Perfect Desk Pen- Waterman Pro Graduate- A Pen That I Will Gladly Lend To Anyone

[dadbar]

Behold my Waterman Pro Graduate- a paradox of pen.

 

From a distance it looks like a cheap plastic pen but once you pick it up, you realize that it is actually lacquered brass. I keep it on my desk at work as it is the perfect pen for editing......the fine tip from its fake gold nib is so scratchy that I really can't write more than a few words at a time before putting it down.

 

I keep hoping that someone will come and borrow it. The looks, though, are starting to grow on me.

 

Next to it sits a Parker Vector Flighter which is a cheap black plastic pen wearing a silver brushed metal Halloween costume. The fine nib on this pen, by contrast, is amazingly smooth. I could write with this thing all day.

 

Are all of these Waterman pens scratchy or do I just have a weird one?

 

 

[shawndp]

I do not have the specific model of Waterman you do, but my experience with them has been generally positive... Waterman was "my brand" in the 90's / early-mid 2000's and the Phileas and Carene were my favourites. None of the pens I have would be considered scratchy - all were / are good for writing a few pages easily. Maybe have a close look at your nib - something must be amiss... All the best!

[Chris]

If it is scratchy, does it need adjusting? I believe tine misalignment is a common cause yet can be fixed by someone themselves with a bit of care.

[carlos.q]

Once the possibility of user error is discarded, scratchy nibs are most usually due to misaligned tines. Fortunately this is something easy to fix but you will need a 10X-12X loupe to do it properly.

[ac12]

As mentioned, my guess is a miss-aligned nib.

But you need a 10x loupe, or you are working blind.

 

Is is scratchy in one direction L->R or R->L ? That is a very clear indication of miss-aligned tips.

 

How is the ink flow?

If the pen writes DRY, that can make the pen feel scratchy. Less ink = more friction = scratchy feel.

[spintronic]

I have been using a Waterman Pro Graudate(Daytona) lately, and I was trying to figure out why it was so scratchy as well. I finally could see the tine misalignment under a stero microscope at work. I adjustest as best I could. It is also a dry writing pen and gave me a hard start every time I wrote a new sentence. I flossed it with some copy paper. It seems much better now. I don't have to press so hard to overcome the hard start, and the nib does feel a bit smoother. Seems to have the same level of scratchiness swiping left or right. But the slight misalignment I still have is still obvious when I swipe left and right with the nib upside down. One direction is definitely rougher than the other. I will try to align it better tomorrow. Wish I could take a picture, but that microscope isn't attached to a camera. Other than that it's a decent pen. I still enjoy writing with it and I do feel like I improved things with the small adjustments I did do.

[overwriter]

I have one of the chrome Graduates in a medium and it is very smooth. Your nib needs adjustment.