How Silent Or Noisy Is Your Custom Cursive Italic Nib (0.7 Mm Or Thereabouts)?

[islandink]

New to posting, old to fountain pens.

 

If you have a cursive italic nib on a fountain pen (ideally an excellent nib custom ground by one of the best nibmeisters) could you let me know how scratchy sounding the cursive italic sounds compared to a smooth round nib and also if you have it, a stub nib.

 

I love the line the cursive italic produces but find the sound somewhat bothersome when writing in a quiet room. It sounds a bit as though I am trapped in Les Liaisons dangereuses with a quill pen but without the romantic drama. I realize the solution might simply be to play music in the background but am wondering if this is something others have noticed and found bothersome?

 

The two nibs in question are both gold nibs, both with custom cursive italic nibs--one is a Montblanc and the other is a Waterman Le Man 200. For comparison my round nibs are completely silent, and the sound I am hearing is a bit louder or at least scratchier than that produced by my Lamy Safari 1.1 stub nib.

 

And is there a way to make them a wee bit quieter?

 

And would a custom stub nib have been a much quieter choice (if so, how close to silent are they?)

 

Many thanks for any insights.

[shuuemura]

All my cursive italic and stub nibs don't make much noise; at least, I have never been bothered by them. For info, I have cursive italics from Binder, Mottishaw and Kinney; and stubs from Minuskin, Sheaffer and Nakaya. Even the Goulet 1.1 mm stub doesn't make much noise.

 

The one nib that is noisy is my Nakaya broad nib. I refrain from writing too much in meetings when I'm using that pen.

 

Perhaps you can try making your cursive italics wetter? More lubrication with ink will lead to less friction against paper, reducing the sound.

Edited October 4, 2014 by shuuemura

[View from the Loft]

To me, factors that affect the sound include the paper, what is underneath the paper and the desk surface as well as the ink/nib combination.

 

I have a vintage CS206 broad stub that always tells me more than my factory new CS broad italic. My Pelikan M600 and two Onotos with nibs custom ground for me are quieter than the vintage CS, and on a par with the modern CS. They are also on a par with my daughter's medium round nib.

 

I like all of my pens to be wet writers, and I find the sound of the pen moving across the paper to be comforting.

 

To be honest, it's not something I have given much thought to - to me it's part of the pleasure of writing with these wonderful tools.

[PenChalet]

Welcome to FPN!

[H1N]

Me too, All of my italic nibs don't make much noise !!!

[estie1948]

Hello and welcome. I'm glad you joined us. I'm sorry I can't help with that question. I don't have any italic nibs.

 

Please don't hesitate to share your questions and opinions. I hope you enjoy your time with us.

 

-David.

[pendexter]

I have a Binderized .7mm Pilot Vanishing Point. It does make some noise, but it's actually more quiet than my Pilot CH 92 with standard fine nib. Both are fine writers... And I agree with the comment above that using a more lubricated ink and trying different paper may help things along.

Edited October 5, 2014 by pendexter

[Occipital Lobe]

I have a Lamy Al-Star 1,1mm that produces a distinct scratching sound.

In the other end of the spectrum I have a John Sorowka customised Pelikan M800 medium stub that is so much smoother and doesn´t even whisper.

It is to vastly different writing experiences.

[Kuscer]

all of my italics are really silent

[ink-syringe]

I have a .8 stub on a vac that is surprisingly noisy especially when it is off it's small sweet spot, which it is most of the time since it is slightly oblique and my grip is pretty centered.

[FoszFay]

I recently got an M800 'medium' ground by Pendleton Brown, to his 'Butter-line Stub/CI'. It is a very smooth writer, but you can hear a little noise when writing on standard copier and book paper, mainly on long, diagonal up-strokes, like y's and g's. It also "sings" pretty often; something it used to do even when it was a 'medium' though.

 

Feels like a Stub, but writes like a Cursive Italic. Recommend it.

 

Tom

[cellmatrix]

All of my dozen or so custom cursives have a crisp feel which is how I like them, but they don't make much noise at all. I'm not sure why yours does, but certainly its not some regular feature of these types of nibs. Maybe try writing a bit more lightly?

[islandink]

Thanks for responses--I should have mentioned that I have a feather light touch with a fountain pen. And anyone care to clarify exactly what "singing" is?

[Cryptos]

I have an Italix Parson's Essential with a fine cursive italic nib. I think it is around 0.6mm. With a very light hand - weight of the pen only - and a very quiet room I can hear the nib on Rhodia 80gsm paper. It's not obtrusive in my opinion and overall just about all the fountain pens I have tried make some slight noise. My worst one is a Mabie Todd Blackbird. That one sounds like I am writing on parchment, though I do not find the sound unpleasant.