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Thread: Looking For A New FP

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    Default Looking For A New FP

    I’ve been using fountain pens for a little bit now and I’m currently using a Monteverde Invincia Stealth. Looking to upgrade to something around the £80 - £100 range.

    I’m really looking for something that is comfortable in the hand and has smooth ink flow. Aesthetically speaking I do not really mind, nor do I mind whether it uses cartridges or a converter

    Thanks,

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    My vote goes to either Graf von Faber Castell (Loom, for example) or Pelikan M20x.

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    Senior Member Kulprit's Avatar
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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Well, there are many great nibs in the price range; the determining factor will be how well you get on with the thing attached to the nib. Size, weight, balance, all make the difference. Without knowing what pushes those buttons for you it’s hard to focus in on solid recommendations.

    My favorite pens in that price range are the Platinum 3776 and Pilot CH92. The 3776 is a perfect size for most people, it posts well for those with larger hands, the balance—posted or not—is excellent, and it’s neither too light nor too heavy. The 92 doesn’t fit my hands quite as well, but it’s still well within the bell curve for most people. It’s primary assets are its piston-filler and its gem of a nib. Every Pilot #5 gold nib I’ve owned has been delightfully soft and very wet.


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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Thanks guys, going to compare the lot and see which one I like the most and hopefully pick it up soon.

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    The Pilot Custom 74 is another good choice, and the Sailor 1911. Also, if you are open to vintage pens, there are some Parkers and Sheaffers in tha price range that are wonderful writers. Check out Deb's website at https://www.goodwriterssales.com for some nice ones; I got a wonderful English Parker Duofold from her that's one of my best writers for only £48, less than it would cost on eBay.
    Quid rides? Mutato nomine de te fabula narratur. — Horace
    (What are you laughing at? Just change the name and the joke’s on you.)

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Quote Originally Posted by calamus View Post
    The Pilot Custom 74 is another good choice, and the Sailor 1911. Also, if you are open to vintage pens, there are some Parkers and Sheaffers in tha price range that are wonderful writers. Check out Deb's website at https://www.goodwriterssales.com for some nice ones; I got a wonderful English Parker Duofold from her that's one of my best writers for only £48, less than it would cost on eBay.
    +1 for Deb at Goodwriters. I needed a really comfortable writer that could be used for 4-6 hours at a time 5 days a week for a major work project in May. I really didn't want to use my Pilot Metro's or FC Looms because they weren't comfortable to me for that long a stretch. I hit the "Contact" button at Deb's website and described what I needed. She recommended a nice Swan Minor 1 that has a Great very smooth fine nib. (I also picked up a Piston filler Winstona that looked just like a Parker Vacumatic from the late 1930's. That one is now with Mark Bacas to have a smooth stub put on it.) So yeah, I'm a happy camper with my Swan.

    Just remember that Deb's pens are "well-loved" and aren't shiny new. What you do get is a pen that has been thoroughly checked, cleaned and the nib tuned to write properly. Shipping to the US is GB 10 pounds by Royal Mail and is insured and tracked. Took 12 calender days to arrive in California due to US and British customs hold.

    All the Best.
    Last edited by junglejim; May 14th, 2019 at 01:46 PM.
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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Thank you both. Very kind. (Fivers are in the post).
    Regards,
    Deb
    My Blog

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Platinum 3776 fits into your budget if you choose one of the regular pens and not a special edition. They come second hand on ebay pretty regularly, too. Gold nib, nice size, well made pens.

    Chunkier pens - Faber Castell Ondoro I rather like, and the nibs are good writers; faceted pen with very retro looks and metallic cap, you'll either love it or hate it. And Edison Collier is a bit above your budget range new, but again, crops up fairly often on ebay in very gently used condition.

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Check my work at facebook.com/penteohandmade

    Sent from my Redmi Note 5 using Tapatalk

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    For modern pens, I don't have any Pilots don't write well, no matter what their cost: they seem to have factories with very consistent results (or I have been very lucky.) The 74 as noted above seems to be in a particularly good sweet spot of form, function, and price.

    I am also a fan of anything that can hold a replaceable or changeable Jowo nib unit. This could be an Edison, a Rosetta, a Franklin-Christoph, a Bexley, some Ranga, at many different price ranges depending on material and other factors -- this way you can experiment with nibs all you want, and these solutions are also usually offered as cartridge/converter/eyedropper. The steel nibs or nib units are generally good and not expensive to acquire, and they are also popular to send away for custom grinds (Something Franklin-Christoph offers at purchase also.)

    Some of my best writers are vintage. Buying vintage online sight unseen and pen unheld is risky, but I'll echo the recommendation for Deb, from whom I've bought before; buying from someone with a good reputation makes the process of buying vintage much less risky. I also like to buy from RossPens.com and Peyton Street Pens but there are many others you can learn about from other happy buyers here.

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    Cool Re: Looking For A New FP

    Quote Originally Posted by Kulprit View Post
    My favorite pens in that price range are the Platinum 3776 and Pilot CH92. The 3776 is a perfect size for most people, it posts well for those with larger hands, the balance—posted or not—is excellent, and it’s neither too light nor too heavy.
    Quote Originally Posted by amk View Post
    Platinum 3776 fits into your budget if you choose one of the regular pens and not a special edition. They come second hand on ebay pretty regularly, too. Gold nib, nice size, well made pens.
    +1

    I will forever be recommending the Platinum #3776, particularly with the soft-fine nib

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Quote Originally Posted by DominikM1 View Post
    I’ve been using fountain pens for a little bit now and I’m currently using a Monteverde Invincia Stealth. Looking to upgrade to something around the £80 - £100 range.

    I’m really looking for something that is comfortable in the hand and has smooth ink flow. Aesthetically speaking I do not really mind, nor do I mind whether it uses cartridges or a converter
    "Comfortable in the hand" is a very subjective experience, and selecting a pen based on what others tell you to buy is fraught with expensive "trial and error" risk. Depending upon where you are located, it's always more rewarding to try before you buy! Pen show coming up? Pen shop nearby? In a country where shipping from a dealer is easy and returnable? Willing to try restored vintage (e.g., Deb in the UK, penwash in the USA, & etc.)?
    Last edited by FredRydr; June 13th, 2019 at 06:45 AM.

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Did you manage to decide on a pen? In your price range there should be quite a few options. By definition estetics have all to do with the senses, how it is perceived, by hand, eyes, pratical as well as ornamental. I know we often use the word as equivalent of decorative or in the direction of style, and I guess it can be just as valid use of the word. Either way, looks matter ;- )

    Among the vintage pens you might find some bargains, but as others have mentioned, you need to know what you are bying. I bought a very nice all wood pen, the barrel was hand made in China, and I think nib and feed are from one of the larger producers. For me it has been a nice surpise, a bargain price, and writes with a fine, to medium line. The nib is a generic steel version, and it feels very much like a pensil to the paper (to me that's a good thing). Some nibs are very smooth on the paper, others have more of a resistance or feed back, some are very firm and ridgid, others have a hint of flex or give. Very (!) few are genuinly flexy. It's not always easy to find an improvement, even when you add a zero on the price tag.

    My best pen is a vintage Pelikan 400N, I have a second 400N that needs a bit of work on the ink flow, at least with green ink. My main point is that you can work with any pen, finding the right nib or grind, and there are lots of relatively affordable pens with varying qualities you might know or not know the advantage off.

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Platinum 10% off across whole range @ https://www.cultpens.com/

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Avoid Peyton Street Pens. They've been thrown off Amazon for selling fakes and their condition info is always iffy.

    In the UK Cult Pens is a great site.
    Last edited by LadyMay; July 2nd, 2019 at 09:40 PM.

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Quote Originally Posted by LadyMay View Post
    Avoid Peyton Street Pens. They've been thrown off Amazon for selling fakes and their condition info is always iffy.
    You should really refrain from making this kind of broad accusations against a well known FP restorer and retailer. If you search the Market Feedback forum you will see the appropriate warnings.

    I have bought from Peyton Street Pens and I know for a fact that any problem that may arise is dealt with promptly and courteously. And as far as the Amazon incident is concerned, I looked it up and here is Teri's account:

    Peyton2.jpg

    And to keep things in perspective, maybe we should share some information about Amazon:

    https://www.businessinsider.com/amaz...be-peak-2019-2

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Quote Originally Posted by LadyMay View Post
    Avoid Peyton Street Pens...their condition info is always iffy....
    How many pens did you purchase and receive that they always did not match the description?

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    I've had nothing but good experiences with Peyton Street Pens, and Teri has always been honest and thoughtful. I trust her completely.

    On the other hand, I've had significant problems with Amazon more than once.
    Last edited by calamus; July 3rd, 2019 at 12:01 PM.
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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    Quote Originally Posted by LadyMay View Post
    Avoid Peyton Street Pens. They've been thrown off Amazon for selling fakes and their condition info is always iffy.
    To the contrary. They are a well established and regarded seller. Terri's listings of vintage pens are always scrupulously detailed, and include excellent photography.
    Vintage. Cursive italic. Iron gall.

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    Default Re: Looking For A New FP

    In this day and age we have to be increasingly wary about the quality of information we consume and the reliability of information sources.

    The hundreds of hours I've spent on Reddit political forums over the last two years has been eye opening, having seen trolling, brigading, even information warfare firsthand.

    On social media like forums and Reddit, the age of an account, its level and type of activity, signs of incongruous activity, underlying agenda of posts, un-corroborated information, and many other things can be used to evaluate the quality of information posted.

    Recently I have seen a few different posts about reputable fountain pen companies that have raised major red flags for me.

    The above post about Peyton Pens is the latest that has my Spidey sense tingling.

    Based on the poster's very minimal activity and the vague statements in the post I consider the quality of information to be very poor and for now I will disregard the statements as best as I can.

    Now, any number of explanations—harmless and otherwise—exist for the post above.

    Whatever the case, I have low trust in the post versus the comments from well known members here and I don't intend to change my buying preferences.

    It doesn't take much to sew seeds of doubt and have it spread. Just a post that raises the spectre of doubt about a company could change one's buying behavior. Just inquiring about the company to corroborate the original post ("has anyone else had bad experiences with Acme Anvil Company?") could lead some others to question even the most sterling reputation of a company.

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