No Taste

[TSherbs]

... And that is perhaps associated with why I am so susceptible to going after things that other people enthuse about.

Of course this is only if you actively seek out opinions on more pens. Perhaps another question is, Why are you seeking out these opinions? I am not perfect about avoiding this, by any means, but I have noticed that I like my own pens more the less I keep looking at other ones on line. It is not a direct relationship, but there is a correlation.

Why do you want to like your pens, or any one type of pen, more than you already do? Isn't your appreciation for your pens as perfect as it is ever going to be? (serious question, not sarcastic or ironic).

[Chip]

Perhaps its strange how indifferent I am to the enthusiasm of others when it comes to personal gear such as pens. Close friends have all urged me to get a Montblanc, Omas, or Lamy (based on their love for the brands). My introduction to Montblanc (above) put me off for life. I tried a triangular Omas and disliked how it felt in my hand, like a medical appliance. I got a Lamy (Safari I think– bright red with black nib and trim) in a multi-pen swap. Didn't fancy the look, cheap euro-plastic, or the beaky nib, and didn't like how it wrote: the school pen from Hell.

From which I draw two conclusions. I don't care what sort of pens anyone else likes. They're welcome to their darlings.

Irrespective of brand or buzz, I don't know whether I'll like a pen until I try it. I end up liking some dimestore knock-offs (Arnold, Cavalier) and tend to be attached to specific pens rather than brands. While I collect Sheaffers and Parkers, I've gotten some excellent pens I dislike, which I've passed on.

The principle isn't limited to pens. The same resistance to being influenced applies to skis, climbing gear, clothing, cookware, wine, books, films, politics, et many ceteras.

No overarching truth, other than a quote from Wilde: If one likes that sort of thing, then it's precisely the sort of thing one likes.

[TFarnon]

I'm very close to you in outlook. I have a few limits, subject to modification as time goes on. I don't buy pens costing more than $1000. I don't tend to buy lots of inks, preferring blue and black and blue-black inks. I've unintentionally purchased a lot of different notebooks, just to bring my total up to the minimum for free shipping. I prefer medium nibs in all pens, operating on the principle that pens are designed to work best with a medium nib. It doesn't matter to me that one brand's medium is another's extra fine, or broad. But if a pen I want isn't available in a medium nib, I buy what's available. I like antique, vintage and new pens. I generally prefer smallish, slender-ish pens over large, heavy, thick pens. Given a choice, I'll choose a 14 (or higher) K gold nib over a steel nib. In modern pens, I generally prefer a colored pen over a black pen. Generally speaking. I generally don't feel drawn to red radite and red marbled antique/vintage pens, but there are exceptions to everything. I like a lot of the "tacky" acrylic resin pens. I also like BCHR pens. To a small degree, I mildly prefer certain brands, among them Parker, Platinum, Sailor and Pelikan. That's always followed by: "But wait! I also love Lamy and Pilot and Sheaffer and Cross and Merlin and Waterman and Mabie Todd and Conway-Stewart and and and..." I don't buy pens that don't appeal to me. I think that's what, four or five of them now? I will never write with a few of the pens, even pens I love, because I want them to stay preserved. Usually that means a non-discolored antique celluloid pen. I won't ever put in a new sac or fill it with ink, because I don't want it to discolor. In those cases, I bought them because I think they are beautiful. I don't care about resale value. Besides, my EDC pens, the ones I use the most, are Zebra disposable fountain pens. No fuss, no muss, and cheap. They aren't anything special, but they are functional and fine for scrawling notes and so on.

I just like fountain pens.

[fountainpenkid]

If we had a way to measure the rate of ink flow precisely, as well as the force necessary to move a nib across paper, you would find that differences in ink behavior are quantitative, non-subjective things. Some things don't even need special sensors--look at the way certain inks 'pool' more than others, a result of more or less surface tension, and the ink-paper interaction. In that way different inks can change the line width of a pen, as well as the character of its writing (i.e more or less shading). And inks change their behavior over the course of a fill--after a few days in a pen, they have coated the feed and the flow (especially with flex nibs) can become more steady. I think this is all about attunement (or willful lack thereof).

[Chuck Naill]

My first ink was Pelikan before turning to Waterman. Real or imagined, the Waterman was more smooth in the same pens.

[fountainpenkid]

My first ink was Pelikan before turning to Waterman. Real or imagined, the Waterman was more smooth in the same pens.

Not imagined!

[Sandy]

Maybe I could add where I am?
I grew up with fountain pens. I had to use them at school.

As such, fountain pens are the most comfortable writing tool for me.

After a few years of "accumulating" pens, I now have around 6 or 7 pens I use all the time, and the rest just don't get much of a look in.

I need a pen to be well balanced and able to lay down a consistent line without interruption.

As a teacher, I need a pen that will write, whatever the surface - and the Lamy Aion does that pretty well.

As a writer, who is focusd on long fiction, a pen that will write for hours without interruption or hand cramp is important.

As such. The MB146, Cross Townsend, Parker 51, Parker 51, Parker Sonnet and Nakaya does the trick.

I think part of the problem lies with the death of pen stores. If all folks had to do was walk to their local pen shop, as they would their local shoe shop, then there wouldn't be quite such a palava online.

But, the idea of being able to walk into a shop and buying a pen as you would a pair of shoes has lead to a lot of the discussions and reviews online.

I have several pens that are the right "fit" for me, but to get them required a considerable amount of trial & error.

I suspect that if I'd just bought the right pen in the 1st place, I might have fewer pens

[Chuck Naill]

I decided not to save pens and carried them as often as I wanted. Over the years I’ve acquired antique items that appeared little used. All ways makes me sad for whoever owned it. They missed the joy of use.