Worst Paper Ever!

[Uncial]

So this was a bit or a surprise. I bought an Oberon journal - the one with the green tooled bark effect and the dragonfly in a round, red section on the front. It's a beautiful journal, nice weight, love the texture of the tooling and it looks pretty awesome. I had read that the paper in these journals wasn't the best, but I had also heard the same about other notebooks that I thought were ok - not brilliant, but ok. This however, took me totally by surprise. After having read that the paper wasn't fountain pen friendly I knew it wasn't going to be great, but I wasn't prepared for just how terrible it would be. I decided to christen it with Noodler's Navajo Turquoise in my Ahab. Initially the ink laid down on the paper just fine and the pen moved over the page smoothly; I finished the last letter of the second word, all looked fine....and then it happened. The paper suddenly became a tiny bit thirsty, the ink seemed to change a bit, then it got more thirsty, it started to feather like I've never seen ink feather on paper before. It bled through to the other side to a high degree and even stained the guide lined paper underneath! It looks like a tiny spider has crawled through my ink and then marked out two words.

 

It really is a terrible shame, because this is a seriously nice product let down by something so simple. I know that I can go and insert another journal/notebook that will work, but it seems very odd that such a high end product would be let down by something so simple. Pity.

[The Blue Knight]

Of course a flex pen is going to drench the paper in ink only if say it's 80 or 90 gsm it's not going to bleed trough. I have the same problem with Moleskine notebooks, I love the form factor however the paper is really not the quality it should be when the books cost a small fortune.

[Uncial]

I tried it with a couple of other inks in different pens with the same horrible result though. I did think it might have been the flex from the Ahab, but sadly no.

[Pentulant]

Oberon has amazingly beautiful products - I carried their line back when I ran my own gift shop. That said, their expertise is in leather goods and not in making fountain pen friendly paper. My thought is that most of our customers are not using fountain pens and they produce the books that will work for most of their customers. To create a book with FP-friendly paper would add to the cost/price.

[scrivelry]

People keep saying on the one hand the FP friendly paper would add to the price of something. On the other hand, I have pads from the dollar store and one dollar notebooks from Staples that while they are not luxurious, are still perfectly adequate for fountain pens.

 

I think one problem with high end notebooks may lie in trying to provide a paper which seems luxurious, which requires it be something unusual. A bunch of what I've seen is paper that may not have a whole lot of sizing in it. It feels thick and luxurious and probably works for the fairly self-contained ink of a ball point, but not for fountain pens.

 

The issue may be providing a thick rich-feeling paper that is fountain pen friendly, or it may be even simpler - having any idea that the paper is or is not suitable for a given pen. - any given pen. IT may not be a question they even ask themselves when putting these things together.

 

T

[inkypete]

When I read the headline of this thread I sat for a moment to see if I could guess what brand of notebook this would be about. I decided Moleskin. Re the actual thread, I think Oberon is all about leather, not paper.

[Uncial]

Inkypete, you are quite correct; it is all about the leather product really - and a mighty fine product it is. I wouldn't want in any way to turn someone off buying a journal cover from Oberon because I must say I am impressed with what I have - it is beautiful. I just felt it was a little let down by the paper which was surprisingly poor in what is otherwise an extremely high end product. On the flip side, it won't exactly be hard (or expensive for that matter) to find a replacement insert.

[AFountain]

I was surprised that this was about Oberon. While the paper in the journals that I have (bought a bunch about 5 years ago) isn't as good as the paper typically thought to be FP friendly, it wasn't as bad as some that I've used. Maybe they've changed their paper supplier since then?

 

I posted a pic in this thread with a variety of inks and pens.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/261243-cool-news-for-fans-of-oberon-design/

[Uncial]

I was surprised that this was about Oberon. While the paper in the journals that I have (bought a bunch about 5 years ago) isn't as good as the paper typically thought to be FP friendly, it wasn't as bad as some that I've used. Maybe they've changed their paper supplier since then?

 

I posted a pic in this thread with a variety of inks and pens.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/261243-cool-news-for-fans-of-oberon-design/

 

Yep, I read that thread and saw your samples and figured....heck, that looks ok, I'll give it a chance

[AFountain]

 

Yep, I read that thread and saw your samples and figured....heck, that looks ok, I'll give it a chance

 

 

Oh, no! I'm sorry I led you astray I wonder if they've changed their paper or if it's inconsistent and I just got lucky?

[Uncial]

No, don't worry. I bought it for the cover and the insert notebook can be replaced

[mm1624124]

 

 

Oh, no! I'm sorry I led you astray I wonder if they've changed their paper or if it's inconsistent and I just got lucky?

Probably so, as I have had the same experience as Uncial. I don't know what happened to some of the reviews on the oberon site, but there were several comments about the paper and fountain pens, which are no longer on there. But like Unical, I bought the covers not the paper. There are worse papers out there, but oberon's notebook fillers rank pretty high in the awful department. I test my with a fine, dry nib first and oberon can't handle it.

[KBeezie]

They don't even make a case for fountain pens (or pens in general), I asked about it a while back, and they said they had no plans for making a case. Seems like they're more focus on eReader and Tablet cases right now, and probably expect most people to just use a ballpoint.

And like others have said, it's a shame because I love their leather goods, but unless they can make some Journal covers that fit most of the standard ones (or least make better paper), what's the point?

 

PS: How bad did the paper provided by Oberon Look? Was it about as bad as this Sheet of Cambridge "Limited" I was trying out? (it's a real 'soft' paper, I guess good for ballpoints). http://static.karlblessing.com/reviews/paper/cambridge_front.jpg

Edited March 17, 2014 by KBeezie

[KBeezie]

PS: Have any of you actually attempted to relay this dissatisfaction with Oberon Designs themselves?

[Scrawler]

I was chatting to the lady in the journal shop and she told me that he makers know nothing of paper and that they are selling the prettiness of the covers. A majority of these books are bought by a person who will be giving it to someone else, not using it themselves. I eventually got so anxious to find decent paper that I contacted every major paper mill in Canada to find out who made good quality fountain pen paper. The answer is not one, and they are not interested in producing decent quality niche paper. If it works with a ballpoint, pencil or laser printer then it is good enough. I bought a package of paper that was being sold as "resume" paper. It had a high quality textured appearance. But when liquid ink was applied to it it bled right through and feathered so much that the reverse of the page was an exact mirror image of the written side.

 

The one thing most likely to kill fountain pen usage completely, is the difficulty and expense of buying decent paper and notebooks.

Edited March 16, 2014 by Scrawler

[KBeezie]

The one thing most likely to kill fountain pen usage completely, is the difficulty and expense of buying decent paper and notebooks.

 

Quite true, though I find it odd that some of the cheaper stuff like inkjet paper or your regular cheap 'mead' notebook paper performs better with fountain pen then a lot of the higher priced paper offerings in the same store (since I guess the 'special' paper is supposed to be a bit more absorbent for ballpoints and gel pens, which would of course make it too-much-so for fountain pens).

 

So I guess for 'student' purposes there's still hope, otherwise seems like you have to start using whatever the 'artists' would use for certain types of properties.

[Pickwick]

 

Quite true, though I find it odd that some of the cheaper stuff like inkjet paper or your regular cheap 'mead' notebook paper performs better with fountain pen then a lot of the higher priced paper offerings in the same store (since I guess the 'special' paper is supposed to be a bit more absorbent for ballpoints and gel pens, which would of course make it too-much-so for fountain pens).

 

So I guess for 'student' purposes there's still hope, otherwise seems like you have to start using whatever the 'artists' would use for certain types of properties.

We have to bear in mind that the bulk of the paper produced is recycled, and therefore inconsistent for fountain pen use. Fountain pen users are a minority, therefore Oberon who say they only focus on journal covers, realize the majority of people who keep journals use ballpoint or roller point pens which pose no problems.

 

There are a number of members who make up their own paper which works for fountain pens. I write a lot of letters and found Office Maxx {if there is a store in your neighborhood} all-in-one paper is pretty consistent, can be written on both sides. Also HP 24lb paper is very good.

[AFountain]

No, don't worry. I bought it for the cover and the insert notebook can be replaced

 

 

What kind of insert will you use? When I fill my current insert, I definitely won't be buying another from Oberon given your experience.

[KBeezie]

 

 

What kind of insert will you use? When I fill my current insert, I definitely won't be buying another from Oberon given your experience.

On Oberon Designs' Facebook wall there was someone suggesting to me Leuchtturm 1917

[mm1624124]

They don't even make a case for fountain pens (or pens in general), I asked about it a while back, and they said they had no plans for making a case. Seems like they're more focus on eReader and Tablet cases right now, and probably expect most people to just use a ballpoint.

 

And like others have said, it's a shame because I love their leather goods, but unless they can make some Journal covers that fit most of the standard ones (or least make better paper), what's the point?

 

PS: How bad did the paper provided by Oberon Look? Was it about as bad as this Sheet of Cambridge "Limited" Gold Fibre I was trying out? (it's a real 'soft' paper, I guess good for ballpoints). http://static.karlblessing.com/reviews/paper/cambridge_front.jpg

 

Well, according to their website, the large journal covers will accept anything that is 8.5 x 5.5 x 7/8 inches. That seems to be the "norm" for USA standards.

 

While the oberon cover is a tad too big for A5 notebooks, it does work for Midori and Seven Seas Tomoe River notebooks. Once the notebook is seated into the oberon cover it doesn't shift or slide too much. And a shame that oberon does not understand that they already have a line of "customized" notebook sizes by pursuing the eReader markets. Just replace all of the accruements for the eReader with a simple sleeve.

 

Yes, the oberon notebook paper is as bad or worse as the Cambridge "Limited" Gold Fibre example. I don't see the point of contacting oberon about this. I don't like the refills even if the paper improved; and, I didn't purchase the cover for the notebook. I had the notebooks first, which is really primary for me, and then went looking for a nice leather cover. It appears that the oberon journal is an after thought provided for its customers more as a convenience for those not wanting to have to search for notebooks that will fit the cover.