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

[View from the Loft]

Ooh, what a fun thread.

 

Now, what do I hate about FPs?

 

1) That Parker is now a brand owned by a company that has the worst "customer" service I have ever met, and who won't recognise their own invoice as a date of sale!!!

 

2) That there is so much snobbery about the steel v gold nib debate. Get over it. Is the nib smooth, does it suit you? Then it's the right nib for you.

 

3) That so many pen manufacturers don't want my custom because I need an italic nib.

 

What do I like about FPs?

 

There is a pen out there for everyone.

 

That I can support independent traders by sending my pens to them for repair, nib tweaking etc.

[johnptc]

but there's no law for being shallow and pretentious.......................

 

there should be

[Scrawler]

  On 3/13/2010 at 6:28 PM, bushido said:

  On 3/13/2010 at 5:46 PM, Anna Cecilia said:

 

 

Bushido: I'm sure the staff at MB boutiques are very helpful and knowledgeable about the products they sell. I was merely complaining about the lack of training sales staff at general pen counters in department stores often seem to receive nowadays.

 

I'm sorry if my post offended anyone, it was not written with that intent, I was just having a sleep-deprived hypomanic rant. And no the subject of it isn't what keeps me awake at night

 

no offense taken at all, are you kidding me? that's the point of this entire thread and if anyone has issues with that, well that's his or her problem.

 

i know what you mean about people buying pens to show off. that's prob why i don't buy more montblancs because i don't want to give the wrong impression but few can deny the quality of their pens, esp the smoothness of their nibs. that goes with other products as well. i would love to buy a rolex but bought a seiko instead, even though the seiko i have costs as much as most rolexes (yes there are a few seikos [ones with springdrive] that expensive!) because i don't want to draw attention yet still have the self-satisfaction of knowing i own a quality piece. i'm a huge namiki fan and their pens aren't as flashy and much fewer people in the general population know about namikis. they would think i paid much more for a snow-capped le grand montblanc than a big namiki with 'japanese drawings' when in fact the opposite is true. quality is usually found in well-known luxury items; it's a double-edge sword. then again i would be naive to dispute there are many who buy montblancs to show off. personally i hope they go away since they give other owners a bad name. but there's no law for being shallow and pretentious.

Using a pen at all, even one of my gaudy cheapo Chinese pens, is the height of snobbery, affectation and showing off, in a society where, if there are any literate, they use a sharpened stick dipped in cow dung.

[riff raff]

  On 3/13/2010 at 6:18 PM, ScottT said:

 

2) People who confuse 'stationary' with stationery.

 

 

But, what if the stationery IS stationary?!?

[jgrasty]

I think any pen over a $100 that uses a cartridge converter is lame. :mad:

[ailleurs]

  On 3/12/2010 at 7:26 PM, ANM said:

I need stronger glasses or have a dyslexia problem. I thought this was about fountain pen tatoos.

 

 

Wow, I've been wondering if I should get a tattoo. You've given me a fabulous idea for one!

[Anna Cecilia]

  On 3/13/2010 at 8:08 PM, ailleurs said:

Wow, I've been wondering if I should get a tattoo. You've given me a fabulous idea for one!

 

I'm not so sure about this example, but the person who got it is obviously happy showing it off online...

 

http://starlajking.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/starla_tattoo11.jpg

 

Didn't The Smiths have a Lyric that went "Scratch my name on your arm with a fountain pen -

This means you really love me"?

 

Anyway, back on topic. Pen lids that come off when I'm writing with the lid posted, what's that all about?

[dval]

My $0.02.- here...

 

(1) I strongly believe Cross FP are gorgeous due to their simple design. As a corollary, gold rolled ones are not so beautiful, and I wouldn't pay 2 grand for the solid gold pen & pencil set.

 

(2) A FP is a writing instrument before anything else, and thus must be comfortable and useful. After that comes beauty.

 

(3) Some prices are simply outrageous... Ok, a gold nib might be expensive, but $500+?

 

And concerning taboos... people think one is being "complicated" when choosing a FP as the primary writing instrument rather than a Bic BP, even more if you use bottled ink. But I get my sweet vengeance when other people's hands surrender after a looong (say, 3 hours) lecture.

[ailleurs]

  On 3/13/2010 at 8:27 PM, Anna Cecilia said:

  On 3/13/2010 at 8:08 PM, ailleurs said:

Wow, I've been wondering if I should get a tattoo. You've given me a fabulous idea for one!

 

I'm not so sure about this example, but the person who got it is obviously happy showing it off online...

 

http://starlajking.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/starla_tattoo11.jpg

 

Didn't The Smiths have a Lyric that went "Scratch my name on your arm with a fountain pen -

This means you really love me"?

 

 

Yes indeedy, I think that is the lyric. I'll keep looking for a good FP tattoo design. There's got to be one out there somewehere.

 

As far as my FP rant, it would be for ridiculous packaging. I know it's been mentioned previously in this thread, but it really gets my goat. I'm paying for a pen. If I wanted a display case, I'd buy a display case.

[Tojusi]

The tattoo above - is it a Danitrio nib? Sure looks like one of their flame designs...

 

But to contribute something, for the longest time I really liked my Parker Sonnet. Until I got to using two pens inked and realised that the Sonnet dries out if it goes any time without pampering... Say like two hours.

 

/Tojusi

[The Dude]

  On 3/12/2010 at 9:02 PM, WyattS said:

Not that strange, but I hate when people swoop in last minute on auctions that I have been watching and thinking about for days. It makes me feel like they saw it on a whim and bought it, but that's probably not at all the case.

 

 

Im the opposite. Nothing makes me madder than a no reserve auction having people actually bidding on it for days. We all know that the last person to bid will be the one who gets it, just wait until the last minute, try to get a bid in and the item will sell for less. There is no reason to ever bid on an item before the last second. Ill watch auctions for days on end but never, ever, ever put in a bid until the last second it just makes no sense.

[mr mobius]

People who wanna charge stupid money for pens on the for sale section of this forum... surely prior to writing your description you research your market. Ive seen pens up for sale for more than what they can be bought new ! We might be a collective minority but we are not mentalists !! I sometimes wanna send em numerous links to the same pen available at 10 different sites... but you know.... i try and keep a lid on it....

[duofoldguy]

  On 3/12/2010 at 6:41 PM, abcde said:

Just to be an opposite man (but I'm being honest)

 

1. I cannot see the attraction for the standard Montblanc 149. Its a short, fat, standard, run-of-the-mill, overdone, boring style for 600 dollars. It's not even made out of anything expensive (save for the nib). It's a pen for tools who want people outside the pen world to know they have an ohh-la-la Montblanc.

 

2. The markup on fountain pens is ridiculous. Or, at least the markup on crappy fountain pens is ridiculous. Had I money, I would not mind paying 1k+ for some of those beautiful limited editions - they deserve their price. But I'm sure as hell not going to pay half of that for a pen that's not even a fourth as attractive or unique. Sure, we're consumers - but complaints are what stabilize prices. If they put a standard Montblanc 149 at 2000 dollars, it wouldn't sell. As a consumer, I have a right to complain, and that right keeps my prices down!

 

Opposite rant done (no offense meant by the way, and I'm not calling anyone here a tool - unless, well, you know, name is a factor in purchase)

 

Why do you feel your being the "opposite" ? Most people on FPN seem to hate Montblanc's; especially 149's.

 

Maybe that is why I like them so much. As I have said in another post, $600 is only the sticker price. Because they are plentiful or "over done" as you put it; they are often marked down. At pen shows they have barrels of them. Also even though there have been complaints and criticisms of the performance like any other pen, I have a had a 146 and 149, and both have been my most reliable pens. The nib may be a "run of the mill" round tip, but it's smooth and it is always good to have a fine round tip pen for paperwork. So if complaining is what does it, keep it up, so more people could own 149's.

 

You also pointed out why like Montblanc's more everyday. "Its a short, fat, standard"; it has a good plain dignified look. It is not like those flashy bright gauntly 'look-at-me' Italian(not all of them) pens you see at the pen shows.

 

As I have said Montblanc's are good solid pens when you ignore the image and hype. But the image is becoming too much fun. In some ways Montblanc's are a 'tool' thing to some, apparently on FPN it takes a real anarchist rebel to sport a Montblanc. Praising a Montblanc here is like wearing a suit and eating a hamburger upfront of a Santa Cruz hippie.

 

Please no offense; humor and obnoxiousness go together like beer n' pizza sometimes.

[The Dude]

  On 3/13/2010 at 7:47 PM, jgrasty said:

I think any pen over a $100 that uses a cartridge converter is lame. :mad:

 

 

 

Quoted for truth. That's what I was about to write. How hard is it to put in a decent piston mechanism?

[jleeper]

1) Almost every ugly, gaudy, over-blingy cheap Chinese FP is copying the styling of an ugly, gaudy, over-blingy expensive European FP. And I'm not talking about fakes, just Chinese FP designs 'inspired' by expensive pens.

 

2) My new Pelikan M200, while it has a much nicer finish and has the best clip I've ever put into a pocket, doesn't write quite as smooth as my Dollar 717i demonstrators or Preppy EDs. The Pelikan will surly last longer, looks better, and has an ingenuously simple to use piston mechanism, but as far as the pens primary function, putting ink on paper, the $3-$7 pens do it slightly better than the $70-$100 pen.

 

3) There a several people on FPN who seem to have rather low reading comprehension levels: if a newbie or neophyte starts a titles a post "Help me choose a pen that sells for $xx-$xxx" and in the lower body of the post says "but I really, really won't buy a XYZ-5000 pen, I think they are really too small/too big/too ugly/precious resin gives me a rash/etc.," low and behold about three posts down someone will recommend a XYZ-5000.

 

4) And almost every time someone makes an inquiry about a specific brand and model of a Peoples Republic of China brand FP, some folks seem to have to chime in that while they don't even know what that specific model looks like, they once owned a different model of that same brand and it was horrible; that's kinda like someone asking about a Ford Explorer and getting replies about experiences with Ford Pintos. And of course some people have to reply about their experience with a completely different PRC brand FP; thats more like someone asking about other's thoughts on a BMW 325 and people replying with their experiences with a VW Beatle.

Edited March 14, 2010 by jleeper

[jamesh]

I like to show off my pens, I do not think of them as a status symbol (I'm far from being rich) but do think of them as a symbol of an individual's enjoyment in the finer things, an appreciation for workmanship and fine writing. When I see people with a Mont Blanc I have never thought to myself that this person is trying to show off, instead I think "Hey, he likes fountain pens too, I'm going over there to say hi."

 

Something that bugs me is when someone takes note of a pen I'm using and comments or ask about them...they never want to listen to what I want to say. i.e. I was writing with a Parker Vacumatic one day and the guy next to me asked me about it. I got excited and started explaining about how old it was, what a date code is and the filling mechanism. I could tell he quickly lost interest. Oh, well.

[bushido]

  On 3/13/2010 at 10:37 PM, jamesh said:

 

 

Something that bugs me is when someone takes note of a pen I'm using and comments or ask about them...they never want to listen to what I want to say. i.e. I was writing with a Parker Vacumatic one day and the guy next to me asked me about it. I got excited and started explaining about how old it was, what a date code is and the filling mechanism. I could tell he quickly lost interest. Oh, well.

 

that's because non-fp users have lower intelligence.

[Bronze]

  On 3/13/2010 at 10:37 PM, jamesh said:

 

Something that bugs me is when someone takes note of a pen I'm using and comments or ask about them...they never want to listen to what I want to say. i.e. I was writing with a Parker Vacumatic one day and the guy next to me asked me about it. I got excited and started explaining about how old it was, what a date code is and the filling mechanism. I could tell he quickly lost interest. Oh, well.

 

 

 

- How interested would you be in his hobby about Persian rugs?

 

How quickly would you lose interest if he went on in great detail abut the various knitting techniques, regional patterns, provincial use of color, diverse wool qualities, the subtle nuance in feel, or their cultural connotations?

 

All because you noted he had a nice doormat.......

[Namo]

<< 3) There a several people on FPN who seem to have rather low reading comprehension levels: if a newbie or neophyte starts a titles a post "Help me choose a pen that sells for $xx-$xxx" and in the lower body of the post says "but I really, really won't buy a XYZ-5000 pen, I think they are really too small/too big/too ugly/precious resin gives me a rash/etc.," low and behold about three posts down someone will recommend a XYZ-5000. >>

 

Well, wasn't this thread about pen taboos?

Edited March 14, 2010 by Namo

[Feanor]

  On 3/13/2010 at 10:17 PM, jleeper said:

...

2) My new Pelikan M200, while it has a much nicer finish and has the best clip I've ever put into a pocket, doesn't write quite as smooth as my Dollar 717i demonstrators or Preppy EDs. The Pelikan will surly last longer, looks better, and has an ingenuously simple to use piston mechanism, but as far as the pens primary function, putting ink on paper, the $3-$7 pens do it slightly better than the $70-$100 pen.

...

I got a Dollar demo a few weeks ago and an M400 a few days ago, and I have pretty much the opposite problem. The clip feels very cheap compared to an older Pelikan I have, I was a bit disappointed in it actually. The nib, however, is incredible. It's an EF and incredibly smooth, much smoother than my Dollar. I don't know about 20x the price better, but I haven't even used the Pelikan for a full tank yet.

 

And for anyone who doesn't like metal sections, try a Pelikan Celebry. It's matte gold and probably the most comfortable section I have, and less prone to getting slippery from sweat than my plastic sections.