Oblique Broad Nib - right decision?

[silence]

i bought a montblanc meisterstuck 146 today but have ordered it with an OB nib rather than the medium nib as standard.

 

i've read on the net that people shouldn't go for an oblique nib unless they've had their handwriting 'examined' and determined to be suitable.

 

this is my first purchase of any serious fountain pen (previous ones have been low end watermans with standard nibs). in the shop when trying out the nibs, the woman did remark that i had 'neat handwriting'. also, the OB nib felt and, in my opinion, looked better than the M nib. so i decided to go for it.

 

i've never been trained in calligraphy or anything like that, but my handwriting seemed to suit the nib.

 

have i made too bold a move in going for this nib or will it be fine? sorry it this sounds a bit clueless, but i'm just making sure my choice is the right one before they send it off for service tomorrow. thanks.

[Ray]

i bought a montblanc meisterstuck 146 today but have ordered it with an OB nib rather than the medium nib as standard.

 

i've read on the net that people shouldn't go for an oblique nib unless they've had their handwriting 'examined' and determined to be suitable.

 

this is my first purchase of any serious fountain pen (previous ones have been low end watermans with standard nibs). in the shop when trying out the nibs, the woman did remark that i had 'neat handwriting'. also, the OB nib felt and, in my opinion, looked better than the M nib. so i decided to go for it.

 

i've never been trained in calligraphy or anything like that, but my handwriting seemed to suit the nib.

 

have i made too bold a move in going for this nib or will it be fine? sorry it this sounds a bit clueless, but i'm just making sure my choice is the right one before they send it off for service tomorrow. thanks.

 

See my comments on this in the Montblanc forum.

 

Ray

[silence]

thanks.

 

i guess i'm just curious to know whether, if i don't write with the pen rotated yet, it's possible/common to change the style of writing for such a thing.

 

when i wrote with the pen in the shop, it worked visually, in that it produced elegant handwriting and actually looked neater than the medium nib. if it works visually and feels good, is that enough to suggest that the nib will be suited to me?

 

or could i still be using it incorrectly?

[omasfan]

I once bought a Pelikan broad oblique, and I regretted it. I thought it would allow for line variation but I painfully found out that their obliques are only for people who hold their pen slightly rotated. The nib's in my drawer waiting to be exchanged for something nicer. I offered it in the marketplace for swap but nobody wanted it. I hope you are luckier with yours. I discovered that I don't want to change the way I hold my pen. When I wrote with the oblique first, it felt nice, but when writing more at home, I found out it's just not for me.

 

[silence]

hmmm. i do have a 30 day return policy i suppose so i shouldn't fuss too much.

 

i don't really know how i hold my pen - if i did hold it rotated, would my current writing with a regular fountain pen not come out rather strange?

 

on the other hand, if one did write with an oblique broad nib WITHOUT rotating the pen... what would it look like?

 

with retrospect i'm a bit annoyed that the saleswoman didn't really comment or offer too much help about this - she just said that 'some people prefer it and some don't'.

 

EDIT: http://www.montblanc.com/246.php suggests that i've got 6 weeks if there are any problems, so i'm not too worried now.

Edited June 11, 2007 by silence

[Dan Carmell]

thanks.

 

when i wrote with the pen in the shop, it worked visually, in that it produced elegant handwriting and actually looked neater than the medium nib. if it works visually and feels good, is that enough to suggest that the nib will be suited to me?

 

If it works visually for you, and feels good, then there's very little chance you are using it incorrectly. The "feel good" test is a good one and I think you will find the pen and nib a good fit for you.

 

Enjoy!

 

Dan

[Ghost Plane]

Quit worrying until you get it and play with it. I ordered my first plain B with everyone in a total dither telling me how much I'd hate it. Now I've sold all but a couple of my Ms and use Bs everyday. You may find that the OB is perfect for you. To hear half this board tell it, we're perverts for not writing with Fs or EFs. Welcome to the dark side of the Farce.

[Guest PeteWK]

You'll love it so long as it isn't the last fountain pen you ever purchase. I tend to carry one pen that's fine or medium and one that's a broad, oblique or stub. That way I choose depending on my mood or project. And it will certainly give great character to your writing.

 

 

PeteWK

[silence]

it looks like i'm able to write with the ob nib - not sure whether it's just a tad too thick for handwriting. any thoughts?

[Ghost Plane]

Looks like what I produce with regular B nibs. I like it. As long as YOU like it, because you'll be the one using it, don't worry, just enjoy. I think it looks good. I can read it and you're getting nice shading in the ink color.

Edited June 23, 2007 by Ghost Plane

[ChristineR]

You have left slanting writing. Are you a lefty? Left-slanting, left-handedness, and oblique nibs all sometimes go together. Or not. In any case if you find it more comfortable to write with, it's the right nib.

 

The oblique nib is designed to contact the paper at a slightly different angle. With the wrong sort of nib you would sometimes feel like you were scraping the edge of the nib against the paper. Most nibs are not perfectly spherical. Try rotating the pen in your fingers without changing the position of the pen and see how bad it gets when you're off 90 degrees, then find the perfect angle.

 

You can also try rocking the pen up and down, and left and right to try out some other bad positions. The place where the nib feels smoothest should correspond to the way you naturally want to hold the pen.

[Kay]

It seems to me that there's no "right" and "wrong" as far as handwriting goes as long as the person you want to read it can read it, and you are content with the way it looks. This is in relation to size, width, slant, letter forms, everything. I think the sample looks great, and I think you made a good choice.

[Kalessin]

Your handwriting looks great! How does the pen feel? I like how my handwriting looks with the wide lines from a B or OB nib, especially the latter...

 

[FrankB]

I will join the others to say I think your handwriting looks fine. Now the question is whether you like the way the pen feels and writes. I never caught onto oblique nibs. Apparently, I just don't need one. But others get along with them just fine, and oblique nibs might be for you. I do use nibs that are B, B stub, M italic and B italic for everyday writing. Those nibs are also not for everybody, as Ghost Plane indicated, but they are good for me. So it is all in what you find that you like.