Jump to content

Ratnamson "Kalam"

hari317

By hari317
in Fountain Pen Reviews

 Share

Recommended Posts

hari317 Museum Piece

hari317

Posted
Posted

I have to thank FPN for leading me to these desk pens. A recently joined member from India posted about the Ratnamson Ebonite desk pens known as Kalam(which is the Urdu/Hindi word for pen).

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii197/hari317/Ratnam%20Desk/P1000360.jpg

I did not know that Ratnamson made deskpens, I immediately called Sri KV Ramanamurthy and placed my order for the same. The deskpens are not their regular product as there is very little demand for them.

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii197/hari317/Ratnam%20Desk/P1000354.jpg

 

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii197/hari317/Ratnam%20Desk/P1000355.jpg

I was told that these pens were only made when a newly appointed judge of the Indian Judiciary assumes charge and a set of three pens is ordered. One pen each for Red, Green and Black inks. Mr. Ramanamurthy makes only the desk pens and I had to find my own desk holder. After some searching in the shops of Mumbai, I was lucky to find a Wislon desk set base for just Rs60/-. Again this was the last piece the shop had with no intention to procure more due to it being slow moving. The deskpens come in ED version or dip pen version, I chose the ED option.

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii197/hari317/Ratnam%20Desk/P1000356.jpg

 

http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/ii197/hari317/Ratnam%20Desk/P1000358.jpg

The pens are around 6 inch in length and have a VERY comfortable grip due to the ample and generously tapering section. They hold approx 3 ml of ink. My pens came fitted with IP Steel nibs, optionally Gold nibbed versions can also be made.

 

As an interesting aside, whenever a judge pronounces the death sentence, the pen used to sign it is specially ordered for the act, the pen nib is broken on the judgement and the pen is totally destroyed afterwards!

 

In case you wish to write to me, pls use ONLY email by clicking here. I do not check PMs. Thank you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • Replies 11
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • hari317

    3

  • goodguy

    1

  • pankajwillis

    1

  • Highbinder

    1

Popular Days

Top Posters In This Topic

Popular Days

goodguy Donor Pen

goodguy

Posted
Posted

What an interesting set of pens.

 

A spooky ritual about the death sentence,thank god here in Canada we dont have that (but thats a different matter).

 

Thank you for the unique review.

Respect to all

Link to comment
Share on other sites
shrujaya Rare

shrujaya

Posted
Posted

Hari...I am going to pick up my phone and call u know who tomorrow...the twins look good and u were fortunate to find that pen holder...good going maan...I had heard about that ritual...what did the poor pen do? why break an innocent pen for the wrong doings of human beings...? and such nice pens too...

 

Regards...

 

Jai

Writing and posting about fountain pens exclusively on www.jaisiri.blogspot.in ... recent posts on Hema Pens (Hyderabad), Haul at Majestic (Bangalore), and Asoka Pens (Tenali)...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
hari317 Museum Piece

hari317

Posted
  • Author
Posted
...but I have never ever heard of any one receiving capital punishment in India.

 

Definitely off topic, but As the wiki article says it is rare (but not non-existant), capital punishment is meted out in the rarest of rare cases. e.g. the Dhananjoy Chowdhury case in 2004 which was fairly recent.

 

Best,

Hari

 

 

In case you wish to write to me, pls use ONLY email by clicking here. I do not check PMs. Thank you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Abhik Extremely Rare

Abhik

Posted
Posted

Dear Hari!

A nice review of an unusual pen-sets! My question is if Ratnamson does not provide pen holders for desk sets, who used to make those flute and bases for their pens?

Shape of those pens are really intriguing!

Thanks for sharing!

Abhik.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
hari317 Museum Piece

hari317

Posted
  • Author
Posted
My question is if Ratnamson does not provide pen holders for desk sets, who used to make those flute and bases for their pens?

 

Thanks Abhik! The desk pens are a special order item. I think they may have made some base sets in the past but are currently unable to supply so basically you have to find your own. The pens are 7/16 inch size (dia) so the pens fit the Wilson units like a hand in glove. For more information you can always email Dr. Ramanamurthy: ratnamballpen@yahoo.co.in

 

Best,

Hari

 

 

In case you wish to write to me, pls use ONLY email by clicking here. I do not check PMs. Thank you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 1 year later...
barbarossa New

barbarossa

Posted
Posted

Death penalty is in the rarest of the rare cases in India. The highest and most serious punishment is life imprisonment. Death penalty is given out for very harsh crimes like terrorist strikes. Nice information about the pen though!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
lovemy51 Antique

lovemy51

Posted
Posted

hmmm, i missed this review back when...

 

... this is one of the nicest, minimalist pens i've ever seen! thanx for showing it, Hari.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Highbinder Vintage

Highbinder

Posted
Posted

Not to be off topic, but I have never ever heard of any one receiving capital punishment in India. There is a wikipedia article on this:

 

<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_India" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_India</a>

 

Quoting wikipedia as a reliable source is not a good idea.

Platinum 3776 - F, Pilot Decimo - F, TWSBI Vac Mini - 1.1i

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing

  • Most Contributions

    1. amberleadavis
      amberleadavis
      43972
    2. PAKMAN
      PAKMAN
      35652
    3. inkstainedruth
      inkstainedruth
      31610
    4. Ghost Plane
      Ghost Plane
      28220
    5. Bo Bo Olson
      Bo Bo Olson
      27747

  • Upcoming Events

  • Blog Comments

    • Misfit
      On my second trip to Japan in seven months, while the going is good

      By Misfit · Posted

      Oh to have that translucent pink Prera! @migo984 has the Oeste series named after birds. There is a pink one, so I’m assuming Este is the same pen as Oeste.    Excellent haul. I have some Uniball One P pens. Do you like to use them? I like them enough, but don’t use them too much yet.    Do you or your wife use Travelers Notebooks? Seeing you were at Kyoto, I thought of them as there is a store there. 
    • A Smug Dill
      On my second trip to Japan in seven months, while the going is good

      By A Smug Dill · Posted

      It's not nearly so thick that I feel it comprises my fine-grained control, the way I feel about the Cross Peerless 125 or some of the high-end TACCIA Urushi pens with cigar-shaped bodies and 18K gold nibs. Why would you expect me or anyone else to make explicit mention of it, if it isn't a travesty or such a disappointment that an owner of the pen would want to bring it to the attention of his/her peers so that they could “learn from his/her mistake” without paying the price?
    • szlovak
      On my second trip to Japan in seven months, while the going is good

      By szlovak · Posted

      Why nobody says that the section of Tuzu besides triangular shape is quite thick. Honestly it’s the thickest one among my many pens, other thick I own is Noodler’s Ahab. Because of that fat section I feel more control and my handwriting has improved. I can’t say it’s comfortable or uncomfortable, but needs a moment to accommodate. It’s funny because my school years are long over. Besides this pen had horrible F nib. Tines were perfectly aligned but it was so scratchy on left stroke that collecte
    • stylographile
      Bits and bobs to bring with me to in-person meets

      By stylographile · Posted

      Awesome! I'm in the process of preparing my bag for our pen meet this weekend and I literally have none of the items you mention!! I'll see if I can find one or two!
    • inkstainedruth
      My notes and advice on fountain pen cleaning

      By inkstainedruth · Posted

      @asota -- Yeah, I think I have a few rolls in my fridge that are probably 20-30 years old at this point (don't remember now if they are B&W or color film) and don't even really know where to get the film processed, once the drive through kiosks went away....  I just did a quick Google search and (in theory) there was a place the next town over from me -- but got a 404 error message when I tried to click on the link....  Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth 

  • Chatbox

    You don't have permission to chat.
    Load More

  • Files






×
×
  • Create New...