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Do You Guys Let Others Use Your Pens?


rumbleroar

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No one uses my pens other than me. I do not want my nibs bent by excessive pressure or drops on tables or the floor, and I do not want the finish of my pens marred by careless handling. The thought of someone stripping the threads on pen caps and pen bodies, bending the pen clips, scraping or knocking a nib with a pull-off pen cap, experimenting with the filler knob, and other never-seen-one-of-these-pens explorer horrors keep my pens in the you-can-look-but-never-touch realm.

Edited by elysee
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Not anymore. I had a drug rep. in my office that needed to write down a few MD names. I had a steel nibbed Sonnet that day and she managed to damage the nib due to how hard she was pressing the pen to paper :o :angry: Admittedly, it did give me an excuse to order a couple of extra fine 18k gold replacement nibs from nibs.com...so I guess it was worth it. Now I will be keeping a few ballpoint/rollerballs in my desk in case I am asked for a pen to use.

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Never ever, the 2 things I wouldn't lend are my fountainpen and my car (or bike).

"Du bist die Aufgabe" - Franz Kafka

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As I've said in similar threads previously, I'm very reluctant to lend my FPs to those who have no appreciation of the writing experience. When requests are made, there are three common responses when I ask, "Do you know how to write with a fountain pen?":

1. "I learned to write with one in schoo (or elsewhere), but it's been XXX years." My response is "Recall that no pressure is necessary," and I lend the pen.

2. "No, I have not dealt with one of these before." I then give the 30 second inservice training on FP use, and assess the success of the instruction on the requesror - if OK, he/she gets to use the pen; if not - I suggest that he/she go find another means to regiseter a signature or other way to sign.

3. "It's a pen, how tough can it be?" I try to remain corgial, but will not allow my pen to move from my hand.

D.C.

D.C. in PA - Always bitin' off more than I can chew.

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There was this real real short guy (with modern day sensitivity and Government fed lawyers words once used are now very, very illegal) with Peter Lorie eyes, and used Brillcreme to grease down the sixteen hairs on his head. He offered to let me hold his gold ring, then he dropped my precious fountain pen nib down. So I kept the ring. A real rip off, not gold at all, no Hallmark.

 

I'm not prejudiced; I don't like body hanging around the corner light post.I've been taking my six foot walking stick, I use when walking in the mountains near my home.As soon as they came out I mounted a LED bike headlight on it so I'd not stumble down the mountain if dark caught up with me early. That skinny twirp has two big bulky mean looking midgets hanging around with him on the corner wanting his ring back.

 

I kept telling him I didn't have it. I gave it away.

 

Yesterday some Englishman with a real neat calabash pipe showed up telling me it was my ring. I asked him how he knew that, he told me it was elementary.

Then he left.

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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Not anymore. I had a drug rep. in my office that needed to write down a few MD names. I had a steel nibbed Sonnet that day and she managed to damage the nib due to how hard she was pressing the pen to paper :o :angry:

 

Ow! Did she even offer to replace the nib that she damaged?

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I baby my pens. Thus, however long I've used them, they never seem to take on scratches or damage. I also enjoy sharing the experience of fountain pens with others so I've encouraged friends & family to give my fountain pens a try.

 

However, I was recently in a sales meeting using a Pelikan M1000 when our equipment supplier's Business Development Manager for North America looked around the table for pen & paper and said, "Let me have that for a minute." Whaddya do? Say, "No, I think not." I'm not going to interrupt the meeting with a show-and-tell about how my pen is special and, really, too good for use by ignorant troglodytes.

My focus became more on my pen that what was being discussed. He drew some pictures and words on a pad. Waved the pen around in the air like a orchestral baton as he spoke. And, just as I thought, "Ok, no problem, I'm home free. How silly of me to have trepedation over him handling my fountain pen." he tossed the Pelikan M1000 to the table to emphasize his comments.

 

It bounced. I gasped.

 

Fortunately, the Pelikan suffered no damage. I know because I checked it at least three times. But it was obvious that the guy had NO idea that he was writing with a pen that sells upwards of $600. In the future I'll use fountain pens in business meetings that I won't grieve over if they sustain trauma.

Edited by PatientType
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After following this thread, and thinking about the situations that I have been in, I think I will be changing my office pen.

Maybe somethink like a Parker IM or 88 or other relatively low cost pen, then tune the tip so it writes smoothly. That way if it "has to be" loaned, I won't be in such anguish over how the borrower treats it.

 

I've also see people behave like PT described, and during a meeting, they just don't care how they treat other peoples property. To them a pen is just something to write with. I would rather give them a 15 cent BIC (or the pen out of the office supply cabinet) to use. Come to think of it, I should carry a real cheappy like that to give to anyone who asks to borrow a pen. Hey, I have to hang on to MY pen to take notes, so you get my spare pen.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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[T]here are some people who seem to think (like that guy, apparently) that it's okay to snatch my pen from my hands.

 

Pen grabbers deserve our pity. They are victims of the ballpoint revolution and a culture that sees pens as communal property. Thus, all pens belong to everybody. So it's ok to grab one. This mindset extends to our beloved fountain pens as well. No exceptions are made for high-end models.
These people are clueless. Vintage pens are not even on their radar. If you lay down your early Waterman at a meeting, someone will snatch it across the table. Attempts to lecture the offender on how to hold a pen will usually fail.
Chalk it up to the Bic Invasion, and protect your pens as well as you can. Bic's ubiquity robbed the fountain pen of its former respect. It's the curse of the ballpoint, a modern reality.

Carpe Stilo

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Pen grabbers deserve our pity. They are victims of the ballpoint revolution and a culture that sees pens as communal property. Thus, all pens belong to everybody. So it's ok to grab one. This mindset extends to our beloved fountain pens as well. No exceptions are made for high-end models.
These people are clueless. Vintage pens are not even on their radar. If you lay down your early Waterman at a meeting, someone will snatch it across the table. Attempts to lecture the offender on how to hold a pen will usually fail.
Chalk it up to the Bic Invasion, and protect your pens as well as you can. Bic's ubiquity robbed the fountain pen of its former respect. It's the curse of the ballpoint, a modern reality.

 

 

I really don't think they deserve pity; I think they deserve a big slap across their hands. Grabbing anything out of anyone's hands is rude. You ask for permission, then wait for it to be handed over.

 

The fellow who grabbed it out of the hand should be glad it was only a pen. If it was a pair of scissors (and yes, I've seen people grab THOSE out of others' grasps as well), someone could have been injured.

Tes rires retroussés comme à son bord la rose,


Effacent mon dépit de ta métamorphose;


Tu t'éveilles, alors le rêve est oublié.



-Jean Cocteau, from Plaint-Chant, 1923

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Only fp collectors and fp friends use them, otherwise I forbid and never let other people even touch them

Pens are like watches , once you start a collection, you can hardly go back. And pens like all fine luxury items do improve with time

 

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I really don't think they deserve pity; I think they deserve a big slap across their hands. Grabbing anything out of anyone's hands is rude. You ask for permission, then wait for it to be handed over.

 

The fellow who grabbed it out of the hand should be glad it was only a pen. If it was a pair of scissors (and yes, I've seen people grab THOSE out of others' grasps as well), someone could have been injured.

 

You are right and I personally would never grab anything from anyone. My point is there are people, otherwise well-mannered, who behave indelicately when it comes to writing instruments. They are victims of brainwashing by a culture that sees pens as cheap and disposable, and thus having no value. The predatory instinct of the pen snatcher is ingrained in today's society. I am not defending this behavior, just observing it, and I consider it to be pitiable.

Carpe Stilo

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:P Just bought a pack of 12x Pilot V pens in blue for this very purpose!

 

Everyone should use a FP after all, - right? :rolleyes:

 

- you never know, it might uncover a hitherto hidden pleasure!! :wub:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
'Perfection may be transient, but then so is everything.', MC

'All that a great power has to do to destroy itself is persist in trying to do the impossible.', Stephen Vizinczey

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There is one person that I work with that I've seen using a Sheaffer from a hobby store calligraphy set, and he's asked about where I get my pens. I've let him use my FPs, but he's the only one. It's a small office, so it's common knowledge that I don't use, "normal," pens. I keep a cup full of ballpoints and rollerballs, and one Zebra V-pen on my desk for people to grab.

 

There is one guy I work with - the head of the department, in fact, who has snatched a pen before I could stop him (not out of my hand, but laying on my boss's desk). I've never heard that nib make that kind of noise on paper before or since. It was a semi-hooded nib, so I don't think it registered to him that it wasn't a ballpoint, just a really scratchy pen. The pen survived the ordeal (it has since turned-out to be a nigh-bulletproof pen for me), but as soon as he was out of sight, I took a good, long look at that nib and chanted, "please don't be bent," under my breath.

 

My husband has seen the credit card bills, so he's intimidated by the price tag and would never ask.

 

I guess it breaks down to:

Yes - only if I have seen them use a FP before.

Yes, with light instruction - if I know they've used one, but haven't seen them use one.

Yes, with instruction - if I think I can convert them.

 

They all get to borrow a pen that I can easily find a replacement nib for.

http://img525.imageshack.us/img525/606/letterji9.png Life's too short to write with anything but a fountain pen!
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I have, but then I watched like a hawk while they used it and worried that the nib would be sprung. After reading these responses, I think I will be carrying a ballpoint in addition to my FP so the situation wont become awkward when the next person tries to borrow a pen. If they say they never wrote with a FP before and would like to try it, then it will get awkward.

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Something that I somes times do in meetings may come in handy.

I will take out 2 pens.

#1 - the pen that I will use to take notes (always in my hand)

#2 - a spare pen, for the person that forgets to bring a pen to the meeing, which happens more often than you may think. (is laying on the table) This will be a ball/gel/rollerball pen from the supply cabinet.

 

 

In my pocket I plan to now carry:

#1 - a pen from the supply cabinet, for others to use, see #2 at top

#2 - my office FP: a Parker IM or 88, Medium tip.

- - The office FP is decent but NOT expensive pen, it is one that I would not cringe if damaged/lost/stolen.

- - This will replace my old Parker 75 Flighter.

#3 - If I really want to carry a good FP, I would make sure to also take my office FP to use in higher risk situations (like group meetings).

 

I like the idea of hanging on to the cap. (thanks for the suggestion)

So any borrower will get a nice blot on their shirt if they put it in their pocket ;)

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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Most people around me are afraid of my fountain pens so I carry a ballpoint to lend. It works for me :sm_cat:

 

 

Myste

I'm a geek with a fountain pen.

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I just thought of something.

 

Tell them the pen LEAKS if they don't hold it right. And they will get a puddle of ink on their paper. ;)

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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mmmmm...as always it depend on who are the others...and always... praying to GOD while lending it.

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