Designing A Fountain Pen For Children; Thoughts?

[DarkSymphony]

Hi all, I'm currently working on a plastics design brief and have opted to design a fountain pen for use by children. Personally speaking, back when I learned to write, I wrecked more than one nib though pressing too hard. Also busted a few through childish carelessness (pens rolling off desks etc.)

 

I'm trying to get a general idea of what everyone here on FPN's experiences were when they learned; what did you find irritating, or difficult about first learning to use a fountain pen?

 

Thank you!

[Inkling13]

It should have a triangular grip to encourage the proper way to hold a pen, snap cap for easy access, thick/durable plastic, brightly colored, equipped with a cartridge system for ease of refilling, and a forgiving round ball nib that writes with almost any angle. Look at the Lamy Safari, Pelikano variants, Kakuno, etc...

[UK Mike]

It would be good if the pen didn't roll - and if it fell from desk height it should land nib uppermost! Something that writes with almost no pressure might discourage children from pressing on too hard simply to make the pen write. Another problem to be addressed is the correct angle for the nib, being much shallower an angle than when using ballpoints, rollerballs and felt tips. You may also want to consider the age group for which you are designing - a 6 year old wants a different pen from a 15 year old.

 

I am not convinced on the triangular grip topic, which I find unnecessarily restrictive, but the German teaching programmes all favour this type of grip. You should take a close look at the currently available pens and make a note of the features. As "Inkling" suggests above, Lamy, Pelikano, Faber Castell etc all have school pens with some of these features.

[Mesu]

My daughter has just started writing with fountain pens and below are some features i would like to see.

 

1. Grip: Should be slim enough for the children to comfortably write with. Non-slippery material is preferred.

 

2. Filling system: Easy to fill and holds more ink. Some school pens in India come with Jumbo cartridges. Piston fillers also have good ink capacity.

 

3. A flat end similar to Lamy Safari or any other shape which prevents the pen from easily rolling off the table

 

4. Smooth nibs and easily replaceable

 

5. Snap-on and a leak proof cap, if the ink seeps into the cap by accident.

 

6. Not too heavy to hold and not easily breakable

 

7. An ink window to indicate the ink level will be very helpful.

 

8. A variety of colors/patterns

 

Hope this helps.