Everyday Business Carry

[Dramation]

Hi guys, I'm very curious to see what the daily carry of pens (including nib, ink, and what they are used for) looks like for a person in business / law / an office type job.

 

I'm a chef so I don't get to carry mine at work, they are more stay at home pens, however, getting into business is something I've seriously been Considering, hence the curiosity! Personally my carry would look like : A sailor 1911 classic extra fine (ink? Use? Maybe filled with a green or red for making notes on documents and writing in my journal/planner/rhodia meeting book). A visconti homosapien fine with staedtler royal blue for signatures / filling out forms to tell apart from copies. And a pilot VP with a broad 0.8 daily italic filled with sailor nano black as my daily writer / note taker.

 

Keen to hear what people use on a daily basis!

[jar]

I never understood why "business carry" would be any different than any other carry.

Edited January 20, 2017 by jar

[Mister5]

I'm all over the place with my pens that I use day to day, but they lean on the sober side. FWIW, I'm a lawyer. Lately I've gravitated to the Pelikan M215 Rings in Extra Fine with Diamine Registrar's Blue Black ink. The VP you have is an inspired choice (especially if you're in the kitchen).

[TheRealMikeDr]

I work from my home office so my business carry is really the same as my every day carry which is the same as my stay at home pens. Which is to say I get to use any pen any time.

 

That said - when I have to travel for business I like to take my black Pilot Metropolitan with black ink. It's metal so I can toss it in my briefcase or pocket and not worry about it getting scratched or dinged up. No worries if I drop it. It's small enough to fit in my pocket with no discomfort etc etc. If I lose it (I tend to lose something - phone chargers and razors and etc etc - every trip) I'm only out $15 clams. Plus it looks professional enough to fit with my clientele (VP level executives) - in fact my cheap little Pilot Metro gets a "nice pen" on occasion when someone sees it in action. I recommend black/blue ink in a professional setting but I'm conservative in that regard. I would never sit down with a client and take notes with red ink!

[Cordovian]

I use my pens primarily for business. Things I've learned over the years:

• Note taking - For me stiff, fine or extra fine nibs are best. You need to be able to write fast and clearly so there's no time or room for creative penmanship in that environment. I can't write fast with a flex nib and broad nibs (even some mediums) don't allow me to write small when needed. Test any ink you plan to use on cheap paper to see if it's going to feather or bleed through. You don't always get to chose the paper you'll be writing on (e.g. copy of a PPT).
• Signatures - You can use whatever nib floats your boat but when it comes to ink stick to obvious blues. If documents you sign can end up being recorded many Recorder's offices will not accept anything but blue ink. It would be embarrassing if a contract had to be re-done because you decided to use Oxblood ink that day.
• The pen itself - Things that I consider are weight, length and if the cap can be posted. While I sometimes carry a larger pen like a Dolcevita I typically stick with pens that will fit my shirt pocket nicely and are not so heavy that the clip crushes the fabric down. I also won't bring a pen that won't post to work anymore. Often times I am in conference rooms or offices where the writing surface is not level or there's no surface at all. It's a PITA to have a cap keep sliding off a tilted conference table or have to hold it while writing.
• Buy a portfolio with a stiff back that will accept legal or letter pads. You may find that many times your lap is your writing surface so firm is good. Stick to standard paper sizes that a scanner will recognize.

That's just my two cents from the corporate world.

Edited January 20, 2017 by Cordovian

[GardenWeasel]

Business carry is a Montblanc 146 with Fine nib and only Black Eel ink. I work in a hospital.

[Mister5]

I never understood why "business carry" would be any different than any other carry.

I hear what you're saying but I suppose some folks wouldn't want to take an over-the-top pen to a business meeting, and what you're actually doing with the pen. It might just be a matter of optics.

 

And the nib could be important too... I think some folks who primarily sign things might take a bolder nib, maybe even a thick ol' stub. It terms of optics, I'd think a dark or blue ink would be expected. Signing an important contract with orange ink might not send the right message to the counterparty.

 

But if you're just taking notes and are mostly and are in your own office, you could probably just use whatever you want that works for you.

Edited January 20, 2017 by Mister5

[ItsMeDave]

I usually carry two pens to work in a leather Lamy pen case. I've got about a dozen fountain pens and I try to take two different ones each day. As I use the pens strictly for journaling, the fact the inks vary from black to red to green to brown doesn't really matter.

[jar]

I hear what you're saying but I suppose some folks wouldn't want to take an over-the-top pen to a business meeting, and what you're actually doing with the pen. It might just be a matter of optics.

 

And the nib could be important too... I think some folks who primarily sign things might take a bolder nib, maybe even a thick ol' stub. It terms of optics, I'd think a dark or blue ink would be expected. Signing an important contract with orange ink might not send the right message to the counterparty.

 

But if you're just taking notes and are mostly and are in your own office, you could probably just use whatever you want that works for you.

Yes, some folks might have such reservations, I don't doubt that. I just don't understand such reservations.

[Buzz_130]

I use all of my pens for "business" use. So I guess I fall into jar's camp.

 

I prefer a nail for a nib for everyday writing, blue ink for all correspondence, and a medium-long pen. The absolute must is a pen that is 100% reliable and ready to write when I need it. I favor vintage pens, and my favorite is the Parker "51".

 

Buzz

[sandy101]

Pelikan Stola III for classroom use - works well enough and cheap enough not to worry about should a student wander off with it.

 

 

Lamy 2K, Visconti Rembrant, Cross Townsend or the Stola III again for working with adults.

[LizEF]

I hear what you're saying but I suppose some folks wouldn't want to take an over-the-top pen to a business meeting, and what you're actually doing with the pen. It might just be a matter of optics.

 

And the nib could be important too... I think some folks who primarily sign things might take a bolder nib, maybe even a thick ol' stub. It terms of optics, I'd think a dark or blue ink would be expected. Signing an important contract with orange ink might not send the right message to the counterparty.

 

But if you're just taking notes and are mostly and are in your own office, you could probably just use whatever you want that works for you.

 

Business meetings are often boring. An over-the-top pen and interesting ink help alleviate that condition. If someone in the meeting can't get over it, that's their problem. (If it's your problem, either you need to get over it, or you aren't indispensable enough - get more indispensable - so that they won't want to fire you over harmless eccentricities and so that you can get another job if they do.) An over-the-top pen might also be a good way to spark an as-yet subconscious FP interest in one of your co-workers.

 

I like F and EF nibs, so that's not really an issue for me (though I sometimes use .6 and 1.1 stubs).

 

I could not care less what the "counterparty" thinks of my ink. (I believe in letting people have their own problems.)

 

I'm a programmer. The vast majority of my business writing is notes that are only for me, and get destroyed eventually. For that, I use whatever I want. Right now, that's a TWSBI Eco EF with Montblanc Jonathan Swift Seaweed Green and a Karas Kustoms Fountain K Mini EF with Pilot Blue (testing to see if I like this blue's permanence enough to use for regulated paperwork (see next) - I don't, unless I can't find anything better - have several more to test).

 

I work in a government-regulated industry. For regulated paperwork, I must use an indelible ink. Per company policy, it should be blue and medium point (i.e. the line width should be at least that of a Bic medium-point round stick thingy; much wider is impractical because the space on the forms we use generally won't allow large handwriting). From my personal perspective, I would prefer that this be as interesting a blue as possible while not ranging too far from that Bic blue, and that it be as permanent as possible (not just water resistant). So, I'm experimenting with various permanent blues. I respect the reasons both for the regulation and the company policy (they seem reasonable, practical, and beneficial to the general public), so I'm happy to comply (I'll be happier if I can find a FP ink with which I feel comfortable doing so).

 

Beyond all that, unless someone has the legal power to fine or imprison me for using whatever ink and nib I want, I'm using whatever ink and nib I want.

[oldrifleman]

I always carry two pens in a Pelikan case. I personally like fine nib pens. I rotate which pens go in the case on a weekly basis. Right now I have a Pelikan M800 and an Aurora 88 Sigaro in the case.

[jar]

I have to wonder if I really want to be doing business with someone who is more concerned about the color of ink used to sign a contract than the terms of the contract itself.

[Mister5]

I have to wonder if I really want to be doing business with someone who is more concerned about the color of ink used to sign a contract than the terms of the contract itself.

 

Kinda agree. But I've seen some inks fade, and I know some people say there's a requirement that inks be in blue for certain reasons.

 

I haven't experienced that but I don't do transactional work. Personally I've been totally fine using whatever ink - a lot of my stuff that requires signatures or handwritten components simply ends up scanned in B&W.

[TheRealMikeDr]

I have to wonder if I really want to be doing business with someone who is more concerned about the color of ink used to sign a contract than the terms of the contract itself.

 

I'm fairly sure it's not mutually exclusive.

[tmenyc]

...whatever is in my two-pen case, which ranges from my own pens to those I've just restored and am testing. In fact, a number of my colleagues note my pens and have started asking to try them out, which helps me for the tester pens. No one likes Waterman Florida Blue as a color, it's thought to be uniformly boring, but I tell them it's used for all of its other qualities. On the other hand, Royal Akkermanblauw and Pelikan Konigsroyal, Violett, and Schwarz always get good comments.

 

Tim

[kazoolaw]

With my 51 double jewel vac out of commission it's always a 51 Flighter plus one other. They are so reliable, and write on pretty much any surface, including when a client took one out of my hand on a construction site and used it to write on a 2x4

 

In the office are the usual suspects: Sheaffer OS Balance, Parker Duofold Senior Delux, Parker Vac Maxima, and now a Bexley Poseidon Magnum II.

 

On the road the Flighter is accompanied by another of a variety of pens: Etruria 991, Tibaldi 60, Sailor KOP Pro Gear, MB 149, Omas celluloid of various kinds. There are some pens that don't make the business trip: YOL Grand Barley, Dani Sho-Genkai. But pretty much everything else is fair game.

 

Ink is usually a shade of blue or blue-black, although I have MB Toffee Brown in the Etruria 991 0.9 stub.

 

gary

Edited January 20, 2017 by gary

[cattar]

... I also won't bring a pen that won't post to work anymore. Often times I am in conference rooms or offices where the writing surface is not level or there's no surface at all. It's a PITA to have a cap keep sliding off a tilted conference table or have to hold it while writing.

Tilted conference table? What?!?

 

Also, some recorders' offices require black.

 

I carry 2 pens, sometimes 3. At least one good pen and at least one preppy.

[jar]

 

I'm fairly sure it's not mutually exclusive.

I have to wonder if I really want to be doing business with someone who even cares what color ink is used to sign a contract.