What Is The Smoothest Nib You Have Tried?

[mainoffender]

My medium pilot VP. It just flows over the page.

+1

[ImolaS3]

Definitely Pelikans and MBs - so smooth!

[Hohn]

Sailor 21k M-F on a pro gear.......like butter

 

+1 for an F nib. Love my 21k M-F Sailor (1911 medium size)

 

Still, any nib so fine will necessarily have more tooth than a paintbrush-like BB or 3B. Comparing my Sailor to my Lamy XF, the Sailor is both much finer AND much smoother.

 

 

IMO, it is somewhat inappropriate to compare smoothness across tipping sizes. A tip that is half the size will have effectively 4x more pressure on the paper for the same writing force. Going from an extreme (like a sailor F or XF) to a Lamy Broad or Pelikan Broad could easily be a difference of 3x the tip size, giving 9X less pressure.

 

Remember pressure=force X area. For the same force, shrinking the tip size (area) effectively cranks up the pressure applied to the tip.

 

If a person has a very light touch, then a truly fine and truly smooth nib can be appreciated. To a heavy-handed writer, even a super smooth nib may seem excessively toothy.

 

Which, imo, makes the Sailor nibs even more impressive...

 

Wait until you feel the Sailor Music nib, it will make your M-F nib like a toothy Aurora!

 

What did my bank account ever do to you that you show such animosity towards it?

 

I was just getting to the point where I could stop wanting another Sailor

 

BTW-- my 1911 is F not M-F, as I mis-typed. So fine AND so smooth. It's amazing.

Edited September 6, 2011 by Hohn

[Zeroblade]

a friend's sailor 1911 in the sterling silver hanzi, with a naginata medium. maaaaaaaaan, that was the craziest thing ever. ridiculous.

 

on the more reasonable side of the budget, another friend's vanishing point, broad nib (I ground and tuned it a little to make it wetter and smoother still).

 

for pens I actually own, probably the pilot custom 823, broad nib, and a sheaffer palladium-silver in fine that I fit onto my TWSBI. good stuff, the both of them.

[UDog]

I have spent a good deal of money on my pens, but the smoothest is a Sheaffer cartridge school pen, worth maybe $10 today.

[DrPJM1]

Sailor 21k M-F on a pro gear.......like butter

 

+1 for an F nib. Love my 21k M-F Sailor (1911 medium size)

 

Still, any nib so fine will necessarily have more tooth than a paintbrush-like BB or 3B. Comparing my Sailor to my Lamy XF, the Sailor is both much finer AND much smoother.

 

 

IMO, it is somewhat inappropriate to compare smoothness across tipping sizes. A tip that is half the size will have effectively 4x more pressure on the paper for the same writing force. Going from an extreme (like a sailor F or XF) to a Lamy Broad or Pelikan Broad could easily be a difference of 3x the tip size, giving 9X less pressure.

 

Remember pressure=force X area. For the same force, shrinking the tip size (area) effectively cranks up the pressure applied to the tip.

 

If a person has a very light touch, then a truly fine and truly smooth nib can be appreciated. To a heavy-handed writer, even a super smooth nib may seem excessively toothy.

 

Which, imo, makes the Sailor nibs even more impressive...

 

Wait until you feel the Sailor Music nib, it will make your M-F nib like a toothy Aurora!

 

What did my bank account ever do to you that you show such animosity towards it?

 

I was just getting to the point where I could stop wanting another Sailor

 

BTW-- my 1911 is F not M-F, as I mis-typed. So fine AND so smooth. It's amazing.

 

I am just pointing out the logical progression of your applied mathematics.

[Lloyd]

Remember pressure=force X area.

You mean divided by.

[Laura N]

My medium pilot VP. It just flows over the page.

+1

 

and +2

[Margana]

My 1970's Montblanc 220 OB glides when held at the perfect angle but the Levenger True Writer Masuyama Stub is nearly as smooth and much more forgiving.

[Dimitrios_P]

MB Boheme M

Sailor 14k M

[Hohn]

Remember pressure=force X area.

You mean divided by.

 

Correct. F= PA, P= F/A

 

Sorry for the error.

 

The principle is still correct, at least:)

[Rasendyll]

An incredibly well used 1950s Parker UK Duofold (looks like a single colour-in this case burgundy-vacuumatic) with an incredibly well worn in slightly stubby medium nib.... Pure magic!

[sheehmi]

The only consistency I see in this thread is that they are all fountain pens (other than the papermate). To each his own.

[doodlebug]

Cross Century I medium, my first and still my favorite fountain pen. Binderized Pilot VP medium a near second.

[Mkim]

So far...Sailor 1911 Realo,

 

That nib was too smooth, it actually turned me off. I can't feel the paper or feel the pleasure of each stroke-its just too much smoothness! I like a little bit of feedback from time to time.

[ANM]

Like many others, the first thing that came to mind was Sheaffer. Not just the upturned Triumph nib but a couple of open nib Balances too. On the other hand a couple of the "Waverly" nibs I've tried were rough but any nib can be made to write smooth if you want to send it out or can work with yourself..

[wekiva98]

I just got a first-year Waterman 100-year pen with a nib that just knocks me out -- smooth as butter with a little flex. But the fragility of the plastic makes it risky to use very much. Day in and day out, I keep coming back to an oversized Sheaffer balance with a turned-up nib that I find a joy to use. No flex but the smoothness reminds me of why I started collecting pens to begin with.

[saketb]

I've tried the Sailor Sapporo and found it to be very smooth.

[Moondrop]

Strangely enough, it's the nib on my least favorite pen--a Parker Reflex, which has been a problem (very much disliked) pen until recently when I followed some advice offered by DWL and now it actually functions as a pen. After that, I'd say my Pelikan M75 and my weird Parker 21. Most of my pens are smooth enough for me, but the Reflex surprised me.

[Hex]

My new Sheaffer 100. Like glass.