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  1. collectorofmanythings

    Pilot E95S (Elite 95S) Review

    Hello! First of all, this is only my third review on FPN, so if you can please leave constructive criticism below! I would love to improve the quality of my reviews. The Pilot E95S seems to be like the least expensive gold nib pen that is consistently offered here in the U.S. . The only cheaper one I can think of is the Platinum PTL-5000A, which I would love if it was consistently offered in the U.S., but they seem to constantly discontinue it. So, this is a very popular first gold nib pen. It was my second gold nib, so I did get it relatively early in my fountain pen hobby. For a quick summary of the review, I like this pen. I don’t love it, but it’s is great value, and I definitely recommend it. Design and Build Quality (8.5/10) For the most part, this design is great. It is slim, but comfortable, has a great inlaid nib (which I love), is compact, but bigger when posted, and the feeling of capping and uncapping is great. But, Pilot’s black resin does not hold up to the little metal things on the inside of the cap that hold it on. It has fine scratches on it, which are pretty apparent. Now, I am one of those people who sort of like that, and don’t really want pens to look brand new, I want them to look like I used them. But I can understand how this can annoy some people. That’s why it’s a 8.5/10, instead of a 10/10. Nib Performance and Writing Experience (9/10) This nib is great. I have a fine nib, which is 14k gold and inlaid. It is smooth, and quite soft. I would call this a flex, semi-flex, or soft nib, but a quite soft nib. By that I mean that you can get some line variation, but not that much where you can use it for calligraphy, just a bouncy writing experience. The only thing is it is just a bit particular with inks. Both Noodler’s Walnut and Diamine Chocolate Brown were just a bit too dry for it, and it had some skipping. But all Herbin, Jacques Herbin, and Iroshizuku work great with it from my experience. With them the pen is not especially wet, but I wouldn’t call it dry either. With the writing sample, I used Jacques Herbin Terre d’Ombre, which is currently my favorite ink but might be replaced by Robert Oster Caffe Crema when that ink sample gets to me, and on 52gsm cream Tomoe River Paper. Conclusion This a great pen, and a great value! I highly recommend it. It’s really great! Little Note- It seems like every place I go to except for JetPens sells it as the Pilot E95S for $136, but JetPens sells it as the Pilot Elite 95S for $136 as well. Just a little thing. Edit- It was to commemorate the 95th anniversary of Pilot, but is not a limited edition. It also comes with the Pilot CON-40, but can fit the discontinued CON-20. Now the pictures: The second to last photo shows scratches on the barrel, and the last one shows the metal things on the inside of the cap.
  2. Straight outta Shanghai, crossing vast oceans and lands, comes the latest from PENBBS, the model 487 magnetic filler eyedropper. By now, you've all read about the revival in magnetism in fountain pen filling with the likes of Piedmonte Pen Design and the PENBBS Year of the Rat 492 Well this here's the one for the masses. Same set up as the 492 but a bit more accessible to purchase and just as competent on the magnetic cap pulls magnetic piston. Goodies My first fill brings out the delightful novelty, look ma, no rods! Neato, speedo! The mechanism is very easy with the clear instruction card provided. Initially the push/pull of the piston was stiff and ChrisRap52, Douglas Rathbun, What I Ink, Inky.Rocks YouTube reviews are good for unstuckth tips by turning the piston. This thing holds a lotta ink sans rod and the magnet is plenty strong, heck you can even turn it into a deskpen Fit and finish are superb. This is my first PenBBS pen and I am very pleased beyond the mechanism, if replaced or broken, this would serve as a superlative eyedropper regardless and that is a very good thing.It posts securely but makes the pen over long and I don't post even though I'm a serial poster. Purdy - Chatoyance, pearly pearls all the way from cap to barrel. Described as brume, mist or fog in French and I had to look that up; there went the college French.Balance - this pen has "it" unposted which very few pens do for me. I love the taper and grip section, very well balanced like another fav balance, the FPR Himalaya v2 or Sheaffer ... Balance!Smoother writer - the RM, round medium has no skips and no leaks. The flow gushes with Monteverde Blue Black. Very surprised for my first PenBBS pen. Waay waay better than the (bleep) Moonman M8 dry junky nibs coming out recently Neutral This pen is long, like Cross Peerless, Pilot 743 length. But not an issue for me unposted Baddies Hard to say for only a week in of usage. There is so much good!! Well this pen does have magnets so I steer away from mechanical watches and maybe some electronics unless data scrambles from poor to nil gauss shielding. It does not stick to the titanium Conid though. Design flaw alert: Unlike the 492, the back end cap does not appear to unscrew meaning the end is not user accessible to poke a chopstick on the magnetic piston if it gets stuck. And oh boy, it done stick, stuck, stooky. I'm still on my first fill despite using it onstop daily journalling, scribbling, todoing. For fun, I tried moving the piston to dispel the empty void but no go. Argh!!! I had to syringe out the ink as my theory was the magnet is not strong enough to dispense against the feed. It did start moving again thankfully once the barrel is emptied with ink, but it shows a fatal design flaw where if the magnetic piston does get stuck at the end cap on full fill there is no way to release the piston short of a more powerful electromagnet. What I surmise is that the piston attaches to only one side and may displace at an angle if a weak push/pull attempt is made. If the piston gasket is askew from perpendicular from the inner barrel, stuck city. When I made another attempt on a full pen, the piston finally moved and jerkily burped ink successfully out the feed and onto my hand. This is definitely in need of some user practice or I'll settle for long serial fills at a time.That said, if the piston is irrevocably stuck, one still has a very competent eyedropper pen Summary Despite the non-end cap user accessibility, PenBBS 487 is a wonderful pen on its own write/right. Pretty, functional and balanced aside from its nifty novelty of filling mech.
  3. Problem in India with starting with fountain. I won't tell why one should try and use fountain pens, there are enough content on this point. I am assuming one knows why you want to start and are on very tight budget and can't really afford the starter pens (as was in my case) cos lets be honest in India a student is dependent on family and he can't really say that I want 2000 Rs for pen and Ink. No family I know will allow this. I mean one can get 3 Rs dot pen and 5 Rs gel pen, who in sane mind will allow their kid to get something expensive which might be lost, broken or worst stolen on day 1 of school. Just see the number gap one can get literally 1000 dot pens for 1 Metropolitan and 1 bottle of Lamy Ink. Then is the famous reputation of leaky piles. ( false one but still exists). My past experience. My starting with fountains began with goal of improving my non-legible writing to at least legible one. Fountain pens do help in improving writing and if you have any goal of trying to improve it do try them. Back in the day fountains were readily available for cheap 30 to 40 Rs which were worst at best they leaked all over, concept of convertor and cartridge was non existing and nib width and feed was kinder joy surprise. And this is what makes the reputation of fountain pens as leaky mess which should not be used and I too started to think the same. Until a shopkeeper gave me Camlin trinity and said that if this leaks he will change it for free. The pen then was 70 Rs and this was the turning point. Trinity never leaked and I used Trinity and for next 5 years eventually switching to dot for various reasons for next 5 or so years. Ink pens never really got out of my life though and was always used from time to time until in my university where I shifted to full time fountain and ditched dots. mainly cos I felt my writing degrading to bad and more flexibility with work which allowed me to use the pens to full. This was also time when I was exposed to "starter pens" namely Metropolitan and Lamy safari. they were big investments for me but I decided to go ahead and take the plunge and it was totally worth plunge. Main point of cheap fountains and which to choose and which to avoid and why. First a disclaimer I have no Intention of hurting any brand or maker I am just writing my personal experience with the pens I used. Now lets divide Budgets- Cheapest I can suggest- Pen- Camlin Trinity ( Price around 100 Rs)/ Camlin Trinity Elegante (Rs 200 around).This is the cheapest I can suggest to anyone with a fact that it won't have the issues of leaks and will have solid body and OK to good flow. My first trinity is still with me abid with broken nib. Then pen is plastic and metal at cap. The pen is small in hand and very narrow and will be perfect for kids and people with small fingers. Trinity Elegante is larger pen with better look and finish and comes in larger nib size then tiny nib of Trinity. This also writes a bit better. Both have convertor with them. Ink- Parker quink (around 60-80 Rs) / camlin ink there is issue with both of them. Last time I used parker it was too light and got lighter still with time. My 5 year old writings are now quite faded. Not disappeared but fading is there. Camlin on other hand has issue of not being available everywhere and I can't say much about fading as I did not have much experience with it. total cost 180-300. what to avoid here My experience with Pierre Cardin's cheapest fountain of 100Rs has been worst of all. The nib was good and flow was nice with fine lines but body was so flimsy that it actually broke when I tried to remove the snap cap which it comes with....how can I write with a pen which breaks in process of removing the cap. 2nd one did survive the opening of cap (wow what a criteria) but broke eventually and I could bend the body with 2 fingers. So no this is no from me. Other one is classmate octane fountain pen. As good is octane gel and dot the Rs 40 octane is very poor flow pen with paper scratching action. Don't go for this. 3rd Parker Beta, again too scratchy on paper to point one can hear it scratching on paper. 3rd are assortment of who knows what pens of 20 to 50 Rs. got too tired of them in my starting days to ever look at them. for those with a bit budget (under 1000Rs) Pens- Parker Vector GT ( around 400Rs) / Parker Frontier (around 500 Rs) and Kanwrite Desire (around Rs 700) Parker's have same same story as camlin here Vector GT is smaller pen best for small hands and comes with tiny nib while Frontier is larger pen with larger nib size. Both will come with convertor. This will be first proper smooth fountain pen experience and these both don't scratch or give much feedback. they will be good for anyone. Kanwrite is different cup of tea and is proper fountain pen and is all a fountain should. The pen will come with convertor and separate nib sizes of #5 and #6 with options of width. These were absent until now you were stuck with whatever nib you have but here is where things will change. the pen is not without flaws abid need for silicon grease if one wants to convert eyedropper and even for feed when pre coated grease is over else it will leak from convertor. (at least in my case it did). Still this is best I can say to start with fountains under 1000Rs. others one can look at --- ASA Pens have great reputation for making good pens. Never got to try one personally but rarely have I seen bad writing experience (this matters most to me) from anyone who has used them. (will get myself a ebonite pen from them after this lockdown, my First ebonite). Jinhao personally never got to try one so can't say but again they have good reputation for the price point. Ink- Waterman serenity blue (around 450 Rs) this is non-waterproof ink but will work perfectly with any pen and will not bleed or feather on any paper ( never tested on that brown rough registers) and is easy to clean both on cloths and in pens ( you will understand this properties worth after ruining a couple of your shirts). this is my first attempt here so I hope this helps to those who are struggling with starting and are wondering how to get 2000Rs for starting the hobby or as normal pens. pls put any questions You have I will answer them to best of my ability and will try my best to push you in this rabbit hole. PS do point things that I missed or your own experiences would love to hear them.
  4. peroride

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    From the album: peroride_pen_pics

    Relatively affordable note taking pens

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  5. Family owned and operated, Fountain Pen Revolution has come out with their version 2 of the Jaipur fountain pen. Currently there are only 2 acrylics, a blue and an orange and 1 ebonite brown which is the subject of this first look reviewlet. What is it? A piston filler of Indian origin designed and branded by FPR along with a stable of other brands that they sell. The ebonite is smoother and finished better than the Himalaya v2. Himalaya looks and feels more matte whilst the Jaipur is slicker and sheenier. The length is a smidge longer and girthier than the Himalaya with a more cylindrical shape. I much prefer its profile over the himalaya v2 and that pen feels almost perfect. Comparison to an M600 would longer, less taper and slight less girth. Jaipur hits close to Lamy Safari dimensions. Left to right: Leonardo Momento Zero, Pelikan M600, FPR Jaipur v2 with Ultra Flex nib, Lamy Vista (clear Safari) and FPR Himalaya V2 The Jaiput v2 piston filler pen can be completely disassembled for maintenance which is a big plus. Additionally the ebonite feed and nib can be swapped for #6 plastic ones at the FPR shop. Takes about one and a half turns to uncap and Jaipur posts deep and secure. I totally love this. The pen is light at 19.5 grams on my coffee scale. How does it feel?Imagine a light Pelikan M800ish/Lamy Safari sized pen with a very slight tapered grip ending at a very clear and useful ink window. Add an ultra flex steel cut out shouldered nib tuned with an ebonite feed backed by unencumbered volume of piston full of ink. Finally, finally I have converted and firsthand witnessed the praise of pleasurable FPR affordable flex writing. I dare say it is up there with 4x more expensive 14K Gold Jowo flex. Unlike my first stutterings with Himalaya v2, Jaipur v2 wrote straight out of the box no problems. No flushing of feeds or heat settings or bum leaky convertors. I just rinsed the nib and .... WTH!! Let's backtrack... I received shipping at work and could not wait to get home to ink the baby up. Everything check out: no defects and superb build quality, piston worky if not a bit stiff. Knock on wood, I got one from the good batch?! then I came home all hot and bothered in the FP heat phase when to my surprise, I could not undo the blind cap. Blind cap? What's that you say? Well unlike a regular piston converter like Montblanc 146, Pelikan M series, Sailor Realo, etc etc FPR Jaipur v2 has a beautifully thin crafted end cap that the user screws to reveal the actual ribbed piston knob. Clockwise knobbing fills and counter will dispense. I could not get the dang thing off and then I heard a rattle sound and saw separation from the piston mechanism and barrel. We were not dealing with a captured converter here. So just before I'm ready to make love with my new pen, i dun brok it?!@ WTH!@#$ No amount of silicone gripper oven mitt strength twisting would undo the blind cap to access the knob for ink filling! I was really upset as I was not sure I was either tightening the blind cap or loosening it. It would not budge and so I had a pen that could not fill unless I syringed from the nib end which unscrews for nib swaps; basically Jaipur as a crappy eyedropper. Then I remembered FPR introductory video and rewatched for the direction of the twists during the Jaipur overview. https://youtu.be/rkX1p47KbM4 I ended up untwisting out the whole piston assembly then I was able to get better purchase on the blind cap and free it to expose the piston knob. But now I had a piston part to reattach. Luckily I was able to rescrew it back in and get the piston working again. I could filler up! Writing, writing and writingJaipur v2 chews ink up and I love it.Finally can go full plow and refill to use up ink stash. Akkerman Garuda Rood - wet juicy yumCrappy De Atramentis Bamboo Green ink sample - feather like crazy but still juicy though had a couple of skips and hard startsDiluted Organic Studio Nitro also sold at FPR - WOW BAM POW! that and Akkerman have been stellar. I dunno maybe it's the piston volume and not that skinny skank convertor of the Himalaya v2 but the Jaipur v2 feels like a homerun on the writing experience. Page after A5 page, I can just gush and pour without issue with the right ink. The only negatives were the super tightening of the blind cap which I did not truly did not over tightened which I "fixed" with silicone grease ?! to the inner threads AND hard to turn, stiff piston which I hope to fix with silicone grease to the ink chamber though I kinda don't want to mess up the honeymoon by unscrewing the nib and potentially ruins it!! In all, Jaipur v2 is a worthy flagship and I prefer it over my 2 Himalaya v2s: 1 good and the other meh . No heat setting, flushing, leaking, etc. I just fill and write now. As a true testament to this pen, I bought another one at the time of this reviewlet, this time in blue acrylic to see if it holds up to this faithful ebonite version. Hey, need more data points? Here's YouTuber Larry of Larry's Fountain Pens with a word: https://youtu.be/Rj2_eDTcSDU Peace out, write on!
  6. Osprey Pens - Milano Ojemoka Japanese Ebonite (F) fountain pen, a long term BIFL investment for generations to come Take home: Hidden gem of extreme value in a classically designed Japanese ebonite pen with a mission toward the future: Appearance & Design (10) - This is a classic flat top subtly tapering cylindrical design much like a vintage Parker Duofold. It sports a rolling ball clip, secured threaded post, small grip section with unobtrusive threads after a small step down from the barrel. … Construction & Quality (9.5) - Construction is excellent with an extreme polish of the rippled coffee moka brown/black Japanese (Nikko) ebonite hallmarking the centerpiece of tactile appeal. Color is almost like a darker Eboya Tanshin (red). Tolerances are high without wiggle when cap or post threaded. There is a minuscule < 0.25 mm step between the finial and main body cap at their join. If I tap hard on the bottom barrel I can hear the converter tick, tick against the inner barrel. … Weight & Dimensions (10) - 24 g with < 1/3 partially filled converter. It really sized like a Duofold lookalike or like a modern version of my Waterman 55. It takes a lot to rank in this crowd: (top) Parker Duofold Centennial, Aurora 88, Sailor KOP, Osprey Pens Milano, Sailor 1911L, Waterman's 55 from Dr. Robert Tefft estate, Pelikan M605, Pilot 743 (bottom) … Nib & Performance (9) - Plain steel appearance hides great smooth performance with a hint of feedback with a well controlled flow using Waterman's Mysterious Blue. Nibs are interchangeable, #6! If Osprey Pens has a nibmeister, they are doing a terrific job! I did get to try the notched semi-flex on another of their pens and it had no line variation whatsoever but was a softer than nail writer. My pen stands on its own with the default nib as a daily writer. Absolutely no complaints. I have a Waterman's 52 wet noodle so maybe I am biased, but pen companies have no business even marketing flex but I understand they have to pray to the flex religion. Minus 1 point for dry out of the feed but resolved when I fed the feed by turning the converter … Filling System & Maintenance (9) - Dead on standard cartridge/converter and easy to flush. The original pen came with a medium nib and the CEO swapped it to a fine on the spot without adjustment. The Milano can be converted to an eyedropper fill with silicone grease as there is no metal threads, just ebonite to ebonite. … Cost & Value (10) - MSRP $70 USD?! Paid $61 from 20% pen faire discount!!! I had my eye on an Eboya and now see more Osprey Pens in my future. … Conclusion (Final score: 9.58) - This average score should be multiplied by 100s for the sheer mission of Osprey Pens: to give back and empower the next generation of fountain pen lovers with affordable tools. Everyone should support this mission. Here's the little background story: The local art store had its long running "Pen Faire" and we made our 2nd pilgrimage to see what they had in store. There were crowded gatherings around Lamy, Sailor, Visconti and Yafa's stable of brands which left a gap in the circle of tables for a new brand I did not know. We squirrelled over to the new unknown brand. On the table were a nice conservative set of flat top Duofold lookalikes in nostaglic tortoise shell, green and black acrylics. A black chase faux rubber one caught my eye (turns out it was real). They also had the faux flex nibs with the cut outs de rigeur in fashion. What also caught my attention were the well-dressed reps who looked out of place from the more casual pen folk. "What have you got here? I never heard of Osprey?", I asked the young gentleman dressed in a suit. Next to him was a somewhat older rep whose was silence I mistook as the junior rep boss. Why am I telling you all this and not about the pen? Because for the next 5 minutes, the young rep proceeded to introduce his brand, Osprey Pens in an unlikely fashion. He talked about how they were contributing to schools to promote pen use in kids lives. He explained they had to get around core curricula entrenchment by offering an elective program based on their pens and nib holders with zebra-G nibs (comic steel nibs) to make it fun (comic drawing) for the kids and not something they are compelled to do. He kept on it and in between I'd look at the "boss" to see if he would intervene or note praise in the younger's presentation. Nope, the fella went on about the mission to empower a new generation to see our love of fountain pens amidst the digital competition of tablet and iPads and other attention suckers. Osprey pens is on a mission to give back and inspire kinda like Tom's shoes or Patagonia, businesses that care enough beyond profit to value corporate responsibility. The value proposition was customer driven purchases help their community program of fountain pen promotion through Osprey Pen donations. I still didn't get to learn more about the pens and he didn't "sell" me on them but rather the big idea was this giving back to the next generation. We could really feel the passion of his conviction and to my mind he passed the brand's spiel "demo" though I did not get a word edgewise about any sales appeal about the pens. What duh?! Tell me more about the faux BCHR, damnit! The pens were gorgeous, classic and conservative much like my top best pens I narrowed down: current I finally did get to confirm the #6 nibs, cartridge/converter basics from the older rep and another helper who I thought was from the art store. Turns out she was their inhouse calligrapher! In the end, all the details finally got fleshed out: They are a local company They give back to the community and promote fountain pen love Their product is solid, classic and incredibly affordable. Osprey Pens is a big win. After my wife and I stood there receiving the speech, I'd had hoped we start a small gathering and eventually folks paid attention. But I was a little exhausted so before I committed I wanted to make the rounds especially to check out the new Sailor lighthouse. Nothing was compelling to buy except that feel-good-rationalize-helping-pen purchase with Osprey. They didn't need it as the pen sells itself, but the young man really made an impression on us. When I came back to purchase the black chased hard rubber much like a modern version of my Waterman's 12 POC then they pulled the rug over my eyes and showed off their other Japanese ebonites, which the other rep said were the best sellers. It was between a black top, ripple body or all ripple. Ultimately I got the all ripple Eboya replacement. Most surprising of all was when I asked for a card. Turns out the young junior rep was the CEO/Founder, Abhi Rao! Both embarrassed and impressed, I asked for his autograph on the pen box to mark the memory, but instead he offered to write me a letter if I gave out my address. My Milano is a special pen, but more so, Osprey pens giving back is what will ultimately serve the hobby in the long run. Think about it. For the hobby to grow, it needs to spark new joy in others. Osprey Pens is on a mission and I'm grateful to support them. The gorgeous pen is just the icing on the cake. P.S. Turns out they've been doing this for a while and there's a bunch of solid review videos on their pens. I have no affiliation with Osprey Pens just a satisfied customer; I think they need more exposure/marketing, though.
  7. Hi everyone, As a fountain pen collection and restoration enthusiast it has been very hard in my city to come across more affordable pens, after exhausting the selection of easily available ones (I have a tight budget as I am a student) However, a few days back I went to a stationary shop for some work and say that they had some old chelpark inks on display (ofcourse I bought all of them), curiously I asked the man if he had fountain pens, he told me that he had many old unsold ones and didn't know where they were, after a lot of persuation he agreed to look for them and have them ready in a few days. So the next day I went and he said he didn't find them and to come back a few days later. So I did, again and again. (was pretty desperate to get a hold of some childhood oens) Fortunately, after a week or so, he finally had them ready. They were not exactly vintage, but old pens indeed, some quite damaged. I got a few Camlin No. 6 pens, some Flora Pens (the model number is not known) and a couple Hero 323. All of them were more or less usable atleast after some repairs. This brings me to my question, if this man had old stocks, probably other shops do too, and it would be great to have a few tips on how I can get these shops to sell me their old stocks, even if they're broken or damaged, how do I persuade them to dig them out for me, because every other shops I've asked, have said 'no we don't have fountain pens" to my face. Btw I'm new to FPN (this is my first thread) Regards, Anurag.
  8. Hi FPN Community Members, I would like to get straight to the point here, do you have reference to notebook cases that is quite affordable? My price range is $10 - $20. I understand that maybe genuine leather might be out of reach at that price point but could you guys point me to some items in the price range? Preferably that ships to South East Asia, thanks!
  9. Hi! Straight to the point: what pump-filler pens do you know of? I know of Edison's Pump-Filler but the price is more than what I can afford ($350 for a steel nib and $450 for the gold nib besides international shipping...) so I'm looking at a "51" Vac which is about a fifth of the price. Do you guys have any other suggestions at this lower price point? I'm also aware of the Pilot 823 and TWSBI Vac700 which have a plunger of some sort. Open to those kinds too that are not variations of a lever filler. Thanks!
  10. After using a stub nib for the better part of a couple of months, I've became truly in love with line-width variation and the fact that these nibs work well with the shading that I so love in my inks. However the stub nibs directionality (upward/ downward strokes) doesn't seem to work that well with my left hand and the odd way in which I hold my pens. As such, I'm really interested in trying flexible nibs which offer the line variation am going after, but without the directionality limitations. However, I see that those nibs are far more common with vintage pens than with current ones. So am reaching to this wonderful community to guide me in the right direction. I want to buy a pen with a flexible nib but my budget is a little constrained at $100. Do you think I could find something useful with this budget?
  11. Jared

    Bottled Ink Cost - Per Ml

    I really like how The Writing Desk shows the cost of ink for sale per ml. Perhaps this is in part to push the sale of their own rebottled Diamine ink at a lower cost, but it helps me see the overall cost vs volume. Looking at the Goulet Pens website, here are the current costs per milliliter of bottled ink for the most common and available brands in the US: Aurora - 45ml, $15.00, $.33 per ml DeAtramentis - 35ml, $12.50, $.36 per ml Delta - 30ml, , $15.00, $.50 per ml Diamine - 80ml, $12.75, $.16 per ml - 30ml Registrars, $15.50, $.52 per ml - 100ml Registrars, $29.75, $.30 per ml - 30ml Flowers & Music 10 bottle sets, $89.00, $.30 per ml J. Herbin - 30ml, $9.75, $.33 per ml - 100ml, $20.00, $.20 per ml - 50ml 1670 inks, $24.00, $.48 per ml - 10ml Scented Ink Sampler 5 pack, $21.00, $.42 per ml Lamy - 50ml, $10.50, $.21 per ml Montegrappa - 42ml, $20.00, $.48 per ml Monteverde - 90ml, $12.50, $.14 per ml Noodler's - 1oz (29.6ml), $13.50, $.46 per ml - 3oz (88.7ml), $12.50, $.14 per ml - 3oz (88.7ml) Blue Ghost, $13.50, $.15 per ml - 3oz (88.7ml) Polar Blue, $16.00, $.18 per ml - 3oz (88.7ml) Eternals, $18.50, $.21 per ml - 4.5oz (133.1ml) Bulletproofs, etc., $18.00, $.14 per ml - 4.5oz (133.1ml), Waterase, X-Feather, etc., $19.00, $.14 per ml - 4.5oz (133.1ml) Baystate/Cape, etc., $21.00, $.16 per ml - 4.5oz (133.1ml), Polar Blue, $24.00, $.18 per ml - 4.5oz (133.1ml), Kung Te-Cheng/Sepia, $27.50, $.21 per ml Omas - 62ml, $15.50, $.25 per ml Parker - 2oz (59.1ml), $10.30, $.17 per ml Pelikan - 62.5ml, $11.00, $.18 per ml - 30ml Highlighter, $16.50, $.55 per ml - 50ml Edelstein, $25.00, $.50 per ml - 50ml Edelstein Turmaline, $26.00, $.52 per ml Pilot/Namiki - 60ml, $12.00, $.20 per ml - 50ml Iroshizuku, $28.00, $.56 per ml Platinum - 30ml, $7.00, $.23 per ml - 60ml Mix Free/Pigminted, $20.00, $.33 per ml Private Reserve - 50ml, $8.80, $.18 per ml Rohrer & Klingner - 50ml, $12.00, $.24 per ml Sheaffer - 50ml, $9.00, $.18 per ml Stipula - 70ml, $19.00, $.27 per ml Waterman - 50ml, $10.40, $.21 per ml Most affordable ink by ml: Monteverde & Noodler's - $.14 per ml Most expensive ink by ml: Pilot Iroshizuku - $.56 per ml
  12. I love the look of this pen but it is way out of my price range. I have seen it selling for around $550 up to $800. I can not justify spending that much on one pen, no matter how beautiful it is. I am sure my husband would blow a gasket if I even mentioned it. http://www.pengallery.com/product_images/f/714/ST_Dupont_Limited_Edition_Audrey_Hepburn_FP__61778_zoom.jpg Does anyone know of any fountain pens that are similar in style/color but more affordable (around $100 or so?) I don't care about brand name as long as it is reliable and works well. I would love to have a light pink pen. I am really taken with the look of the white and light pink together as well. I love the shape of the barrel; slim yet shapely. As for the cap, I prefer rounded over squared shapes.I don't care for the diamond design on the top of the cap either. Silver or gold trim is fine. So here are my priorities in order: 1. Color: Pink; preferably light pink or white & pink (No demonstrators) 2. Nib: Something smooth and consistently a good writer ( I am willing to purchase a nib separately if there is a good one you can recommend that will fit the pen). 3. Shape: I like slim (not stick thin) with some shape to the barrel and prefer rounded ends. 4. Price: Around $100 5. Has a converter to use bottled ink.(This is not a deal breaker though since I could fill an empty cartridge with ink, but it is more of a hassle.) Does anyone have any suggestions? Or is it hopeless dreaming?
  13. I am trying to decide on an appropriate FP and need advice. I had a look at previous threads asking something similar to what I have asked below, but they were from 2006. I will continue looking at relevant threads. What will I use it for? I am a university student (post-grad) who writes a lot (around 50 pages or more of equations per day). What do I use currently or used previously? The university provides ballpoint and also fineliner pens. The ballpoint pens make my fingers ache after a few pages. As I put a bit of pressure, often in the heat of the moment, the tip of fineliners get pushed back inside and they no longer work. The alternatives I have are: gel pens and FPs; I have chosen FP due to lower operational costs. I had a Parker FP (one of the Sonnets) which broke unfortunately (I fell asleep on it while writing in bed). I did not like this FP very much either as the ink cartridge was rather small, the pen dried up quickly during the pauses in writing, and ink flow was not smooth. What do I want in the new FP? durable & reliable: heavy usage as mentioned abovecomfortable: good ink flow and smooth flow of the nib on the paper.good sized ink cartridge: while I can refill if I am at my desk, but this is not always the case.affordable: as a student I do not have a large budget; perhaps sub $100 (but can be stretched if absolutely needed).classy (not entirely necessary): I do not like very colourful or oddly-shaped designs very much; I like something that does not draw attention to itself. I like black, shades of grey, and white/silver/metallic colours. From the pens I have seen, Waterman Carene FPs, in my opinion, are the most beautiful of them all.misc: I write on rather cheap writing pads so fine or extra fine tips may be most suitable.Thank you in advance for taking the time to help! P.S: Please feel free to request more info if I have failed to mention something. P.P.S: I apologise for my failure to spell the topic properly.
  14. AncientScribe

    Everyday Notebooks

    Hello, I just started using fountain pens last year about halfway through my most recent school semester. I use a Lamy safari with a fine nib inked with Parker Blue/Black and I am not happy with the performance of the cheap notebooks I have been using ( feathering, bleed through, etc). I am looking for a better notebook to use for taking notes in school and I usually go through about 12-15 80-100 page notebooks a year so I would like them to be somewhere in the 5 dollar or lower range. I have been searching the forums and online for a while already trying to find a quality notebook at a decent price but no real luck yet. I live in Canada so many online retailers make it impractical to order from them even with lower prices, example: Goulet pens wants 35 dollars just for shipping on 5 notebooks. Any advice would be welcome.





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