Faber Castell

[jenjustjen]

So I work in promo products and occasionally we see some fountain pens cross our desk.
I was a little excited today to see the faber castel wholesale catalogue arrived in my inbox.

So the question is - what Faber Castel's do you love?

There's a chunky orange one that is catching my eye on colour alone...

j.

[Bogon07]

TK-Fine Vario L0.9/1.0 mechanical pencil.

[jar]

I have no Faber Castell pens right now but I do have three of the Graf von Faber Castell pens. I have my Terracotta Intuition with a fine nib inked and in rotation.



http://www.fototime.com/AB5244133AC0943/medium800.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/5F70DBF8235B9C2/medium800.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/F69F50F248ED7E3/medium800.jpg

[KrazyIvan]

I have no experience with FC unless you count wood pencils.

[FP_GaF]

I have no Faber Castell pens right now but I do have three of the Graf von Faber Castell pens. I have my Terracotta Intuition with a fine nib inked and in rotation.



http://www.fototime.com/AB5244133AC0943/medium800.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/5F70DBF8235B9C2/medium800.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/F69F50F248ED7E3/medium800.jpg


:faint: :hail:

[FP_GaF]

I own a Faber-Castell Ondoro in black and an Ambition also in black. I had very mixed experiences with these to pens. The Ondoro is nice and smooth and works well but needed some minor tuning at the start (tine alignment, flow). The Ambition was a majoe pain the a..., sorry, rear. It took me about three hours an lots of swearing to get a half-decent writer.

Mind you, two samples are way to few to form a viable opinion. But I am slightly put off by that experience.

However, I worship the Graf von Faber-Castell fountain pens for their beauty and craftsmanship. One day I will shell out the lolly for one of those babies. But that is an entirely different story

[outbackpengeek]

I have a Faber-Castell e-Motion fountain pen (http://www.fabercastell.com/design/products/categories/e-motion/emotionWoodPolishedChromePearwoodDarkBrownFountain PenB?page=6), and I absolutely love it. It has the smoothest nib I have on any pen, regardless of price or material (it was $103 and has a steel nib).

[UK Mike]

I own a Faber-Castell Ondoro in black and an Ambition also in black. I had very mixed experiences with these to pens. The Ondoro is nice and smooth and works well but needed some minor tuning at the start (tine alignment, flow). The Ambition was a majoe pain the a..., sorry, rear. It took me about three hours an lots of swearing to get a half-decent writer.

Mind you, two samples are way to few to form a viable opinion. But I am slightly put off by that experience.

However, I worship the Graf von Faber-Castell fountain pens for their beauty and craftsmanship. One day I will shell out the lolly for one of those babies. But that is an entirely different story

I'm with you on this - I bought a Faber-Castell Ambition with medium nib and it is in the "most disappointing pen experience" drawer at the moment until I ponder whether to work on the nib or put it on eBay.
The feed is excellent and you couldn't really say the nib wasn't smooth, but it has so much feedback that it puts my teeth on edge.

Consequently the Graf von Faber Castell that I was looking to get has slipped down the list of "wants" until I spend some time trying them out.

[fountainpenkid]

I have a vintage Faber Castell Higgins piston filler. Just browse the archives of the PENguin, and I think Rick Propas sold one just like it...it is a good pen. I put an estie nib on it though...

[mdesimone]

Ordered the LOOM in orange w/ B nib weeks ago. I'm still upset that it hasn't arrived - but once it does, I'll post a review. This model caught my eye with the color and price. F-C are known for really smooth nibs and to offer at a crazy low price, I had to get it.

[fountainpenkid]

Ordered the LOOM in orange w/ B nib weeks ago. I'm still upset that it hasn't arrived - but once it does, I'll post a review. This model caught my eye with the color and price. F-C are known for really smooth nibs and to offer at a crazy low price, I had to get it.

Those look interesting. Faber Castell's form factor is quite unique. I wish they made more piston fillers though.

[Zhivago]

I have a Loom with a B nib and a leather Basic, also with a B nib. I assume both pens have the same nib and I think the Ondoro has it, too. But I could be wrong on that. Anyway, both nibs are smooth. The Basic has been a flawless writer with a J.H. Perle Noire cart, while the Loom has been mostly good inked with Diamine Kensington Blue. I think the Basic is made in China while the Loom is made in Germany.

[John the Monkey]

I received a Basic (Broad Nib) as a Christmas present - it's a wonderful writer, slightly wet with an extremely smooth nib. I'm very tempted to pick up an Ondoro, or something similar after my experience with the Basic.

Faber Castell make my favourite woodcase pencils too, the 9000, which has a wonderfully smooth, easily blended graphite core.

[chal3oye]

I'm still upset that it hasn't arrived - but once it does, I'll post a review. This model caught my eye with the color and price. F-C are known for really smooth nibs and to offer at a crazy low price, I had to get it.

[dannzeman]

I have a Graf von Faber-Castell Classic and Intuition, and Faber-Castell Ondoro and e-motion. I love them all for their quality, styling, and writing performance. My very first was an Ambition and is the pen that turned me on to the brand.


...The Ambition was a majoe pain the a..., sorry, rear. ...
It's okay, you can swear here.

[KrazyIvan]

Maybe someone can answer a question that has been nagging me as of late. What is the difference between Graf Von Faber-Castell and just plain old Faber-Castell?

[MisterBoll]

Maybe someone can answer a question that has been nagging me as of late. What is the difference between Graf Von Faber-Castell and just plain old Faber-Castell?

$200-500. :)

[KrazyIvan]

Maybe someone can answer a question that has been nagging me as of late. What is the difference between Graf Von Faber-Castell and just plain old Faber-Castell?

$200-500. :)

:p

Okay, maybe I should rephrase the question. How are the two companies related? Or is it the same company just re-badged like car companies do for the higher end models, ie Toyota/Lexus, Nissan/Infinity etc.

[MisterBoll]

Okay, maybe I should rephrase the question. How are the two companies related? Or is it the same company just re-badged like car companies do for the higher end models, ie Toyota/Lexus, Nissan/Infinity etc.

Since you put it that way -

Graf is the blue-blood arm of the company. Pen of the year, etc.
European estates, fancy cars, bizarre rituals at midnight kind of vibe.

Good ole' Faber-Castell is the down home version -
children's art supplies, colored pencils, crafts, inexpensive fountain pens.

All fall under the main company - Faber-Castell. Most products are made in Brazil.

[kaisnowbird]

Most products are made in Brazil.

Now, I didn't know, nor expect that.

[snedwos]

I was told that GvFC were a good option for wooden pens. What with owning their own forests and all.


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[kaisnowbird]

I was told that GvFC were a good option for wooden pens. What with owning their own forests and all.


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:shocked: That's impressive.

[UK Mike]

Interesting point about production in Brazil but I can give the assurance that Faber Castell do maintain a strong manufacturing presence at their factories in Germany where they definitely make wooden-case pencils.
A television programme made in the UK this year by the BBC to compare German work ethics with those of the UK actually featured one of the Faber Castell factories, with the presenter being given a job supervising two of the pencil machines.
I am also under the impression that the Graf von Faber Castell fountain pens are German made as are some of the mid-range Faber Castells for the European market.

[Jeph]

I can't remember where, but there was a quote attributed to a F-C honcho that everything GvFC was in Germany.

Personally I want to love this brand, but GvF-C is out of my price range and my limited experience with F-C is poor, although their customer service is very good.
I had accused (with no evidence) them of making their lower price pens in China, so maybe Brazil is a step up.

I have a couple of vintage F-C pens that are still waiting on my cork making capabilities to return them to service that I have high hopes for.

[Adhizen]

I have an e-Motion in the pear wood finish that I bough a few months ago. I went on the reviews and I have to say I'm not very impressed. The nib is smooth and writes well yet the over all design fails for me in many ways. The nib looks too small for the dimensions of the pen. The cap is awkward to handle and heavy in an unbalance way when compared to the rest of the pen. Also the wood of the barrel is finish to a "rough" texture that isn't pleasing to the touch... So, That is my one pen experience with Faber Castell. I'm not sure I would invest in another pen from them. I'm considering selling the one I have.