All Things Faber-Castell

[Kuscer]

Hi everyone!

Since there isn't a Faber-Castell forum in the Brand Focus section and quite some people like the brand, I've started this topic to discuss all things Faber-Castell.

Enjoy!

Dingan

[ushref]

Hello Dingan: I'm a quite seasoned FP user (since 1962, in the third grade of elementary school, I'm 60), and first was a exclusively Parker and Sheaffer user, P45 and a not-remembered Sheaffer model were my first FPs and still have a Flighter 45 of my student days. In the 80s, when I could spend a little more money in the hobby, I acquired some piston filler Pelikan (two M400 and one M250, with gold nibs, and M200 with steel nib). My recent purchases are a Lamy 2000 (in 2013) and my "discovering" of Faber Castell FPs. Recent purchases include several Basic and Looms, with M and F steel nibs. IMHO these steel nibs are the best I have the opportunity to try, very smooth and without any kind of skipping, dryness, or other kind of frustrating issues...all of them, not just one!!. Right out of the box, no fiddling of any kind with the nibs or feeds, or else. Now, I'm a fan of FC FPs, at least in this range of prices (the lowest in their product offer). I can only imagine how good a GvFC gold nib should be!!!. Not tried Ambition or Ondoro; but these models share the nib unit with Basic and Loom (the "soul" of the pen), so I think I'll not buy these models because can't justify the price difference only with another barrel / section assembly. Let go ahead discussing FC things!!!. Regards.

[Xand3]

Fabers have been my favorite for a long time now. My first experience with the brand was with a Basic Carbon Fiber, which overtook my Pelikan M400 for my favorite pen to write with for a good 3 years.

 

Eventually bought another Basic (Mother of pearl this time) for my girlfriend, which I'm pleased to say wrote just as well as the first.

 

Also picked up a GvFC Guilloche based on my experience with the Basic, and (if possible, I *really* like the way the basic writes) the nib on this one blows the basic out of the water.

 

Love this brand.

Edited August 25, 2014 by Xand3

[pbhat]

I have only one FC in my collection ie. FC Ondoro smoked oak with F nib. It started without any hiccups and is my current favorite.

pbhat

[Azuniga]

I have ten or twelve FC pens but I do not collect newer pens, so they are mostly from the thirties to the fifties... It has always been a great pen and it never let you down when writing with it.

Ariel

[Algester]

my first and only FC pen an Ambition in coconut wood... I like it I really do... but... the Philippines has no representative for FC FPs... which I find myself seldom using the pen

next pen Onodoro in Smoke Oak, GvFC Classic Anello in Ebony (my Grail Pen), Intuition in Ebony if I would actually like the fluted design they are all in the soon-ish range...

Edited August 29, 2014 by Algester

[penultress]

I have ten or twelve FC pens but I do not collect newer pens, so they are mostly from the thirties to the fifties... It has always been a great pen and it never let you down when writing with it.

Ariel

 

Wow, are they fountain pens? Would you mind posting a photo of your vintage pens?

[penultress]

I currently own an Ondoro and E-motion in brown croc. I am loving them both! (By the way, an E-motion in RED croc is available but only in BP!)

I had no issue with either pen writing right out of the box. They both did wonderfully. However, I do have a preference for italics and both have been ground. The E-motion is more stubbish because of the weight of the pen but the Ondoro has a Binder cursive italic.

 

I am interested in the Basic as well!

[Azuniga]

 

Wow, are they fountain pens? Would you mind posting a photo of your vintage pens?

 

Sure ! All of them have the name A.W. Faber Castell (if I am not wrong earlier it was A.W. Faber, then A.W. Faber Castell, then Faber Castell).

Later some kind of union with Osmia. From the last two at the right, the Black one is a Faber Castell 51 PK and the last one is a A.W. Faber Castell 963 and it has a tiny Osmia logo at the top of the cap. Among the earlier ones, nib says: Castell 14 karat 585, the 51 PK nib says Faber Castell 2 and the last one has an Osmia Supra14 k 585. I am constantly using the first two on the left.

[penultress]

 

Sure ! All of them have the name A.W. Faber Castell (if I am not wrong earlier it was A.W. Faber, then A.W. Faber Castell, then Faber Castell).

Later some kind of union with Osmia. From the last two at the right, the Black one is a Faber Castell 51 PK and the last one is a A.W. Faber Castell 963 and it has a tiny Osmia logo at the top of the cap. Among the earlier ones, nib says: Castell 14 karat 585, the 51 PK nib says Faber Castell 2 and the last one has an Osmia Supra14 k 585. I am constantly using the first two on the left.

 

Wow! Your pens are gorgeous! And it looks like you've kept them in pristine condition! I had to see a photo because I'm really not familiar with the vintage pens. What sort of pattern do they sport? Where did you pick these up?

[Azuniga]

 

Wow! Your pens are gorgeous! And it looks like you've kept them in pristine condition! I had to see a photo because I'm really not familiar with the vintage pens. What sort of pattern do they sport? Where did you pick these up?

The same for me, I am not familiar with the new FC pens. In fact I started a FC collection while looking for the first pen at the left around the early eighties. They were hard to find then, now it is easier.

I found them mainly in Europe but now I see them often at the pen shows in the US. I have not seen many 963's though, I have a second one missing the tiny Osmia logo at the top.

The pattern looks like a marbled one but it is not. It is very special and I do not know if it has a name, although it should. Some of them as you can see in the image tend to become yellow, as it often happens with jade color pens; I have seen it in Parker Jade quite often. I have been told it comes from hand sweat while writing and I tend to believe it, but I do not know. I am glad you enjoyed them.

Regards

[lecorbusier]

FC makes excellent pens (and pencils!--lets not forget that). My first FC is the first auto-feed mechanical pencil, otherwise known as the alpha-matic in titanium carbide in the late 80s.

 

http://s22.postimg.org/xujdjtg4d/IMG_1993.jpg

alphamatic pencil in Ti carbide, pd titanium FP by FC, pd sterling silver FP by FC, and platino ebony by GvFC.

 

For a long time, porsche design writing instruments were contracted out to be manufactured by FC, until Pelikan took over. The two pd fountain pens are nearly 25 years but they still function like new. The sterling silver was not so great out of the box, but a pen clinic from Pilot-Namiki gave it a few tweaks and now it writes nearly like an Omas! On the intuition model, I tried quite a few--from the resin model all the way to the rare wood platino models and found that there was a great deal of nib variations. This is not to say that there was any bad nibs; but they all to a large extent wrote differently. In the end I picked this one for its larger nib and 'soft' tactile quality in M. It has yet to fall out of my rotation. Finally, the alphamatic is nearly 30 years old and has yet to fail over all these years.

[penultress]

Nice collection! I don't use very many pencils but I do enjoy mechanical pencils.

 

Sorry, what does "pd" mean?

 

I have not tried any of these models due to the slimness. I'll have to try these next time I see them.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have some Osmia & Osmia-Faber-Castell pens....6-7 or so, I like very much.

Faber Castell bought up Osmia (1951) because it was one of the top name quality brands; with out an office supply house (like Soennecken, MB or Pelikan) or a pencil empire behind it was always broke.

Faber Castell more a second tier pen. Then the fools (jumped up nobles from the 19th century) started erasing the Osmia name from their best quality pens....after 5-6 years Osmia was gone except for the Osmia Diamond on the nib. It's like buying up Audie and putting an Opel sign on it.

 

I find modern Graf von Faber-Castell pens, nails, metal section don't win any prizes by me....got some very, very pretty pens if you like metal sections and nails.

[penultress]

Then the fools (jumped up nobles from the 19th century) started erasing the Osmia name from their best quality pens....after 5-6 years Osmia was gone except for the Osmia Diamond on the nib. It's like buying up Audie and putting an Opel sign on it.

 

 

[lecorbusier]

pd refers to porsche design. They are slim compared to today's norms. But it is OK once you get used to them.

[Xand3]

 

 

I find modern Graf von Faber-Castell pens, nails, metal section don't win any prizes by me....got some very, very pretty pens if you like metal sections and nails.

 

Judging by your previous posts, I know you are really into vintage Flex pens, but to the average user I wouldn't qualify GvFC nibs as nails. It's misleading, and I think a little unfair to both GvFC and any potential customers.

 

TWSBI 580, Sheaffer 100, Faber Castell Basic -- All of these pens are nails. They have no flex whatsoever.

 

The nib on my GvFC feels much more like a Pelikan M1000 nib. Soft, and not quite semiflex but definitely not a nail either. It feels very springy and lively while I write. See this youtube clip at the 3:15 mark.

 

Edited September 2, 2014 by Xand3

[lecorbusier]

I concur that GvFC nibs are certainly not 'nails'. Perhaps relative to vintage flex, they could be perceived as 'nails'!

I noticed that even in the intuition range, there is great variety to the 'softness'. My medium 'Pen of the Year size' nib is certainly softer than the smaller GvFC nibs used in resin intuitions. And even between F and M in the platino range there is again variations. It is as if the nibs were made and tested by different individuals--that is, between F and F, and between M and M in the same range. One would, for example, find lesser variation in MB pens by comparison.