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Suggestions For A Flex Nibbed, Heavy, Big Pen, In Uk


Alexcat

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And reasonably affordable.....not asking much, am I ? ;)

 

Would welcome any ideas or suggestions. Am still pretty new to this, so, any guidance re flex is much appreciated.

Thanks

Alex

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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I guess I would say a Noodler's Neponset! Not crazy heavy, but I would think it'd be okay.

"I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."

-Fred Allen 1894-1956

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I guess I would say a Noodler's Neponset! Not crazy heavy, but I would think it'd be okay.

Thank you, WetNoodle

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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What you are looking for does not exist.

Could you elaborate? Why, what about it? Bear in mind I am not very well versed in all things pennish, but we all start somewhere, and I go by the notion that the only silly question is the unasked one....

 

Alex

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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Generally I would say large, flex-nibbed, and heavy pens would be astronomical in price. So I think really only the Noodler's Neponset would fit the bill. Few and far between, but there are also some large Indian pens that could actually come with a flex nib - check out Fountain Pen Revolution (no affiliation).

 

I guess I also wouldn't take the Noodler's Ahab out of the equation too - very reasonably priced and not small by any means. Again, not really heavy though.

 

Ahab - $20

Indian FPR w/flex nib - maybe $60ish

Neponset - $75

 

...you know many folks like a flex nib, but I wouldn't discount a nice italic stub nib. If it's line variation you want, you can still get it. If you'd go with a stub, the options would be limitless; open you up to a lot more pens.

Edited by WetNoodle

"I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."

-Fred Allen 1894-1956

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Generally I would say large, flex-nibbed, and heavy pens would be astronomical in price. So I think really only the Noodler's Neponset would fit the bill. Few and far between, but there are also some large Indian pens that could actually come with a flex nib - check out Fountain Pen Revolution (no affiliation).

 

I guess I also wouldn't take the Noodler's Ahab out of the equation too - very reasonably priced and not small by any means. Again, not really heavy though.

 

Ahab - $20

Indian FPR w/flex nib - maybe $60ish

Neponset - $75

 

...you know many folks like a flex nib, but I wouldn't discount a nice italic stub nib. If it's line variation you want, you can still get it. If you'd go with a stub, the options would be limitless; open you up to a lot more pens.

 

WetNoodle,

 

Again, thank you. Like I say, Im still just learning. So, a stub: any suggestions?

 

Alex

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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May I ask what your budget is for the pen?

 

I'm not a big fan of the Noodler's pens which have needed some sort of tweaking to get them to work as they should. Since you're new ( I think), you'd probably want something that (hopefully) works right out of the box. I haven't tried the Neponset yet, so it's possible that it doesn't suffer from this issue though.

 

Of course if there's nothing satisfactory, you can always just buy any pen you want and get the nib ground into a stub by a "nib technician" like John Sorowka (who is located in the U.K. I believe).

 

Actually, you might want to look into the TWSBI Vac 700. I think it is about $70 and you can buy it with easy to change nibs, and one such nib they have is a 1.1mm (or a 1.5mm if your writing is bigger). Best part is, if you decide you hate stubs, you can just buy a normal EF/F/M/B nib and screw it on. :) It's a pretty big pen, and not heavy, but certainly not too light either. Also, its filling mechanism is something called a vacuum fill! Exciting stuff!

Edited by Suji

Pelikan 140 EF | Pelikan 140 OBB | Pelikan M205 0.4mm stub | Pilot Custom Heritage 912 PO | Pilot Metropolitan M | TWSBI 580 EF | Waterman 52 1/2v

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Go to Richard Binder's com, it is the basics of fountain pens, nibs, filling systems and good advice about inks. Should take you 3 days to read through.

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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May I ask what your budget is for the pen?

 

I'm not a big fan of the Noodler's pens which have needed some sort of tweaking to get them to work as they should. Since you're new ( I think), you'd probably want something that (hopefully) works right out of the box. I haven't tried the Neponset yet, so it's possible that it doesn't suffer from this issue though.

 

Of course if there's nothing satisfactory, you can always just buy any pen you want and get the nib ground into a stub by a "nib technician" like John Sorowka (who is located in the U.K. I believe).

 

Actually, you might want to look into the TWSBI Vac 700. I think it is about $70 and you can buy it with easy to change nibs, and one such nib they have is a 1.1mm (or a 1.5mm if your writing is bigger). Best part is, if you decide you hate stubs, you can just buy a normal EF/F/M/B nib and screw it on. :) It's a pretty big pen, and not heavy, but certainly not too light either. Also, its filling mechanism is something called a vacuum fill! Exciting stuff!

Oooh, thankyou....this gets ever more interesting. Open one door, and another ten appear :) shall look into your suggestions.

 

Budget is.....(pun coming, jst thought of it, feel free to groan....need all the humour I can muster, life being very difficult right now...) here we go....budget s....flex-ible ....Ish. Within reason. Under £100, tops.

 

Many thanks

Alex

Edited by Alexcat

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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Since you're new, the first question to ask yourself is why you want a flex pen. I was actually on Richard Binder's site yesterday, and he had a comment on how a flex nib can put beautiful and magical words on the page, but it takes practice. It won't magically make your handwriting more attractive anymore than a new set of golf clubs makes you a better golfer. I agree with the others that recommend an italic nib. It will get you going much faster...

 

If your max budget is 100 pounds or 150 dollars, you're pretty much open to most of the good pens out there. I've read multiples times on this forum at once you reach the $150 price point, you're not necessarily paying for functional quality anymore. The more expensive pens get into exotic materials or limited editions, etc.

 

One option to consider is to purchase a used pen on the classifieds forum here at FPN. That way, you can sell the pen if you don't like the way it writes without losing too much value. i.e. purchase a new pen for $150 and sell for $90, vs. purchase a used for $100 and sell for $90.

 

But personally, if you were a buddy of mine and asked me the same question, I'd tell you to buy a TWSBI 580 with a 1.1 mm stub italic and a Noodler's Ahab. The total cost of the two pens would be about $75, and you'd be able to try out two different writing styles. Both pens are known for being great values in the fountain pen community. And both pens are on the bigger side of the spectrum. Not huge, but no one would mistake them for small pens.

 

The TWSBI 580 is almost identical in size and weight to the Pelikan M800, which is known for its great balance and feel in the hand. And the Ahab is about the same size but has different characteristics, shape, etc.

 

The two pens also have more unique filling systems than the standard cartridge/converter style, which you may or may not care about.

 

The Ahab might be finicky and is often not recommended for new users, which is why I recommend you also buy the TWSBI... That way at least you have one great writer, and the Ahab will hopefully be a good writer out of the box.

Edited by pendexter
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TWSBI w/a stub nib, yeah. That's what I would go with, especially being new to fountain pens. But if you're dead-set on flex instead of stub, try a Neponset.

"I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."

-Fred Allen 1894-1956

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Just to say a huge thank you for all the help, and suggestions....really appreciate it. Many( too many to think about) years ago, I did miniature calligraphy, but with a very fine brush, and paint/varnish: it was on lace bobbins. The most I managed was a (commissioned) Lord's Prayer, which was quite back achingly intense; always loved all kinds of lettering and stationery and pens, way back as far a I cn remember (again, a long time) Im an artist, though haven't painted in a while. Was my husbands carer for years, till he became in need of more help than I could give,and he spent his last two years in a nursing home, until a final massive stroke took him in May this year. 34 years married, and soulmates, and it's .....ah, beyond words, how painful it is.

(Hoping it's not inappropriate to talk like this - I know there's a general chat forum, but it's a huge part of where I am right now, nd I wanted to explain a Little about why I appreciate all the suggestions. I find that writing helps me and inks and pens give me comfort)

Anyway, thanks again.

Alex

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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And my favourite pen shop sells the TWSBI, at under £60 :)

 

Alex, Spock, and Data(cats....they are keeping me going)

 

>^..^<

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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Some nibmeisters, Pendleton Brown for example, can add flex to most modern nibs. Or you can learn to do it yourself by modifying Noodlers flex nib with "ease my flex" modification. Noodlers flex nib is a bit large and hard to fit in other pens (Gama Kuyil with No Nonsense feed being one delightful exception). The fans of vintage flex nibs look at these contraptions with disdain but there is a lot of fun to be had with them so why bother.

 

Best way to learn flex writing is with nib holder and for example Zebra G nib. It offers much more flex and ruining one pound nib by overflexing is preferable to ruining fountain pen nib.

 

Twsbi is good sized pen but not really a huge or heavy pen. I just sold a Twsbi because it was a bit too small..

 

One possibility is to get Jinhao 159 pen from ebay and fit it with a few Nemosine stub nibs from Xfountainpens. There is a chance that you will get a crash course on tweaking fountain pens at the same time but they can be had for about 15 pounds. And if you like 159 i'd suggest Mr Pens Italix fountain pens that are also big & heavy and offer really ice stub nibs.

Non notisi signi.

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Since you are I Britain, an Italix Parson's Essential with an italic nib might serve as well. The nib is not flexible, but the italic nib will give you some line variation, although its probably best to go for a broad nib to get the most out of the line variation. The pen is heavier than most, and comes in at £39. You can get them from Mr Pen's website.

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Alexcat, no worries on the personal explanation. It resonates me with as I utilize fountain pens/inks w/letter writing as a way to unwind from a very intense job. Therapeutic without question!

"I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me."

-Fred Allen 1894-1956

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Alex- I am under 40, but, I know what having a stroke can do to people so afflicted. I suffered from a series of multiple strokes, and am trying to work my way back to a normal life. I still cant write properly or use but stiff-nibbed pens.

I think, you ought to be looking for a vintage pen, of the size and heft that suits you. Then, since you are in the UK, send the pen and nib to John Sowroka ( Username is Oxonian of FPN) and have him adjust the nib to get a flexible nib to meet your needs.

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With flex nibs, the bigger and the heavier the pen body, the harder it is to control those pens/nibs when flexed ... and the harder it is to learn to properly learn flexible writing. Likewise, the larger the nib size, the more flexible the nib, and the thinner the line it can produce ... the harder it is to control them.

Tu Amigo!

Mauricio Aguilar

 

www.VintagePen.net

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3525/4051556482_36f28f0902_m.jpg

E-Mail: VintagePen@att.net

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Alex- I am under 40, but, I know what having a stroke can do to people so afflicted. I suffered from a series of multiple strokes, and am trying to work my way back to a normal life. I still cant write properly or use but stiff-nibbed pens.

I think, you ought to be looking for a vintage pen, of the size and heft that suits you. Then, since you are in the UK, send the pen and nib to John Sowroka ( Username is Oxonian of FPN) and have him adjust the nib to get a flexible nib to meet your needs.

Im so sorry you are in that position....I know both from caring for my husband, and having a stroke myself, how debilitating it is. Thank you so much for the suggestions.

Alex

"As many nights endure Without a moon or star So will we endure When one is gone and far "Leonard Cohen, of blessed memory(21/09/1934-7/11/2016)

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