Wality Fountain Pens

[JJZ]

Hello,

 

I am sucker for a good low cost pen. I have been looking at the Wality's on Ebay and at Retro Pens. My finger is on the trigger to order one, but I am hesitant because I don't know what filling system to get. I have one eyedropper filled pen and I love it. I would order that style in a heartbeat. I love seeing the ink slosh around as I am writing. My issue has to do with the the reviews I have read that state the Wality eyedropper pens leak. I would truly appreciate anyone's advice, direction, or experiences.

 

Thanks,

 

JJZ

[Ernst Bitterman]

Having plumped for the piston filler, I think I'd recommend the ED. The seal needs a LOT of watching, and any leaking issues with the ED are more likely in the line of a dribble around the rather simple feed that would be common to either format.

[Robert Hughes]

I have a Wality 69 ED pen - Not the fanciest pen by any means, but it works well. It's big and hold a ton of ink. It also holds a ton of air and a charmingly quaint feed, which means that in cooler climates it has a tendency to blorp all over. I think of my Wality as a "summer" pen. It has a nice smooth steel nib and a "big pen" feel to it.

[rwilsonedn]

I have a Wality 69 ED pen - Not the fanciest pen by any means, but it works well. It's big and hold a ton of ink. It also holds a ton of air and a charmingly quaint feed, which means that in cooler climates it has a tendency to blorp all over. I think of my Wality as a "summer" pen. It has a nice smooth steel nib and a "big pen" feel to it.

 

+1. My Wality 69 also leaves substantial droppings without warning. I had a long e-mail discussion with Steve Braun at allwritenow (who also seels beautiful Indian eyedroppers, by the way--no affiliation) about it and concluded that to make the 69 a useful pen I'd have to recarve the feed to create more or deeper collector slits. I haven't gotten around to that yet. If you really love the 69--and it is a beautiful, really big pen--you might want to discuss with Steve asking him to rework the feed for you.

ron

[jmw19]

I have a 69LFB, piston-filled, and agree with Ernst. I've had issues getting a full fill into it, because the piston will rotate in place, rather than retract, due to loose tolerances. Removing all grease has helped, but means I'm relying on the piston flanges to seal the pen. They've been good so far, but I still end up resetting the piston every time I refill to get back the lost space.

 

The feed's been fine on mine, though it is a wet writer. I've had some fun trying different nibs and feeds - it's got a Sheaffer 302 setup at present, which fits well but is still pretty wet. Esterbrook nibs will barely fit (I've got a 2314-M with the threads ground down most of the way that presses in), and I have the thought that you could probably thread the section for them very easily. A piston-filled Esterbrook...

 

I've not had the "blorping" issue, even with some Noodlers inks that creep. I like the size of the pen, and it balances well, but given the piston issues, I'd vote for the eyedropper. I really like the clear barreled versions they do, but I love skeleton pens and demonstrators.

 

Best,

Jon