Matt Armstrong (of the Pen Habit)’s Business has closed!

[collectorofmanythings]

Just saw this on Matt Armstrong (The Pen Habit)’s business’s (Open Book Audio) website. I hope he isn’t facing hard times and his business went bankrupt and that he just decided to close the business. I know this isn’t necessarily related to fountain pens, but Matt definitely is a wonderful member of the community and his blog and YouTube channel were loved by many. Anyway, just wanted to let people know about this.

 

Also, does anyone have a link for any of his social media platforms? I couldn’t find his Instagram though I’m sure he has one. Just want to be sure he is okay!

[Ste_S]

https://instagram.com/fishbait78?utm_medium=copy_link

He seems to be doing ok?

[collectorofmanythings]

3 minutes ago, Ste_S said:

https://instagram.com/fishbait78?utm_medium=copy_link

He seems to be doing ok?

Well that’s good! Thank you for the link!

[Safari_Camo]

So sad... his videos are stunning, very well made.

[collectorofmanythings]

1 hour ago, Safari_Camo said:

So sad... his videos are stunning, very well made.

Yes, they were. It was a shame when he stopped making them a few years ago. I really hope he hasn’t fallen on hard times. He seems fine from his Instagram, but that is pretty easy to fake…

[sirgilbert357]

His YouTube video reviews were among the best, in my opinion. It was interesting to hear how the "hobby" consumed him and he went a little overboard on his "craft" of making the videos.

 

Glad he was able to correct his trajectory and recover. This, however, is an interesting development. I didn't even know he had that new business. I hope he is doing well.

[TSherbs]

He'd been doing the audio books for years (according to how he would mention it occasionally). It was not his primary employment (I don't believe), nor were his selling of the paper products or making reviews. 

[migla9]

I seem to remember his day job was in the computer field (software development or IT).

[sgphototn]

On 6/30/2021 at 10:55 PM, sirgilbert357 said:

His YouTube video reviews were among the best, in my opinion. It was interesting to hear how the "hobby" consumed him and he went a little overboard on his "craft" of making the videos.

By Matt's own admission, he went over $20,000 in debt with his 'hobby.' 

[IThinkIHaveAProblem]

37 minutes ago, sgphototn said:

By Matt's own admission, he went over $20,000 in debt with his 'hobby.' 

that is a terrifying number...

[sirgilbert357]

1 hour ago, sgphototn said:

By Matt's own admission, he went over $20,000 in debt with his 'hobby.' 

 

The way some people post about the pens they are buying, I'm sure many people on this very site have as much, or more than that sunk into their pen collections. There comes a point where the hobby shifts from "fountain pens" to "shopping"...

 

I have spent FAR, FAR less, even adding ink and paper into the equation. I also sell the pens I stop using, so I make SOME money back if I decide the pen isn't for me. It's a bit of a hassle, but it's worth it...

[sgphototn]

35 minutes ago, sirgilbert357 said:

The way some people post about the pens they are buying, I'm sure many people on this very site have as much, or more than that sunk into their pen collections. There comes a point where the hobby shifts from "fountain pens" to "shopping"...

It's not that Matt bought pens with ready money. It's that he went in $20,000 in debt to do so.

 

To me that's not shopping but obsession of a dangerous sort.  It took a toil on him mentally and financially that may take years to recover from.

 

I have no doubt that there are many on this forum who are deep in debt over their 'hobby' through their own obsession and are addicted as much as if it were booze or heroin.

 

And for what? To buy pens they can't afford, with money they don't have, in an attempt to impress people they don't even like.

 

That's sad.

[whichwatch]

26 minutes ago, sgphototn said:

It's not that Matt bought pens with ready money. It's that he went in $20,000 in debt to do so.

 

To me that's not shopping but obsession of a dangerous sort.  It took a toil on him mentally and financially that may take years to recover from.

 

I have no doubt that there are many on this forum who are deep in debt over their 'hobby' through their own obsession and are addicted as much as if it were booze or heroin.

 

And for what? To buy pens they can't afford, with money they don't have, in an attempt to impress people they don't even like.

 

That's sad.

 

I don't know the details of Matt's situation, but your comments in general are spot on.  The way to stay out of trouble is not so hard to figure out:  If you can't afford it, don't buy it!

[samasry]

I have seen some folks here list  upwards of  100s of Nakaya, Namiki, ...etc,  as their  partial  collection  of pens.  The cost of these would  get  in the 100s of thousands range.I have always assumed these folks to be rich folk and money is no object to them.

 

If some people are spending beyond their means, perhaps that explains the defensive attitude that we encounter regularly on this forum.

 

To each his/her own.

[collectorofmanythings]

16 hours ago, sgphototn said:

By Matt's own admission, he went over $20,000 in debt with his 'hobby.' 

Well, that was the first year. He paid it off and came back for a second season. He then did a third and a fourth and part of the fifth before “breaking the habit”.

[collectorofmanythings]

Also, just so you know, he left because he lost his excitement/passion for making reviews, not because of financial debts. The hobby becoming more expensive maybe played a part, but he left because he lost his excitement. When he left (temporarily) after the first season, it was because of his debts but he paid it off, and came back. 

[sgphototn]

Regardless of why he stopped, going $20,000 in debt for a 'hobby' is ludicrous, whether it's fountain pens, Beenie Babies, or Pokemon paraphernalia. 

 

 

Passions are one thing, obsessions are another. Obsessions rarely payoff long-term.

 

 

 

[Addertooth]

Hobbies CAN pay off, but you must be a very cagey investor, and absolutely know when you are getting a bargain.   It means you simply must know the nuances of every model, and how prices have trended over several years.  Then you must hope and pray the bottom does not fall out of that particular hobby market. 

 

The first critical lesson is: Rare does not mean valuable.

The second is typically: Brand new (non-vintage) pens typically take a nose-dive in value for a long time.

The third is: If you can do the repairs yourself on used pens, there is more margin for profit.

The fourth is: You must look at listings of hundreds of pens on a regular basis, to find the few pearls what will produce a profit.  Many you see listed, won't.

[Paul-in-SF]

People make mistakes, even you (whoever is reading this). I admire anyone who recognizes and owns their mistakes, and makes them right. Would you have done as much? Would your life and choices stand up to this kind of scrutiny and armchair critique?

 

Matt Armstrong's were among the first pen videos I ever watched. I didn't even realize that he was exploring as much as I was, just somewhat further along the path. His videos on nib tuning were wonderfully clear and accessible (and well photographed). I was sorry when I came across his good-bye video, even though it had already been over a year since he had made it. 

 

I saw him at the 2019 SF pen show, but he was working almost by himself in a sales booth and seemed a little harried, so I didn't bother him. I wish now I had found a way to thank him in person for his videos. If I see him this year, I will certainly do so. And if you're reading this, Matt Armstrong, thank you, and all the best. 

[halffriedchicken]

I don't know Matt Armstrong other than from watching his YouTube videos so I don't think I am in a place to pass judgment about his decisions. I don't know why he made the choices that he did. Perhaps he saw it as an investment into his very well done YT channel. Were his audio/video equipment included in that amount? I have no idea.

 

I do believe his videos are still valuable and through them he helped many people who were learning about fountain pens with the choices that he made. I was one of them. I learned a lot about different pens and I enjoyed watching his videos even though I had no interest in many of the pens showcased, simply because they are beyond my means. I learned how to enjoy my Pilot Metropolitan and why it was often a point of comparison for many pens. I learned that smoothing a nib, and aligning nib tines, are not as mysterious and destructive as I feared. Do those videos encourage people to want pens beyond their means? Perhaps, but I wouldn't blame Matt for that or for the choices that he made. He may have made some mistakes but he owned up to them. That is part of his journey and I do think he is wiser for it because, for better or for worse, he moved on. I for one am still glad that he took the time and investment to create his channel and that he left it up. And perhaps that's one of the best lessons from his videos, to learn from his mistakes.

 

We all have different views about different pens, different inks, different people, and their YT personalities. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, which is the strength of things like this forum. If we all saw everything with the same perspective, there would be nothing new to learn. My view? Am I sad to hear that he closed his business, the original point of this post, as well as his YT channel? Yes I am. Sometimes you get ink on your fingers, and they may even leave a stain, but I wish him the best.