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Here's a brief comparison of 3 modern flex nibs: Conklin Omniflex, Noodler's Ahab, Fountain Pen Revolution Flex. Ease of flex Conklin Omniflex FPR flex Noodler's Line variation FPR flex - the nib writes finer "naturally" Noodler's Conklin Omniflex Railroading They all railroad at some point but it depends so much on how quick, how often and how hard you flex that this is really where I need to call in the YMMV. That being said, my Ahab is the most reliable and sturdy. Nib "feel" Conklin Omniflex feels the most fragile: the metal seems the thinnest, and I don't dare pushing it too much, Noodler's Ahab feels the sturdiest of the three, smooth even flexed to its maximum. Normal writing FPR has the finest line and feels almost italicized, a bit dry and doesn't keep up well with my rather fast writing. That might be something I can fix with brass sheets etc but I don't want to alter the line variation so I'll wait! Noodler's pleases me the most: smooth, a fine medium, still wet, always keeps up. Conklin: meh, nothing to say. Conclusion As much as it kills me to say it, the FPR flex nib is the best in terms of flex, you can get very "calligraphic" with it. The Conklin Omniflex just feels too fragile to me - I must be able to feel comfortable otherwise I might as well go back to dip pen nibs. The Ahab is just the most versatile of all: I love it as an everyday writer, I still love flexing it even after the beautiful discovery of FPR nib. I'll try to swap the FPR nib onto the Ahab and see how I like it (as I don't like the Himalaya V2 pen that much) but I'm pretty sure I want to keep the Ahab as is.

I recently spent a few hours working on my good ole' ebonite Noodlers Konrad. I hadn't used this pen for quite a while and wanted to spice things up a bit. The changes I made (and highly recommend) are as follows: 1) the "easy my flex" mod, were you grind a portion off the sides of the nib as seen in the picture. 2) I doubled the depth/width of the feed channel, which managed to eliminate almost all railroading except on very aggressive downstrokes. and 3) I reground the tip to an XXXF needlepoint. I don't know how to measure the actual degree of fineness I achieved with this grind, but ill tell you it is so sharp that I may just use it to sew some new underpants. I don't by any means consider myself an experienced nib-alter-er-er, but it wasn't too difficult to shave the sides and smooth the tip with 8000, 12000 and 16000 grit polishing sandpaper. Anyways, here are some pictures of my work (and first attempt calligraphy); please comment if you have any questions, suggestions or have tried the same thing during your nib-related adventures. Enjoy.

A friend gave me a vintage music nib to see if I could make it fit the Ahab/Konrad. The conversion attempt was successful; I really only had to cut a bit off the nib base (to allow the cap to fit over the nib) since the rest of the nib fit the feed just fine. I wrote with it, had fun, but decided I probably would not use it. I sent it back, with thanks. After it was in the mail, I felt sender's remorse *smiles*. So, I set out to see if I could duplicate the music nib experience by converting a standard, stiff italic nib into a flexible italic nib. I converted a stiff, Goulet 1.1mm stub italic nib to a flexible italic nib using the same procedure outlined in my thread "Converting A Regular Nib Into A Flex Nib For Noodler's Ahab/Konrad". Briefly, I extended the slit of the nib using a Dremel cutoff wheel, and then ground the sides of the nib following Pterodactylus' Ease My Flex mod. https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/260041-converting-a-regular-nib-into-a-flex-nib-for-noodlers-ahabkonrad/ https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/240492-noodlers-ahab-ease-my-flex-mod/ http://www.gouletpens.com/Goulet_1_1mm_Stub_Italic_6_Steel_Nib_p/gpc-nib6-ps-11.htm The nib became very flexible, and will lay down a nice wide line when flexed. The width difference between the thins and thicks for the unmodified, stiff italic nib is about 2.4x, while the width difference for the flexible italic nib is about 7x. The pen gobbles ink. As you can see from my writing sample (comparing pointed flex, regular italic, and flex italic), flex italic writing lays down Lots more ink than the other styles. In addition, the modified nib writes very wet - the inked line displays a convex cross-section before drying, even when un-flexed. The wet line shows little shading; 50% dilution of the ink improved the shading, as seen on the second writing sample page. Noodler's Cactus Gruen Eel lays a wet line in my other pens and nibs, so I am not sure if the wetness of this nib is due to the conversion process, or the ink. I suspect the nib has something to do with it, as this nib's lines are Very wet. More testing will be done :-) Since this pen gobbles ink, unless I wrote Real Slow, I would draw down the ink in the ink channel so fast that the tip would go dry, usually railroading first. This high rate of ink consumption meant that I had to modify the ebonite feed to boost the ink supply. First, I connected all the fin's "canyons" to the ink channel. I cut away the factory “dam” between the fins on the right side of the feed, using a razor saw. Noodler's pens come with half the canyons not connected, to allow the user to modify the feed for their ink, paper, and style of writing. I found that even connecting all the right-side canyons to the ink channel was insufficient - the pen would write, but would exhaust the ink supply very quickly. I could see ink in the fins, but it was not refilling the ink channel on the top of the feed. One nice thing about the slot conversion: you can see what the ink in the ink channel is doing :-) Further investigation with a loupe found the cause: the canyons, as milled by the pen factory, don't actually reach the bottom of the ink channel. The canyons are cut shallow, leaving "hanging valleys" for those of you who studied geology. As a result, once the ink level in the ink channel drops below the base of the canyon, capillary action can no longer pull ink from the canyon across into the ink channel. Thus, the nib runs dry, and won't be resupplied by the canyons. (See diagram - black=ebonite, green=ink, red=#11 blade cut) To fix this problem, I made a cut in eight canyons on the right side with an Exacto #11 blade (red section on drawing). This allowed the canyon ink to reach the bottom of the ink channel; it was no longer disconnected from the ink in the channel, even if the ink level fell to the bottom of the channel. The cut is just a knife blade slit, I did not remove (with a razor saw) all the ebonite that made the hanging valley problem in the first place. This is because I don't know if the hanging valleys provide some other positive factor in the feed design. With this modification of 8 of the hanging valleys, I can now write 70-90 italic letters (or 40-50 letters of cursive) before exhausting the ink channel and its fin&canyon ink supply. Then, I can either wait for the channel to refill naturally, or make a small push of the piston plunger to recharge the feed and channel immediately. I did not cut all the canyons with the #11 blade. I was concerned that if I cut them all, the feed would become too wet for the other nibs I have. If I really get into flex italic writing, I might dedicate this pen to that style, and cut the "hanging valleys" of the rest of the canyons. Hopefully this would allow even longer writing stints before exhausting the feed. Conclusion- Positives: The nib works, it flexes easily, and is fun to use. Storing pen vertically with nib-down, and cap off, did not lead to ink dropping from nib after 11 minutes. So, pen is safe to hold vertically while pondering your next sentence. But I'd still store the pen nib-up when you are done. Negatives: The feed can't keep up with long stints of writing, and must be manually recharged with the plunger if you don't want to wait for natural recharge. Further modification of the feed is possible, but might result in a feed that only works with this nib. The nib writes very wet, which will prove a problem if you have cheap paper. Dilution of the ink will increase shading. But, dilution of the ink’s surfactant may reduce the max line width the ink can handle (ie. reduce max flex), and may reduce the speed of natural recharge of the feed. Refinements for the next conversion: I will reduce the flex a little by not taking as much off the sides (less EMF mod). This nib is almost a wet noodle, and a little more stiffness would be welcome. ============== Photos/diagram 1.Comparison of pointed flex nib, regular italic nib, and flexible italic nib. Note; the flex italic was written with un-diluted ink. 2. Flex italic with 50% dilution ink to increase shading. 3. Cross section of the black ebonite feed, showing the failure of green ink in the fin/canyons to flow into the ink channel when the channel ink level drops below the bottom of the canyon. Red section is placement of the #11 blade cut. 4. The converted nib. It fit loose in my Ahab, so I added a piece of masking tape to the top of the nib as a shim.

I spent days reading reviews, watching videos, etc before getting one... so here's my small contribution (nothing new but then I didn't mind a single time reading again and again the same reviews so...) I flushed the pen, brushed the feed (the usual water, 10% ammonia, a drop of detergent) just to be on the safe side. Nib: Very smooth, even when flexing hard. Very wet too: it made Diamine Syrah look really dark when other pens show it on the pinkish side, it made Parker Quink a real black. Flex: Easier and easier. The variation goes from hair thin (because of the speed, otherwise it's a M on the fine side) to 2 mm. I flexed like mad for hours on end without ever railroading. I've had this pen for two weeks and gone through many many refills without a single problem, doing entire pages of nonsensical flex. Now I'm experiencing some railroading then nothing for hours, but before I tinker with it I want to understand what is going on. (I haven't noticed that the breather tube changes anything and prefer to leave it on as I would probably lose it otherwise). Even with the current hiccups, I am as pleased as I can be. I don't want to get it into the "oh you can't call it a flex nib" but here's what I mean: I've only ever had normal pens with steel nibs, none of them can do what the Ahab does. I've played (and still play) with dip pen nibs and none of them would ever become an everyday writer. And I get to do things that can pass for pseudo-calligraphy. I have the best of both worlds... Looks: I expected the Ahab to look kitsch, or cheap, or completely ugly. I had chosen Iroquois and am really pleased with the material: subtle swirls that go from copper to grey to dark brown streaks ... really beautiful. Conclusion I would buy it again, had no idea I would love it so much. As a side note, I bought it for the good and the bad reviews: the good ones made me dream of it, the bad ones made me want to make it work for me. I've had it for two weeks, used it every day for long sessions of inept flexing and normal writing, and many many refills. I really hope this pen lives forever.

How good is an for normal flex nib vs a click flex nib vs a Noodler's ahab

Anyone else having leakage problems with the Noodler's AHAB? Mine is new (present from my daughter in October), and has a nice, wet surprise for me at various times when I uncap it. This has happened about four times now, despite cleaning and refilling. I contacted Noodler's and they said, "We might need to send you a new feed. Is there too much space between the feed and section?" I sent them photos. That was a month ago. I've heard nothing since. I've heard this is a good company to deal with. Any opinions?

This is less of a review (and much less of a competition), and more of a comparison / demonstration of my two newest pens using two of my newest inks. The paper is Rhodia #16 pad. I've been more interested in line variation lately, as well as broader nibs. I started out my fountain pen journey, quite briefly, with Japanese fine nibs. I soon came to the conclusion there was little reason to use a fountain pen if you're using a nib that fine. Not trying to convince or argue with anyone, but that's what my eyes and hands told me. I quickly moved up to medium, and just recently began exploring some broad nibs, primarily for correspondence. I still use my Pilot 823 medium for work primarily, and my Franklin-Christoph #19 for journaling. Everything else varies, but I've also found I really only love using 3-5 pens of my ~ 3 dozen. (I don't use the word "collection" because I'm not a collector, i.e. if a pen isn't a good writer, it isn't a good pen and I have no use for it.) I researched both these pens before I bought them and had high hopes for both, but also some anxiety as I've read negative comments of both, especially the Ahab. Those high hopes were valid; they are both very good pens. My expectations were well exceeded for one of them, and met by the other. I've always had a strong suspicion I buy Noodler's products from some "other" Noodler's that is quite different from the one some quite vocal critics do. My evidence for this strange conclusion is I cannot for the life of me find a bottle of Bay State Blue that eats my pens or becomes a permanent stain on any object whatsoever it touches, nor Black or Heart of Darkness that smudges after 14 days in the Sahara dry heat, or a Noodler's pen that just won't write out of the box, or even ever, no matter what I do. It could, I suppose, have something to do with not giving one fig about the personal opinions of the owner and sole employee of Noodler's (or Pilot for that matter), but since that would be ridiculous to form a pen or ink opinion or review on, I can only come up with the idea that I'm actually doing business with a different company with the name "Noodler's". But, the pen and documentation say "Noodler's Ahab" so, I'll go with that. The Pilot Falcon was a different story for me. It is only the second pen I've ever gone into a bricks and mortar store and bought, and the very first pen EVER I've tried before I bought it. Probably not so strange in this internet commerce age, but it still sounds weird to say out loud. I visited my friend Alan at Crazy Alan's Emporium nearby in Chapel Hill. Many in the pen world know Alan from pen shows. I know him, and the folks at Franklin-Christoph, because they're my home folks. There's more than one advantage to living in the Triangle of North Carolina. I walked in to Alan's store with the goal of walking out with a few pads of paper for jotting quick notes, and left a little while later with a new Falcon. We've all been there. The Pilot is a smooth writer, as I'd be shocked to find any different performance from a Pilot. My 823 is an absolute phenom and if the skinny thing would put on some weight and especially girth, say grow to the size of a Bexley Prometheus, I'd probably be a one man, one pen guy. It's got everything but that. Pilot doesn't advertise the Falcon as a flex nib / pen, and I always thought that was a cop-out. Now I don't. They're right, it isn't. It's a "standard" pen with a quality nib that isn't a nail. It "flexes" some, vs. none at all, and it will give you some line variation, but not a lot. I noticed the most variation when I did the little squiggly lines many people seem to do to test a pen, much more than when actually writing real stuff with it. It's like the folks at PIlot know how you're going to test it! Or maybe not. I have heard the line variation is more pronounced in the fine or medium nibs from Pilot, so I'm not making a statement about all the nibs available for the Falcon. I've only tried the Soft Broad. (hope my wife doesn't read that sentence out of context). The Ahab is amazing. Maybe I'm amazed easily, but for all the pens I've seen that people claim to be "modern flex" or something equivalent, this one is head and shoulders above the rest. I have never once had problems with the feed keeping up or railroading. I've experienced both, especially railroading, with my Falcon. When I bought the Ahab, I thought it would be a gimmick, use once-in-a-blue-moon kind of thing. I had no expectations of it being a truly very good everyday writer, even when applying no "extra" pressure for flex writing. But it is. This is also the first time I've seen Bay State Grape used in post, to my memory, which I really like. But, this post is about the pens, not the inks. I like both pens and am happy with my purchase. The Ahab far exceeded my expectations, and the Falcon fully met them, though, if I hadn't used the Falcon in the store before I'd bought it, I probably would have expected more line variation from it based on most reviews I've read vs. what it actually does. Enjoy! - MG

One of my favorite pens is the Noodler's Ahab. I like how it is cheap and easy to service (it even smells good lol). I find the original nib quite decent, but I wonder if it is possible to replace it for something "fancier", like a gold nib. I believe it is a #6 nib, but different brands might have different shapes, so I am not sure which model would work. Did anyone try it? Edit: This is the nib I want to put int the Ahab, if I manage to remove it from the feed...

I unexpectedly got some pens parts in the mail today (several days early. Thanks Goulet!) and proceeded to form my newest creation: a Stylomine 303 with working accordian sac, a Nemosine 0.8 mm reentry nib, and a Noodler's Ahab feed. It works! Now all I need to do is find a breather tube that fits so that its ink capacity can be maximum!

I need a new breather tube for a frankenpen I am modifying. It needs to fit in the Ahab feed but has to be longer than the typical Ahab tube. Does anyone have suggestions for where I can get appropriate tubes/tubing?

Of the three pens I have at moment. A montblanc 144, Jinhao 159 and a Noodlers Ahab since I'm just starting out basically was cycling through the pens to see which one style, nib etc I prefer Like I find the Montblanc sort of too small (thin ) for me and the 159 just a bit too large. I had all filled with ink and when I went to use the Ahab today I found the ink had dried up. I was sort of surprised at that. I managed to wash pen out and will re ink it when I get home. I'm thinking it may be a good idea to store pens until ready to use possible filled with distilled water to prevent and ink still in side feed etc from drying out Appreciate any thoughts on this or is it really unnecessary. Thanks

I want to put Noddler 'Year of the Pig' (it's just Bulletproof Noodler's Firefly really) in a Noodler's Bush Pen or into a Refillable Preppy to use as a highlighter.... what's my best move? OR is there a better idea? I already love the ink in a Kaweco Sport Stub, but I'm ready to have something to use in my bible. Helpneeded, because I've watched Goulet's video on trimming the brush or replacement brushes to alter the line and wetness, but I've seen all sorts of people complaining about drying problems in the preppy when filling the body instead of using converter or eyedeopper converter... Thoughts?

Noodler’s Ink is introducing a new 308 refillable ink cartridge. It fits both the Noodler’s Ahab and Neponset (with the white section insert). The cartridges will be available in a 10 pack, MSRP $10.00. Nathan has a video with the details and it includes a brief history of the ink cartridge. Who knew its roots traced back to the American Civil War, some 150 years ago?

Noodler’s Konrad 1820 Essex- Long Term Review As some of you may remember, back in June I posted the following thread: https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/309845-earned-25-want-to-spend-it-on-a-new-pen/page-1 asking for advice on a pen purchase. In the end, I went with a Noodler’s Konrad in 1820 Essex, and I have used it as one of my main everyday writers since then. After five months of nearly daily use, I am finally ready to present my long-term opinions on the pen. ______________________________________________________________________ 1. Appearance & Design (8/10) – Classic semi-transparent design When I first received the Konrad in the mail, I have to admit I was a bit underwhelmed. The pen was slightly smaller than I had anticipated, slightly duller than I had anticipated, and slightly plainer than I had anticipated. But the design has grown on me. What I once saw as slightly dull I now see as understated elegance and beauty. The pen’s body is transparent, tinted the color of seafoam green. The cap and the blind cap are both an opaque white/sliver acrylic that gives the appearance of pearl. The clip is plain but sturdy and effective, stamped with “NOODLERS INK” and has the unique distinction of being in my opinion the best clip I’ve ever used. The nib is a plain looking steel nib, stamped with “NOODLERS INK CO” and with a slit running down all the way to the feed. The piston in the back of then pen is visible through the transparent body, in my opinion adding to the beauty of the pen. 2. Construction & Quality (9/10) – Solid all around, and an incredible Clip The Konrad is constructed almost entirely from acrylic, except for the clip, the small metal accent on the cap, the nib, and the ebonite feed. The papers that come with the pen claim the acrylic is biodegradable, but to me it feels like it’d last to the end of time. If I dropped my pen capped from any reasonable height, I wouldn’t be excessively concerned. It is well made and well-constructed, and feels sturdy enough. The clip warrants its own statement however. The clip is quite possibly the best clip on any fountain pen I’ve ever used. It isn’t the prettiest, it isn’t the shiniest, it isn’t the thickest, it isn’t the anything-est for that matter, but it just works. I use my pen clips quite often, and they are regularly clipped to the outside part of my pocket. This clip is the easiest to clip on, the easiest to grab off, the sturdiest, and the strongest-seeming clip I’ve ever had the -pleasure to use. The cap and blind cap both unscrew smoothly and easily, and the piston mechanism is smooth turning and feels sturdy. My one complaint about build quality would be that my pen had a quite noticeable imperfection in the acrylic in the cap of the pen, but it adds character to the design in the end and I’ve grown to like it. Another important thing to note is that the entire pen can be taken apart and put back together with no special tooling, making it a very easy pen to repair, service, or modify, should you ever need or want to. … 3. Weight & Dimensions (7/10) – Light, but not too light The pen weighs 15g capped and 11g without the cap, and in my opinion the experience feels most balanced when posted. The pen is on the light end, but not too light. It weighs around the same as a Pilot Custom 74, if that helps any of you picture it. … 4. Nib & Performance (10/10) – Wow. Just Wow. This is the part of the review where I go full on crazy. The nib on my Noodler’s Konrad is the best nib I have ever used. It is glassy smooth, lays down a wet yet controllable line, and, being a flex nib, has a ton of line variation. In terms of the line variation, I cannot claim to know what true vintage flex feels like, I can just say that the Konrad does it pretty gosh darn well. For the first two months or so, the nib was really only semi-flex, which is where I think a lot of the talk about the Noodler’s pens not being real flex comes from. After that however, I’ve been able to get consistent line variation with minimal pressure. The nib is truly a joy to write with. I should also say that upon arrival the nib was also not quite so smooth, and I adjusted it to my liking with micromesh and Mylar paper of 1.0 and 0.3 micron grits. The level of smoothness I get with my Konrad is paralleled in my experience only by complete nails, so to have the combination of the smoothness with exceptional line variation makes the Konrad something special. The ebonite feed keeps up with flow extremely well, and the pen writes with a consistent moderately wet flow, even when being flexed. I have heard complaints about inconsistent flow on other people’s Konrad’s, however, so if you do have flow issues I believe the best option would be to heat-set your feed. I have never had to do this with my Konrad, but it’s nice to know it’s an option if I ever have to thanks to the Ebonite feed. The nibs and feeds can both be easily replaced if you manage to mess them up, replacement flex nibs (tipped) are $5 and replacement feeds are $4. I would be wary to replace my nib, however, because as I said before it took about two months of daily use to truly “break in” the flex in the nib. … 5. Filling System & Maintenance (9/10) – Complete fill every time- worked like a charm for 4 months of daily use so far The Konrad is a piston filler, and has worked reliably for me through all four months I’ve been using this pen. The piston is a plastic nob under a blind cap at the back of the pen. One slight issue I found with the filler is that on a few occasions if I screwed the blind cap on too tightly I would unscrew the entire piston mechanism from the pen rather than the blind cap. The piston turns smoothly and comes pre-greased, but you can always add silicon grease to the piston threads if they ever become “squeaky”. … 6. Cost & Value (8/10) – Fairly cheap, but you might need to buy some stuff to go with it The pen costs $20, and is in my opinion well worth the price. It should be noted, however, that if you aren’t already slightly invested in the pen world it may not be worth the cost to you. For instance, if I didn’t have the micromesh and Mylar paper to smooth my nib, or the silicon grease to regrease my piston three months into use, I probably would not enjoy my pen as much as I do. These are not substantial costs, though, and many pen enthusiasts probably already have them around the house. … 7. Conclusion (8.5/10) – A great, unique pen at a great price, my new daily writer After using this pen for the past several months, I can say with great confidence that it will likely be my most used pen for many more months to come. I have prettier pens, I have more expensive pens, I have pens that feel slightly better in the hand, and I have pens with shiny golden nibs, but none of these pens compare to the simple pleasure that is the Noodler’s Konrad. It has the greatest nib I’ve ever had the pleasure to use, looks good, has great ink capacity, and is incredibly sturdy. What more could you want? All pictures are taken from www.gouletpens.com , the website where I purchased my Konrad. The shipping was quick, and the customer service was excellent. If you are considering the Konrad, I would highly recommend ordering from the Goulet’s.

I think I have just performed a miracle! Had cleaned out my Noodler's Ahab completely (so taking the feed/nib off cleaning everything. This pen, like my Creeper and a lot of other noodler's pens out there, was railroading BAD after a mere minute of fun. Had checked everything, every video, forums, tips and tricks and it was just a pain. Well.. Not anymore! And in a grand spectacular way! This is the third page of clairefontaine triomphe Loaded with ink with ZERO railroad. That's right. ZERO. Sometimes going around the page making a fat line and it just never skipped. I did make a tiny adjustment to the nib before assembling maybe this was it. But wow is it a fun pen now. http://i.imgur.com/GNEEEQB.jpg?2

I bought a Noodler's Ahab (Crow) to try for size and feel as a daily user. I really enjoy but every time I uncap it, the grip section is inky and I have to clean it up. Much of it ends up on my hands. Is this common? Where is the ink coming from? The pen doesn't go through much change in altitude or temperatures. For $23, I'm really pleased with this pen. I'd just like to solve the inky grip thing. Any ideas?

I have 7 pens right now so I feel like I'm ready to try out a flex pen next. I want something cheap that I can play around with, without worrying too much about cost if something happens to go wrong - so I want to stick to one of the noodler's flex pens. I'm undecided between the nib creeper, ahab and konrad. I think I might be leaning more towards the ahab because it's got a bigger grip and I'm thinking would be more comfortable to hold while applying the needed pressure to flex. I know there's a lot of variance between all the pens, even within the same nib creeper, ahab and konrad families. But as my first one, any suggestions which is best?

I am among those (few?) lucky guys who didn't have problems with Noodler's pens. At the same time, there are some features that I'm not crazy about (these are all personal preferences, of course) and it looks like I've found a work around for one of them. It's appeared that I'm not fond of Ahab's filling mechanism. It works fine but the ink stuck in the piston rod drives me nuts. I know how to advance that ink to the nib but I don't like the procedure. And I know that removing the breather tube prevents the ink intake into the piston rod but ink can still get into there afterwards. One solution is, of course, to cover the hole in the piston but I don't know how to do this securely and reversibly at the same time. I still might return to this later. Another way is to use the pen as an eyedropper. This is when some internal imperfections of my Ahab (or even straight design flaws) became prominent. It didn't want to hold the ink. The pen was gushing right after filling. Furthermore, once a sbstantial air pocket was formed the pen started to drip the ink. Thus the eyedropper option was seemingly out. One day I've read about using Sheaffer's feeds in Indian eyedroppers and it rang the bell, thanks to, let's say, certain structural similarities between Noodler's pens and pens of some manufacturers in India. I have a couple of Sheaffer pens, which I couldn't make to work to my satisfaction. It's turned out that the standard feed taken from a plastic school pen fits wonderfully into the Ahab. Now to results. Positive outcomes. I am able to use my Ahab as an eyedropper. Moreover, I've finished two complete fills almost without usual problems, meaning no burping at the end! This should be elaborated. When the ink level gets low, say, to the last quarter, the pen becomes noticeably wetter but not too much. During the first fill, when the level dropped to the last milliliter or so the pen once misbehaved and was about to burp when I was writing on the porch (it was about 90 F that day), while inside there were no problems and the burping tendencies didn't reappear when the pen was taken inside and brought out again. I don't have an explanation for this. Possibly this was an effect of mismatched thermal expansions of the grip and the feed or something. During the second fill there were no problems but the pen was kept inside all the time. Negative outcomes. Well, non so far. General remarks. 1) I think people would like to know whether the Sheaffer feed cures the railroading problem. I cannot testify confidently as I don't use the flex nib. I've tried once with the new feed. It seemed that the ink supply got more steady but nevertheless I was able to make the pen railroad, but that's not difficult. So, how the Sheaffer feed affects the performance of the flex stock nibs should be studied separately. 2) Can the Sheaffer feed be used in Konrads? Without modifications, not really. The feed has this protrusion at the back end and it interferes with the piston. The piece can probably be cut off. I didn't try this. 3) Whether Sheaffer's feeds can be found separately I don't know, but cheap Sheaffer pens can be easily bought for a few dollars apiece on eBay. Overall, I'm very satisfied with the modified Ahab (is it still Ahab if it only has Ahab's body and the cap?). I can see it being a frequent member of the rotation.

Here's what I spent my day doing, as a result of being salty about my Ackerman pump pen not arriving and getting no responses to my multiple queries to customer service. And really, it was so stupid-easy, I should have just done this to begin with. Annnnnd here's a general run-down on how I did it: Close-up of the tape overfeed on the nib: Hopefully other tinkerers and those who desire, specifically (like me), to use G nibs in their pens, will find this helpful and interesting. I know I'm enjoying it! The only problem I've come across is that you CANNOT give the pen a little downward shake to prime the nib. It will spew a big ol' droplet or two. The way I would describe how to get the nib tip primed, should it run dry, is to do little "woodpecker taps" on a piece of scrap paper. Or if you're really careful (*cough*adventurous*cough*), light taps where you're going to start your line. This should be familiar to others who have put dip nibs in fountain pens before.

I always wanted an Ahab that has the excellent rubber feed, but a nib that is not that springy. Finally got it, using a Meisternibs 18k nib. The nib seems to be unsuitable for an Acrylic Konrad or normal Konrad.

Is anyone else defeated by the small increase of noddlers' Ahab and Konrad. Looks like they're going up three dollars or so. Hate to be suspiciously minded but I feel like this is how it begins. Slowly the prices of goods increase, but in small incremental amounts. At first everyone shrugs and goes along with it. Then a little while later another increase under a similarly auspicious ruse.

sup ppl. So I got an Ahab and my oh my! Those 20 dollars are worth every cent and more... I even love the smell. Reminds me of my grandpa's Vacumatic. I swapped the stock "flexi" nib for Zebra G and the thing became insane! Couldn't be happier. One question to other Ahab owners though... I first filled the pen with Sailor Jentle Green (ever so exquisite!) but noticed that it stained the section as well as the reservoir. After subsequent fillings with the same ink and a transition to Platinum Carbon Black Ink (ftw) it seems unlikely that the now amber-colored demonstrator plastic in the section is ever going back to its original clear (yet with a tinge of purple color). Is this normal? I will be going eyedropper style as soon as the stores open tomorrow (so I can get me some silicone grease) and I just want to know for sure if the staining I described above is the regular Ahab behaviour so I'll be prepared to get a permanently stained barrel too. Not that I care too much, to be honest Just wanted to ask. Thanks for looking at my post! cheers S

After tweeking and messing around with my numerous Noodler pens for far to long, I have finally found the issue with them that causes ink to be found in the cap, and fixed it!!!! So the issue is that some of the feeds used in these pens have feeds that are too narrow which allows ink to pool on the barrel wall and eventually drip out. After trying heat setting and other not very useful methods, I found the simplest and easiest way to elevate this issue. TEFLON TAPE. You take some of the Teflon tape, and wrap it around the feed (without the nib on it) once or twice, align the nib with the feed (now widened with the Teflon Tape) and refit in the barrel. This solution literally costs pennies and works great. After trying this with a variety of pens with this issue, for a bit of time, I have experienced no flow issue and NO DRIPS. I have been using my Ahab with the refitted feed for months now and no issues at all and I was able to remove the Teflon Tape after months of used with ease and reapply some tape after some thorough cleaning of them pen. Do be careful that you don't add to much tape, making the feed to wide and possible cracking the barrel (don't force it to much). Hope this helps. Cheers, Shawn

I finally received my FPR Guru Flex today in the mail and it is a very interesting pen. Interesting in the sense that I can't make up my mind about it. Here are my thoughts from the first time using it. http://i.imgur.com/kWKuieKl.jpg Aesthetics: 5/10 I don't think this is an ugly pen, however, it isn't pretty. I like demonstrators, especially when they are well done. This, unfortunately, isn't the most refined of demonstrators. The points where the plastic is joined looks very sloppy and the threads suffer from the same problem. The pocket clip works well, but looks very very cheap. This pen comes in at about 5 inches, pretty similar in length to the Noodler's Ahab, but much thinner. I would have preferred if it were a bit thicker, both for aesthetics and ergonomics. http://i.imgur.com/FBUAUAgl.jpg http://i.imgur.com/k8HZHTvl.jpg http://i.imgur.com/ePawEAll.jpg Ergonomics: 7/10 Despite being a bit thin for my taste, it is actually very comfortable to use. The grip section appears smooth, but it is not slippery. The cap threads aren't sharp and don't interfere with writing. Filling System: 7/10 Piston filler. The piston knob is a little stubborn at first but it works smoothly and it fills up with ease. Hold a good amount of ink, I haven't measured this but it is pretty close to the Ahab. Nib and feed: 7/10 Here is where the pen gets interesting. I took out of the box and I was underwhelmed. I handled it, and it felt cheap. I filled it and the piston mechanism left something to be desired. And then I wrote with it. This nib is smooth. Very smooth. The feed keeps up with fast writing and this thing flexes with ease. No railroading whatsoever, and I can get it to flex just as much as my Ahab. Granted, I have no tinkered with my Ahab much at all, but as far as out of the box performance goes, I have to say the Guru impressed. http://i.imgur.com/9hJ8wlZl.jpg http://i.imgur.com/TeTki0ol.jpg Value: 7/10 This pen costs $12 from fountainpenrevolution.com. With shipping it is $15 and you get a free Serwex pen with it (at least I did, not sure if this is still the case). http://i.imgur.com/qJxSGGgl.jpg Overall: 33/50 I won't compare this to a Hero type pen because the Chinese companies don't offer a flex version. In terms of value I would compare it to the Noodler's Nib Creaper and Ahab. The Nib Creaper costs $14 without shipping and the Ahab costs about $20. If you can get a Nib Creaper for ~$15, I think that would be the best option. The Ahab is more ergonomic and better built, but more expensive. Overall I would say that I like the Guru. It is an interesting pen with a very nice flex nib. The shipping is a little long (I waited 11 days iirc) but it is a pen that not many people have and which writes very well for the price.

I've always been a huge fan of Noodler's and Nathan, but they've always been undeniably drab in their color offerings for me. But I want more of these deep, luscious tortoise materials.