Please Recommend Me A Fine And Lightweight Fountain Pen.

[Mastiff]

Visconti Viscontina? Seems very unique and is made from an 'ancient' celluloid material from 1930's.

[ele]

Parker 51 Aerometric is probably the best choice in terms of reliability, but may be a bit small for your hands.

Pilot Custom 92 or 74, are, as others have said, great choices, MUCH better than the TWSBI 580.

[ThirdeYe]

To me, the best suggestion is a Pilot Custom 823. Huge ink capacity, find nib, light weight and perfect balance. But expensive. A good alternate would be the Platinum Century 3776. Light weight good balance and a wonderfully smooth nib. Potential drawback are the proprietary cartridges, but the cartridges hold a good bit of ink and the cap prevents dry-out. I purchased mine for less than $100 on Amazon.

 

I would concur with the 823 with a fine nib. It writes very fine and has a great feel and large ink capacity. However, it's a little bit above his budget. Perhaps if he found a used one?

[owend]

What about the Platinum PTL-5000? Light, simple, classic looks, good-sized (Platinum) converter; unposted it's actually a couple of millimetres longer than the 3776 although it doesn't look it being slimmer. It has a smooth gold nib with a nice amount of spring - mine is marked medium but it's nearer a European fine. And it's only about £45, great value.

 

I also have a 3776 which is good; it has the same converter and a beautiful nib, but it's twice the price of the PTL-5000.

[Sasha Royale]

The Reform 1745 is a piston-filler, with a fine nib. It is slender and lightweight. Mine writes very well. Whether the nib dries out slowly or fast is a subjective matter of personal habits. I don't desire to comment.

[Sergio 46]

You could try a Platinum Century 3776. They are about the same size as the Lamy 2000 and weight about 14g uncapped (about 3g less than the Lamy 2K, also uncapped). Their nibs are amazingly good (basically the same nibs used in the much more expensive Nakayas) and they are readily available for about $80 at Amazon and many other sellers, making them the best value out there. If you like fine nibs, they do it: the reported width of their fine nibs is 0.28mm (vs. 0.35 mm for Pilot) - and you can have either the regular fine or the soft fine. They also have the slip and seal mechanism that prevents them from drying out and the Chartres Blue or Bourgogne red are very beautiful pens (but if you like black, they also have it).

 

With the money left from your budget you can send that Lamy to a nibmeister .

 

Edited to add: I only saw Jameswatts post after I posted this, and I agree about the balance of the 3776 too.

+1 It's really a pleasure to write with its EF nib and it remains within an average budget!

[Intellidepth]

I'm going to throw an option in the ring. Pilot Custom Heritage 912 with Posting nib and 0.7ml converter. Not a lot of ink at first glance but the pen is SO fine it doesn't need much and therefore lasts for ages. Mine doesn't seem to dry out - it's running Sailor blue-black ink. I use it for uni exams for these reasons. May still not have the capacity you need... How many hours of continuous small writing are you looking for it to last?

 

P.s. The converter has a trick to fill it to capacity: fast pumps on the mechanism, not slow ones.

[Intellidepth]

Oops, missed your soft nib preference. While the posting nib can offer slight variation, it's pretty negligible and not designed for it. It happens when I print rather than when I use cursive - my habitual pressures are slightly different for the different forms of writing.

[Erik Dalton]

Thanks for the recommandations,

I will check them out! I seem not to be able to find Gateway Belmont tho..

 

Sorry for taking so long. Got side trecked...hehehe...check out http://www.indy-pen-dance.com/ for the gateway belmont.

Also. Isellpens.com is worth snooping around on. Todd is having sales on certain items and you can get an additional 10% discount by typing PFN in the promotion code box. There are some exceptional buys on current and retro pens, if you have the patience to snoop around. You might like the Bexley Phoenex, also a piston filler and on sale.

I just bought a Bexley 20th anniversary pen in orange with black cap and piston knob. Its a bit old fashion looking. But once in your hand, Really, really nice to write with. On par with the gateway, but no ink window so you have to guess how much ink u have left.

Some pix to compare. Quality in not best. I took them on an old ipad 2. ( Its what instarted the note on..shrugg...) These are not big heavy pens, but are light weight, and just the right size to snuggle into your hand. They have large ink capacity, as well as nice big #6 nibs that are easy to swap out. I believe the nibs are JoWow's. They write on the fine side. Medium is similar to a european fine.

Have fun. Let me know how you make out....best...bob

[Erik Dalton]

Btw...i recently saw sailor 1911 for just under $100. On both amazon amd the Bay. Prolly a 14kt nib.

I actually prefer the 14 kt nibs to the 21kt. They are stiffer and i seem to be able to get them smoother.

(Im fussy, i know..lol..)

For a fine or extra fine nib you cant get a finer ink line and a smoother nib anywhere else around...IMHO..

Im looking for an ivory 1911 in medium or broad for myself. If i can find one for under $100.

Best...bob

[Precise]

I think you will find the two threads below helpful.

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/298871-lightweight-chinese-pens/

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/297109-low-cost-fountain-pens-from-quality-brands/