Primacy Effect?

[senzen]

So, the questions are:

1. What was your first pen?

Pelikan vector

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

Yup.

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

Lamy Vista, Muji, Platinum PGB-3000A.

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

Cheap, but I hated writing with my vector, I love writing with my newer ones; the biggest difference is myself not the pens, I learned to have patience with them.

[oregano]

Good thread topic!

 

1. What was your first pen?

--the first pen I considered 'special'/fancy: a green marbelized pen (I don't have the brand in front of me)

--first fountain pen: Waterman Phileas

 

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

Yes! about 8 and 13, respectively

 

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

the Pelikan Souveran range

 

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

Pelikan has the same conservative but classy design as the Phileas. I still have an affinity for the Art Deco style, of which there are many fabulous vintage pens, but I am not a heavy vintage pen user.

 

When I got back into fountain pens, I searched for a pen like the Phileas, thinking it was my ideal pen weight and size, but did not find a replacement. The Aurora Optima came closest in terms of design. Similarly, I got the Pelikan Green o' green because it reminded me of the green marble pen, but of course it was not the same (I may still be looking for that one!)

Edited June 13, 2015 by paloma32

[catbert]

 

1. What was your first pen?

 

 

Parker Vector

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

I was in 4th grade, probably age 9 or 10.

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

Lamy 2000

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

They're both fountain pens.

 

 

Lamy 2000 could have been my 'representative' pen. It's so beautifully minimal and unobtrusive it actually slipped my mind.

 

I don't have a Vector fountain pen for comparison but I do have a rollerball. Clean lines, metal section, angular clip, contrasting metal bit on the end of the barrel (OK - that's reaching) ... they're not a million miles apart.

[catbert]

 

1. A fine nib Waterman Phileas.

2. No, I think I got it either late in college or early in grad school.

3. Well, I generally like modern pens with medium nibs that aren't too expensive. I'm not sure I can specify much more than that, because I haven't thought much about it.

4. Assuming 3, then the Waterman is pretty similar except for it having a fine nib. Overall, I'm not sure. I wasn't buying pens with any particular theme or goal in mind besides getting what I like, thought I'd use, and didn't cost too much.

 

Maybe you'll spot a clearer pattern later? I had accumulated quite a few before I realized what I had been doing all along.

[catbert]

1. What was your first pen?

 

A Skrip school pen with chrome cap and translucent yellow barrel.

 

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

 

Got it in the sixth grade, so probably? The strongest impression it made on me was, blue ink doesn't belong in a yellow-barrel pen.

 

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

 

I'm all over the map, from Cheap Chinese and Student Specials, all the way up to MB and Sailor and Parker and vintage Sheaffer Triumph nibs. Can't be metal or have a metal section. Must be lightweight, and fat. I like every type of nib from XF hairline to big juicy Sailor Zoom.

 

 

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

 

Probably my mania for harmonizing ink color with barrel color.

 

Definitely impressionable in sixth grade.

That blue-yellow contrast is a great connection! I wonder if things would have been different if you'd had a clear demonstrator instead of a tinted one?

[catbert]

1. What was your first pen?

My first fountain pen was an Osmiroid 65, purchased in about 1962 when I was a Freshman in College. I bought it to learn italic writing.

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

Yes. But then, 50+ years later, I continue to be impressionable, I hope.

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

Any pen that is beautiful to look at, comfortable to write with and has an italic nib (stock or custom-ground) that is smooth but still has good line differentiation. These vary from limited editions of high-end pens to 1960's and '70's student pens (Osmiroid, Reform, Elite).

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

Two? My collection is probably over 100 pens. (I'm afraid to count.) "Similarities" are described in #3, above.

 

David

 

Yes, I should have been more precise there. I thought 'fountain' was a given, considering where we are.

 

Agree we should stay impressionable in the sense of open to new things. I guess I am, considering how many pens I have ended up acquiring after reading about them in threads like this!

[Sailor Kenshin]

Definitely impressionable in sixth grade.

That blue-yellow contrast is a great connection! I wonder if things would have been different if you'd had a clear demonstrator instead of a tinted one?

Maybe that's why I'm drawn to clear demonstrators now. Any color ink, come one, come all!

[catbert]

 

1. What was your first pen?

 

- Sheaffer cartridge student pen, chrome cap with transparent blue body @ 1964.

 

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

- 14 is pretty impressionable

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

- Fountain pens. (Tend to be Japanese, F nib, piston or vacuum fillers. But there are also German, Taiwanese, English, American and Indian pens with them.)

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

- They use nibs and ink.

 

 

Yeah, I don't see much influence from the past there either - except for sticking with fountain pens, I guess!

[catbert]

 

1. What was your first pen?

Level-filler plastic/acrylic Platignum pen made mandotory for use in primary school in the late 60s, though we wrote free-hand, not formally taught cursive.

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

I was 8

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

My preferences have diversified radically from the first pen. I use and love many different pens

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

Not much

 

 

Interesting. Do you think a preference or aversion has carried through to your writing style rather than your choice of writing instrument? (Should have asked Water Ouzel this too.)

[catbert]

Hi,

 

1. What was your first pen?

• My first FP was a Parker Sonnet + 18K M nib. Still used as my daily writer at the office.

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

• In my teens. I remain impressionable, just harder to impress.

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

• By and large I prefer pens with a bit of heft, a long smooth section and M+ nibs, yet I love to use some of my much more petite featherweight pens because of their nib.
• If I were to purchase another pen as a daily writer, I'd give in to my penchant for Sterling Silver, only to be torn between a Parker 75 or a Sheaffer Imperial TD or a Namiki Silver Series.

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

• Good nibs.
• Comfy.

Bye,

S1

 

Great that you still have and use your first pen regularly! Mine is long lost, though replaced with a similar one.

Still impressionable but harder to impress is exactly the place to be, I think.

(Thoroughly recommend the sterling silver Parker 75 if you're looking for another daily writer. Everything about it feels just right. But that's the pen I've had since my teens - so I am biased.)

[thatotherguy1]

1. A Jinhao made, Bulow branded matte black X750 (with a 10ml sample of a grey Chesterfield ink in the box to boot)

2. Nope.

3. All over the place, really. I tend to like pens that were designed from the 1920s to the mid 1960s, so that covers Vacumatics, some of the Duofolds, 51s, 61s aren't a favorite of mine, Sheaffer Triumphs, Snorkels, most or all Touchdown fillers, many lever fillers, some eyedroppers, Pelikans, etc. However, I don't own most of these pens. I do have a 1950s Eversharp, a modern Indian eyedropper that resembles the Duofold and a Lamy 2000 (the sole reason why I added the 1960s in there too...)

4. Well, now I tend to like self contained filling mechanisms, to include eyedroppers, more than C/C pens (especially with those teeny international short cartridges), especially piston fillers. I do like the classic styling the Jinhao had and I like open nibs and slip caps. I don't like metal pens if I have a choice and I like light pens. I never post my pens because the Jinhao couldn't handle being posted without REALLY throwing the weight off.

[LisaN]

Well, speaking of psychology...

 

I wrote my dissertation throughout my research project (instead of at the end, like most people) to spite an annoying coworker. "What'r' ya doin'.... goofin' off? No, I'm writing my dissertation." I specifically chose the most obvious in-your-face way to do it... cursive in fountain pen on yellow pads, and then transcribing to the computer. Almost every spare minute I was writing- spite kept me going. By the time the research was done, the dissertation was done, and the other student had dropped out.

 

Through it all- a Waterman Phileas and three bottles of Parker Quink (also used on the lab notebooks).

[catbert]

1974. It was a sheaffer school cartridge pen. I remember that it was really good at throwing ink drops if you shook it over the paper. So I made a lot of ink blots to see if I could see anything. In those days, a fountain pen wasn't really weird- about half the kids had them. Aside from the fun of throwing blobs on purpose, it was an annoying pen because it threw blobs when writing as well. I went through a string of them- they usually got broken- stepped on, sat on, etc. Looking back, no wonder I never had a good pen as a kid.

 

In college I had a pair of Parker vectors, which did NOT cause any trouble ever. I still have one of them. The other I gave away to a friend last year.

 

These got lost for 15-20 years. In between I bought a Waterman Phileas. I used it to write my PhD dissertation. Still a great pen with a lush smooth nib. Looks like an expensive pen to civilians.

 

That was my only pen for a while.

 

2. Yes, 8 is an impressionable age. That is when you start using pens in school. I have absolutely no idea why my parents bought me fountain pens. I also had bic crystals, bic bananas, and flair pens.

 

3. My current preference is for Pelikan M800s.

 

4. I don't like school pens.

I prefer heavier pens, with big, smooth, wet nibs. Using a pen is more ritualistic now- there is the fiddling with the case, the dealing with the cap (I never post, except a pocket pen), and the checking the ink levels. Except for the Kaweco... which is a quick go-to pen in my pocket at all times. But it is the heavier AL-Sport.

 

I'd forgotten about the blob thing. A friend - a habitual pen spinner - once managed to send a diagonal spray across everyone sitting on the other side of the library table (including me).

And now I'm curious about M800s. Impressionable.

[catbert]

 

So, the questions are:

1. What was your first pen?

Pelikan vector

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

Yup.

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

Lamy Vista, Muji, Platinum PGB-3000A.

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

Cheap, but I hated writing with my vector, I love writing with my newer ones; the biggest difference is myself not the pens, I learned to have patience with them.

 

 

I like cheap pens too but Mrs Catbert says that me, not the primacy effect.

What's a Pelikan Vector?

[catbert]

Good thread topic!

 

1. What was your first pen?

--the first pen I considered 'special'/fancy: a green marbelized pen (I don't have the brand in front of me)

--first fountain pen: Waterman Phileas

 

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

Yes! about 8 and 13, respectively

 

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

the Pelikan Souveran range

 

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

Pelikan has the same conservative but classy design as the Phileas. I still have an affinity for the Art Deco style, of which there are many fabulous vintage pens, but I am not a heavy vintage pen user.

 

When I got back into fountain pens, I searched for a pen like the Phileas, thinking it was my ideal pen weight and size, but did not find a replacement. The Aurora Optima came closest in terms of design. Similarly, I got the Pelikan Green o' green because it reminded me of the green marble pen, but of course it was not the same (I may still be looking for that one!)

 

It's interesting how we're not quite as free as we think we are, isn't it?

[catbert]

Maybe that's why I'm drawn to clear demonstrators now. Any color ink, come one, come all!

 

Yes! I'm getting into demonstrators a bit. I guess ink colours will be next ...

[catbert]

1. A Jinhao made, Bulow branded matte black X750 (with a 10ml sample of a grey Chesterfield ink in the box to boot)

2. Nope.

3. All over the place, really. I tend to like pens that were designed from the 1920s to the mid 1960s, so that covers Vacumatics, some of the Duofolds, 51s, 61s aren't a favorite of mine, Sheaffer Triumphs, Snorkels, most or all Touchdown fillers, many lever fillers, some eyedroppers, Pelikans, etc. However, I don't own most of these pens. I do have a 1950s Eversharp, a modern Indian eyedropper that resembles the Duofold and a Lamy 2000 (the sole reason why I added the 1960s in there too...)

4. Well, now I tend to like self contained filling mechanisms, to include eyedroppers, more than C/C pens (especially with those teeny international short cartridges), especially piston fillers. I do like the classic styling the Jinhao had and I like open nibs and slip caps. I don't like metal pens if I have a choice and I like light pens. I never post my pens because the Jinhao couldn't handle being posted without REALLY throwing the weight off.

 

Maybe you'll spot a clearer pattern later? Maybe you're free of any formative preference or aversion? Maybe you're the exception that proves the rule.

Edited June 14, 2015 by catbert

[catbert]

Well, speaking of psychology...

 

I wrote my dissertation throughout my research project (instead of at the end, like most people) to spite an annoying coworker. "What'r' ya doin'.... goofin' off? No, I'm writing my dissertation." I specifically chose the most obvious in-your-face way to do it... cursive in fountain pen on yellow pads, and then transcribing to the computer. Almost every spare minute I was writing- spite kept me going. By the time the research was done, the dissertation was done, and the other student had dropped out.

 

Through it all- a Waterman Phileas and three bottles of Parker Quink (also used on the lab notebooks).

 

Hope you refilled in the lab, for added in-your-faceness.

[pen2paper]

1. What was your first pen?

• Sheaffer Snorkel - passed along to me by my mom, who had Abandoned her fully functioning blue Snorkel pen with open nib, for the more sophisticated appearance of a gray Parker 51 fine point
  
• Parker 51 - passed along with its Scatchy finepoint, which I Abandoned, (interesting pre-K discernment ; ) returning to the Snorkel.
  

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

• inquisitive Pre-K age = Snorkel was mechanical!!! = fascinating Peacock Blue ink bubble maker. We spent a lot of time together.
  

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

• reliable - Safari 1.1
  
• vintage - reliable, semi-flex nibs, demonstrating the varied development of pen History
  

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

• absolutely, appreciating the mechanics of the Snorkel vs next inheriting the "Scratchy" P51, as my mom shifted to ballpoints = early recognition that the instrument could be somewhat complex and work, or fairly simple, and require fussy adjusting with upkeep. Always interested in writing equipment, as an adult revisiting vintage I first sought out a Snorkel. Then much later, convinced to try a well-tuned 51. But, Daily I use my never fussy Safari 1.1's
  

Edited June 14, 2015 by pen2paper

[ISW_Kaputnik]

[sNIP]

So, the questions are:

1. What was your first pen?

2. Did you get it at an impressionable age?

3. What pen or type of pen best represents your preferences today?

4. What similarities, if any, do you see between the two?

[sNIP]

 

1. My first fountain pen was a Parker IM.
2. I bought it in my impressionable early fifties. I am now in my impressionable late fifties.
3. Pilot Custom Heritage 92 for modern pens. Several different types of vintage ones.
4. None. The Parker IM was a piece of junk that was just good enough to get me interested in finding a different fountain pen that worked. The Pilot Custom Heritage 92 just works without any problems.