First Visit to NYC's Fountain Pen Hospital (pix)

July 16, 2024

July in New York City can be a bit of a trial. It is hot, and it is humid. But mornings can be cool and quiet, before things get going. And even after the hustle and bustle have begun in earnest, there is a bit of an oasis for fans of fountain pens who are looking for a hands-on comparison of makes and models: The Fountain Pen Hospital at 10 Warren Street. It is downtown, a stone’s throw from the Brooklyn Bridge and the courts (and the last stop on the No. 6 train). The street it's on has been described as “narrow” – I’ll quibble with that. But it is a side street and the store’s façade is partially obscured by the scaffolding that pops up - mushroom like – in NYC whenever building owners are trying to repair cornices, flashing or the pointing of a building.

I travel down to the City about once a month and since Vermont doesn’t really have a fountain pen store, I was sure that New York City would afford an opportunity to actually get my hands on some brands of pen that sound great (ahem) on paper. I am relatively new to this world and many of the pens I own are modestly priced. At $50 or less, I am not wagering the kids’ lunch money on whether a pen will be perfect. And in fact, some of the inexpensive Chinese pens I have bought recently (and the more adventurous-feeling forays into the Indian fountain pen world) have all panned out well. But spending hundreds of dollars on something fancy without getting to see how it writes? Feels like a bit of a lark . . .

[Aside: I actually just this week encountered my first Chinese “dud” – a snazzy purple Jinhao x450 that has been “factory” fitted with a G-nib. No muss! No fuss! No bending nibs over drill bits! But also: no writing. Ink will just not flow to the tip, but that’s another story. Looks great. It just won’t write.]

There is some part of me that feels like buying a pen over the Internet is about like buying shoes that way. Maybe they’ll fit ya. More likely they won’t. As for a pen, you won’t know the haptics of the thing until you have it in your inky paw and are trying to tease something out of it on paper. The Fountain Pen Hospital seemed like the perfect fix for my lack of practical experience. In one place: Pens, experienced staff, and A:B comparisons of various nibs, pen materials, price points galore . . . Kind of like being locked up in a toy store. Camera guys/gals will know the feeling from visiting B&H Photo. Fressers will know the feeling from visiting Zabar’s Delicatessen. But for pen enthusiasts (penthusiasts? forgive me. . .I can’t be the first) this has to be the place. If you want to risk hundreds of dollars on a new pen, can a rave review or even enthusiastic user experiences on FPN really replace being able to hold it and draw (or write) with it? I think not.

I was actually a little alarmed that there weren’t more pen stores in New York. How is it possible that a city of almost 8 million souls can only support one brick and mortar store staffed by knowledgeable, helpful folks? The answer has to be: the Internet has killed them all, right along with the rest of main street. But being able to purchase a pen from [insert your favorite online outlet here] doesn’t get you the advice, the knowledge and the range of knowledge that I found at the Fountain Pen Hospital. They have some historical photos up from 1949 when the store first started out. Back then fountain pen were ubiquitous in NYC - not necessarily so today.

When you enter the Fountain Pen Hospital, you step into a comfortable, well-lit space, with display cases against the walls and at angles across the display floor. There is a shelf of inks (but not an overwhelming number) towards the back on the left and a very helpful sample book organized by brand where you can see how the dread Baystate Blue compares with infamous Quink by flipping between tabs. Pads of Rhodia paper and a bottle of one of the Noodler’s blacks sit on the counters so that you can feel what a particular pen feels like to write with.

My practical point of comparison was a visit to the Montblanc store on Madison Avenue over the weekend. Nice enough folks. You get plenty of attention (they locked the door behind me and wouldn’t let anyone in until there was a salesperson who could give the next customer one-on-one attention – all a little alarming). But at the end of the day, that Montblanc store really seemed (to me at least) geared towards selling you the brand. The pens are a Luxe product and they are as interested in selling you cuff-links as they are in selling you something to write with. The pens in various nib weights sit in a large lazy-Susan apparatus in angled executive-style pen holders so that a potential customer can sit and try out the various nib sizes. No judgment. It was an interesting exercise. Montblanc pens with Montblanc ink are going to give you a very specific experience – and if you don’t already know those nibs can really lay down the product on the page. Wet like a Monsoon. The pens, though, take up less than 10% of the display space, with the rest of the store given over to clothing and accessories. In fact, I have one of their pens from my dim and distant past, although the new price point is kind of nose-bleed territory for me. Some brands are like that. Leica comes to mind from the camera world. Synonymous with luxury, but consciously not geared towards the average joe.

As for the Fountain Pen Hospital, it might have been enough to enter the well-stocked showroom and simply be able to gawk. But I was approached by Jimmy Hutchinson, one of the knowledgeable staff there. I explained my dilemma – my lack of hands-on opportunity -- he discreetly asked about price points and we were off to the races. Want to try a Japanese nib? Here’s a case of Pilots. Want to try something Italian? Something German? A pen made of a metal tube? One in turned acrylic? He was infinitely patient with my oohs and ahhs as the pens started organizing themselves into “maybes” and “probably nots.” I went in thinking that the only thing that mattered to me was the feel of the pen on paper. But in this educational hour I also held pens that felt great on the page, but whose styling wasn’t quite to my taste. And that is something too. Perhaps the flip side of knowing what you like is discovering what you don’t. You also get to see the relative size of the offerings instead of relying on the Internet’s less-than-helpful photos for a sense of heft and context.

There was another aspect to the service that I have to mention. Any newbie approaches a field of interest only too aware of his (my) ignorance of the basic subject matter. They also took care of that, were informative and welcoming. I felt like I suddenly had conversational access to a library of practical and insider information about this corner of the world. They don’t rush the customer or pressure in any way. I think Jimmy could tell that my fevered brain was going to take care of the “selling” part. It was the kind of retail experience that almost guarantees a return trip. Jimmy produced a couple of different types of paper too, so I could get a feel for each of the pens on more than one writing surface.

I know you are thinking at this point, “whatjaget?” In the end, I bought a Sailor 1911, a Platinum in black with a Rhodium nib, and a Ritma medium nibbed pen. This last was a brand that it never would have occurred to me to try – I had never heard of it, and Amazon’s algorithm was clearly never going to recommend it in a way that would have induced me to purcahse. But the great thing about an experienced and attentive salesperson is that he can say, “If you liked X, you should really try Y.” Like a good librarian. All those new goodies are being shipped up to Vermont along with some Sailor Ayame ink (and various black inks not currently on the shelves in a Vermont stationery store).

All in all it was a deeply enjoyable experience. Heartily recommended!

Ben

p.s. perhaps it goes without saying, but I have no connection to the Fountain Pen Store other than as a satisfied customer. Great way to spend a morning.

July 16, 2024

Thank you for your this great review of the Pen Hospital. I have heard about it, but was never there. Sounds like a wonderful experience. Very good to hear that. Enjoy your new pens!

July 16, 2024

Good to know that they're still in business. I had heard that the former owners wanted to retire and sell the business, and there was speculation as to whether they were going to move to a different location (further north and west from their current location) or become online-only.

For a number of years, while visiting family in Midtown over the holidays, I would make an annual pilgrimage down there. Never actually bought any pens, but have bought ink numerous times, and a small Pelikan pen stand one year, and a couple of books (and the last few times then take the subway up a couple of blocks and walk over to the Lamy SoHo store as well. And think one time I may have bought a spare Esterbrook nib unit as well.

Hoping next winter I might also have time to go out to Brooklyn to Yoseka Stationery at some point (which is a much longer ride each way on the subway I think).
As for the relatively small number of pen stores in NYC? You have to remember that real estate (especially in Manhattan) is VERY expensive (heck, prices in the greater NYC area are super high in general -- a number of years ago my sister-in-law and her husband took us to a Middle Eastern place on the West Side for dinner. Three entree for 4 people -- no meat (they are both vegetarians) in any of the dishes and I think just water and tea to drink. And my husband was just completely freaking out over the price (he'd gotten spoiled by all the years he'd lived in the Pittsburgh area -- since college, except for the four years he worked in a place in the Boston area (which is also VERY expensive in comparison).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

August 1, 2024

Just got back from my visit to the store. Very impressive as far as pen stores go but I was still a little disappointed they only had a couple used or vintage pens. I was hoping a store with this size and reputation would have a wider range of products but basically everything was new (and they did have a decent stock of new pens).

I chatted with the same salesman as the OP. He was very friendly and knowledgeable, having worked at the store for 28 years. He confirmed the store was recently sold and the former owners took their collection of used and vintage pens with them. That explains that why the store didn’t have anything older. New owners are also deeply engrained in the pen community so I suspect the store will be around a long time.

Definitely worth the visit but my top pen store is probably Dromgooles in Houston.