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Do you use a fountain pen to write checks and if so which ink are you using?

 

Nowadays I use only FPs for any writing that I do. For cheques I use my Sailor profit FP filled with a Sailor "very black" cart.

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Ok this is a newbie question. Is Pelikan 4001 ink considered bulletproof? What about Parker Quink? Is is safe to use these inks?

 

Many thanks.

 

I write all my checks with fountain pens. I have used many colors to write them: black, blue, blue black, green, brown, etc. (not red). If I wanted to write a check for somebody of dubious honesty, I would use a bulletproof ink like Legal Lapis. For writing checks in stores, for utility companies, and other businesses, why bother? After all, you have a receipt and your check register. If you catch them altering a check, you will probably be able to retire to your own island in Hawaii. For a plumber, building contractor, lawn service, political party, etc., yeah, use something bulletproof.

 

Paddler

 

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Ok this is a newbie question. Is Pelikan 4001 ink considered bulletproof? What about Parker Quink? Is is safe to use these inks?

As a general rule, fountain pen inks are water soluable, thus they are not suitable for preventing things like checkwashing. The upside to this is that if you spill the ink on your clothing, it comes right out. (As a klutz, I admit this is one of the things I like about FPs.)

 

There's a few waterproof inks:

 

1) Inks that are iron gall based: Montblanc has at least two. I'm not sure if Diamine's Registrar's ink is iron gall.

2) Inks that are waterproof (there's a very few in this category).

3) Noodler's bulletproof, near-bulletproof inks. These come in more colors than you might think, and survive more than just water (including bleach, sulfuric acid, and other fun things).

deirdre.net

"Heck we fed a thousand dollar pen to a chicken because we could." -- FarmBoy, about Pen Posse

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Thanks Deirdre.

 

What about Lamy Ink? I've read that are iron gall inks. I have a bottle of Lamy Turquois ink. Here's another newbie question ... Does it mean that bulletproof inks are not as good for fountain pens and that they'll have a tendency to clog?

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Only the Lamy blue-black is iron-gall, none of other colours are iron gall. I don't remember anyone ever saying that Noodler's clogged their pen. Less than preferred flow maybe for some inks, but it doesn't contain components that India ink and other potential cloggers do. My limited experience so far has been satisfactory. Of course I use cheap recycled writing pads so that may play a part. However, you may get a bit of a surprise at their higher prices in Singapore

Looking to exchange ink samples! Available: Noodler's Bulletproof Black, Noodler's 54th Massachusetts, Noodler's Black Swan in English Roses, Noodler's Bad Belted Kingfisher, Noodler's Operation Overlord Orange

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Check washing has been a problem for many years. Look below and see two of the old fashion solutions used: a colored band through the written check amount (usually red, black or blue) and a punch device on the numerical dollar amount ( usually embossed or pin punch) The check is from 1878>

Edited by hardyb

The Danitrio Fellowship

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I use bulletproof black, legal lapis and FPN's Galileo Brown when writing checks. For those carbon-copy checks I use a vintage Sheaffer's Balance with a hard fine nib.

Pedro

 

Looking for interesting Sheaffer OS Balance pens

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Check washing has been a problem for many years. Look below and see two of the old fashion solutions used: a colored band through the written check amount (usually red, black or blue) and a punch device on the numerical dollar amount ( usually embossed or pin punch) The check is from 1878>

Some older FP had a security device in the cap which would punch small holes in your writing while simultaneously adding red dots. This was meant to act similarly to your line illustrated above.

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207's or a Noodler's bulletproof offering only, REGARDLESS of receipient. I laugh when I hear things like "unless it's a trusted business, for those I use ballpoint or whatever's handy" because businesses, armored trucks, and even banks are robbed all the time. A deposit may be left in a vehicle overnight, a check can slip away when a till is counted, an armored car can crash on the highway and lose its load (it's happened), a bundle can be misplaced. A check (or other payment device) is not secure until it's been processed and imaged at the end of the line.

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I have a couple of the pelikan roller balls which take FP ink. They use the usual Pelikan converter and I load them with one of the Bullet Proof inks. This works fine for checks and carbon-less forms.

 

They do squeek slightly.

 

Judd

Judd Rogers Lamy Safari M Cursive Italic, 1.1 mm stub Pelikan 200 B Pelikan Go Rotring Initial M and B Waterman 32 Unknown Franken Pen

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My wife writes most of the checks. I use a FP when I write them. I use a Duke Esteem or a Parker "51" with either Polar Blue or Ellis Island. Never have had any problems. Get quite a few raised eyebrows though!

PMS

When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty -Thomas Jefferson

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I use a FP to write all of my checks. Who else does that? Forgers would have to know that about me in order to get away with stealing my checks. They'd also have to match the pen nib and the ink (I'm not telling, but let's just say it's a very saturated ink). It's one way to know I wrote the check. One of many "safety" features employed when I write a check.

Or they could just write all of it in block print except for your signature or even easier, just use a printer to fill in all the applicable info just leaving your signature.

 

Only the most amateurish check washer is going to try to change your 10 to a 100 without changing the written amount on the line below it. Check washers go to a lot of trouble to alter your check and are most likely "go all the way" and not try to save a few seconds at the expense of detectability. They protect your signature and then wash the whole thing is their preferred solvent, usually isopropyl alchohol, and then fill in all the other lines. Done with a printer, this looks just like a check you let the merchant fill in for you and then signed.

 

You are much safer either printing your checks at home with a laser printer and signing them with any old pen OR filling out the whole thing in a bulletproof ink. Even safer of course is paying your bills electronically or paying with a debit card with a personal PIN you enter at every transaction.

Chemyst - You are spot on. However, I only hand write checks. Anything different, I can then identify to the bank, should there be a problem. It's not perfect, like closing the barn door after the horses have run; but at least a fraud can be detected and then dealt with starting with the payee. Washing and re-lasering is possible, yes, but would not work for long. As you said, a pro would do a complete job and so would confound just about common person's security measures. It's all only dealt with after the fact in any case.

 

By the way, how'd you get a photo on the deck of a nuclear sub (attack, boomer or Sea Wolf? - couldn't tell from the con) flying a Jolly Roger (How'd the CO allow that?) in the Thames River in New London? You must know some well placed Navy Brass. If you're at the helm, watch out for the lobster pots. One CO lost his commission about a decade ago for snagging a few on the way up river.

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By the way, how'd you get a photo on the deck of a nuclear sub (attack, boomer or Sea Wolf? - couldn't tell from the con) flying a Jolly Roger (How'd the CO allow that?) in the Thames River in New London?

 

It's actually a 688i returning from a successful deployment. There is a tradition going back to at least WWII to have a straw broom, business end up, attached to highest mast on the sub to signify at "clean sweep" of the mission. More adventurous CO's also fly a Jolly Roger from the aft jackstaff. The American Flag is flown from a special pole on the bridge while surfaced, leaving the aft jackstaff open for such things.

 

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When I can pry the checkbook away from my wife, I definitely use FPs with it. I also write on the carbon copy with the FP (any excuse, eh?).

 

I wrote the last batch with a 2.5° left-foot 0.9mm cursive italic using Noodler's FPN Galileo Manuscript Brown.

 

Which means if one of those checks is altered, ONLY FPN members could have done it. :roflmho:

 

Bill

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I use Noodlers waterproof or bulletproof inks for checks. If I needed to do carbon copies, I'd still use and FP, just one with a rigid/stiff nib. Sheaffer Triumph nibs are great for this.

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom. 5:8, NKJV)
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I can't say I've ever heard of a recent instance of check washing or forgery of any kind. I pay almost all of my bills with checks - rent, credit cards, phone.

 

However, I've personally experienced credit card fraud - dunno where they got the number - and hear about it constantly. I feel MUCH more safe handing out a few checks instead of keeping my credit card numbers on file with multiple companies! The only two bills I pay with credit card are because they provide a discount.

 

I use my Parker Jotters for the checks. Tried a FP and couldn't get it to register well on the copies.

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I use my Parker Jotters for the checks. Tried a FP and couldn't get it to register well on the copies.

I use an Esterbrook with a 9461 manifold nib & noodler's black. Fraudproof, and a solid impression on the carbon.

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However, I've personally experienced credit card fraud - dunno where they got the number - and hear about it constantly. I feel MUCH more safe handing out a few checks instead of keeping my credit card numbers on file with multiple companies!

The scariest fraud for me would be debit card fraud. I don't use my debit card at all, nor do I carry it (except when I'm going to/from an ATM). Even when there's no liability, the thought that someone could clean out my checking account and have it take days or weeks to resolve just scares me.

deirdre.net

"Heck we fed a thousand dollar pen to a chicken because we could." -- FarmBoy, about Pen Posse

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However, I've personally experienced credit card fraud - dunno where they got the number - and hear about it constantly. I feel MUCH more safe handing out a few checks instead of keeping my credit card numbers on file with multiple companies!

The scariest fraud for me would be debit card fraud. I don't use my debit card at all, nor do I carry it (except when I'm going to/from an ATM). Even when there's no liability, the thought that someone could clean out my checking account and have it take days or weeks to resolve just scares me.

 

I've been with the same financial institution for almost 25 years. If they see *anything* even slightly out of the ordinary, they contact me and verify my use. The first time this happened to me, they put a hold on my debit card until verification when I purchased a cd's worth of songs to burn from one of those online outfits (not naming which one). I'd used them before, burned an entire cd for one cost, but this time they charged me individually for each song I'd selected for the cd instead of a collective charge. 15 separate charges of $1 or less went through on the card and my bank was saying, "wait a minute here..." I haven't used that music service since. Since then, my bank calls about once every two to three months just to be safe, and I'm happy with their watching out for me. I have just one actual credit card with a very low maximum (per my request, and it can only be changed by my written permission) that I use for emergencies only or things like rental cars or motel rooms that don't like debit cards. I use my debit for just about everything else. I know where my money is and I watch things closely. That, and I keep only what I deem necessary in my checking. If someone were to get a hold of my info, they wouldn't be going very far.

Edited by kiavonne

Scribere est agere.

To write is to act.

___________________________

Danitrio Fellowship

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