When I pointed out last week that I like fountain pens, Karina (of Aspiring Ecologist) suggested I try a weekly pen post, rather like the shoe of the week posts Dr. Isis makes. I don't know whether I'll be scouring pen catalogs (mostly Fahrney's) for pens to feature, but I did decide to start a series of posts about the fountain pens I own. I know that a few of you knew that I liked fountain pens before reading last week's post, but I doubt that any of you are prepared for how many posts are coming.
I was going to start with a post about a very nice sterling silver pen from Levenger that was a gift from one of my graduate students a number of years ago, but I couldn't find an image of it on the Levenger site. Apparently, it's no longer available. It was one of the first nice fountain pens I owned. I'll take a photograph of it and post it some time later in this series.
I could have started wiht a post about the cheap cartridge fountain pen that I used as a post-doc,1 but that didn't seem right. So I'm starting with a post about my first serious fountain pen, a Pelikan 400 that I've had since 1995 or 1996.
I was going to start with a post about a very nice sterling silver pen from Levenger that was a gift from one of my graduate students a number of years ago, but I couldn't find an image of it on the Levenger site. Apparently, it's no longer available. It was one of the first nice fountain pens I owned. I'll take a photograph of it and post it some time later in this series.
I could have started wiht a post about the cheap cartridge fountain pen that I used as a post-doc,1 but that didn't seem right. So I'm starting with a post about my first serious fountain pen, a Pelikan 400 that I've had since 1995 or 1996.
It's a wonderful pen, a piston fill with a broad beautiful line.2 I've used it more than any other fountain pen I own. Although it's sometimes been filled with blue ink, mostly it's filled with black. It's one of my regular evening journal pens, and whenever I want to spend time with an old friend, he's the one I turn to.
Here's what Fahrney's catalog has to say:
1Yes, I've been interested in fountain pens that long, I was a post-doc from 1982-1986.
2I have one with a medium nib.
Always a superb choice for outstanding performance at a moderate price, the Pelikan Souverðn 400 is for those who prefer a medium-sized pen. Balanced for smooth and perfect handling, the 400 fountain pen features a 14K gold, two-tone nib that is distinguished by its expert German craftsmanship. The Pelikan 400 fountain pen fills from a bottle only.I should mention, by the way, that I have absolutely no affiliation with Fahrney's other than that of satisfied (and frequent) customer. My only reason for pointing to their catalog as opposed to catalogs from other dealers, is that Fahrney's is my go to place. I've always found them very helpful. I know there are other excellent pen stores out there, but if anyone happens to decide they want to buy one of the pens I picture and clicks through to a catalog, I want to know that I've sent them to a place, like Fahrney's, where I'm confident they'll be treated well. I've been to a couple of Paradise Pen Company outlets. They're nice enough, and they have a decent selection, but the staff at the outlets I visited wasn't nearly as knowledgeable as the staff at Fahrney's. I've only been to the Bromfield Pen Shop once, even though Boston (Bromfield) is a lot closer than Washington, DC (Fahrney's). The staff there was very knowledgeable, and I'm confident anyone dealing with them will be satisfied. I just don't know them nearly as well.
1Yes, I've been interested in fountain pens that long, I was a post-doc from 1982-1986.
2I have one with a medium nib.
Wow! I'm so glad you took my suggestion seriously! What do and don't you use fountain pens for? Do you grade with fountain pens? Journaling with a fountain pen seems like a nice idea.
I use my fountain pens for just about everything. The only time I use a ballpoint or rollerball is when there's a multipart form that needs the pressure. When working out some of the math I do for various research projects, I often use a mechanical pencil. (I can never keep the traditional wooden variety sharp.) There are a couple of different fountain pens that I use regularly during the day, a Namiki vanishing point that's always in my shirt pocket and a Sailor that I take notes with during meetings.
As for grading, I do a lot of it electronically now for my graduate courses (comments embedded using the comment feature in Word or Acrobat). For my undergraduate courses, I fill either my vanishing point or a Rotring lava with bright blue or crimson ink. Either way, my marks show up very nicely and are easy to see :). (My penmanship is awful, so they aren't always easy to read, but at least students can easily see where they are.)
Those are some beautiful fountain pens.