What Was Your Last Impulsive Pen Acquisition?

[InkyProf]

3 hours ago, Cjtamu said:

Oh, that Kaweco set is so cool. Great find! Forgive me father, for I have penned. We were in Dromgoole’s for a while yesterday. We were there because Kim wanted to do the FIY glow in the dark Kaweco event, I swear! But, this Taccia Miyabi somehow found its way into our bag.

 

Wow, that's stunning! Bravo...

[ParramattaPaul]

Conway Stewart has a new W.S. Churchill Commemorative pen for me to lust for that I will not be getting.

 

Two words:  'Sticker Shock'.

[JasonR]

24 minutes ago, ParramattaPaul said:

Conway Stewart has a new W.S. Churchill Commemorative pen for me to lust for that I will not be getting.

 

Two words:  'Sticker Shock'.

Are all the Churchill’s massive?   I have one Churchill LE and it’s borderline unusable for me.  Makes my Magnas look tiny in comparison. 

[ParramattaPaul]

58 minutes ago, JasonR said:

Are all the Churchill’s massive?   I have one Churchill LE and it’s borderline unusable for me.  Makes my Magnas look tiny in comparison.

I believe all the Churchill pens are the same size. Conway Stewart and Onoto list the barrel sizes, etc. in the pen specifications on their website 'SHOP'pages.

[I-am-not-really-here]

My last impulsive (or otherwise) purchase was a Yard-O-Led Pocket Pen in the Victorian pattern with blue enamel.  Bought with a Fine nib, it's actually still in its box, haven't touched it.

[carola]

9 hours ago, Misfit said:

@carola very nice finds at the pen show. And that nib, wow! Can you share a writing sample at some point? I’d appreciate it. 

 

Thank you all for the nice comments.

 

As I haven´t inked it up yet, I just did a quick dipped-only writing sample for you, Misfit. I had already tried it at the pen show, because I usually can´t write properly with oblique nibs and this one being an OB, I was somewhat sceptical. But it turned out to be a very smooth writer that suits my hand nicely. As it has the same kind of stubbiness like vintage B or BB Pelikans (as opposed to the ball like tipping of modern ones) it gives you a very nice line variation, which is exactly what I am looking for.

 

 

 

What I also consider great fun is the sheer size of everything. 

 

 

 

Those three pen cases are neatly stacked at the bottom left corner, although this appears differently due to perspective. The bottom one is a modern 3 pen case. The middle one is a vintage 2 pen case, which accounts for the difference in width but not in length. And then on top, there is the Kaweco Sport case. It is so tiny, I thought it was only for the pen, but lo and behold, the pen AND the ballpoint fit in there!

 

There is also a difference in design between the modern Kaweco Sport pens and this one from the 1950s I noticed, although they look very similar on first glance. While they both have the open nib (as opposed to the ones from the 1970s that rather have a hooded nib, as I am told), the barrel of modern Kaweco Sports is of equal width over the whole length of it, while the 1950s version gets continually broader from front to back, reaching its biggest width at about 2/3 of its length, then being tapered again towards the end.

[Misfit]

3 hours ago, carola said:

As I haven´t inked it up yet, I just did a quick dipped-only writing sample for you, Misfit

Thank you very much for dipping the nib to show how the pen writes. It looks fantastic. Hurray for you in getting a great pen and nib combination. 

[carola]

46 minutes ago, Misfit said:

Thank you very much for dipping the nib to show how the pen writes. It looks fantastic. Hurray for you in getting a great pen and nib combination. 

 

As I had already dipped it at the pen show, it was no trouble at all. Also, it has obviously been used in its former life. It is quite a bit scratched up, but absolutely nothing that couldn't be polished out easily if I choose to. A well used pen, I would say, used a lot but with care. For almost 70 years old, it is still in remarkable shape. I haven´t decided yet, whether I want to keep the patina or if I want it to look brand new again, which would probably be about 10 minutes of work with the right tools.

[Detman101]

On 3/18/2026 at 10:02 AM, JasonR said:

Vanness is my favorite online retailer for sure. They’re so nice - I happened to meet one of the owners, Lisa, at the LA Pen Show and she couldn’t have been more kind.   They pack everything so well, say thank you for each purchase and helped my wife with a purchase of a Churchill LE last holiday season that she was very nervous about.  

I can believe it. 
I've called Vanness one before to ask them a question and spoke with an older gentleman, when I tell you I wanted to reach through the phone and give this guy a big ole hug I'm being modest. So sweet and kind....I miss that.
The only inks I don't buy at Vanness is my Sailor inks...because they don't carry them, and can get them in town locally.
But for everything else inky...that's where I shop.

-DM-

[Detman101]

On 3/18/2026 at 3:38 PM, PithyProlix said:

 

Cool. Where did this nib come from?

This one came from Galen Leather.
I went right back and bought the BBCI nib from them a few days later...only to realize I bought the last one in stock.
It is still in processing...hopefully, haven't gotten any notification of shipment from Galen Leather.
Sometimes counts are off and they don't actually have in stock...what they believe the machines are telling them.
I fear this because with the BCI nib, notification was immediate. 
With this BBCI nib...it has been almost a full week, and no notification.

UPDATE: It has shipped and will arrive this weekend!! WOOHOO!!! 
 

  
-DM-

[Detman101]

4 hours ago, carola said:

 

Thank you all for the nice comments.

 

As I haven´t inked it up yet, I just did a quick dipped-only writing sample for you, Misfit. I had already tried it at the pen show, because I usually can´t write properly with oblique nibs and this one being an OB, I was somewhat sceptical. But it turned out to be a very smooth writer that suits my hand nicely. As it has the same kind of stubbiness like vintage B or BB Pelikans (as opposed to the ball like tipping of modern ones) it gives you a very nice line variation, which is exactly what I am looking for.

 

 

 

What I also consider great fun is the sheer size of everything. 

 

 

 

Those three pen cases are neatly stacked at the bottom left corner, although this appears differently due to perspective. The bottom one is a modern 3 pen case. The middle one is a vintage 2 pen case, which accounts for the difference in width but not in length. And then on top, there is the Kaweco Sport case. It is so tiny, I thought it was only for the pen, but lo and behold, the pen AND the ballpoint fit in there!

 

There is also a difference in design between the modern Kaweco Sport pens and this one from the 1950s I noticed, although they look very similar on first glance. While they both have the open nib (as opposed to the ones from the 1970s that rather have a hooded nib, as I am told), the barrel of modern Kaweco Sports is of equal width over the whole length of it, while the 1950s version gets continually broader from front to back, reaching its biggest width at about 2/3 of its length, then being tapered again towards the end.

Oh man, that line variation is BEAUTIFUL!!!!

I've just entered the world of Broad Italic Nibs and I'll never go back to stubs again.
This is WHERE ITS AT!!!

 

-DM-

[carola]

5 minutes ago, Detman101 said:

Oh man, that line variation is BEAUTIFUL!!!!

I've just entered the world of Broad Italic Nibs and I'll never go back to stubs again.
This is WHERE ITS AT!!!

 

-DM-

 

It is, isn´t it? The nib is a bit flexible, too. The tines will easily spread if you apply a little pressure, but in fact you don´t have to, because it does the line variation all by itself. The flexibility gives you a very comfortable writing experience though.

[USG]

18 hours ago, carola said:

I got myself a really nice Kaweco Sport pen and ballpoint set from the 1950s at the Cologne Pen Show yesterday.

 

 

That´s the BROADEST Kaweco nib I have ever seen!

 

And I was able to pick up a very nice fountain pen related book, "Une affaire de stylos" by Pierre Haury and Jean-Pierre Lacroux from 1990 for the price of two beers. 😂

 

Very nice Carola !!  😀👍

 

17 hours ago, Cjtamu said:

Oh, that Kaweco set is so cool. Great find! Forgive me father, for I have penned. We were in Dromgoole’s for a while yesterday. We were there because Kim wanted to do the FIY glow in the dark Kaweco event, I swear! But, this Taccia Miyabi somehow found its way into our bag.

 

Definitely outstanding...👍😀

 

On 3/18/2026 at 8:08 AM, Detman101 said:

Lets see...it's been a good red tax return.

Cursive Italic Broad nib (LOVE LOVE LOVE this!! No more stubs for me!!! I'm picking up a 2XB Cursive Italic as soon as I can!!!)

 

 

Love that nib !!!!😀👍

[Detman101]

On 3/23/2026 at 9:17 AM, USG said:

 

Very nice Carola !!  😀👍

 

 

Definitely outstanding...👍😀

 

 

Love that nib !!!!😀👍

It is SUCH a beautiful nib!! And the smoothest functional nib that I own!!  I ordered it's big brother the "BBCI" and it should arrive sometime this weekend. The unfortunate loss regarding these "Cursive Italic" nibs is that they flow much more ink, which removes the "Shading" abilities of most average-flowing inks. 
I'm going to have to move to "VERY DRY" inks to get any of my shading properties back when writing...but that's a small challenge for the grand benefit of these nibs. In fact, I may be completely done with Flex nibs now!! There's no point, I get all of the line variation I need from these and I believe the "BBCI" will approximate the width of my old home-ground "1.0mm Cursive Italic Stub" that I gave to my loving wife recently. 

 

 

-DM-

[Detman101]

On 3/23/2026 at 8:39 AM, carola said:

 

It is, isn´t it? The nib is a bit flexible, too. The tines will easily spread if you apply a little pressure, but in fact you don´t have to, because it does the line variation all by itself. The flexibility gives you a very comfortable writing experience though.

It is indeed!! I am officially finished with using a Flex Nib for daily writing.
Its a new marvelous easygoing day!!  I wish I'd known about these nibs years ago....wow.


-DM-

[AmandaW]

I went to look for another pen on AliExpress and couldn't find it at a reasonable price. Then... up pops a Limited Pilot Kakuno Panda. So cute! How did I miss this? Boxed set with inks. And a converter. There are four varieties in the black and white theme. I chose the translucent barrel with a black cap. 🐼

[inkstainedruth]

Wasn't familiar with those so just looked them up.  And you're right!  They are super cute!  Saw the AliExpress listings but also saw a link to Yoseka Stationery in NYC (sadly they were out of stock there).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[PithyProlix]

Black Montblanc 14 and burgundy Montblanc 32 with "intarsia" nib. The 14's nib looks like it might be a broad stub and 32's a normal extra fine or fine. I will know better when I receive them, of course. 

 

I tend to stick with Japanese pens but I am a big fan of this Montblanc series - fantastic writers! 

[Misfit]

I always seem to buy something from Pen Chalet on April Fool’s Day when they claim to be changing their name. They had some Kaweco AL Sports on the sale page for the 1st. I chose the AL Silver. There was a 15% off coupon, plus I had $20 in the Ink Drops rewards. I was going to buy some ink, but decided to save the money, and pay shipping. The coupon amount covered the shipping. 

[AmandaW]

15 minutes ago, Misfit said:

Pen Chalet on April Fool’s Day when they claim to be changing their name.

What was the new name?