Do fine nibs wear out quicker?

[itsame]

Hi,

 

I'm thinking for my next pen, to buy one with a fine nib. However, I'm assuming that because fine pens, are well finer (and thus more brittle), and because they put out less ink for lubricating the page, they are more likely to age quickly, if not more likely to break.

 

In your experiences, do fine nibs last as long as medium nibs? Do nib sizes even affect their lifetime?

 

Thanks.

 

edit: grammar

Edited June 13, 2009 by itsame

[Ondina]

Being finer does not mean they are more brittle, the hard material used in the tipping (misnamed iridium, as it was the metal alloy used in the old days) will wear evenly in both fine and broads. A broad will be more forgiving if harshly treated by a non user, won't misalign as easily in my own experience, but as for hard metal wearing, they will give survive many years of use.

[Bartimaeus]

Hmmm. When writing you control the pressure, I should think. Pressure equals force divided by area.

If you have a fine nib as opposed to a broad, you will use less pressure and so also less force. (I suppose that the force is relevant for the abrasion of the tipping material.)

But I don't think that fine nibs lose their tips earlier than broad nibs (if properly handled).

But I agree with Ondina that fine nibs are more delicate and are easier to mistreat.

[Daosus]

A fine nib will be a bit less forgiving than a broad nib. It WILL also wear out faster, since there's typically less tipping material. However, wear-out time is measured in decades of heavy use. Odds are something else will fail before the tipping material. And, you can always re-tip for not too much money. So, don't let durability be an issue for you when selecting a point size.

[welch]

I doubt it. The nib is more likely to outlast any plastic parts in the pen, assuming no one drops the pen on its nib, steps on it, uses it as a screw driver, or decides to write on concrete.

 

Nibs will go out of alignment, and I've seen 60 year old pens with almost no "iridium", but wear seems similar across nib grades. A "fine" and a "medium" are both pretty thin compared to the world they meet.

[Daosus]

Welch, you forgot "uses your pen as a dart."

[framebaer]

I doubt it. The nib is more likely to outlast any plastic parts in the pen, assuming no one drops the pen on its nib, steps on it, uses it as a screw driver, or decides to write on concrete.

 

Nibs will go out of alignment, and I've seen 60 year old pens with almost no "iridium", but wear seems similar across nib grades. A "fine" and a "medium" are both pretty thin compared to the world they meet.

 

I would speculate that 60 years ago (before computers,cell phones, PDAs etc.) people WROTE far more than anyone would in current times. More use more wear.

 

i think it would be very tough to wear out any nib with hardened tipping intact. ( I have seen many "worn out" Esterbrook nibs however)

 

[Beechwood]

No they dont wear out quicker, it will just feel like it.

Edited June 13, 2009 by Arthur

[FrankB]

I agree that a Fine nib is not more brittle. How any nib wears depends on how the user treats the pen and nib. If a F nib does wear out quicker than another nib size, how long will it take for the wear to be apparent? I have some pens I got new that are over 40 years old. I have others that are 80 or 90 year old vintage pens with original nibs. Many of those nibs are EF or F and none of them are worn out, so it is an issue that I am not worried about.