RIP pens

[A Smug Dill]

On 1/23/2022 at 2:02 PM, JosephKing said:

FINE! You want to write broad, let's write broad!  Sprung the nib in a full flex fit of fury.

 

I can so relate to that sentiment and response.

 

On 1/23/2022 at 2:02 PM, JosephKing said:

2) Pilot Vanishing Point dropped from desk height.  It was retracted, so no worries, right? Wrong!  Landed knock side down, which extended the nib, then it somersaulted into a double back handspring for a perfect 10 performance winning a bent gold medal... errr... metal.

 

What a vividly imaginative description! I can just see that in my head now. You have a way with words, even when writing about a tragedy.

 

On 1/23/2022 at 2:02 PM, JosephKing said:

3) Paid for a special sea gull nib from Jeremiah at Monty Winnfield.

 

Is that like a Sailor Naginata Concord nib? If so, Sailor is making and selling those again, albeit only to be fitted on specially designated pen bodies for its specialty nibs.

 

[JosephKing]

4 hours ago, A Smug Dill said:

 

I can so relate to that sentiment and response.

 

 

What a vividly imaginative description! I can just see that in my head now. You have a way with words, even when writing about a tragedy.

 

 

Is that like a Sailor Naginata Concord nib? If so, Sailor is making and selling those again, albeit only to be fitted on specially designated pen bodies for its specialty nibs.

 

I felt the same when I read about you snapping your FA.

 

I'm surprised and humbled by your complement.  Thank you.  *Deep bow*

 

And since you've been entertained, allow me to weave a little more to the story, to speak to your last point:

 

The Naginata Concord was a grail pen for me.  Two days after Xmas, with a few days left for vacation, and eight weeks before my son was due to be born, I had a crazy idea: I'm going to drive 8 hrs (would have to be "sporty" as my Swiss coworker calls it) to Anderson pens in Chicago and test out the Concord!  "Dear wife, I know you have an ultrasound today, but everything seems to be fine and we've done this all before with our 2 daughters... can I please, please, please, seek out my grail pen before all the chaos happens?  What? The girls can stay at the grand parents? I can go? Woohoo! Kissy kissy, love you love you!"

 

The plan: drive to Chicago, see and order the pen, enjoy pizza, stay overnight, drive back in the morning.

I don't want things to be rushed while I'm there, so I'm going to leave at a ridiculously early time.

 

At 330am, I reached the U.S. Border (from Canukistan). "Hello sir, where are you headed? Chicago? For a pen??? Are you crazy? Hold on a second.  Sir, I'm going to need you to pull over slowly to the inspection station.  You're going to follow my lead. You will not pass me and do exactly as I say!"

I looked in the rear view mirror and saw at least one border officer in a bullet proof vest with a hand on his firearm walking behind the car in the dark. WHAT?!?

 

An hour later: apparently a criminal, with the same name as I, was wanted in the U.S.  I'm free to go.

 

Remember "sporty"? After the border crossing ordeal, "sporty" became "leisurely".  Strolled into Anderson Pens at around lunch.

And...

 

And they say: "never meet your heros".  The pen on display was a little scratchy and kept hard starting as I wrote a line, reflected, wrote again, reflected again.  Sbrebrown's video kept playing in my head. Ok, what about the Cross Concord?  Wooo, it's nicer, but is it "$850 USD nicer"?!?.  I had to step away and think about this for a minute.

 

And that's when the call came:

" Dear! Remember that ultrasound you skipped out on so you can make love to your stupid pens?!? Well the doctor thinks something is wrong and I'm in the hospital and they're thinking of doing an emergency C section! Get back here NOW!"

 

What?  But... I drove all this way... and the border crossing... they're never going to believe me that I drove all this way and back in one day with nothing to show for it.  Quick. What can I buy that will make it all worth it? That's a nice  Tagayasan, but... I need to research more. Dialog 3? Sailor 1911?  No. These are all impulse buys. Think. Think!  Ahhh... How about a fine nib unit for my vanishing point, since the medium is too broad. You only have a gold coloured one in stock? Good enough. 

 

A mix of "sporty" but cautious drive back to the border. "Really? You drove to Chicago and back in one day, for this? Oh, your son? You're crazy! Good luck to your wife!"

 

*Fast forward the video two weeks* C-section.  Beautiful baby boy.

 

*Fast forward the video five-ish months*

Cult Pens around the world sale: Tagayasan.

 

*Fast forward the video five-ish months*

Who is this Monty Winnfield guy that keeps showing up? Woooo, SeaGull nib.

 

*Fast forward the video*

"Double back hand spring... for the gold!!!"

 

*Fast forward the video*

Crickets... Hello?... Crickets

 

Russell Crowe: "Are you not entertained!?!"

[Bo Bo Olson]

Love my boring life.

[inkstainedruth]

A few years ago I went to an educational conference in Toronto.  The hotel was at the airport, but I left Pittsburgh early enough in the day (or so I thought) to make a side trip into the city itself.  Except that I hit major construction on this side of the border, trying to get to the Peace Bridge.  Then, of course hit Friday afternoon rush hour traffic all the way from Hamilton into Toronto.  My aim was to go to poke around IIRC Wonder Pens for a bit.  But had trouble finding parking AND finding the store because the place was in the basement of the building and around the side of the building (fortunately they had one of those sidewalk signs).  Had a lovely time, bought a bottle of Noodler's Blue Upon the Plains of Abraham (yeah, buying an American-made ink in Canada ) and a box of very silly paperclips bent to look like cats.  Then of course hit MORE rush hour traffic on the way back out to the airport to get to the conference.

On Sunday?  Drove around randomly trying to find someplace to grab food out in the boonies, then got stuck in another traffic jam at the border trying to get back onto the Peace Bridge.  And when I got to US Customs?  Got asked if I had anything to declare, and told them "I bought a bottle of ink...."  The US Customs person was NOT impressed.... 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Maurizio]

As I mentioned today in a post on the Japanese forum, I dropped my one and only Pilot VP fine nib ( I also have another with a medium) on the floor, nib down, ruining it while using it at work in Court. 

 

I also, many years ago, left a too expensive Pelikan 800 ballpoint pen on a desk in the New York Public Library for not more than 5 minutes, but it was swooped up in that short time. That was a beautiful pen with a smooth twist action.  That was really dumb but typically absent-minded of me. It was the last time I spent money on a ballpoint pen. I now use Pilot Gel Pens in my work bag for times when I have to write on those miserable anachronistic carbon court forms. Of course I haven’t seen the inside of a courtroom since March of 2020 and it’s anyone’s guess when things will return to normal in NYC. 

[The-Thinker]

14 hours ago, JosephKing said:

I felt the same when I read about you snapping your FA.

 

I'm surprised and humbled by your complement.  Thank you.  *Deep bow*

 

And since you've been entertained, allow me to weave a little more to the story, to speak to your last point:

 

The Naginata Concord was a grail pen for me.  Two days after Xmas, with a few days left for vacation, and eight weeks before my son was due to be born, I had a crazy idea: I'm going to drive 8 hrs (would have to be "sporty" as my Swiss coworker calls it) to Anderson pens in Chicago and test out the Concord!  "Dear wife, I know you have an ultrasound today, but everything seems to be fine and we've done this all before with our 2 daughters... can I please, please, please, seek out my grail pen before all the chaos happens?  What? The girls can stay at the grand parents? I can go? Woohoo! Kissy kissy, love you love you!"

 

The plan: drive to Chicago, see and order the pen, enjoy pizza, stay overnight, drive back in the morning.

I don't want things to be rushed while I'm there, so I'm going to leave at a ridiculously early time.

 

At 330am, I reached the U.S. Border (from Canukistan). "Hello sir, where are you headed? Chicago? For a pen??? Are you crazy? Hold on a second.  Sir, I'm going to need you to pull over slowly to the inspection station.  You're going to follow my lead. You will not pass me and do exactly as I say!"

I looked in the rear view mirror and saw at least one border officer in a bullet proof vest with a hand on his firearm walking behind the car in the dark. WHAT?!?

 

An hour later: apparently a criminal, with the same name as I, was wanted in the U.S.  I'm free to go.

 

Remember "sporty"? After the border crossing ordeal, "sporty" became "leisurely".  Strolled into Anderson Pens at around lunch.

And...

 

And they say: "never meet your heros".  The pen on display was a little scratchy and kept hard starting as I wrote a line, reflected, wrote again, reflected again.  Sbrebrown's video kept playing in my head. Ok, what about the Cross Concord?  Wooo, it's nicer, but is it "$850 USD nicer"?!?.  I had to step away and think about this for a minute.

 

And that's when the call came:

" Dear! Remember that ultrasound you skipped out on so you can make love to your stupid pens?!? Well the doctor thinks something is wrong and I'm in the hospital and they're thinking of doing an emergency C section! Get back here NOW!"

 

What?  But... I drove all this way... and the border crossing... they're never going to believe me that I drove all this way and back in one day with nothing to show for it.  Quick. What can I buy that will make it all worth it? That's a nice  Tagayasan, but... I need to research more. Dialog 3? Sailor 1911?  No. These are all impulse buys. Think. Think!  Ahhh... How about a fine nib unit for my vanishing point, since the medium is too broad. You only have a gold coloured one in stock? Good enough. 

 

A mix of "sporty" but cautious drive back to the border. "Really? You drove to Chicago and back in one day, for this? Oh, your son? You're crazy! Good luck to your wife!"

 

*Fast forward the video two weeks* C-section.  Beautiful baby boy.

 

*Fast forward the video five-ish months*

Cult Pens around the world sale: Tagayasan.

 

*Fast forward the video five-ish months*

Who is this Monty Winnfield guy that keeps showing up? Woooo, SeaGull nib.

 

*Fast forward the video*

"Double back hand spring... for the gold!!!"

 

*Fast forward the video*

Crickets... Hello?... Crickets

 

Russell Crowe: "Are you not entertained!?!"

I feel so sad for your "dead" pens, but I absolutely love your narration, I enjoyed every bit  you should write blogs and books hahaha.

 

Regarding your Monty Winnfield nib, how does it perform? and regarding the sailor nib , it’s so sad that it skips, do you think it’s because it’s on display and someone would have messed it up or it was ink starved ?

 

[JosephKing]

22 hours ago, Bo Bo Olson said:

Love my boring life.

If the uneventfulness in your life is reflective of your self control, then I applaud your strength, good sir.  And again, I'm glad my stories help you appreciate your life.
 

18 hours ago, inkstainedruth said:

A few years ago I went to an educational conference in Toronto.  The hotel was at the airport, but I left Pittsburgh early enough in the day (or so I thought) to make a side trip into the city itself.  Except that I hit major construction on this side of the border, trying to get to the Peace Bridge.  Then, of course hit Friday afternoon rush hour traffic all the way from Hamilton into Toronto.  My aim was to go to poke around IIRC Wonder Pens for a bit.  But had trouble finding parking AND finding the store because the place was in the basement of the building and around the side of the building (fortunately they had one of those sidewalk signs).  Had a lovely time, bought a bottle of Noodler's Blue Upon the Plains of Abraham (yeah, buying an American-made ink in Canada ) and a box of very silly paperclips bent to look like cats.  Then of course hit MORE rush hour traffic on the way back out to the airport to get to the conference.

On Sunday?  Drove around randomly trying to find someplace to grab food out in the boonies, then got stuck in another traffic jam at the border trying to get back onto the Peace Bridge.  And when I got to US Customs?  Got asked if I had anything to declare, and told them "I bought a bottle of ink...."  The US Customs person was NOT impressed.... 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

You drove from the airport to the east side of downtown Toronto in rush hour traffic after driving all the way from Pittsburgh... for a bottle of Noodlers?

That is so AWESOME!!!  Thank you for this story, Ruth; it gives me a warm feeling to know I'm not alone in my pensanity. (Maybe there should be a thread for more of these)
 

11 hours ago, The-Thinker said:

I feel so sad for your "dead" pens, but I absolutely love your narration, I enjoyed every bit  you should write blogs and books hahaha.

 

Regarding your Monty Winnfield nib, how does it perform? and regarding the sailor nib , it’s so sad that it skips, do you think it’s because it’s on display and someone would have messed it up or it was ink starved ?

 

Thank you for the complement, Thinker; I am humbled.

Unfortunately, the Monty Winnfield nib is one of my RIP stories.  Actually, I guess I should technically call it a phantom birth; I thought there was a baby seagull nib growing "in ma belly", but it turns out I was just fat and the father was shooting blanks.  (*shudder* that analogy came out more disgusting than I expected)

With respect to the Concord, it is quite possible that it was isolated to that particular pen.  I've read a couple of good comments/reviews from others (including from A Smug Dill), but then there was the contrasting aforementioned video and my mediocre experience... and it left me feeling like it was a 50/50 gamble that the pen I got would be better.  In that moment, I wasn't resolved enough to roll the dice given the $600+ they were asking.  Maybe I'll take a chance some day in the future.

[inkstainedruth]

Well, it wasn't so much for the ink, but just to be able to go see what the store carried.  The ink was a bonus (I considered the black Noodler's ink that was the Canadian exclusive as well, but in consultation with the guy working in the store decided that it didn't have any special properties that made it more than just another black ink).  And actually it was the other direction -- I drove from Hamilton to the store, and then from there to the airport to the conference.  So basically, Friday evening rush hour TWICE.... 

Oh, and I will also have to remember that term you used, JosephKing -- "pensanity" is AWESOME!

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[InesF]

WOW, so many sad stories here.

What is yours, @The-Thinker?

 

Mine is about a Waterman Carene. Came home from shopping, opened the cap, ready to fill it and before dipping it into the bottle it slipped out of my hand ... nib down, nib exitus.

Ordered a new nib online, 2 weeks later: filled it successfully (!), set the pen aside to close the ink bottle, pen rolled from the desk ... nib2 down, nib2 exitus.

I bought a 3rd nib and keep this one fountain pen in an open box whenever I put it out of my hand. Good friend now for almost 2 years and one of my most loved nibs.

[Sinistral1]

I hired someone to clean my apartment and they threw away my pen wrap which contained my entire Waterman Gentleman collection, approximately $3,000 in value.  I have been able to practice radical acceptance but I do miss all those beautiful pens.

[JulieParadise]

7 minutes ago, Sinistral1 said:

I hired someone to clean my apartment and they threw away my pen wrap which contained my entire Waterman Gentleman collection, approximately $3,000 in value.  I have been able to practice radical acceptance but I do miss all those beautiful pens.

Oh no, that sounds like a nightmare! Did you manage to get a refund? Not that this would get the actual pens back but it could have enabled you to pay for possible replacements.

[Sinistral1]

No, by the time I realized they were gone the company I hired had taken the bags of garbage to the dump.  Plus, when I called my insurance company (I did have renters insurance) they told me I didn’t have a claim because I had hired the company to do the cleaning.  Like I said, lots of radical acceptance!

[JulieParadise]

1 hour ago, Sinistral1 said:

No, by the time I realized they were gone the company I hired had taken the bags of garbage to the dump.  Plus, when I called my insurance company (I did have renters insurance) they told me I didn’t have a claim because I had hired the company to do the cleaning.  Like I said, lots of radical acceptance!

Hmm ... I understand ... at least you may get karma points & rewards for not getting out a voodoo puppet. 🙃

[pencils+pens]

TWSBI VAC700. A part of my desk fell on the pen while it was upright in a penholder. The cap broke and the nib just became loose. I let it sit there for two or three years. I recently wrote to TWSBI and for $6 and change, thru PayPal, they will send me a new cap and I can order a new nib from their store. I'll be doing that this week. 

 

I also had a red ink that I left in a Noodler's Konrad corrode the nib after sitting in the pen for two or so years. When I tried to take it apart to clean it, I thought I broke the piston. I wrote to Goulet Pen Company for advice. I ordered a new nib. I also viewed some of their videos and Nathan's about the Konrad and it turns out I hadn't broken the piston. The bottom half was just stuck in the barrel. I got that out without creating a bigger mess. I cleaned out the pen or what was left of it and installed the new nib. It writes better now then before. 

[SilverStoneMetallic]

I had an M800 Oblique Broad nib unit go missing from my back pocket after eating at a restaurant following the 2020 Philadelphia pen show. That one really hurt, I'm sure it got tossed in the trash at the end of the night. 

 

Have not lost a pen to date. I hope it stays that way!

[HauntedMyst]

I lost one like this too sheer stupidity. It’s an old retired MonteVerde mini Essenza. The section would always come loose whenever I uncapped it, so I put a dab of Loctite on it. Even though it was the medium strength Loctite, it was enough to fuse the section to the barrel. I tried a little heat with a room heater to loosen it.  I forgot it was sitting there, as a result melting the barrel away from it. Thank goodness I had an extra!

 

[65brix]

This one the dog got to....

I crudely got it back together minus one piece that the dog kept. 

It does write really well, so I still use it, but I'm going to swap the Penol nib over to another Duofold pen that needs one. 

 

I did keep the dog

 

[dipper]

The "nice black fountain-pen" that I never saw:

 

I always used fountain pens at school, from my saved-up pocket money or birthday presents.

But I never saw my father using anything better than a ballpoint.

Until one day he told me, "I did own one nice black fountain-pen. But one day I flew my Harvard upside-down with the canopy open, and the pen fell out of my shirt top pocket."

 

I never found out what brand that "nice" fountain pen was. It may still be resting where it fell to earth in 1945.

 

Here's your search area...

 

[mizgeorge]

13 minutes ago, dipper said:

The "nice black fountain-pen" that I never saw:

 

I always used fountain pens at school, from my saved-up pocket money or birthday presents.

But I never saw my father using anything better than a ballpoint.

Until one day he told me, "I did own one nice black fountain-pen. But one day I flew my Harvard upside-down with the canopy open, and the pen fell out of my shirt top pocket."

 

I never found out what brand that "nice" fountain pen was. It may still be resting where it fell to earth in 1945.

 

Here's your search area...

 

What a great story!