Need Help On Choosing A Fp

[fthefpaddict]

hello! I'm pretty new here and am trying to find a new fp to replace my aging metropolitan. I'm really looking for a fp that has a pretty large ink capacity as I am in my 3rd year of college and don't know how much ink I need. I've been saving for about 4 yrs now so I'm pretty sure I can afford some expensive pens. I was looking at the lamy 2000 as I heard that it had a pretty large ink capacity but once I started searching for more all of these pens just came at me! next thing I knew I was looking at a pilot custom 823 and then some pelkan pens. I'm normally a person who rights a little too much and since I would sometimes use up all the ink in my ,metropolitan I had to go to pencil which really annoyed me

[Notgatherox]

What's the budget? How heavy you like your pens? Is a demonstrator pen fine? Do you post? What length of pen do you like? How thick must a grip be?

 

Answering such questions will help members give you specific recommendations. At this point in time, it's too broad for us to give a good recommendation

 

 

~Epic

[fthefpaddict]

What's the budget? How heavy you like your pens? Is a demonstrator pen fine? Do you post? What length of pen do you like? How thick must a grip be?

 

Answering such questions will help members give you specific recommendations. At this point in time, it's too broad for us to give a good recommendation

 

 

~Epicthe weight doesn't matter as long as its not too heavy, yes I post my pens, demonstrator would be AWESOME, length wise I'd like a mediocre tall pen and I guess the budget would up to $650

[ac12]

IMHO ink capacity is being overblown.

In college, I carried TWO Parker 45s with cartridge ink.

When pen #1 ran out of ink, I just switched to pen #2. Not a big deal. I would change ink cartridge between classes, when I had the time to do it.

And having a 2nd pen took care of the issue where pen #1 might stop working...for whatever reason.

I also had my ball pen and pencil to fall back on.

 

I don't know what college you go to, but IMHO, school, including college, is a high risk environment for loss, theft or damage. The amount of walking between classes going cross-campus, library and cafeteria, it is easy to forget and leave a pen behind, or drop it. I would NOT get an expensive pen to take to school. Leave the expensive pen at home.

[NinthSphere]

i would consider multiple pens also. I carry three minimum &, because the ink use was spread over multiple pens, I never worried about running out. If you're seriously writing enough to worry about it, perhaps multiple piston fillers.

[ENewton]

I am always baffled when I read about people who worry that their ink supply will run out in the course of a day. I write essentially all day long and do not have this concern, even with my Prera, which is a wee pen with a wee converter.

 

Lately I have been using one of the cheap Dollar pens from Pakistan. It is a piston filler with enough capacity that I'm getting impatient with how long it takes to run out of ink.

[Kelly G]

I echo the multiple, pen approach for a college environment. When I did my seminary work a few years ago, I carried three pens - a Parker "51", a Sheaffer OS Balance, and a Pilot VP. The VP for quick notes, the Sheaffer and Parker for longer writing. If I was to be on campus for multiple days in a row, I brought a bottle of ink. Otherwise those three pens would carry me through any day of writing. I've also used Pelikan M200's in this sort of environment; large ink capacity, light weight, not overly expensive and absolutely reliable.

 

Good luck with your choice.

[sandy101]

The Lamy 2k is a joy to write with - the nib is slightly springy which makes it quite comfortable to write with.

[fthefpaddict]

well thanks for all the suggestions I do realize that an expensive pens may get stolen I am really just looking for a pen with a large enough ink capacity so I wouldn't have to bring multiple I could again lose 1 or 2, heck maybe even three! So having one pen allows me to prioritize on that pen alone instead of multiple. I have taken a look at the lamy 2000 and even written with one the ink capacity allowed me to get through an entire class which I absolutely loved but the ink window was really small so I never really knew if the pen was full or not plus the way I didn't like the way the pen felt in my hand I've been looking into pelikans recently I've also been looking at the parker 51 I've been really addicted to pens where I can see the ammount of ink i.e twsbi vac 700 and 580. (although I heard that the vac 700 can be a bit finicky)

[Bluey]

I think a Twsbi Eco or 580 AL will be the most practical options for you because they're inexpensive and ideal for college life. Possibly the Lamy 2000 as it's a really nice pen,but given you're at college you'll want to keep your costs minimal, plus the ink window I find is next to useless.

I really wouldn't bother with the Pelikans because they're very expensive for what you get and they can be troublesome - they're much better suited to collectors than pen users. The Twsbi vac 700 and Pilot 823, although they offer a large ink capacity they're not practical pens for the beginner.

The Parker 51 I would give a miss because it's a nightmare to clean and maintain and it holds very little ink.

Edited September 4, 2016 by Bluey

[NinthSphere]

51s & M200s (if that's how you were leaning) are excellent pens & either one would be a fine choice. If there's one complaint I had about the M200, it's that it took me so long to work through a fill when I wanted to switch over ink. That's how it turned into one of my daily carry pens though.

[fthefpaddict]

51s & M200s (if that's how you were leaning) are excellent pens & either one would be a fine choice. If there's one complaint I had about the M200, it's that it took me so long to work through a fill when I wanted to switch over ink. That's how it turned into one of my daily carry pens though.

do you know how much ink a 51 and a m200 can take? as those two are in the spotlight right now. Plus I love the looks of both of them! I'm getting really close on finding a new pen to take with me on adventures (plus I have a metropolitan if things go bad!)

[Inky.Fingers]

Try something different ... 3.2ml of ink is enough right?

 

(no affiliation)

 

[fthefpaddict]

I think a Twsbi Eco or 580 AL will be the most practical options for you because they're inexpensive and ideal for college life. Possibly the Lamy 2000 as it's a really nice pen,but given you're at college you'll want to keep your costs minimal, plus the ink window I find is next to useless.

I really wouldn't bother with the Pelikans because they're very expensive for what you get and they can be troublesome - they're much better suited to collectors than pen users. The Twsbi vac 700 and Pilot 823, although they offer a large ink capacity they're not practical pens for the beginner.

The Parker 51 I would give a miss because it's a nightmare to clean and maintain and it holds very little ink.

I've looked into the eco and it I would have loved it if I didn't find the metropolitan first XD

[fthefpaddict]

well I guess the parker 51 is now off the list just searched up some review haha XD

[fthefpaddict]

w

 

Try something different ... 3.2ml of ink is enough right?

 

(no affiliation)

 

well that is sure a lot!

[fthefpaddict]

well I guess the parker 51 is now off the list just searched up some review haha XD

nvm I was looking at the wrong review XD

[NinthSphere]

do you know how much ink a 51 and a m200 can take? as those two are in the spotlight right now. Plus I love the looks of both of them! I'm getting really close on finding a new pen to take with me on adventures (plus I have a metropolitan if things go bad!)

 

I can't speak to the accuracy, but some Googling says ~1.12 for an aero 51 vs ~1.2 for an M200.

 

well I guess the parker 51 is now off the list just searched up some review haha XD

 

Curious what turned you off.

[fthefpaddict]

 

I can't speak to the accuracy, but some Googling says ~1.12 for an aero 51 vs ~1.2 for an M200.

 

 

Curious what turned you off.

I was looking at the wrong review XD so many tabs in my pc

[Inky.Fingers]

Get a real pen .. that you will like .. TWSBI 580.

 

and turn it FrankenPen when you are done with it.

 

Below is a TWSBI 580 married to Sheaffer Triump Nib. This baby speaks both Chinese and English.