Need Some Help Diagnosing A Problem

[teryg93]

I posted this in the Parker forum earlier today. A lot of people have looked at it but there's been no response, so I'm thinking maybe I should have posted it here. Any help anyone can offer is appreciated.

 

I'm trying for the moment to focus my pen purchases so I don't break the bank. One of my interests has been in replacing a Place Vendome that disappeared with something I like as well or nearly as well. From the pens I've tried, I seem to like light slender pens. I have a few Vectors/Rialtos now that I'm comparing. Well, one actually can't be compared yet because it arrived leaking like crazy. I don't know if that's the pen or the cartridge. It seems to have been shipped with a full cartridge, which was sweet of the seller but which might not have been the best idea. I rinsed that one out and ordered a converter for it. I got that one because it was made in the UK.

 

The other two I'm using right now are a used blue Vector made in the US and a new metal Vector I bought new off Amazon, for comparison. No country listed on that one; I'm guessing China. The metal is definitely a fine nib. I think the blue is as well. Both are using converters--the metal is using the converter it came with; the blue is using an old converter I had lying around. Both are filled with the exact same ink, from the same bottle.

 

Here's the problem, which I first thought was the paper (which is another issue; I clearly need different paper but not sure what kind yet). When I wrote with the metal pen today, the ink created a wider line than it did on some paper I was using yesterday. The ink really sinks into the paper and spreads in an almost smearish way. So I thought, okay that's the paper, but let's try the blue pen anyway. The blue writes fine on the paper. Still sinks in enough to make the back side of the paper not usable, but doesn't smear or anything like that.

 

Does anyone know what the problem with the metal pen might be? Cheaper nib? If so, is the solution to look for older nibs on ebay and replace it? (I know; I could just buy another pen, but I do want to know what's wrong with this one.) If the problem is just that the entire new pen line is so much more cheaply made that it's not worth using, I'd like to know that as well.

 

Thanks,

Tery

 

[PaganArcher]

Sounds to me like a combination of the paper and the metal Vector just writing more wetly than its counterpart.

[Pickwick]

As PaganArcher says, it's highly likely the paper you're using, Most of the paper being made is from recycled material and can prove to be inconsistent for pen and ink.

 

I write letters on a regular basis and have found the best paper for consistency is HP Bright White 24 lb and I'm able to write on both sides. My pens are very free flowing and lay a wet line which I prefer and this paper is not causing me any problems.

[teryg93]

Thanks for the recommendation. I'm going to try different paper. I thought I had ruled out paper and ink as the cause of the problem by using two different pens with the same ink on the same paper, but maybe not.

[SpecTP]

Can you take a pic of the writing sample and post it?

[teryg93]

I'm going to try some different papers later today, to see what that result is. If the result is the same across papers, I'll post some photos.

[teryg93]

Okay. It seems to be a combination of the pen and the paper. I tried the UK Rialto, the US Vector, and the metal Vector on 2 types of paper. The metal is definitely a wetter pen. Apparently, that's just enough difference to cause it to not write well on one of the types of paper I was using.

[Erik Dalton]

As a rule of thumb a finer nib will bleed less on lower quality paper. Students taking lots of notes know the fine nibs lead to less bleed through and stretch out their ink supply with the thinner ink line. But, fountain pens are like people. They are all different. Even two identical pens can have their own peculiar preferences for ink, paper and how they are held.

Pick up a pad of Rhodia paper to use as your standard to compare other papers to. There are lots of suitable papers and notebooks out there that may not perform as well as the Rhodia, but come pretty close and are less expensive. Check the threads here for fountain pen friendly paper and start to experiment.

Once you get your paper settled, then you can arrange your pens and inks to suit.

Just curious. What are you using for ink?

[Erik Dalton]

BTW... We love photos...lol

[teryg93]

As a rule of thumb a finer nib will bleed less on lower quality paper. Students taking lots of notes know the fine nibs lead to less bleed through and stretch out their ink supply with the thinner ink line. But, fountain pens are like people. They are all different. Even two identical pens can have their own peculiar preferences for ink, paper and how they are held.

Pick up a pad of Rhodia paper to use as your standard to compare other papers to. There are lots of suitable papers and notebooks out there that may not perform as well as the Rhodia, but come pretty close and are less expensive. Check the threads here for fountain pen friendly paper and start to experiment.

Once you get your paper settled, then you can arrange your pens and inks to suit.

Just curious. What are you using for ink?

 

 

I ordered some good paper as a base. That's a good suggestion. And I'm researching good paper that might be a bit less expensive.

 

I'm using Parker ink, though I'm running low. I'm going to look around here to see what inks people suggest.

[Erik Dalton]

Waterman serenity blue is very good on lower grade paper. It is also almost universally used my most nibmeister so and repair people to test out the pens the worked on. It writes wet, and cleans up very easily with just water. Others are Sheaffer Script, and Pelikan.

After those you get into the more highly saturated inks that perform well but take more maintenance.

My personal preference are De Atramentis inks, but they require regular and good pen hygiene practices.

[Erik Dalton]

If you are going to go shopping for inks. Give your pocketbook a break. Go to Goulet Pen and order up samples. You can get a lot of different inks for less than the cost of a bottle.

 

You should also check their and others tutorials on you tube. An incredible source of information. When you get done with you'll be as smart as us..hehehe...have fun.