Pen material preference?

[lionelc]

diffusion bonded acrylic - this way, buying one usually means being unable to afford another for the year ...

[txomsy]

Besides being a matter of personal preference and taste, I also think it is a matter of habits.

 

I love resin pens, celluloid, ebonite... but prefer full metal pens because they are sturdier and I need not worry about breaking them. But then, I wear my pens in a pocket, so they are always at body temperature, and have no problem with them being cold. Thus, habit is also a factor. Not that I care much for temperature either.

 

There are metal pens that are as lightweight as one may wish, like, say the Lamy CP.1 or Logo, or the MB Slimline / Noblesse,  or the Kaweco Liliput or even some others that are even lighter. Although I do not care for hefty metal pens (love my Brass Sport). And you can have metal-bodied pens with resin/plastic sections (the Lamy CP.1, the Waterman Graduate or the Sailor Chalana come to mind), and in thin or thick formats as well.

 

For me, as I said, unbreakable is the word. Although as I have settled in a less "aggressive/careless" life, I've returned to resin (mainly 50's-60's vintage piston-fillers) and BHR pens, but that's more (I think) for the qualities of their nibs.

[SamChevre]

For me, plastic--but not just any plastic: Lucite.  One of my everyday pens is a Parker "51" from 1944, Lucite with Lustraloy (stainless steel) cap: it looks like it will easily last another 75 years if not dropped from a great height or run over by a truck.  "Plastic" can have connotations of disposable, but that pen is very much the opposite.

[Estycollector]

Well, I really like a variety. The Flighter Wing Sung 601 has a nice metal feel as does the All Star Lamy. Old 51's and Esterbrook are nice as well. 

[shostakovich]

I do have one or two at most metal pens, but most of mine are non metal, such as Pelikan, Waterman, etc. I also like light pens and Pelikans are for me very well balanced, especially the M200's and M400's. The P51 is of course a mixture with a metal cap but as I don't usually post, it works great for me.

[OutlawJosey]

8 hours ago, pearlfox said:

I prefer pens intricately carved from the bones of my enemies.

Yuuuus. 😈

[OutlawJosey]

16 hours ago, OleJuul said:

I think for those of us who sometimes look down on plastic, it's worth actually looking into what material we're actually looking at. Many plastics have an interesting history and unique tactile and visual qualities, including the way they acquire patina. It's easy to just call something "plastic" in the older sense of "cheap", but if one can't actually name the material, that comes off a bit shallow. (I'm referring to my own history and habit here.)

That's totally fair. And like TheReadBeard pointed out, maybe my bias toward thinking of "plastic" pens as "cheap" is because I'm literally buying cheap plastic pens. 😄

[TheRedBeard]

OutlawJosey,

I would suggest you to try a very good "plastic" pen before you decide to purchase it. Say, borrow from a friend or try it in a good pen shop. 

You should try, for example, an original vintage Parker 51 (but not Mk III) or modern Duofold Centennial.

Other FPN members may suggest other great brands like Montblanc, etc and you should try them , too.

.... And then tell us about your impressions :)

 

An important warning: during your searches avoid other perfect metal pens (especially, Yard-O-Led), otherwise, you may end up sticking to metal pens forever :)  

[sansenri]

The feeling of warmth of material depends on conductivity.

An object made of material with high conductivity quickly subtracts warmth from your hand and therefore feels cold! (metal)

Viceversa an object made of material with low conductivity takes much longer to subtract warmth from your hand and therefore feels warm! (wood).

 

You also need to consider the difference between your body temperature and the outside temperature.

If that metal object is in the sun it will feel much warmer that wood!! (the experience is therefore reversed)

[sansenri]

My preference goes to celluloid, not only it feels rather warm and slightly "softer" than other plastic, but the colours of the material you can get with celluloid are of unsurpassed beauty!

Second choice ebonite, warmth, colours, lightness of the material.

[TheRedBeard]

Hello again, OutlawJosey.

Please, note another important point: Sensenri and others already mentioned lightness of other materials and "plastics".

Generally, fountain pen users are divided into two big groups: ones, who prefer lighter pens, and the ones, who prefer heavier pens. 

And that preference affects people#s choice of a pen's material one or another way.

 

If you like heavier pens (for example, I prefer "heavy" pens) than you may never like pens made of any other materials than metal or coated metal, etc.

 

Otherwise, if you prefer light pens then you should certainly look at and try high-quality non-metal pens of reputable brands, and then see :)

 

[Lamy4life]

I have a feeling your talking about the visconti demonstrators.

[es9]

Non-celluloid plastics.  I'm not personally a big fan of all-metal pens, and I prefer materials that do not spontaneously decompose or react poorly with lukewarm water.  

[corgicoupe]

"...or modern Duofold Centennial."

 

How modern? I have a 1991 Duofold International and it feels okay.

[Karmachanic]

6 hours ago, corgicoupe said:

How modern? I have a 1991 Duofold International and it feels okay

 

Dude!  30 years ago is vintage.

[TheRedBeard]

7 hours ago, corgicoupe said:

"...or modern Duofold Centennial."

 

How modern? I have a 1991 Duofold International and it feels okay.

I meant an option if OP wanted to  try/purchase something brand new, too :)

[TheRedBeard]

41 minutes ago, Karmachanic said:

 

Dude!  30 years ago is vintage.

Good point :)

[BigBlot]

I'm not adverse to plastic or wood, but prefer metal because it's more durable. Yet some metal, like the stainless steel Jotter ballpoint and mechanical pencil, are too slick. The original Spacepen has concentric rings cut near the tip that allows more grip.

[BigBlot]

On 2/22/2021 at 6:03 PM, inkstainedruth said:

Which is funny, because I've *never* noticed the odor of the Noodler's "vegetal resin" that people complain about (and have complained about for the better part of a decade).   And I'm the one that my mom used to have smell the roast beef in the fridge to make sure it hadn't been around too long and was starting to go bad....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

I've noticed it on my Charlie pen, but it reminds me of similar plastics in my childhook.

[inkstainedruth]

14 hours ago, Karmachanic said:

 

Dude!  30 years ago is vintage.

Depends on your definition of "vintage".  For pens, I like the definition between "vintage" and "modern" as 1960, the year Parker released the Parker 45 (one of the first commercially available and truly viable c/c pens).

Although admittedly 30 years ago is soooo "last century".... 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth