Best Modified Pen.

[thirdguess]

Do you have a favorite pen that isn't "as is." I don't mean something cheap like making a preppy an ED, but something a little better. Is there a lower or mid end pen that benefits massively from a nib upgrade? Is there something in the $20-$50 range that you could throw a gold nib on, for example, and it feels triple digit smooth?

[Namo]

Both my writers are modified. One of them is an Asa Nauka fitted with a Waterman Super 6 OBB nib. It's heaven!

Edited November 3, 2018 by Namo

[SoulSamurai]

A relatively common mod is increasing flex in Noodlers and FPR flex nibs, is yhat the kind of thing you're thinking of? I also hear a lot of people swap the nib in their Noodler's Boston.

[thirdguess]

A relatively common mod is increasing flex in Noodlers and FPR flex nibs, is yhat the kind of thing you're thinking of? I also hear a lot of people swap the nib in their Noodler's Boston.

I I'm thinking of jumping up from "beginner" pens to something with a little better quality. I'm a big fan of modifying items for everyday carry already, so I thought all the better if I could find an already great pain make it better. I'm not really looking for Flex rating per se, I'm honestly trying to just find a good daily writer and save a few bucks along the way if I can.

[JayKay3000]

Not now, but I did make a franken pen of a Parker Frontier. It had a dark blue (looked purple to me) translucent plastic barrel with a silver nib and silver cap arrow.

 

I switched some parts out and sold it with a gold colored nib and gold colored parker arrow. It also had a gold colored ring between the threads and the barrel. Looked pretty good in my eyes a purple barrel with gold accents. The frontiers I had always wrote fairly wet and super smooth.

 

Photos or it didn't happen - I guess you'll have to take my story as truth

 

I wonder where it is now. Probably in the trash.

Edited November 3, 2018 by JayKay3000

[austinwft]

I think the Ebonite Konrad would be a hard pen to beat in answering this question!

The pen itself is a very comfortable size piston filler that holds a decent amount of ink, with an ink window, and can be had for $40 or less. And it's a decent quality "ebonite" pen!

With the "EaseMyFlex" mod and some tuning/tweaking/polishing of the original nib and feed these pens can be really nice daily writers. But what really makes them versatile is swapping out the Noodler's nib and feed with a Flexible Nib Factory "Ebonite" JoWo #6 Friction Fit Replacement Feed and your favorite flavor of Jowo #6 nib. Jowo #6 nibs are of known quality and can be purchased from a number of different sellers in steel as well as 14k and 18k gold and in sizes from EF to 1.5 stub as well as being purchased in a variety of custom grinds.

Mine here is a steel broad Jowo #6 nib custom ground to a smooth stub from FPnibs.com and installed with the Flexible Nib Factory ebonite feed. It is are easily swapped out and the ink flow is easily adjusted to the users taste.

Edited November 3, 2018 by austinwft

[sidthecat]

I have a pen I call The Chimera: the cap and barrel seem to be from two different Moores, the feed is a Waterman Ideal and the nib is a Leroy Fairchild Star from a dip pen. It's a hell of a writer and better looking than you might expect.

[Driften]

 

I think the Ebonite Konrad would be a hard pen to beat in answering this question!

The pen itself is a very comfortable size piston filler that holds a decent amount of ink, with an ink window, and can be had for $40 or less. And it's a decent quality "ebonite" pen!

With the "EaseMyFlex" mod and some tuning/tweaking/polishing of the original nib and feed these pens can be really nice daily writers. But what really makes them versatile is swapping out the Noodler's nib and feed with a Flexible Nib Factory "Ebonite" JoWo #6 Friction Fit Replacement Feed and your favorite flavor of Jowo #6 nib. Jowo #6 nibs are of known quality and can be purchased from a number of different sellers in steel as well as 14k and 18k gold and in sizes from EF to 1.5 stub as well as being purchased in a variety of custom grinds.

Mine here is a steel broad Jowo #6 nib custom ground to a smooth stub from FPnibs.com and installed with the Flexible Nib Factory ebonite feed. It is are easily swapped out and the ink flow is easily adjusted to the users taste.

 

 

So why did you need to replace the ebonite feed that came in your Konrad? I thought people normally swapped the nib with a #6 JoWo on those. It's not like you needed a wetter feed for a different flex nib, I would have thought the Noodlers feed could keep up with a standard nibs need. Just wondering since I have an acrylic Konrad I have thought about putting a standard nib in.

[Honeybadgers]

Noodlers ahab with a ranga ebonite feed and zebra nibs , my noodlers boston safety with a #2 waterman ideal wet noodle flex nib, a conklin all american with my custom stacked naginata cross point nib, and a heavily customized feed/14k JoWo superflex wet noodle in a TWSBI vac700R gets my highest marks.

 

I also have a pilot custom 823 with a FA nib on the way and am deciding between a black or red ebonite feed for it

Edited November 4, 2018 by Honeybadgers

[inkstainedruth]

I have a Parker Parkette that was retrofitted with a 14C music nib and feed harvested from a no-name lever filler. Ron Zorn did the work a couple of summers ago at the Triangle Pen Show: I had asked him to get the no-name up and running, but he couldn't get the pen apart; so he suggested the Parkette as an alternative, and I'm very happy with the result.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[austinwft]

 

 

So why did you need to replace the ebonite feed that came in your Konrad? I thought people normally swapped the nib with a #6 JoWo on those. It's not like you needed a wetter feed for a different flex nib, I would have thought the Noodlers feed could keep up with a standard nibs need. Just wondering since I have an acrylic Konrad I have thought about putting a standard nib in.

 

The ebonite feed that comes standard in the Konrad, as well as a number of other Indian made pens, is straight across the top and does not have the tip curvature to match the downward curvature of the Jowo #6 nib and without some modification to the original feed or a significant amount of heat setting it will force the tines of a Jowo #6 nib open to far to feed ink properly, it's worse with the gold Jowo nibs. The Flexible Nib Factory replacement feed is made specifically to fit the curvature of the Jowo #6 nib and has worked perfectly for me.

 

https://flexiblenib.com/store/standard-replacement-feeds/jowo-6-replacement-feed-friction-fit/

 

You can somewhat see the curvature of the Jowo #6 nib in the second picture of my post above. The curve is very slight staring at or around the breather hole and continuing through to the tip.

Edited November 4, 2018 by austinwft

[Honeybadgers]

You know that ebonite feeds such as what comes in the konrad and indian pens, can easily be heat set with hot water to conform to literally any nib? You have to absolutely banana them to make them work but with Zebra G nibs, but they take it no problem.

[austinwft]

You know that ebonite feeds such as what comes in the konrad and indian pens, can easily be heat set with hot water to conform to literally any nib? You have to absolutely banana them to make them work but with Zebra G nibs, but they take it no problem.

 

Oh I do know! I have modified and tinkered with more than just a few Noodler's nibs and feeds. But sometimes it's nice to just assemble some parts that are made to work together and get the outcome you desire from the beginning rather than fiddle with something until you tire of doing so and just accept the outcome. YMMV.

Edited November 4, 2018 by austinwft

[A Smug Dill]

Do you have a favorite pen that isn't "as is." I don't mean something cheap like making a preppy an ED, but something a little better.

Sure. https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/338963-pilot-namiki-vanishing-point/?p=4122196

 

Is there a lower or mid end pen that benefits massively from a nib upgrade? Is there something in the $20-$50 range that you could throw a gold nib on, for example, and it feels triple digit smooth?

In that I have zero interest, sorry. Replacing the nib on a sub-$30 Pilot Cocoon pen with a EF calligraphy nib 'donated' by a Pilot Penmanship is one thing; but if I want a 'triple digit smooth' writing experience, then I'd actually want to spend triple digits on a pen that also looks the part.

[Karmachanic]

Opus 88 Koloro with a FPNibs 14k rhodium semi-flex, ground to CI 0.7 Jowo.

ASA Maya with a FPNibs 14k rhodium keyhole, relieved shoulders CI 0.6 Jowo.

[pajaro]

Waterman Laureat I with a 14K Waterman Ideal nib from a ruined Waterman lever filler. The 14K nib is fine and flexes. The original Laureat nib was steel gold plated and corroded. Making the best out of a resacking gone bad after I over heated and immolated the poor old Waterman.

[Honeybadgers]

Sure. https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/338963-pilot-namiki-vanishing-point/?p=4122196

 

In that I have zero interest, sorry. Replacing the nib on a sub-$30 Pilot Cocoon pen with a EF calligraphy nib 'donated' by a Pilot Penmanship is one thing; but if I want a 'triple digit smooth' writing experience, then I'd actually want to spend triple digits on a pen that also looks the part.

 

 

Delike alpha with a 14k eversharp manifold nib. Worth every penny.

 

I also spent nearly $300 on a custom superflex XXF wet noodle and have it in an $80 TWSBI.

Edited November 7, 2018 by Honeybadgers

[A Smug Dill]

I also spent nearly $300 on a custom superflex XXF wet noodle and have it in an $80 TWSBI.

Personally I'm not a big fan of the basic black plastic 'resin' cigar-shaped pen that the Sailor 1911/Profit and Pilot Custom 74 pens are, but still I spent relatively lots of moolah on two such basic Sailors fitted with Naginata Concord and Naginata Concord Emperor nibs. They do count as supplied as-is by the manufacturer, though.

[Honeybadgers]

Yeah those nibs are stupid amazing but count as factory

[senzen]

I have a Pelikan m205 clear demonstrator that is just about about perfect as it is, but my long running search for a pen that would make Kon Peki look not too dark and not too light took me to using a small piece of cellophane between the nib and the feed; I have described it before, it wasn't my original idea, and it seems counter productive... But it works perfectly for what I want, without any starting or skipping issues; although any Pelikan fan might be horrified at seeing that bit of cellophane.

 

 

Cost of cellophane? Well use whichever comes in packaging, so zero. Cost to my sanity, not so sure!