What Was Your Last Impulsive Pen Acquisition?

[jchch1950]

To lose a recently acquired pen is a double pain. Luckily, the Safari Dark Dust can be easily replaced.

[inkstainedruth]

At least for the moment, anyway!  (Whew!)

Ironically, I don't have any of the "standard" colors for either Safaris or al-Stars, although I did get my husband a blue Safari a couple of years ago.  The only "standard" color I have in that entire line is the Ruthenium LX, and only because I paid less for it than I would have for a Safari, when their old US distributor had a closeout sale (for $25 US, it was just too good a deal to pass up!).

And I like that Lamy doesn't charge more for the SE colors for Safaris and al-Stars.  The prices are the same as their regular lineup colors.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[MarcoA63]

I bought two Italian vintage pens:

Aurora 98 Magic Reserve (Riserva Magica)

Omas black facceted 361 F

[lamarax]

4 hours ago, MarcoA63 said:

Omas black facceted 361 F

 

Is that the "flip-flex-writing" pen? I've been meaning to find one of those...

[MarcoA63]

@lamarax, yes it is. You rotate the pen 180 degrees in your hand to get it to write flexible or not. You don't turn the hood around the nib, you rotate the pen :-) 

[Penguincollector]

  I just bought 2 pens: a Platinum 1974 Fountain Pen - Sheepskin Yuzen-zomi Gosho-guruma, 18k Fine Nib, and a black Parker IM Monochrome ($15!). My husband (such an enabler) mentioned that the de minimus exception is still in place for Japan, so I bought the Platinum as it has been on my list for a very long time. The Parker was a super bargain offer, and I really like the IM line. 
 

Screenshot of the Platinum from the listing:

[Pen Ffynnon]

Don't know if it counts as an impulse since this has been on my wishlist for a while, but all the tariff talk punched my impulsiveness button and I just ordered the Onoto Scholar in Chestnut Pearl. Coffee-esque color and my first Onoto. 

 

And thus my pen diet took an elbow to the head. sigh.

Edited May 24, 2025 by Pen Ffynnon
type

[ParramattaPaul]

5 hours ago, Pen Ffynnon said:

Don't know if it counts as an impulse since this has been on my wishlist for a while, but all the tariff talk punched my impulsiveness button and I just ordered the Onoto Scholar in Chestnut Pearl. Coffee-esque color and my first Onoto. 

 

And thus my pen diet took an elbow to the head. sigh.

😊😊

Welcome to the Scholar Club.  There are no dues, no officers, and no meetings except those you and your pen decide to have.

[lamarax]

3 hours ago, ParramattaPaul said:

😊😊

Welcome to the Scholar Club.  There are no dues, no officers, and no meetings except those you and your pen decide to have.

 

...except if the country you live in, isn't part of the Empire the "Commonwealth" 😉

 

Seriously, I've been drooling over a couple of Magnas for quite a while, but in contrast to Bespoke Pens/Conway Stewart, 'nu-Onoto' hasn't been bothered to arrange for dealerships in the "ol' Continent". This makes their already absurdly expensive offerings become nigh prohibitive to get where I am.

 

[edit] Hmm, now that I think of it, maybe I'll have to put a word with Charlie. He's an old mate.

(here we're chatting together in Ermou st. in Athens. He drank too many coffees as you can see 😛)

[AmandaW]

Fleabay kept showing me a fine Sheaffer 444 (maybe 444x - hard to tell from the photos). Brushed chrome, inlaid steel nib, comes with a bunch of partially-dried cartridges.

 

Yeah, I had sworn off buying old pens after a bunch of poor experiences... that makes it a very impulsive purchase. So, do I dare order a converter for it now? Or best to wait and see?

[ParramattaPaul]

2 hours ago, lamarax said:

 

...except if the country you live in, isn't part of the Empire the "Commonwealth" 😉

 

Seriously, I've been drooling over a couple of Magnas for quite a while, but in contrast to Bespoke Pens/Conway Stewart, 'nu-Onoto' hasn't been bothered to arrange for dealerships in the "ol' Continent". This makes their already absurdly expensive offerings become nigh prohibitive to get where I am.

 

[edit] Hmm, now that I think of it, maybe I'll have to put a word to Charlie. He's an old mate.

(here we're chatting together in Ermou st. in Athens. He drank too many coffees as you can see 😛)

I share your pain.  Onoto has come out with an ebonite (black with either gold or silver trimmings) chased Magna to tempt me.  It is priced at four figures in Australian dollars.  The AUD is in the basement on currency ROEs (1 AUD = 0.57 EURO, 1 AUD = 0.48 GBP).

 

I digress but, I am truly glad I am a common, garden variety nobody and not a reigning monarch or other celebrity.  Gladly, I will never have a throng of people - 'minders', paparazzi, and spectators alike - surround and 'goggle' me if I should stop at an al fresco cafe to have a cup of tea (not a coffee drinker).

[lamarax]

25 minutes ago, ParramattaPaul said:

I digress but, I am truly glad I am a common, garden variety nobody and not a reigning monarch or other celebrity.  Gladly, I will never have a throng of people - 'minders', paparazzi, and spectators alike - surround and 'goggle' me if I should stop at an al fresco cafe to have a cup of tea (not a coffee drinker).

 

Sure, I get you. I'll call Harry so we can hang together for a beer^* one of these days 🙃

 

^*A real one, not Foster's 😛

 

Plz, don't hit me!

[fireant]

Not quite a pen, it was a pencil. I have been lurking on/off looking at the bay for a Montblanc Leonardo Sketch pencil. The last time I looked an auction was ending in an hour. So I kept my eye on it and at the last minute bid more than I should've and won it.

 

It's lovely but ridiculous, I can't imagine taking this to an art class, but it's wonderful.

 

[AmandaW]

59 minutes ago, fireant said:

 

It's lovely but ridiculous, I can't imagine taking this to an art class, but it's wonderful

Wow. That's cool!

[InkyProf]

An early Aurora Hastil in its original space-age case, to join the Pilot Murex and Lamy Unic in a little trio of thin, minimalist, steel pens. Is the fact that this brings my collection to a nice round number going to be the leverage I need to exercise impulse control in the future? (What's that? I can't hear you over all the mocking laughter.)

[PithyProlix]

21 hours ago, Penguincollector said:

  I just bought 2 pens: a Platinum 1974 Fountain Pen - Sheepskin Yuzen-zomi Gosho-guruma, 18k Fine Nib, and a black Parker IM Monochrome ($15!). My husband (such an enabler) mentioned that the de minimus exception is still in place for Japan, so I bought the Platinum as it has been on my list for a very long time. The Parker was a super bargain offer, and I really like the IM line. 
 

Screenshot of the Platinum from the listing:

 

So cool - I have a set in this pattern with a fountain pen (my section looks a bit darker than yours), pencil, & ballpoint. If these Japanese painted leather pens come up in good condition, F nib, and good condition, I don't hesitate to buy them but, for now, I'm more focused on slowly acquiring the 'exotic' leather pens, like the lizard skin Pilots and the pipa pipa toad skin Platinums.

Enjoy!

[Gloucesterman]

In fact, it was an impulse -

one of the vendors at the flea market ( I visit regularly) gave me a black Parker 45 (SS nib). Ordinarily I would have said "thank you and NO thank you" because I already have several "45s" and I am not a big fan anyway. However, a slightly closer look showed that it was a STUB nib. As I enjoy stub/italic nibs, I graciously said "Thank YOU" and will provide some chocolate mousse for her next week.

 

Also, I ordinarily don't buy ballpoint pens and once again I changed my habits and purchased a Must de Cartier black and gold BP in the original box with all the appropriate paperwork. (P.S. the price was very reasonable)

 

So, I would rate today's flea market as a B+.

 

Oh, one more thing. I had acquired an 1851 gold appearing, dip pen with an 18K nib at a live auction back in December '24. I was not sure if it was gold plated, gold filled or "pure" gold. At the flea market today, I asked one of the coin, gold, and silver vendors (whom I know fairly well) to test it and tell me the results. He say's it's 18k... the complete pen... almost 18 grams worth. My cost was significantly less than that!

[alarickc]

And now I have another Leonardo MZG in celluloid making its way to me. This time in Shell Mother of Pearl celluloid with a #8 medium nib. I need to work on making my impulse buys cheaper….

[Pen Ffynnon]

2 hours ago, InkyProf said:

An early Aurora Hastil in its original space-age case, to join the Pilot Murex and Lamy Unic in a little trio of thin, minimalist, steel pens. Is the fact that this brings my collection to a nice round number going to be the leverage I need to exercise impulse control in the future? (What's that? I can't hear you over all the mocking laughter.)

Always remember that 10 (for example) is a nice round number The 11th pen is merely the first step on the path to the next nice round number. 😇

[Pen Ffynnon]

1 hour ago, Gloucesterman said:

In fact, it was an impulse -

one of the vendors at the flea market ( I visit regularly) gave me a black Parker 45 (SS nib). Ordinarily I would have said "thank you and NO thank you" because I already have several "45s" and I am not a big fan anyway. However, a slightly closer look showed that it was a STUB nib. As I enjoy stub/italic nibs, I graciously said "Thank YOU" and will provide some chocolate mousse for her next week.

 

Also, I ordinarily don't buy ballpoint pens and once again I changed my habits and purchased a Must de Cartier black and gold BP in the original box with all the appropriate paperwork. (P.S. the price was very reasonable)

 

So, I would rate today's flea market as a B+.

 

Oh, one more thing. I had acquired an 1851 gold appearing, dip pen with an 18K nib at a live auction back in December '24. I was not sure if it was gold plated, gold filled or "pure" gold. At the flea market today, I asked one of the coin, gold, and silver vendors (whom I know fairly well) to test it and tell me the results. He say's it's 18k... the complete pen... almost 18 grams worth. My cost was significantly less than that!

Yeah, no, one never says, "no" to a stub nib. It's bad luck, I believe.

 

Congrats on your finds! That was a great flea market trip.