Fountain Pen For Young Beginners?

[DNC]

I have some friends whose daughter saw me writing with one of my fountain pens and became interested in it. Having never had children I don't really know how to relate to children but this young girl of about 7 or 8 shows signs of growing up to be a wonderful person. I would like to encourage her interest in fountain pens with the gift of a pen and perhaps some writing books. What fountain pen would those who know children better suggest? Lamy?? If her interest in fountain pens grow I will gift her pens with different nibs.

[Guardy]

Yes! Absolutely Lamy!

 

Most kids here in Germany start out with a Lamy abc at about the same age as your friends' daughter.
It's not the prettiest pen in the world, but it's pretty high quality for a student pen and specifically made for young first-time pen users.

 

/EDIT: Oh, and don't take my word for it, but they should have the same switchable nibs as the Safari and AL-Star, so that's another nifty thing to keep in mind.

Edited April 11, 2016 by Guardy

[shawndp]

Lamy would be my first choice too! The grip forces you to hold the pen appropriately and the nibs can take some abuse before you swap the nib out. I heard Lamy sells something like a beginner nib marked "A" with a more rounded tip...

[lyonlover]

Definitely one of these.

 

Either that or a Lamy. I would normally recommend the Pilot Metropolitan, but a Safari won me over when I held one. I found that I like the bombproof plastic of the Safari nicer in the hand than the cold metal of the Metropolitan, and the interchangeable nibs (which are easily found by themselves) won me over. You can get extra nibs for the Metropolitan too by buying other pens, but I consider it a waste to leave a pen without a nib by itself. Also, I hold my pen a bit high on the section away from the nib, and the steep difference between the barrel and the section was not comfortable for me. That is not to say I do not like the Metropolitan though. It's very sturdy and remarkably well made.

 

If you're really cheap though, the Platinum Preppy is a fine choice if you're okay with sticking with one nib size.

[inotrym]

I agree with the Safari. For the cool colors if nothing else.

 

Kindly consider the Pilot Prera and the Sailor Lecoule, too. (same price range, if you buy directly from Japan)

 

You can also start her with a couple of those super cute Pilot Petits and see how she likes them before going for a ´true´ fountain pen.

[ajlmarques]

Lamy ABC would be my choice. My kid has one and he loves it.

The thick section is designed to "force" the correct grip on the pen. And these pens can take tons of abuse.

[dojocho]

Definitely the Lamy ABC.

 

regards,

Hugo

[Gofixmix]

Don't underestimate 7-8yo girls!

 

While I'm sure Lamy ABC works fine, it looks like it was made for babies..

 

I have a 7yo daughter, got her the Pelikan Twist and while she likes it fine, from all my pens her favourite BY FAR is Lamy Joy. And that's my largest pen (well it's long but very light)

 

She likes the grip, but I think mainly because it's 1.1 italic, so it makes her writing neat. (But she said she likes the shape of the pen as well...)

 

So I would recommend that, or Safari with spare italic nib...

 

Another thing I would highly recommend is Pelikan ink and an eraser (maybe Lamy has their own, idk). That's what she likes about the Twist. Works with Pelikan blue ink, you can erase your writing and correct it with blue rollerball pen on the other end of the eraser. Great for kids, hours of fun with secret messages, etc.

Plus you can erase the ink from fingers or clothes....

[melodiousb]

There's also the Pilot Kakuno, which has a similar grip to the Lamy, the same super reliable nib and feed as a Metropolitan, and a smiley face on the nib. It made a big hit with my 10 year old cousin, and I think it successfully splits the difference between beginner-level and cool.

 

ETA: Oh, and re: the Pelikan Twist, it's also a really solid pen with a specially designed grip for beginners, but I'd be a little wary of the grip. Where the Lamy pens and the Kakuno have grips that gently guide your fingers to the correct position, the Twist grip is pretty aggressive about it. If you're not holding it correctly, it's going to hurt.

Edited April 12, 2016 by melodiousb

[Arkanabar]

One option is the Lamy ABC pen. It's chunky, lightweight (wooden barrel), has a rubberized and slightly faceted section, and of course, your choice of nibs, just like the Safari, Logo, CP1, etc. etc. etc. Trust me, Lamy saves a giant bundle making the same nibs for so very many different pens.

The Safari was designed for children like her. It shares its section with the Al-Star, Vista, and Joy. Other such school pens include the Pelikano, Pelikano Jr., Pelikan Twist, and Pilot Kakuno. It's my understanding that the Kakuno actually has a hexagonal grip section; it does not have a clip. Then there's Online's Young Writer lines (online-pen.com/en/home). Goldspot has a pretty good selection; Paradise pen has a few. Or the Rosetta Explorer (only at ipenstore.com).

If you're in the Western part of NC, try Origami Ink in Asheville; if you're in the Triangle/Raleigh area, check out the meetups forum here, as I'm pretty sure there's a pen posse around there.

[DNC]

Don't underestimate 7-8yo girls!

 

While I'm sure Lamy ABC works fine, it looks like it was made for babies..

 

I have a 7yo daughter, got her the Pelikan Twist and while she likes it fine, from all my pens her favourite BY FAR is Lamy Joy. And that's my largest pen (well it's long but very light)

 

 

I did buy the Lamy ABC because of what the parents had to say in the group, but your thought was in the back of my head. I think I did the right thing starting with the Lamy ABC but if all goes well I am going to gift her a Lamy safari. If that sticks then we will move on to the subject of nibs, then inks, then she is own her on for a while. I hope this leads to an interest for her and a nice pen for graduation one day.

[mreich1964]

For a young child, I would also consider the Pilot Varsity disposable pens in various colors.

[Guardy]

 

I did buy the Lamy ABC because of what the parents had to say in the group, but your thought was in the back of my head. I think I did the right thing starting with the Lamy ABC but if all goes well I am going to gift her a Lamy safari. If that sticks then we will move on to the subject of nibs, then inks, then she is own her on for a while. I hope this leads to an interest for her and a nice pen for graduation one day.

 

That's the way to do it!

 

Quite frankly, I'd normally have recommended the Safari, too, because it looks three times better, but the abc has more rounded corners on the grip section thingie and I distinctly remember how much more comfortable the abc was for my tiny child hands back in the day.

[Gofixmix]

 

I did buy the Lamy ABC because of what the parents had to say in the group, but your thought was in the back of my head. I think I did the right thing starting with the Lamy ABC but if all goes well I am going to gift her a Lamy safari. If that sticks then we will move on to the subject of nibs, then inks, then she is own her on for a while. I hope this leads to an interest for her and a nice pen for graduation one day.

Good decision, this way an upgrade will be more exciting for her.

 

The first one is in danger of getting destroyed anyway

[Sasha Royale]

The one specimen that I have of the Pelikan Pelikano Jr. is a simple, very robust fountain pen for kids. It is well-priced -- about $15, if I recall correctly. However, if you want to do well, by your kid, make it a LAMY Safari. At three-times the price, it is indestructible ABS plastic. There are changeable nibs for fun and growth. Nice colors for boys and nice colors for girls. There is plenty of room for "stickers". The child will scrub away the stickers and glue, in 2027, and use it in college.

 

Best value !

Edited April 13, 2016 by Sasha Royale