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Hey guys! Just thought I'd introduce myself. I'm a 19 year old Pharamacology student (pre-med) and I actually just recently took an interest in fountain pens (about a week ago). I then went out and purchased a pack of Pilot Varsities from my local OfficeMax to see whether FP's are for me. I loved the way the FP's wrote, and now I can't even fathom how nice it would be to use a better FP for my daily writing. My professor even complimented my pen while we were taking a quiz last week. I'm currently awaiting my shipment of FP's and Ink to arrive. I ordered a Lamy Safari (F), a Pilot Metropolitan (M), The Lamy Z24 Converter, and some Waterman's Havana Brown ink. I've basically been getting my fix of FP's from Youtube video's this past week. LOL. I also went out and purchased a dip pen a few days back and a bottle of Higgin's black Ink. It's been a fun few days. I'd appreciate it if you guys could give me some advice on how I can make my FP experience as enjoyable as possible. I'd love to here from all of you FPN veterans. Also, I'm looking for suggestions as to what my next pen in my collection should be. I'm thinking of upgrading to a gold plated nib that write nicely. I'm also a college student so please keep suggested pens relatively cheap. Thank everyone! -Fahad

Hi all! I've suddenly decided that I want to start using a fountain pen. I would like to know some pens that are great for beginners, but professional looking . I am a student, so chances are that when I am not using my computer, I would be using the fountain pen. Also, I don't know which is better, cartridge or ink (from the pot) and I appreciate help in that section as well. Thanks

Hey guys! So I'm looking for a second pen, I'm a newbie, I know. I'm looking for a nicer pen (I have a Lamy Safari XF now), and I want one with a bit of heft, a good FINE nib, and a nice sleek design. It can't be that flashy, I'm going to bring it with me back to college, but a nice pen between 100-150 would be great. Below 100 would be ideal, but I'm willing to pay more. The only requirement I have, and this is why I need all of your help, is that the nib has to write REALLY finely. I know those can be a tad scratchy, but I just need a really fine nib. Finer than a Lamy XF, if that helps. My handwriting just cannot take even medium nibs and still be legible, so please help guys! Thank you!

hi guys tell me how is my handwriting, good, bad, which style and should i improve etc? help me plz thnx

as found before, im 16, and only have $70 in my pocket. ive been trying to get a job, to no luck as of yet. is there any way i can stretch this money to be able to start up and run the buisness? i want to use it as a money making source... so i can get more pen stuffs!(and other stuff i keep glaring at) my parents arent helping with funding, so its going to have to work :/ it'll get me money faster, because i dont think repairing pens goes to the extent of having restricted work hours haha.

Hello FPN. I just started up a etsy shop that makes hand made fountain pen cases. The current ones I have will fit larger pens like the Vac700 and the M800, but I want to make sure what I create caters to the fountain pen community at large. With that in mind I have decided to take a page out of TWSBI's book and take a look and see what kind of needs are out there in the community. I am thinking of making a smaller case to fit the TWSBI Mini and the Kaweco Sport, and woudl like to know if the need is there. Here is a link to my shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/quillquivers Take a look and let me know what kind of items you would like to see in future, or suggestions to improve what is already there. Cheers, Phil

A while ago I discovered this pen thrown around a draw... It was a cheap Chinese pen with a marble-like body and oak cap finished with chromed fittings. The nib was damaged and tines blended apart. Moreover the ink cartridge was damaged and it leaked blocking off the feed and leaving horrible strains in the body. so yesterday I decided to dive the body into a weak bleached solution and restore the feed. As the nib was completely damaged and I had a spare semi-flex steel nib from fountainpenrevolution I decided to try a swap... First attempt was a completely fail. The nib´s body diameter was just too big to generate enough pressure against the feed so the ink didn´t flow at all... Then I decided to cut part of the body of an old falcon nib from a drip pen and press it between the pen´s nib holder and the nib so it created extra pressure... And voilá! after converting it into an eyedropper, the pen works perfectly! Some work needs to be done in the feed to allow more flow as the previous nib was extra fine and this is medium. Also as the nib has some flex, the feed can´t just deliver enough ink so this weekend I´ll do some work around it. After 20 mins of work and 7 pounds spent on a nib and some silicon grease, I have a semi-flex pen that behaves very well for everyday use This morning as I had to do some work with the feed, I also decided to tweek a little bit the nib and give it some polish...

So here's that 2nd part of the review that I promised. I'll include the other pens that I meant to in the first review, as well as some others that I have purchased since. I'm doing my best to keep the reviews a fair comparison between the two groups (a rating of 7 in this review will deserve it just as much as in the previous review). Baoer 519: A: 7, F: 8, V: 8, D: 7 On the recommendation of another user in Pt. 1 of this shootout, I purchased one of these in FP for myself and one RB for my brother. Both are very nice pens, slightly thinner/smaller than I expected (for some reason). They're a good size though, and a well built pen. The cap clicks firmly, and the metal/laquer is all very nice. I immediately polished the gold off of the top of the nib because I don't think it matches, but to each his or her own. I will say two things about posting the cap on this: the cap is a bit overly heavy (not as bad as the Jinhao 159), and it's difficult to physically push the cap down on the rear post. It won't go all the way down on either pen. Still, it holds firmly. Also, very much to my liking, the top of the cap screws off, allowing the clip to be bent back in case it is bent away from the cap body. For a cheap stamped steel clip, this is a farily nicely built one with a good level of spring to it. Oh yeah, writing: it writes well. Quite smooth from the box, with a slightly too-dry line (easily fixed). reliable, and it writes with little to no pressure. Overall, can't beat $6 just to have a spare around. Parker Vector: A: 6, F: 4, V: 4, D: 5 This was one of two middle school pens. The other was a clear blue and chrome Sheaffer that was also poor. Yeah, this isn't going to be a great review. I really do like the look of the pen and nib, but the plastic is way too cheap and prone to breaking if even slightly over-tightening the barrel. The medium is way too thick for me, but writes ok when it writes. I admit, this was a better writing pen back in middle school, but I can't clean it up and make it write at all anymore. For the price, it's not bad, but I've had two barrels and a cap crack on me, and the writing experience was never wonderful. Man would I love this pen, this nib shape, if it were only relaible and the plastic were a bit nicer. Picasso 916 Malange: A: 8, F: 6, V: 6, D: 7 This is a really great looking pen, somewhat in the same class (though not as nice) as the Pilot Prera. It's modern, gets looks (namely in the brighter colors), but doesn't look too Wall Street. This is what would go with a Banana Republic outfit. The metal body has a good weight to it, but it's still fairly light, and the cap is not too heavy. The laquer is well applied. The nib is pretty, and with a little adjustment can write pretty well, but seems to suffer from possible baby's bottoming as it takes a small amount of pressure to write. The clip is difficult to remove and quite stiff, but not terrible, and I can't imagine it being bent away from the pen easily. One more thing, the cap does not post easily. It seems secure, then pops because of the air pressure built while posting the cap. It seems to take a twist forward and back under pressure to make the cap stay, and when it does, it's very secure. Clicking the cap over the nib is also a great feeling, not like any other pen I have (though not necessarily better). That said, I got the orange pen, and am kicking myself for it. The color in reality is this awful light pastel carrot color, bad enough that I limit my exposure out of the house. The 'Carolina blue" RB that I got for my brother is much nicer (although I wouldn't use it since UNC is my school's rival). I imagine the white and black versions would escape this problem, and the red, pink, and green look like they'd be better picks. Sailor HighAce: A: 7, F: 9, V: 8, D: 6 I don't know how I missed this in my last review. This was the first new fountain pen that I purchased since middle school (and since inheriting my grandfather's collection). This is a wonderful writer, for those of us who like fine nibbed pens. There's a feedback that this one gives that no other pen gives, it's wonderful. It's a very light weight pen, but the slightly heavier aluminum cap feels really great posted on the back. The pen is very simple, unassuming, clean, but still attractive. The plastic doesn't feel cheap. The converter is excessively expensive in comparison to the price of the pen, and it has to be a Sailor converter, but the normal ink cartridge writes for so long with the fine, slightly dry nib that I really don't mind refilling it by syringe. This pen has become my go-to BSB pen, and has held up to almost a year of the ink in the pen solid. This and the 78G offer very similar writing experiences. The barrel has a hole in it, so no ED conversions, although I'm sure you could epoxy that hole shut easily if you really wanted to (no real need though). Noodler's Ahab: A: 6, F: 5, V: 7, D: 7 This is a great pen, but it's a specialty item, and one that needs more intensive care. A medium flex pen at this price is impossible to find, especially one that writes a proper fine under low pressure. But I have trouble keeping ink in the pen (1 week capped on its side or nib up and the ink is gone) and also with ink bombs (leaking into the cap), and this is a big problem as a daily writer. The nib and feed will definitely need fiddling. All that said, it's still a wonderful pen at this price, but you must seriously need it for flex writing (or at least write daily with the pen). The size is very comfortable even posted, the piston mechanism is quality, and it's an easy ED converter, which is good because this will drink ink. Also, some people have figured out where to grind the nib to make this a much easier flex pen. Definitely worth having in a collection, but I don't trust it enough to keep with me on business. On a side(ish) note, this plastic, as you know, smells. I still like the idea of using renewable materials, and there's a nice "softness?" to it. You're best COMPLETELY disassembling the pen and washing all plastic components many times in soapy water and leaving them out to air dry for a week or 4. Eventually the smell will go away, and you'll be happy you bought the thing. So yeah, 5 more affordable pens. Of this pack, I think I'd have to go with the Sailor. It's one of the few pens I'd take to a job interview with me because it's dead reliable, unassuming, professional but not executive, flies well, and because it handles BSB like an absolute pro. FYI, the other pens I've taken to interviews include: Safari (Kung Te Cheng), Parker 51 (Lexington Gray). That's a pretty short list of a lot of trust. Hope you enjoy and can make use of these reviews. Greg

I was wondering if there are any common places (EX: Certain mall shops, stores). I just dislike how in online store I can't see and feel everything and only have the pictures and occasionally video. Not to mention the anxiety attacks waiting for packages to arrive, so any store suggestions?

Hi, It's my 18th birthday soon and so my parents will probably be getting me a new pen! What are some options for less than $400 AUD? Thanks!

while i do not(yet) repair pens myself, i have something that may be useful when adjusting nib tines. The Eye Clops microscope is a handheld digital microscope, and does 100x, 200x, and 400x magnification. it has lights built in to light up the object, a screen showing the magnified object, and can take picture or video, if need be you need to post it somewhere. downside is, im not sure how practical it is, and you dont really need the 200x and 400x for obvious reasons. another downside is the need to hold the pen and the microscope, unless you can figure out a mount for the scope and pen, because its a bit tricky to adjust the pen correctly to the microscope at such high magnifications. a pen mount is optional but will free up both hands and keep you from having to adjust it to keep it a sharp image. i would post samples but im having quite a time finding the usb that plugs into the top...

I have two Edison Herald Grandes that I adore. The oversized pens are very comfortable in my hand, but I there's one problem: I cannot find a pen case large enough to stash them to take with me when I'm away from my desk at home. I have a ten pen case that's great, but it's too small for the long Herald Grande pen bodies. Can anyone recommend a pen case large enough for these behemoths? Leather would be great, but any material sufficient enough to protect the pens would be fine. Room for 2-4 pens would be ideal, but I'll take what I can get.

I've been using Emerald for 6 months now. Shadow for 1 month. And just got my Demonstrator a couple days ago. I am loving the fountain pen community and everything about pens and ink thus far. The creativity and emotion and personalization that comes from using a fountain pen is absolutely amazing. I am glad there are others out there who feel the way I do! I had to give my first two pens names because they came from a kit, and thus do not have names. My demonstrator is by far my favorite, especially after I learned to open up the ink flow. It used to write slightly scratchy, but now that it's much wetter, it is much more pleasurable to write with. Have a look at my arsenal thus far, I hope to collect many different pens and inks. -Schellenberg http://i.imgur.com/e6NeU57.png