Budget Fountain Pens, Paper And Ink

[vineetkgiri]

HELLO FPN MEMBERS

I am a Delhi based research student who has just entered in the world of fountain pens. I purchased two fountain pens Pilot Metropolitan and Jinhao X750 from Ravi’s Pens point very recently after my disappointment with Camlin Trinity (its ink flow turned out to be terrible). I have decided I won’t upgrade to Lamy or TWSBI now. I know you guys might get be getting this a lot to the extent it might sound little banal but I am looking for budget fountain pens under 1000 INR (15 dollars). I am thinking to buy a platinum preppy soon but I really want to try some Indian fountain pens and will be glad to get some recommendations especially that are decent writers for long writing sessions. I prefer my Jinhao over my Metropolitan so I think I have a preference for a medium nib.

 

Also I have realized, a paper has a considerable impact on the performance of a fountain pen. After the recommendation by Ravi, I tried locating JK cedar 100gsm in North Delhi only to end my search in dismay (couldn’t find it anywhere in stationaries but I have not tried Nayi Sadak). The price offered by Amazon for Cedar is more than 400 INR (including delivery charges). I am looking for budget decent performing notebooks or sheets for note-making and daily writing that are good alternatives to Cedar.

 

Other issue I am facing is drying of ink in my Metropolitan. I used Ravi’s (pen point South ex) Ink with my Metropolitan but I have realized I have to shake it repeatedly otherwise it stops writing and it also dries quickly. I can’t write and read simultaneously with metropolitan’s cap dismounted. Although I didn’t face the same problem when I used Pelikan 4001 with Jinhao and the uncapped Jinhao performs decently even after I don’t put back the pen cap quickly. I think it is the drying problem of the ink and not the pen. I have used Camlin royal blue ink and found it a decent performing ink. What are other decent budget inks that don’t get dry quickly?

 

Any insights on the above issues would be appreciated.

[Sasha Royale]

Parker 45 fountain pens have endured many years. I see them often because I always carry one.

 

In the 1970's, my life brought me in contact with numerous young medical professionals (nurses, interns, X-ray technicians, students) from India. More than half were using Parker 45 fountain pens. Many were received as gifts from family, for the journey to America.

 

I conclude that it is (was) a very popular pen in India. A number of my vintage Parker 45 fountain pens were bought on Ebay, from sellers in India. They may be reasonably priced and plentiful.

Edited May 18, 2017 by Sasha Royale

[vineetkgiri]

Thanks a lot for your recommendation.Will try to find Parker 45 but I think it is a vintage pen and might not fit in my budget.

[sciumbasci]

How about the Camlin 47? I fell in love with it, and heard it is a school model, so might fit your requirements.

 

Otherwise, you might want to consider a Sailor HighAce Neo straight from Japan with free postage.

[bobje]

The Airmail Wality 69 in ebonite is an outstanding, well-proportioned, durable pen. This one is configured with a Kanwrite flex nib.

 

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[Bluey]

  On 5/18/2017 at 12:43 PM, vineetkgiri said:

 

Other issue I am facing is drying of ink in my Metropolitan. I used Ravi’s (pen point South ex) Ink with my Metropolitan but I have realized I have to shake it repeatedly otherwise it stops writing and it also dries quickly. I can’t write and read simultaneously with metropolitan’s cap dismounted. Although I didn’t face the same problem when I used Pelikan 4001 with Jinhao and the uncapped Jinhao performs decently even after I don’t put back the pen cap quickly. I think it is the drying problem of the ink and not the pen. I have used Camlin royal blue ink and found it a decent performing ink. What are other decent budget inks that don’t get dry quickly?

 

Any insights on the above issues would be appreciated.

Have you checked to see if the converter/cartridge is pushed in all the way until it clicks? It's common with the Metro. You don't mention if you're using a cartridge or a converter so I had to ask.

Having said that, the symptoms is typical from what you describe of an air bubble.

Edited May 19, 2017 by Bluey

[vineetkgiri]

  On 5/18/2017 at 6:57 PM, sciumbasci said:

How about the Camlin 47? I fell in love with it, and heard it is a school model, so might fit your requirements.

 

Otherwise, you might want to consider a Sailor HighAce Neo straight from Japan with free postage.

Thanks ! not sure about Camlin 47, I think it's no longer readily available and would become vintage soon. But I was looking at Camlin Elegante and have read some positive reviews about it. About Sailor HighAcne, Thanks for recommending will definitely purchase one in near future.

[vineetkgiri]

  On 5/19/2017 at 5:59 PM, Bobje said:

The Airmail Wality 69 in ebonite is an outstanding, well-proportioned, durable pen. This one is configured with a Kanwrite flex nib.

 

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Thanks for recommending, Now I have so many options to consider !

[vineetkgiri]

  On 5/19/2017 at 6:10 PM, Bluey said:

Have you checked to see if the converter/cartridge is pushed in all the way until it clicks? It's common with the Metro. You don't mention if you're using a cartridge or a converter so I had to ask.

Having said that, the symptoms is typical from what you describe of an air bubble.

I am using the Aeromatic converter which comes with the Metro. I am thinking to try Metro with some different ink or do I need to use a cartridge ?

[RohanOrhanHaron]

For daily and cheap(price) use, I'd recommend the Camlin Presa.
It's really ergonomic and doesn't strain your hand at all.
The nib is slightly thin, but really smooth.

This is a perfect starting off pen.

This is what I use for exams and stuff, as the Extra fine nib makes the ink not bleed through on cheap university paper, even while it is super smooth.

However, don't use pigment inks in it as its feed is a Wick action based.

Buy a syringe to refill the cartridges or buy a cello fountain pen with a convertor and use it in a Presa.


http://www.amazon.in/Camlin-Presa-Cartridge-Fountain-Piece/dp/B01J1WLNF8/

Edited May 21, 2017 by RohanOrhanHaron

[only_moin]

from my own personal experience of Camlin Trinity and Elegante i can say they both have scratchy nibs ..now i do understand that i dont have a ton of these pens , i have one each, so i can only base my experience off that..but stay away from them i will say.

 

i personally hate to give up on a pen , no matter how cheap. so i am willing to spend some time with a brand new pen and a magnifying loup and and nail buffer to align and smooth them ...but if you are unwilling to put up with all this hassle , then stay away from the trinity and Elegante..just go for Jinhao x450 or 500 or 250..all of them i found reliable in medium nib as commonly available, out of the box.

 

do let us know what you choose and how they are faring .

 

[vineetkgiri]

  On 5/21/2017 at 10:33 AM, RohanOrhanHaron said:

For daily and cheap(price) use, I'd recommend the Camlin Presa.

It's really ergonomic and doesn't strain your hand at all.

The nib is slightly thin, but really smooth.

 

This is a perfect starting off pen.

 

This is what I use for exams and stuff, as the Extra fine nib makes the ink not bleed through on cheap university paper, even while it is super smooth.

 

However, don't use pigment inks in it as its feed is a Wick action based.

 

Buy a syringe to refill the cartridges or buy a cello fountain pen with a convertor and use it in a Presa.

 

 

http://www.amazon.in/Camlin-Presa-Cartridge-Fountain-Piece/dp/B01J1WLNF8/

Thanks for your suggestion, but I have decided that I would avoid using camlin for some time.

[vineetkgiri]

  On 6/3/2017 at 6:07 PM, only_moin said:

from my own personal experience of Camlin Trinity and Elegante i can say they both have scratchy nibs ..now i do understand that i dont have a ton of these pens , i have one each, so i can only base my experience off that..but stay away from them i will say.

 

i personally hate to give up on a pen , no matter how cheap. so i am willing to spend some time with a brand new pen and a magnifying loup and and nail buffer to align and smooth them ...but if you are unwilling to put up with all this hassle , then stay away from the trinity and Elegante..just go for Jinhao x450 or 500 or 250..all of them i found reliable in medium nib as commonly available, out of the box.

 

do let us know what you choose and how they are faring .

 

20170603_233351.jpg

Thank you for your valuable insights, I haven't added any new pen in my collection. I am using metropolitan for my notes making. It is little scratchy but considering classmate notebook is not an ideal paper for the pen, i have kind of accustomed myself to it.

Edited July 28, 2017 by vineetkgiri

[RohanOrhanHaron]

  On 7/28/2017 at 12:07 PM, vineetkgiri said:

Thanks for your suggestion, but I have decided that I would avoid using camlin for some time.

Understandable.

My experience with Camlin other than this has been sketchy as well. I'd still suggest giving it a try.

 

This one seems to be completely made by Ambitious, so you can expect most of the problems of the other pens to be absent:

http://ambitiousindia.com/product_detail.html?id=11&main=9

[vineetkgiri]

  On 7/30/2017 at 4:25 PM, RohanOrhanHaron said:

Understandable.

My experience with Camlin other than this has been sketchy as well. I'd still suggest giving it a try.

 

This one seems to be completely made by Ambitious, so you can expect most of the problems of the other pens to be absent:

http://ambitiousindia.com/product_detail.html?id=11&main=9

I will give definitely a try a some point. Which brand of ink you use for daily writing ? How is this 'ambitious pen" ? How can one purchase it? I don't think it is readily available in market. Would be glad to get feedback on these issues. I am still a novice so I don't know much about the fountain pens except those I own and the popular brands that I have heard about.

[RohanOrhanHaron]

  On 7/31/2017 at 2:39 PM, vineetkgiri said:

I will give definitely a try a some point. Which brand of ink you use for daily writing ? How is this 'ambitious pen" ? How can one purchase it? I don't think it is readily available in market. Would be glad to get feedback on these issues. I am still a novice so I don't know much about the fountain pens except those I own and the popular brands that I have heard about.

Ambitious, being an ODM company, makes pens for others. Hence, the only available version of the pen is Camlin Presa, as far as I have been to find out.

For daily writing, I have been using Daytone calligraphy blue. I have found it proper only with extra fine nibs, such as the Presa, as it spreads more (though doesn't feather) and it is good enough to use even on the (bleep) University exam papers.

However, on Jowo fine nib, it would spread a lot and hence bleed-through.

[vineetkgiri]

  On 8/7/2017 at 9:18 AM, RohanOrhanHaron said:

Ambitious, being an ODM company, makes pens for others. Hence, the only available version of the pen is Camlin Presa, as far as I have been to find out.

For daily writing, I have been using Daytone calligraphy blue. I have found it proper only with extra fine nibs, such as the Presa, as it spreads more (though doesn't feather) and it is good enough to use even on the (bleep) University exam papers.

However, on Jowo fine nib, it would spread a lot and hence bleed-through.

Thanks for your valuable feedback!

[bugsydog55]

Just saw this thread. I can understand your problems. Have a Camlin Trinity that is almost better at being a dart than a pen, but I'll fix it some day. As a suggestion why not look at a Camlin 22 eyedropper. They are reasonably inexpensive and hold a fair amount of ink and write tolerably well.

[vineetkgiri]

  On 8/26/2017 at 1:26 AM, bugsydog55 said:

Just saw this thread. I can understand your problems. Have a Camlin Trinity that is almost better at being a dart than a pen, but I'll fix it some day. As a suggestion why not look at a Camlin 22 eyedropper. They are reasonably inexpensive and hold a fair amount of ink and write tolerably well.

I recently used a Trinity that was owned by one of my friends. I was surprised to see the smoothness of the pen. I don't know much repairing fountain pens so can't do much about it. But would definitely want to replace the nib, if possible the feed too. Are there any nibs or feed that are compatible with Camlin Trinity?

[bugsydog55]

I do not know for certain but Fountain Pen Revolution sells #5 and #5.5 nibs for next to nothing that may fit in the Trinity. They also have options in sizes up to flex. May be worthwhile taking a look on the web.