Mead Cambridge Perforated Writing Pad - Surprisingly Fountain Pen Friendly...

[metwin1]

My workplace uses Mead Cambridge perforated writing pads; the ones that are stocked are light purple (Orchid) because apparently they cause less strain to the eye. The office manager buys these from Staples (Canada). Here's a link to the product: http://www.staples.ca/en/Cambridge-Perforated-Pads-8-1-2-inch-x-11-3-4-inch/product_601916_2-CA_1_20001

 

According to the specs, it's 20lb paper, 50 sheets per pad, and 3 pads go for about CDN$6. The paper feels smoother than regular copy paper. I had avoided using these pads because the paper is light purple which changes the way ink looks on the page, but I tried them the other day and I am shocked as to how well the paper holds up to fountain pen ink.

 

Here are some pictures. 2 of them are scans and 4 of them are pictures from my camera phone. I just used pens that I happened to have inked up right now. No feathering at all even for very wet nibs; there is some ghosting, but it's not too bad that I can tolerate using both sides of the page even using (european) fine nibs. You can see that there is no feathering at all even where I flexed the nib of the wet writing Noodler's Neponset.

 

And THERE IS SHEEN! It doesn't show up on the scans, but I can see some evidence of sheen for Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo, especially at places where there is a lot of ink. Sheen is quite visible for the Parker Sapphire Blue written with a Bexley 18K fine nib, and very clearly visible for J Herbin Stormy Grey written using a Franklin Christoph Matsuyama medium CI steel nib.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jmccarty3]

This doesn't show up on the staples US web site, unless I'm missing it.

[Dimitri]

Mead Cambridge notebooks are my favorite when it comes to cheap note taking books.

[metwin1]

This doesn't show up on the staples US web site, unless I'm missing it.

 

They are also available at Walmart.ca, so I wonder if the US Walmart has them.

 

 

Mead Cambridge notebooks are my favorite when it comes to cheap note taking books.

 

That's what I have been using at work because the paper is white, but the paper of this Cambridge writing pad is smoother, less absorbent, and generally performs better. The Mead Cambridge notebooks come in two kinds, the "regular" and the "premium paper stiff back", but my experience is that the performance of the papers in both notebooks is erratic. Some times I get the decent stuff - the paper is absorbent so I don't get sheen, but there isn't much feathering even though there is clear bleed through. Other times, I get paper that is horrible; ink feathers so badly that my XF nibs write like M.

 

I have encountered both kinds of papers from both the "regular" and "premium paper stiff back" Mead Cambridge notebooks, and there is no way to tell which kind you're going to get. The performance seems to vary in batches.

[wastelanded]

Dollarama sells lots of Mead stuff, and almost all of it is FP-friendly.