Fountain Pen Illusions?

[poetman]

I "observed" something interesting last evenging while watching "The Big Sleep." (FABULOUS FILM!) In one of the first few scenes of the film, where Bogart is in the library, he is writing something down, and he is using a ball point pen! My wife was teasing me, "I thought Bogie only used fountain pens, etc." It is very obvious that the tip of his pen is not a fountain nib; it's a ballpoint. The image got me thinking how fountain pens, for many, represent a pain in the neck: always refilling, sometimes leaking, not always starting up on the first stroke, and a variety of other possilbe maladies. Practically speaking, and according to Bogie, ballpoints--and by extension, rollerballs--seem to be more user friendly. Thoughts?

 

[Matt Noir]

Well, I am a fountain pen afficionado - but it is a fairly new hobby.

If Moustache (Jim) is reading this I bet he can share a wealth of knowledge and thoughts.

 

[panamag8or]

I've never had a fountain pen leak, and refilling is not a chore, at least not to me, plus newer pens have easy change cartridges, anyway. One thing I can say, though, is you will never find a ballpoint that writes as smooth as a fountain pen, or feels as good in your hand.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

Not that this was precisely your question....but just throwing these out here...

http://thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=10801&highlight=fountain+pen

http://thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=18061&highlight=fountain+pen


to name just a few threads about FP...


Personally I dont find them inconvenient at all. Rarely have leaking issues or anything like that...and its nice to be able to use whatever color ink I would like.

 

[Smithy]

I've used a fountain pen that takes a cartridge for years now without hassle.

A good nib means it'll write as, if not more, smoothly than a roller ball with a better line.

 

[Nashoba]

I never mastered a fountain pen. I'm really wierd about pens too and I suppose if I'd been able to master it that would be all I'd want to use, but I could never get the strokes even and my writing ended up looking terrible. Maybe I'll have to give one of the newer ones a try.
My favorite pens are the black government issued skillcraft ones....I steal them from my husband when I do laundry and he leaves them in his pockets

 

[poetman]

Any fountain pen users? Pen lovers?

Many think fountain pens were golden era normality, it seems otherwise? Any thoughts?

 

[Miss Neecerie]

If you do a search on fountain pens, you will find multiple threads on them and the rest of the writing tools one uses with them.

so yes...there are many fountain pen users here.

 

[griffer]

I love fountain pens, but I carry a brushed aluminum short cross ballpoint.

I love the styling- very aero and retro, and it clips right on my moleskine.

 

[Leading Edge]

I have gone from a nostalgic to an avid fountain pen user. Fountain pens provide pleasure and restore the art to writing without sacrificing the functionality. The only time I had a problem with leaking with a fountain pen was caused by a faulty converter and, most importantly, was effectively contained by the threaded cap. Conversely, the problem I had with a leaking ballpoint cost me a favorite (and expensive ) Coach bag - for which I have never forgiven ballpoint pens.:rage:

However, like other pleasurable pursuits, you can't have just one.

 

[Natty Bumpo]

Fountain pens

were required in my primary school. We learned cursive with them. Today I use a Namiki "Vanishing Point" with retractable nib. It is really neat.

Nashoba, the nib on a good pen will wear to conform to your writing style. It takes a bit of time. And because the nib is worn by your hand, others will not write well with it.

 

[Smithy]

were required in my primary school.

Same with my old school. I'm a leftie so it wasn't the easiest, lots of smudges when I started and I can remember coming home with a blue side of the hand!

It stuck with me though, I much prefer writing with a fountain pen than other types.

 

[Feng_Li]

Manny alleged conveniences are exaggerated. I for one love having to run a pen against a scrap of paper or my shoe for five minutes to get it to write.

 

[Feng_Li]

were required in my primary school. We learned cursive with them.

I honestly think that's one of the causes of my poor handwriting. Using ballpoints in school taught me to press down as hard as possible. Can't do that with a nib.

 

[Miss Neecerie]

Manny alleged conveniences are exaggerated. I for one love having to run a pen against a scrap of paper or my shoe for five minutes to get it to write.

If its taking 5 min to get it writing...it needs adjusting in terms of flow.

What brand of pen is it? New or vintage?

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Same with my old school. I'm a leftie so it wasn't the easiest, lots of smudges when I started and I can remember coming home with a blue side of the hand!
.

Until you learned "the hook" . . .

bk

 

[Big Man]

I believe ball point pens were not readily available until the late 1940's.

I've used a fountain pen as my "every day" pen for well over 30 years, and have never experienced any of the "inconveniences" some talk about. Heck, it's just a pen - it ain't rocket science. [huh]

 

[Smithy]

Until you learned "the hook" . . .

bk

Yup

 

[TheKitschGoth]

Same with my old school. I'm a leftie so it wasn't the easiest, lots of smudges when I started and I can remember coming home with a blue side of the hand!

It stuck with me though, I much prefer writing with a fountain pen than other types.

I'm another leftie, and was always getting told off for turning my paper 90 degrees in an attempt to stop smudging.

I wont use fountain pens now, it annoyed me so much at school. Plus a ballpoint (or any other type of pen) is so much better for sketching on the side of the page with.

 

[DeeDub]

I for one love having to run a pen against a scrap of paper or my shoe for five minutes to get it to write.

This sounds like my old Scheaffer cartridge pen. If it isn't used every day, it gets gummed up and takes a lot of random scribbling to get it going again. I keep the thing mostly for sentimental reasons.

For everyday use, a Lamy filled with Private Reserve ink never gives me any trouble. If I don't use it for a few days—though admittedly there haven't been many days like that—it starts right back up without complaining.

On another point that came up in this thread, I am left-handed. Writing with a fountain pen not only cured me of using the hook and writing in my own ink, it also conditioned me to write with a lighter touch. This cured my writer's cramp and improved my penmanship.