Be honest, what is the real reason?

[Jon Szanto]

What evidence is there that most people seem to be crazy over oversized pens?

My thoughts precisely.

It's not a scientific study guys, it's an observation and a question. It's meant to be fun. Lighten up. Maybe something to consider for the new year.

Speaking of lightening up, YOU asked the question. It doesn't even come close to what I see in lots of pen people, gatherings, and what-not. If you had asked "what's the deal with everyone and their brother and grand-niece buying up every ink that has "sheen" in the advert", I could have agreed with you. There *isn't* a new found fascination with big pens - there have always been some people who like them and others who don't. I don't believe that, on balance, there are more large size pens now than at other points, certainly not to any extraordinary degree.

You said "Be honest". I was. Happy New Year!

[Deb]

What evidence is there that most people seem to be crazy over oversized pens?

My thoughts precisely.

It's not a scientific study guys, it's an observation and a question. It's meant to be fun. Lighten up. Maybe something to consider for the new year.

People seem to get hurt over others expressing opinions. I've noticed that :-)

I have the impression, too, that there are more large pens made nowadays than there were eighty years ago. I have small hands and I like small pens. The biggest pen I ever had was a huge Indian eyedropper that had a nib like a shovel. I could never find a comfortable way to hold it. A Swan Minor No 2 is just about perfect for me.

[Jon Szanto]

Another observation is that today, in general, the largest pens are also the flagship pens, so they aren't just big but the more (or most) expensive models. A Pelikan M1000 has a much higher ticket price than an M200, same with MB149, Sailor KoP, etc. Andy Lambrou's big old CFP pens cost an arm and a leg, as do the new Wahl-Eversharp Decobands. Yes, there are large models of inexpensive pens (I'm looking at you, India) that some people pick up but they aren't a big part of the market.

The vast majority of pens being purchased and used today are still modest size pens. How many zillions of Chinese pens are getting picked up right now and virtually none of them are what one could reasonably call "oversize". I think that while a vintage OS Balance is not overly large, it *is* the right size for me. However, that pen - which was the largest in their lineup back then - is significantly lighter and smaller than the big pens I mentioned above. I think we still see the concept of a large, heavy, expensive pen relegated to the 'status' pen, something that is carried to impress. Even then, I know people who feel the M1000 is the perfect weight and fit for their hand and use them for that reason, not status. Not nearly as many as use smaller sized Pelikans, though.

Just more random thoughts...

[southpaw52]

I use a variety of sizes of fountain pens. I definitely do not use a fountain pen to look flashy or draw attention. I simply enjoy the writing experience from a fountain pen. I do not think overall people are crazy for over sized itcomes down to what you enjoy using

[Lady Onogaro]

To compensate for small hands.

Dude,

You always make me laugh.

[Lady Onogaro]

We should get Tracy Lee (the Visconti Queen) to post a picture of that monster pen she just got (it's pretty impressive). And have her explain her love of big pens.

[RocketRyan]

What evidence is there that most people seem to be crazy over oversized pens?

My thoughts precisely.

It's not a scientific study guys, it's an observation and a question. It's meant to be fun. Lighten up. Maybe something to consider for the new year.

Speaking of lightening up, YOU asked the question. It doesn't even come close to what I see in lots of pen people, gatherings, and what-not. If you had asked "what's the deal with everyone and their brother and grand-niece buying up every ink that has "sheen" in the advert", I could have agreed with you. There *isn't* a new found fascination with big pens - there have always been some people who like them and others who don't. I don't believe that, on balance, there are more large size pens now than at other points, certainly not to any extraordinary degree.

You said "Be honest". I was. Happy New Year!

Look at pens from the 90's to early 2000's most were slim and I would say shorter than todays offerings. It isn't meant to be cause for argument, I know you like a whinge, but it is something I noticed, I am not trying to reinvent the wheel here. Chill.

[Chrissy]

I don't like huge, oversized pens. But cannot hold correctly, and comfortably, such models as Montblanc Slimline, and others alike. In no time my hand aches. Before I used to do with it, but since I have plunged into the world of fountain pens, and discovered more consequent sizes, I have greatly increased my hand comfort. 146, and sizes alike are wonderful for me. 149 is already too big.

+1 for this. I can't hold slimline pens comfortably either, because they make my hand ache. Montblanc 146 is my perfect size too, and I find the 149 too fat.

[Roger W.]

When it comes to vintage the oversize is king. I collect the entire line of Sheaffer's 1912-1941 so small makes me equally happy. All sizes of Secretary's in 1925 were $7 new - the largest and the two short ones, the short clip and the ringtop. You find a lot more of the largest so that sold well in a line that never did that well. Sheaffer's "2" in the teens sold in much higher volumes and was a cheaper pen. It is also a fairly classic size as Sheaffer returns to this size in the 80's with the classic Targa. I know the oversized vintage pens are the big money pens and the small ones get limited respect. As far as oversized go I've never seen behemoths like you do with some of today's modern pens. The classic vintage write all day long pen was light weight, not overly thick and full length. I know my partner in the Chicago Pen Show has some really big modern ones that he writes with frequently. I go with a Targa classic and a sterling Boston overlay that is about the same size as that. The thickest pen I've been using is a PFM.

Roger W.


The one in the middle is a short clip model

[VertOlive]

I haven't noticed such a trend, but I'm not watching closely. I have three "desk pens": two FC66 Stabilis, and a Nakaya desk pen. It's not flash since I never take them out of the house. Their balance pleases me and they evoke memories of my Mom sashaying about with her cigarette holders. That is about as eccentric and personal a reason one could have about one's preferences, I guess.

[Hawk]

Unfortunately, many manufacturers choose to make their flagship or most distinguished models also their biggest (Namiki Emperor, Pelikan M1000, Visconti); I'd personally welcome compact versions of top models much more - the Franklin-Christoph pocket version of their Model 66 really hit the spot for me!

I don’t feel that, in the example of the Pelikan, the P1000 is most distinguished. A lot of their pens (color) can be had in the M800 series. Anyways, the style is the sam and the nib quality is the same also.

[stub]

It's not a scientific study guys, it's an observation and a question.

It's legit to question the observation. I'll confess I am baffled by the assertion and have a gut feeling you are perhaps influenced too much by pen fora & youtube pen reviewers (SBRE B, Pen Habit & figboot all have remarkably similar tastes) and are extrapolatating from that something that maybe isn't true.

& another question is what now in 2018 constitutes an oversize pen?

I love the M600/pilot 912 size pens and the Balance Premier/146/PFM/M800 size pens but the M1000, Danitrio, Delta OS pens are just silly to me. At some point the thing just looks like a flashlight with a quitar pick taped to it.

[amk]

Hm. I am not sure that the big pen is a in any way a new thing. What about the Waterman 20 - there's a vintage pen that is just ridiculously oversize!

Yes, there are bigger pens around. I find them comfortable if they are light in weight, like the Edison Collier, Ranga bamboo or ASA Galactic. And I detect slim pens; Sheaffer Fashion and Targa Slim, for example. I have small, but arthritic, hands. (Of course, that's really about grip section rather than overall size. A small pen with a girthy and flared section can be quite comfortable.) But Pelikan m400 and m600 are not huge, nor is Platinum 3776.

Though having said that, I have just taken the nearest 3776 and Parker 51 out of my pen box to check. The 3776 is about 5mm longer, capped, and a couple of mm fatter by the look of it, so perhaps our idea of comfortable sizing has grown a bit. Though this has nothing to do with the monster 'oversize' pens.

There's also a fan following for some 'pocket' pens like the Kaweco Sport. So I suspect there's something in the very big and the very small that appeals to people. I suspect, though, there are many more Kaweco Sport users spread around the world than people who take out a monster Indian ebonite pen or a KOP or (because not all big pens are expensive) Wing Sung 590.

[Sailor Kenshin]

Another observation is that today, in general, the largest pens are also the flagship pens, so they aren't just big but the more (or most) expensive models. A Pelikan M1000 has a much higher ticket price than an M200, same with MB149, Sailor KoP, etc. Andy Lambrou's big old CFP pens cost an arm and a leg, as do the new Wahl-Eversharp Decobands. Yes, there are large models of inexpensive pens (I'm looking at you, India) that some people pick up but they aren't a big part of the market.

The vast majority of pens being purchased and used today are still modest size pens. How many zillions of Chinese pens are getting picked up right now and virtually none of them are what one could reasonably call "oversize". I think that while a vintage OS Balance is not overly large, it *is* the right size for me. However, that pen - which was the largest in their lineup back then - is significantly lighter and smaller than the big pens I mentioned above. I think we still see the concept of a large, heavy, expensive pen relegated to the 'status' pen, something that is carried to impress. Even then, I know people who feel the M1000 is the perfect weight and fit for their hand and use them for that reason, not status. Not nearly as many as use smaller sized Pelikans, though.

Just more random thoughts...

I'm glad you say 'virtually.'

Love,
Jinhao 159

[Aurora]

Except for the KOP Pro Gear with its wondrous Naginata Togi nib, I really don't feel comfortable with large pens. My hand fatigues rapidly and I quickly reach out for my beloved Optimas


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[FredRydr]

Je ne sais quoi.

[dneal]

Sometimes there's no simple explanation. I'm not particularly fond of writing with oversized pens, but I thoroughly enjoyed a Delta Dolcevita. A Montblanc 149 was never comfortable, but a 146 is one of my favorites. A similarly sized Pelikan M800 never fit my hand (and how I wanted it to...).

People like what they like.

“To a toad, what is beauty? A female with pop eyes, a wide mouth, yellow belly, and a spotted back,” ― Voltaire

[inklord]

Another observation is that today, in general, the largest pens are also the flagship pens, so they aren't just big but the more (or most) expensive models. A Pelikan M1000 has a much higher ticket price than an M200, same with MB149, Sailor KoP, etc. Andy Lambrou's big old CFP pens cost an arm and a leg, as do the new Wahl-Eversharp Decobands. Yes, there are large models of inexpensive pens (I'm looking at you, India) that some people pick up but they aren't a big part of the market.

The vast majority of pens being purchased and used today are still modest size pens. How many zillions of Chinese pens are getting picked up right now and virtually none of them are what one could reasonably call "oversize". I think that while a vintage OS Balance is not overly large, it *is* the right size for me. However, that pen - which was the largest in their lineup back then - is significantly lighter and smaller than the big pens I mentioned above. I think we still see the concept of a large, heavy, expensive pen relegated to the 'status' pen, something that is carried to impress. Even then, I know people who feel the M1000 is the perfect weight and fit for their hand and use them for that reason, not status. Not nearly as many as use smaller sized Pelikans, though.

Just more random thoughts...

... my feelings precisely, except for the anecdotal evidence of Jinhao's super popular 159, TWSBI producing large, inexpensive pens and the latest LAMY steel-nibbed pen being the largest pen they produce other than the Dialog 3 (which is a bit unique anyways).
Other than Nakaya I don't see many top-of-the-line pens in the smaller sizes, though (perhaps MB's Boheme is another exception). So BIG stands generally for status, and what's new about that when it comes to simpletons and their preferences?
And there are guys like SBRE Brown who have ham-sized hands, of course, so they need a bigger pen. But I don't see Pelikan's M200, Platinum's 3776 and Pilot's Stargazer dwindling in popularity, and just look how Franklin-Christoph's Model 45 XLV, Pocket 66 and Pocket 20 are flying off the shelves.
However, big pens often get the spotlight,
because things larger than life are impressive
- at first. Having an average to small hand size, I can't, however, see myself writing 20 pages with a Namiki Emperor or even A Sailor KOP - I'd fall for a Sailor 1911S Urushi in red instead, if available.

[inklord]

... also, our hands have grown bigger since 1900; as mentioned above, I have average to small hands, though very much used to hard, physical labor; I happen to own a few vintage, pre-WWII hunting knives. Their hilts are ridiculously short even for my hands. And many a knifemaker reproducing classic designs had to increase the length of the hilts of their recreations compared to the originals to keep the pinky of us moderners on the grip.

[Hawk]

Je ne sais quoi.

I agree, after I looked it up. Fifty dollar words are difficult for me.