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Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

richardspens.com

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Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#131

Post by derstander »

TheRealPomax wrote: post #54
Feniks wrote: post #9

As someone who writes with his left hand I hate them with a vengeance. Haven't looked at them since primary school.

That... kind of sounds like you need to relearn how to write. Which sounds silly, but there are 100% good ways and bad ways to write (both right and left handed writers suffer from insane 'who taught you to write' hand positions). Learning how to properly hold your pen helps a lot with not smudging ink even when it's a long drying ink. And not unimportantly, a fountain pen requires writing _without_ any pressure on t…

This is interesting: I'll have to look into relearning how to write.

With regard to the "who taught you to write" hand positions, I wonder if the problem is worse for lefties. My kindergarten teacher actually spent time trying to get me to write with my right hand until my father wrote her a letter clarifying that I was, indeed, left-handed.

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#132

Post by sandGorgon »

I love my Parker Sonnet and Watermans. But I love my rollerball - I see no reason to deal with the mess of a fountain pen, when I get the same ink-like quality with a rollerball.

The best part is that I can replace my Waterman rollerball refills with a significantly cheaper Signo (which gives me indelible, waterproof writing) or the Pentel Energel refills (which is as close to ink as you can possibly get).

http://www.lambdacurry.com/2017/05/cheaper-better-waterman-r...

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#133

Post by ksenzee »

dredmorbius wrote: post #120
nimbius wrote: post #93

I went through a fountain pen phase for about a year and finally gave up on it after a few notable incidents. - going through the airport was hit or miss. Bristol? Stuttgart? things are perfect. interstate travel in the US? id lost two pens to the TSA. My flight to calgary started perfectly, and ended after a half full fountain pen quietly burst in my jacket pocket. not fun. - No one seems to know what these things a…

The fact that fountain pen inks are usually (always?) water-soluble does make them a poor choice for permanent documents which risk being altered. I like my fountain pen, but use a more robust ink for many standard tasks.

There are a wide variety of permanent fountain pen inks available: http://noodlersink.com/noodlers-durable-ink-classification/

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#134

Post by cyberferret »

analog31 wrote: post #121
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #71

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It feels better in my hand than a biro Ballpoints require one to constantly press down to keep the ink flowing. This makes writing tiring. (Fountain pens draw ink with capillary action.)

Maybe a fountain pen would help me with my painful cracked fingers during the winter. My only fear is that my handwriting is so bad that my notebooks would look like something by Ralph Steadman.

It takes practice, and small adjustments to your writing style, but it is possible to get there. My handwriting went to heck after years of using keyboard only, but after a few months of practice, I got it to a stage where I could reasonably expect myself (and other people) to read them. https://twitter.com/dsabar/status/728060728930799616

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#135

Post by Moru »

rukuu001 wrote: post #112
saspiesas wrote: post #68

To all the people who keep asking why we would bother write with a fountain pen, a few reasons I do: People are less likely to walk away or accidentally steal your fountain pen I can write in the exact colour I want I know scribbles or notes are mine without even looking at the writing My colleagues know which pieces of notes are mine without asking My notebooks never wander far I don't feel like I'm constantly killi…

Just want to say I'm so happy to see other fountain-pen users here on HN. There isn't a single other person in my life who uses them.

Every schoolkid in Germany seems to be using them. They even come in the cheap pen cases you can buy at the supermarket.

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#136

Post by desireco42 »

Disolation wrote: post #130
desireco42 wrote: post #108

Earlier quoted context omitted.

See, I have opposite problem, my Vanishing Point is fantastic pen and reliable, but I am worried that someone might swipe it, because it is so beautiful and it is not cheap.

I had my Vanishing Point Decimo stolen by a cleaner in my university. I'm still upset about that.

Thank you for proving my point. And I am really sorry you lost your pen.

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#137

Post by cm2187 »

saspiesas wrote: post #68

To all the people who keep asking why we would bother write with a fountain pen, a few reasons I do: People are less likely to walk away or accidentally steal your fountain pen I can write in the exact colour I want I know scribbles or notes are mine without even looking at the writing My colleagues know which pieces of notes are mine without asking My notebooks never wander far I don't feel like I'm constantly killi…

Depending on the pen, it is also smoother when writing, offering less resistance. Useful to sketch diagrams quickly with smooth lines or have a nice regular writing.

Con: I have been using Lamy fountain pens for a while, and Lamy owners can recognise each other's in the firm to the traces of black ink on their fingers.

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#138

Post by bayindirh »

cm2187 wrote: post #137
saspiesas wrote: post #68

To all the people who keep asking why we would bother write with a fountain pen, a few reasons I do: People are less likely to walk away or accidentally steal your fountain pen I can write in the exact colour I want I know scribbles or notes are mine without even looking at the writing My colleagues know which pieces of notes are mine without asking My notebooks never wander far I don't feel like I'm constantly killi…

Depending on the pen, it is also smoother when writing, offering less resistance. Useful to sketch diagrams quickly with smooth lines or have a nice regular writing. Con: I have been using Lamy fountain pens for a while, and Lamy owners can recognise each other's in the firm to the traces of black ink on their fingers.

As a regular Lamy user, none of my Lamys tried to mark my hand to claim me as its servant. Why your pen does it? Burping? Leak?

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#139

Post by bayindirh »

olympus wrote: post #116
nimbius wrote: post #93

I went through a fountain pen phase for about a year and finally gave up on it after a few notable incidents. - going through the airport was hit or miss. Bristol? Stuttgart? things are perfect. interstate travel in the US? id lost two pens to the TSA. My flight to calgary started perfectly, and ended after a half full fountain pen quietly burst in my jacket pocket. not fun. - No one seems to know what these things a…

In the US most notaries will not allow you to sign official documents with a fountain pen- it seems to be part of the training, and many realtors and attorneys are notaries for convenience. As great as they are to write with, many FP inks cannot withstand tampering, so they don't allow any FP inks because it's hard to track which of the thousands of brand/color combos are safe. A cheapo ballpoint is better for offici…

I have a bottle of cellulose reactive fountain pen ink for such purposes. Also, there are mass produced tamper-proof inks. So, in fact it's possible to sign documents with an FP.

On the other side of the spectrum is "washable" blues which are waiting to disappear in a small drop of water.

Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)

#140

Post by dismal2 »

desireco42 wrote: post #108
saspiesas wrote: post #68

To all the people who keep asking why we would bother write with a fountain pen, a few reasons I do: People are less likely to walk away or accidentally steal your fountain pen I can write in the exact colour I want I know scribbles or notes are mine without even looking at the writing My colleagues know which pieces of notes are mine without asking My notebooks never wander far I don't feel like I'm constantly killi…

See, I have opposite problem, my Vanishing Point is fantastic pen and reliable, but I am worried that someone might swipe it, because it is so beautiful and it is not cheap.

For me one of the nice things about a fancy fountain pen is that you generally remembering to keep it with you, heh
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