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Is Double A Everyday Paper Good For Fountain Pens


jcgara

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I've used Double-A Premium 22lb paper for a couple of years as my standard loose-leaf paper for fountain pens. I can't find it anymore in the Western US, but Costco is now stocking Double-A Everyday 20lb paper.

 

Has anyone used Double-A Everyday paper with a fountain pen? If you have, what did you think of it? I'm tempted to buy a case, but I'd like to know if I can write on it before I buy.

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  • 1 month later...

I've used Double-A Premium 22lb paper for a couple of years as my standard loose-leaf paper for fountain pens. I can't find it anymore in the Western US, but Costco is now stocking Double-A Everyday 20lb paper.

 

Has anyone used Double-A Everyday paper with a fountain pen? If you have, what did you think of it? I'm tempted to buy a case, but I'd like to know if I can write on it before I buy.

 

Are you talking about looseleaf binder paper?? The kind that you use in school?? Or something else? If we are talking about standard looseleaf binder paper, then you can probably use it with a fountain pen. Now I am about to show my age: I used a Parker 45 Arrow through 6th -- 8th grade -- what is now called "Jr. High" -- and all throughout High School, when all assignments had to be handed in in INK. Fountain pens were still more economical to use that ball points, especially more so than the still a days ubiquitous BIC Ballpoint that had a nasty habit of exploding in ones shirt pocket. I still used it when I was in the Army from 1970-1973. I have no idea how 20lb and 22lb paper compares to 90g Wt. Clairfontaine paper, but I had no problem using that Parker 45 loaded with Parker QUINK in all that time.

 

Unless looseleafs have gone out of style -- they might have during the "computer era" -- I'd say bum a few pages off of some kid and try your own tests to see if it will do.

Edited by azbobcat
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I have no idea how 20lb and 22lb paper compares to 90g Wt. Clairfontaine paper, but I had no problem using that Parker 45 loaded with Parker QUINK in all that time.

cf: https://www.redrivercatalog.com/infocenter/pounds-to-gsm-conversion-chart.html and https://paperworks.com/about-paper-weights

 

The "pounds" notation tends to be somewhat irregular in that, properly, it refers to the weight of a ream of the parent stock sheets from which the package is cut. cf: https://www.papersizes.org/paper-weights.htm and https://www.papersizes.org/stock-types.htm

 

#24 BOND is a different thickness from #24 INDEX, etc.

 

 

 

{As an aside: as I grew up, "Junior High" was 7-8 grade, "Middle School" was 6-8 grade}

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1-Double A paper in 20lb has a great track record with Fountain pens, as of when I bought a case 6 years ago.

i have no way I can rationalize buying another one to test it though.

 

2-If you are buying in store, you can a,ways return it for not fitting your needs, or you can always just drop the case off at a store for not fitting your needs.

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  • 4 months later...

I've used Double-A Premium 22lb paper for a couple of years as my standard loose-leaf paper for fountain pens. I can't find it anymore in the Western US, but Costco is now stocking Double-A Everyday 20lb paper.

 

Has anyone used Double-A Everyday paper with a fountain pen? If you have, what did you think of it? I'm tempted to buy a case, but I'd like to know if I can write on it before I buy.

I rarely stop by to FPN anymore, but on a whim I was browsing for a source Double A paper since I'm about to run out.

 

FPN began a love affair with Double A 22# Premium a few years back as a result of its price differential with HP 24# Premium Paper. Double A performance was similar, price was about half of HP. I never understood the cult following for HP 24# nor the HP 32# Premium. Claims of no feathering, bleeding, show-through were a bit optimistic. What I discovered was an overall tolerance for "meh" paper in today's fountain pen users.

 

Personally, I don't care for heavier weight paper to write on, so the 32# paper was out. And it's performance really wasn't all that it was purported to be. The HP 24# paper was more to my liking weight wise but it had a "dry" dragging feel I didn't care for. Performance wise it was poor to fair concerning fountain pen inks. Only my finer nibbed pens loaded with very well behaved inks worked and then there was feathering, ink spreading, bleeding,etc.

 

It seems only us old fogeys know what it's like to use a fountain pen on good-excellent paper. Those vintage papers laugh at wet, BB nibs. Crisp lines, beautiful sheen without the hacks promoted at FPN, beautiful shading, no bleeding, no feathering, no show-through. NONE, period. Weight??? didn't matter. I have a vintage index card written on by my mother-in-law with her trusty fountain pen, 40 years ago, that would make the sheen crowd swoon. I keep it to remind me that no matter what is touted, today's papers just can't match yesterday's. Drying times are a big deal these days, but again, way back in time, smudging was something you simply dealt with. (So, like, get the hint about inks and paper.)

 

I chose Double A because the overall fountain ink performance was similar to HP 24#, the surface had less of the dry-dragging experience-smoother over all, and it was way cheaper. An added bonus is that as a printer paper not a writing paper, it performed flawlessly with my inkjet and laser printers.

 

Now to the crux of the question. I purchased a box of Double A Everyday 20# paper based on the blind faith that the manufacturer's specs were still in place and the only real difference was paper weight. It arrived yesterday, I did a cursory trial with a few pen/ink combos that have been loaded specifically to deal with Double A 22# / HP 24#. I'm pleased that on this running pass it appears to be similar quality and performance for my intended uses.

 

No plans to go into extensive testing with Diva inks or wet pens. I already know it will flunk the test as logic suggests it won't be "better than" only "equivalent to" or "worse" than Double A 22#. My initial impression is that it is no worse and possibly equivalent.

 

I'm based in the USA and was able to find 10 reams at CleanItSupply

With shipping it was still at a competitive price. Since Double A isn't always available in the USA, I feel like I won the lottery.

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