Decent Capacity First Gold Nib Fountain Pen?

[Praneeth]

Hello Pranit!

Those are two wonderful choices you have shortlisted. Both the Lamy 2000 and the Pelikan M600 are great pens. While I do not intend to discourage you, the nib material itself (gold vs. steel) is hardly noticeable, however the nib size, the grind and other factors are most definitely noticeable while writing. Both these pens will not disappoint you as daily writers and as some members have previously recommended, it'd be prudent to top up the pens everyday so that you are always at optimum ink capacity for your usage. I'd personally pick the Pelikan M600 over the Lamy 2000 if money was not an issue. I've felt better feedback from the Pelikan nibs, but it's all a matter of personal preference. Do keep in mind that the Pelikan is significantly more expensive (Rs. 7,000), so do not make the plunge unless the whole package and looks of the pen appeal to you. Having said that, you can not go wrong with either of these two pens.

 

Coming to the inks, the Diamine Oxford Blue is a great ink with lot of shading, and on certain types of ink resistant paper, you can even see a little bit of magenta / red sheen. The initial few lines of writing everyday / after a break tend to appear much darker and saturated, but once the ink starts to flow, it's a consistent blue with some shading. All the diamine inks I have used behave well in pens and are priced decently.

 

Hope this has helped, goodluck for your examinations!

[PranitSingh]

PranitSingh how fast are you going though ink now? Are you using a cartridge or converter in your Lamy Safari? There is nothing to say a piston filler would hold more then the Lamy cartridge does.

I am currently using a Lamy Z24 converter that was shipped with my pen itself and I have not tried any cartridges with any of my pens. Talking about the usage of ink, my Safari's ink dried out completely when I had a short class exam and I had to jot a few notes for my English and Sociology lectures afterwards.

[PranitSingh]

Coming to the inks, the Diamine Oxford Blue is a great ink with lot of shading, and on certain types of ink resistant paper, you can even see a little bit of magenta / red sheen. The initial few lines of writing everyday / after a break tend to appear much darker and saturated, but once the ink starts to flow, it's a consistent blue with some shading. All the diamine inks I have used behave well in pens and are priced decently.

 

Hope this has helped, goodluck for your examinations!

Firstly Thank you Praneeth. I was actually considering to buy the Diamine Oxford Blue 80ml from flipkart for Rs.800 as a daily blue ink, as I do not particularly like the blue color of my Sheaffer Skrip blue ink that I had bought along with my Safari. It's a very dull blue which fades significantly (according to my experience, at least) over time on cheap Indian paper. Now the local seller in Delhi is selling Iroshizuku inks for Rs.1700 and Edelstein inks for Rs.1100. But I feel that it's quite an expensive price for 50ml ink bottles.

Anyways, where do you buy your Inks from and how much do you pay for them? Also, I'm curious, what was your first gold nib pen?

[Praneeth]

Firstly Thank you Praneeth. I was actually considering to buy the Diamine Oxford Blue 80ml from flipkart for Rs.800 as a daily blue ink, as I do not particularly like the blue color of my Sheaffer Skrip blue ink that I had bought along with my Safari. It's a very dull blue which fades significantly (according to my experience, at least) over time on cheap Indian paper. Now the local seller in Delhi is selling Iroshizuku inks for Rs.1700 and Edelstein inks for Rs.1100. But I feel that it's quite an expensive price for 50ml ink bottles.

Anyways, where do you buy your Inks from and how much do you pay for them? Also, I'm curious, what was your first gold nib pen?

 

I usually purchase my products from the USA or Singapore and have someone bring them over. I rarely purchase my products in India as the price is usually exorbitant, however Rs. 1100 for Edelstein inks sounds like a fair deal. Rs. 1,700 for Iroshizuku seems to be a little bit on the higher side. Yes, these are great inks and unless you're going to be using only one bottle or write with a very very wet pen, 50 ml of ink should last you quite a while, so if you really like the colour (And more importantly, the bottle ) go for it!

 

I've used a few pens with gold nibs which belonged to friends and family, but "my own" first pen with a gold nib was a Pelikan M1000. My first experience with a gold nib was a Caran d'Ache Varius Ivanhoe with an Oblique Medium. It was a lovely nib.

[Bo Bo Olson]

As far as I'm concerned a good nib is a good nib, made of steel or gold.

A good gold is not better than a good steel nib.

 

If you buy the 600 and sell the gold nib and put a steel 200's regular flex nib on it....it will be thinner, have a better ride....and not be fat and blobby like a modern semi-nail 400/600 gold nib.

You will save lots of money that can be used to buy better paper and good inks.

 

A nail is a nail, be it gold or steel. Same with semi-nails like the modern 400/600 or P-75....with good pressure a max of 2 X tine spread.

 

Regular flex is mostly vintage or semi-vintage....so lots cheaper ....a max of 3 X tine spread can be had in gold or steel.....the '90's Pelikan 400's with out the gold ring at the piston knob are = to a 200's nib. Those are good gold nibs.

 

Some folks claim their gold nibs are 'soft'............ I've not noticed that.

I suspect someone using a steel nail and got a semi-nail in gold. Yep, a semi-nail is softer than a nail; be that steel or gold.

 

I'm a well known nit picker when it comes to nib bend and spread. I do have grand steel nibs as good as grand gold nibs.

 

Of course one can have a poor steel nib............and there is no guarantee what ever company made the poor steel nib, made a better gold nib................Why???.........they don't let the good workmen work on the poor steel nibs??????

Some think that the pen company will take more care with gold than steel.......it's the 'iridium' that is the same.....

If the company makes poor steel nibs, I'd bet a case of beer it makes poor gold nibs too.

 

If you are buying a gold nib for bling...be honest with your self. But gold don't always buy a better nib.

Edited August 24, 2017 by Bo Bo Olson

[praxim]

Along with ele's commendation of a vintage Pelikan 400, if you are interested in a high ink capacity and otherwise good writing qualities and would like to try semi-vintage, consider also an Aurora 88P. They are a piston fill pen of an attractive style with convenient push cap for frequent use, very nice 14k gold nib.

[PranitSingh]

Along with ele's commendation of a vintage Pelikan 400, if you are interested in a high ink capacity and otherwise good writing qualities and would like to try semi-vintage, consider also an Aurora 88P. They are a piston fill pen of an attractive style with convenient push cap for frequent use, very nice 14k gold nib.

I really liked the Aurora 88P a lot. It's a gorgeous looking pen with a gold nib. I really want it but I can't find it anywhere online. Do you know somewhere I could look online?

[praxim]

I really liked the Aurora 88P a lot. It's a gorgeous looking pen with a gold nib. I really want it but I can't find it anywhere online. Do you know somewhere I could look online?

FPN classifieds.

[Arkanabar]

PranitSingh,

Don't be too quick to dismiss your domestic ink options like Bril, Camlin/Camel, and Chelpark, or, for that matter, Chinese inks like Hero, Doctor, and Duke. There are a lot of fans who bemoan the difficulty involved in obtaining these inks here in the West, even at export prices.

 

Of your first two choices, I'd go for the M600, because the L2K's cap retention "ears" bother me. But these days I'm kind of soured on Pelikans. Mine have been demoted to desk denizens because in use, the cap always crumbles right under the clip ring, and replacement caps are going to cost me USD50+ going forward. If I had dire need for huge ink capacity, I think I'd go for the Pilot Custom Heritage 912, or a TWSBI Vac 700 in XF (TWSBI nibs run a bit wide). I know the TWSBI has a steel nib, but like many others, I find that nib geometry and thickness have a lot more to do with flex than metallurgy, and tipping is what makes a pen smooth.

[max dog]

I have both the L2K and M600. While both are great, if I had to choose, it would be the M600 easily.

[PranitSingh]

Along with ele's commendation of a vintage Pelikan 400, if you are interested in a high ink capacity and otherwise good writing qualities and would like to try semi-vintage, consider also an Aurora 88P. They are a piston fill pen of an attractive style with convenient push cap for frequent use, very nice 14k gold nib.

Do you own one or have you ever used it? I found one in a decent condition with a fine nib for $115. My only concern is if it would have a hard start or skipping issues while using it as a daily writer.

[PranitSingh]

Hey there, I just want to ask for the last time that should I buy Aurora 88P for $110 or rather buy Lamy 2000 for $175?

[mitto]

Buy a good vintage Parker 51 aerometric. Gold nib, classic design and a large capacity ink.

[PranitSingh]

Buy a good vintage Parker 51 aerometric. Gold nib, classic design and a large capacity ink.

I don't particularly like the design of the pen so I guess I'm just stuck with these two options. P.S, both of these are piston fillers.

[Stratguy]

I vote for the Lamy.

[praxim]

Do you own one or have you ever used it? I found one in a decent condition with a fine nib for $115. My only concern is if it would have a hard start or skipping issues while using it as a daily writer.

 

I apologise for not replying earlier. I am basically confined to bed for a few days.

 

 

I own three 88Ps, along with four older 88s. It is from this experience that I commend them. I think they are practically ideal daily writers. Skipping and hard starting are not problems I have encountered, or would not expect to cure with a thorough clean. Buying a vintage pen always carries some risk of course. The EF nib I have in an 88 is a bit fine for my taste. The F and M nibs are practical.

[PranitSingh]

Alright everybody, this is an update for the post. I purchased Pelikan M400 White Tortoiseshell in Fine nib with Edelstein Topaz ink for $240 from Cultpens.com as a birthday gift for myself as I fell in love with the White Tortoiseshell finish, which was only available in the M400 size. The price for M400 and M600 was almost the same, but that finish looked killer to me. Also, I went to the local pen shop in my city and held both the 400 and 600 sizes and found either of them very comfortable (Considering I have smaller hands). Now, it's just that wait that is between me and my pen. Let's hope there are no problems with the customs. Also, I might do a review after getting the pen hopefully.

Edited September 7, 2017 by PranitSingh

[Arkanabar]

I've never had any skipping problems with my Pelikans. They have been excellent writers for me, with whatever ink I've used. They're wet writers, and have long been among my favorite pens.

[ele]

 

I apologise for not replying earlier. I am basically confined to bed for a few days.

 

 

I own three 88Ps, along with four older 88s. It is from this experience that I commend them. I think they are practically ideal daily writers. Skipping and hard starting are not problems I have encountered, or would not expect to cure with a thorough clean. Buying a vintage pen always carries some risk of course. The EF nib I have in an 88 is a bit fine for my taste. The F and M nibs are practical.

As someone who's owned a few vintage 88's myself, I can agree wholeheartedly that they are great writers. Some have truly spectacular nibs, with more give and outright flexibility than the 400s ever seem to offer. But they are not as reliable as daily carry pens--their feeds don't protect from burping as much as the Pelikans do. That may not matter to the o.p, though. Keep the pen nib-up and un-jostled and you'll probably have no trouble.