Advice On Next Pen

[hologram]

I have up to US$150 to spend on a new pen.

I own and love Pelikans (vintage and modern) and Vacumatics.

I'm looking for a new, modern pen or a recent vintage pen (say 1960s or after).

Open to any suggestions at this price point.

Im interested in Sailors at the moment but they're not piston fillers at this price :-(.

I like smooth nibs that write on the wet side and pens that have a large filling capacity.

 

So, with that context, here are some questions:

• what are the best new pens at this price point?
• what recent vintage pens fit the bill?
• how do Sailors at this price compare?
• I'm looking for a Western F to M nib but which Sailor nib size will match this?

 

Any thoughts appreciated :-)

 

[praxim]

semi-vintage: Aurora 88P - piston filler, unusually large capacity, pretty smooth 14k gold nib (harder than the earlier 88s), practical to hold and use, in the price range, produced 1958-1963.

 

For new, I think you are already identifying those.

 

edit: typo

Edited May 20, 2017 by praxim

[hologram]

semi-vintage: Aurora 88P - piston filler, unusually large capacity, pretty smooth 14k gold nib (harder than the earlier 88s), practical to hold and use, in the price range, produced 1958-1963.

 

For new, I think you are already identifying those.

 

edit: typo

 

 

thanks praxim

that's a great suggestion - are the 88s all hooded? I prefer regular nibs

[praxim]

They are semi-hooded, not practically concealed like the Parker 51 but definitely not an open nib.

 

edit: clariity

Edited May 20, 2017 by praxim

[chromantic]

Usually some Parker 50 Falcons kicking around on ebay (7 currently, 5 under $150). Nice pen and a nice conversation piece, if you're among other FP aficionados. Possibly not the best choice if you have really large hands, though; size-wise, it's like a diminutive P45, similar to the difference between the M200 and M150 (much slimmer, of course).

[Mech-for-i]

Sailor FM would be somewhat Euro Fine ; I do not think the said vintage models are really modern enough as per your stated conditions, and in any case US$150.00 budget is good enough to get many ( pretty much all except some of the limited editons and Meki-e ) of Sailor's 14K models and having some spare to buy extras. At this moment of time, the Sailor ( and any of Pilot , Platinum ) is really bang for buck champ for this price bracket and market sector.

 

Pilot Custom 92 with an FM nib might be on the table too

[Calabria]

Pilot 92 is the only pen with a large ink supply that comes to mind in that range.

 

Wait -- Lamy 2000!