Your Collecting "modus Operandi"

[Keyless Works]

It is really what grabs my attention.

 

If you were to look at my collection you would see a majority of vintage German pens followed by vintage Italian pens and then modern Japanese pens.

 

At one point I was more focused on German pens and now it seems to be Italian pens which I think will keep me occupied for a while as the few pens that I want are rare and very expensive.

[ethernautrix]

My method, also known as the Nakaya Method:

 

Buy a lot of pens including one or two Nakayas, buy more Nakayas, realize I have "too many" pens, cos I'm using only a small number of them regularly, sell or give away as many as I can to feel comfortable.

 

Almost there. (Keeping all the Nakayas, though.)

[de_pen_dent]

Buy a lot of pens including one or two Nakayas, buy more Nakayas, realize I have "too many" pens, cos I'm using only a small number of them regularly, sell or give away as many as I can to feel comfortable.

 

Hey! How YOU doin'?

 

(Keeping all the Nakayas, though.)

 

Drat. Foiled again.

 

 

On topic - i tend to gravitate towards pen with a certain amount of workmanship: be it urushi, maki-e, celluloiid, or even unique filling mechanisms. However, i mostly limit myself to sub-$1000 pens mainly b/c that is a price point below which i feel comfy using my pen as a daily writer.

 

So - a lot of Viscontis (Divina, Wall Street, Homo Sapiens, etc), a lot of Japanese pens (maki-e, urushi, wood and variants) and Montblanc WEs.

[Lyander0012]

I just get pens that both catch my fancy and are within my price range. I picked up my first vintage flex pen not too long ago (a Waterman's Ideal 52 1/2V with a semi-to-full-flex nib), and think it's pretty good. I'm likely to focus more on Japanese pens now, though, since I like the feel of their nibs. Barring that, I've yet to try any pens of Italian manufacture, and I did start out as a Sheaffer fan, so I'll probably end up with one of their flagship Legacy Heritages some time down the line.

 

At the moment, I've a Prelude and a Taranis from Sheaffer, a Lamy 2000, a TWSBI 580, a Sailor 1911L with a specialty nib, a Noodler's Ahab, two no-name vintage pens I got as a gift from my friend, and the aforementioned vintage Waterman. That's not including the assortment of dip pen nibs and pen staves I have, of course

So yeah, little to no rhyme or reason behind my collecting, but I like them all to be perfectly honest, and it's fun getting to try out something different every now and again (though nothing beats a well-used nib that's been tuned to your writing style for really long writing sessions).

 

 

Cheers!

Kevin

[sargetalon]

When I started, I collected lots of different pens. Experienced different filling systems, finishes, and nib designs. That was great fun and I learned a lot. I then choose to focus on the brand that I loved the most and haven't regretted it. I do have a theme now to my collecting and it keeps me focused and it also provides me a challenge which keeps the hunt interesting and fun. As far as filling in gaps with nib sizes, I mostly have practical nibs sizes that I use regularly with a few fun ones intermixed. This way I have a great variety to choose from. Also nice is that most of my nibs are interchangable so I can have one pen and many different nibs available to swap into it. I wouldn't get too hung up on the different sizes though. Stick with what you're acutally going to use and enjoy.

 

Here is how my nib's skew...

[Beechwood]

Pens I buy to use are a different startegy than those I buy to collect for which my motto is only to buy pens if I can sell them for more than I paid, I dont really like this strategy but when you have 300+ pens and including all the pens I want then I am not sure that there is a better MO, for me.

[Francis_Rex]

This is a great topic as it has caused me to reflect on what I buy and collect.

 

I just bought an Aston Leather 40 pen case and have about five slots free.

 

The truth is I cannot afford the exotic end of the market>£300/$450 so my pens are a range; from Lamy Safaris, Noodlers Ahab and Rotoring Artpens through to my most expensive pen, a Sheaffer PFM.

 

I am currently waiting in the post for a couple of Chinese cheap pens: a Jinhao 159 and a Baoer 79.

 

I have got some vintage Swans, some other vintage Sheaffers (Touchdown & Imperial), a bunch of Parkers (I have not got a 51), I have BB nibs, I have EF nibs, I have a 1960s MB, a Pilot VP, Twsbi 700 vac and so it goes on.

 

I read an article of FPN or a blog and off I go. There is no pattern, no logic, and no themes.

 

I do not collect pens to preserve them; they all get used. NOS soon becomes second hand!

 

I keep a journal and each entry is written with a different pen with different colour ink.That gives me a lot of enjoyment.

 

So having reflected I am pleased to say my MO is erratic and my collection eclectic.

[penmanila]

I have about 200 pens in the collection at any given time (I've been at this for almost 30 years now), about 2/3 vintage (mostly Vacumatics, about 60 of them) and the rest modern (mostly Parker Duofolds, Montblancs, and Pelikans). Where I have a choice, I'll choose broad, wet, flexy or stub nibs. I like pens with deep rich colors-- black is fine, tortoise is great--but nothing blingy. I sell pens to upgrade the collection with missing models or better specimens of existing ones. I actively seek and keep duplicates of the favorite pens I actually use--the Agatha Christie, the Oscar Wilde, the 149, the burgundy Vac OS, etc. I almost never buy a pen at full retail, so when I sell, it will likely be at a modest or good profit, so I can sustain the addiction

[Lyander0012]

peninmanila— The very person who constantly tempts us FPN-Philippine members with irresistible prices. I'd almost say something jokingly irritated, but I might miss out on a good sale if I do XD

Seriously though, if it weren't for my knowing that I'd be having a lot of difficulty keeping up a collection that huge, I'd likely be up to my ears in Balances, Snorkels, Targas, and assorted other Sheaffer pens, haha

 

 

Cheers!

Kevin

[amk]

Sort of.

 

I do a lot of car booting and antiquing, and if I see something interesting at a good price I'll get it, whatever it is.

 

Some of those pens are a bust. Others I really enjoy. So out of the ones I really love, I might then decide to try to collect more.

 

Then at pen shows, I get introduced to new pens, as well as looking for ones I already collect.

 

So it's a mix, which has delivered;

* almost full set of Lamy 2000s (one rollerball, a coouple of ballpoints and the pencils to go)

* all but a couple of the Kaweco Art Asia Sports

* a real love of Parker Moderne, Vacumatic, Lucky Curve, and stripy Duofolds

* a couple of Edacoto Super 206s

* a growing collection of Bayard Excelsior and Merlin pens

* lots of super Indian ebonite, mostly bought on my last trip to India

* one Lady Patricia, two Hundred Year Pens, and an Ink-Vue, the germ of a Waterman collection together with half a Red Ripple (needs a cap!)

 

But I couldn't restrict myself to strategic collecting. One of the aspects of this hobby that I find the most fun is finding a pen I've never seen before and trying to find out what it is. Or trying to work out how many firms were using the same celluloid, or which pens are knock-offs of others (there are definitely imitations of the Waterman Ink-Vue out there, and of course loads of wannabe-Parker-51s). Or finding Frankenpens and trying to work out exactly which pen the various components belong to!