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Can't Understand Stub


Bklyn

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Hi all:

 

I am trying to understand the appeal of a stub but I am new to this and struggling a bit.

 

I tend to write with steel nibs and I like them to be broad. Is a stub nib simply a broad that is cut at a different angle? I tried one at Levenger and was unable to determine if I liked it or not. It seemed a bit, ahh, different.

 

Any help here greatly appreciated. I tend to print and take fast notes during the day and at night, I practice my cursive. (Not all that pretty at the moment. Pray for me...)

Anyone like Ray Bradbury? Please read "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair" if you have about 12 minutes.

 

You will not forget this wonderful gem that is largely obscure and sadly, forgotten. http://bit.ly/1DZtL4g

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Short answer: a stub nib is like an italic nib with the corners rounded off for smoother writing. Broader down-strokes, narrower side-strokes (depending on how you hold your pen - I tend to angle mine so the widest stroke is not straight down, but down and to the right...).

 

A stub is easier to write with, especially at speed, compared to an italic nib: the latter requires precise placement so the edges of the nib don't dig into the paper... but it means you get less line width variation. Dan Smith has a better explanation (with pretty pics) if you check out his website: https://nibsmith.com/nib-services/

 

Hope that makes sense - and wish you all the best working out what you're looking for!

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Short answer: a stub nib is like an italic nib with the corners rounded off for smoother writing. Broader down-strokes, narrower side-strokes (depending on how you hold your pen - I tend to angle mine so the widest stroke is not straight down, but down and to the right...).

 

A stub is easier to write with, especially at speed, compared to an italic nib: the latter requires precise placement so the edges of the nib don't dig into the paper... but it means you get less line width variation. Dan Smith has a better explanation (with pretty pics) if you check out his website: https://nibsmith.com/nib-services/

 

Hope that makes sense - and wish you all the best working out what you're looking for!

This is lovely. I thank you.

Anyone like Ray Bradbury? Please read "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair" if you have about 12 minutes.

 

You will not forget this wonderful gem that is largely obscure and sadly, forgotten. http://bit.ly/1DZtL4g

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@TheRealScubaSteve, thanks for the sample writing! On his website Nibsmith makes a distinction (which I think uses Richard Binder's nomenclature) between "sharp italic", "cursive italic" and "stub". Sharp italic nibs offer the greatest line variation, but are least "forgiving" when it comes to placement of the nib; "stub" nibs have the least line variation but the biggest "sweet-spot" (i.e. are more forgiving if you rotate the nib while writing).

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There are a couple of other sources of information that might be helpful. They are: http://www.franklin-christoph.com/specialty-nib-info.html and http://www.richardspens.com . On Richard's Pens go the the reference pages he has answers to questions you never knew you wanted answered.

 

I use both cursive italic and stub nibs. Sometimes I write with an italic hand and sometimes just use the stub to give my normal Palmer hand a bit more character. I have a light hand and don't see a great deal of difference.

Edited by linearM
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This is the Pilot Custom 742 Sutab (Stub) nib

fpn_1433136507__sutab2.jpg

You can see the rounded area between the vertical and horizontal planes that makes the writing easier.

 

This is one I carved from a Jinhao nib

fpn_1434257542__the_stub.jpg

 

On the right hand side, you can see the effect of carving a stub nib from a medium broad Jinhao nib

fpn_1434257607__writing_samples.jpg

fpn_1412827311__pg_d_104def64.gif




“Them as can do has to do for them as can’t.


And someone has to speak up for them as has no voices.”


Granny Aching

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Here's a post with a before/after of a couple of pens that received Pendleton Brown's butter line stub treatment. It adds a little variation to your writing, and remains as easy to use as a 'normal' nib.
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I came here to post that too. Before and after are very telling. Bravo to the OP of that thread for thinking to document that change.

Looking for a cap for a Sheaffer Touchdown Sentinel Deluxe Fat version

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...Bravo to the OP of that thread for thinking to document that change.

 

I agree. I think everyone who reads that thread should send the OP a pen. ;)

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IMG_20150615_234435.jpg

Less line variation but is smoother. I thank you.

Anyone like Ray Bradbury? Please read "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair" if you have about 12 minutes.

 

You will not forget this wonderful gem that is largely obscure and sadly, forgotten. http://bit.ly/1DZtL4g

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IMG_20150615_234435.jpg

Less line variation but is smoother. I thank you.

 

This is the Pilot Custom 742 Sutab (Stub) nib

fpn_1433136507__sutab2.jpg

You can see the rounded area between the vertical and horizontal planes that makes the writing easier.

 

This is one I carved from a Jinhao nib

fpn_1434257542__the_stub.jpg

 

On the right hand side, you can see the effect of carving a stub nib from a medium broad Jinhao nib

fpn_1434257607__writing_samples.jpg

These pics are GREAT. Thanks

Anyone like Ray Bradbury? Please read "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair" if you have about 12 minutes.

 

You will not forget this wonderful gem that is largely obscure and sadly, forgotten. http://bit.ly/1DZtL4g

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I am going to buy a loop and see what the real world of nibs looks like.

Anyone like Ray Bradbury? Please read "The Laurel and Hardy Love Affair" if you have about 12 minutes.

 

You will not forget this wonderful gem that is largely obscure and sadly, forgotten. http://bit.ly/1DZtL4g

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I am going to buy a loop and see what the real world of nibs looks like.

Oh, now there's a victim balanced on the lip of a slippery slope ...

ron

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Short answer: a stub nib is like an italic nib with the corners rounded off for smoother writing. Broader down-strokes, narrower side-strokes (depending on how you hold your pen - I tend to angle mine so the widest stroke is not straight down, but down and to the right...).

 

 

 

This is exactly how i hold mine, and i´ve been wondering if i did something wrong by doing that. Nice to see that others also does this :)

 

It might be worth mentioning that the angle might affect how a stub feels. I had some trouble with a scratchy stub from Masuyama. I had someone else try it and they felt it was smooth. I realized that it indeed was, if i just hold the pen lower than i normally would. Never had that "problem" with my Pendleton Brown stubs so i had never realized that it may be a factor.

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I am going to buy a loop and see what the real world of nibs looks like.

 

You want to look for a LOUPE, not a LOOP, or your searches won't find what you want.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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