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Can you believe it? I really did not need another pen, but I got one anyway. The Lamy 2000 Fine - Macrolon. It is my 3rd Western fine, vs. the Waterman Carene and Pelikan M120 Iconic Blue. On paper their line output is almost identical. The Pelikan I would consider slightly wet and the Lamy and Waterman neither wet nor dry. The Waterman is 18K gold, the Lamy 14K and the Pelikan is steel. For me, they were almost all identical in price. The Pelikan is lightest and smallest, then the Lamy, then the Carene, although the Lamy mid-barrel is a bit wider in diameter than the Carene. The Waterman is lacquer on brass. I expected the Lamy to write like the Waterman, super smooth and quiet. I was surprised to find the Lamy and Waterman feel very different from each other. The Lamy writes much more like the steel Pelikan (the 2 German pens vs. the French pen). There is feedback and noise of writing on paper, unlike with the Waterman. The Pelikan is perhaps a bit more scratchy-like and loud but maybe glides slightly better on paper due to the wetter ink flow. The Pelikan is also much more springy than the other 2. I would not call either the Lamy or Pelikan truly scratchy at all, however. For me, these 3 pens are my most comfortable/easiest pens to write with in my collection, with the Pelikan less comfortable due to its thin section and very slight step at the section threads. The Lamy 'dog-ears' do not come into play with me at all. My grip is at the top of the metal section and below the dog ears. I'm not sure if you would call these work-horse pens but I think I could have the longest writing sessions with these 3 vs. any in my collection because of their comfort. What I notice with all 3, the Lamy included, is when I start writing I think about the words on paper and forget about the pen. This may be a great compliment. In fact, it seems like I forget about the Lamy in hand the quickest. From a writing standpoint, I think that is a good thing. With my Sailor King of Pen or Pelikan M1000 I could be 3 pages in and still be oogling at the smoothness of the writing, or how beautiful they are or be marveling at how long I've been able to maintain the sweet spot... my writing comes backseat to the pen with these 'flagships'. From a pen enthusiast's standpoint, that is amazing, from a writer's standpoint (luckily I am not) it is probably a very bad thing. So I consider the 2 gold nibs, Carene vs. the 2000, one is elegant, delicate looking but very solid in hand, glassy smooth and quiet writing and super comfortable, the other is minimalist, form over function, durable, low to moderate feedback and sound, yet smooth and super comfortable. Both with snap on caps, both with unique nib looks. One should be written with the pinky in the air, the other, not. One, very French (French named after the hull of a yacht), other very German (using the very Germanic sounding 'Bauhaus' design language). Both very different, both really enjoyable and interesting in their own right. I'm still trying to decide of my thoughts of my little German school pen, but that springy nib feels great and for now it is my only pocket pen. Edit: I continue to write page after page with this Lamy 2000. I know many don't believe in pen/nib 'break-in' but I have seen references to ink flow and smoothness improving specifically with this pen over the first few days. I can say with confidence my ink flow and smoothness with this Lamy 2000 continues to improve. At this point I am now just feeling subtle feedback. This is really shaping up into a beautiful Fine writer. I will add I did not include my Pilot Custom 823 Fine in this comparison because that pen really writes like a Western Extra fine. But I can confirm at this point my Lamy 2000 is also now writing smoother than my Custom 823, which is also no small feat as the 823 is an outstanding writing pen with a touch of feedback.

Hi folks, I am thinking of buying myself a present (ok, I'll be honest - I mean that I wants a new Shiny Thing I does, oh yes!), and I would like some advice from you before I Succumb to the Temptation to blow what is actually rather lot of money for me. I am trying to choose between a current production (2019-2020) Parker Sonnet, and a Waterman Carène. I am (as long as the Mods are happy to let me) putting this thread in to both the Parker forum and the Waterman forum, so that I can get as many well-informed replies as possible. The Carène that I fancy the look of is (happily for me) the cheapest one available, and so it is ‘only’ the same price as a Sonnet with a gold nib. The retailer from whom I am thinking of buying my new toy sells both pens, and in every nib width too They also stock spare nibs, so I could buy any colour of Sonnet and also buy a gold nib to put in to it. Background I already own some Parker Frontiers, so I know that the size and shape of the Sonnet suits my hand (although I don't yet know about the weight). I also like that their nib units can be unscrewed if necessary, because I like to use Rohrer & Klingner's iron-gall inks „Salix” and „Scabiosa”. The ease of removing the Sonnet's nib & feed for cleaning reassures me that I would have less to fear in terms of the consequences of letting any ink dry out in a Sonnet. [i did once let some „Salix” dry-out in a Parker "51", and that was a massive PITA to put right. It took about six weeks! OK, so it has so far only happened on the one occasion, when my mother had to be rushed in to hopsital with acute neurological side-effects from a new heart medication, and was in there for a month. Happily, it hasn't happened since, but since then ease of cleaning is something that I do consider whenever I contemplate a new pen purchase.] Regardless of my penchant for ‘planning for failure’, I am concerned that I have seen many complaints about Sonnets drying-out whilst capped, and complaints of them ‘writing dry’. Neither of those things sounds like anything I want - especially as I like pens that ‘write wet’. So, have you found modern Sonnets to have a drying-out problem? Do you think that there is any point in my buying a Sonnet with a gold nib, or are the steel nibs just as good? Is the gold nib more ‘springy’ than the steel? Are both nibs ‘nails’? With respect to the Carène, I like the look of the beast, and have read many complimetary things about it on here. I have read the advice on how to avoid the problems that can occur when filling it, and how to adjust the rotation angle of the barrel so that the ‘stern’ end of the pen is oriented correctly when the barrel is screwed back on. I have not yet held an example of the pen, so intend to try one out so that I can check its girth, heft, and balance before I buy it. My potential worry with it would be its large and inaccessible feed - if I were to let an ink (but especially an iron-gall ink) dry out in that I expect that it would be a nightmare to clean out. Possibly even worse than the "51"! What are your thoughts, oh Fount of All Wisdom that is FPN? Which of these two pens would you advise me to buy? Do you think that the Carène is the better pen, and that I should buy the Carène and just leave the iron-gall inks for my Frontiers? Or that each pen is as good as the other? Or that the Sonnet is better, and that I should buy one with a gold-nib? Or that I ought to buy a steel-nibbed Sonnet & also some nice inks with the rest of the money? Are there any other ‘problems’ with either pen? Have you found either to have any ‘idiosyncrasies’ that have irked you? My thanks to you all in advance for your answers. Cheers, M.

Hi folks, I am thinking of buying myself a present (ok, I'll be honest - I mean that I wants a new Shiny Thing I does, oh yes!), and I would like some advice from you before I Succumb to the Temptation to blow what is actually rather lot of money for me. I am trying to choose between a current production (2019-2020) Parker Sonnet, and a Waterman Carène. I am (as long as the Mods are happy to let me) putting this thread in to both the Parker forum and the Waterman forum, so that I can get as many well-informed replies as possible. The Carène that I fancy the look of is (happily for me) the cheapest one available, and so it is ‘only’ the same price as a Sonnet with a gold nib. The retailer from whom I am thinking of buying my new toy sells both pens, and in every nib width too They also stock spare nibs, so I could buy any colour of Sonnet and also buy a gold nib to put in to it. Background I already own some Parker Frontiers, so I know that the size and shape of the Sonnet suits my hand (although I don't yet know about the weight). I also like that their nib units can be unscrewed if necessary, because I like to use Rohrer & Klingner's iron-gall inks „Salix” and „Scabiosa”. The ease of removing the Sonnet's nib & feed for cleaning reassures me that I would have less to fear in terms of the consequences of letting any ink dry out in a Sonnet. [i did once let some „Salix” dry-out in a Parker "51", and that was a massive PITA to put right. It took about six weeks! OK, so it has so far only happened on the one occasion, when my mother had to be rushed in to hopsital with acute neurological side-effects from a new heart medication, and was in there for a month. Happily, it hasn't happened since, but since then ease of cleaning is something that I do consider whenever I contemplate a new pen purchase.] Regardless of my penchant for ‘planning for failure’, I am concerned that I have seen many complaints about Sonnets drying-out whilst capped, and complaints of them ‘writing dry’. Neither of those things sounds like anything I want - especially as I like pens that ‘write wet’. So, have you found modern Sonnets to have a drying-out problem? Do you think that there is any point in my buying a Sonnet with a gold nib, or are the steel nibs just as good? Is the gold nib more ‘springy’ than the steel? Are both nibs ‘nails’? With respect to the Carène, I like the look of the beast, and have read many complimetary things about it on here. I have read the advice on how to avoid the problems that can occur when filling it, and how to adjust the rotation angle of the barrel so that the ‘stern’ end of the pen is oriented correctly when the barrel is screwed back on. I have not yet held an example of the pen, so intend to try one out so that I can check its girth, heft, and balance before I buy it. My potential worry with it would be its large and inaccessible feed - if I were to let an ink (but especially an iron-gall ink) dry out in that I expect that it would be a nightmare to clean out. Possibly even worse than the "51"! What are your thoughts, oh Fount of All Wisdom that is FPN? Which of these two pens would you advise me to buy? Do you think that the Carène is the better pen, and that I should buy the Carène and just leave the iron-gall inks for my Frontiers? Or that each pen is as good as the other? Or that the Sonnet is better, and that I should buy one with a gold-nib? Or that I ought to buy a steel-nibbed Sonnet & also some nice inks with the rest of the money? Are there any other ‘problems’ with either pen? Have you found either to have any ‘idiosyncrasies’ that have irked you? My thanks to you all in advance for your answers. Cheers, M.

Carene in French means “hull” of a boat. The streamlined design of Carene looks like the hull of a racing yacht. The silver cap with engraved lines look like waves and the gold furniture complements both black resin and silver cap. The barrel finial is beautiful hull shape in gold with a black resin jewel. The 18k inlaid nib is a smooth writer. The gold clip and capband with Waterman crest as well as Waterman engraved on enhance the ridged cap. At 33.4 gms and 5.69” it is a mid sized nicely balanced pen. The spirit of waves, the hull of a boat and inspiration from the ocean inspired me to pair it with J Herbin 1670 Blue Ocean Ink. It is a luxury to be indulged in, in terms of visual, tactile and writing quality. I am absolutely besotted by my Carene.

Hi FPNers! Ink penetrated and form those blots below the metal surface. I can assure you I'm very careful using the pen and nothing exceptional happened. http://i260.photobucket.com/albums/ii33/mmmcosta/Watches/Carene_zpswik2vhyw.jpg Have this ever happened to your Carène? I look forward to hearing from you. Regards, Marcelo

Dear FPNers, I have four FPs - Lamy Studio Palladium - Waterman Carène - Parker Premier - Caran d'Ache Léman but only use the first two. I wrote with the Parker a couple of times, but never inked the CdA – I think I don't have a "suitable" environment for them. Regarding the Waterman and the Lamy, both write nicely, but I prefer the Waterman. The Lamy is a bit too wet and, while the Carène writes without ANY resistance, I feel the Studio Palladium... not to be "scratchy", but kind of tending to offer resistance to some movements over the paper. I can assure that the M nib of the Lamy is in perfect condition. I would like to read the experiences of those of you write or have written with both. Marcelo

There is a gentleman in our industry association council that will be retiring after 30 years and thought it would be nice to get him a fountain pen as a going away gift. I got the other team members approval on selecting a fountain pen all except one person who thought we should give him a ballpoint pen that doubles as an iPhone charger I've decided that the Carene is the most elegant at the price point (about $200-300) we need to keep it at $20 each contribution. The gentleman is from Spain and I was thinking of getting the Glossy Red Carene for him, as the Flag of Spain is predominantly red and yellow. What do you all think? Opinions welcome

My friend John is a photographer and asked me if he could borrow a few fountain pens to shoot for his portfolio. I think he did a great job. http://static.squarespace.com/static/51c300c1e4b034c963afc8b8/t/51c48c43e4b0c5a944a39daa/1371835461423/20%20-%20Pennor0564.jpg Pilot Capless, TWSBI Diamond 540, Iroshizuku Tsuki-yo ink, Pilot Custom, Pilot MYU BS-500. http://static.squarespace.com/static/51c300c1e4b034c963afc8b8/t/51c48c2ce4b09ee48eb671cd/1371835437733/20%20-%20Pennor0531.jpg Montblanc Meisterstück 149, Waterman Carène, custom Nakaya, Iroshizuku Chiku-rin and Tsutsuji ink. Photos taken from my blog post. (Translated with Google.)