What Was Your Last Impulsive Pen Acquisition?

[PithyProlix]

Overcoming my (rational) fear of getting a fake, I finally took a chance on a Montblanc 149 for sale online. About $77 USD equivalent. Looks to be 1970s to early 1980s with the two-tone nib. 

 

Fingers crossed ...

[TgeekB]

10 hours ago, Gloucesterman said:

And the nib is??????????

Sorry, that was nibless of me. It has an F nib. Very wet. Smooth as silk. Probably one of the best writers in my collection. Makes me wonder why I have spent more on other pens. 

[Gloucesterman]

2 hours ago, TgeekB said:

Sorry, that was nibless of me. It has an F nib. Very wet. Smooth as silk. Probably one of the best writers in my collection. Makes me wonder why I have spent more on other pens. 

I could have simply asked, "What's the point?"

[TgeekB]

23 minutes ago, Gloucesterman said:

I could have simply asked, "What's the point?"

🤣

[ParramattaPaul]

2 hours ago, Gloucesterman said:

I could have simply asked, "What's the point?"

LOL!

[Tashi_Tsering]

A set of a tiny fountain pen and a very tiny pencil from a little-known French company called “Unic”. The pen is only 95mm long, see the photo below next to the Montblanc LeGrand. On the Internet, such pens are dated as the 1920s, but it seems to me that this is a later pen, 1940-50s

[ruby.monkey]

Just a Pilot Custom 74 with EF nib. I think I'm beginning to get the impulse under control.

[InkyProf]

21 minutes ago, ruby.monkey said:

I think I'm beginning to get the impulse under control.

 

I've thought that too. I thought wrong.

 

(Today's impulse buy was a copper Esterbrook Dollar Pen, which I somehow purchased in the course of trying to figure out how to reduce the number of Esterbrooks I own. Who put this car in reverse?!)

[Waltz For Zizi]

Are pens bought at the flea market considered impulse buys?

[carola]

4 minutes ago, Waltz For Zizi said:

Are pens bought at the flea market considered impulse buys?

 

As you can hardly plan ahead on buying them, I would say yes.

[Pen Ffynnon]

Broke down and ordered a TWSBI Diamond 580 in Iris 1.1 stub (very spring) and a (back-ordered) Esterbrook Back to the Land in Funky Lake (curious about the journaler nib).

[frank flood]

1 hour ago, Pen Ffynnon said:

Broke down and ordered a TWSBI Diamond 580 in Iris 1.1 stub (very spring) and a (back-ordered) Esterbrook Back to the Land in Funky Lake (curious about the journaler nib).

I'm glad you bought the 580 Iris..........I so very much wanted that pen but couldn't pull the plug on it. Enjoy

[frank flood]

Talking about impulsive buys I am.........TWSBI ECO  >M<  Espresso Gold (not inked yet it's so fresh)

[lascosas]

For 18 months I've been searching for a mate to my grey Omas Princess at the reasonable price.  Got one a few days ago (blue).  That was a Very Deliberate Pen Purchase. Then yesterday I was wandering aimlessly through Yahoo!Japan fountain pen listings and found another one, red.  That was an Impulsive Pen Acquisition.

 

[Pen Ffynnon]

16 hours ago, frank flood said:

I'm glad you bought the 580 Iris..........I so very much wanted that pen but couldn't pull the plug on it. Enjoy

I admit I was driven to it by a post (I think on Reddit) with quite a lovely purplish ink loaded up in it and went, "Spring!". It's my only defense. 😇

 

I hope you get one, too! 

[Pen Ffynnon]

2 hours ago, lascosas said:

For 18 months I've been searching for a mate to my grey Omas Princess at the reasonable price.  Got one a few days ago (blue).  That was a Very Deliberate Pen Purchase. Then yesterday I was wandering aimlessly through Yahoo!Japan fountain pen listings and found another one, red.  That was an Impulsive Pen Acquisition.

 

How pretty is that?!? What a nice find and now you have a trio of princesses...princessi...princessae....whatever it would be.

[lascosas]

Thank you.  I'm going with gaggle

[PithyProlix]

On 4/19/2025 at 5:44 PM, PithyProlix said:

Overcoming my (rational) fear of getting a fake, I finally took a chance on a Montblanc 149 for sale online. About $77 USD equivalent. Looks to be 1970s to early 1980s with the two-tone nib. 

 

Fingers crossed ...

 

Well, I got scammed. Facebook seller blocked me, which is a sure sign. I have gotten pretty good at IDing scammers but this one was quite sophisticated. 

 

Lesson learned. It's part of the cost of online buying and, all in all, I have gained much more than I have lost. Montblanc is quite a honeypot here in Thailand so, in retrospect, I should have known to be much more careful. The vast majority of sellers here are very honest but I think I will avoid buying desirable Montblancs from sellers I don't already know. 

[gweimer1]

On 4/19/2025 at 8:11 PM, carola said:

 

As you can hardly plan ahead on buying them, I would say yes.

 

I would argue that looking for fountain pens at a flea market is intent to buy.

[Inky_Ben]

LOL.  My answer to the OP's question is: It's about to happen.

 

I did see a Ranga Madras pen for sale with a 14K gold nib.  I have often been tempted by that combination on Fountain Pen Revolution's site, but this eBay purchase of a used one meant that I could see what the gold nib felt like without breaking the bank.  Great deal.   The pen writes very nicely!  I may have to impulsively buy another.