- Joined
- Dec 25, 1998
- Messages
- 7,394
I am considering a fountain pen. What are the pros and cons?
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Anyone use a fountain pen?
- Thread starter shootist16
- Start date
For me it breaks down like this:
Pros:
- Fountain pens on average look nicer than other writing instruments. Especially the nibs, made of/with gold or other precious metals, are far more beautiful than the tip of a replaceable ballpoint or rollerball cartridge.
- Fountain pens are easier to write with, at least for me. I have to take a lot of notes during university lectures. For one semester I switched to a ballpoint, then to a rollerball, but I found both to be too much of a strain on my hand compared to a fountain pen.
- You can mix your own ink shade. (Ok, minor point, but I like it.
)
Cons:
- Using ink can be messy, both when refilling (depends on the mechanism) and when writing due to smearing. And you have to refill more often than you have to replace a cartridge.
- Most fountain pens are rather fragile, and not particularly "tactical".
- The nicer fountain pens are, in my opinion, extremely overpriced, considering they are usually made of very little metal and a lot of glorified plastic. I got an Omas Paragon very cheap here on German Ebay, because "Omas" also happens to mean "Granny´s" in German, and this makes these fountain pens hard to find among hundreds of "granny´s cupboard" and "granny´s stockings". I would never have paid retail for such a thing, you could almost get a custom folder for that price.
Kristofer
Pros:
- Fountain pens on average look nicer than other writing instruments. Especially the nibs, made of/with gold or other precious metals, are far more beautiful than the tip of a replaceable ballpoint or rollerball cartridge.
- Fountain pens are easier to write with, at least for me. I have to take a lot of notes during university lectures. For one semester I switched to a ballpoint, then to a rollerball, but I found both to be too much of a strain on my hand compared to a fountain pen.
- You can mix your own ink shade. (Ok, minor point, but I like it.
)Cons:
- Using ink can be messy, both when refilling (depends on the mechanism) and when writing due to smearing. And you have to refill more often than you have to replace a cartridge.
- Most fountain pens are rather fragile, and not particularly "tactical".
- The nicer fountain pens are, in my opinion, extremely overpriced, considering they are usually made of very little metal and a lot of glorified plastic. I got an Omas Paragon very cheap here on German Ebay, because "Omas" also happens to mean "Granny´s" in German, and this makes these fountain pens hard to find among hundreds of "granny´s cupboard" and "granny´s stockings". I would never have paid retail for such a thing, you could almost get a custom folder for that price.
Kristofer
You may want to to check a couple of other threads on this:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=252581&highlight=fountain+pen
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=253597&highlight=fountain+pen
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=252581&highlight=fountain+pen
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=253597&highlight=fountain+pen
When I was in high school fountain pens were de rigueur. Schaffer had just come out with the "cartridge" fountain pen and if you didn't have one, you were scum.
I still have a Parker that the church group gave me when I joined the Navy, and I bought a Pentel when I was in Japan in the 60's. The bladder in the Pentel is shot, but the Parker still writes.
The only bad things about fountain pens are that they are too delicate for multiple copies (sign here, sir. Bear down, there are four copies) and if you don't use them every day you'll find yourself running dry at the most inopportune time.
Still, I do think that a letter written with a fountain pen on quality paper is a thing of beauty, even when your penmanship is...er...not a thing of beauty.
I like 'em.
I still have a Parker that the church group gave me when I joined the Navy, and I bought a Pentel when I was in Japan in the 60's. The bladder in the Pentel is shot, but the Parker still writes.
The only bad things about fountain pens are that they are too delicate for multiple copies (sign here, sir. Bear down, there are four copies) and if you don't use them every day you'll find yourself running dry at the most inopportune time.
Still, I do think that a letter written with a fountain pen on quality paper is a thing of beauty, even when your penmanship is...er...not a thing of beauty.
I like 'em.
- Joined
- Oct 13, 1999
- Messages
- 567
Yes, I carry & use them regularly.
Pros:
- can be far smoother than ballpoints or even rollerballs
- have greater control over line variation
- can be beautiful, functional, high-tech, or even "tactical" (check out the Rotring 600...not my taste, approaches a kubotan in design!)
Cons:
- unless you are careful, air travel may result in an ink disaster. However, you can work around this by filling the converter all the way, or simply putting in a new cartridge when you land.
in response to the other "cons":
- if you are going to be writing on multiple copies, just get a pen with a very stiff nib (e.g., my Waterman Laureate). Most modern pen nibs aren't as flexible as vintage pens.
- nibs drying up: depends on the pen. My Pelikan 250 writes immediately, without any skipping, after a week of non-use.
- expense: again, depends on the pen. Many users claim that the inexpensive (under $100) fountain pens are better writers.
Pros:
- can be far smoother than ballpoints or even rollerballs
- have greater control over line variation
- can be beautiful, functional, high-tech, or even "tactical" (check out the Rotring 600...not my taste, approaches a kubotan in design!)
Cons:
- unless you are careful, air travel may result in an ink disaster. However, you can work around this by filling the converter all the way, or simply putting in a new cartridge when you land.
in response to the other "cons":
- if you are going to be writing on multiple copies, just get a pen with a very stiff nib (e.g., my Waterman Laureate). Most modern pen nibs aren't as flexible as vintage pens.
- nibs drying up: depends on the pen. My Pelikan 250 writes immediately, without any skipping, after a week of non-use.
- expense: again, depends on the pen. Many users claim that the inexpensive (under $100) fountain pens are better writers.
- Joined
- Jun 3, 2002
- Messages
- 42
shootist16,
I have used a fountain pen for years. They are kind of fragile, had a good Mont Blanc, point hit the concrete a few times, and wouldn't write anymore. Had a Sheaffer for 8 or 9 years, similar demise. I always carry a ball point or space pen for backup/carbons, and for others to borrow to write with or sign things.
I have become partial to the cartridge type fountain pens. Currently using a Parker Frontier which is pretty inexpensive, and writes pretty well. I think I want to find one of those Pelicans and try it out.
I am left handed and find that fountain pens don't smear like ballpoints sometimes will. I have had very so-so mixed luck with roller balls; when they write well, they are great, but the re-fills sometimes seem inconsistent.
I have loved the Spyderco Wegner, and have a WCT O & W watch, so I think in some things we have similar tastes.
People ask me to write cards, etc. because they think my writing is "so nice". It is just the pen, if I use a BIC or Pilot ballpoint pen, my writing is just as ugly as the next guys. Get a fountain pen and see if you like it. If you don't, then it will make a fine gift for someone in the future.
Alan Forbes
I have used a fountain pen for years. They are kind of fragile, had a good Mont Blanc, point hit the concrete a few times, and wouldn't write anymore. Had a Sheaffer for 8 or 9 years, similar demise. I always carry a ball point or space pen for backup/carbons, and for others to borrow to write with or sign things.
I have become partial to the cartridge type fountain pens. Currently using a Parker Frontier which is pretty inexpensive, and writes pretty well. I think I want to find one of those Pelicans and try it out.
I am left handed and find that fountain pens don't smear like ballpoints sometimes will. I have had very so-so mixed luck with roller balls; when they write well, they are great, but the re-fills sometimes seem inconsistent.
I have loved the Spyderco Wegner, and have a WCT O & W watch, so I think in some things we have similar tastes.
People ask me to write cards, etc. because they think my writing is "so nice". It is just the pen, if I use a BIC or Pilot ballpoint pen, my writing is just as ugly as the next guys. Get a fountain pen and see if you like it. If you don't, then it will make a fine gift for someone in the future.
Alan Forbes
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2000
- Messages
- 4,453
In the old days, the fountain pen was compulsory in school because legibility of handwriting was a hallmark of a learned person.
Those who had "fowl's scratches" for handwriting would have paid dearly when they did not use the fountain pen to its best advantage. With the fountain pen, it would show whether you had taken pains to write in an elegant manner befitting your status as a man of letters.
Alas, those days have past. People nowadays are so used to disposable stuff. They just drop them into dustbins when the ink is gone.
However, there are still some people who continue to hang on to their fountain pens for sentimental reasons. There are some very well designed and very expensive fountain pens.
Those who collect them and can afford them, the bottle of ink is not an issue. Some important documents which need to be signed still require a fountain pen, if I am not mistaken.
If you are into calligraphy with its various pen nips and styles of writing, you may appreciate a bit more about fountain pens.
Those who had "fowl's scratches" for handwriting would have paid dearly when they did not use the fountain pen to its best advantage. With the fountain pen, it would show whether you had taken pains to write in an elegant manner befitting your status as a man of letters.
Alas, those days have past. People nowadays are so used to disposable stuff. They just drop them into dustbins when the ink is gone.
However, there are still some people who continue to hang on to their fountain pens for sentimental reasons. There are some very well designed and very expensive fountain pens.
Those who collect them and can afford them, the bottle of ink is not an issue. Some important documents which need to be signed still require a fountain pen, if I am not mistaken.
If you are into calligraphy with its various pen nips and styles of writing, you may appreciate a bit more about fountain pens.
I suggest you get yourself a Parker Frontier or an Aurora Style, and try it out, those are quite good, not expensive, and even if later on you get a higher priced one, you´ll still enjoy using it, if you decide it´s not for you, give it away as a present.