One Brand (Fp + Ink) For Life

[mamajones]

What a devastating question. So many options. Notable mentions to Graf and Lamy.

Ultimately, for me it's an argument between Pelikan and Pilot.

Pilot inks are better, Pelikan pens are better.

On balance, I think you'd agree picking Pilot is the right option.

 

What is with the depressing questions lately? I'd have to agree with Darth_Roo about pens / inks (and add Sailor to the mix), but have to disagree in the end: Pelikan all the way!!

 

As a matter of fact, I spent almost 25 years (1989 - 2016) doing what this thought experiment proposes. I knew there were other pens and inks, but it was Pelikan all the way for me. And although back in the day Pelikan inks colors were limited, I concocted my own personal blend of blue-black and violet that I used with my only pen (a blue-striped M400).

 

In 2005, my sweetheart gave me a white tortoise Pelikan he found in Levenger's catalog. (What a sweetie!!) I think I bought another M400 sometime before 2016, when I went pen and ink crazy. Now I have 23 Pelikan, 14 Lamy, 10 Sailor, 5 Cesar Emiliano, 4 Pilot, 2 Franklin-Cristoph pens, and a Nakaya in a pen stand.... (doesn't quite scan right, but close.) Not mention the 7 other good pens to be named later. (And the drawer full of Jinhaos to give away.)

 

BTW, my sweetheart is still my sweetie, albeit sweet husband now.

 

And instead of 3 kinds of Pelikan ink (violet, blue-black, and blend), I have 219 colors in bottles. I say colors because I have more than one bottle of some. And of course I have a "couple" of ink samples too.

 

Life is good!

[Margana]

Platinum.

[Lam1]

Why Pelikan, of course!

Between the Edelstein and the 4001 lines they have plenty of nice colors for me and their pens are my favorite by far!

 

Second place would go to MB.

 

Pilot and Sailor have interesting inks, but their pens fail to excite me (with the exception of the Custom Urushi red).

[The Good Captain]

I'm not a fan of Pelikan enough to say that I'd be content to use only Pelikan pens and Pelikan inks, but if I could only have one (1) pen and one (1) ink, both from one and the same company, it'd be my M900 + 4001 blue-black.

 

Whew

I might add my M420 M with the 4001 Blue-Black as well. Just to be different...

[Qoan]

Platinum

[chromantic]

Herbin does make a fountain pen:

https://www.amazon.com/Herbin-21900T-Transparent-Fountain-Pen/dp/B00VA4P62W/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=herbin+fountain+pen&qid=1562816710&s=gateway&sr=8-3

[Intensity]

Sailor! I would be very content using both their inks and pens. Then Pilot.

[sciumbasci]

Herbin does make a fountain pen:

https://www.amazon.com/Herbin-21900T-Transparent-Fountain-Pen/dp/B00VA4P62W/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=herbin+fountain+pen&qid=1562816710&s=gateway&sr=8-3

They actually have a full range of writing supplies and leather goods

 

https://www.jacquesherbin.com/en/writing-instruments.html

[khalameet]

Definitely Pilot. I don't even think I would bother with the Iroshizuku inks. I think I would choose a Custom 823 and Pilot Blue Black.

 

IF there would be the possibility to use only one pen company and only ink company, I think I would choose a Pilot pen and a KWZ ink. But since this is not the topic here, just ignore this sentence

[aurore]

Sailor or Pilot.

[tim77]

Easy: I would choose Waterman. Their inks are exceedingly well behaved, and can be freely mixed to make more interesting or useful colours. Waterman pens write beautifully, and are sufficiently inexpensive that they can be carried everywhere without worrying about damage or loss.

 

Of the three pens I use everyday, one is a Waterman Carene and the other two contain Waterman ink.

 

Id miss my Diplomat Aero and KWZ ink though.

[Steveg58]

Hmm, I can live happily with several one brand combinations.

Platinum 3776 plus Platinum carbon Black.

Sailor 1911 Large plus Sailor Seiboku.

 

Acceptable combinations with not quite as good Ink or pen. Generally I mark them down because of a lack of permanent inks.

Pilot vanishing point - I don't have a Pilot ink that I really like for everyday use.

J Herbin inkroller with a whole range of J Herbin inks. Okay it isn't a fountain pen but hey it is a great workhorse writer.

Rotring Freeway plus Rotring cartridge inks. Good luck getting replacements for the 1990's ink cartridges.

Lamy LX- I only have ink samples but they seem nice enough even with no waterproof options.

Blackstone brass pen and Blackstone barrister blue. Almost great.

 

Almost acceptable combinations

Noodlers' Ahab plusCatalpa or Coral Sea. The pen lets it down.

[A Smug Dill]

Sailor first, no question there

Platinum second (I love the waterproofness of Platinum Carbon Black, and the Classic Ink iron-gall inks I've used are all very good)

Pilot third

 

For me, Pelikan definitely would not make the cut, although Aurora might. Perhaps PenBBS, if it made more pens available with EF nibs; I haven't tried one of its EF nibs yet, but its F nibs write too broadly for my taste, and the saving grace is that they all seem to "reverse-write" finely and smoothly enough with the nib slit facing towards the page and the feed facing up/away; I'd prefer Delike and Moonman pens to PenBBS pens any day.

 

I haven't tried any Nemosine inks. Its pens are dependable, good for what they are, but also rather boring with such a narrow range of models and finishes.

[VivaTerlingua]

Sailor, easily. I would miss my small vintage pen collection, but I simply cannot be without Rikyu-cha or Souboku.

[Gawain]

It use to be all about the pens, but now its all about the ink.

Noodlers' all the way.

[sciumbasci]

Im a hipster at heart. Id go with Dollar, just because the 717i was my first pen. And because I could say Im packed with dollars!

[A Smug Dill]

Im a hipster at heart. Id go with Dollar, just because the 717i was my first pen. And because I could say Im packed with dollars!

 

Now you're making me want to start my own brand Spunk™ of fountain pens and inks.

Edited July 12, 2019 by A Smug Dill

[Arkanabar]

Pelikan, for the M2xx and 4001 Brilliant Black. That's where I started, and I could have continued like that for a very long time. I suppose I could blend Royal Blue and Brilliant Black to make myself a decent blue-black, or perhaps find one in the Edelstein line. And I suppose I could carry a Stola III to work.

But I suppose I could find some workable Pilot pens (right now I have only a Prera, and the occasional use of my wife's Kakuno) to go with Pilot Black and Blue-Black. If I MUST have brighter colors, Iroshizuku has me covered.

 

Dangit, no. I have gifts and legacies from Parker and Sheaffer and I am not going to be rid of those. I love my ebonite and I don't care if the Indians who make my ebonite pens don't make any inks I want. Even if a house fire destroyed my entire collection, I still wouldn't limit myself this way.

[twin63]

Franklin-Christoph. I haven't tried any of their inks, but I'm not particularly adventurous when it comes to ink variety. So, I think I could live with the basic color selections in order to use their pens.

[PAKMAN]

Pelikan would be my pen of choice but I don't love their inks. This is a tough one! I guess Visconti pens and inks might be my answer.