Melbourne Pen Show 2013 - How Did You Do?

[msolok]

Hi All,[/size][/font]

 

So yesterday was the Melbourne Pen Show here in Australia. There are very few pen enthusiasts here in Australia (in fact Fountain pens are just about unheard of in general use), so the show tends to be rather small and (sadly) the only Pen Show we have in Australia.

 

This year was my first year going, and I must say I was quite impressed. There was a heap of different retailers, collectors and dealers there, and good deals all around. The amount of pens was simply staggering.

 

We got there first thing (to make sure all the good stuff was still there) and my wallet ended up a lot lighter, but my arms were full of goodies.

 

Walking around the first place we really ended up looking at was at a distributor here in Australia who sells a lot of European notebooks, pencils and pens. The first thing we noticed was the Whitelines notebooks for half price. We grabbed 3 of them for that price.

Next thing we saw that he had was the Ogami notebooks with Stone Paper Notebooks. He had one out on display so I had a bit of a writing test with my Lamy 2000. It's nice and smooth paper, but also has some feedback to it. Felt very nice. My Lamy had Visconti Blue in it, and it showed no signs of feathering or bleed-through and drying time was average. I asked him about other fountain pens and inks and he grabbed out a book he had been using. Most inks seemed to work very well on the paper with little show through or bleed through. He had even used a Sharpie to color on a page black and the show through on the opposite page was very minimal. He did say the only ink he had troubles with on the paper was a particular Noodlers ink (seemed to be a pinky colour, not sure which one) which never seems to dry.

I was impressed so we bought a couple of the larger hardbacks.

My partner also saw the Water Shorty clutch pencils and bought 2.

He then decided that since we had purchased so much he would throw in some extra goodies. He gave us 2 Ballpoint adapters for the Worther Shorties (so they can also be used as Ballpoints) and a Platignum Studio (the one with the semi hooded nib and rubber section). I was more than happy!

 

we then kept walking around and the next place that caught my eye was the Visconti dealer. He had all his nice, brand new pens laid out and begging to be handled. Looking through his mix I quickly came across 2 Opera Elements, the Blue and the Black. I already had the Amber so the Blue and Black are just what I needed to complement it (still on the lookout for a red though). The price was outstanding, $250 each. I took a look at the pens and they both had the old Gold nib (not the Palladium). He very quickly offered to switch the nibs to the Palladium for me though. So I decided to get one with the Palladium and 1 with the Gold nib. I was very happy with this, but to sweeten the deal, he also threw in the Green and Blue Visconti inks.

 

We then went around the stalls another few times, but I was content with what I had.

 

In the end we spent around $600 but ended up with 3 Whitelines Notebooks, 2 Ogami notebooks, a Platignum fountain pen, 2 Worther Shorty clutch pencils, 2 Visconti Opera Elements, and 2 bottles of Visconti ink. Was very happy with that haul!

 

Anyone else go yesterday and what did you end up with??

 

 

 

Anyone else go yesterday and what did you end up with??

Edited November 25, 2013 by msolok

[aawhite]

It was one of the better ones I attended. Also, for the first time, I was on budget.

I set a budget ($500) for the day on pens, inks and paper, and at the end I even had some change for lunch.

 

It was a very good day, I truly enjoyed it, and thank you very much to the organisers for putting a great show.

[parnesh]

It was great although I didn't spend as much time as I would have liked. Initially picked up an Visconti Opera Element in black but this had a steel nib. I wanted a palladium nib so that would cost me another 100 but I was happy with the price. However I then saw a Omas 360 Turquoise LE and this is a pen I have been wanting for ages. Plus the nib is wonderful, springy and unlike the Opera, it had box and papers. So I got that instead as an early brithday present. $475 for the pen an bottle of Visconti blue.

 

Very Happy!

[yamborghini]

Got myself the ogami notebook, a lamy pen pouch, a platignum pen and a visconti display case. I'm really happy about the display case since I got it for so cheap.

 

The stone paper is quite cool. It feels kind of like receipt paper.

 

Yea I saw the omas 360 turquoise. That was a really good price for it.

[pandabirdy1]

It was my first visit to the Pen Show too, and I had a lovely morning perusing and making some small purchases.

The door prizes were very generous also - the lucky guy who won the Diamine Music and Flower sets!!!

 

I also bought some Whitelines notebooks, and a cheapie yellow Platignum pen for $10.

Then when I asked another stall holder about an old Onoto pen and pencil set, (bright green No.50) I wasn't prepared for the "$10 - it's yours..." reply. Very happy.

Even my non pen-loving partner enjoyed the morning.

I wasn't sure what to expect from the show - it was a good mix of ages, men and women, and a friendly atmosphere.

Well done to the organizers, I'll definitely be back for the next show!

[maksim]

This thread is worthless without pics.

[parnesh]

  On 11/25/2013 at 9:37 AM, maksim said:

This thread is worthless without pics.

Fair enough. The 360 is worth taking pictures of but you will have to wait until the weekend unfortunately as I have no time to get the camera out etc.

[Machan]

This was also my first Pen Show, and it was fantastic!

 

I came with my mother and brother, the place seemed crowded and abuzz, both of which were good things. Great friendly atmosphere all around and lots to see. I was over the moon with the chance to look at and handle so many pens in the flesh.

 

I also finally managed to get some pens and inks I've been drooling thinking of for the past two months. I purchased a Parker 51, Sheaffer Snorkel, Noodler's Ahab along with Diamine Oxblood and Noodler's Black inks.

 

  On 11/25/2013 at 9:09 AM, pandabirdy1 said:

It was my first visit to the Pen Show too, and I had a lovely morning perusing and making some small purchases.

The door prizes were very generous also - the lucky guy who won the Diamine Music and Flower sets!!!

 

 

 

 

Yes the door prices were amazing, my brother was the one who managed to snag the Diamine sets. Lucky guy indeed.

 

http://imgur.com/KVc4HBw.jpg

 

I will definitely be there again next year.

Edited November 25, 2013 by Machan

[fpenluver]

Is there any photos? I would love to see.

[msolok]

I have photo's of my haul which I will upload in the morning. Gotta build some suspense for it :-P

[msolok]

As promised here are the pictures.

An overview of my Haul:

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250231_zpsa676adfd.jpg

A Closeup of the Viscontis and Ogami

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250232_zps96383b45.jpg

Closeup of the Whitelines

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250233_zpsde30788d.jpg

Closeup of the Platignum and inks

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250234_zpsa78c59a3.jpg

And I figured it would be good to show a group shot of all my Visconti's now. I now have 3 Opera Elements (Amber, Black and Blue. Dying to find a Red to complete the collection), a Opera Club Cherry Juice, 2 Homo Sapiens (1 bronze Oversize and 1 Steel Oversize), as well as a couple of the Crystal desk inkwells and a couple of the travelling ink wells.

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250238_zpscd8087de.jpg

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250235_zps59239c45.jpg

And a close up of the Operas.

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250237_zps9707b584.jpg

http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m510/msolok/Pen%20Show%202013/PB250236_zps9c8b9418.jpg

 

[c4bb0ose]

Pity no such thing exists in New Zealand, I would be all over it :<

[Toll]

I enjoyed this thread even without the photos! Although post of the 'haul' was nice. Pen shows are fun and I enjoy reading about enthusiastic experiences.

[yamborghini]

http://i.imgur.com/IL2NCd3.jpg

 

 

Not sure how this will format, but this is the visconti case I got for $90. Pretty happy with the price. TBH I'm surprised no one else wanted it.

Edited November 26, 2013 by yamborghini

[pandabirdy1]

Here are my small purchases....

.... 3 Whitelines notebooks, and a cheapie yellow Platignum pen for $10.

Onoto pen and pencil set, (bright green No.50) also $10.

Diamine ink carts were also a freebie.

 

 

[pandabirdy1]

  On 11/25/2013 at 10:50 AM, Machan said:

 

 

 

Yes the door prices were amazing, my brother was the one who managed to snag the Diamine sets. Lucky guy indeed.

 

http://imgur.com/KVc4HBw.jpg

 

I will definitely be there again next year.

 

 

 

congratulations to your brother!

I hope he's sharing...

[yamborghini]

Does anyone know who had that giant watch for sale? I wanted to get it but I ran out of money on the day. It was at the front table on the right as you walked in right.

[Ytland]

What a brilliant show! It was amazing to see just how much was on offer. Unfortunately I entered with a budget of $0 and was really there just to soak up the atmosphere but it was a great experience.

 

I was wondering if I might be able to float an idea to gauge interest. I was thinking of setting myself a goal for next year to come in and do 'live' pen grinds. It seems to be a common attraction in US pen shows, why shouldn't we be able to have it here? I have no idea if the event organisers would go for this, or even if I may finally end up to take on all that pressure, but it would be interesting to see if it's something worth considering.

 

Thanks in advance

Edited November 28, 2013 by Ytland

[parnesh]

  On 11/28/2013 at 11:51 PM, Ytland said:

What a brilliant show! It was amazing to see just how much was on offer. Unfortunately I entered with a budget of $0 and was really there just to soak up the atmosphere but it was a great experience.

 

I was wondering if I might be able to float an idea to gauge interest. I was thinking of setting myself a goal for next year to come in and do 'live' pen grinds. It seems to be a common attraction in US pen shows, why shouldn't we be able to have it here? I have no idea if the event organisers would go for this, or even if I may finally end up to take on all that pressure, but it would be interesting to see if it's something worth considering.

 

Thanks in advance

 

Actually I was going to send you an email to ask if you were planning this for this years show but I forgot. This would be an excellent idea. Even if you couldn't do it on the spot, having a quick chat about what grids are stuitable and trying out some pens with your custom grinds would be great.

[fpenluver]

Does anyone have the photos of the show not only the haul? I would really love to see the "atmosphere".

Thank you.