Any Faber-Castell Fans?

[a.zy.lee]

http://officeservices.bg/images/feature_variant/1/faber-castell.jpg

Faber-Castell is very common and very popular in the non-fountain-pen world. Their wooden pencils and general stationery are in almost every stationery store.

Their fountain pens are not as popular, however.

 

Although I prefer other brands of graphite pencils, I'm a bit of a fan of their fountain pens myself. They use a nib unit that fits all their pens, and it performs really well. Their lower-end pens use a nib that's suited for higher-end pens, whereas Lamy and Parker do the opposite!

The Faber-Castell Ambition was the first fountain pen I bought with my own money and it's my favourite pen. It's certainly not perfect but I really like it.

I also like Graf von Faber-Castell. Their use of exotic materials really appeals to me.

I highly recommend Faber-Castell to anyone looking for a pen between $30-$80

 

Do you consider yourself to be a fan of Faber-Castell? How has your experience been with this company, and what do you think of it?

[Axial]

I have a FC Ambition in coconut wood finish with fine nib. It is a lovely pen, although I had to get used to the sharp step between the barrel and the section.

[Bill Broome]

I have an Ambition and like it very much. It is very dependable.

[jar]

A little over a year ago I wrote a review Braggin on GvFC. They are one of my favorite companies and probably my favorite German fountain pen company.

[ink-syringe]

I have had a few Faber-Castell pens. All were good writers, with excellent nibs but painful for any serious note taking. I got rid of them all and settled on just one: the Ondoro which was the only sub $300 pen they had that was comfortable for me (well balanced, not heavy and the grip, while metal is nicely contoured and not slippery). I could not deal with the slippery LOOM or the excessively top heavy Basic, the weird short grip on the Ambition scared me off and the Emotion was weird shaped and has a slippery metal grip.

 

I love this company. Amazing customer support. Their pens all seem to have super fit and finish, very high quality items. & fantastic nibs. But until they come up with more comfortable designs or I hit the lottery and can get a GvFC pen bomb I don't see that they make anything that I can sit and use to write say, 5 pages of notes with and not be in discomfort. If I want a cramped-up hand I'll go back to ball points. Comfort is a big part of the fountain pen experience to me. Faber-Castell gets just about everything else right but the ergonomics.

 

That's my story. I have told it before.

 

For the record, the pen I did keep, the Ondoro, is fantastic. The nib isn't as nice as the others I had and it is a tad PHAT for F but it is a quality item. I got the wood one b/c I was fascinated by the idea of having organic materials, something warm and not cold and hard like plastic or metal and am curious to see how the wood will wear over time. I like the hex shape.

[a.zy.lee]

I got the wood one b/c I was fascinated by the idea of having organic materials, something warm and not cold and hard like plastic or metal and am curious to see how the wood will wear over time. I like the hex shape.

I really love the oak Ondoro! I don't have it, but I hope to get it soon. Isn't the grip on that metal as well? I think it's chrome plated. Anyway, a question that I've been wondering about, is the oak Ondoro heavy?

Thanks

[ink-syringe]

I really love the oak Ondoro! I don't have it, but I hope to get it soon. Isn't the grip on that metal as well? I think it's chrome plated. Anyway, a question that I've been wondering about, is the oak Ondoro heavy?

Thanks

 

 

Ondoro is not heavy at all. I thought the wood one might be but not at all. Very cosy pen. The section is metal, but still very nicely contoured so grip (for me) is not an issue. The cap is actually plastic with a chrome cover or perhaps it is actually chromed plastic (hard to tell if it is one piece or two).

 

 

I am a sensitive soul. Other pens folks think are okay, I think are ergonomic abominations. I have zero problems with the Ondoro and can write with it all day in comfort. I use it unposted. To me, lovely to hold. A very simple solid pen.

 

I wish the nib was a little thinner. It is like a Japanese B. If I ever get near a nibber. I will maybe get it ground to something like my Pilot M for everyday use.

 

I spent a lot of time trying to love Faber-Castell's other cheaper offerings. This one was the only one that worked for me.

 

YMMV.

[Millefleurs]

I love my Ondoro. It's the orange resin one and I love it so much. It feels substantial, but not too heavy (I have small hands). It's a fine point which does better with wetter inks, in my opinion; I might get a medium nib next time, but that's all personal preference of course. It's a smooth writer, and I highly recommend it. It definitely won't be the last FC I ever buy.

[maverink]

i love my FC basic carbon its a bit heavy for long writing sessions love the fine nib

[Algester]

I have an Ambition and I started to like it but I can't use it everyday because I do not normally have eagle eyes so if it gets stolen or lost I will feel very bad because we do not have F-C fountain pens in the Philippines

[amk]

I love the looks of the Ondoro and found the oak one I tried recently very comfortable, so one could join my stable some time if I find a good price. I rather like the orange one too.

 

FC's steel nibs seem excellent, from the pens I've been able to try.

 

But I find many of the pens like the Ambition have that awkward step, and the Emotion has a metal section that's somewhat slippy, so they are not comfortable for me. A pity because I like the aesthetic - a lot of use of wood, simple designs, no arty farty blingy stuff (Montegrappa Chaos I'm thinking of you...). By contrast the Lamy 2000 has both attractive stripped-down looks, and comfort in my paws.

[Algester]

I love the looks of the Ondoro and found the oak one I tried recently very comfortable, so one could join my stable some time if I find a good price. I rather like the orange one too.

 

FC's steel nibs seem excellent, from the pens I've been able to try.

 

But I find many of the pens like the Ambition have that awkward step, and the Emotion has a metal section that's somewhat slippy, so they are not comfortable for me. A pity because I like the aesthetic - a lot of use of wood, simple designs, no arty farty blingy stuff (Montegrappa Chaos I'm thinking of you...). By contrast the Lamy 2000 has both attractive stripped-down looks, and comfort in my paws.

to me I think the Ambition was made in mind that it really should not have a section... but I hold the barrel as the section and to me I find the balance better but if ever you want something with a section then thats the GvFC Intuition or the GvFC Guilloche

but to me the Classic Anello in Ebony is still my grail pen...

Edited August 28, 2014 by Algester

[SujiCorp12345]

I have an Ambition and am fairly pleased with the smoothness of the nib. My only problem with it is that sometimes, after I remove the cap after posting, the metal cylinder on the top of the pen comes off as well. I suppose some glue would keep it in place?

[owend]

I've had an Ambition, pearwood, Fine nib, for almost a year. The barrel feels great and it's a good balance posted or unposted (I usually use it unposted).

 

The cap has worked a bit: when capped, the cap moves about 2mm side to side. It feels isecure although it's never actually fallen off. Strangely, when posted, the cap fits firmly and doesn't move, so I don't think it's the cap; I think the wood at the nib end of the barrel has worn, allowing the cap some movement. Shame, the pen still looks very good!

 

SujiCorp12345, no problem with the metal endcap here. I would assume as you say a spot of glue would keep it on - I would carefully sand to create a key, and use epoxy.

 

The nib is really good on good paper, just a bit of feedback. It tends to catch on poor quality paper, but that's probably because of being fine! It's always a first-time starter, and a steady, medium-wet line. Excellent pen apart from the cap issue.

 

I'm eying the oak Ondoro, trying to justify it!

[pbhat]

 

 

Ondoro is not heavy at all. I thought the wood one might be but not at all. Very cosy pen. The section is metal, but still very nicely contoured so grip (for me) is not an issue. The cap is actually plastic with a chrome cover or perhaps it is actually chromed plastic (hard to tell if it is one piece or two).

 

 

I am a sensitive soul. Other pens folks think are okay, I think are ergonomic abominations. I have zero problems with the Ondoro and can write with it all day in comfort. I use it unposted. To me, lovely to hold. A very simple solid pen.

 

I wish the nib was a little thinner. It is like a Japanese B. If I ever get near a nibber. I will maybe get it ground to something like my Pilot M for everyday use.

 

I spent a lot of time trying to love Faber-Castell's other cheaper offerings. This one was the only one that worked for me.

 

YMMV.

The cap is metal with a black plastic insert, the edge of it is visible at the bottom of the cap. The chrome plating appears to be of sound quality. the wear and tear on the snap cap mechanism working on the wood body needs to wait and see though it is quite tight being new.

pbhat.

[ink-syringe]

The cap is metal with a black plastic insert, the edge of it is visible at the bottom of the cap.

 

Your eyes are a lot better than mine. ha! Nice to know.

[visvamitra]

I'm huge Faber-Catsell fan My AMbition in coconut is splendid

[igor61]

The last 3 pens are: Faber and Graf V Faber

[a.zy.lee]

The last 3 pens are: Faber and Graf V Faber

I see you have the GvFC Classic! That was the Holy Grail pen for me for a while. However, when I held it in a shop, I found that it was way too thin for my liking, the nib was tiny and the ebony wood hadn't been finished nicely. It was very disappointing. How do you like yours?

[igor61]

I see you have the GvFC Classic! That was the Holy Grail pen for me for a while. However, when I held it in a shop, I found that it was way too thin for my liking, the nib was tiny and the ebony wood hadn't been finished nicely. It was very disappointing. How do you like yours?

 

I like mine, it works great, the ebony of mine it's O.K. it's not among my favorites. From Germany i prefer Pelikan and Mont Blanc