Scratchy nibs and wear?

[tommym]

As much as I love a nice wet smooth writing broad stub nib, I also like EF nibs that are on the dry and scratchy side of things too. My question is, does a scratchy nib wear out faster than a wet nib. Or does it wear out at all? I'm not sure if my JoWo and Bock steel nibs have any tipping at all. 

 

Thanks,

 

Tommy

[mab52]

I would tune a scratchy nib. You might want it to be a bit toothy for control but that's not necessarily scratchy. JoWo and Bock have tipping. It's usually your pressure that makes a nib feel scratchy. 

I would not hold my breath expecting a scratchy nib to either wear in or wear out. 

[tommym]

Thanks for the reply. I'll have a closer look at those nibs under the magnifier. I have to admit that I do have a bit of a heavy hand when writing. 

 

Tommy

[es9]

On 4/6/2023 at 5:58 PM, mab52 said:

It's usually your pressure that makes a nib feel scratchy. 

I respectfully disagree with this. If you’re really pressing hard with an XF nib, then sure. But I write with decently firm pressure and do not have problems with well-tuned steel Bock or JoWo nibs. In fact, my personal experience has been just the opposite — while they may not be the most exotic nibs around, I find steel nibs often perform better with firm pressure than gold ones. 
 

I guess maybe some of it comes down to what is meant by “scratchy.” For me, pressure can make a nib drag and not write as smoothly. But “scratchiness” is usually because something is misaligned or otherwise out of whack. 

 

On 4/6/2023 at 5:58 PM, mab52 said:

I would not hold my breath expecting a scratchy nib to either wear in or wear out. 

I very much agree with this, especially for tipping on a modern nib. For an overview of basic tuning/smoothening, take a look here. 

[Mangrove Jack]

EF nibs need not necessarily be dry. Two of my Pelikan M200 pens have EF nibs that are 'wet'. 

"Tooth" and "scratchy" are two different things; the former desirable to some and the latter most undesirable. A reason for a nib being scratchy could perhaps be due to the tines of the nib being misaligned.