The Psychology Of Fountain Pen Collecting

[rishikhanna]

So many doctors on FPN - I know at least some of them are psychologists or psychiatrists. Would love to hear from some of them.

 

From my limited understanding most collectors do NOT suffer from OCD.

 

But I would love to know the views of a professional.

[collectingfool]

I think it's inbred. We are hunter/gatherers and modern life has deprived us of the ingrained need to exercise these skills as our brains on some level believe its necessary for survival. Just like "road rage" is related to our fight-or-flight instinct I think collecting is related to our hunting/gathering instincts.

 

As for myself, I fell into pen collecting, didn't intend to do it. After collecting a lot of other things over the years I find I need limits or one day I'll wind up under a pile of stuff dead in my office at home. I for one know I have OCD but it is under control for the most part. Collecting, how I arrange my money in my wallet, the pathological need to arrange things a certain way at work are all little releases I allow myself but I have the intrusive/life disrupting stuff under control since I I was in my late 20s. Fortunately I was never so bad it really affected me but it was one of those thing I knew I had to nip in the bud.

[sargetalon]

So many doctors on FPN - I know at least some of them are psychologists or psychiatrists. Would love to hear from some of them.

 

From my limited understanding most collectors do NOT suffer from OCD.

 

But I would love to know the views of a professional.

 

Probably not a pathologic OCD but definitely OCD tendencies. As you point out, there are many physicians who use fountain pens still and to be a good internist, I think you need a bit of OCD in you (at least that's what has served me well). I suspect this spills over into the world of fountain pen collecting.

[CAG_1787]

I am OCD, but it didn't not initiate my pen collecting (though it undoubtedly does affect how I manage it). I agree that humans have an innate need to collect and collate items of worth.

 

However, I've also come to the truth that for me, as an introvert, I have hobbies that replace many of the pleasures that extroverts gain from interacting with other people. Fountain pens are part of that.

[georges zaslavsky]

I do the same than you with MB 149s and 146s as well as with the man 100s, the stip eritrurias, the omas 360 old style pens and the vintage french made parkers

[orfew]

What started my collection was a gift from my wife of a Montblanc 147. I have since added some 27 or so Montblanc pens to my collection. While I am mostly brand focussed, I do have 2 Safaris and a nice Delta. Within the Montblanc brand there are platy of niches for collecting. Some people collect modern MBs and some vintage. For myself I have both. What it comes down to for me is do I like it and do I want it enough to buy it. If the answer is yes to both then there is a fair chance it will end up in my collection. In other words I guess I am a bit like a cat looking at the ornaments on a christmas tree....oooh look something shiny....must...play...with...it.

[Newjelan]

While I wouldn't have thought of myself as a collector, I recently realised that I'm hooked on Platinum #3776 pens. I have almost all of them and in a variety of nibs. I use them regularly and besides the fact they are great to write with, I love the simple design and the stunning looking nibs.

[Shax2020]

I've loved pens since I learned to write. As a kid I kept a journal with a dip pen. I thought it was like going back in time. I tried to create old looking documents. Now my pens are definitely an escape for me. I have at least one from every pen manufacturing country. I always keep about 10 pens inked and use them every day, even if only to write a sentence. But it wasn't until I bought the Onato Chuzzlewit that I became obsessed with a pen. I wrote with it for hours a day. When I ran out of things to write, I filled pages with line after line of coiled circles. It relaxes me whenever I use it. It takes me away. For some reason I don't like to use it in front of other people. It makes me nervous. I don't want them to notice it. I use a ball point in public.

[Sblakers]

This is a fun topic ! I've been collecting/ testing for about 5 years now. I have gone through so many pens I don't think I could name them all if I tried. Lucky for me I was able to acquire every grail pen on my list and what I have learned after all these pens is --I like a firm wet fine to medium nib with a bit of feedback, I like my pens beautiful and incredibly well built. I prefer vintage over modern ( except my namiki emperor urushi) and I like variation within my target brand and particular pen--- in other words collectible.

 

So after all that. I have kept my MB Dumas my namiki emperor and ill be keeping my hakase but everything else has come and gone. After everything I've learned I've decided to start a dedicated pelikan 100/ 100n collection. This will now be my focus and obsession the great thing is I don't think I would have really figured out where I wanted to go in this hobby if I didn't try as many pens as I have.

Edited August 31, 2013 by Sblakers

[Daisy25]

I am just about to buy a Targa -- and that's because I've fallen in love with Sheaffer inlaid nibs. It started with a 444 NOS Second. I tossed it in to fill out an order, and, to my surprise, discovered it was a great, great writer. Then I bought a 330. Then I bought a 444XG that has a cursive italic nib (very nice). There is, as I type this, a USPostal truck driving around our neighborhoods that has another 444XG on it for me. And soon, there will be a Targa. I suspect there will be more than one. I really didn't expect to fall in love with Sheaffer's, but there it is. Gorgeous smooth writers with great steady ink flow. The ones I have are absolute work horses. LOVE them.

[fpconverted]

The psychology of fountain pen collecting and more precise obsession.

 

Hello,

 

As a newbie I decided to start a fountain pen collection a couple of weeks ago.

 

As with most newbies I guess, it started with the FP I used in school years ago (Parker 25 flighter and Parker 15) and the pens I got over the years as a gift (Cross ATX and Parker 45).

 

My initial aim was to build up a collection with a lot of variety, a wide range of vintage and new pens form all sort of brands. And it worked well at first.

 

But then, I bought a Sheaffer Targa, and everything changed. I got totally obsessed by Sheaffer Targa's and it has become almost impossible to buy anything else then a Targa.

 

I am by no means saying that the Targa is the best pen ever made and I don't want to discuss the qualities, likes or dislikes of the pen. I am just wondering if some of you had or have the same feeling with a certain fp or brand?

 

I'm interested in your thoughts ans experiences.

 

 

sheaffertarga.jpg

 

Which model is #5?

[Opooh]

When it comes to collecting FP's, it is always days of future past.

[trax]

Welcome to the forum!

I am crazy about Nakaya but due to prices I can't really collect too many of those.. I also love Sheaffer Preludes and Sheaffer No Nonsense pens and keep buying them off eBay..

I have tried my Mom's Targa and it was buttersmooth! I can understand how that can become a passion

I have a very faulty upright angle grip when I write and Sheaffer have so far been the only brand who will always perform in this challenging writing angle. Have a great pen year on! :)

[fpconverted]

Orfew

If you ever wanna part with any of your MONT BLANC's in silver solitaire.....id be your new best friend!!!

[loudkenny]

I collect Parkers, not just because my grandfather did but because the older ones are high quality, they are comfortable for me to use and look nice too.

 

I also have some Sheaffers, a bunch of Esties, and a couple of Eversharps too, but I don't collect them. In fact, I'm thinking of selling them off.

 

ken

[mports]

For me my route into fountain pens all stemmed from the use & over reliance of a Handspring PDA. I was happy using the PDA's diary & contacts apps until one day on a oversea's sales trip I dropped the PDA upon getting off the airport shuttle bus.

 

When I switched the PDA back on after the drop, to my horror it had hard reset itself losing all my contacts & schedule for the forthcoming week - To say I panicked was an understatement!

 

I vowed never to use it again and upon leaving the airport I went & tracked down a Filofax stockist, here I purchased a A5 filofax & decided to treated myself to Waterman fountain pen at the same time, nothing special. But after a weeks worth of usage I was well & truly hooked!

 

Hooked to both Filofax's & fountain pens, in the early days all my fountain pens were nothing special, mainly cheap Parkers, Watermans & Sheaffer Preludes etc. However, at the time I had always admired my MD's collection of Mont Blanc's.

 

One thing led to another & that's how my collection started, I've never looked back since, nor has my Filofax or fountain pen ever had a hard reset losing everything - LOL.

 

My latest purchases have mainly been Edison's, my current favourite is a Amber Tortoise Herald - To me the purchase is all the more special knowing that I'm supporting small independent pen maker. One that happens to make damn fine pens IMHO.

 

Cheers

 

Mark

Edited September 26, 2013 by mports

[Mardi13]

Bumping this thread because it seemed to be the best place to post this link. I was getting a bit concerned about the collecting thing getting out of hand, so I began to poke around the interwebz. There is much more out there of course, but this article seems to touch on a lot of things folks have mentioned here, and that truck me as interesting. Apologies if it duplicates too much stuff from other forums, I did search "psychology of collecting" here on FPN.

http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1449381/site_id/1

[Anne S. Gray]

I fell in love with Visconti pens. That has been the focus of my collecting.

[Runnin_Ute]

I do believe we all have some behaviors that either exhibit or can be associated with some OCD tendencies. I am not a professional by any stretch of the imagination just my experience.

 

In November 1999, I started distance running. Nothing big, just a few miles a few days a week to help stay in shape - health reasons. Then one day I ran a 5k race, a month or so later a 5 mile race and by the time I had been running for a year I had completed races at the following distances: 5k, 5 mile, 10k, 10 mile, half marathon and marathon. Gradually my mileage increased and I obsessively kept track of it. First by driving the routes I ran, then later (and to this day) using a GPS enabled watch, using mapmyrun.com and other tools. How far did I go, how fast did I run that distance, is it faster or slower than before. My log includes total time, distance, split times for each mile and average pace. What shoes I wore. (I have about 5 different pair of running shoes, maybe more), what was the weather like - temp/humidity, what I wore. Some might call at least some of that OCD behavior.

 

Over the years I have also collected on different levels other things.

 

Watches - I call myself the "accidental collector". Why? Initially I picked up a watch here another there and by 2010 I had 10 wrist watches and 3 pocket watches. My last watch purchase was in December 2012. I have 25 today including those same 3 pocket watches. From Feb/March 2010 until December 2012 I picked up 12 watches. I still have an interest but it has waned a bit. I currently have 10 from a single Manufacturer (Invicta) and several are different variations on the same basic design. My smallest watch is something like 33 mm across and the largest is 52 mm across. (measurements are typically taken at either the 10 to 4 or 2 to 8 dimension and do not count crown or pushers (for chronographs)) OCD Behavior? - I can go back to June 2012 and tell you what watch I wore on what day. On a watch forum I frequent much less than I used to, there are people with literally hundreds of watches.

 

Fountain Pens - for many years I was fine with two pens and not more than two inks at any given time. (late 1990's until December 2012) Then I found FPN. I have 13 pens now. Acquired a technical pen, two ballpoints, a ballpoint/mechanical pencil set and six fountain pens since January 2014. Not sure how many of my eight bottles of ink have been acquired this year.

 

I find that all or most of the activities/sports/hobbies I have or do participate in are more of the individual type than team type sports. Yet they all have a social component. (skiing, golf, running, pens, watches among others. Things like football, soccer, basketball, baseball a bit less so. Of these I participated in basketball the most, then baseball.) I think some of the things we participate reflect personality types to some degree. I would classify myself a bit of an introvert.

 

Also look at some of the professions that some of us are in. Accounting, law, engineering, architecture among others. What do some of these professions have in common? Organization.

Edited June 17, 2014 by Runnin_Ute

[alexander_k]

I don't consider myself a collector but have to admit to buying more than one pens of the same model. I don't have a plan; it just happens that I become interested in this or that pen and decide to give it a try. Looking for second-hand pens, I usually find more than one at a price I can afford, so I buy at least two to test the model thoroughly, not just one specimen that may have its own problems. There's another reason for multiple pens, too: colour; I like having a pair or trio of identical pens in different colours, inked with matching inks. Variety and variation are great.