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Hello, everyone! My name is Keith and, while I have been writing for many years, I have never given much thought to the quality of the pen, pencil, or paper that I've used. This has recently changed since I am preparing to begin working on copywork that I intend to pass down to my children as an heirloom; the Bible, both old and new testament, written in my hand (ESV translation). I just bought a ream of Crane's Crest 20lb. 100% cotton paper, but I am still trying figure out what pen to use. I have used (and am quite comfortable with) my Sakura Pigma Micron (005) pens for writing in my study Bible's. Unless I find something of better quality that does not have a tendency to bleed through the page, I plan on using these for my copy work. That being said, I have always been interested in fountain pens, but my experience with them has not been very good. Every one I have ever used has had a tendency to stop writing at the most inopportune times. I am also planning on either binding the finished product myself or having it professionally done, so I welcome advice in that area as well. Thank you all in advance for your time and thoughts!

As usual, when travelling I always look for the smaller older stationery stores as they usually have some old stock that are always interesting. This time, I found some old drawing pens, the disposable plastic-tipped type. Not really a collectible stuff, but I bought they anyway since they're very cheap and still works anyway. What i'm interested in knowing, is the approximate age of these pens. For me, this is one is the most interesting one. The Sailor B-1 Color Drawing. I never knew Sailor products were sold here in my country (Indonesia) and if they were at some time, it was quite some time ago. On top of that, this is the first time I've known that Sailor makes this type of pen. I tried researching a bit online, and can find very few references about it. One said that they were discontinued. So, my question is why a large manufacturer like Sailor not have a fair amount of share in this type of market. To the point that their drawing pens are barely even mentioned anywhere, and if they really did stop producing them, when did that happen? I also got these old Sakura Pigma pens. The Pigma Graphic is labeled "Nouvel" so I'm guessing this was a new product back then. So that might be a clue to their age. 2 interesting things I noticed was that these older Microns have the micro symbol (μ) on them and that the sleek "new" design of the blue bodied micron pens (like the Micron ESDK005) is actually reminiscent of these older designs. Since these pens were invented in the 80's, I think it would be very nice to assemble a collection of the evolution of their design. But I'm unable to find any pictures of any of the older models.

Hello! I've been a lurker on this forum for about a month, but I finally decided to register about an hour ago. It looks like a great forum, and I hope to be an active participant in the discussions around here! I'm relatively new to pens and everything lettering related, so my knowledge about these topics are still a deep shade of green. I had a few burning questions I wanted to ask before I really start to sink my teeth into learning about the wonderful world of lettering and calligraphy. And also some questions about long-term replacements for some pens and material (so that I won't have to buy cartridges and disposables all the time). I currently own a Pilot Parallel 1.5mm (which I plan on buying a converter for), and a set of fine line "Artists Loft" felt-tipped pens (previously had used Prismacolors and played with a few Microns). I also have a Pentel medium-sized waterbrush that I had filled with ink, but I got rid of the ink and am using it as a watercolor brush now (I found that it was a bit too big for what I intended to use it for). But anyways, below are my ideas of what I plan on buying, and the questions. Any suggestions on anything is welcome! For my graphics and everyday sketching, I'm looking for: A refillable (or dip?) brush-tipped pen (something well suited for brush-script and regular sketch-y use) (Just something basic that can be refilled with ink so I don't need to keep ordering cartridges, which could get pricey. I was considering buying a finer tipped waterbrush, and filling it with ink- like I had done with my medium sized waterbrush, but I'm not sure if it would be ideal) Refillable pen with tip like that of a Micron (preferably in different sizes if available?) (I have not found anything really like this yet. I'm also not adverse to a metal tip if there are any good ones out there. Essentially, I'm looking for a more long-term, refillable option that produces lines close to that of the Microns). A refillable, "regular-use" fountain pen for general sketching (I was heavily considering the Pilot Penmanship Fountain Pen, but I'm wondering if there are better options out there that I'm not aware of) I had been using Higgins Black Magic ink in the waterbrush- which from what I had heard, isn't very good? I heard great things about Noodler's ink, so I'd probably be refilling any refillable pens (unless a different ink must be used for a particular pen) with that. I'm also not against using converters or converting a pen to an "eyedropper pen". And the list for my Copperplate endeavor (I'll probably be dabbling in some other hands as well): Nibs: *Zebra G Nib *Brause 66EF Nib *Hiro Crown Nib *Leonardt Principal EF Nib (I'll probably get a few other nibs to try out as well) (I'm left-handed, so any advice would be greatly appreciated. From I've read from a few sources, I might need a different kind of nib that is more suited for left-handers. Is that true?) Ink: *Moon Palace Sumi Ink (or use up the existing Higgins Black Magic that I have?) Holder: Speedball or other basic holder (Would I need an oblique?) Sorry for such a big, honking, loaded mix of questions! I'm just looking for some advice to make sure I'm going in the right direction (if I'm getting too ahead of myself, if this is way too much gear to start with or have, etc). I also don't want to buy garbage or use something that is less than ideal, that would make me develop bad habits, etc... which is why I came here to ask for some guidance. I am open to any and all suggestions with all of this stuff I mentioned, and any response, tips, feedback, or advice would be greatly appreciated (heck, I appreciate anyone who actually read all of this)! And again, I'm sorry about so many questions! -Atmos