Hello from Berkeley

[indigirl]

Greetings all you pen fiends,

 

I first entered the Fountain Pen Zone sometime in the early 90s when my father gave me an old neglected Montblanc he had received for his college graduation (in the early 60s). The body was in bad shape but the nib was like nothing I'd ever experienced before. I proclaimed that I would never write with anything else! Unfortunately, quite soon some plastic part of the pen broke -- I've blocked out what it was. Even more unfortunately, I knew *nothing* about the repair of vintage fountain pens & so relied upon the lifetime warranty note that was still in the box. I sent my poor pen off to Montblanc; they called & said it couldn't be fixed (too old, no parts) & instead, after some arguing over the meaning of "lifetime warranty", sent me the equivalent of a floor sample of a new pen. When the pen arrived, I was profoundly disappointed to realize I had traded in the best thing I'd ever written with for something that was completely different, a dead stiff thing. (Sorry if I'm insulting Montblanc fans -- maybe you can enlighten me & help me appreciate what I've got!)

 

I then set out to learn what the difference was & how I could get my hands on something closer to my lost first love. Conclusions: 1) I like a flexible nib, 2) New pens with flexible nibs are beyond my budget, therefore 3) Vintage is where it's at for me! I found an Eversharp Skyline at Amsterdam Art's vintage pen counter (RIP), fell in love, again declared I would never write with anything else. Shortly that pen also broke (I promise I'm not abusing my pens! Really!) but this time I had the wisdom of experience & got it repaired appropriately. Finally understanding the fragility of old pens, I decided not to let it leave the house... which means I do write with other pens quite frequently now!

 

I later inherited 2 other vintage pens when my grandmother died: a Parker 51 & what appears to be a knockoff of it, called Harbinger 91. Both quite firm of course but somehow more pleasant than the Montblanc for me. I don't really use them because they are in need of some professional TLC, which I haven't ever gotten around to (budget priorities, again). I carry in my purse a cheap Kaweco sport & also have a Rotring Artpen for traveling.

 

Such is my tale! If anybody has recommendations for anything in the budget range... I'm more than happy to be educated & have my fountain pen world expanded! I ended up here because I'm currently in one of my occasional ink-obsessing phases.

 

Indigo

[indigirl]

P.S. I also have some rapidograph technical pens... I just saw that folks here talk about those too.

[Kalessin]

Welcome to FPN!

 

There are plenty of cheap fountain pen choices. Under $100 you'll find Pelikans, Lamys, pens from India and China, all kinds of things like that.

 

I'm a big fan of Pelikan and Montblanc, and then also vintage pens of all types... if you look in the Pens for Sale forum (part of the Classifieds area) here on FPN, you'll find a variety of pens for sale. User-grade 51's, second-tier names, etc. Most of the sellers in the Classifieds area have been around here quite a long time, and are a pleasure to do business with.

 

 

joel

Edited July 28, 2009 by Kalessin

[Akumar]

P.S. I also have some rapidograph technical pens... I just saw that folks here talk about those too.

 

 

Try parker sonnet they start from 30 USD and go upto almost 350 USD for gold nib and silver body like Parker Cisele or Parker Fougere

[RayMan]

Welcome.

[pen2paper]

Hi Indigo..check the FPN sales forum..

often you'll find restored, (rescacced, etc), vintage flexible, semi-flex nibbed pens at reasonable prices..Plus, very often there will be a handwriting sample of what the nib can do..besides the text description..

 

 

[ralphawilson]

Welcome from the other side of the most beautiful bay in the world (IMHO)!

 

Wonder if you might like one of Richard Binder's old stock Merlins. Reasonable, and flexible, or semi-flex.

[bluefish65]

Greetings, Indigo and

 

For vintage, flexible I highly suggest checking out fellow FPN'er obnubilator (Rick) for sale postings. Linked below is his latest:

 

14 Vintage Watermans

 

Greg

[pen2paper]

Greetings, Indigo and

 

For vintage, flexible I highly suggest checking out fellow FPN'er obnubilator (Rick) for sale postings. Linked below is his latest:

 

14 Vintage Watermans

 

Greg

exactly.. and that RT woulda been Mine, but for the 4 speedracers who PM'd 1st!

have bought from Rick in the past.. one of many here you'd be pleased to purchase restored vintage from..

DO check out those Merlins from Richard!!!

[bluefish65]

I feel your pain. I was too slow on the one I wanted

 

Should remind you, Indigo, you gotta be quick if you see one you like!

Edited July 28, 2009 by bluefish65

[Deirdre]

Welcome Indigo -- as someone in the Bay Area, please try to get to the PPPC meeting on Saturday. People do bring vintage pens at a wide range of price points, so you can certainly try to find one that'll suit you. If not, well, you can look at 'em.

 

Oh, and meet all of us in the bay area.

[indigirl]

Wow, hi everybody! Thanks for such a warm & helpful welcome

 

I am ogling those Merlins right now... you enablers (I'm not decisive enough to jump on those other pens that require a lightning-fast email.)

 

Sadly my Saturday is all booked up already. Do you meet often? Is it always in Milpitas, or do you move around the Bay Area?

[Deirdre]

Sadly my Saturday is all booked up already. Do you meet often? Is it always in Milpitas, or do you move around the Bay Area?

The PPPC meets quarterly and not always in Milpitas.

 

The Pen Posse meets up more frequently, and you can look in the Clubs, Meetings, and Events area to find out more. The Posse is kind of ad hoc, but Lisa (ethernautrix) is our ring leader.

[EventHorizon]

From one lover of vintage to another, welcome!!

 

Might I recommend Esterbrook as a good vintage pen at a very decent cost. A "basic" Model J can be had in very good and ready to go condition for ~$30. Please note that they are not known for having flex nibs and not all are hard as nails. Please note also that I am some what biased towards Esterbrook.

Edited July 29, 2009 by EventHorizon

[playpen]

Welcome. What a tale! You are sure to find evertying you need right here on FPN. Have you tried the Lamy Safari? It's really inexpensive (twenty dollar range) and is fantastic!

[Sailor Kenshin]

Greetings all you pen fiends,

 

I first entered the Fountain Pen Zone sometime in the early 90s when my father gave me an old neglected Montblanc he had received for his college graduation (in the early 60s). The body was in bad shape but the nib was like nothing I'd ever experienced before. I proclaimed that I would never write with anything else! Unfortunately, quite soon some plastic part of the pen broke -- I've blocked out what it was. Even more unfortunately, I knew *nothing* about the repair of vintage fountain pens & so relied upon the lifetime warranty note that was still in the box. I sent my poor pen off to Montblanc; they called & said it couldn't be fixed (too old, no parts) & instead, after some arguing over the meaning of "lifetime warranty", sent me the equivalent of a floor sample of a new pen. When the pen arrived, I was profoundly disappointed to realize I had traded in the best thing I'd ever written with for something that was completely different, a dead stiff thing. (Sorry if I'm insulting Montblanc fans -- maybe you can enlighten me & help me appreciate what I've got!)

 

I then set out to learn what the difference was & how I could get my hands on something closer to my lost first love. Conclusions: 1) I like a flexible nib, 2) New pens with flexible nibs are beyond my budget, therefore 3) Vintage is where it's at for me! I found an Eversharp Skyline at Amsterdam Art's vintage pen counter (RIP), fell in love, again declared I would never write with anything else. Shortly that pen also broke (I promise I'm not abusing my pens! Really!) but this time I had the wisdom of experience & got it repaired appropriately. Finally understanding the fragility of old pens, I decided not to let it leave the house... which means I do write with other pens quite frequently now!

 

I later inherited 2 other vintage pens when my grandmother died: a Parker 51 & what appears to be a knockoff of it, called Harbinger 91. Both quite firm of course but somehow more pleasant than the Montblanc for me. I don't really use them because they are in need of some professional TLC, which I haven't ever gotten around to (budget priorities, again). I carry in my purse a cheap Kaweco sport & also have a Rotring Artpen for traveling.

 

Such is my tale! If anybody has recommendations for anything in the budget range... I'm more than happy to be educated & have my fountain pen world expanded! I ended up here because I'm currently in one of my occasional ink-obsessing phases.

 

Indigo

 

 

*waves*

 

Welcome aboard. I have a couple of Rotring ArtPens--they're great writers!

 

*was thinking of getting myself a Merlin*

[Deirdre]

Might I recommend Esterbrook as a good vintage pen at a very decent cost.

Good point. FarmBoy frequently has these and Parker 51s available at PPPC and Pen Posse meetings.

[kudzu]

PPPC mtg is this coming Saturday in Milpitas. Check out this link:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/in...howtopic=114990

 

Pen Posse mtg afterward. Welcome to The Fountain Pen Network.

 

 

 

[edited to add the correct link]

Edited July 30, 2009 by kudzu