Beginner Fp For Small - Quite Small Hands

[panna]

I never thought I had small hands until I began using a smartphone couple years ago. (I can't afford an iPhone; if my Nokia flip-phone hadn't been stolen I'd probably still be using it.)

 

I've been writing sporadically with fountain pens since school, now I'd like to get one suited for my modestly shaped hands. I like piston-fillers (any filling mechanism except catridge-only is welcome too), and I like wet, fine nibs.

 

 

My budget, alas isn't great by Western standards - I can go up to $35 tops - but I live in India so would be happy to try out Indian craftsmanship too!

[MKeith]

The Reform 1745 comes to mind. Small thin and a piston filler that holds a good amount ink. Others would be the Camlin 47 which is available from Fountain Pen Revolution and the TWSBI Eco. All are very affordable and within your budget. Just my 2 cents.

Edited July 3, 2019 by MKeith

[Tweel]

You might, perhaps, like this Indian piston-filler: a Beena Lincoln. It's not huge -- 12.5 cm long uncapped, barrel just over 1 cm in diameter, section ranging from just under a cm at the top to 8.5 mm down by the nib -- and seems solidly made and works reliably for me.

[panna]

The Reform 1745 comes to mind. Small thin and a piston filler that holds a good amount ink. Others would be the Camlin 47 which is available from Fountain Pen Revolution and the TWSBI Eco. All are very affordable and within your budget. Just my 2 cents.

Thanks MKeith! I've had bad luck with Camlin QC so am staying away from them. But I'll definitely do some research on the Reformer 1745 and TWSBI Eco.

[panna]

You might, perhaps, like this Indian piston-filler: a Beena Lincoln. It's not huge -- 12.5 cm long uncapped, barrel just over 1 cm in diameter, section ranging from just under a cm at the top to 8.5 mm down by the nib -- and seems solidly made and works reliably for me.

I love this pen! It's always worked for me, no matter how long it's been between usages. I was hoping to find something a bit more exciting in terms of colours. But the Beena L is my go-to pen. Quite reliable.

[Mech-for-i]

I second the Reform 1745 , had one and totally agree with the mentioned ; though even with an Asian S sized hand I had no trouble even with my Montblanc 149 ( though I seldom use it, its just show off piece and not a goof fit for daily use ). as far as small pen goes, I think you need to further refine it down to

 

- length ( how long and / or how short it need to be )

- girth ( how thick the barrel , and then the section )

- profile ( section length , pen profile , capped, posted, uncapped )

 

and then there's also the need to consider

 

- weight ( how its weighted and how is its weight distributed )

- materials ( how is it to be used , need it weather a lot of abuse or is the material help with the size and holding posture or otherwise )

- ergonomics .. small usually come with its limitation and its own advantage

 

I would like to offer some Indian Pen ( I own a bunch of them ) but I've found that most are not exactly small and the small one generally are not that great .. within the budget stated we can basically exclude almost all European / US / Japanese Mfrs' product as none of them offer a small pen at this price point , which leave us with Chinese and Indian as the prime candidates, but my Indian pen experience is that India seems to made some nice pens but generally thy seldom made small pens ( you are better educated in this I would wager ). The TWSBI Eco Mini probably as close to your specified as practicality goes, its a piston filler, its short as a pen goes but its girth is actually normal even a bit on the thick side , and its actually only marginally shorter than many others though.

 

For the sake of it I shall give me two cents on some suggestion , first off I think the Delike New Moon ( original version , turned acrylic ) and the New Moon 3 ( full metal construction ) both fit well to being small , both are C/C filling and both are small , choose the one with the ( petite ) calligraphy nib , it would write a wet FM / M and choose the F or EF if you want consistent fine line

 

Delike New Moon original model, on Flickr

 

Delike New Moon 3, on Flickr

 

another contender would be the Ivenue Icy which use the same nib unit but offered only in 1 Fine option, turned acrylic and clipless , its thin enough that it slide into my Knox Filofax divider pen sleeve ( that was mean for the nominal gel pen / ballpoint ) just fine, on the photo its shown already posted

 

Ivenue Icy, on Flickr

 

For sake of inclusiveness, one cannot omit the oh so liked and cursed Hero 616 ( small size ) , odd ball choice would be the LIY Mini ; and the old favorite Lingmo Lorelei ( acrylic version ).

Edited July 4, 2019 by Mech-for-i

[SoulSamurai]

Are you looking for a thin pen, or a short one, or both?

 

If you're looking for something thin, then the Ohto Tasche is a very small then pen that posts to be reasonably long, and is quite affordable at around $15 or less. It's a cartridge pen though, I doubt you could fit a converter in there.

 

The Parker Vector is affordable, has a slim grip, and might be available in a local stationary store.

 

The Lamy Logo is at the limits of your price range, but is a quality pen that is fairly slim.

 

The grip on my Sheaffer VFM is a bit too skinny for me and the step is a bit annoying, but I still find it very pleasant to hold due to the weight and balance, and mine has a great nib and was resistant to drying out. My hands are a touch on the larger side though, the pen might fit your hands better. I think they go for between $10 and $20.

 

A Sheaffer 330 or 440 is a short and light pen with a quality inlaid nib. It's not too thin, but it's not too thick either.

 

I love my Noodler's Creaper; it's the thinnest piston pen I have. Unfortunately it dries out very quickly, and of course it has that "vegetal resin" smell. Still, they are affordable, come in a bunch of colours, and have an ebonite feed and "flex" nib (as in, the nib can give a lot of line variation if you press really hard).

 

Also, maybe just browse Fountain Pen Revolution's website. They have a range of Indian pens, including some thin ones and some piston models.

[Larry Barrieau]

1745 is a great pen. The Esterbrook LJ. And SJ are beautiful and have the option of easy screw nib change, and dozens of different kinds of nibs. Easily within your budget.

[A Smug Dill]

Delike New Moon 3, on Flickr

Oh wow, new colours for the New Moon 3? I have the original three (white, 'hummingbird', and green), and I love those pens, so I'd be tempted to get more in different colours.

 

For something of a similar shape and size, and within the O.P.'s budget (but of course I cannot account for shipping, taxes, etc. for buyers in India), I'd say the Sailor Lecoule. I have three of those and I enjoy writing with them.

 

The Nemosine Neutrino is another candidate, but shipping charges from the US will break the bank.

[Bo Bo Olson]

The Esterbrook DJ or SJ cost $35 the last time I looked....ok, half a decade ago.

Nice and nimble fairly good balance....quick to fill. swapping of nibs.

Did I mention some from 1940-60 are .....I only have two now, once I had a slew.

Solid as a tank.

Once a decade ago Before China, all noobies were told get an Esterbrook or a Safari. So every body got a Esterbrook and the price jumped from $15 to $35.........

 

Until I saw your $35 limit, my first thought was a medium small Pelikan 100 (newer not the vintage one)/150....but you'd have to luck out to get one on German Ebay, for under E-30. some were to be had at 40-45 Euro....some for more.

 

1745 can often be gotten for 2 for E 5-7 ($6-8.00), on German Ebay.

Edited July 4, 2019 by Bo Bo Olson

[sansenri]

Reform 1745, a very good suggestion, thin, piston filler, lovely nib (they usually come in F).

Check the Reform P125 also, if you can find one, just very slightly larger but still a thin pen and piston filler.

When you can up you budget, save up for a Pelikan M200.

It's a smallish pen (by today's standards), but very usable and extremely reliable.

You can find some mint ones around $80, and used they often come for less. Go for a EF on the Pelikan, F is still not very fine.

[Honeybadgers]

Delike alpha, Lamy CP-1, Pilot prera are all in the price range.

[essayfaire]

I second the Reform 1745 , had one and totally agree with the mentioned ; though even with an Asian S sized hand I had no trouble even with my Montblanc 149 ( though I seldom use it, its just show off piece and not a goof fit for daily use ). as far as small pen goes, I think you need to further refine it down to

 

- length ( how long and / or how short it need to be )

- girth ( how thick the barrel , and then the section )

- profile ( section length , pen profile , capped, posted, uncapped )

 

and then there's also the need to consider

 

- weight ( how its weighted and how is its weight distributed )

- materials ( how is it to be used , need it weather a lot of abuse or is the material help with the size and holding posture or otherwise )

- ergonomics .. small usually come with its limitation and its own advantage

 

 

For sake of inclusiveness, one cannot omit the oh so liked and cursed Hero 616 ( small size ) , odd ball choice would be the LIY Mini ; and the old favorite Lingmo Lorelei ( acrylic version ).

I was given a Lorelei EF in a PIF; I had never heard of the brand and am quite happy with the pen. I keep it inked.

 

Are you looking for a thin pen, or a short one, or both?

Pilot Petit is cute and short, Jinhao shark is cute and narrow.

 

You might want to check out this thread on small pens:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/347079-lets-see-your-smallest-pens-4-inches-or-smaller-capped/

 

Also, if your budget increases there are the Pilot Decimo and the Pelikan 205. The Diplomat Magnum is smaller than most pens and within your budget; it is very lightweight.

 

Happy shopping!

[Bo Bo Olson]

A thin but long pen is the Snorkel....great balance posted. All vintage flagships had to have great balance or , someone would change brands.....like a Ford guy buying a Chevy.

[sidthecat]

My suggestion is for the future, when you have funding: vintage ringtop and vest-pocket pens may be just the thing for you. They can be a little cheaper than full-sized pens and frequently have wonderful nibs.

[SwipedFromTruman]

I think TWSBIs go is a smaller demonstrator. Wife has small hands and it suits her well.

[Ardakilic]

If piston is not a must, how about Parker Jotter 2018 edition?

[OMASsimo]

I can't contribute much to modern pens in your price and size range but how about vintage pens? Most of them are much smaller than today's standards. A pen measuring 12.5 cm capped was pretty much standard from the 1930 through 1960s, of course with exceptions. They also were slimmer on average. Many of them are sturdy and great writers. Of course, I don't know how well they kept up in Indian climate but in Western Europe some pens from the 1930s are like new, at least after restoration. Vintage UK pens till the late 1960s often were colourful, though hardly any piston fillers. Piston fillers were super popular in Germany but those pens are mostly boring black or cost a fortune. Italian companies also made awesome piston fillers with great designs but that's a different price league as well. Check out what's available locally. I can imagine that you could find a few nice Conway Stewarts, Burnhams, Mabie Todds, or Croxleys from the UK. Some German companies also specialized in producing more colourful models for export but these were mostly second and third tier companies. I hope you'll find something that suits you and is fun.

[panna]

Thank you so much, everyone for your generous replies. I've realised that I really need to do some research to understand what works for me and what doesn't. I made the mistake of assuming that because my hands are small, I would necessarily need a thin/small/lightweight pen. I went back to my little collection and realised this wasn't true. The thinnest pens I have - Rotring Esprit and Camlin Sleek - are not very comfortable for my hands. But my ASA Rainbow, a fairly large pen is not comfortable either.

 

Anyway, I've decided to do some hands-on research with other pens in my collection. Inspired by the learnings shared on the OPOM challenge, I'm going to do something similar with my pens. Once I have enough data on what I enjoy, I'll return to scratch your heads again! Once again, thank you to everyone who replied for their time and suggestions.

[Honeybadgers]

They're around $100 NOS and still readily available, but the pilot stargazer and if you can find them the pilot custom 98 are both very very small.