Wooden pen recommendations?

[TSherbs]

I might be retiring from teaching at the end of this year, and I am thinking that I might get myself an all-wood pen (section is wooden, also) to celebrate. I might even do a special order.

I won't be able to spend more than 500USD.

Any recommendations for a maker or brand? I really know nothing about this kind of thing, but I am very intrigued. I've already looked at Ryan Krusac's website....

Thanks.

[silverlifter]

The Nakaya Briar pens are right around your max budget: https://www.nakaya.org/en/gallery.aspx?body=Briar

The briar pens are also sold under the Platinum badge for a little less, if you can find them.

Wancher also have some interesting models for around the price of the Platinums: https://www.wancherpen.com/collections/unique-wood Some of those would age beautifully with use.

GvFC make wooden pens, but they tend to have metal sections, which makes them look too much like kit pens for me, but you may disagree. Note that their cap seals are not the best.

Good luck!

[TSherbs]

thx, silver

yeah, no way on metal sections for me

[fountainpenkid]

First of all (missed this upon first read), congratulations on your retirement!

I had a GvFC Intuition wood for about a year--I never reviewed it as there seemed to be good material existing on it already. It is a striking, girthy, weighty pen that demands to be used unposted (although it posts deeply the cap is simply too backheavy). The section is the barrel, and it is fluted and concave in a very comfortable way, at least for shorter writing sessions. And capped, it's not too long to carry around (although people seem to dislike the idea of carrying wood pens around). The one major issue I had is dry-out. After 3 or so days unused, the pen would hard start--it could be even worse with heavily saturated inks. Depending on your usage though, it may not be a dealbreaker. The nib was divine otherwise--at least for a modern pen (perfect wetness, shading, feedback, and response)

63605

As for others, there may be custom makers doing great things, I'm not sure. OMAS did make an all-wood (including section), old-style Paragon-sized, piston filling series years back--you can probably find one in your range on eBay. Some are facetted and some are ogival, I think. I haven't held or used one, but given OMAS's brilliance in general, I think those are probably excellent.

OMAS:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/265265564494?hash=item3dc30f4b4e:g:6N0AAOSw0iJhFbW k

[TSherbs]

some of the Wancher wooden pens look very cool

oh...but they have metal sections???

[TSherbs]

thx, kid


that ebay Omas is a pretty little wooden pen....

[silverlifter]

Yes, its common with wooden pens, sadly. Makers worry that ink will stain the section. The Nakaya's solve the problem with urushi, but it pushes up the price.

[fountainpenkid]

Yes, its common with wooden pens, sadly. Makers worry that ink will stain the section. The Nakaya's solve the problem with urushi, but it pushes up the price.

Which wood Nakaya has a wooden section? I've never seen one.

[TSherbs]

Yes, its common with wooden pens, sadly. Makers worry that ink will stain the section. The Nakaya's solve the problem with urushi, but it pushes up the price.

Which wood Nakaya has a wooden section? I've never seen one.

I can't tell what those black sections on the Nakaya wood pens are made of. The Nakaya site doesn't say, either.

[fountainpenkid]

Yes, its common with wooden pens, sadly. Makers worry that ink will stain the section. The Nakaya's solve the problem with urushi, but it pushes up the price.

Which wood Nakaya has a wooden section? I've never seen one.

I can't tell what those black sections on the Nakaya wood pens are made of. The Nakaya site doesn't say, either.

Ah--I had never considered that could be urushi-coated wood! An owner could probably answer.

[silverlifter]

Yes, its common with wooden pens, sadly. Makers worry that ink will stain the section. The Nakaya's solve the problem with urushi, but it pushes up the price.

Which wood Nakaya has a wooden section? I've never seen one.

I can't tell what those black sections on the Nakaya wood pens are made of. The Nakaya site doesn't say, either.

You could always email and ask. Kono-san is extremely helpful.

[fountainpenkid]

Another one I thought of...Waterman Le Mans 100. I used a resin Le Mans for a while a few years ago, and found it was solidly built and comfortable.
Links:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/223791557168?hash=item341b042a30:g:eKEAAOSwcV5d8XU P
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144004719029?hash=item218759a1b5:g:3RQAAOSw7Kdgcvu 7 <<olive wood! (my favorite wood for kitchen tools, at least)
briarwood: https://www.ebay.com/itm/313531416958?hash=item48ffedc17e:g:76QAAOSwgotgoR1 n&autorefresh=true

also Stipula da Vinci: https://www.ebay.com/itm/144148885871?hash=item218ff1716f:g:gPsAAOSwkPZhEtd P

[Yazeh]

Here is another one: but the section is metal:
https://michaelfinkelsteinwoodturner.com/writing-instruments.html

[TSherbs]

Another one I thought of...Waterman Le Mans 100. I used a resin Le Mans for a while a few years ago, and found it was solidly built and comfortable.
Links:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/223791557168?hash=item341b042a30:g:eKEAAOSwcV5d8XU P
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144004719029?hash=item218759a1b5:g:3RQAAOSw7Kdgcvu 7 <<olive wood! (my favorite wood for kitchen tools, at least)
briarwood: https://www.ebay.com/itm/313531416958?hash=item48ffedc17e:g:76QAAOSwgotgoR1 n&autorefresh=true

also Stipula da Vinci: https://www.ebay.com/itm/144148885871?hash=item218ff1716f:g:gPsAAOSwkPZhEtd PThe Stipula is weird. The Waterman in Briarwood is pretty.

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[Jon Szanto]

Boy, asking for a wooden section is a tough call, if only that I'm not certain I've ever seen it. You mention already having looked at Ryan's work. For a number of years a small maker from Japan, Stylo Art Karuizawa, has been exhibiting at the SF and LA shows. Very small maker, lovely people, and likely difficult to source the pens if only that the website is difficult to negotiate (it might be easier of you knew someone fluent in Japanese).

Anyway, if you at least want to get a look at the beautiful work they do with just plain wood (though they do urushi/raden work, as well), they have an Instagram page (https://www.instagram.com/styloart.karuizawa/). AFAIK, still plastic sections. If you want to try figuring out stuff on their site after looking at the pens, the English pages are here (https://www.stylo-art.com/?mode=f11).


https://i.imgur.com/Vgm0d2v.jpg

[fountainpenkid]

Another one I thought of...Waterman Le Mans 100. I used a resin Le Mans for a while a few years ago, and found it was solidly built and comfortable.
Links:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/223791557168?hash=item341b042a30:g:eKEAAOSwcV5d8XU P
https://www.ebay.com/itm/144004719029?hash=item218759a1b5:g:3RQAAOSw7Kdgcvu 7 <<olive wood! (my favorite wood for kitchen tools, at least)
briarwood: https://www.ebay.com/itm/313531416958?hash=item48ffedc17e:g:76QAAOSwgotgoR1 n&autorefresh=true

also Stipula da Vinci: https://www.ebay.com/itm/144148885871?hash=item218ff1716f:g:gPsAAOSwkPZhEtd PThe Stipula is weird. The Waterman in Briarwood is pretty.

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Yeah that Sipula is strange...but if someone just had to have a concave wood section, there ya have it!
The Watermans are very pretty in those woods; in the black resin I had it in, it felt a little too " '80s stodgy businessman " for my taste. My personal choice for a useable all-wood pen without firsthand experience, if you really want to go down this extreme niche (as Jon's lack of awareness attests ;) ), would be the OMAS. No metal at the nib to corrode and lose plating and look ugly, and it probably doesn't dry out like the GvFC does. And of course the section and barrel are lined with plastic.

[Jon Szanto]

I found a couple of photos I took of Stylo-Art pens when at the 2016 LA Pen Show. Gives an idea of the range of woods. I've linked to fairly hi-res pics so you can open image in another tab/window and zoom in if you want to see info or wood grain.


https://i.imgur.com/mJYOnfW.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/kAasFi8.jpg

[christof]

I find Hakase pens in African Ebony very tempting:

https://fp-hakase.com/en/works/gw15f/

But I don't know if it's in your price range. ...looks quite expensive.

[RWS]

If you are prepared to buy from Europe, you could look at

https://www.leonardslattery.ie/scriobh-pens in Ireland

or on Etsy, RueDuStylo in France have some amazing wooden pens, with and withour urushi lacquer.

[christof]

Also Pilote made several very nice wooden pens:

- Custom
- Custom Kaede
- Custom Grandee
-...and there are even models of the capless in different woods!

[TSherbs]

You folks are so awesome. Bonanza!

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[TSherbs]

I have to go to work now, but I will get back to these later . ...

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[Yazeh]

Alternatively, you can buy a cheaper version, from one out our new members and see if you like it :D
https://whiskycaskproducts.co.uk/shop/

[Yazeh]

Pierre from Desiderata does also this one. (https://www.desideratapens.com/pens/soubriquet-eb)

[grainweevil]

This may be unpopular, but what the heck:

I like wood. A lot. When I was able, I tortured trees for fun with hand tools so I could better hear their screams. But I think it's a lousy material for a pen. It moves. it splits. Unless it's so loaded with resin to make it stable, at which point it might as well be plastic anyway. Even if it's just a veneer on a core, which is the kit pen way and many others, it will likely split. And it will absorb oils from your hand and end up looking naff, unless, again, it's so finished as it might as well be plastic. Get a pen holder in wood. Or a tray. Or a rocker blotter. Or, heck, a desk. But a pen? Nah, much better choices of material available.

[Empty_of_Clouds]

Wood seems to work fine for dip pens. Just sayin'

[Jon Szanto]

And it will absorb oils from your hand and end up looking naff, unless, again, it's so finished as it might as well be plastic. Get a pen holder in wood. Or a tray. Or a rocker blotter. Or, heck, a desk. But a pen? Nah, much better choices of material available.

I'm kind of glad I didn't have this advice before I made a purchase from Ryan Krusac 3 years+ ago. That is after looking at his pens for a couple years (at shows) and discussing with him. I ended up shooting a couple of quick photos the other day for a different use, but they fit here perfectly: an RK Legend in California bucket burl. Hand and orange oils are the only things that have touched it in my use of the pen, and there is no degradation, only a maturing. I'm fine if it ends up being the only wood pen I own, and I'm happy to have it in the mix.


https://i.imgur.com/kvqfFYTl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/EQFWABSl.jpg

[grainweevil]

Wood seems to work fine for dip pens. Just sayin'

Yeah, I've made a few. Have you come across one that doesn't rely on metal to hold the nib?

It occurs to me that folks may not know about stabilised wood pen blanks, so a link (https://www.exoticblanks.com/Stabilized-Wood-Pen-Blanks/) and a quote from same (my bold):

Stabilizing is a process that impregnates the wood pen blank or burl blank with stabilizing resins and renders it into an ideal plastic like turning blank.

If Mr Krusac isn't using such stabilised wood I'd be very much surprised. If you like it, no worries, but equally if you like the tactile nature of wood I stand by my view that a pen is not the ideal way to enjoy it.

[Jon Szanto]

If Mr Krusac isn't using such stabilised wood I'd be very much surprised. If you like it, no worries, but equally if you like the tactile nature of wood I stand by my view that a pen is not the ideal way to enjoy it.

Oh, I'm fairly certain it is stabilized in some way, he may have mentioned that. Nonetheless, it is wood and feels like wood in my hands and, most importantly, feels like no other of my pens, nor does it look like any of the others. It is unique.

And as to how best to enjoy the tactile aspects, maybe we should just be at variance. I have held thousands of drumsticks in my hands, having played for six of my seven decades on Earth. I know, intimately and abundantly, what wood-in-hand is like. The pen is another aspect of that relationship.

[TSherbs]

Wow, beautiful pen, Jon!

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[TSherbs]

Grainweevil, thanks for your comments. I trust the quality wooden penmakers to know how to do all this well. There are lots of great pens out there, especially for under $500. I won't be disappointed, whatever I might end up choosing.

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[TSherbs]

Does the all-wooden look of this make some of you worried about longevity?
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210930/05400108de6529c070d86a423f798bb8.jpg

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[silverlifter]

It's difficult to say at that scale: you can't really see the craftsmanship.

One thing that I would be concerned about, assuming they are, is the wooden threads. But if the wood is hard enough, and well-treated, they should be OK, I suppose.

[TSherbs]

I wasn't thinking of buying it; I just wondered if it is this kind of wooden section that people don't trust. It seems fairly clear that the wood has been treated, but, sure, the details matter.

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[TSherbs]

If Mr Krusac isn't using such stabilised wood I'd be very much surprised. If you like it, no worries, but equally if you like the tactile nature of wood I stand by my view that a pen is not the ideal way to enjoy it.

Oh, I'm fairly certain it is stabilized in some way, he may have mentioned that. Nonetheless, it is wood and feels like wood in my hands and, most importantly, feels like no other of my pens, nor does it look like any of the others. It is unique.

And as to how best to enjoy the tactile aspects, maybe we should just be at variance. I have held thousands of drumsticks in my hands, having played for six of my seven decades on Earth. I know, intimately and abundantly, what wood-in-hand is like. The pen is another aspect of that relationship.You should write sales copy for wood pen makers!

That's what I'm talkin bout!

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[fountainpenkid]

The durability and appropriateness of wood for pens is an interesting consideration to me, coming at it from a slightly different but still musical angle to Jon. As a violinist, I have a French bow from the late 19th century--pernambuco and ebony pieces handled with tamed force for over a century. The ebony hardly shows any wear--certainly no cracking--while the pernambuco is a bit blackened and split in some places. This seems to be common for fine bows of this age, most of which have been taken care of to a greater extent than most well-used pens would be--relatively temperature and humidity controlled, placed carefully into a case and not knocked around on a table etc. Conversely, you could look at this and say, some wood is perfectly capable of making a pen. I subscribed to the latter when I purchased my GvFC, and it held true for the year I had it, at least.

[amk]

Ebonite or resin sections are the way to go. I have a Platinum 3776 Briar, and love it to bits. A really stunning pen, dark burl wood and black section. Same with the Man 100 Watermans - briar and ebonite, and the nibs are really good in my opinion; also come in olivewood, natural or stained.

Matthieu Faivet in France has made some wooden pens too; https://www.faivet.net/accueil/hokkaido
He uses a wide selection of woods, with wooden sections. I don't have one but I know from friends in the French pen scene that he's well regarded.

[grainweevil]

...maybe we should just be at variance.

Happy to meet you for a cuppa at Café Variance any time, Jon. :tea: :D

Before I go and book a table, if any reader is bored enough, here's a story: Twenty odd years ago I met a patternmaker who apprenticed at Bristol Aero Engines. Patternmakers make, or used to, the initial shapes to make the moulds for castings, and they used to use solid wood to do it. The finest, tightest grain stuff, of the highest quality. It will also help to know that Bristol is not renowned for its dry climate. So this gentlemen, who was a lovely fellow sadly struck down by emphysema, told me about his apprenticeship and how the patternmaking shop was humidity controlled to keep the work stable and so forth. Sizes are crucial, because not only are you making something to fit, you're making it with the allowance for the shrinkage of the metal when it cools. (There are such things as patternmaker's rules that have different scales on them, the inches varying in length depending whether you were measuring your pattern for bronze, or brass, or whathaveyou, and the differences are mere tiny fractions of an inch. Enough to get you in trouble if you use a pattermaker's rule in error mind you...) Anyhow, he went on to tell me how he'd made this chest to hold his tools - whether an official apprentice piece or a lunch break kinda deal, I can't recall - with all these beautiful piston fit drawers that were made to such perfect tolerances that if you pushed one drawer closed a bit too fast, the others were popped out just a touch by the air pressure. Basically a chest such as we'd all love to have to keep our pens in, except perhaps the celluloid ones. Anyway, time came that he left the firm and took his tools in their tool chest back to his home in Bristol. Next day he went to open one of the drawers and... it was stuck fast. Every drawer was absolutely totally and immovably wedged together; the dry timber from the humidity controlled workshop had drunk in the soggy air of Bristol and swelled everything shut. With considerable sorrow, even some 40 years later, he explained how he'd had to basically pull his tool chest to bits in order to reclaim his tools. Now imagine that with a pen cap and barrel or section and nib, and you can readily understand why making wooden pens is inevitably an exercise in making a pen despite the wood. To me this makes wood a last resort choice of material; for others, not so. S'okay, we can all have a cup of tea at Café Variance. Except you might want coffee. We can disagree on that too. ;)

[TSherbs]

Ebonite or resin sections are the way to go. I have a Platinum 3776 Briar, and love it to bits. A really stunning pen, dark burl wood and black section. Same with the Man 100 Watermans - briar and ebonite, and the nibs are really good in my opinion; also come in olivewood, natural or stained.

Matthieu Faivet in France has made some wooden pens too; https://www.faivet.net/accueil/hokkaido
He uses a wide selection of woods, with wooden sections. I don't have one but I know from friends in the French pen scene that he's well regarded.

Those French pens, indeed, are beautiful. The 3776 in Briarwood is lovely, too.

Thx, amk.

[Jon Szanto]

...maybe we should just be at variance.

Happy to meet you for a cuppa at Café Variance any time, Jon. :tea: :D

A happy meeting, and I'll certainly get the first round. If any eyebrows raise, it might be over an ask (on my part) for Irish breakfast tea, but I have no doubt that any small bumps in the road can be smoothed out.

Thank you for that story. As I mentioned, many of the instruments I deal with are wooden in composition. Adapting to climate has always been an awareness.

[amk]

I don't know how I didn't mention the custom Kaede which Christof listed - that's another lovely wooden pen. I don't have one, but I had the chance to play with one at a Paris pen meet and it is on my Grail list - lovely pen, lovely nib, really gorgeous.

[TSherbs]

Yes, I have seen pics of that pen. It is beautiful.

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[TSherbs]

this isn't a wooden pen, but damn! it is gorgeous!

Wancher Sekai Byakudan-Nuri


https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0003/8371/3324/products/IMG_0621_addedgold_900x.jpg?v=1618964672

[Chrissy]

That is a fabulous looking pen TSherbs. What is it made from? Plastic? Bamboo? Bamboo can be as good looking as wood when made into pens. :)

[TSherbs]

Urushi and gold foil layers over....something? This is the process:


>>>What is Byakudan-nuri?

白檀 (Byakudan) translates as Sandalwood. It is said that this technique is named Byakudan-nuri because it resembled the amber color of Sandalwood.

A complicated process along with a meticulous handcraft is required to create a Byakudan-nuri artwork.

The first step is to apply a coating layer as a base, then an immediate Urushi layer is painted on top and swiftly, but surely sharpened smooth.
Afterward, paper-thin gold or silver foil is pressed onto the surface of the object and then coated with a layer of Suki Urushi (transparent Urushi lacquer).
After it dries, other transparent candy-colored Urushi layers will be applied.
The last, but also crucial step, is to polish the object until it's glossy.

To make the Urushi stand out on a pen body, each Urushi layer is coated in a spiral pattern. Therefore, the Byakudan-nuri looks like it is floating on the surface of the pen with a smooth transition of the brush lines throughout the pen. <<<



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[TSherbs]

Ooo, baby!

What's this I see?https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20211013/c8f57db6661dfbfbacf376121ea98099.jpg

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[Jon Szanto]

Ooo, baby!

What's this I see?https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20211013/c8f57db6661dfbfbacf376121ea98099.jpg

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Are those the new pens they posted today with Falcon (Elabo) and Elite nibs? Yeah, those are really nice. I can't tell if the barrel reduction at the end is to allow posting or just a design element.

[TSherbs]

Ooo, baby!

What's this I see?https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20211013/c8f57db6661dfbfbacf376121ea98099.jpg

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Are those the new pens they posted today with Falcon (Elabo) and Elite nibs? Yeah, those are really nice. I can't tell if the barrel reduction at the end is to allow posting or just a design element.Yes, from today's posting. But I did not pursue it any further. I don't know what pen or nib. I just saw beautiful wood and was gawking.

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[Jon Szanto]

Yes, from today's posting. But I did not pursue it any further. I don't know what pen or nib. I just saw beautiful wood and was gawking.

I have had a continual jonesing for a particular wood they do occasional, this grey, striped ash that is apparently from trees that have been at the bottom of a lake for decades. Maybe the LA pen show this year...

[TSherbs]

Yes, from today's posting. But I did not pursue it any further. I don't know what pen or nib. I just saw beautiful wood and was gawking.

I have had a continual jonesing for a particular wood they do occasional, this grey, striped ash that is apparently from trees that have been at the bottom of a lake for decades. Maybe the LA pen show this year...Gak! Don't tell me these kinds of things! ;)

Sounds way cool!

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[TSherbs]

Just saw these....wow!https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20211028/6e2225b703189c5b79698a4745672af1.jpg

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[Chrissy]

I was looking for something on Amazon UK this morning and this rather nice wooden pen appeared (https://www.amazon.co.uk/JINHAO-Natural-Fountain-Handmade-Rosewood/dp/B08R5T8F68/ref=sr_1_3_sspa?crid=3US038COZ7Q7E&dchild=1&keywords=JINHAO+9056+Fountain+Pen&qid=1635838844&sprefix=jinhao+9056+fountain+pen%2Caps%2C115&sr=8-3-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExTklETkNHS1VIVVBaJ mVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODcwMzY2M0xTTkRIUEU0RjM4WSZlbmN yeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNTQ0Mjc1M0lLNU9CMDhXMEJIOSZ3aWRnZ XROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05 vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=). It's a Jinhao 9056 but it looks nice and chunky with a decent section and comes with a variety of nib tip widths. Although that section isn't wood it isn't metal either. It looked like a decent wooden pen and I thought of you as soon as I saw it.

One thing to be aware of with a wooden section is that it will darken more than the barrel as you write with it and you might run into problems when trying to clean it out as it probably wouldn't react well to soaking in any liquid. Maybe that's why most wooden pens aren't made with wooden sections?

If you wanted to find it somewhere else than I bet you could find it with that reference number. It may not actually be available in rosewood as I think that is now a protected species. Whether or not that is the case in China I'm not sure.

[jdwhitak]

For owners of wooden pens, have you had any problems with expansion, shrinkage, cracking, or warping? Any other problems? Does humidity have to be controlled for? Looking at buying a Sailor Kirikane that is made out of ebony. Want to know what I might be signing up for.

[Dougc]

You might look at Cypress pens. I have an Applewood pen from them that is nice.

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[Roe D Hym]

For owners of wooden pens, have you had any problems with expansion, shrinkage, cracking, or warping? Any other problems? Does humidity have to be controlled for? Looking at buying a Sailor Kirikane that is made out of ebony. Want to know what I might be signing up for.

If the wood has been well seasoned there should not be any issue, especially if it sealed (urethane, lacquer, etc.). Extreme humidity levels (desert or rainforest levels)may pose a challenge. I turned a few pens a few years ago (D.nigra and D.retusa--Brazilian Rosewood and Cocobolo) and have not had any problems but I keep my place in the 40-60% humidity range.

As to "rosewood" pens sold on the market. Many woods sold as "rosewood" or "mahogany" are not true rosewoods or mahogany but different genus/species that have "qualities of" rosewood and mahogany. That is why it is important to get the genus/species name (hence why I used Dalbergia nigra and retusa in the above). Additionally, as far as I know, the CITES restrictions (Appendix II) on rosewoods remains intact (variance allowed for musical instruments) and to import and export one needs to do a lot of paperwork. I would bet the Jinhao "rosewood" is not from the Dalbergia genus but is some local junk wood being sold as a "rosewood" (amazing what wood stain can do to junk wood). The pen at UK Amazon looks like the kits sold at Woodcraft and Rockler. My experience with them is....they are OK and the reason to use them is because you spent time turning the wood and need to have something to show for the work done.