Is there such a thing as the perfect pen ?

[Kikan]

Hello fellow Fpgeeks :wave:.

I would like to share with you my humble thoughts about my own journey for the quest of finding the perfect pen.

Since the beginning of falling in love with this wonderful hobby, or rather an obsession. I always thought that I would someday find the perfect pen. It would shine and glow as if a divine light struck down upon it from the heavens. That journey was filled with cherished memories. Remembering snippets of moments. Quietly scribbling my thoughts down on paper. As if they were like little droplets of water gently falling down on the page, and taking shapes of letters and words. The nib would guide them in the shape of a flowing river. Connecting them all to form a complete thought. I often dream while I write. The experience of writing with fountain pen at times can be almost magical to me. A little grin is plastered on my face as I keep scribbling on. Some pens are big and some are small with little cute nibs or even big ones that will leave you in both shock and awe. Few are black adorned with gold classic looking not matter how old. Many are colored and designed by emotions beaming bright full of life and utterly deserving of adoration.

I would like to begin with my chosen candidate of the perfect pen..

The Lamy 2000

- Modern design even by today's standards which is no small feat

- Fit and finish are top notch almost invisible to the naked eye

- Piston filler with a 1.0 + ml in capacity with an Ink Window to boot

- Semi hooded nib wet and always ready for action when uncapped from my personal experience

- Reliable click cap that leaves little to be desired. Posts solidly and still maintains a good 50/50 balance

- can be fully disassembled for cleaning if need be with little use of tools

- Material is durable and comes pre-scratched so your sensitive heart can withstand taking this pen outside of the house to see the light of day

- Feels very good in the hand if the little nobs on the sides of the pen don't bother you or you simply grip somewhere else entirely so you didn't notice them

- Wonderfully tapered design

- Amazing value for your money

I can Honestly say this pen came as close to perfection as you can get. I was so amazed by this pen I actually got 3 of them. One has a Broad nib for general writing purposes at work. Another with an Extra Fine nib for correcting papers, and finally one is a 0.5 mm Mechanical pencil for writing the grades down and doing small detail work.

I always thought that Pelikan made the best pistons, and Visconti made the coolest of designs, and sailor made the best of nibs, and Nakaya made the prettiest of living art, and if all of them were to be combined together that would be *The Perfect Pen*. But I wonder. If there is such a thing as the perfect pen out there. Would you love that pen ?

For me The Lamy 2000 is simply perfection on a plate. It's a perfectly engineered and works like a well oiled machine. Simply flawless. It's so perfect that it became something cold and emotionless. The pen is perfectly logical in design, but just like little flaws in our lives, rooms, looks maybe even the way we speak or eat. They make us unique. They make us who we are. Everyone is unique and different because we are inherently imperfect, but that's actually what we love. We love our families because they are different we recognize them and see them in a different light than everyone else. They mean something special to us and to us alone. the same can be said for our siblings, children and friends. We love them for who they are flaws and all. There is a reason for that. There is a reason why everyone else loves a different pen. It may not be a perfect pen to us or even perhaps to them either, but when you love something or someone. All the flaws melt away because it is what they love.

Some people love Montblanc's. It doesn't make them perfect pens regardless of how many times they will stamp the word Meisterstuck *Master Piece* on their cap bands. They may not be perfect, but perhaps they hold sentimental value, perhaps they simply love the pen or the design speaks to them. Maybe the pen simply called out their names and they fell in love with them. Who knows...

The same story can be said of any fountain pen company out there. The truth is we all fell in love with fountain pens or at least writing with them as life long partner. Be it a Sheaffer snorkel where you dream of shooting streams of ink on your mean boss for having you do overtime, or a Parker 51 that has a better chance of surviving a nuclear holocaust than the human race combined together. Maybe even Visconti homo sapiens where you dream of throwing it in the fire and seeing if it actually burns it or stays perfectly pristine afterwords * Joking of course don't do that ;)*. And who can forget the all time favorite pilot vanishing point that has loudest most annoying clicking sounds that can drive people insane from repeated deployment :rofl:.

What I'm trying to say here is that.. we should forget looking for the perfect pen, and start looking for the pen we love :redface:

I have revealed what I believe to be the perfect pen, but I have yet to do the same with the pen I love :eek:

My all time favorite and my most beloved pen in my modest collection... Parker VP Blue double end jewels silver cap and gold plated clip with two nibs - Arabic cursive italic No.83 which is basically a very sharp cursive italic of 1.3-1.5mm width, and a Executive Extra Broad semi-flex ground to a stub nib No.88 :o I simply adore this pen

Thank you for reading :) I hope that you share which pen you absolutely love ;)

[ac12]

It is all relative to how "perfect" is defined.
So yes, there can be and probably are prefect pens. Perfect to the people who like it, but may not be perfect to others.
Example, your perfect pen is a rejected pen for me. The L-2000 is too FAT and HEAVY for my likes, so it was rejected from use as a writer, and relegated to my collection, just to be looked at. If the Lamy-2000 was smaller, like a Parker 45, I would probably change my opinion of it.

[Laura N]

That was a nice essay. I agree with you and ac12 that everyone has their own ideas and preferences. I don't think I have one perfect pen, or even several. I do enjoy a great many.

Perhaps for me the perfect is the enemy of the good?

Some pen favorites: Aurora Optima, Pelikan M600, Pelikan Toledo, Montblancs of the 146-size, Sailor Professional Gear and Professional Gear Slim, Lamy Safari, Lamy 2000, Parker 51, many other vintage Parkers, some Edisons, and any pens gifted to me over the years. Oh and no doubt some others I've forgotten to mention.

[mhosea]

For me part of the joy of pendom is variety, variety of both pen and ink. Looking for a perfect pen doesn't work for me, nor does looking for a pen to love the most. Of course I look for pens that I will love, or that are, in some sense, "perfect" for me, but trying to find some singular example of either just doesn't compute. Why would I want a goal that is implicitly designed NOT to enjoy diversity?

[GING GING]

This is the perfect pen; for now.14044

[ac12]

The other complication is, even for a person, perfect is subject to "it depends" concept.
It depends on what I am going to use it for.
It is like the old saying "jack of all trades, master of none."
So I would rather have several different GOOD pens for the different needs/specialties, rather than a "master of none" that is difficult to use or a bad fit for some tasks.

[KBeezie]

It's really going to depend, for example I don't consider Lamy 2K the perfect pen unless I also got the perfect nibmeister to go with it and tune it to myself and then alter the pen in such a way that it's no longer a Lamy 2000.

I find that there's not a perfect pen for every situation, some damn nice ones though. And some situations a C/C is perfect.

I like the way ac12 put it with the phrase I've used before, the jack of all trades, master of none one. Likewise I'd like a few different pens for different situations, especially between home, school, pocket, comfort, fun etc.

[Jeph]

There is a perfect pen.
What that means will vary from person to person and even over time for the same person.
I hope that I never find mine, becasue what would be the point after that?
The fun is in the search and the variety.

[Jon Szanto]

http://th09.deviantart.net/fs71/PRE/i/2013/074/1/d/there_is_no_spoon_by_maristane-d5y61ov.jpg

[KBeezie]

There is a perfect pen.
What that means will vary from person to person and even over time for the same person.
I hope that I never find mine, becasue what would be the point after that?
The fun is in the search and the variety.

To brag about it until someone murders you from the annoyance...

[manoeuver]

within reach and inked. perfect.

[Waski_the_Squirrel]

I have a number of pens I like, and a few I really love. But, I don't think there is a perfect pen. A pen may be perfect for a certain job, but not another. It may display one ink beautifully, but not another. My two Pilot pens are easily my favorites, with my Noodler's Konrads close behind. But none of them are perfect for all things.

[Curtisvan]

Has to be my Murex long pen. It always writes it's hard to scratch since it's stainless and I can toss it in a bag or accidentally drop it and it's still ready. Gotta be my Murex.

[jar]

I have been lucky enough to have found hundreds of perfect pens.

[mmahany]

The Montblanc Meisterstuck 164 Ballpoint is the "Perfect Pen."

Using only QUANTIFIABLE evidence, I challenge anyone to disprove that theory.

-Aside from differing materials, the Meisterstuck design has remained the same for nearly 100 years.
-It’s a pen often gifted to mark a life event: first job, promotion, or a college graduation.
-It’s arguably the most recognizable pen ever made.
-It’s the most commonly replicated (faked) pen
-It’s the most commonly imitated (not to be confused with “replicated”) pen

Of note: It's not my personal favorite pen, but that doesn't matter for the sake of this argument.

[Jon Szanto]

The Montblanc Meisterstuck 164 Ballpoint is the "Perfect Pen."

Using only QUANTIFIABLE evidence, I challenge anyone to disprove that theory.

If perfection was a quantifiable condition, your premise would make sense. However...

[mtnbiker62]

Yes, there is a perfect pen, but you will never find it. Instead, you will wander to and fro, spending insane amounts of money on countless numbers of pens in your fruitless attempt to find it. :)

[Sailor Kenshin]

And don't even mention INK.

It's possible I may have stepped off the curb.

[Hawk]

My perfect pen depends on my mood, the day, what I'm going to do that day etc. Sometimes it's a cheap pen that was cobbled together from parts (today's pen) and sometimes it is an expensive pen or an old pen. And with my collection, I can be happy with the best pen of the day.

[mhosea]

I've just decided that my Montblanc 146 F and Pelikan M800 EF are both perfect pens. Consequently, I want more Montblanc 146's and more Pelikan M800's.

[Newjelan]

Not sure there is a perfect pen although my Pilot Custom Heritage 92 demo is pretty close. There is a perfect brand though: PILOT.

[mhosea]

I've just decided that my Montblanc 146 F and Pelikan M800 EF are both perfect pens. Consequently, I want more Montblanc 146's and more Pelikan M800's.

Oops. Today it's a Parker Vacumatic major, though I'm overlooking the tiny grip section because I'm not gripping it down there. Now I want more Vacs. :)

[RuiFromUK]

Yes. My perfect pen is always the latest one I get until I find another one 'more' perfect.

[Laura N]

Yes. My perfect pen is always the latest one I get until I find another one 'more' perfect.

Funny how that works.

My next pen is always my last pen.

[mmahany]

The Montblanc Meisterstuck 164 Ballpoint is the "Perfect Pen."

Using only QUANTIFIABLE evidence, I challenge anyone to disprove that theory.

If perfection was a quantifiable condition, your premise would make sense. However...

You seem like a smart guy. I figured people like you could infer from my quotes around "Perfect Pen" that I was merely relating to the thread title.

If I need to be more descriptive to help: What I was attempting say was that the Montblanc Meisterstuck has changed little over the past 100 years. It's a pen desired and easily recognized by a very large audience that spans beyond its target selling audience.

In addition it's the most commonly replicated/faked pen and the most commonly immitated (not to be confused).

Ultimately, the pen has been in high demand for a full century with only minimal changes throughout that time. The Parker 51 came and went, and the Sheaffer Snorkel was subject to the same fate. Lamy is a pen widely appreciated by the pen community but not quite a household name.

I see those facts as quantifiable evidence to suggest that the Montblanc Meisterstuck is a candidate for the best pen ever made. While "Best" and "Perfect" aren't quantifiable in this particular case, they are terms that simplify the point I'm trying to make without having to write paragraphs on my opinion.

[Jon Szanto]

You seem like a smart guy.

Thanks. And I stand by my original post. You seem to have laid down evidence for, at the very least, the most popular pen of all time. That wasn't the question. I simply take issue with the question itself, being that so many of the elements of the experience of using a pen can't be quantified: they are quite personal.

At one point I bought the perfect home video taping solution: the Sony Beta Hi-Fi. By all measures, it was the superior technology. Nonetheless, VHS outsold it in orders of magnitude, and the format eventually went away. Long after they ceased production, that unit was still recording at a higher quality than any of the VHS machines, but it pretty much didn't matter - market share won.

These questions never have answers, but I certainly concur with your reasoning behind the MB's ubiquity.

[mhosea]

Fortunately, the thread title was a rhetorical question intended to refer to ones personal, and perhaps unique, criteria. I think the OP is being a little dramatic, though. I have lots of pens that I like. I keep a spreadsheet with some indication of which "tier" I hold a pen to be in with respect to how much I enjoy using it.

[Jon Szanto]

Yeah, and I always overthink these things anyway.

I've recently been thinking: I have gathered too many pens that really write well. I mean, I know how it happened, but it is also like I just turned around and... BAM! more pens than I can keep inked up at one time. It feels silly and a bit gluttonous. It is finally time to divest.

Perfect pen? Man, just last night I wrote with three different pens, each a differing experience, and each a delight. I couldn't say which is best, which may explain my reaction to the thread title. Time to make some changes, I think.

[Cob]

I have been lucky enough to have found hundreds of perfect pens.

Me too.

Cob

[Kelley]

I have viewed the Visconti Divina Desert Springs. For me, that would be the perfect pen. However, after dreaming and dreaming, I wake up to "money" realities. After the Visconti, I would also be extremely satisfied with the Delta Chatterly Limited Edition Fusion Star Cage Pearl Revisited. I do agree that the "perfect pen" is relative to the needs of the user. I am just a FP enthusiast, with 46 pens in my small collection. Only a true collector is able to buy the pens desired, for only the true collector has money to play with. For us enthusiasts, the perfect pen is the one we can afford, which will write like butter. In my small collection, those are: Bexley BX802 Cappuccino/Bexley Elegancia; Tourneau MMXV; replica (knock off) Montblanc Thomas Mann with a Knox nib.

[Jon Szanto]

Yeah, and I always overthink these things anyway.

I've recently been thinking...

Time to make some changes, I think.

I see what you did there.

[GING GING]

The Montblanc Meisterstuck 164 Ballpoint is the "Perfect Pen."

Using only QUANTIFIABLE evidence, I challenge anyone to disprove that theory.

If perfection was a quantifiable condition, your premise would make sense. However...
I like what comes after HOWEVER

[pajaro]

The perfect pen. Objectively or subjectively?

Lamy 2000. I liked it except for the bumps to hold the cap on. Uncomfortable.

Others too big, too small or too old fashioned.

You won't like my favorites, or perhaps you might. Parker 51. Montblanc 144, Montblanc 164 ballpoint, Montblanc Generation.

Waterman Laureat. Waterman Phileas. Parker Sonnet. Cross Solo. Sheaffer Imperial Touchdown. Pelikan M400/M200.

Pelikan K200/K400. Parker Big Red Ballpoint.

[holgalee]

I really like the Pilot Custom Heritage 92 and it is the nearest to perfect pen I've ever found. But if it were much cheaper, then it would be perfect as I can get one in each colour! :D

[Newjelan]

I really like the Pilot Custom Heritage 92 and it is the nearest to perfect pen I've ever found. But if it were much cheaper, then it would be perfect as I can get one in each colour! :D

I agree and I did buy one in each colour because no matter the cost, they are worth it.

[heraclitus682]

Yes, the Parker 51 aerometric.

[Jon Szanto]

Yes, the Parker 51 aerometric.

Good grief, one of the most boring looking pens ever made? A great pen, an iconic pen, but hardly perfect.

[chojo]

For me, Perfect is one of those words that needs to be used with caution a bit like love and hate. Simply because, again only in my opinion, it's generally a personal word, a word that is used to describe what you think is the best thing for a particular task. My perfect pen? To be honest i could never have one, as others have said different pens suit different needs. One of the best pens for me would be the jinhao x450. Why? because it was cheap, it wrote well straight out of the box, it felt good in the hand, it was nice to look at. It was also the pen that made me wonder "what if i spent a little more" so i did and i bought a parker sonnet which then became my perfect pen. But i really like the jinhao so i bought a 159 and was wow'd by how good the larger pen felt when i wrote for long periods so that became my perfect pen. I now have over 30 "perfect pens" and if i ever get back to work and start earning again i'll have even more! I think in short the only perfect pen is the one that keeps you writing letters rather than typing all the time. The one that takes your breath away every time you use it. The one that make your friends say "oh my god that's beautiful" when they see you using it and the next day they go and buy a fountain pen too. If it makes you happy then it's perfect!

[Laura N]

Yes, the Parker 51 aerometric.

Good grief, one of the most boring looking pens ever made? A great pen, an iconic pen, but hardly perfect.

My heart breaks to read this. Not the "not perfect" part. The "one of the most boring looking pens ever made" part. :)

Is a 1964 Porsche 911 boring? A 1966 Beetle? Fit for the purpose, no extraneous lines, works beautifully, revolutionary in its time: classic.

I'll actually plump for the 51 Vacumatic as well -- having taken these apart it seems to me that the Vacumatic filler is much more elegant, as a filling system, and the aerometric filler likely surpassed it out for reasons of cost and simplicity, which are excellent business reasons but not very romantic. The vac filler is cool.

[Jon Szanto]

Cordovan Brown.
Buckskin Beige.
Dove Gray.




Quick, dial 911, I'm having a heart from the excitement. And those caps! Did you see the one that has, oh, oh, oh, I think five lines, and then a space, and then five lines again or something? GET OUT!!11!!

<swoon>

[Laura N]

Cordovan Brown.
Buckskin Beige.
Dove Gray.




Quick, dial 911, I'm having a heart from the excitement. And those caps! Did you see the one that has, oh, oh, oh, I think five lines, and then a space, and then five lines again or something? GET OUT!!11!!

<swoon>


Yeah, I don't get into the fascination with the caps either. Nor can I get worked up about the rarer colors, although I'd love a Buckskin Beige if one dropped in my lap. Your comments about the things collectors get worked up about are totally fair.* I still think it's a fabulous design. :)

*But in no way limited to the Parker 51. See, e.g, Nakaya, Montblanc, Pelikan, Nakaya, Nakaya, Nakaya. :)

[Jon Szanto]

Hehe, Laura, just having fun. The same thing that I might term "boring" is a great element in the eyes of others, and indeed, there are people who are over the moon with the tiny differences between differing models of that same pen. I pulled up these two images below as a contrast, but the 'sameness' of the 51 could easily be applied to Sheaffers of the same era, such as the Snorkel and Touchdown models. I understand, historically, the aesthetic shift to those pre-"Mad Men" color schemes and the abandonment of fancy plastics.

Doesn't mean I have to like it. ;)

So, for compare and contrast, and what catches my eye and doesn't:


14127
14126

[Laura N]

Dearest Jon,

I'm enjoying the fun, too.

To be fair, I have one drawer that looks like your first picture.

And I have one drawer that looks like your second. :)

Both are examples of perfect pens!

[Cob]

Yes, the Parker 51 aerometric.

Good grief, one of the most boring looking pens ever made? A great pen, an iconic pen, but hardly perfect.

Is a 1964 Porsche 911 boring? A 1966 Beetle? [...]

No the Porsche is not boring; exciting in fact - bloody dangerous I should say (I used to work on them) - for all except the most skilled and brave drivers.
The VW is profoundly reliable and profoundly boring (and often very rusty)

Cob

[top pen]

A Parker Sonnet with fine nib will do me fine. I can't really see myself splurging hundreds of pounds more on pens I hoping I will find the elusive perfect pen.

I do at least now what I like at least know.



Classic styling
Smaller size and M200 size nib
Light weight
A nib springy with a little give
A 1.3cm section
A model with a bit of history
Piston filler




These specs probably sum up the M600 however the sonnet costs 1/4 of the price and still is a great pen.

[HughC]

For some the perfect pen exists....for others like pen addicts...it's still "out there"!!

The features I prefer include a good clip ( preferably spring loaded) , post well and stays posted, a slip cap, suit my style of writing and is durable and elegant. Being keen on Sheaffers they dominate my candidates which include the metal Imperials ( including my 797 which is my carry pen) , my PFM V, Legacy Heritage , my favorite TM TD Sentinal and the only no Sheaffer, my Caran D'Ache Madison which I recently acquired. Of course my "closet to perfect" pen to use isn't on the list nor has most of the featured I supposedly need !! It's a late '70's all plastic (Australian made) Imperial desk pen, perfect weight and balance for long use, a superb nib and with the matching BP sits in a massive black holder that has simple class and elegance ( despite being half buried on my desk...). Being a 50yr commemorative set for Cadbury chocolates doesn't distract either....yum, yum..

A close second comes my Sheaffer 797 Imperial just ahead of my TM Sentinel.

Regards
Hugh

[franzdimson]

Loving this thread. =)

In my opinion, the Perfect Pen totally depends on the person who is looking for one.

The Lamy 2000 is a great pen! In fact, I've been using it at work for the past 2 weeks now. But would I regard it as the perfect pen? Don't think so. Close, but not really. What makes it not my perfect pen? The smaller section girth, the sweet spot of the nib. But that's my gripe about it.

For me, the perfect pen is my Pelikan M805 Blue striated with a medium cursive italic nib my Mike Masuyama. If I need to choose one pen and let go of other pens I have in my collection, this would be it. I can say that whole heartedly.

I can definitely try and convince another person to see it my way but, why?

[Jon Szanto]

I can definitely try and convince another person to see it my way but, why?

Xact. Very well said, Franz.

Oh, BTW: while you are getting OCD about your typos, it should read "by Mike Masuyama"...

[tandaina]

Perfect pen depends on the person using it, and the situation in which it is being used. The perfect pen for one person and situation will be a horrible match for another person, or the same person in a different situation.

My travel pens, journaling pens, work pens, all different niches. And I'm my own niche. What works for me might not work for you at all. What you love, I might hate.

I like Black German Pens. I don't care if they are "boring." I don't care for Visconti, but for many people one of those might be their perfect pen. The most perfect pen I own, *for me* for the most situations possible is my Nakaya. But it is *not* the perfect pen for me when traveling, too expensive. See? All is flux and this is why we have an excuse to own lots of pens. ;)

[rdcalhoon]

If a pen is a tool, then clearly there can never be a perfect pen. A roofing hammer is very different than a silversmith's hammer. One would be tossed aside in disgust it used for the other's designed task.

If a perfect pen delivers a perfect writing experience, then we can all aspire to the perfect pen, but only for a fleeting moment, just as one experiences a perfect summer day.

Everyone's perfect summer day is built on different factors; mood, companions, activities, weather, location, scenery, food & drink, whatever. My perfect summer day may be very different from yours, but we both recognize the concept. And my idea of a perfect summer day has changed over the years.

I would be pleased if I can find a variety of near-perfect pens; one for making notes in my pocket notebook while hunched over to block the falling mist, one for correspondence, one for note taking at meetings and workshops, one for journaling, and one to use at the desk for random notes and phone conversations.

And once in a while the ink, paper, pen, my mood, the day, my task, and the world may come together and I'll think "what a perfect pen this is".

[Mags]

I doubt the perfect pen exists for every person but my Opera Master Limited Edition Demonstrator has my stamp of grail status and a simple Targa from my grandmother is the one other pen I will keep after selling a giving all others away to friends and family when my hands wont hold them any longer.

[Mags]

Loving this thread. =)

In my opinion, the Perfect Pen totally depends on the person who is looking for one.

The Lamy 2000 is a great pen! In fact, I've been using it at work for the past 2 weeks now. But would I regard it as the perfect pen? Don't think so. Close, but not really. What makes it not my perfect pen? The smaller section girth, the sweet spot of the nib. But that's my gripe about it.

For me, the perfect pen is my Pelikan M805 Blue striated with a medium cursive italic nib my Mike Masuyama. If I need to choose one pen and let go of other pens I have in my collection, this would be it. I can say that whole heartedly.

I can definitely try and convince another person to see it my way but, why?

You are in good company as I have often heard it said that the M800 is the perfect pen. I like the 800 a lot and have resisted selling mine whenever asked to let it go to a new home.

[GING GING]

Hehe, Laura, just having fun. The same thing that I might term "boring" is a great element in the eyes of others, and indeed, there are people who are over the moon with the tiny differences between differing models of that same pen. I pulled up these two images below as a contrast, but the 'sameness' of the 51 could easily be applied to Sheaffers of the same era, such as the Snorkel and Touchdown models. I understand, historically, the aesthetic shift to those pre-"Mad Men" color schemes and the abandonment of fancy plastics.

Doesn't mean I have to like it. ;)

So, for compare and contrast, and what catches my eye and doesn't:


14127
14126

I have one parker that is all busted up, and you have a pant load that are all pristine. Just ain't fair

[Laura N]

I have one parker that is all busted up, and you have a pant load that are all pristine. Just ain't fair

The 51s aren't his, if it makes you feel any better. :)

[Jon Szanto]

I have one parker that is all busted up, and you have a pant load that are all pristine. Just ain't fair

The 51s aren't his, if it makes you feel any better. :)

She's right, GG - I just pulled two similar pix from the web for illustration. In fact, in the nearly 5 years since I've gotten into pens, I hadn't a 51 of my own until 2 months ago. And I got two on the same day. I don't think I need any more.

[ChrisC]

I think that the CONID bulkfiller has basically no disadvantages. I've never used one, but it has a number of things going for it:

1. good girth
2. good nib
3. durable, capacious, and exciting ink filing system
4. easy disassembly
5. I understand that its filling system has a minimum of proprietary parts, meaning that it will still be serviceable even if the company disappeared (correct me if I'm wrong)
6. postable (balanced when doing so?)

[shudaizi]

I think that the CONID bulkfiller has basically no disadvantages. I've never used one, but it has a number of things going for it:

1. good girth
2. good nib
3. durable, capacious, and exciting ink filing system
4. easy disassembly
5. I understand that its filling system has a minimum of proprietary parts, meaning that it will still be serviceable even if the company disappeared (correct me if I'm wrong)
6. postable (balanced when doing so?)

On #6, it is postable and usable, more so than many pens I've used. But, I greatly prefer it unposted (use it that way 99% of the time). It's just more nimble and enjoyable.

[jde]

The perfect pen, of course, is the one that's loved.

[Snargle]

The perfect pen is the one I don't have yet!

[pajaro]

Perfect for what? To posess and look at? To collect as rare or common? Something easy to use? Something the right size for its user?

From the fifties to the nineties I thought the Parker 51 aerometric was the only pen worth having. I acquired scores of them. Then sold many and gave some away. After about 2009 I joined fora and then tried a lot of pens, because I have always been fascinated by pens. Many came and went. It seems I have a couple of hundred pens and most are OK. I really just like the pens, and don't care to write much at all. It's all just a hoard. They are more perfect to the extent that they require less fussing with to make them work. It's all kind of crazy. I want them to work, but I think writing is drudgery.