Mapping/drawing Nibs

[Stompie]

I have a multitude of Dip Pen nibs and yet I always seem to return to the Mapping/Drawing nib for maximum pleasure.

I don't really see many folk mention these nibs and I was wondering if anyone else used them?

 

[AAAndrew]

I know some really like the nibs. I find them mostly too small and fine for my ham-handed writing.

 

Which ones do you like?

[challer61]

What makes a mapping nib a mapping nib?

[inkstainedruth]

I was wondering the same thing. Especially since earlier this evening I stopped in at an art store I like and in the calligraphy pen and ink section they had Gillott cartridge pens with drawing nibs on them. I considered buying one because they were inexpensive but I don't know what converter to get (the package said they took "international" cartridges -- by which I presume they meant "International Standard").

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Stompie]

Apparently they were used in cartography but now more by artists. That’s the extent of what I know about that.

 

Ruth, a mapping pen that takes a cartridge? I would be interested in that. Please let me have some more info as I cannot track anything about such a pen.

 

Andrew, to be honest, they all seem the same to me so I have no real preference.

[AAAndrew]

My late father-in-law used them for drawing his maps, he was a geological engineer and prospector. They're also used for pen and ink drawing. They can make incredibly fine lines. Some are easier to use than others. Esterbrook's 357 and 358 are quite good. I find the 349 and 350 just too small and delicate.

[akrohn2010]

I’ve never heard of a mapping nib before — quite a nice writing sample, Stompie! Kinda want one now...

[dcwaites]

They are also called crow-quill pens. They are cylindrical nibs, about 3mm diameter, that fit into a special holder.

 

 

They are designed to do very fine lines, suitable for drawing a map.

 

I would imagine that the name comes from the original quills being made from crow wing feathers, rather than the larger goose wing feathers.

[inkstainedruth]

  On 5/24/2018 at 2:12 PM, Stompie said:

Apparently they were used in cartography but now more by artists. That’s the extent of what I know about that.

 

Ruth, a mapping pen that takes a cartridge? I would be interested in that. Please let me have some more info as I cannot track anything about such a pen.

 

Well, I looked on the website for the store but they weren't listed. However I did a quick Google search and found them on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Gillott-Drawing-William-Mitchell-WM35908/dp/B06XPDTDVZ

Turns out I had somewhat misremembered what the packaging said, and that they have .8 mm and 1 mm nibs (and actually do come with a converter).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

ETA: @ dcwaites -- thanks for the information. I had never heard them called anything but crow-quills (I used to have one back in high school or college, but am not sure if I still do at this point).

Edited May 25, 2018 by inkstainedruth

[Stompie]

  On 5/25/2018 at 12:24 AM, inkstainedruth said:

 

Well, I looked on the website for the store but they weren't listed. However I did a quick Google search and found them on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Gillott-Drawing-William-Mitchell-WM35908/dp/B06XPDTDVZ

 

 

Thank you for that. It is a fine nib that is in there but nowhere near as fine as the dip pen nib and I doubt that it will have any of the same flex capability either, but thank you!

[Stompie]

You do get a Crow Quill, which looks like the mapping/drawing nibs.

However, the difference comes in their flexibility which ranges from nail to very flexy. I don't have any crow quills because they did not flex like I wanted.

I have ordered some now so I can show the differences between the various nibs - I will do samples once they all arrive.

 

What I do like is that you can get a reversible nib holder so you can carry it like a pen. Of course you would have to carry an ink bottle as well but, seein that they use so little ink it can be a very small ink container.

[sidthecat]

I used crow quill nibs in art school - they’ll give you very fine lines but I don’t recollect them having much flex.

I’ve upgraded to old gold nibs, which can be incredible.

[Stompie]

 

These are apparently Manuscript nibs but they are under the name of HIRO Leonardt nibs (?) anyway, that is what is on the invoice.

 

I am STILL waiting for my Gillot nibs to arrive so once I get them I will let you see those.

[Stompie]

  On 5/27/2018 at 4:28 PM, sidthecat said:

I used crow quill nibs in art school - they’ll give you very fine lines but I don’t recollect them having much flex.

I’ve upgraded to old gold nibs, which can be incredible.

 

 

[bitterwonder]

  On 5/24/2018 at 1:39 AM, inkstainedruth said:

I was wondering the same thing. Especially since earlier this evening I stopped in at an art store I like and in the calligraphy pen and ink section they had Gillott cartridge pens with drawing nibs on them. I considered buying one because they were inexpensive but I don't know what converter to get (the package said they took "international" cartridges -- by which I presume they meant "International Standard").

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

The Gillot fountain pen I have comes with cartridges and a converter and two drawing nibs. For 16.99 or so i find these to be very good pens. I made my nib wetter and may have smoothed them a bit but for the price they are terrific.

[inkstainedruth]

Good to know. I was in a bit of a hurry when I saw them so I didn't really have a chance to look the package over carefully. I do stick my nose in the place every now and then (just to take a look at journals and pens and such), but last week I was mostly there to pick up another No. 18 Rhodia pad.

The nice thing about the place is that they regularly carry Rhodia and Leuctturm, and they have recently started carrying Shinola (and have small sample notebooks so you can see the paper -- I may try one at some point just to see how good the Shinola paper is on issues like bleedthrough and feathering.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Stompie]

  On 5/29/2018 at 1:57 AM, bitterwonder said:

The Gillot fountain pen I have comes with cartridges and a converter and two drawing nibs. For 16.99 or so i find these to be very good pens. I made my nib wetter and may have smoothed them a bit but for the price they are terrific.

 

Apart from Ackerman pens I can not find any Gillott fountain pen that takes mapping nibs.

 

Where do you get these and what do they look like?

[bitterwonder]

Maybe these arent mapping nibs; took a photo of the package with pen but cannot post.

Edited May 30, 2018 by bitterwonder

[Stompie]

  On 5/30/2018 at 2:41 AM, bitterwonder said:

Maybe these arent mapping nibs; took a photo of the package with pen but cannot post.

Thanks.

 

I have seen what they call a Drawing pen but it is not the type of nib I am referring to when I said in the topic title Mapping/Drawing but thanks anyway.

 

Oh, I have also just found some copper or brass Leonardt Drawing nibs, also a 700 like the steel one I used above. Looking forward to trying that out and see if it has more flex because of the softer material.

[Honeybadgers]

jetpens has a great article on the various types of nibs, mapping nibs are one of the firmer "flexible" dip nibs out there.