the color is UG-LEE -- it's apparently what's called "Champagne Gold" by Jinhao and "hideous" by me). Ironically, I have an order coming in from Goulet Pens (I'm expecting it to be in the mail today or Thursday, since it's already to my regional sort facility) and includes a replacement converter for the 599.... Go figure (why my friend didn't ask me before Tuesday is anyone's guess...).

@ mitto and Barkingpig -- it's a bit hard to say no, especially when I had four Vectors available for people to sign my vigil book (the gift to myself was my Pelikan M400 brown tortoise, but I wasn't letting anyone TOUCH that one, given how much I paid for it -- more than double the cost of nearly any of my other pens; my husband nearly had a heart attack when I won the eBay bid and told him that NEW M400s were even MORE expensive). And a couple of people showed up to talk to me where I didn't even know who they were (one guy only came, I think, because he was married to someone I knew slightly, and was mostly there for the other vigil going on the same day as mine), but I just assumed he signed the book (or at least the smaller "waiting-list book" -- I would have been happy with just a clipboard for that but I got outvoted ). And it is for someone I consider a friend (I don't know whether the other person asked me because of being involved with setting this all up). There are three other vigils that I know

I will *likely* end up going with one or two of the Vectors (I had four because that way people got their choice between 4 different iron gall inks). The advantage of two will be that there will be a back up -- I'm expecting that there will be a lot of people because the person has lived in several different regions over the years and while she is being recognized for fiber arts, she has also done a lot of stuff related to fencing and equestrian stuff, and has run some major events in the past, both around here and the other areas where she and her husband have lived. I'd be really bummed if one of the Vectors got lost (but wouldn't be completely hyperventilating, because the ones that the sentimental favorite "gateway pen" has a crack in the barrel and won't be going ANYWHERE at the moment.... Other possibilities include a Pilot Metropolitan, a Cross Solo, a couple of cheap Chinese pens (the Wing Sung 237 is really nice looking for being a $5 pen I got for free, but I'm not sure that squeeze filler pens will have the capacity) and the Dollar 717i (which is also a demonstrator, so doesn't look as good). The Rotring Art Pen has an EF nib, which would be good (maybe) on bad paper -- but the cap can't be posted..... Etc., etc.

Right now the factors are ink capacity vs. looks vs. price. The pens which hold more ink are *generally* more expensive pens that I don't want to lose, and are sometimes (but not always) more "classic" style -- but of course not necessarily "pretty" (while I think Parker 51s look sleek and sophisticated, the hooded nibs would be too modern looking -- and some people might not realize that they're not writing with a ballpoint....).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Tas]

The Greeks have a saying . . .

Say "No" blush once.
Say "Yes" blush many times.

 

However I had tea with a homeless man on Monday who gave another stranger at my table the advice "If you love something set it free. If it comes back to you it's yours. If not, it wasn't meant to be".

 

I wish you luck either way.

[praxim]

Inkstainedruth, I infer from the fact you ignored most of my post that you know what you really want to do :)

 

Thank you for your appreciation of my entirely serendipitous trigger of an association in your own thoughts.

[Moshe ben David]

It is not at all clear to me the purpose of the pen(s) at this function. Possibly for people 'signing in' as they arrive? Possibly for people filling out some sort of pledge cards? Just to take it to an extreme, I've been to Chinese weddings where people sign in. On a piece of sort of satiny red fabric.... I AM NOT assuming this is the case at the function in this instance, just giving an out of the box example.

 

I personally would not supply a bunch of fountain pens for the event. Too many unknowns. Not knowing the ability of potential users. Not knowing what sort of surface to be written on. Plus an outdoor event which brings with it concerns of humidity, temperature etc. Honestly, even as a guest, arriving at such an event I'd be packing a non-fountain pen just because I'd want to be sure I could write no matter the conditions.

 

So. I'd recommend just having the reception table (if that is what it is) supplied with a good stock of ultra-fine and fine tip Sharpies. Elegant? Nope. Reliable? Yup. Which means guests can sign in without fail, move on, and not have a frustration at sign in due to bottle necks and/or inability to sign in.

 

Enjoy the event!

 

L'chaim!

[PaperGhost]

Why can't the requester buy their own pens? Vectors are available everywhere and inexpensive. Jinhaos are even cheaper. You supplied your own pens for your event - why can't they do the same?

 

I do understand that it's hard to say no. But non-fp people usually have no concept of what it is they are asking when they ask to borrow. If your loaner pen grew legs, the requester would doubtless apologise but probably wouldn't really think too much of it. You, on the other hand, would be really quite upset.

[inkeverywhere]

No no no no no and just in case you are not sure of my thoughts on the subject NO.

 

I don't know if I'm self centered, selfish or what, I just don't lend my pens.

 

The only exception I can remember was for my daughter's wedding, I asked them if they would use one of my pens to sign their marriage certificate etc. They were very happy to do so but not with a fountain pen because they didn't know how to use it (I found this very amusing). They used a very nice rollerball I had used to sign important documents, over many years, but they gave it back to me straight after the signing (at their instance).

 

If insulting this person is a problem buy them a box of Kilometricos or Crystals to use.

 

 

Greg

[PaganArcher]

A friend of mine asked me a very similar question not long ago for her wedding. I simply bought a black Metropolitan and let her have it. She's like a sister to me, but I don't loan pens. To anyone, for any reason.

[kazoolaw]

I go with Paganarcher: don't loan your pen, donate one to the cause.

[Cryptos]

As it's a medieval recreation thing perhaps you should take a bunch of quills and a pot of ink?

[Ergative]

As it's a medieval recreation thing perhaps you should take a bunch of quills and a pot of ink?

 

I agree with this. Maybe not quills, but dip nibs are DIRT cheap--like, if you don't need them flexy or anything, they're less than a dollar each new, and you can buy a whole box of vintage Esterbrook oval points on ebay for a few bucks (e.g., here). Holders, similarly, are inexpensive. If it's an SCA type thing, you might want to go a smidge upscale and splurge for $10 each for a few nice wooden holders from Paper and Ink Arts, but even if you do that there's no risk of lending them out: they can't be broken by amateurs, any more than an amateur at FPs could break the barrel by holding it wrong. (Even dropping them won't hurt them, because there's no machinery inside, and they're too light to crack.) If a nib breaks because someone tries to write with a death grip, no biggie--just stick another one in the holder.

[jar]

I'm pretty sure I can always find a pen I could give to a friend that asked but would not lend a pen for such an event. Gladly donate but not lend.

[LuckyKate]

Send the friend a link to a pen on the Goulet web site so she can buy her own pen.

Edited July 27, 2016 by LuckyKate

[DaveT]

Let me preface this by saying I do not know the participants at the event. But my experience tells me that the majority of people under the age of 50 do not know how to write with a fountain pen. And many non-FP users try to press hard like they do with ball point pens. I regularly show people how to use a FP at different venues I sell my wares at.

 

Also, the properties of the ink could lead to smearing and making a complete mess of the guest book. Is the friend ok if the guest book is a mess?

 

If you are so inclined to do this I would suggest a medium nib. I think most non FP users do better with M instead of F.

Edited July 27, 2016 by DaveT

[pajaro]

So, I got email this evening from a friend of mine. She wanted to know if I would be willing to lend one of my fountain pens for something in about a week and a half (just for the evening). It's on behalf (sort of) of another friend (I don't know if that person has asked for this or the person who contacted me is doing this on her own), in regards to my other (non-pen) hobby. The second friend is going to be having a sort of reception in anticipation of getting a major award for the organization we belong to. Basically, the first person (the one doing the asking) is looking for me to lend a pen that is "easy writing", "nice-looking" and "Nothing so dear that it would be a travesty if it went missing..." (those are all direct quotes, BTW). Part of me wants to say no, on the grounds that I'd go spastic and bat[expletive deleted] crazy if even the Vectors went missing. But it is for a friend....

A couple of years ago, when something similar was happening for me, I brought four of my pens (all inexpensive Parker Vectors) for people to sign the reception book. *But* there were some significant differences: (1) for my event, I had brought the pens because *I'd* wanted them (and didn't think twice about it, because they all had different colors of IG ink in them and because I'd be RIGHT THERE -- and my husband would be as well, for the most part); this is a case of someone asking for me to bring a pen on someone *else's* behalf; (2) in my case it was being held indoors; this upcoming one will be outdoors (and I think at night) at a campground; and (3) there may be a whole lot more people going to this (the overall event will have thousands of people at it) -- so not only is there more chance of the pen "growing feet" but also of the nib getting damaged -- even the general possibility of just plain running out of ink (I mean, converters only hold so much, and at times like these people can get verbose in what they write).

I will be there for part of the evening, but I have other commitments that night as well, so I can't be the one keeping track of the reception book (and/or the pen); in my case, the person co-ordinating things was right there the whole afternoon, and there were a lot fewer people just in general.

So the questions I have for all of you, are (a) do I agree to this? and, if so ( what pens do people recommend? I need to consider pens that I have (a lot of which are in the $40 US and under range, but I really am leaning). I'm thinking something with a smooth F or M will be best. This may not be the time for people to start playing around with that 1 mm Pelikan M100 -- or even one of the Vector calligraphy nibs (even though there will be some people who do scribal stuff). And cheap eyedroppers like the Noodler's Charlie pens don't look all that great (plus, have the downside of being eyedroppers -- meaning that they burp).

I'm already in the process of weighing pros and cons for the pens I have -- not the least of which being "which ones would I hyperventilate the LEAST over if they get lost...?"

Thanks in advance for all advice (even the inevitable "DON'T DO IT!" posts.... ). Please be advice that I will need this advice within the next week, so no necroposting 3 years (or even 3 weeks) from now -- it won't do me any good then.... And I have to limit this to pens I already own, so don't pile on with suggestions for 78Gs, TWSBIs, etc.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

After a few experiences of pens not returned or returned destroyed, I would say to anyone "get your own pen." I will not be bullied into lending a pen I have hunted, turned up by accident or restored just for sob story blackmail. Tell them to ask a museum to let them borrow a Cezanne.

Edited July 27, 2016 by pajaro