fountain pen taboos - don't enter if you're easily offended

[SlipyNaricis2112]

Why would anyone write with a nib that has no flex? What, if I may implore, is the freakin' point? Ballpoints and rollerballs exist for a reason.

 

Introspect for a moment here, there are what, almost 40,000 people on this forum? If everyone of you still wanted a flex nib, SOMEONE, not everyone, probably not even many, but someone would still be making superflex nibs.

 

Parker 51 is ugly, except when capped.

 

Mont Blanc, honestly, it's a pen. Get over yourselves.

[Albertine]

 

People who say an ink's lack of water resistance is a "deal breaker". To which I respond - yeah right, as if anything you could write needs to be permanent.

 

 

Well, I might need to last until you can hand in your homework or take the final exam you've been scribbling notes for, and if you're crossing campus in a rainstorm with a bag that gets damp and makes all your notes/worksheets/whatever bleed, that would be pretty disastrous.

 

"deal breaker" might mean "I don't want to deal with this frightful near-future possibility" rather than "my every word is a pearl of infinite wisdom!"

[Midori]

Not strictly FP-related, but Mont Blanc refers to the mountain. The brand/company is Montblanc.

 

With that said, I am grateful that the majority of posters on this forum type in proper English, with adequate punctuation, and minimal resort to abbreviations and acronyms so commonly seen on the Internet these days.

[mirosc]

Well, now, after 13 other pages, I think it's time for my rant:

 

For Montblanc: They make good writing instruments, but that "star"... Looks plain stupid. And actually - I have to admit it - in real life I haven't met a normal MB owner. Everyone was just an arrogant snob using the pen for bragging. Didn't happen with Pelikan, Parker and other brands. I love prejudice! :ltcapd:

 

Noodler's inks are quite nice. If, oh, if only their names didn't show such a huge lack of taste and decency. So I'm often tempted to ignore them just for their marketing.

 

Speaking of inks: This system of piston fillers and converters and eyedroppers and needle injections... I hate that mess, fiddling around, needing a tissue and so on. Bah!

 

PS: To all the other Parker51-defeatists - you have my sympathy

[asdfg68plus1]

Not strictly FP-related, but Mont Blanc refers to the mountain. The brand/company is Montblanc.

Mont Blanc, honestly, it's a [mountain]. Get over yoursel[f].

 

I thought it was funny, but I have a habit of thinking some really lame/dumb things are funny... :embarrassed_smile:

[rjbull]

The Safari/Al-Star/Vistas have that god-awful grip.

You might prefer the Lamy Nexx. The section is rounder, not so insistent you hold it only the official way, and seems slightly "rubberized.". It's mentioned in various FPN threads. The cap is a bit weird.

[sombrueil]

I agree with all of the previous posts.

 

:meow:

[rhosygell]

1. Fountain pens that don't work properly.

 

 

2. So called "prestige" pens with (bleep) warranty and customer service.

 

3. Overly heavy pens - not nice for daily use.

 

4. Metal sections - way too slippery, cold and hard

[79spitfire]

http://www.thewambulance.com/images/wambulance_logo.jpg

 

Here's a Taboo, Whining too much!

 

If fountain pens are "too much trouble" get a Bic stick!

[Alohamora]

I cannot stop buying Triumph nibs

 

 

 

Must be an acquired taste. Triumph nibs are ugly, if you ask me.

[crussell]

To the OP. This is amazing! You're my new best friend.

 

1) Pelikans are such great writers, but kinda bland, except for the tortoise, which only comes in small pens that I buy but never use. (More confession than complaint.) Even their limiteds. When I see that hideous Hurcules pen for sale I wonder "who on earth thought this would make a $2,500 pen" I guess the a paperweight makes it cool?

 

2) Captive converters... IT IS NOT A %$#* PISTON FILLER. (And should not command the same price.)

 

3) Titanium nibs. Can any nibmeister make these things smooth and wet?

 

4) Maki-e. It's not art people! Art does not come from a factory. Ever. End of story. Art has a social function and a history that has nothing to do with technical prowess. (Western-centric, sorry.) And now that they are screen-printing those things they don't even involve a proficient technician...

 

5) Limited editions. They are either so big you can't really call them limited, or they are tiny editions that are too large for the market to absorb. Even if you have an edition of 25, if any part of it sits unsold for more than a month, you have an over saturated market, not an "investment." Same for anything with production numbers in the 5 digits!

 

6) Bexley. I taught for a term at a University in Ohio, and while I was there I made an appointment, and spent a good part of my day driving into Columbus, to see a Bexley ebonite pen. (At Bexley Stationers, not the pen company.) Upon arrival I was shown a $350 pen that was said to have been received directly from Howard Levy at my request. It had an obnoxious seam in the middle of the barrel. Ostensibly, it came through quality control, was looked at while having the nib fitted and was looked at again before being handed to me and nobody noticed something was wrong? If they don't notice a major aesthetic flaw, how good can they possibly do with fine details? Or did they think that because I was coming a long way I wouldn't want to leave empty handed and would walk away with malformed grain. (OK a little too specific, and not even a pen I wrote with, but I just can't take them seriously after that, no matter how much I like their story, or want to be a fan.)

[Florida Blue]

The comments that disparage Montblanc and the people who write with their pens because of a negative brand image that has largely been conceived by those making the disparaging comments. It's just a pen company and there's no reason to get all bent out of shape over it.

[crussell]

 

3.) When FPs and bling meet. A fountain pen must be functional and aesthetically pleasing. When diamonds and other such gem stones are included the functionality completely goes down the crapper, it's a piece of jewellery with a nib on one end.

 

 

 

Whats up with a bit of bling ??

 

 

 

http://i847.photobucket.com/albums/ab37/bitsforsale09/Visconti_Fountain_Pens2-thumb-450x6.jpg

 

http://i847.photobucket.com/albums/ab37/bitsforsale09/aaaB-6eBGkKGrHgoH-DkEjlLly9hRBKrReO.jpg

 

 

Moby

 

BARF!

Pens for people with personality disorders?

 

 

OMG! Thank you! Those are THE most hideous "pens" ever! And Montegrappa won't even work, so you'll have to crate that thing and send it on few separate pilgrimages to it's Motherland.

Edited June 6, 2011 by crussell

[ethernautrix]

WRONG!

[ethernautrix]

_{I'm kidding.}

 

_{Enjoy your opinions! And if you don't have your own opinions, enjoy somebody else's.}

[crussell]

Anyone who insults the Pilot Custom 823 has to fight me.

 

It's hard to argue with boring.

 

gary

 

 

Are we talking Smoke or Amber?

[fabrimedeiros]

2) Captive converters... IT IS NOT A %$#* PISTON FILLER. (And should not command the same price.)

 

 

 

I totally agree! Why does a modern Duofold cost more than a M800?? They have the same size, almost same category, however Duofold does not have a piston fill, which is a great difference.

[Number3124]

2) Captive converters... IT IS NOT A %$#* PISTON FILLER. (And should not command the same price.)

 

 

 

I totally agree! Why does a modern Duofold cost more than a M800?? They have the same size, almost same category, however Duofold does not have a piston fill, which is a great difference.

 

That is exactly why I could never buy a Modern Duofold.

[Florida Blue]

2) Captive converters... IT IS NOT A %$#* PISTON FILLER. (And should not command the same price.)

 

 

 

I totally agree! Why does a modern Duofold cost more than a M800?? They have the same size, almost same category, however Duofold does not have a piston fill, which is a great difference.

 

The modern Duofold does not cost more than a Pelikan M800. The Duofold International is $440 and the M800 is $520. Even the Duofold Centennial costs less at $495.

[79spitfire]

_{I'm kidding.}

 

_{Enjoy your opinions! And if you don't have your own opinions, enjoy somebody else's.}

 

:ltcapd: