Big Hands!

[frazzlerazzle]

Some fantastic suggestions, thank you so much.

 

Bo Bo, I dont' tend to post my pens, but have tried the new grip and I can't quite get the control over the pen, using that at the moment, but I will keep trying.

 

I do play Rachmaninov's Prelude in C#min on the piano, it's a real stretch. He had record breaking hands and wrote it for large hands! Thanks jonszanto.

 

Thanks Mickey, allwritenow.net looks good, I'm checking it out now.

[frazzlerazzle]

Thanks Paul, Jeffrey & Simcha for your suggestions too. @Jeffrey, I'd love a DV Oversize, but sadly it's out of my budget!

[Mickey]

 

On the keyboard front I used to work with a gentleman who was a professional programmer for years and worked himself into a situation where even 10 minutes typing on a normal keyboard resulted in intense pain in his hands. He tried a Maltron keyboard, bought it outright within days and didn't look back.

 

The Kinesis Advantage is nearly identical to the Maltron and in the US costs about half as much. Like the Maltron, it can be configured in the Maltron keyboard layout or several variation of the standard QWERTY layout. It also has a large capacity for user defined, application independent macros.

 

The Kinesis Advantage can also be purchased with programmable foot pedals to replace mouse buttons. I've been using a Kinesis for several years (right now, in fact) and have been very pleased with it's performance.

 

No affiliation other than happy customer.

[gregamckinney]

The Delta Dolcevita Oversize?

 

http://www.nexternal.com/tops/images/delta_dolcevita_oro_fountain_pen1.jpg

 

+1 on this one.

Also:

- Delta button fill Demonstrator (even fatter than the DV or Oro.)

- Bexley Poseidon Magnum

- Edison Huron Grande

 

Regards, greg

[JLS1]

Don't know if anyone's suggested the Sailor 1911 KOP (King Of Pen) or the Senator President (subject of a current dispute between Senator and MB); both are MB 149-sized pens, but much less expensive than an MB 149. Sailor's 1911 nibs have also got a very good reputation for being smooth, although finer than US/European nibs.

 

HTH!

[kareth]

how about BEXLEY 58 with 18kt Broad Stub

[Romagno]

TWSBI is great for big hands

[Bo Bo Olson]

Razzle just write large and loose for 1/4 a sheet of paper, then medium for 1/4th....you do not have to control the pen, the pen flows easy on it's own.

 

With in a sheet of paper your script will be @ the size it was before.

 

You are grasping the pen....not gripping it. There is no real pressure, just like you was holding a baby bird, letting the nib flow. The pen rests where it rests, on it's own weight.

 

I post, my heavier pens and back weighted pens are in the depth of the web of my thumb, my lighter pens are up in the web of my thumb.

 

When I do not post, the lighter pens are behind the first knuckle and the heavier pens are a tad lower at the start of or just inside the top of the web of my thumb. Just bend your forefinger a bit..not much.

 

 

When I first tried it, I switched back and forth, and by a week I was using the 'tripod forefinger up' 90% of the time, with out much thought.

 

Now I use it 98% of the time. I might or might not pinch on my American P-75, but even there I tend to over ride the built in pinch grip and grip a tad higher on the pen.

[Mickey]

 

There is no real pressure, just like you was holding a baby bird, letting the nib flow. The pen rests where it rests, on it's own weight.

 

 

However one describes the proper grip, Bo bo's last sentence sums up the goal, the lowest pressure required to move the pen smoothly from point a to point b.

 

To Bo Bo's suggestion about starting off writing big and loose, I would add you should also start off with very smooth paper, such as Rhodia or Clairefontaine Triomphe. Toothier and more absorbent papers need a VERY SLIGHTLY firmer grip. Build yourself a floor first: use smooth paper, a very lubricating ink, and a wet pen, and IGNORE what your writing looks like for a good long while, i.e., until you're sure you've stopped beating up your hand.

[georges zaslavsky]

Visconti Ripples

Visconti Romanicas

Montegrappa Extra 1930s

Conway Stewart Churchills

Conway Stewart Britannica

Conway Stewart Belgravia

Conway Stewart Drake

Conway Stewart Chatterley

Visconti Van Gogh Maxis

Delta Prodigio

Delta Secret [Pentime.net LE]

Montblanc 149

Montblanc Dumas [the Hemingway is over your upper price limit]

 

That's a little of my collection that meets your criteria. There's lots more Deltas that would, but I can't think of their names off the top of my head. :embarrassed_smile:

I am with Ghost plane on this one. But the best thing to do is to testwrite them to see which one is more suited to your hand and which one has the best nib as well.

Edited June 2, 2011 by georges zaslavsky

[thecobraeffect]

What about a Lamy 2000? I know it's not a giant pen, but I have pretty big hands and it suits me just fine when posted. But a test-write is definitely a good idea, especially when talking about really expensive pens.

[jimhughes]

Indian ED's have been mentioned. Closer to USA is jebspens. See Watch Art's review of Nazca in the last week or so on Fountain Pen Reviews Sub section. His Photos compare it to his M1000. The M 100o looks like one of my Sheaffer Flat Top Shorties in Comparison.

This pen is HUGE. No affiliation, but the review was enough incentive for me to order a shorter model John E. Brady makes. Jim

 

jeb@jebswebsite.com To contact him. I think Watch arts review has a link to Jeb's website with Photos and Specs.

[Lothianjavert]

I prefer big pens- due to an old injury, I can't use my right hand very well, and small pens are difficult to keep hold of and quite painful to use. At the moment, my "everyday" pens are an Ancora Perla and a Stipula Etruria. The Perla is pretty close to the MB 149 in size, and the Etruria, while a little bit smaller, is no tiny pen either. I find both very comfortable to use. Next would probably be my Bexley anniversary, which is also pretty large.

 

I have an older Etruria, so it has some weight to it (convertible), but I love it. I had the nib ground to a cursive italic by Pendelton (PB2 here on FPN) and love it. I can't wait until November when my second Etruria should come in....

 

I also really, really recommend trying the pens. Feel-wise, I've had pens surprise me both ways. The Delta were nice, but didn't taper quite enough for me to be as comfortable (they could be perfect for you though- you need to try them!). I was also very surprised that the Visconti Divina were very comfortable. I thought it would be miserable, but it was the opposite. The Homo sapiens was a great size and due to the texture, very easy to hold as well. One of these days, I'll have to add a Divina, and my husband is quite enamored with the Homo sapiens.

 

And then there is vintage... you could always try a Sheaffer Balance oversize....

[watch_art]

Close to the $100 mark? How's close to $130-150 sound?

www.jebspens.com

 

Here's my Nazca and I LOVE it.

 

 

M1000, Nazca, Bexley 10th Anniversary

 

Stipula Etruria, Nazca, Deccan Masterpiece with M1000 nib

 

 

M1000, VP, Bexley 10th, Noodler's Piston Filler, Esterbrook J, Nazca, Lamy Stuido, P 51, TWSBI, Edison Herald Grande

 

 

 

Same pens capped. It's a tall pen. Love it!

Edited August 26, 2011 by watch_art

[heineda]

My suggestion would be a Laban Ment. Really nig pen and writes very smooth.

[82Greg]

I also have large hands and prefer large pens. However, I also like pens with a little bit of mass to them.

 

Pelikan M800, M1000

Lamy 2000

Retro 51 88 (somewhat on the light side)

Edison Huron Grande, Herald Grande, Morgan, Huron, #76, Herald, Glenmont

Visconti Opera Demo Master

YOL Grande sized pens are very large and nicely weighted

[lapis]

+16 = M1000

[nxn96]

I don't own one myself, in large part due to the fact that they are a bit large for my preference; however, I know the brand:

 

How about the modern version of the Parker Duofold? Again, no personal experience here, but the pen seems to get pretty consistent and good reviews around here. Within your general range, but is probably well over your "would like to be closer to the $100" mark.

 

You might also look at a Sheaffer PFM. Vintage, but was specifically made to be a "beefy" pen. Sheaffers from this era tend to be exceptionally fine writers and of solid construction.

 

Hope this helps