My first fountain pen

[Ciro]

Hello guys, I'm Ciro from Rio, Brazil, and this is my first post in here.
I want to buy my first fountain pen, and, as the comments here are awesome, I would really apreciate your help.
I'm looking for a pen that is very smooth and abble to write as fast as a lightning, without skiping. Secondly,the other features i'm looking for are good resistance (as I plan to carry in my backpack sometimes) and comfort ( as I intend to write with it every day).
As I'm going to use it for writing in thin notebook pages sometimes, the ink cannot go through the page. I prefer finer lines like 0,4.
I'm concentrating on the writing itself, and not to much about the design(except for the lamy's charcoal black safary and logo with black nibs and the faber castell ondoro)
I was thinking about the following models:
INdia INK

At fisrt, for a lower price:

Lamy:
Safari (what is the best, the safari, all-star, and similars...)
Logo
Linea
I wonder if their nibs are all the same for this price range... does anybody know if their black nibs are scratching, because it looks pretty cool... like this one:

http://www.amazon.co...ASIN=B004O7AF2S

Parker:
Urban
Jotter
IM

Sheaffer Agio


Secondly, for a higher price

Faber-Castell Ondoro (I also wonder if all Faber-Castell's nibs are the same at this price range)
Parker 25
Parker Inflection
Waterman Hemisphère
Sheaffer Prelude

So What do you guys think I should pick in therms of cost/effectiveness. Suggestions are also welcome.

Last question, can I somehow use India or the japanese sumi inks in fountain pens without damaging them?
Thank you, I hope that was not very long...

[jar]

Again, no, do not use India or sumi inks in any fountain pen.

[fountainpenkid]

As jar said, stay away from any ink that doesn't say it is for use in fountain pens. You can ruin pens with india ink. I would recommend the TWSBI 540 or the TWSBI mini, but they still have cracking issues. I don't have any experience with pens in that price range so I can't really help you with that....

Best!

[KrazyIvan]

Safari and get some different nibs to play around. Very good starter pen but I am biased since the Safari was technically my starter pen. I like the Parker Urban but never tried one.

As stated, stay away from India ink. It has shellac and will clog your pen.

[gwgtaylor]

Welcome!

Because you mentioned throwing it in your backpack, I'd say use a TWSBI vac 700 or for more money a Pilot Custom Heritage 823. Both are vac fillers with large capacity and both also have a shutoff valve so the pen won't ever leak on a plane or in your bag. Both available with Extra fine nibs. Only pens I can think of that would meet all your needs.

[snedwos]

Or, if you don't like the Safari's grip section, you can try the Nexx, which has a more forgiving shape, uses the same nib, and costs roughly the same (if a little less). The Safari does look less like a child's school pen though, if that's a concern.

Incidentally, I noticed in a shop yesterday that the Safari BPs and rollers have a different section, the same shape all the way round, but still triangular.

[Bogon07]

Hi Ciro and welcome to the forum.

The charcoal Safari with a black nib is probably the best looking of the Safari range and it has a matt/satin finish unlike the rest of the current range.
I would also suggest looking at the Vista; the transparent version of the Safari it is good for a new user as you can readily see all the ink in the cartridge or converter not just the little view in the ink window slot.

Try to get a converter with the pen as it will open up the world of bottled inks some sellers will include them free while others charge as an extra.

If you can try holding a Safari before buying to see if you like the grip section (I find it comfortable even as a left-hander). If you don't like it then a Logo or Linear may suit you better as it has a circular grip. Another choice could be the Nexx models which have a more rounded version of the Safari/Al-Star grip and still take the same nibs.

Just about all the Lamys except the 2000 use the same nibs.
For smooth writing you may want to avoid using an EF nib and try F or M as the B may force you to write too large. Lamy also have LH (left-handed nibs, these seem to produce a Medium line that tends towards F) and an A (beginners found on their ABC pens-a very rounded M more forgiving nib).

I haven't noticed the black nibs being any scratchier than the normal silver in fact one of mine has a prominent silver tip on it.

Brian Goulet of GouletPens has an excellent video on swapping out Lamy nibs.
http://www.gouletpens.com/Articles.asp?ID=324

Parker Vectors are low cost pens with a range of barrel styles. Similar in similar to the Logo or Linear

The Pilot Metropolitan is also getting good reviews for a $15USD pen + $5.50 with a converter.

Good luck with your choice.

[Ciro]

I've got a Lamy safary with a fine nib for starting. I'm very satisfied with the results. Thanks you a lot lot, You really helped me. I really appreciated all you comments, about the nibs, the inks etc... I'm already thinking about buying my second pen.

[snedwos]

Excellent choice!

[gwgtaylor]

Nice one. Safaris are great!

[Bogon07]

Good one. Unfortunately you may find you cannot stop at just one Safari.

Did you get a converter with it ? Not only do they allow easy access to refill with bottled ink they also make cleaning the pen easier.

If not in a pinch you can refill empty cartridges with a fine-tipped eye dropper although an ink syringe is easier.

[Ciro]

Got a converter too, but i didn't buy the standard lamy ink they had offered me, because i'm not quite sure about it. I'm looking for a thicker black ink with brilliant aspect. The blue ink that came with the pen was to watery for my taste...

[snedwos]

I don't have any black ink save a couple of samples. Aurora Black has a very good reputation. Noodler's Black will always come up in discussion. I've used Rohrer & Klingner Leipziger Schwarz, and that was quite nice.

[KrazyIvan]

I like J. Herbin Perle Noire

[Bogon07]

I have a bottle of Lamy Black which works well, much better than that blue that comes in their cartridges.
Noodler's Black is always mentioned favourably in discussions about black, as Snedwos said. I like Noodler's Heart of Darkness too.

[snedwos]

El Lawrence is far more interesting though... Apart from the "washable blue" Lamy inks are well regarded, especially their blue-black, although care needs to be taken with it, since I believe it's iron gall.

[writingrav]

I like J. Herbin Perle Noire

I agree, this is the best black I've come across, though Noodler's Heart of Darkness is close.