The Worst Pen Ever

[mirosc]

Never had such pens.

 

Well, I did have pens I didn't like - some were too ugly for my taste (e.g. P51), some were too wet (Elysee), some were too skippy (Lanbitou), some had an uncomfortable grip zone (MB149), some gave me cramps after some hours (Online), some needed major tweaking (Pelikan M600), and so on... but each and everyone had other qualities to like. Still some had to go, some I kept.

But I have never paid money (yet!) for a pen that was truly a horrible nightmare.

[dickydotcom]

I try to not buy bad pens.

So do I but I have managed it once.

I bought a Chinese P45 shape pen thinking I could use it at work and not risk damage or wear on my Parker.

It wrote OK but the cap would'nt stay on and first time out it leaked into a shirt. Not a great loss but I chucked the pen and the shirt.

I have since had a rethink on pen buying and use and now use pretty much all my pens all the time and buy the best I can afford.

I've also stopped fighting with people on the street so my pens are a lot less likely to get damaged.

 

Dick D

[John the Monkey]

Baoer 517.

 

I've had two, and neither would take ink into the feed without squeezing the cartridge, or winding the converter down.

 

Both of mine were just slightly more convenient to use than a dip pen, and given that I wanted them as daily writers to leave at work, not fit for purpose. A shame, as they were quite handsome pens.

 

I use a super-reliable, and cheaper, Hero 616 Jumbo as my leave at work pen now.

[Scribblescrub]

I've recently bought 2 platignums and I don't like either of them.

 

One of them skips and one of my favourite Diamine teal cartridges is stuck irretrievably in the bottom of the barrel.

 

The other is even worse and barely writes at all, which is a shame because it looks really nice. I am going to get the scalpel in between the tines and see if I can force it into submission.

[OrangeJoe]

Easy, my Zebra V301. If you dislike someone so much that you wish they never get the joy of fountain pen use, just buy them one of these and they will stay away from FPs for decades.

 

Well, it's actually not that bad, it's worse, much worse.

Edited November 2, 2011 by OrangeJoe

[deansellers]

Northpoint Aria. Ink will cease flowing in the middle of writing with half of the converter full. Will not start again until I push the piston down until the feed is full again. And even then it's got a scratchy un-even flow. Plus it's slippery metal. Just a waste.

[Nonsensical]

Parker 45. I guess I just got a dud, though.

[nxn96]

I've had a few disappointments over time, but none to the degree that I'd call them "worst ever". The disappointments that come to mind include:

 

A Parker 75 Cisele that I kept trying to like for about 10-12 years before I finally "retired" it 20 years ago. A few months ago, after reading so many FPN postings over time in favor of the 75, I decided to pull it out and give it another chance. It took me about three minutes to re-discover everything I found wanting in the pen years before. However, it is a handsome pen.

 

About 20 years ago I received a Montblanc Meisterstuck (sp?) bp/mp set as a gift. Personally, I thought the ballpoint refill was quite underwhelming, particularly given that it was "housed" in such an expensive pen. Skips, blops, scratchy. Tried a couple of different MB refills, all with the same result. I finally ended up giving the set to a relative who admired the pen. Never missed it.

[richardandtracy]

A Guang Ming 812.

I was given it, and reviewed it here: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=89856

Must be the worst pen I have ever used.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[FLJeepGuy]

1. Parker Vector - Cheap aluminum and plastic thing. It either wouldn't write at all, or when it decided to write, it gushed, leaked, and skipped all at once. No amount of cleaning and fiddling ever got this abomination working. It resides in a landfill somewhere now.
   
2. Colibri MB Knock-off - I don't have the room here to express how bad this one was. It was a lemon from the word go. The cap wouldn't stay on, the gold color pealed off all the hardware and the nib. The black lacquer (read: paint) got a chip, then peeled off and then rusted/tarnished underneath. On top of all that, it was one of the worst writing pens I've ever used. I didn't have the heart to tell the person who gifted it to me "'cause I like pens" what a steaming pile of cr*p it was.
   

[alexander_k]

I don't think they're such terrible pens but they didn't suit me at all: Sheaffer NoNonsense, Parker 25, Parker 180, Rotring ArtPen, Rotring 900.

[J English Smith]

Just threw away a Rotring Skynn rollerball yesterday. Awful pen, I'm sure the FP is in the same league. Badly balanced, too wide grip section, the rubber on the grip was starting to catch and tear on the body after minimal use. This was a clunker. Fortunately I only had $7 or something into it. I think Rotring products have gone DOWN in quality since the 90s if this pen is any indication. (The old 600 series was well made, though.)

[leod]

Pelikan Souveran- Worst Pen Design Ever

[ThirdeYe]

I have a couple that fit this category...

 

My Waterman Phileas Medium that I bought used about a year ago. I've tried flushing it and cleaning it with soap, water, ammonia, etc., and it still skips and dries out all the time until I shake the pen or re-prime the feed. I've tried cartridges, converters, eel inks, you name it. Nothing helps. I've pretty much given up on it and I use my much superior Expert II instead.

 

Also, I have a used Hero 886 or 866 (can't remember which, exactly) that writes so incredibly dry that you have to press really hard on the nib just to make a faint, skipping line. Even with a wet ink like PR Tanzanite, it barely writes.

 

Oh, I almost forgot... I also have a used Parker 45 with a gold XF nib that writes so scratchy it literally tears the paper. I also have a Parker Vector that skips like crazy no matter what ink/cleaning I do, and I have a Parker Insignia that writes consistently, but very scratchy. There is also the NOS Sheaffer School pen that I bought about a month ago. It's one of the most recent ones from the 2000s with a fine nib. It's somewhat scratchy and ink leaks from the nib when you remove the cap. I seem to have bad luck with some of my pens. :roflmho:

Edited November 2, 2011 by ThirdeYe

[hbquikcomjamesl]

Hmm. Well,

 

My heavily modified Pelikano had a tendency to dry out completely, and the brown paint job I did on it (to match the brown ink I ran in it) never did fully cure; that's why I used a Pirre Paul "wood" for my second attempt).

 

I find my Parker 25 to be butt-ugly, so I really don't know much about its performance.

 

I loved the design of my Osmiroid 75s, but I didn't love the workmanship, or the tendency to crack, and leak, on the seam between the ink window and the section.

 

And "leod," are you trying to start a flame war?

[rwilsonedn]

I've had some cheap pens that weren't worth it (a Noodler's Flex comes to mind) and some eBay experiments that arrived with broken nibs or, in one memorable case, a Frankenpen assembled from nib, section, barrel and cap from four different pens, none of which actually fit together. But those don't count as worst, because of low price and low expectations.

I'd have to say the worst was my 1980s MB 146, which was beautiful and a decent (if rather boring) writer, but leaked from the end seal on the section, even after repeated trips to the factory. Apparently it frustrated MB too, because the last time they returned it with a blob of cement all the way around the end of the section, forming a nice little irregular ridge to brace your fingers against. And they charged me for this service.

ron

[fabrimedeiros]

Parker Reflex that I purchase about 5 year ago. This pen have never written more than 5 lines since I bought! It couldn't write even after a lot of efforts. It's a bone, absolutely dry!

[AtomicLeo]

Tie between a Noodler's flex nib and Noodler's rollerball that I got as a newbie. Both barely wrote. Eventually tossed them because they simply did not deserve to be tinkered with. Would rather spend the time enjoying real pens that actually work. (Apologies for being negative, but you asked...:roflmho: )

 

I will second this! Worst FP I own is an Ivory Darkness flex. Dripped ink EVERYWHERE, and yet was a scratchy writer even with Noodler's own Polar Blue in it. Color was dull and boring and it was much too small. Will not buy another one.

 

And the second worst pen I own is a Pelikano. Really neat limited edition black with a silver cap. Just stops writing after half a cart of ink.

[fabrimedeiros]

I've had some cheap pens that weren't worth it (a Noodler's Flex comes to mind) and some eBay experiments that arrived with broken nibs or, in one memorable case, a Frankenpen assembled from nib, section, barrel and cap from four different pens, none of which actually fit together. But those don't count as worst, because of low price and low expectations.

I'd have to say the worst was my 1980s MB 146, which was beautiful and a decent (if rather boring) writer, but leaked from the end seal on the section, even after repeated trips to the factory. Apparently it frustrated MB too, because the last time they returned it with a blob of cement all the way around the end of the section, forming a nice little irregular ridge to brace your fingers against. And they charged me for this service.

ron

 

 

For the price, I think MB had to replace your pen for new one, if the couldn't properly repair. Sheaffer and Visconti, for example, give us a life-time warranty on mechanical problems/ wear parts (if you're the first owner, of course). Sheaffer offered a new pen (in the same price range) for a friend of mine, because they couldn't repair his old pen, two years ago.

Edited November 2, 2011 by fabrimedeiros

[Oranges and Apples]

The Twisbi 530 EF. The cap was too heavy, the nib was too toothy (not scratch), and it was not a pleasant pen to use.