What Was Your Last Impulsive Pen Acquisition?

[Gloucesterman]

Just hit the BIN button on Amazon for -

2PCS Jinhao 911 Fountain Pen Extra Fine Nib, Matte Black with Gold & Silver Trim, Lightweight and Durable, Includes Ink Cartridges & Converters, Smooth Writing Pen

It's two pens that look a bit like the Viper and the cost was $9.99.  Here is the link so that they don't switch prices on you (I hope). That's cheap enough to give away to newbies. Good luck...

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0D9N756XC/?ref_=pe_122214630_1270553470_AGH0203IMG_cor_ci_mcx_mr_2p_3_lm

[ParramattaPaul]

Not a pen but a Rotring 600 mechanical pencil not because I needed another mechanical pencil, but 'just because.

[Gloucesterman]

5 hours ago, ParramattaPaul said:

5 hours ago, ParramattaPaul said:

'just because.

Be (the) Cause!

Paul, you were successful (and accurate).

Enjoy your new pencil and don't even think about erasing your action!

Not a pen but a Rotring 600 mechanical pencil not because I needed another mechanical pencil, but 'just because.

 

[Cjtamu]

Mom had a watch she wanted inspected so I took to my favorite watch repair folks. On the way out Kim noticed they had a few pre-owned MB pens. Including a 145 Classique which is one I’ve been thinking about and they were happy to let go at a good price. Excellent condition, seems to be a B nib. Had a couple dried MB carts in it so was able to at least wet the nib and see. Believe it’s a pretty early release. Has a SN but no Pix and no StOD on the nib. Finished cleaning this morning. Bottle of MB Ferrari purple waiting for me at Dromgoole’s, soon as I can pick that up I’ll try it out.

[boilermaker1975]

@Cjtamu Nice!

[Cjtamu]

7 hours ago, boilermaker1975 said:

@Cjtamu Nice!

Thank you. I got the pen. They got a lesson in checking for MB fakes. Thought I was crazy when I pulled a mini Mag lite out of my pocket and asked if they had a magnet ha ha ha. And the watch was clean. Good day all around!

[Misfit]

My Estilograficas order would have been delivered on Friday. However I was asleep when the delivery was attempted. It needed a signature. I went to the Post Office today.  Wow! They even came with clips. People who buy Kaweco know they rarely come with clips. If anyone ever needs to shop with Estilograficas, I can recommend them heartily.  

[Arthur Pewty]

Bossert & Erhard Amber Ice Guilloche, 18K M.

[Cjtamu]

27 minutes ago, Arthur Pewty said:

Bossert & Erhard Amber Ice Guilloche, 18K M.

That’s a great looking pen.

[Arthur Pewty]

3 hours ago, Cjtamu said:

That’s a great looking pen.

Thank you. The silver trim had "light tarnishing that should polish right off". Humph. I invested some serious time and elbow grease clearing it up, especially the grip section. But the story has a happy ending.

[Arthur Pewty]

I'm not sure what I have here. The minimal clip ring looks like a Geha student pen. But it has a gleaming Geha 14K M nib. Did someone upgrade their Schulfüller, or is this a Geha model I can't identify online? Nothing is stamped on the barrel or the cap.

[Runnin_Ute]

On a BIN on ebay a 1975 Parker 75 Cisele with M stub (70) nib.

[Arthur Pewty]

Jinhao 950 ceramic, dragon design, stainless F.

[migotka21]

Two mr European version, only fountain pens.

Supposedly this version will no longer be around - so less colours available, plus 2 of my fav shops aren't sure they can order them. So when 2 were still in a shop, I grabbed them for later. I'll leave them in boxes and use when my lizard and gold are slightly used with damaged outer layer which is relatively common for this model. And no green one at the moment so I have 2 instead of 3.

Yes, I'm silly and possibly crazy. But they are so pretty...

[Black16]

On 7/18/2025 at 10:40 PM, ParramattaPaul said:

My first pens were all Platignums purchased at the local newsagent for ~ 2/6 if that.  That was all I could afford on a pauper's budget when I was at school and for quite a long time afterwards.  Fountain pens at that time were tools and not a hobby.  Collecting pens only became a hobby after I retired the second time (and for good).  Even then, what I wanted was more Platignums, Mentmores, and Wyverns (and a few Pelikano 'school pens' because they wrote well for me)  - not exactly top-shelf, prestige pens.  My late wife whose family were (Ahem. well off. -- I definitely 'married up'.) had a Conway Stewart Duofold as her school pen in high school.  She dug it out one night - she hadn't used it in decades - about 10 years ago, and that prompted me to find a similar vintage CS pen for myself. 

 

That's when things got serious for me.  Pen lust!  New and old Conways to the left of me; new and old Onotos to the right of me!

Yeah I know the feeling. My only expensive (relatively of course) pen for decades was Laban Signet barley platinum pattern and other pens were all affordable old workhorses. Sadly I still posses only the Laban from those times. I started collecting pens after accidentally impulsively buying something Jinhao that wrote so nice I decided to dive into this hobby. Can't choose a Wyvern for my current collection yet, none of what I saw so far spoke to me. But my Mentmore snakeskin I adore for so many personal reasons, and after I was frustrated how wet this CS 475 appeared to be I managed to find some dry inks on my shelf to make it work with crappy papers. The mentioned in this thread CS appeared to have a rather broad CSI flex nib so all the cheapo papers weren't able to handle it with Lamy inks even. Never thought I'll need dry inks!

I aboslutely love some of the modern LE Onotos but they're so out of my budget, I'll have to wait till I win a lottery

[ParramattaPaul]

1 hour ago, Black16 said:

Yeah I know the feeling. My only expensive (relatively of course) pen for decades was Laban Signet barley platinum pattern and other pens were all affordable old workhorses. Sadly I still posses only the Laban from those times. I started collecting pens after accidentally impulsively buying something Jinhao that wrote so nice I decided to dive into this hobby. Can't choose a Wyvern for my current collection yet, none of what I saw so far spoke to me. But my Mentmore snakeskin I adore for so many personal reasons, and after I was frustrated how wet this CS 475 appeared to be I managed to find some dry inks on my shelf to make it work with crappy papers. The mentioned in this thread CS appeared to have a rather broad CSI flex nib so all the cheapo papers weren't able to handle it with Lamy inks even. Never thought I'll need dry inks!

I aboslutely love some of the modern LE Onotos but they're so out of my budget, I'll have to wait till I win a lottery

I'm lefthanded and that is what got me back to using a fountain pen.  I became an over-writer (hooked wrist and hand above where I was writing) at school since we had to write in copy books or in binders, and had no time to allow ink to dry.  Any over-writer can tell you that it is not ergonomic and quickly results in a painful wrist and hand.  That pain motivated me to retrain myself to become an under-writer.  For me, the best way to do that was to use a fountain pen since it would require me to use a 'proper' pen hold.

 

The unintended consequence of that was a quest for the best writing pen. Two decades later, I have spent 'invested' a bit of my children's (future) inheritance for a reasonable collection (They will have some nice pens when I'm gone.) of modern and vintage British and German pens. 

[Black16]

5 minutes ago, ParramattaPaul said:

I'm lefthanded and that is what got me back to using a fountain pen.  I became an over-writer (hooked wrist and hand above where I was writing) at school since we had to write in copy books or in binders, and had no time to allow ink to dry.  Any over-writer can tell you that it is not ergonomic and quickly results in a painful wrist and hand.  That pain motivated me to retrain myself to become an under-writer.  For me, the best way to do that was to use a fountain pen since it would require me to use a 'proper' pen hold.

 

The unintended consequence of that was a quest for the best writing pen. Two decades later, I have spent 'invested' a bit of my children's (future) inheritance for a reasonable collection (They will have some nice pens when I'm gone.) of modern and vintage British and German pens. 

I use both hands but prefer to write with the right only - making notes etc while doing something with the left. And I most of the time just turn the whole notebook/paper piece vertically as writing at the regular angle gives me pain and irritation. So basically I over-write with the right hand but to make it more convenient I just turn the paper. Ballpoints and even rollers always gave me so much pain I ditched them long ago. Also they do not have so many ink choices to please my tired eyes. I even buy off-white, cream, ivory etc paper only as white sheets don't do me any good with their brightness.

 

I do not posses many valuable pens but as long as they help me to get less tired and do not worsen pains they're precious. I've actually no idea if they'll be of any interest for anyone after I'm gone but hopefully they will find good homes with persons who will care for them. Mostly I always worry about the cheapest pens honestly - for example Parkers can attract attention but Jinhao Shark probably won't. Yup from time to time I tend to worry about even the most "worthless" pens I own as to me they're almost like some kind of pets (we can't have pets sadly, at least not for now).

[Doug C]

1 hour ago, ParramattaPaul said:

I'm lefthanded and that is what got me back to using a fountain pen.  I became an over-writer (hooked wrist and hand above where I was writing) at school since we had to write in copy books or in binders, and had no time to allow ink to dry.  Any over-writer can tell you that it is not ergonomic and quickly results in a painful wrist and hand.  That pain motivated me to retrain myself to become an under-writer.  For me, the best way to do that was to use a fountain pen since it would require me to use a 'proper' pen hold.

 

The unintended consequence of that was a quest for the best writing pen. Two decades later, I have spent 'invested' a bit of my children's (future) inheritance for a reasonable collection (They will have some nice pens when I'm gone.) of modern and vintage British and German pens. 

This path from left handed over writer to under writer mirrors my own experience. 

[Surlyprof]

1 hour ago, ParramattaPaul said:

I'm lefthanded and that is what got me back to using a fountain pen.  I became an over-writer (hooked wrist and hand above where I was writing) at school since we had to write in copy books or in binders, and had no time to allow ink to dry.  Any over-writer can tell you that it is not ergonomic and quickly results in a painful wrist and hand.  That pain motivated me to retrain myself to become an under-writer.  For me, the best way to do that was to use a fountain pen since it would require me to use a 'proper' pen hold.

 

The unintended consequence of that was a quest for the best writing pen. Two decades later, I have spent 'invested' a bit of my children's (future) inheritance for a reasonable collection (They will have some nice pens when I'm gone.) of modern and vintage British and German pens. 

 

This is something that’s always alluded me.  Your post inspires me to attempt retraining once again.

[boilermaker1975]

@Black16 I too love the special edition Onotos.

 

My first Onoto was bought earlier this year, the BRG scholar. It was not exactly a LE, they took orders till I believe the end of February or March and then that was it.  I wish that I knew what I know now when I was ordering. (Do those sound lyrics sound familiar to anyone?) I would have gotten the other two colors, Northern Lights and Dark Cherry. They were only around $160. 

 

I dropped hints and for my birthday I got my second Onoto, the LE "The Faraday." I teach electromagnetic in addition to the many discoveries  I discuss of Faradays, I thought in some of the history of the man. The students love that as with the other instructors it is just equation after equation.

 

Unfortunately the Onotos have gotten even more expensive in the US with the tariffs. But I am still eyeing some of the special editions like Pi, the Rosetta Stone, the British Museum acrylic, and the Magna Ebonite.