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Dallas Pen Show 2016

tonybelding

By tonybelding
in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop

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tonybelding Antique

tonybelding

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It's been a few years since I went to this event, and I wasn't sure I'd ever make it again due to the traffic situation in and around Dallas. However, there's been a new turnpike completed, and I have Google Maps on my phone now, and almost at the last minute I decided to make the trip.

 

I think I could have spent days and thousands of dollars in those two big rooms. But I didn't have either. I did get a fair number of good photos, and I learned some things, and I bought one journal, one fountain pen, and two bottles of ink.

 

The pen was from a company out of Colorado that I was previously unfamiliar with, called Paradise Pen, and the model is called 5280 Ebonite. As the name implies, it's made from the classic "woodgrain" colored hard rubber. It's an OVERSIZED pen with clean, modern lines and a rhodium-plated 14K gold nib, and the typical Schmidt converter. The fit-and-finish is superb.

 

I got a bottle of Papier Plume ink in the color of Forest Green. This ink leans just slightly toward the teal. Although not waterproof, it does seem to contain some water-resistant substance that leaves a legible trace.

 

At the huge Dromgoole's ink table (they reputedly had 15 total tables at the show!!), we puzzled for a while over a bottle of Noodler's Mystery Ink with a very trippy looking label that nobody could read, before we finally identified it as Upper Ganges Blue. I tried it out, it looked pretty, but I've already got a bunch of blue inks, including my established favorite Texas Blue Bonnet, and didn't need another. However, since I'm still looking for my perfect green, I picked up a bottle of Noodler's General of the Armies. This proved more interesting than I expected. It starts out green, very similar in appearance to the Papier Plume Forest Green actually. Then it dries to a blue color. It seems paper dependent, though. On a dense, high-quality paper it turned very blue, very quickly. On more absorbent paper, it seems to change more slowly, and I'm not sure if it will ever go fully blue. General of the Armies smells very skunky, similar to Texas Blue Bonnet but maybe even stronger. Unlike TBB, it seems to be completely waterproof.

 

I saw a lot of other interesting inks. Two vendors had good supplies of Akkerman, and I was very tempted to get a bottle just because of the cool bottle and because it's been so hard to get in the USA for years. However, I couldn't decide on a color! And there were several other new brands of ink. There was a lot of Organics Studio, there was some Blackstone, there was Bookbinders Snake Ink, etc. And I already have a big drawer full of ink bottles, so it was hard to bring myself to add more.

 

And then there was this. . .

 

post-37605-0-62745400-1475008491_thumb.jpg

 

No, I didn't buy that. I just boggled at it.

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T4TEXAS

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Only good for jotting quick notes. Obviously.

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PAKMAN Ancient Artifact

PAKMAN

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Definitely not a pocket carry pen!

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sirgilbert357 Antique

sirgilbert357

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This was my third year in a row going to the Dallas Pen Show and I never seem to have enough time to see it all. Next year I might make it a two day event instead of limiting myself to just 3 or so hours for one day...I always feel rushed.

 

I picked up a couple of things:

-Pelikan M400 tortoise Levenger edition, medium nib

-Sailor Hatsukoi ink (I have one bottle that's probably 80% full, but I'm paranoid it'll stop getting made or I won't be able to get another bottle, so I just bought another despite the ridiculous price of 43 bucks!)

 

I didn't find a modern green Pelikan M400 at a decent price, so I ordered one of those online (along with a bottle of Iroshizuku Ku-jaku) and it should be here tomorrow.

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CAG_1787 Vintage

CAG_1787

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I didn't find a modern green Pelikan M400 at a decent price, so I ordered one of those online (along with a bottle of Iroshizuku Ku-jaku) and it should be here tomorrow.

 

Just out of curiosity, from where?

 

After the recent mishap, I'm glad to see Droomgoole's bouncing back with a strong showing in Dallas.

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vinniekowalski Near Mint

vinniekowalski

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Hey tonybelding: Have you tried the Diamine Green-Black? It's one of my favorites -- dark enough for work, but interesting enough for me. :)

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sirgilbert357 Antique

sirgilbert357

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Just out of curiosity, from where?

 

After the recent mishap, I'm glad to see Droomgoole's bouncing back with a strong showing in Dallas.

 

Sorry for the late reply -- from PenChalet.com. It all came yesterday and I am LOVING this pen and ink combo. I have ordered most of my pens from PenChalet.com. They have a decent price normally and at times, there are 15% off sales, which is usually when I snag the higher dollar pens I buy. I could almost always buy used or from overseas for a little less, but they are an authorized dealer, so you get full warranty on any Pelikan (or whatever brand you buy), free shipping if you spend enough, and I'm in Texas, so no tax! They have a solid return policy too and I've had nothing but good interactions on the phone with them. No affiliation, just a happy customer...I highly recommend getting on their email list and waiting for one of their 15% off sales...

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tonybelding Antique

tonybelding

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Hey tonybelding: Have you tried the Diamine Green-Black? It's one of my favorites -- dark enough for work, but interesting enough for me. :)

 

I had actually already found a dark green that I thought was perfect. . . I had a sample of Faber-Castell Moss Green. However, it's one of the most expensive inks that I know of! I could get two bottles of Noodler's and have change left.

 

I saw a lot of ink at the show (there were two vendors with large quantities of Akkerman!), but nowhere any bottle of Faber-Castell. I finally gave in and order a bottle of it from Goulet.

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sirgilbert357 Antique

sirgilbert357

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I had actually already found a dark green that I thought was perfect. . . I had a sample of Faber-Castell Moss Green. However, it's one of the most expensive inks that I know of! I could get two bottles of Noodler's and have change left.

 

I saw a lot of ink at the show (there were two vendors with large quantities of Akkerman!), but nowhere any bottle of Faber-Castell. I finally gave in and order a bottle of it from Goulet.

 

Guess that makes my purchase of Sailor Hatsukoi at 43.00 a bit insane? LOL...it is, but I love it and wanted to stock up.

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