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Shangas
March 15th, 2010, 09:04 AM
These days, very few people grow up using fountain pens. They're often discovered somewhere along the road of life's journey.

How did you trip over your first fountain pen? What were your first fountain pen experiences like?

I started using fountain pens when I was seven years old (waaaay back in 1994); I discovered a cheap one in a drawer in our house and I never looked back.

eriquito
March 15th, 2010, 02:07 PM
I did not grow up using fountain pens, but my third grade teacher (who shall remain nameless) forced the entire class to use fountain pens while we practiced our cursive writing skills. I do not recall liking or disliking fountain pens at that point in my life.

In the 80's, I ran across a Readers' Digest article extolling the virtues (and scarcity) of the Parker 51. I decided I had to have one, so I began scouring swap meets and flea markets. I finally found a Parker 51 pen and pencil set and purchased it immediately for fifteen bucks.

The pen, however, would not fill, so I placed it in a drawer where it sat for many, many years.

In the 90's, I happened upon a Montblanc boutique and somehow walked out the proud owner of a 145 (Chopin). That pen would fill (converter) but had a terrible skipping problem. It was placed in storage for a number of years right along side the Parker 51 set.

In 2008, I was gifted some fountain pen bottled ink and some cartridges, so I dug out the Montblanc and asked it to dance. Again I encountered the skipping problem. This time, however, I began searching for a solution rather than simply tucking the pen back in for another long nap.

While searching for a solution to my skipping problem, I discovered that there was an entire world of fountain pen enthusiasts. I read. I queried. Above all - I purchased! By February 2009 I had my "trader" ticket admission to the Los Angeles Pen Show. By April 2009 I had over 50 fountain pens to play with, most of which had no skipping problem what-so-ever.

The rest, as they say, is history (written with a fountain pen).

=) Eric
Son of Ragnar

dannzeman
March 15th, 2010, 06:49 PM
I can't say when I saw my first fountain pen. I always enjoyed their design but had never written with one before. I remember a couple of times in high school and college I would see a fountain pen in the book store and think about getting it but I thought they were too expensive.

Then one day in December of 2008 I received an advertisement from my local art store, called The Art Store. They were having a sale on fountain pens. It was a pretty good sale too, 50% off your first pen, 40% off your second pen, and 30% off your third pen. This prompted me to do some searching online because I knew absolutely nothing about them. I discovered a couple forums and dozens of websites devoted to these things! So I went to The Art Store and found three pens that I really liked but couldn't decide which I wanted. Unfortunately, none of the three were part of the sale. Well, I couldn't just get one so I asked the sales person "If I buy all three will you give me the discount?" and sure enough I walked out of that store a proud owner of three brand new fountain pens.

The three I bought were the Faber Castell Ambition, Retro 51 Scriptmaster II, and a Retro 51 Tornado. I ended up selling all three, which allowed me to buy even more pens. And that cycle just keeps repeating itself...

Shangas
March 15th, 2010, 07:15 PM
I started seriously collecting fountain pens and becoming really interested in them when I was about 18-19. I had finished highschool and I was able to dedicate more time to mucking around with fountain pens, which I was madly in love with at the time. For the past four or five years, I've been actively engaged in collecting, using and repairing my pens.

Kelly G
March 18th, 2010, 08:33 AM
My history with fp's is not out of the normal. From way back in the 1950's I have vague memories of a fountain pen in my Grandmother's house. It must have been a Sheaffer as I remember the striped barrel of the pen. Mostly I remember how the pen smelled - that phenol smell of vintage ink and the ink was a purple shade. My other Grandfather was also an avid Sheaffer user - more on that in a bit.
My first writing experiences with fp's were with the ubiquitous Sheaffer school pens of the 1960's - the ones with the translucent barrels - and cartridges. They were all the rage with the Jr. High crowd. Once in high school fp's were long forgotten. I moved on to felt tips and Pentel mechanical pencils.
Skip ahead a few decades; I'm 17 years out of college and moving up in the world. My wife, sometime in the early 90's bought me a MB 144 for Christmas. I had developed a liking for nice writing instruments and carried a couple of Cross gf Century select tips with the company logo of course. The 144 was genius move on her part as it triggered my latent fp gene. I tried using the pen for several months using cartridges but was not happy with the result - skipping, bad ink flow. I put it away for a year or so and then finally figured out that strange contraption that came with the pen - the converter. I picked up a bottle of MB Blue Black ink at Staples - if it was a MB pen it had to have MB ink right? - and I was on my way. I carried and wrote with the pen daily - taking lots of meeting notes. I flew with the pen with abandon, not realizing it could be a problem and it wasn't.
Move ahead again to 2001. I decided I needed a finer nib for my note taking as I have small handwriting. I began searching on the internet and discovered the Pelikan Steno at swisher.com and in the process found acp-p and the world of fp users/collectors/accumulators. And, I found e-bay. It was a perfect storm. The Pelikan did the trick with its extra fine nib. The folks on acp-p were most helpful and entertaining. I won a black Esterbrook (turned out to be a J) for a few bucks on ebay. Hal Arnold and Frank Dubiel talked me through the Esterbrook restoration - Hal even sent a couple of sacs and nibs, gratis to aid in the repair. That was the beginning of my slide into fp accumulation oblivion. E-bay was my primary source for pens as I'm a bit isolated in mid-America. That necessitated learning to repair my finds. I bought everything that was cheap and managed to get a few decent pens and a lot of fodder for my repair trials.

In the process, I learned a lot about vintage pens, what I liked, what I didn't; an appreciation of quality vintage pens. That enabled me to recognize a good deal when I saw one, which helped slow down my e-bay frenzy and turned me toward estate sales and auctions. Over the years I've managed to accumulate somewhere over 250 pens, probably around 80% vintage. There have been some amazing sumgai deals and great stories that go along with them (great to me anyway). I've now entered the very slow accumulating phase and only buy a pen when it strikes me as a pen I really would like to own and use for a good long while.

I have sold a few pens but I'm not in any hurry to part with any more - but you never can tell.

dannzeman
March 18th, 2010, 09:19 AM
Kelly, wow, you must have quite the collection. If you have any pics would you mind creating an album in your profile so we could see? I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to see...

Sent from my HTC HERO using Tapatalk

Kelly G
March 20th, 2010, 08:43 AM
dannzeman - right now my schedule precludes any big photo project - or small photo project for that matter. My vocation keeps me away from home at least three days/week and usually more. Plus I'm back in school (after a very, very long absence) and that is taking up all my spare time.

If I get an opportunity, I'll try to post some pics, but please don't hold your breath as it may be months until I can get around to it. Before I take pics, I need to get that striped Duofold vac filler that is on my work bench back together with a fresh diaphragm - it has been waiting for nearly six weeks!

penspouse
April 13th, 2010, 04:20 PM
I remember first using a fountain pen in Jr. High (back in the dark ages). I had a Sheaffer No-Nonsense and several school pens. My favorite ink was Turquoise for all notes and assignments. I used fountain pens through High School. I don't know why I stopped using them in college, or maybe I did and have forgotten. Old age stinks. My hubby has always been interested in fountain pens as well. About four years ago, we learned through one of our son's seminary profs that the old fountain pens could be repaired and restored. It has been down the slippery slope since then. My favorites are my Pelikans and my Parker "51" Demi collection. Although, we have way too many others to discount them.

southpaw52
April 14th, 2010, 04:10 PM
I did not grow using a fountain pen. My first fountain pen was a Sheaffer and a Waterman Phileas. I began collecting fountain pens as a hobby several years ago. I enjoy using a fountain pen because it is more expressive then a ball point pen. For awhile I used roller balls, was dissatisfied how fast the ink was used. I now use fountain pens exclusively in my daily writing. I use mostly vintage fountain pens and a few modern fountain pens. In this day and age of instant everything, I still prefer writing a hand written note. My vintage collection includes Waterman, Sheaffer, Parker, and a few third tier pens. Fountain pens are so expressive and distinct in their personality. The rainbow of ink colors is so varied and one could never be bored with the choices.

TWRDO
April 14th, 2010, 05:10 PM
My fountain pen history is short but intense.

It actually started with a Retro 51 Tornado rollerball, which I bought in January. After buying the RB, I was looking at the Retro 51 website and noticed the Tornado had a matching fountain pen, which piqued my curiosity. I did a bit of reading on FPs, stumbled across the FPN, and learned enough to get me started. I bought a couple of Pilot Varsities to try out FPs without spending a lot of money and I was hooked. I ordered 3 Pilot 78Gs and picked up the Tornado FP to match my RB. Then I picked up a Rotring Esprit Telescopic to use as a daily user (which is a great pen BTW).

Initially, I was interested only in modern pens with a little curiosity for the Parker 51. Then I got my first 51 and the world of vintage pens exploded. Now, only 2 months later, I've bought several 51s, Vacs, Esties and a Snorkel, most of which I've repaired myself, and a few of which I've already sold.

I've found FPs to be so enjoyable I find excuses to use them. And since I enjoy repairing old pens as much (or more) than using them, it's a hobby that might actually be self-funding. Of course that's assuming I can part with enough of the pens I fix...

SMK
April 23rd, 2010, 11:09 AM
Now this might sound strange but I think I've always been obsessed with pens - even before I knew how to write.

Yup - thats right. One of my earliest memories is holding a bunch of fountain pens (Eagle or Dollar - I don't remember but these were pretty cheap) and showing them to a classmate (and his astonished look) when I was in pre-school. I don't think any of these were inked but I do distinctly remember asking for another one whenever we were out. I had them in several colors and always wanted more.

This continues to this day and is not limited to FPs - I like to buy myself a writing instrument of some sort whenever I go out.

My younger son has the same bug - he has a bunch of pens, rollerballs, markers etc. in various colors. He recently asked for an 'expensive fountain pen with a golden nib and one that fills from the ink bottle' when my mother told him she'll get him anything he wanted for his 12th birthday. He has tried several of my inks with the pen and is partial to Waterman Green.

S.

Mellock
April 27th, 2010, 01:06 PM
Being raised in a small community on the outskirts of Antwerp, Belgium, I was taught how to use the fountain pen at the age of 7. They were the standard writing implement that was mandatorily used until you got out of primary school at age 12. The left-handers got a red pelikano, the right-handers were given a blue one. (I was always jealous of the blue ones, being a southpaw myself.)

After going to highschool, I continued to use a fountain pen, although most people there used a standard Stylo or Bic rollerball. Most of my pens were cheap Chinese pens, bought yearly. Most of them cost around 5 to 10 euros.

After highschool, I bought myself a Waterman Charleston for 150 euros, but found the nib to be too fine to my liking. (I didn't try it in the store). That's when I started looking online. A Lamy Safari, Waterman Hemisphere and a handfull of cheapies followed soon after. Then I discovered ink. And paper... And now I'm hooked.

sokuban
April 28th, 2010, 07:50 PM
I only recently got into fountain pens. I was relearning cursive right after I started university because I wanted to be able to write quickly and legibly to keep up with notetaking, and in that process I learned about the existence of fountain pens. Then I asked my dad for one, and it started from there.

I should note, that before I even knew about fountain pens, I was a writing instrument geek. Mainly pencils, because I found pens boring. (Hey, cut me some slack, I only knew ballpoint pens then.) After I realized that fountain pens have some much more... depth and variables, I immediately switched from being a pencil geek to a fountain pen geek.

Maruk
May 2nd, 2010, 11:40 AM
I only recently started purchasing fountain pens, but my history goes back a bit.
I always had an eye out for quality - or at least precision, often using my fathers' old pentel drafting set and his newer pilot v series pens. I eventually moved on to rollerballs and felt-tip for actual substance and usefulness (writing with a ballpoint/gel pen is hard now - they just do not write). Now I am at fountain pens and dip pens because of the choices offered to me.

I have known about fountain pens for a long time, but the shop prices and descriptions of them kept them away.

liapuyat
June 10th, 2010, 09:28 PM
Like I mentioned in my "hello, i'm new" message, my first fountain pen was a Pilot 55 with a cracked cap and a Japanese F nib. I used this all throughout college a while back. Then my dad gave me an MB Chopin for graduation (my interest in pen and paper supplies developed because of him, whose office desk was littered with various types of writing materials). My first pen from my first ever salary in the 1990s was a Sheaffer No-Nonsense in translucent purple (loved the color and the smooth nib). Next was a Senator piston filler with a nice wet M nib. I still have and use them. A few Parker Vectors came and went (some ended up with my mom and my sister).

Here in the Philippines the usual fountain pens being sold in bookstores and art supply stores are Parker, Waterman, Cross and Rotring. When I finally learned how to bid on eBay a couple of years ago, that's when I started trying other brands. When I attended a local pen meet for the very first time a couple of years ago, I was introduced to Esterbrooks by a senior member - my first vintage pen was a blue SJ. Now I have a few Esterbrooks, all of which I love dearly and use regularly. When relatives and friends learned I loved fountain pens I started getting modest gift pens. That was the start of a sort of collection (if you call random acquisition collecting). I have a few Sheaffers, Esterbrooks, Pilots and Pelikans. I have a preference for reasonably priced daily users rather than expensive display pens - If I'm too scared to bring a pen with me on a daily basis, I'm not getting it. The only pens I keep for exclusive home use are my MB and a full-size Sailor 1911.

Because I have small hands and my handwriting is also rather small, I started out liking EF nibs. Now most of my writing is with F and M nibs, as long as they're wet. Later on I realized I could actually use B nibs and wide cursive italic nibs or stubs in letter-writing if I just adjusted the size of my handwriting and if the paper is friendly.

It's only after having a variety of pen-and-ink combinations to choose from that I realized that my preferences depend on what it is I'm writing, and what I'm writing on.

PMS
August 17th, 2010, 09:43 PM
The first pen I ever wrote with was a Sheaffer clear School pen. It must have been about 1961, third grade, graduated from pencil to pen. Still smeared them both badly, I'm a lefty, I had that always present graphite or blue stain on the side of my left palm. I very seldom smear now, changed my writing style as a college student.

I remember changing cartridges in both my Sheaffer and Parker pens. My mother came home with some Bics in 1966 and that's what I used in 8th grade and through high school. But you know I still smeared the ink on the Bic.

In college I used Rapidographs, the drafting pens. I printed, small and precise when taking notes and I liked the fine lines of the drafting pens. I was an Art major in college (early 70's) and I bought an Osmiroid sketch pen, a fountain pen that was filled with Osmiroid black drawing ink (I still have a bottle). I wish I still had that pen.

Alas, I didn't take up fountain pens again until about 5 years ago when I found an old Parker 21 that belonged to my grandfather. I filled it with some old Parker Quink and it wrote. I have since given that pen to my youngest son and have written with fountain pens since. So much better than ball points!
PMS

sexauerw
November 24th, 2011, 12:39 PM
I started using fountain pens a long time ago, probably in fourth or fifth grade. That would have been back in the mid-1950's and the pens were the early Sheaffer Cartridge pens, the ones with the clear barrels and the chrome caps. They never seemed to last too long so I remember having had a number of them, one after another. But by about eighth or ninth grade ballpoints had come into vogue and the fountain pens were forgotten. In the latter half of the 1960's and into the 1970's I did a lot of drafting and much of it was ink on Mylar or ink on vellum. This was all done with Koh-I-Noor Rapidograph pens, which were sort of like fountain pens, but different. You couldn't really use them for general writing because they only worked when held perfectly perpendicular to the paper, which is pretty awkward. Fine for drafting but not for writing.

Fast forward to the mid-1990's. I hadn't used anything but ballpoints and pencils since the 70's. My father was in failing health and too weak and tired to do much of anything, so my brother and I took turns going over to his house and helping out. Mom had already passed away. One of the tasks that became my job was to do his bookkeeping, pay his bills, etc. I used his Sheaffer Targa to write the checks for the bills and realized how much nicer it was than my ballpoints. I shared this opinion with my wife and for my next birthday I received a Sheaffer-Levenger Mediterranean fountain pen with a wonderful fine nib. I started using it and I was hooked.

Dad eventually passed away and I inherited the Targa along with its supply of Skrip Emerald Green cartridges, the only color ink Dad ever used. It was just the basic model, matte black with chrome trim and a steel nib, but just as smooth and nice a writer as the 18K nib on my new Mediterranean. I bought several more pens, various brands and models, and eventually decided to collect Targas since I liked Dad's pen so much. I now have a collection of 349 fountain pens. My Targa sub-collection has 119 full-size fountain pens, 26 slim fountain pens, 48 ballpoints, 11 pencils and 7 desk set ballpoints/pencils. There are still a few models that I don't have, so the collection is not yet complete. I don't know if it will ever be. But the fun is in the chase, I don't know what I would do if I completed it.

inkstainedruth
December 26th, 2013, 04:05 PM
I recall having some sort of cartridge pen when I was a kid (1960s). And there was this weird sort of lever-fill pencil (which I suppose could have been a combo pen/pencil) that had been my grandfather's (now, sadly, long since lost).
I considered buying an Osmiroid when I was a freshman in college -- my then roommate (a sophomore) had one for her calligraphy class (sadly, when I took calligraphy the following year, it was a different instructor and we used Speedball dip pens...).
Fast forward to maybe 6-7 years ago. I started journaling (while reading _The Artist's Way_) and bought a cheap Parker cartridge pen as a "cool" way to make myself write every morning. When the rubberized grip disintegrated, I bought a replacement; when the same thing happened to that pen, I went back to Staples and found they weren't being carried anymore. Eventually (in an old-time stationers' in downtown Pittsburgh) I bought a Parker Vector (I still had a couple of packs of cartridges). A couple of years ago I left that pen and the then-current journal volume at my brother-in-law's house in CT and didn't get them back for a month. Tried writing with a BP but it wasn't the same. Went back to the stationers' and they no longer carried those. Bought a Pilot Varsity (which lasted a whopping 3 days) -- everything else was (to me) frightfully pricy ($35 and up -- okay, *now* that seems like a fair to middling price.... :rolleyes: Then I started getting serious about a replacement for the Vector: bought one of those Parker Urban sets (pen, four cartridges, a converter and a bottle of Quink Black), but was never completely sold on the pen. By then I was looking at all sorts of online stuff comparison shopping, and discovering that there was more out there ink color-wise than just blue and black; that led me, eventually to the Goulet Pens website (where I discovered a friend was a happy shopper because he'd reviewed an ink I was considering trying) and to the Fountain Pen Network. And *that* led me to (in my husband's opinion) to too many pens ("Really dear -- I only have four 51s...") and way too many inks in just under 2 years. Plus a lot of Ebay purchases, repair tools and supplies, several Rhodia pads (plus two Ecosystems notebooks, and a whole lot more journals -- I think the current volume is around #24), and two pen shows under my belt.... And I'm probably still a relative newbie as things go.
And now to here (yes, I'm one of the FPN refugees).
Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

VertOlive
December 26th, 2013, 08:37 PM
I had some sort of cartridge pen in Jr High. It was all the rage to put an opened cartridge into your bottle of glue and shake it so as to make Blue Glue.

An avid journaller since age 11, I used whatever until I had a job after college and internship. I worked with a fellow who collected very high end pens. He recommended a Waterman Phileas. Got it . Hated it from Day One. It was ugly to my eye. It soaked through my $1 notebooks. [I didn't know about better paper back then]. Stuffed it in a drawer for decades.

Pulled it out of a drawer, came here to see how to clean it. Sold it!

Now I'm about 9 pens deep, three more on order, two more on the Grail list.

discopig
December 27th, 2013, 01:36 AM
I recently got into fountain pens because I was fed up with ballpoints (for both sketching and writing), and I had heard from a friend about how smooth and reliable fountain pens were. I also later read about the hundred different inks you can use with them. I was pretty much sold at that point so I read some reviews on a few pens and bought a Lamy Safari (2012 LE green, F nib) and Noodler's Nib Creaper. I love both and still use them daily. I recently also bought a cheap Hero 704 to try out chinese pens and it's a great one too. Now, I pretty much use all three daily, they are always inked up with either Noodler's Apache Sunset, Waterman Black, or whatever other inks I have.

Senecabud
December 27th, 2013, 09:00 AM
In my early teens (back in the Dark Ages) I discovered and bought two Sheaffer Targa's. Naturally my classmates thought I was weird (but classy!) I don't recall how I discovered those pens, but I'm sure I was attracted to their beauty. Both pens were filled with Sheaffer's Turquoise ink and I used them through Junior High and High School.

Yep, really dating myself now, lol.

orfew
December 27th, 2013, 10:12 AM
My fountain pen habit started about 15 years ago. My wife bought me a Montblanc 147 and I used it for a while and lost interest. A few years ago I located the 147 and was intrigued so I began using it. I loved it and my obsession truly started to grow. In the last 2-3 years I have added more than 30 Montblanc pens to my collection and I enjoy all of them. I am generally very picky about what pens I add to the collection. In the last year my focus has changed and I am actively pursuing vintage Montblanc FPs. I find the nibs to have more character than the modern versions. I still use and love my modern MBs as well. I highly doubt that I will ever get rid of any of them.

KrazyIvan
December 27th, 2013, 10:39 AM
The whole story is at http://inktronics.wordpress.com/about/

My very first fountain pen was a Sheaffer school pen that I bought when I was 10 or 12. It was lost and I had no idea what I was doing but it looked cool. I ended up with very inky hands. Fast forward 20 years or so and that is when I purchased a Sensa Meridian.

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2376/2244902805_5ddab03313_z.jpg?zz=1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivan_romero/2244902805/)
Sensa Meridian Carbon Fountain Pen (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivan_romero/2244902805/) by IvanRomero (http://www.flickr.com/people/ivan_romero/), on Flickr

I used it for a bit, did not like the fat “fine” line and left it on my desk where the cartridge dried out. Searching for info on how to clean it and use the converter with bottled ink in 2010 was when I had my epiphany moment. The Goulet blog and Brian Goulet himself helped me quite a bit. One thing lead to another and next thing I knew, I was grinding my own nibs just for the fun of it.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8088/8522240562_0ecc7b052b_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivan_romero/8522240562/)
I have never ground a nib this fast. 5 mins flat. Writing sample next. (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ivan_romero/8522240562/) by IvanRomero (http://www.flickr.com/people/ivan_romero/), on Flickr

Frank
December 27th, 2013, 05:26 PM
I have always been into pens, just only in the last few years or so in Fountain Pens. My dad has always liked pens, and he bought pens for me (and my brother) growing up. My first pen was a Cross set for my Confirmation (Catholic Ceremony) when I was 10. Up until about ten years ago, I had about 20 or so pens in my collection, that were all RB/BP type. My dad was never into FP's, and I actually have the only FP he ever bought in my collection (a Wearever Pennant that he bought new around 1960). I think this had a lot to do with my reluctance in getting them when I was younger.

I knew about FP's, and had always looked at them through Fahrney's catalogs that I have been getting for a good 20+ years now. I teach, and like having a good pen to write with on a daily basis. About 2005, the high school I taught at hired a new vice-principal. I was in his office early on when he started, and I saw him writing with something I recognized from those catalogs! I said "That's a Lamy Safari!", and he was like "Yeah, you know what this is?" (It was actually and Al-Star in Grey- not important).
So we started talking pens- I told him about my RB/BP collection (including my Lamy Swift RB that I have had since college). It was he (Don) who gave me leads/links/info about places to look for pens! He let me borrow some of his pens to use/etc..

Don also told me about the Philly Pen show. I attended my first pen show in 2007 there in town. I had already bout some FP's the year prior. I bought Laban Wood Pen at the show, and discovered www.isellpens.com (http://www.isellpens.com) when I was looking for refills/supplies. It was Todd's site that led me to both "The Big Board", and the forum that I now own and moderate- The Fountain Pen Community (TFPC -See my signature for a link).

Over the past eight years, my own collection has grown to @100 pens, of which 70 or so are fountain pens! I have grown my hobby to the point of repairing and selling pens to offset my expenses. I have not done much of this in the past year or so, as both "big Board" restrictions and a new job teaching adults have taken up a lot of free time! "Old Timers" on the forums will recall that I was very active selling Esties and such! I hope to be more active in that regard here and there in the coming year (again!) ;-)

As for Dad (and my brother), I have infected them with the FP bug to some degree! They both have a handful of FP's now, many of which were lent/ never returned! (LOL)
Don has retired from the place we both worked before. He is in my email pipeline, and we talk pens frequently! I now go to two/three shows per year, and contribute to four pen forums (including here!).

Thanks!
Regards,
Frank

Runnin_Ute
December 28th, 2013, 05:22 PM
My first fountain pen was in grade school in the 1960's. It was a Sheaffer cartridge pen I bought at a 7-11 store not far from home. My friends and I would ride there on our bicycles regularly. I remember getting ink on my hands and my parents made me toss it. My grandma wrote me letters on air mail stationary while I was doing church service hundreds of miles from home during the 1979-1981 time period when I was in my early 20's.

I was a little bit of a pen/pencil geek for a time although they were ballpoints. Particularly Parker pens. First a jotter- plastic barrel, stainless cap. After breaking a couple at the threads I bought an all stainless Jotter. I still have at least one, I bought my first in about 1980. My favorite Parker bp was a Made in the UK Parker 45 Flighter. I was so bummed when I lost it a few years ago.

I bought my first decent fountain pen in the late 1990's if my memory serves me correctly. A Lamy Al Star in the aluminum finish. I am not sure, but it may have had a M nib. I bought it from Levenger as well as a bottle of Raven Black and a bottle of Cobalt Blue ink. Finished the blue off years ago, but finished the Raven Black off earlier this year (2013). My second pen was a red marbled Waterman Phileas with F nib shortly thereafter. I kept one inked with Raven Black, the other with Cobalt Blue. My next bottle of ink was a bottle of Pelikan 4001 Blue Black and when I went to get another, it was after it was no longer being imported to the US. A FPN member had a bottle she was willing to part with. That was December 2012. Since then I have purchased the following pens:
the Al Star has since had a F as I had to replace the section and bought one with a F and now has a 1.1 mm nib.
Waterman Phileas M black
3 pack Pilot Varsity (black, blue, purple) - gave them all away....
True Writer Silver Anniversary F
Noodler's Konrad nib is now a Goulet B
Esterbrook J 9550 EF - now has a Venus F
Pelikan 120 EF (M & K) as NOS
Pelikan M205 M Mint condition Toledo Red
Jinhao 159 stubbed

Got the last 3 from Murfie. (thanks,Murf!)
The inks ..... (post Pelikan blue black)
Diamine Blue Black
Noodler's 54th Massachusetts
Diamine Sherwood Green
Diamine Classic Red
Noodler's Sunset Apache
plus my sample collection and a variety of papers.

Next ink: Diamine Steel Blue. Have gone through most of 2 Goulet samples of it. Have it in my M205.

85AKbN
December 28th, 2013, 06:32 PM
When I stop, then it'll be history. :jester:

shudaizi
December 28th, 2013, 06:33 PM
My fountain pen history: on again, off again. Currently on ... again.

Llewellyn
December 30th, 2013, 09:48 PM
My dad had always used fountain pens and always said that they make you write better. I inherited his Montblanc after he died but only used it sporadically. Then in late 2012 my wife asked what I would like for Xmas and I thought a fountain pen would be a nice idea. So we went to the only place in Perth that I know sells fountain pens and I chose a Visconti Starry Night. And that was that, I was hooked. That was soon followed by a Portrait Blu and over the course of 2013 I added five more.

By then I thought I should start using them more to justify the investment so I started keeping a journal and trying different inks. No going back now!!

jar
December 31st, 2013, 07:32 AM
I came to fountain pens late in life. As a child starting school we had to bring our own stones to scratch lines into the cave wall. For art we had to chew charcoal and ocher to spit over our hands leaving shadow paintings. Later we learned to sharpen sticks and make better drawings of the bison that almost killed us yesterday and the mastodon that used to chase us on our way to school.

Later we learned to search for the GREAT Fire bird and steal feathers. We went down to the stream and found rocks that we could split giving us sharp edges that could be used to shape the end of the feather into a nib. We would chew up the charcoal or ocher and mix it with water and fat to get lovely inks, red and black, purple and brown. But we had no paper and so tried to write on the hide of the antelope. Unfortunately they refused to stand still so writing became a challenge and often left us gasping for breath.

KrazyIvan
December 31st, 2013, 09:20 AM
I came to fountain pens late in life. As a child starting school we had to bring our own stones to scratch lines into the cave wall. For art we had to chew charcoal and ocher to spit over our hands leaving shadow paintings. Later we learned to sharpen sticks and make better drawings of the bison that almost killed us yesterday and the mastodon that used to chase us on our way to school.

Later we learned to search for the GREAT Fire bird and steal feathers. We went down to the stream and found rocks that we could split giving us sharp edges that could be used to shape the end of the feather into a nib. We would chew up the charcoal or ocher and mix it with water and fat to get lovely inks, red and black, purple and brown. But we had no paper and so tried to write on the hide of the antelope. Unfortunately they refused to stand still so writing became a challenge and often left us gasping for breath.

I enjoyed that entirely too much. :D

cwent2
December 31st, 2013, 04:46 PM
I came to fountain pens late in life. As a child starting school we had to bring our own stones to scratch lines into the cave wall. For art we had to chew charcoal and ocher to spit over our hands leaving shadow paintings. Later we learned to sharpen sticks and make better drawings of the bison that almost killed us yesterday and the mastodon that used to chase us on our way to school.

Later we learned to search for the GREAT Fire bird and steal feathers. We went down to the stream and found rocks that we could split giving us sharp edges that could be used to shape the end of the feather into a nib. We would chew up the charcoal or ocher and mix it with water and fat to get lovely inks, red and black, purple and brown. But we had no paper and so tried to write on the hide of the antelope. Unfortunately they refused to stand still so writing became a challenge and often left us gasping for breath.

I enjoyed that entirely too much. :D

Me too

Avalona
December 31st, 2013, 05:41 PM
My mom had a calligraphy set when I was a child. I was never allowed to use it (because I'd probably break it or make a mess. Both were things that I tended to do to writing instruments at that age), but I wanted to so. bad - there was something magical about the way the pen glided across the paper. Most of my life, I've always been really into writing instruments and stationery, with a pretty massive collection of both, but my thing was always rollerballs and gel pens. Many years passed, and I had nearly forgotten about it, until I saw a post on Tumblr about the GouletPens Ink Drop, of all things. I was curious. I looked at the site, and it took me some time to realise that these were like the pens that my mom used to use. Out of curiosity, I ordered one month's (I think it was a February) sampler set and a kid's fountain pen (the Pelikan Pelikano Junior), because it was cheap and what happened if I just made a mess with it? When it arrived, I still made a bit of a mess with it, but I found that I loved writing with fountain pens. No more hand cramps after many pages of writing! My wrist used to ache and my fingers would cramp a little after two pages with a ballpoint. The discovery of fountain pens gave me back my love of handwriting, which in turn, helps me be more creative.

I also recently figured out that my mom's calligraphy set, which has since disappeared (I've replaced it with a pair of Pilot Parallels), was one of those Sheaffer No Nonsense calligraphy sets (I realised that once I got my own No Nonsense and noted how familiar it looked, just a different colour. I think hers was black. Mine's green). So in a way, it went a bit full circle with me getting a near identical pen to the one that I wanted to use so badly as a kid. After my own collection started to grow, my dad mentioned that he used to use FPs a lot and I've told him that if he ever finds what he did with his, to give them to me so I can bring them back to life. Actually, I've said variations of that to many relatives, especially ones that might be cleaning out an older house. He might still find them at some point. Maybe I should get some pen cleaner just in case.

JFB
October 6th, 2017, 10:11 AM
Way back in the dim dark ages before the internet or cable T.V. when I was in parochial school we were taught Palmer Method—I stunk! My writing was atrocious so one of the sisters had me get a cheap Sheaffer cartridge fountain pen. My writing was much improved, although nothing to write home about ;) I used the Sheaffers for years, then fell out of the fountain pen habit. Years later my parents gave me a beautiful Waterman Laureat which has sadly never written well. Sometime around then I got myself a Waterman (I think it was a..) Graduate; a really nice, basic pen that never failed me until some fool lent it to a non FP person who promptly dropped it, nib first, onto a concrete floor. I fell out of the habit for a few years until I found myself with another cheapie-a brass, generic cigar shaped number that I used it for years as the painted finish wore off until the threaded part of the section cracked. I tried resuscitating the Waterman Laureat, but it still dried out. I bought a vintage Wearever lever filler but back then I was never able to figure out how to properly fill it. :redface: Out I fell again until I stumbled across Jinhao on the 'Bay. I bought much of their line, including the infamous 992, and a number of other Asian brands. Now I've moved up to some vintage pens like Esterbrooks and a nice vintage Waterman 92A-V. It just never stops...

Finding this forum and another one has been a boon for me.

:D

Pax,
John

urushi4u
October 17th, 2017, 02:25 PM
I started with a Parker 45 at junior school age 9 or so, this was back in 1986. Even at school I loved pens and would often trade things with kids whose parents were doctors and got a whole plethora of parker vectors and the like, branded with drug company logos, off their reps. I traded my way to a Parker 25 which by age 12 was my 'grail pen'.

After I progressed past junior school it was no longer compulsory to use a fountain pen (times were changing), and I got out of the habit until I was in my 30s and one day for some reason reflected back on how much I used to enjoy using fountain pens... Started looking and buying a few (started small, as you do), then I discovered that inks had changed, like REALLY changed - no more were there only 3 ink colours to choose from. This blew my mind.

Now I spend way too much time obsessing over, and using fountain pens. I could never go back.

Edit: I should add, I picked up some of the original models of Parkers I used to love so much, and they were *awful* to write with. Now I pretty much hate Parker and wouldn't ever own one again.

Kaputnik
October 17th, 2017, 05:06 PM
Admittedly nobody will beat jar's answer above, but since the thread has been revived, I'll reminisce.

I was born in 1957, and might well have grown up using fountain pens, but in fact didn't. My parents didn't use them, and told me that they would leak if you weren't careful; ballpoints seemed perfectly adequate, even though I did a lot of writing. It seems probable that I must have seen someone using a fountain pen at some point, but have no memory of it, from grade school through college, and the professional world.

Fountain pens have been an enthusiasm of late middle age for me, starting with a Parker IM around 2010. It dried up when capped, which I eventually realized was a defect and not operator error, but when coaxed into starting, it was a new experience. The purchases multiplied, and although I wrote quite a bit before, I write more now. The number of my fountain pens is...large. That was predictable, as I'd always liked and taken good care of my ballpoints before, and kept more than I needed. I still have more ballpoints than I need, actually, and I need fewer of them now.

As far as the fountain pen agglomeration goes, I wonder if I would actually have fewer now if I had used them from childhood and taken them more for granted. I suspect that I would.

Wuddus
May 1st, 2018, 08:59 PM
We were forced to use fountain pens at school. I abandoned them in favour of ballpoints as soon as I got the chance. Ballpoints drew a line without being sick on the page, or scratching, or skipping... or at least not as much...

I revisited them later in my teens, but it was little more than a bit of dabbling. We had to use ballpoints at work to write on duplicate and triplicate forms, so the fountain pens stayed home. However, being a teenager, I didn't stay home much at all, so the fountain pens still didn't get used. One day I picked up the pen to write, and it didn't, despite having a half full cartridge. I tried another cartridge, but still no luck. I hurled it in the bin and picked up a ballpoint.

A few decades later, I'm trying again, but with more success. Now I have the patience to fix things that don't work properly. The pens aren't vomiting ink, I'm not getting frustrated, and my handwriting is slightly less atrocious. The fountain pens are now getting used more than the ballpoints, and I'm actually enjoying using them. It's still early days though, and my pens haven't vomited on anything important yet....

azkid
May 2nd, 2018, 05:46 PM
I graduated high school in the latter half of the 80s. Never used a fountain pen, except a calligraphy pen with cartridges. I wonder what ever happened to that pen...

Anyway my next FP I got with a journal to write down project ideas. It was a pain. I stopped using it.

Years later, I let my daughter try that pen when she got interested from a book we read.

That pen sucked. So I researched and got a Metropolitan. Now I am hooked.

sharmon202
May 9th, 2018, 11:14 AM
Growing up, ballpoints and any other pen type was too "fat" of a line. I am a light handed writer and I write small. I always had a hand ache when I had to write any length of time. About 6 years ago I began a search to see if there were any pens that would write with a finer line. I found many gel pens, Hi-Tech C and along the research I found fountain pens. I bought a Pilot Cavalier, small,smooth nib and a bottle of R & K Verdigris. Still love that ink. As I searched, and bought more, I discovered pens that would glide across paper and did not need pressure to make a line. Paper, I quickly realized, was an equal part of the equation. I found forums, other reference places to learn from. I am still on a voyage of discovery, never ending.

landrover
September 30th, 2018, 10:21 AM
When I was about 30 I started having cramps in my hand so I bought a Shaffer FP and have been using various FP for 40 years now.

titrisol
October 10th, 2018, 09:01 AM
3rd grade in school meant writing with FP. My dad had an old Esterbrook but my mom bought me an olive green Parker 45 which became my pen for many years. These pens were normally matched with Pelikan Koningsblau and Pelikan Red for school and for special ocassions Parker Blue-black and Skrip black.

Through the years I received several pens as present, Parkers mostly, and a Caran D'Ache Geneva which was a college graduation present
I also inherited a few after my father passed, the one I miss greatly is his Targa.
In the last few years I began exploring ink colors besides blue and black and bright colored pens.