As someone who writes with his left hand I hate them with a vengeance. Haven't looked at them since primary school.
I'm left-handed and I have no problems when using a fountain ink pen... if I write upside down.
Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
151–160 of 233 posts
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#152I 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…
J. herbin makes a rollerball that you can use with FP cartridges. Standard international cartridges/converters.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#153Earlier quoted context omitted.
That page seems better anyhow, so ok.
... It's now pointing at http://richardspens.com/?page=ref/care/inks.htm . "That page" is http://richardspens.com/ref/care/inks.htm with no ?page= in it. The current one is just a bunch of frame cruft around the original nag page.
Ah ok, I've changed the link to that. For me the one just redirects to the other, though.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#154As 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…
The biggest problem with left-handed fountain pen writing is that unless you adopt some horribly bent-over position you’re pushing the nib into the paper instead of dragging it across. That damages pens and leads to horribly scratchy writing, even if you can get over the constant smudging. It’s OK though, there are plenty of other writing implements - personally I chose the keyboard.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#155To 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.
I've been using only Lamy pens for the last couple of years, my kids too. We have about 10 of them, and we usually use the cheapest ones. The ink is also made by Lamy. And we have no such problems.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#156I 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…
> My flight to calgary started perfectly, and ended after a half full fountain pen quietly burst in my jacket pocket. not fun. This isn‘t too uncommon, I have been told. Years ago, when I worked in aerospace, I had a colleague who always carried his precious fountain pen in a small black box. When I asked him about it, he told me that the box was only partially to protect his pen but also to protect his bag and the t…
I have a simple zippered pouch that I carry my pens in. It's been on at least 2 dozen individual flights including some to/from Europe. I've never had a problem with TSA in the US. And some times I've traveled with 5-6 inked up pens before.
The most important thing is to travel with them nib up because the change in pressure can force air out if they aren't full. I used to bag them in mini-sandwich bags too to be safe but found that to not be necessary.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#157To 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…
I like all of them, but I always had problems with fountain pens: -Ink not coming out for the few centimetres of writing. -Ink not coming out if I leave the pen for a few days without using. -Having to refill if left unused for even longer. -Leaky tips, dirtying the hand. -Tips easily broken in a drop. Somehow I always don't get the instant ink, no matter what pen or ink I use. This is the number one reason I kept gi…
If you're leaving the tip open, i.e. the cap is not on for more than some seconds while you aren't writing, then the ink in the feed may dry. Another possible reason of these problems is low quality ink, nib and/or pen, and yet another is fibres of paper sticking into the cut in the middle of the nib.
edit: and dirtying your hands might be because you're a messy pen user. I definitely am, no matter if I use a ballpoint, a rollerball, a fountain pen, a marker, &c, I get my hands dirty. Personally I'm fine with that.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#158Earlier quoted context omitted.
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/
Thanks. I saw a few others mentioned elsewhere in this thread. TIL!
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#159To 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…
I like all of them, but I always had problems with fountain pens: -Ink not coming out for the few centimetres of writing. -Ink not coming out if I leave the pen for a few days without using. -Having to refill if left unused for even longer. -Leaky tips, dirtying the hand. -Tips easily broken in a drop. Somehow I always don't get the instant ink, no matter what pen or ink I use. This is the number one reason I kept gi…
Pilot makes the Pilot Petit 1 which is a fountain pen that is tiny, although posted it actually has a nice size.
I have had a set of three for about 2 months and they never seem to be dry, unlike some other fountain pens I have used.
The only caution I can give is that their blue-black ink seems to flow very poorly.
They can be gotten on ebay with refills for a reasonable price.
Re: Fountain pen inks: the good, the bad, and the ugly (2011)
#160Earlier quoted context omitted.
I've had good luck with De Atramentis Document Ink. Dries very quickly, won't smear when I set my beer can^W^W coffee cup down on it. I have been using it for years, and it hasn't screwed up my pen. I don't know if it is as safe on fine pens as the article would want, but since I use it in a $30 Lamy, I'm not too concerned.
Diamine Registrar Ink is another option. It writes blue then it fades to gray. Some Noodler's (US) inks are resistant to a wide range of solvents as well.
Rohrer und Klingner Dokumentus ink works great too, it's certified to withstand water, organic solvents, bleach, acids and the lot. It bonds with cellulose, but it won't stick to your fingers!