Spirit Of Life design by Henry Simpole

[Ghost Plane]

Can't wait to hear what she does with it when it's up and running!

 

Got to be as frustrating as it can get :bonk:

[Mary Burke]

Hi Miranda,

 

I too hope that your new nib/feed assembly works to your liking. The SOL is a beautiful overlay and I love how the whole design and theme was created.

 

I'm a pen collector and so is my husband. I am a fan of silver pens however I have to admit that although I appreciate silver should 'breathe', I am one of those people who have to polish the pens. My husband is completely the opposite and it drives me crazy. So, when he is not around, I'll polish the silver pens he leaves out on his writing desk

 

Kind regards,

 

Mary Burke

[Ghost Plane]

I'll have to keep you away from mine. Seems like I never do anything until they've passed thru the purple stage to blackened. :embarrassed_smile:

[Mary Burke]

I'll have to keep you away from mine. Seems like I never do anything until they've passed thru the purple stage to blackened. :embarrassed_smile:

 

Where are your pens ..... Let me find them..... I'll clean them for you

 

I remember when I was very young spending Sunday mornings with my mother polishing/cleaning our silver service -- coffee pots, tea pots, trays, etc., etc. Fond memories.

 

Now you know why I *have* to clean the silver until it sparkles!

[Ghost Plane]

I polish as I use it, so my silverware is always a variety of colors. At least I use it. Mom was always so afraid of polishing that she kept everything in the covers and drawers and never enjoyed it.

 

Paws off the pens. You just want to play with them.

[Mary Burke]

Paws off the pens. You just want to play with them.

... Looks like I am busted

[Ghost Plane]

I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours.

[Chris Chalmers]

Someone once said that if you kept your silver pens in one of those fancy silverware wraps that people get for their silver cutlery it would help. I've asked here in Tassie, and they can't be found. Now I just use most of my silver pens all of the time and keep the few others in the safe wrapped in the polishing cloths that come with other pens. No problems so far - but if anyone does know where to find the wraps for cutlery they would be doing me a favour! Thanks!

 

Mary, just how many silver pens do you have????

[Ghost Plane]

Simple zip plastic bags should do it. I keep the family silver in the gallon size and push out as much air as I can. Keeps it nice and shiney while the everyday set turns black. That way I don't have to polish it before a sudden celebration. Simply polish AFTER the big day and put back in the bags. They're starting to make larger size bags for storage, so the candelabra, bowls, and tea service suddenly have a place to go if I ever decide I don't want to use them on a daily basis.

 

I tend to be one of those drink from the crystal, use the china, and enjoy the silver kind of people. :embarrassed_smile:

[PianoMan14]

I want to ask Ghost Plane a tough question here....  

 

Do you like your SOL or your palladium Ripples better?  Which of the two are nicer to write with?

 

-Pianoman 

 

(P.S.  This may be like choosing between food and drink, so I'm not sure if the question is totally fair, but oh well...

 

 

[Ghost Plane]

I'm going to give you a qualified answer as the SOL is currently at Mike-It-Work courtesy of Conway Stewart for nib work on the IB by Mike Masuyama. I'll post a full review when it's back. Thank you, Mary Burke, for the usual high CS service. I can speak to the 2B, which I also have, while it's gone, but no pictures or writing sample yet.

 

Comparing the two is much like comparing a fighter plane with the space shuttle. Both are excellent but designed for very different missions.

 

My 6 [yes SIX!] Ripples are divided between B, BB and 1.3 stub nibs. I was already fond of the style and body shape before the Pd nibs came out. The blue and black, which sport the 18k versions of B and stub, have the advantage of being able to handle higher saturation inks without staining, as does the black and silver Chatterley version. The body style permits my back of the section grasp without the need for posting. However the Pd nib put it a step beyond most pens on the market. The soft feel of the nib on the page is exquisite and the flow is much wetter straight out of the box than the 18k stock nibs. Until the SOL, these were my standard daily writers and they remain inked in the rotation.

 

The Spirit of Life, however, was built to my specifications for my use [thank you, Henry!]. We selected the Conway Stewart Churchill as a base based on my stance and need for a lengthy pen not requiring posting. I prefer weighty, which the silver overlay provided.

 

In writing with the pen, I hold it between the threads and overlay, where it balances perfectly in my hand. The silver feels fantastic with exactly the weight I've always dreamed of and I love the cap [i use it as a bookmark when referencing research] as well as the verse on the body, which provides me with inspiration in those moments when I'm lost for the next scene or plot twist. The 2B is absolute perfection, floating over the page. My fingers are only there for guidance as the pen's weight and balance provides the majority of the impetus. Without the c/c, this pen holds a bomb. Visualize me like a mad scientist with those little bottles of Herbin lined up ready to pour. Alas, my hand is unsteady, so I use an eyedropper, but the vision of filling the test tube is there.

 

In short, the Spirit feels like Paganini handed a Stradivarius. Beethoven suddenly fitted with hearing aids in time to hear Joy ringing out at the end of his 9th. Mozart resurrected to finish his Reguiem Mass. Chuck Yeager at the controls of Endeavor. Your first aerobatic flight.

 

The Ripples are some of the best stock pens in the world. But the Spirit took a great pen, Conway Stewart's Churchill, and turned it into a phenomenol pen. The 2B nib slides like ice in the desert. I know when Mike hands me back the IB, it will be the same, only with definition.

 

The Ripples handle like a top of the line Mercedes. V-10, crazy accelleration, and the handling is fantastic. But the Spirit is a Bugatti Veyron. Because it was designed for my hand, it does things no other pen will do. And every time I look at it, my spirit soars.

Edited October 28, 2010 by Ghost Plane

[Mary Burke]

Someone once said that if you kept your silver pens in one of those fancy silverware wraps that people get for their silver cutlery it would help. I've asked here in Tassie, and they can't be found. Now I just use most of my silver pens all of the time and keep the few others in the safe wrapped in the polishing cloths that come with other pens. No problems so far - but if anyone does know where to find the wraps for cutlery they would be doing me a favour! Thanks!

 

Mary, just how many silver pens do you have????

 

I have quite a lot of sterling silver pens -- more than enough to have the option to write with a different silver pen every day for a whole month without having to put pens in rotation

 

Warmest,

 

Mary

[schadowrider]

I'm going to give you a qualified answer as the SOL is currently at Mike-It-Work courtesy of Conway Stewart for nib work on the IB by Mike Masuyama. I'll post a full review when it's back. Thank you, Mary Burke, for the usual high CS service. I can speak to the 2B, which I also have, while it's gone, but no pictures or writing sample yet.

 

Comparing the two is much like comparing a fighter plane with the space shuttle. Both are excellent but designed for very different missions.

 

My 6 [yes SIX!] Ripples are divided between B, BB and 1.3 stub nibs. I was already fond of the style and body shape before the Pd nibs came out. The blue and black, which sport the 18k versions of B and stub, have the advantage of being able to handle higher saturation inks without staining, as does the black and silver Chatterley version. The body style permits my back of the section grasp without the need for posting. However the Pd nib put it a step beyond most pens on the market. The soft feel of the nib on the page is exquisite and the flow is much wetter straight out of the box than the 18k stock nibs. Until the SOL, these were my standard daily writers and they remain inked in the rotation.

 

The Spirit of Life, however, was built to my specifications for my use [thank you, Henry!]. We selected the Conway Stewart Churchill as a base based on my stance and need for a lengthy pen not requiring posting. I prefer weighty, which the silver overlay provided.

 

In writing with the pen, I hold it between the threads and overlay, where it balances perfectly in my hand. The silver feels fantastic with exactly the weight I've always dreamed of and I love the cap [i use it as a bookmark when referencing research] as well as the verse on the body, which provides me with inspiration in those moments when I'm lost for the next scene or plot twist. The 2B is absolute perfection, floating over the page. My fingers are only there for guidance as the pen's weight and balance provides the majority of the impetus. Without the c/c, this pen holds a bomb. Visualize me like a mad scientist with those little bottles of Herbin lined up ready to pour. Alas, my hand is unsteady, so I use an eyedropper, but the vision of filling the test tube is there.

 

In short, the Spirit feels like Paganini handed a Stradivarius. Beethoven suddenly fitted with hearing aids in time to hear Joy ringing out at the end of his 9th. Mozart resurrected to finish his Reguiem Mass. Chuck Yeager at the controls of Endeavor. Your first aerobatic flight.

 

The Ripples are some of the best stock pens in the world. But the Spirit took a great pen, Conway Stewart's Churchill, and turned it into a phenomenol pen. The 2B nib slides like ice in the desert. I know when Mike hands me back the IB, it will be the same, only with definition.

 

The Ripples handle like a top of the line Mercedes. V-10, crazy accelleration, and the handling is fantastic. But the Spirit is a Bugatti Veyron. Because it was designed for my hand, it does things no other pen will do. And every time I look at it, my spirit soars.

Hmmm, not your intent, but you have me weighing a [possible] second run SOL against a Pd Ripple!

[Ghost Plane]

I'd go ahead and get on the waiting list. I believe it requires 6 interested parties for a second casting [Truffle, corrrect me if I'm wrong!], whereas Ripples appear at various intervals and older Ripples can be retrofitted with Pd nibs, which might make them a cost effective second choice in the future.

 

I know I'm completely biased, but oh it's a fascinating pen

[schadowrider]

I'd go ahead and get on the waiting list. I believe it requires 6 interested parties for a second casting [Truffle, corrrect me if I'm wrong!], whereas Ripples appear at various intervals and older Ripples can be retrofitted with Pd nibs, which might make them a cost effective second choice in the future.

 

I know I'm completely biased, but oh it's a fascinating pen

I did send Henry a note about getting on the waiting list -- maybe about a month ago? -- but I never heard back whether or not he's got a list started or not, how long it is so far, and if I'm on it or not. In the meantime, I've got a line on a Black & Silver Ripple (only one I know of that's still available in that config, and probably one of my favorites based on what I've seen so far) and the Carbons will be coming on the market soon (and they're looking *real* sweet!). On the other hand, I was able to locate a new Blue Serenite that I just squeezed in, so something's going to have to go to get the funds for either a Ripple or an SOL (anyone want to buy a new uninked Blue Serenite with an EF nib?? ).

[Ghost Plane]

Ping Henry again. He had a ton of pen shows to get thru and email problems about the same time, as I recall. I think there's 3 people on the list, anecdotally, but I could be wrong since I'm not tracking this casting. :embarrassed_smile:

 

The carbon Ripples are out. Might be you could get Bry to do a consignment deal Serenite for something? The black and silver are awesome - much nicer than the pics I've seen to date of the carbon, but I'm not a big carbon fan, so take that into account. You probably have time to grab a Ripple before you have to start skimping, er, scraping, er, saving for the SOL.

[schadowrider]

You probably have time to grab a Ripple before you have to start skimping, er, scraping, er, saving for the SOL.

[Truffle Finder]

I believe connection has been re-established between Shadowrider and Henry, and they have come to an arrangement.

I must say that your posting about the SOL pen is quite eloquent, have you ever thought about becoming a writer? :roflmho:

Truffle Finder.

[schadowrider]

I believe connection has been re-established between Shadowrider and Henry, and they have come to an arrangement.

Yes we have -- quite excited; thanks!! :clap1:

[Ghost Plane]