What pens are we carrying today?

[Shangas]

Take it to your local pen-shop and ask them to stick a converter into it.

 

[The Inspector]

Wish I could, but there aren't any pen shops near me. Also that would ruin its originality.

 

[Shangas]

Not really. If it was designed to take cartridges, it was also designed to take a converter.

 

[DeaconKC]

Inspector, welcome. If you have a Hobby Lobby near you, they still stock Shaeffer carts.

 

[John in Covina]

Not really. If it was designed to take cartridges, it was also designed to take a converter.

Many pens that take a cartridge can take a converter but sometimes not. Small pens may not have enough room to take the length of a converter.

There are several different designs of cartridge and the design of the piercing part may be difficult to match for some of the propriatary designs.

Using a converter does not damage the originality of a pen at all. Especially in the case of cartridges that are no longer available. A converter allows one to choose from a plethora of bottled fountain pen inks. Always remember NEVER use india ink in a fountain pen it has a shellac like drying agent that will plug a pen and may render it not only inoperable but unrepairable.

 

[camjr]

I've spent the morning on the soccer fields, so only carried my Fisher ****** space pen. Very handy...

 

[Kirk H.]

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Found this one today while at Staples. It is a Bic disposable fountain pen. I think I will use this one at work and not have to wory about what happens to it in the field.

Kirk

 

[John in Covina]

[/IMG] Found this one today while at Staples. It is a Bic disposable fountain pen. I think I will use this one at work and not have to wory about what happens to it in the field.
Kirk

I haven't seen this yet. Let us know how it does. BIC owns (i think) Shaeffer and Waterman.

 

[John in Covina]

i haven't tried one but Noodler's, the ink maker has inexpensive fountain pens. Some of the pen shops on line are carrying them.

 

[DeaconKC]

Man, I forgot my FPs today and not even a decent pen in the car, just an old stick Bic. I was DYIN' as old Bugs Bunny used to say!

 

[Kirk H.]

Man, I forgot my FPs today and not even a decent pen in the car, just an old stick Bic. I was DYIN' as old Bugs Bunny used to say!

That is a rough day.

 

[Kirk H.]

I haven't seen this yet. Let us know how it does. BIC owns (i think) Shaeffer and Waterman.

John, I knew that they owned Sheaffer, I did not know about Waterman. As far as the report on how it has held up this past week. It did fine and got a lot of use for it was a busy week. It is a little bigger than the Pilot Varsity pens and seems to do well on different quality paper. Not too much bleed through on the cheaper stuff, but have not tried it on pulpy paper like newspaper. The line is always consistent and has not skipped on me yet. For a inexpensive “throw down” pen I would recommend it. Just my 2 cents.

Kirk H.

 

[kidbri]

Zebra F-701

It's the only pen I carry...solid stainless steel (to match my jewelry) and writes very well. Love the grip. Love the feel. http://www.gearjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/701spacepen.jpg

 

[John in Covina]

Went with my Conklin Glider the modern one with the medium nib. It writes like on glass smooth. I have Private Reserve Velvet Black mixed with the Spearmint Green as the ink. Black but the green is there almost on a subconcious level.

 

[DeaconKC]

A pair of Cross ATXs today, both medium nibs, one with Sheaffer Skrip Black, and the other with Waterman Blue

 

[tealseal]

I carry three pens in my briefcase: A Monteverde Invincia fountain with black ink, a blue Sharpie pen (not marker, but felt tip pen), and a Parker ballpoint I got at Staples. The Invincia I got in high school as a gift from my grandmother. I use it often, but would rather a finer point (this one has to be medium). The Parker is my workhorse, but it wasn't so until recently, when I discovered that Fisher Space Pen cartridge refills have an adapter that makes them fit into Parkers. As I find myself frequently using walls as a hard surface for jotting things down, the ability of the Space Pen to write against gravity is a must. I use my fountain for journaling, or other writing whenever I can, but if I'm reaching for a pen to make a quick note, my Space Parker it is!

 

[Chaps]

I usually carry Retro51 pens.

 

[Steven180]

May I impose on someone for some expert and experienced advice? Although not in the realm of vintage, I am very interested in the Sheaffer Valor fountain pen with a fine nib...does anyone have any experience with Sheaffer, this model, or their nibs?

I am an avid pen user for the past year now and this is will be only my third model. I presently use a Levenger True Writer with a stub nib and a Waterman Phileas with a fine. But I am also interested in starting a small, modest collection of fountain pens from the 30s and 40s soon.

Thanks for any assistance.
M.

 

[DeaconKC]

Sheaffer still puts very good nibs on their pens. Even the Javelin series has a very smooth nib. If you get one and are not happy with it, they will work on them for you. If you pick up a used one, there are several excellent "nibmeisters" out there to tune one for you.

 

[John in Covina]

May I impose on someone for some expert and experienced advice? Although not in the realm of vintage, I am very interested in the Sheaffer Valor fountain pen with a fine nib...does anyone have any experience with Sheaffer, this model, or their nibs?

But I am also interested in starting a small, modest collection of fountain pens from the 30s and 40s soon.

Thanks for any assistance.
M.

Sheaffer nibs tend to be what are refered to as Nails they are usually non-flex. Modern fountain pen nibs have moved to be some what wider than the vintage ones. A vintage fine is more fine than a modern one usually. As for colleting: the big 3 in the US are Parker, Waterman and Sheaffer. There are numerous books on collecting fountain pens however always look for used books on Amazon as some new are very expensive. You will find that there are a number of iconic pens from the 20's, 30's and 40's as well as later. Parker's Duofold came in a lot of variations. Sheaffers Balance is a great pen. Waterman's Comando is a favorite of mine. Wahl-Eversharp and waterman made more flex nibs than most. Conklin has some cool ons as does Chilton. The collector books will show a ton of makers. One that is much beloved is Esterbrook. Do a search here and inGoogle to find out about the workhorse pen.