Good Cheap Pens?

[ailleurs]

Surprised no one has mentioned the Pilot Plumix. They're italic nibs, but decent enough for the super cheap price ($6.00 US).

[JMX]

Pelikan Go! (either the M75 piston or the M70 C/C version). 

 

You can get them off Ebay.de for as low as 1 Euro plus shipping if you're lucky.

 

 

[hari317]

Lots of inexpensive excellent pens in the market:

 

Pilot non self filling pen(ED): approx 10USD

NOS Sheaffer Imperial set for 30USD (see terim and athar201's posts in the marketplace)

NOS Parker 21 super for 30USD(ditto as above)

NOS Parker 45 flighter for 25USD(ditto as above)

 

NAYY

 

Best,

Hari

[Djehuty]

I'm going to have to make a cheap pen wish list! Thanks!

[Parse Error]

Platinum preppy? they're good for eyedropping, but may break easily. (I didn't have any break so far.)

 

I still cant believe that you guys don't see this type of deal floating around all the time:

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/10-pieces-of-Hero-266-Metal-Fine-nib-Fountain-Pen_W0QQitemZ330419198192QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAU_PensWritingItems?hash=item4cee84d8f0

 

I have two gold-tipped pens from China, except I don't trust quality control, so I don't actually use them

[edbollix]

Reform 1745. Hard to find a better cheap pen.

http://i395.photobucket.com/albums/pp38/edbollix/1745_01.jpg

[haziz]

Pelikano Jr (should be around US $8). If you don't like the styling and lack of a clip then the Pelikano or Future pens which share the same excellent nibs, but which would push the price to the US $20-25 range. Absolutely superb nibs actually.

[LinusL]

It wouldn't be a reco thread without a plug for a Lamy Safari! :ltcapd: I'll add a twist, though: consider getting a stub nib. I've been using a 1.1 (somewhere around the size of a medium, maybe a hair smaller) with great enjoyment.

 

+1 on the 1,1 nib. It's great fun to use!

 

I can also recommend Pilot Custom 98, I don't know the retail price of it but it should be less than 100 (correct me if I'm wrong). I got the F nib on it and it's VERY nice, has a nice soft springy feel to it which helps when you write with it (it does for me at least).

 

Other recommendations are the Dollar pens from smeden, Pilot VP and Pelikan M200. Regarding Pelikan, lately I've become a bit skeptical about their nib performance, some seem to get totally flawless nibs, others (like me) seem to get totally messed up ones... especially in the case of my M800.

 

EDIT: "cheap" can be debated in the case of my recommendations... My perception might be a bit skewed when it comes to describing stuff as being "cheap"

Edited April 7, 2010 by LinusL

[hehiheho]

If you lived in France, I'd say, go to the closer supermarket, and buy the shiny metal Waterman (forgot its name), or the "Pilot Plumix", both reliable, but the Plumix is an italic, some people have difficulty with that.

 

If you have to anyway add the price of international shipping, then invest a little more and buy a "Lamy Safari".

[rwilsonedn]

I couldn't help wondering how long it would take this to become a Safari thread. It was wonderful to see some of the excellent far less expensive pens discussed first. Might I toss into the conversation the excellent Wing Sung pens Todd has at isellpens.com (no affiliation, but repeat customer) in the $5 range?

And for that matter, the Parker Frontier, which really surprises me every time I use one.

ron

[redbike]

I'll put in a plug for the Hero M616. It's a light, but quite comfortable to write with. The nib is medium/fine, more of a fine IMO, and it writes smoothly enough without hesititation. For $5 here you can't go wrong. No affiliation, etc.

 

jim

[Sailor Kenshin]

I have gone too long without buying a new pen, and it's making me twitchy. The problem is, I have little in the way of available funds. But I shall not let that deter me! I already have a small collection of cheap Chinese pens. I can't afford the expensive stuff, but I should be able to expand this collection somewhat. And rather than bemoan my financial fate, I thought I might make something of a game out of it. An expedition, if you will, to the heart of deepest, darkest pen country, to find the cheapest of the really seriously astoundingly CHEAP cheap pens.

 

Any advice on where I should begin my search?

 

Cheap Pens am my middle name!

 

Mostly I buy my cheap, cheap pens from isellpens and speerbob on ebay. I got some Preppys from Jetpens.

 

Hero 616s and 366s in bulk worked out to about three dollars each. I don't know if speerbob still has them but isellpens does.

 

I got a six-dollar Baoer Skywalker that I love. My small collection of fude nib pens is growing and most cost from $5 to $20. If you like fat wet writers that can also produce a hairline upside-down, check them out. I think the Hero 86 is still available for $12. Many of them use standard internationals. I'm just writing out a Leonardo filled with J Herbin Rouge Caroubier today. Lovely combo.

 

These are all great writers, and I always have a 616 and 366 inked, no matter what other pens I may be using.

[Djehuty]

Excellent! More pens to add to the list. Many thanks.

[Feanor]

That's weird. All my Safaris and also my Vista ED have no problem feeding even the 1.9 nib. What ink are you using?

 

 

 

I have a 1.5 on my Vista, and the feed just can't keep up with the nib.

 

The only issue i've ever had with my 1.5 or my 1.9 on my Safari is when I've not cleaned out the nib feed very well when I switch inks. Im not familiar with the internal workings on the Lamy feeds, but it seems like theres a tiny ink reservoir underneath the actual nib that is harder to rinse out. (Maybe some kind hearted Lamy-smith could help us out and explain how Lamy feed work)

 

I'd say soak the nib assembly in an water/ammonia solution for 20 minutes and see how much more ink comes out. For me the pen has written beautifully ever since I started to be conscientious about when I change inks.

 

 

Let me know if that works out for you.

 

 

Dave

 

Got it new, tried first with Pelikan blue-black, but that was way too dry. Washed out thoroughly with water and a drop of dish soap, inked with Sheaffer Red, went through a converter of that before the current converter of PR Orange Crush. Both produce a solid line (Peli BB didn't), but it's no wider than my 0.8mm Sheaffer calligraphy pen, and gets narrower if I make a faster stroke.

[Sandy1]

Hi,

I don't know what pens are available to you locally. A thing about 'cheap & cheerful', is to zero your shipping cost.

 

So, what's available on the interweb thingy that has no shipping cost? Single pens. No case lots. (No Sumgai or Sumgal here - just listed stuff. So sorry.)

 

Well, the other day, I went looking for another Pilot 78G -F- nib, and there was the same deal from a while back: just under $10 with converter AND a cartridge, AND it's red, AND Free Shipping! IMHO, that is one of the best deals for a new pen that I've seen - ever.

 

How good does it get???

 

From the same Seller, (has he gone mad?), is the "Baoer Sliver fountain pen+ Converter and 3 cartridges,F".

Appears to be metal. Also comes in Black. Amazing!!! AND Free Shipping!!! Just a hair over $9.

 

Can it possibly get any better?

 

Yes it does! Totally insane pricing!! Better than a shamWOW - no joke!!

The amazing Pierre Paul's pen in a galaxy of colours, -M- nib, 3 ink-loaded cartridges : count 'em 1..2..3 AND a converter. On a deal this insane the shipping must be added, but the total cost is under $8. It must be a TYPO!

The Seller has stopped trying to chew through his restraints! Buy now!!

 

Pardon me, but those pens & prices - I need to lie down in a darkened room.

 

Bye,

S1

[Djehuty]

Is anyone familiar with the Chinese Pen Supplier store on eBay? I'm seeing some nice cheap prices there....

[bookworm2109]

Hello

 

I have bought pens from the Chinese Pen Supplier...really good to deal with and the shipping is pretty fast...considering it is coming from China...all the pens I have bought from them have worked wonderfully...not a single dud.

 

Not affiliated just a happy customer, ect.

 

Tim

Edited April 8, 2010 by bookworm2109

[panda88888]

Smeden also has two Reform models for $8 each and a Dollar 717i Demonstrator for $7.

I purchased some of them and they are a very good value.

For a little more, isellpens.com has the Pilot 78G for $12-- a very good pen also.

 

I second Reform too. Reform is my one of my daily pens, and it is a good value.

 

Edit:

Hero 616 is a good choice as well. Since QA is not consistent, I recommend buying a 12 pack. That should give you a handful of good pens.

Edited April 8, 2010 by panda88888

[coldman]

Smeden also has two Reform models for $8 each and a Dollar 717i Demonstrator for $7.

I purchased some of them and they are a very good value.

For a little more, isellpens.com has the Pilot 78G for $12-- a very good pen also.

 

I second Reform too. Reform is my one of my daily pens, and it is a good value.

 

Edit:

Hero 616 is a good choice as well. Since QA is not consistent, I recommend buying a 12 pack. That should give you a handful of good pens.

 

I'm not too happy with my Reform. It writes with an exceedingly thin and faint line unless I put pressure on the nib, and that kind of invalidates the point of an FP for me. (I've only tried it with an old bottle of Quink washable blue, perhaps another ink would be better.)

[dexaco]

Although I have a couple of Hero 616s, I find them prone to occasional flooding. I prefer the Hero 330. I have two, and both of them are quite smooth, if you like a stiffer nib. I bought mine from Cute Pens (www.cutepens.com). The Wing Sung 'Snake' (not Hero, as listed in Option 1) is also good. Fine point, metal barrel and positive 'click' action cap. It's skinny, though, so might not suit everyone, although it's a great pen for Filofax pen loops! For an eyedropper pen, try the Armour Original, also from Cute Pens. Although only listed as part of Option 4, it's worth emailing and asking Bob Chhugani for a quote for the single pen if you're interested. Fine nib, sounds scratchy, but quite smooth, at least to this lefty underwriter, it is! The Dannitu 119 is good, too. Metal body, medium nib. Writes nicely. Very positive 'click' cap. My everyday 'carry' pen (which is how I found out that the lacquer has a tendency to rub off the brass).

 

Derick