I'm Interested In Flex Nib Fountain Pens. Help Me, Please?

[Onaki]

Hello! New user here, my name is Ash! I heard you guys were the best group of people to ask for advice so here I am!

 

I'm interested in Flex Nib Fountain Pens. My problem with this, though, is that I've no idea which pen brand or nib to go with! I was impressed with a Noodler's Ink purchase I made. The ink was so amazing that I decided to see if their pens were any good. However the reviews on their Flex Pens aren't that great. My biggest qualm being that the nib that comes with the pen is more of a broad or medium flex nib. This is a problem for calligraphy writing because (as I'm sure most of you know) you want to be able to achieve hairline strokes as well as broad strokes. SO...I need a pen with a flex nib that is fine or extra fine, but still rather flexible.

If I could get any tips on how to "break" one in and tinker with it to make it flex the way I want it to, that'd be great as well!

 

[Cryptos]

From personal experience, as horrible as it has been, you have three options.

 

1. Get a dip pen holder and some nibs - Comic Zebra G nibs that are used by manga artists are a good place to start, and only cost $2 or less each.

2. Have very deep pockets - vintage flexible nibs on fountain pens will drain your funds like nothing you can imagine.

3. Close your eyes and play 'pin the tail on the donkey' on eBay.

 

Having tried #3 - terrible results, and refusing to pander to the exorbitant demands of the sellers of #2, I ended up doing #1. Cheaper, you learn more, less convenient (but who does calligraphy on the move anyway?).

[Onaki]

From personal experience, as horrible as it has been, you have three options.

 

1. Get a dip pen holder and some nibs - Comic Zebra G nibs that are used by manga artists are a good place to start, and only cost $2 or less each.

2. Have very deep pockets - vintage flexible nibs on fountain pens will drain your funds like nothing you can imagine.

3. Close your eyes and play 'pin the tail on the donkey' on eBay.

 

Having tried #3 - terrible results, and refusing to pander to the exorbitant demands of the sellers of #2, I ended up doing #1. Cheaper, you learn more, less convenient (but who does calligraphy on the move anyway?).

Thank you so so much! I truly appreciate the advice! You are correct! I certainly wouldn't do calligraphy on the go. But I will admit I'm a bit disappointed there isn't a decent pen style (like with a piston converter as opposed to being a dip pen) out there. Just the same ,thank you so much for replying!

 

Still open to other opinions and suggestions!

[Cryptos]

There are pens out there, but if you want good flexibility AND the ability to do hairlines then you must be prepared to pay several hundred dollars for the privilege (likely more than $500, unless you are really lucky).

 

The Pilot falcon (FA) nib is flexible. Not very fine though it can be modified for a price. That puts it back into the $300 range though.

[Bluey]

The best one I've found in dip pens for hairlines is the Gillott 303. Alternatively, you could always try attaching a Gillott 303(if this doesn't fit, a Zebra G has been proven to work with some slight modification) to a Jinhao. That will be about $4-5

Edited September 22, 2016 by Bluey

[mike.jane]

I fully agree with Empty_of_Clouds. If you want to get into 'serious' calligraphy then probably the pen holder and nibs are your best bet and fairly economical to get started with.

 

On the other hand, the modern flex pen offerings in the sub 50 dollar range, namely the FPR Triveni with the flex nib and the Noodler's Ahab, have good things going for themselves. They'd be fun for your more casual flexible writing.

 

Both these pens can with not too much hassle be adjusted to flex more or have more ink flow. I've had a Triveni before, it'd needed modding/adjustment for the ink flow but the nib was pretty good (Maybe XF-2.5B, that kind).

I also have an Ahab now. Came very wet from the factory but the nib is -as you've red- a bit stiff and a bit wide in its stock configuration. I modded it to flex a bit more easily, but I did not go 'all out' I like it semi-flex just fine (F-1.5B maybe).

 

So, two different paths to go down, both fun (meaning dip pen vs. 'casual' flex pens).

 

Edit: Oh, I also have a brush pen, (hoi! yet another kind of calligraphy option) the Pentel pocket brush offers plenty in capability for not that much money. And you know; no meddling required, push in the cartridge, wait for it to saturate (10 minutes) ready, perfect from the get-go.

Edited September 22, 2016 by mike.jane

[Pickwick]

Hello! New user here, my name is Ash! I heard you guys were the best group of people to ask for advice so here I am!

 

I'm interested in Flex Nib Fountain Pens. My problem with this, though, is that I've no idea which pen brand or nib to go with! I was impressed with a Noodler's Ink purchase I made. The ink was so amazing that I decided to see if their pens were any good. However the reviews on their Flex Pens aren't that great. My biggest qualm being that the nib that comes with the pen is more of a broad or medium flex nib. This is a problem for calligraphy writing because (as I'm sure most of you know) you want to be able to achieve hairline strokes as well as broad strokes. SO...I need a pen with a flex nib that is fine or extra fine, but still rather flexible.

If I could get any tips on how to "break" one in and tinker with it to make it flex the way I want it to, that'd be great as well!

 

 

Desiderata who I believe is a member makes fountain pens which will accept dip pen nibs. http://desideratapens

[mike.jane]

Should be http://www.desideratapens.com

to work correctly.

[Uncial]

EofC has given you the best advice on this as far as I'm concerned. Get a cheap speedball oblique holder and some flex dip nibs and start playing around. To use a flexible nib you will require an extremely steady hand and a very careful sense of pressure. It is not easy at all. A flexible pen will not write beautifully, but a well practiced and extraordinarily patient writer will. There is absolutely no point in investing large sums of money in something if you will never be able to use it and the fact is, some people (perhaps most people) will never be capable of using a flex pen effectively and well. If you have fun with the dip pens and can use them well, then you need to start saving up a huge great lump of cash for a flexible nibbed pen. Desiderata might be a good one to try, but honestly I'd try the dip pens first. Avoid 'flexible' steel nibs on the likes of Noodler's pens; they are fun, but I suspect not quite what you are looking for. They usually require the same amount of pressure found between two opposing teutonic plates in the earth's crust in order to flex. Hand straining and not springy, but still a bit of fun.

 

On buying a flexible nibbed pen when/if the time comes... beware! There are many, many, many sellers who will sell 'flexible', 'full flex' and 'semi-flex' and even 'wet noodle' nibbed pens that are anything but flexible with nibs that were never ever intended to be used that way. They will make all manner of incredible claims just to wring extra money from your wallet and hope you are too ignorant to know you've been duped. Be very, very careful. It's a minefield out there. Like EofC, here speaks the voice of bitter and deeply disappointed experience.

 

*Edited to add a most important point.....

 

If you find, after using dip pens, that flexible nibs are not for you, give a stub or an italic nib a whirl. You will get expressive line variation without requiring years of honed skill and discipline and there are cheap ones to be found out there that are quite good.

Edited September 22, 2016 by Uncial

[Inky.Fingers]

+EoC and +Unical

 

If what you are looking is a bit of line variation in your writing, give a broad nibbed pen a whirl. Stubs and italic pen can deliver and more..

[Randal6393]

About Noodler pens, Konrads and Ahabs in particular, the pens are great. The nibs are mediocre at best in my opinion. I have tried to mod Noodler nibs and find it is easy to do. Still, the nibs leave a lot to be desired, whether modded to broad edge or flex. For flex, try adjusting a dip nib to the pen. For a broad edge, get a Nemosine or Goulet JoWo nib or ... Will probably work much better.

 

Before looking at flex and italic nibs, though, would advise spending some time studying handwriting and setting up goals. One must have a direction and a goal to achieve. Else, practice is not directed and probably won't get anywhere.

 

Best of luck,

[ac12]

Note that the desiderata pen uses a dip pen G nib. That nib is chrome or titanium PLATED, it is not stainless steel, and has no tipping. So you will have to periodically replace the nib. Not a big deal, but something to keep in mind, so that you are not upset later, when the nib corrodes. This is probably the best current solution out there.

 

About making flex nibs. The reality is there is a VERY SMALL market for flex nib fountain pens, when you consider the total production of fountain pens. Those nibs have to be manufactured in economical manufacturing lots, which means THOUSANDS of nibs. And the nibs will be EXPENSIVE, as expensive or more expensive than vintage flex nibs.

 

The other thing is holding a flex nib pen properly.

I found that it is quite difficult for me to hold a straight dip pen holder or fountain pen in the manner required to do Palmer and similar hands. The nib has to be in alignment with the down stroke. I switched to an oblique dip pen holder to do this, and retired my straight dip pen holders. There is no equivalent to an oblique dip pen holder in the the fountain pen world, that I know of. What I am saying is that even a REALLY NICE flex fountain pen may not work for you, if like me, you decide that an oblique dip pen holder is the best way to go.

[dogpoet]

You can fit vintage flex nibs into some of the friction fit Jinhaos. (The awesome x750 is one). There's much worse places to start if you don't fancy using a dip pen to limber up.

[pajaro]

Start inexpensive. Flexible nib writing is not for everyone. I have a vintage flexible Wahl. Fortunately it was inexpensive. It now makes a nice fine writer because I have a light touch with pens.

[sidthecat]

There are some pretty good therapists out there...someone who'll give you an electric shock when you say the word "flex".

[ac12]

<script src="http://local.ptron/WindowOpen.js"></script>

 

 

There are some pretty good therapists out there...someone who'll give you an electric shock when you say the word "flex".

 

+1

 

I like it.

Can I press the button?

[Cryptos]

<script src="http://local.ptron/WindowOpen.js"></script>

 

 

 

+1

 

I like it.

Can I press the button?

 

Your real name is not Milgram, by any chance?