Permanently Inked Pens

[wspohn]

I almost always keep the following inked:

 

Parker 51 Flighter

Parker 75 Premier Athenes

MB 146 Vermeil

Classic Pens - one of the CP sterling series or a prototype celluloid.

 

Other pens find their way into the rotation for a week or three from time to time (including a Sailor sterling 1911 currently)

[FOUR X FOUR]

I always rotate and clean my pens, keeping a pen permanently inked will lead to some problems, especially with piston pens. Grease is required to keep those sealed and operating smoothly.

 

Please, clean your pens. They will reward you with decades of service, when kept right.

Ah, you’re no fun

[surprise123]

Ah, youre no fun

And you might be out $40 due to a stuck piston, and the worst part is you don't know yet.

[A Smug Dill]

I always rotate and clean my pens, keeping a pen permanently inked will lead to some problems, especially with piston pens.

And you might be out $40 due to a stuck piston, and the worst part is you don't know yet.

 

I haven't cleaned my Pelikan M200 Smoky Quartz piston-filler even once since the first inking (with Platinum Classic Ink Khaki Black iron-gall ink) nearly six months ago. It's perfectly fine, and I like treating sub-$200 fountain pens that way — as writing instruments to service my needs and be ready to write whenever I want, as opposed to being 'collectables' I have to service.

 

None of the nineteen Wing Sung 3008 piston-fillers that are permanently inked with (Diamine and J.Herbin) shimmer inks have allowed the inks in their barrels to dry out or developed piston problems. One needed the nib wetted under the tap briefly after not being used for a few weeks, but all the rest have always started writing on demand.

 

My Aurora 88 Minerali — which I don't love — has been inked with J.Herbin Amethyste de l'Oural shimmer ink since the end of April. I rarely write with it, but when I tried it just now, again it started writing immediately. No stuck piston problem, either, and in any case I now know how to completely disassemble it for cleaning.

[surprise123]

 

 

I haven't cleaned my Pelikan M200 Smoky Quartz piston-filler even once since the first inking (with Platinum Classic Ink Khaki Black iron-gall ink) nearly six months ago. It's perfectly fine, and I like treating sub-$200 fountain pens that way as writing instruments to service my needs and be ready to write whenever I want, as opposed to being 'collectables' I have to service.

 

None of the nineteen Wing Sung 3008 piston-fillers that are permanently inked with (Diamine and J.Herbin) shimmer inks have allowed the inks in their barrels to dry out or developed piston problems. One needed the nib wetted under the tap briefly after not being used for a few weeks, but all the rest have always started writing on demand.

 

My Aurora 88 Minerali which I don't love has been inked with J.Herbin Amethyste de l'Oural shimmer ink since the end of April. I rarely write with it, but when I tried it just now, again it started writing immediately. No stuck piston problem, either, and in any case I now know how to completely disassemble it for cleaning.

Well, that's an immortal Pelikan piston... and that's a Wing Sung that costs less than a pack of pencils...

 

But please clean your Aurora. Smugly stating how you don't take care of your pens is like us bragging about how we only get 2 to 1 hours of sleep every school night. It's not good.

Edited August 7, 2019 by surprise123

[A Smug Dill]

But please clean your Aurora. Smugly stating how you don't take care of your pens is like us bragging about how we only get 2 to 1 hours of sleep every school night. It's not good.

 

If I ever wreck one of my piston-fillers (which are, almost by definition, not superior) through neglecting to clean it, I'll own up and let you know. My experience with both cheap and expensive piston-fillers is that 'permanently' inking them, even when only using them very occasionally, has not caused any problems. The joys of modern fountain pens that I don't have to worry about not being able to replace out of sentimental value for (family or industry) history.

 

I do 'take care' of the pens I have that I think are worthy. Like my Pilot Capless Vanishing Point raden pens and my Platinum #3776 Century "The Prime" 100th Anniversary pen. It just means I write with them less and get less enjoyment from them as a user. They're mostly display pieces behind glass in the top tray of my pen display boxes. How is that good?

[surprise123]

 

If I ever wreck one of my piston-fillers (which are, almost by definition, not superior) through neglecting to clean it, I'll own up and let you know. My experience with both cheap and expensive piston-fillers is that 'permanently' inking them, even when only using them very occasionally, has not caused any problems. The joys of modern fountain pens that I don't have to worry about not being able to replace out of sentimental value for (family or industry) history.

 

I do 'take care' of the pens I have that I think are worthy. Like my Pilot Capless Vanishing Point raden pens and my Platinum #3776 Century "The Prime" 100th Anniversary pen. It just means I write with them less and get less enjoyment from them as a user. They're mostly display pieces behind glass in the top tray of my pen display boxes. How is that good?

I would never expect any of your piston pens to seize up anytime soon, it's just the principle of keeping things tidy for me. I guess I'm a bit of a neat freak when it comes to these things, especially with demonstrators. I have a Lamy 2000 I use practically every day that I flush, clean, and lubricate whenever I refill ink.

[DrDebG]

None of my pens are "permanently" inked, although I have a few that are generally inked. Among them is a Montblanc 146 Unicef pen that my husband and daughter purchased for me.

 

I also do the "one pen, one month" challenge periodically (see thread). When I decided to do this, I thoroughly clean any currently inked pen before the start of the month, dry them and store them. I also do this before I travel for an extended period with the pens that any inked pen which will not accompany me on the trip.

[bemon]

I've had my medium Lamy 2000 and broad Pilot Vanishing Point inked for about 5 years now. Just this week I traded out my under built medium Pelikan M600 which was also always inked for the last 2 years for a medium GVFC Classic which is meant to hold a permanent position as my EDC flagship.

 

M600 and Now the GVFC is always inked with Iro Shin Kai

L2K always inked with Sailor Shikiori Yonaga

Vanishing Point always inked with either KWZ Azure #4 or Blackstone Barrier Reef Blue.

[sharonspens]

I choose one pen and one ink on Jan 1 and keep that combo in permanent rotation for the year. Last year, I got bored with the combo and switched quarterly. I always have 3-7 pens inked, plus a random rollerball or two in my pen case or bag, so I'm able to switch up ink colors or nib sizes as desired. Keeping one inked all year, though, allows me to get to know that pen and ink pretty well.

 

This year it is a buckeye burl L-16 from Ryan Krusac, F nib, with Iroshizuki Fuyu Syogun ink.

Edited August 8, 2019 by sharonspens

[Jebus]

For a couple of years I have a Regular Conid Bulkfiller permanently inked.

 

I switch between pens and inks but the Conid is always armed with one of my reds (currently Diamine Poppy Red). This makes it easy to get some accents to the notes I take with other pens and other inks.

 

Main reason for the Conid: very easy to clean

Main reason for reddish inks: not a single clue

[Honeybadgers]

I would never expect any of your piston pens to seize up anytime soon, it's just the principle of keeping things tidy for me. I guess I'm a bit of a neat freak when it comes to these things, especially with demonstrators. I have a Lamy 2000 I use practically every day that I flush, clean, and lubricate whenever I refill ink.

 

 

To be fair, you're not quite right in that keeping a pen permanently inked is bad for it.

 

It's only bad for it if you keep it inked and don't use it regularly. Rubber seals dry rot much faster than they degrade under moisture. Just ask anyone from a desert climate why their tire shop is telling them they need to replace their tires after three years when they're only at 50% tread.

 

Using a pen gently and constantly is honestly the best way to maintain its filling system.

[Honeybadgers]

For a couple of years I have a Regular Conid Bulkfiller permanently inked.

 

I switch between pens and inks but the Conid is always armed with one of my reds (currently Diamine Poppy Red). This makes it easy to get some accents to the notes I take with other pens and other inks.

 

Main reason for the Conid: very easy to clean

Main reason for reddish inks: not a single clue

 

 

Has your conid stained at all, particularly with the poppy red?

[Jebus]

 

 

Has your conid stained at all, particularly with the poppy red?

 

No negative experience so far. Alternating colors are Montblanc Burgundy Red, Diamine Scarlet and Poppy Red. Time between refills tend to be a couple of months.

 

It's a demonstrator barrel and the Diamine inks seem to behave not as "coherent" when compared to the Montblanc ink. Montblanc is fluid like water while Diamine seems to leave some stains, though not permanently. When leaving the pen untouched for a couple of seconds the stains dissapear. No remaining stains for sure.

 

I'm wondering whether that behavior is typical for the ink or it is a coincedence with greasing the piston.

[Time-Traveller]

I keep one of my 3776 Centuries ready at all times as a 'backup pen'. The reason is that I enjoy many of my pens, like to change from one to the other often, also like to switch inks often, and therefore fill them just a bit of ink at a time (enough for maybe 4 sheets of paper, typically). This means a pen that I am currently using may run dry just when I need to do some urgent serious writing – and then the 3776 is there to the rescue.

Why the 3776 Century? Because (1) it's a very nice pen in general, (2) the slip-&-seal cap really keeps the pen from drying out soon.

Edited August 17, 2019 by Time-traveller

[Zookie]

I've got an Airmail 71JT that's always inked and in constant use. At the moment, it's got olive brown ink in it, a favorite of mine.

[Antenociticus]

Pens that seem to stay inked with the same ink:

 

Lamy 2000, R&K Salix

Sailor Pro Gear Slim (M), Sailor Seiboku

Sailor Pro Gear Slim Mini (MF), Sailor Souboku

Pelikan M400, Pelikan 4001 Blau-Schwarz

Moonman Wancai, Diamine Red Dragon

Moonman M2, Bay State Blue