What Pen Won't You Buy?

[Stylo_dOr]

I won’t buy any pen that I can’t afford

 

Sometimes we all get led astray...

[Honeybadgers]

 

 

Thank you both for your input. I agree that some of them are gloriously beautiful, but most of them are out of my normal price range. So to justify a splurge, personally I want the peace of mind that I'll enjoy the writing experience right out of the box. I'll just have to keep looking at 2D versions of the Viscontis online =)

 

Some visconti retailers offer in-house tuning. Ask them to just get that sucker writing perfectly before shipping it!

 

If you really want to jump in at the lower price points, visconti is well known for having great steel nibs. I've heard ZERO complaints about any nib they make other than the palladium ones. The gold nibs of the past and steel nibs of now and then are both hailed as great writers.

[Honeybadgers]

 

Sometimes we all get led astray...

 

 

*looks at $500 mont blanc, $700 visconti, and $30,000 take-home pay*

 

 

Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

[Stylo_dOr]

 

 

*looks at $500 mont blanc, $700 visconti, and $30,000 take-home pay*

 

 

Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

 

Lol

[wangjianwei]

I won't buy

1. FPs models I've already owned
2. Lever filler and all those sac based filling pens, nowadays I'm mainly C/C or piston only
3. Luxury pens, those USD150 and above. Buyer's remorse is a terrible thing

[adatse]

Sometimes we all get led astray...

+100

[acornham]

I have quite a few requirements for my pens:

1. Not be a knock-off of a design currently in production

(this exempts the Wing Sung 601)

2. Not have a steep section step-down.

(I tried a Metropolitan, and it was terrible)

3. Not have terrible QC(Visconti, Noodler's, some Wing Sung)

4. Not be owned by a person with extreme political views

5. Have a self-filler, or if not, it must have some amazing design, or be cheap--some of these amazing design to me are the Lamy Safari, Kaweco Sport, Pilot Vanishing Point, etc.

6. Have a metal section.

7. Cost over $150 including all costs to make it write

8. Be overpriced for what it is(Montblanc, Yafa)

9. A surprising one for you guys--be any Esterbrook. (I just don't like the design or their nibs.)

[minddance]

Not giving names but quite certainly:

1. Tapered sections

2. Slippery metallic grips

3. Dryout problems

4. Section less than 10mm.

5. Step between barrel and section.

6. Difficult maintenance, inability to remove the last drop of water and ink remnant.

[ISW_Kaputnik]

Concerning the original post about "nazi" pens; I would not avoid every German pen made between 1933 and 1945, but I would avoid any that had designs explicitly connected to the Nazi party. Hypothetically, a swastika design might appear on pens from other countries and earlier eras, simply as an attractive pattern or as a symbol of completely different beliefs, but I would not want such a pen for myself. Personal preference, and not a criticism of those who feel differently. I'm aware that it's an ancient symbol which has been used in many contexts, such as this one.

 

There are other emblems and symbols that I wouldn't want on one of my pens, but I'm not going to give a list. Again, personal preference, not really arguable as such, but not binding on other people, either.

 

For design factors, I am more likely to forgo my preferences for an interesting vintage pen. I certainly have enough without pocket clips, although I always wear shirts with pockets, and like to carry my pens there. Some, like the old Conklin Crescents, are pretty roll proof without them, and not EDC pens anyway. I would not buy a modern pen that was not designed to have the cap posted, and be well balanced when posted.

 

There is a price level, which I won't specify here, beyond which I can't kid myself that the "extra" money has anything to do with getting a better writing instrument. I won't buy beyond that level. But I have bought beyond earlier, lower, levels.

Edited August 16, 2018 by ISW_Kaputnik

[meiers]

 

You do realize that word doesn't mean anything anymore. I regularly hear things like vacuum cleaner bags and available parking spaces described as "amazing."

Amazing means excellent and impressive in informal usage.

[TSherbs]

Nothing over $125. There are many, many pens that I will not consider owning. I have stylistic and shape preferences, but my hard limit is what determines most what I don't/won't own.

[MHBru]

Let's see... I might as well pile on...

 

1) It has to be one i find attractive, first and foremost. Then any of the following can take it off the list...

 

2) Cheaply made... I like pens that will last at least into the next generation. I can buy a disposable pen at staples.

3) Slippery sections of any sort, especially metal. Good-bye Lamy Studio... so nice looking but stupid design.... a pen bimbo (not all LAMY's are out tho... I love my Aion and the safari I got as a gift writes better than my Pelikan 205)

4) Poor Reviews ... the reason I have never purchased a Visconti.

 

Pelikan M800s are my overall favorites for yes on number 1 and No on all the rest.

[meiers]

I will not buy a pen that performs poorly.

[Corona688]

I won't buy:

• Pop caps. Let's use a weak friction-fit to guard your pocket from something designed to seep ink on contact!
• Vintage. I'd feel bad if I wrecked it... and I would.
• Relentlessly repetitive, worn-out styles like black torpedoes.
• Transparent or windowed pens.
• Silly gimmicks like the Ingenuity.

Which rules out nearly anything but Kaweko and imitations, I guess.

[ardene]

As things stand now in terms of my limited experience with different fountain pens and my almost non-existent experience with different brands I can assert that...

 

...there isn't any pen whatsoever I definitely won't buy.

 

In an ideal world I'd like to try as much as possible. I say "try" because I don't fancy the burdens of cleaning, using, scanning the web to buy and sell, storing and spending a legion of pens carries with it. Kind of enjoy the fruits without responsibility.

[penwash]

I won't buy:

• Pop caps. Let's use a weak friction-fit to guard your pocket from something designed to seep ink on contact!
• Vintage. I'd feel bad if I wrecked it... and I would.
• Relentlessly repetitive, worn-out styles like black torpedoes.
• Transparent or windowed pens.
• Silly gimmicks like the Ingenuity.

Which rules out nearly anything but Kaweko and imitations, I guess.

 

Ironically, within your no.2 category (Vintage), you'll find most of the pens that are outside of the other categories in that list.

[Driften]

I won't buy:

• Pop caps. Let's use a weak friction-fit to guard your pocket from something designed to seep ink on contact!
• Vintage. I'd feel bad if I wrecked it... and I would.
• Relentlessly repetitive, worn-out styles like black torpedoes.
• Transparent or windowed pens.
• Silly gimmicks like the Ingenuity.

Which rules out nearly anything but Kaweko and imitations, I guess.

 

 

Guess that leaves you with most of the remaining Italian brands, Franklin-Christoph, Montblanc special editions, some Pelikan, some Pilot, Benu, many pens from India, some Conid, Karas Kustom. And many others but that is just going off the top of my head.

 

Not sure what you have against pop caps. Screw caps with multiple entry points can easily open up in a pocket as well.

Guess you prefer C/C pens? Ink windows really help when using piston or vacuum filling pens.

[Corona688]

You guess well, I do like the look of quite a few Franklins. I've got my heart set on a Delike Alpha though, but that'll have to wait.

It's possible for screw caps to come undone but very rare. The ones I've used never instantly fail the way all of my pop caps have, and take a long, long time to wear out. Sometimes they crack though, but even after that, usually keep working.

 

Ink windows certainly help, but any transparent acrylic is doomed to crack. My 717i's are already fulfilling this prediction, though they last longer than many more expensive pens.

Edited August 18, 2018 by Corona688

[inkeverywhere]

For me it is anything Twsbi, love the 580's but after buying an Eco I was left thoroughly disappointed, as such will probably never buy another Twsbi pen.

 

Paying for spare parts to be sent to me to try and fix a company's faulty pen was the last insult, anywhere else you get your money back or an exchange product.

 

 

Greg

[Honeybadgers]

As much as I adore my VAC700, I will admit that the jerk they have running the customer service here in America drags down the brand bigtime. Nothing like being insulted when you are asking him to replace a faulty feed that wont draw ink