Should I Buy A Needlepoint Nib?

[kmiller3401]

I'm fairly new to fountain pens, but I love really really fine nibs. I was thinking of ordering a needlepoint Franklin-Christoph, and I needed to know if it would perform well in writing normally on normal paper, or if I would be better off with an extra fine.

[ac12]

NO

"normal" paper does not have a hard and smooth surface.

Any really fine tip will snag and catch on the paper fibers and texture if the paper is not hard and smooth.

 

Unless you get hard smooth paper, like Clairefontaine, I suggest sticking with a Fine nib.

If you really want that kind of nib, then you have to use hard smooth paper, which it not normal paper.

 

BTW, I have paper that I will NOT use a Fine or XF nib on. The scratchiness of the paper as I write feels so bad that it irritates me to write on that paper. I only use Medium or larger nibs on that paper.

Edited January 16, 2014 by ac12

[Oranges and Apples]

I agree with the statement above.

 

It might be unpleasant and it'll not be what you expect it to be.

[Inkling13]

I third that notion.

[Abner C. Kemp]

I agree, I don't think a needlepoint nib will work well on cheaper paper. The nib will dig into the paper and make for an annoying experience. I would try a Japanese fine or a German xf nib. I use a Lamy Safari XF on most cheap paper and it performs quite well.

[falika]

I have a Franklin-Christoph needlepoint and it works excellently. Michael Masuyama grings them for F-C. The one I have for the F-C 65 is almost too fine for me, but I blame that on my taste of nibs shifting from needlepoints to Western extra-fines. But the nib works fine on 'normal' paper.

 

Besides, the F-C nibs are inexpensive enough that you can buy a fine or extra-fine as well as a needle-point and switch them back and forth.

Edited January 16, 2014 by falika

[Moshe ben David]

NO

"normal" paper does not have a hard and smooth surface.

Any really fine tip will snag and catch on the paper fibers and texture if the paper is not hard and smooth.

 

Unless you get hard smooth paper, like Clairefontaine, I suggest sticking with a Fine nib.

If you really want that kind of nib, then you have to use hard smooth paper, which it not normal paper.

 

BTW, I have paper that I will NOT use a Fine or XF nib on. The scratchiness of the paper as I write feels so bad that it irritates me to write on that paper. I only use Medium or larger nibs on that paper.

 

Just out of academic interest, what about the much hailed Tomoe River paper?

[DanF]

Much depends on your touch, the finer the point, the lighter the touch you need to have. I can write on Staples filler paper with an extra fine dip pen, which is about as sharp as you can get, but I have to be careful and use very little pressure. Even then, it may pick up fibers out of the paper on occasion.

 

Moshe --- Tomoe River paper is quite tolerant of dip pen nibs in my experience. But again, light touch is crucial.

 

Dan

[holgalee]

I just got a Pocket 40 pen with the needlepoint tip a few days ago! It's excellent and writes like a dream as the line width is about 0.25-0.3mm (I haven't checked it against Richard Binder's line width chart. I've used it on Clairefontaine as well as average quality copier paper without issues. As long as the paper is not too "fibrous" or rough and you do not write with great pressure, you should be fine.

 

OP, when you says "really really fine nibs", what mm are you thinking about? Perhaps you can name an ink/rollerball pen that produces that line width? Most Japanese F nibs are really really fine by Western standards, and produce lines of around 0.4mm.

[Bo Bo Olson]

IMO as a noobie, I'd not go needle point. With such a tiny tipping will be harder to write with. You have to place and keep the pen exactly on that microscopic sweet point. Needle point requires a nibmeister....I don't think any one makes them. XXXXF is needle point.

 

You should go western EF or Japanese F before even going Japanese EF which is XXF western.

Japanese nibs are so narrow, because they print a tiny script. There are some inexpensive Japanese pens, where you could buy both a Japanese F(EF) and EF(XXF) for under $30 for both.

 

 

Of course you are limited to vivid supersaturated inks....and can never use a two toned shading ink...and for that you'd need a 90g paper anyway.

 

Very thin nibs....EF is good for poor paper if you have a nice fast drying ink.

Edited January 16, 2014 by Bo Bo Olson

[WirsPlm]

It all depends on your personal tolerances, how you feel about line width vs. how smooth a writing experience you want. I'm fine with feedback and really want thin lines, so I use a Pilot EF nib as one of my daily writers and enjoy pens with small nibs in general, but for someone who wants super smooth writing that won't work. Trying it out for yourself might be the only way to figure this out. You can get a Pilot EF nib in their Penmanship for about $7 or F nibs in the 78G for about $15, so it might be worth giving those a shot to see if you like it or want something bigger.