Worst Fountain Pen Mistake?

[FPK]

Mine would be leaving a parker sonnet in my pants it the lockerroom--the clearners found it and threw it out :headsmack:

[lapis]

Okay, you asked for it (only kiddin' a bit). Buying a new MB from a good store in brick.

The new 146 didn't work, and me handing it in to MB headquarters here resulted in their sending me the pen back marked "repaired" (for free, I must say) but it still never worked, so I chucked it.

If that had ever happed with a cheapie, I would have forgotten about everything.

But I think that MB is so expensive because they think that their pens (and likely everything else in their house) are so good.

 

Wrack

[vans4444]

Just after I started collecting PF I stumbled onto a Pilot VP in an unusual colour. After a couple of months I sold it to fund another pen. It was only after I sold the pen that I became aware of how rare the colour was in Europe, but also how good the nib was. I have bought a couple of other Piolot VPs since then but they do not have such a good nib.

[MidnightBlue]

Ascribing more to any fountain pen, by any maker, as being more than just a pen.Thanks

[eric47]

Buying a Namiki Vanishing Point.

[rogerb]

My most expensive was buying shipping insurance from Correos (Spain's postal service) which was not worth the paper it was written-on ..... when I tried to make a claim, they said it only covered the goods to Spain's border :bonk: (Cost me about $750).

 

Unfortunately, the 'small print' was in Spanish which was beyond my understanding .... but who'd have thought it was so 'limited'?

Edited January 17, 2011 by rogerb

[jar]

Thinking that anything to do with fountain pens could ever be a really big mistake.

[RayMan]

Leaving my Taccia Momenta in my shirt pocket while my 4 year old grand daughter was sitting in my lap. End result: Taccia on floor, broken into two pieces.

[DwarvenChef]

Not getting interested in FP's sooner

 

Even after only a couple years or so I have yet to have any major blunders (knocks on forhead...)

[DwarvenChef]

Not every pen works with ever user. While I love the VP line up I do prefer the Pilot version, seems a tad heavier and I like that.

[eric47]

Buying a Namiki Vanishing Point.

why? Everybody says they are great...(but I could be wrong)

 

Not everybody, how about "a lot of people" or "many".

 

Mine's an older Vanishing Point, stealth all-black version with "Namiki" on the clip.

 

The dinky door broke twice in less than six months of purchase. I don't think it's that great of design anyway. On mine, ink sometimes collected at the very tip of the hole, which can then leave bits of ink on fingers, shirts, cases, etc. Once ink gets in that door mechanism, I found it a pain to clean.

 

The bladder dissolved and got stuck together within the first year I owned it. But perhaps that was the Parken Penman Sapphire I was using.

 

It's the only pen I've owned that had so many issues (three) within the first year. The official stinker in my collection. No pen I own has been so problematic so shortly after purchase. I still have it for sentimental reasons -- if I ever get over that, it's the first pen to go.

 

Oh if you're not careful, you might try clicking the wrong end, which is a rather painful experience. I managed to clean out the wound, so no tattoo.

Edited January 17, 2011 by eric47

[Surnia]

Buying a fountain pen in the first place.

 

Since September, I now have 8 pens, with 1 coming, 1 in the lineup for purchase; 12 bottles of ink, and almost 40 ink samples.

 

Trying to fight the urge to find myself a Snorkel after looking around for a pen for my father...

[EMM]

Buying so many jinhaos before trying real fountain pens (vintage brands, sheaffer, pelikan, etc.)

Edited January 17, 2011 by EMM

[burmeseboyz]

Buying a fountain pen in the first place.

 

+1 That's my biggest mistake. I've broken a few things while repairing pens when I'm tired. I won't do that anymore.

[Scylla]

Trying to unscrew a stuck cap on a vintage flex fp and having the entire pen crack in half in my hands.

[Rubicon]

Mine would be leaving a parker sonnet in my pants it the lockerroom--the clearners found it and threw it out :headsmack:

 

I got a Sonnet with a 14k nib when I was in seventh grade. I was beside myself with joy, and so brought it to school everyday. I lost it. Now I have the lower end sonnet with no gold, LOL I guess I deserved that.

 

Buying a fountain pen in the first place.

 

Since September, I now have 8 pens, with 1 coming, 1 in the lineup for purchase; 12 bottles of ink, and almost 40 ink samples.

 

Trying to fight the urge to find myself a Snorkel after looking around for a pen for my father...

 

That. Ogling pens when I should have been reading Hamlet and doing the 2nd Law of Dynamics problems.

Edited January 18, 2011 by Rubicon

[OMASmaniac]

Mmm ... I've been using FP since I was 9 years old, and I'm very proud to say that I never lost or broke any of them. I only dropped an Aurora once, but the nib was very sturdy and even if it's now slightly bended, it still writes with no problems... The only serious mistake might be when I replaced the nib on one of my Marlens: it was stuck inside the pen and I bended it during the procedure ... but it ca be easily repaired, I only need to send it somewhere...

 

ETA: Oh, yes, there is a big mistake: when I was 14 I received my second OMAS and it vas a dry writer ... too dry... so I took a pair of pliers and I modified the nib a little bit. Now it writes perfectly, but the nib is full of scratches!

Edited January 18, 2011 by OMASmaniac

[elpaninaro]

My biggest mistake was not learning more about maintaining, repairing and cleaning vintage pens when I worked in pen retail alongside a very talented vintage pen expert. Now I have no local resource to help me select some neat vintage pens and take care of them- I am especially keen on the Parker Vacumatics.

 

We have a pen club here, so there is hope for the future- but I have a work engagement the night of the upcoming quarterly meeting and I am not sure I can get out of it. May have to wait a few more months before I dive into vintage.

[Moham1287]

Sitting on my first and favourite pen after owning it for ten years. It was only a Parker Jotter, but the nib had "moulded" to my hand and I really loved that pen. It is still repairable, but I have taken it as an excuse to explore the world of fountain pens for a while before attempting to fix it, so every grey cloud...

[WendyNC]

My mistake was in thinking that smaller and lighter pens would be the way to go for my aging hands. As a result, I have eight Parker 35s-even had several of the nibs ground to the fines I thought I wanted. :bonk: I should probably sell them, but they're user grade, the market is down and I still like them, even if they are sitting in the desk unused. But they weigh on my mind.