Horror Stories About Fountain Pens??

[Anne]

I have heard the advice of not passing your fountain pen around, but...

Have you ever done this and have a story you wouldn't mind sharing?
Maybe not a horror story, but a Funny story about letting a non-fountain pen user hold OR use your fountain pen.
I have let people write with mine ( and I try not to hover over them like they are holding my first born ).

Disclaimer: I am in no way advocating Not letting non-fountain pen users experience what we all love about them. After all, that is how we recruit more Fountain Pen Lovers!

[jar]

I've never had any problems letting folk use my pens but they do get a short course along with the experience.

[pajaro]

My wife wanted to use my favorite Montblanc 144 bordeaux pen to do wedding invitations. I was anxious about it, needlessly. I don't let outsiders use my pens now, because I don't want their germs.

[gbryal]

I gifted a pen on two occasions to my friend and on both he popped off the cap and got ink all over his hands. Don't know if that's on me, him, or the pen, but it never happened to me.

[Anne]

My wife wanted to use my favorite Montblanc 144 bordeaux pen to do wedding invitations. I was anxious about it, needlessly. I don't let outsiders use my pens now, because I don't want their germs.

Yes - I didn't think of that. I haven't let anyone I didn't know use my pen. I might discreetly clean it when they weren't looking! LOL
I agree with jar too though, it's a good idea to give them instruction.
Does your wife now use fountain pens?

[Anne]

I've never had any problems letting folk use my pens but they do get a short course along with the experience.

I think that is a great idea. This way they don't have hurt feelings being taught how to handle them and they don't hurt your pen either!
I think I remember telling someone once, "...you just don't press down hard with a fountain pen" ( especially if it doesn't write right away! ).

[Anne]

I gifted a pen on two occasions to my friend and on both he popped off the cap and got ink all over his hands. Don't know if that's on me, him, or the pen, but it never happened to me.

Oh yikes!

[Kaputnik]

Not exactly, since I rarely lend one to someone who just needs something to write with. If I lend them something at all, a ballpoint will do, and even then I have a bit of an attitude about the sort of person who never carries a pen, assuming they can always borrow one when they need it. But that's another subject.

I have learned not to lay any kind of pens down where people can just grab them. One acquaintance grabbed my FP 78G off a table and tried to yank the cap off, but I stopped him and told him about twist off caps. I let him use it to sign the form that he had, and he didn't do any obvious damage. I have lent fountain pens, and even given inexpensive but good spares to friends who want to learn to write with them. But except for a universal tendency to press too hard at first, there haven't been any disasters. They must have actually listened to what I told them.

But one thing that made me smile was not what someone did, but what he said. A "new guy" at work saw me using one of my fountain pens and said: "A fountain pen? Isn't that a bit much?" When asked what he meant, it emerged that he thought that fountain pens were only for lawyers, high level executives, and the upper classes in general. He also kindly informed me that ballpoints were much smoother writers, and that I should try them.

I didn't offer to lend him one in an effort to change his mind. He didn't last at our company, but the reasons had nothing to do with pens.

[rpsyed]

I've never had any problems letting folk use my pens but they do get a short course along with the experience.

Same. I find just telling them to keep the shiny side up and use light pressure to be enough.

[SeminarianMike]

My friend begged me and begged me to try my montblanc 144 traveler... I finally handed it over he wrote carefully went to hand it back and dropped it! I was all ekkkkk! Thank goodness it wasn't damaged... Still scary! Here's another horror story from early today. I am home for MLK day weekend, I filled up
My traveling ink pot from Visconti to refill my moms pens "really pens she taken off of me" I'm filling up her pen and I realize the converter isn't truly filled 100%. I push the ink back out and start filling the pen not realizing the ink pot is full of pressure. The ink pot shoots off like an ink filled rocket! Noodlers turquoise everywhere

[SeminarianMike]

Sorry for the bad text response! Very tired

[Anne]

Not exactly, since I rarely lend one to someone who just needs something to write with. If I lend them something at all, a ballpoint will do, and even then I have a bit of an attitude about the sort of person who never carries a pen, assuming they can always borrow one when they need it. But that's another subject.

I have learned not to lay any kind of pens down where people can just grab them. One acquaintance grabbed my FP 78G off a table and tried to yank the cap off, but I stopped him and told him about twist off caps. I let him use it to sign the form that he had, and he didn't do any obvious damage. I have lent fountain pens, and even given inexpensive but good spares to friends who want to learn to write with them. But except for a universal tendency to press too hard at first, there haven't been any disasters. They must have actually listened to what I told them.

But one thing that made me smile was not what someone did, but what he said. A "new guy" at work saw me using one of my fountain pens and said: "A fountain pen? Isn't that a bit much?" When asked what he meant, it emerged that he thought that fountain pens were only for lawyers, high level executives, and the upper classes in general. He also kindly informed me that ballpoints were much smoother writers, and that I should try them.

I didn't offer to lend him one in an effort to change his mind. He didn't last at our company, but the reasons had nothing to do with pens.

Oh my...I probably would have rolled my eyes at him!
Hey, I am happy to hear you got friends into fountain pens though!

[Anne]

I've never had any problems letting folk use my pens but they do get a short course along with the experience.

Same. I find just telling them to keep the shiny side up and use light pressure to be enough.

"...shiny side up..." LOL Sage advice though from both of you. Thank You.

[Anne]

My friend begged me and begged me to try my montblanc 144 traveler... I finally handed it over he wrote carefully went to hand it back and dropped it! I was all ekkkkk! Thank goodness it wasn't damaged... Still scary! Here's another horror story from early today. I am home for MLK day weekend, I filled up
My traveling ink pot from Visconti to refill my moms pens "really pens she taken off of me" I'm filling up her pen and I realize the converter isn't truly filled 100%. I push the ink back out and start filling the pen not realizing the ink pot is full of pressure. The ink pot shoots off like an ink filled rocket! Noodlers turquoise everywhere

Oh NO...your friend must have felt terrible. I am so glad the pen was not damaged though, that was so lucky!
About the Ink mishap: I do things like that too. So, did it clean up okay?
Can your Mom thank you for her use of fountain pens?

[Anne]

Sorry for the bad text response! Very tired

No need for apologies at all - there was nothing wrong that I saw. Thank You for sharing your experiences - good or bad I hope you get some rest and enjoy the long weekend!

[stub]

Once had someone actually spring a nib on me (staff at a pen counter! Yikes!). I've also had people violently pull off twist caps. +the usual shiny side down tomfoolery.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Don't know how horrible this story is, and it only involves my own stupidity, but I was interviewing someone for a local paper and taking notes with a Pilot Varsity. During the interview, the pen's cap fell off and rolled under his desk.

I switched to gel pens for that sort of thing, and it was years before I could bring myself to let any of my fountain pens out of the house.

[Anne]

Once had someone actually spring a nib on me (staff at a pen counter! Yikes!). I've also had people violently pull off twist caps. +the usual shiny side down tomfoolery.

Oh my gosh. You would think staff in a store would know better!

[Anne]

Don't know how horrible this story is, and it only involves my own stupidity, but I was interviewing someone for a local paper and taking notes with a Pilot Varsity. During the interview, the pen's cap fell off and rolled under his desk.

I switched to gel pens for that sort of thing, and it was years before I could bring myself to let any of my fountain pens out of the house.

I know how you feel. So far, I have only taken a Lamy Vista out. Thinking that if it gets run over by a truck, it will still be in writing condition ( even if I am not ).
...I know this is beside the point, but did you get the pen cap back?

[SeminarianMike]

I won't let my +100 pens out of my room at the seminary, but! I have no problem taking my twsbi diamond or montreverde to school with me. When other students want to try there hand with a fountain pen I first let them try there hands at a varsity or a platinum preppy... If they show me they can write without hurting a nib I let them try the montreverde as you could nail a house together with their nibs! My fear is other seminarians who use Fp but don't really respect them... If you know what I mean. Cause I'm damned if I let them and damned if I don't lol!