Waterman Forum

[ToyfaceWonderman]

This is the second review by my good self. About the Waterman Forum. I managed to snag this off of eBay on the cheap, I mean very cheap.

Let me start by saying that this pen is rather enchanting. it was released in the late nineties(somebody please correct me if I'm wrong). It was sort of a Kultur type of Waterman. I don't think cheap is the right word. It did retail for about £12 or so, but it's worth more than that in my eyes.

I'll start with looks. To me it looks like it's made out of some form of wood. When it's not, it's plastic The whole pen sort of feels aged to me. The nib looks old fashioned to me as well, it's gold plated and rather thinly shaped. The whole pen has a sort of nostalgic feel to it, and I keep on forgetting that it's not old at all! The grip is a point of issue though, it's very VERY small, and for my writing style a tad difficult to grasp. But that's a matter of personal preference. The pen is nothing but at home looking smug and very handsome indeed.

It has a medium nib. It creates a very thick line, for a medium and it's also quite a wet line. As in I can see light reflecting off of the ink, something that reminds me of my CHEAP Parker days. Not good. I'm using Waterman Florida Blue in this as well, the pen seems to love it. A tad too much I'd say. Smudging is quite an often occurence as well.

All in all it's an extremely nice pen and I'd give it a 7 out of 10, on account of the very thick wetness of it's lines. However, if you see one on ebay going cheap, or just in a clear out somewhere. I urge you to buy it. It might suit you down to the ground. If nothing else it looks nice in a leather pen case! It is a very nice write. Has a tiny bit of tooth, but can make writing scruffy, again, that's personal. As my writing is...well...shoddy at best

[georges zaslavsky]

Great review but that pen desserves 9/10 for me. I always found this pen perfect and it was inspired by the top of the range model the famous Le Man 100. The nib on mine is great and it is as smooth as it was when I baught it 16 years ago. Tough it is a pen with which I don't write anymore but when I was a student it was my grail pen.

[ToyfaceWonderman]

If I'm totally honest mine isn't in the bestest of conditions. I'm sure mint ones would be alot better. But it is very VERY smooth, but I can feel it's teeth. So the nib has probably been knocked a tad. The wetness was my main complaint. But overall it is an AWESOME pen in my book as well lol!

[Univer]

Hi All,

 

Another "thumbs up" for this little-noticed pen. I recently picked up a NOS fluted chrome model (black trim), and it has turned out to be a very nice surprise.

 

Smooth (and wet) gold-plated Fine nib that writes more like a Medium. Very lightweight, well-balanced and non-fatiguing to write with (think of a lighter-weight Targa). The section may be a touch slim for some, but the three plastic ribs that form the "waist" of the pen offer alternative gripping surfaces.

 

The fluted design clearly echoes the look of the higher-end Watermans of the 90s; you wouldn't exactly mistake this for a LeMan, but - considering its price point - it's a rather elegant pen.

 

Definitely an underappreciated pen, and (I think) one to keep an eye out for.

 

Cheers,

 

Jon

 

 

[Blackhill]

I've got a silver-fluted Forum with black and red trim. I agree with everything Jon says about this pen. It is a very smooth writer and one of my favourite pens.

 

Cheers,

Laura

[MJSchuelke]

The Forum is a very nice little pen indeed. I used one as a school pen from 1993 to 1996, and later at university, until it dropped onto its nib (and, therefore, to death) in a lecture theater in 1998... :-( I distinctly remember being given it somewhat earlier, maybe in 1991, at a time when I didn't care much for fountain pens -- which would put the release date into the very early 90s, at least.

[Martius]

These are great pens. And the Waterman forum is a great forum.

 

The lower-end Waterman pens are not to be underestimated. I can't think of a pen today that can beat the Phileas/Kultur in the same price range. The Cross Solo is better and also cheaper, but they stopped making those.

 

Best,

Summer

[Juan in Andalucia]

I think they were released in the mid to late 80s; I remember a guy in my classroom in my last year in high school, and I think he used one of these. I have 2 of them, but didn't know their name!. To me they were the plastic version of the Centurion, which is another great pen. Good review.

 

Juan