Hiding In Plain Sight.

[Pensei]

_{I'm happy to hear that the Preppy cap cracking thing has been alleviated.}

[bongo47]

…I also just picked up a Hero 52 for $2.59 on ebay. Writes pretty well and rather plain…

Need to amend this. My son— who convinced me to let him take it to school last week —told me the finial broke off. No surprise given the price, but still. That said he’s still using it and writing wise has held up so far.

[sharonspens]

OP, I don't know where you are located, but this afternoon I was in a regional grocery (Meijer, here in the midwest US) and found they had Metro Pop FPs, medium nib, at BOGO. So, $15 for the first pen, $7.50 for the second, and they had 12 packs of black cartridges for $3.99. Actually, all of their writing instruments are BOGO right now, but I don't think they have other FPs, or at least nothing more expensive than a Metro.

 

I give Metros to my students who get intrigued by the idea, especially when they've seen some of my other converts using them.

 

Sharon in Indiana

[goodpens]

OP, I don't know where you are located, but this afternoon I was in a regional grocery (Meijer, here in the midwest US) and found they had Metro Pop FPs, medium nib, at BOGO. So, $15 for the first pen, $7.50 for the second, and they had 12 packs of black cartridges for $3.99. Actually, all of their writing instruments are BOGO right now, but I don't think they have other FPs, or at least nothing more expensive than a Metro.

 

I give Metros to my students who get intrigued by the idea, especially when they've seen some of my other converts using them.

 

Sharon in Indiana

Thanks, Sharon. No Meijers near me, but that is a tempting sale!

[goodpens]

I'm tempted to suggest finding an old Esterbrook 444 Dip-Less set and a supply of nib units.

 

It's obviously a desk pen, no one is going to walk away with it (and if they did, the odds are good you'll find someone with ink-stains from spilling the base), and the nib can be replaced if someone did mash it.

I like the idea of a desk pen! I think that's the truest version of hiding in plain sight. Too bad I gave away my Esterbrook 8-ball desk set.

 

If price were no concern, a Makrolon Lamy 2000 blends in with the best of them. But I would only suggest that for an under the radar office pen you plan to keep with you.

Thank you. Yes, the design would be great for this.

 

Jinhao shark pen in black. I've mentioned these before, and I think they are great pens. It won't attract too much attention, it is cheap, and it has an ink window. It also ONLY comes in F and Ef nibs, which is what you are looking for. You can purchase them on Goulet Pens. One note, though: it is a converter fill, so you would need a bottle of ink. Other Jinhaos are ok as well.

 

Varsity and Preppy are your best bets for disposable and cartridge fill. And a Pilot Metro is wonderful for a slightly higher price.

 

Good luck finding the right pen!

Thank you! Yes, they are surprisingly great pens. I enjoy my grey ones. I just saw that Jinhao is making swan pens, too! The black swan is pretty cool.

 

I mainly have vintage pens, and many do well to blend in to work environments:

 

Sheaffer Imperial II Deluxe, or Imperial III, 330s or 440s, all have simple stainless steal (or plastic for the 330s/440s) caps with solid color plastic bodies, nothing really to call attention to, but have fabulous conical triumph or inlaid nibs that write effortlessly. Touchdown, or C/C fill which are both accessible filling systems.

 

Esterbrook SM Deluxe, similar style to the Sheaffers above with a stainless steel cap, and solid color plastic body, lever fill, can accept over the 70 different nibs (renew points) that were made over the companys history.

 

This can really depend on the work environment though. I keep a nice looking green Esterbrook J in my standing pen case at work, and nobody touches it. I do share an office with only one other person, though physical plant people wander through from time to time. It maybe we have an abundance of ballpoints around the lab, but I also dont make any show of its presence.....

Ooh, I like these ideas! I really like my Sheaffers and Esterbrooks, but didn't know of these particular styles. Thanks.

 

Pick up a handful of Hero 616 pens.

 

They're not the flashiest pens, being Parker 51 knockoffs, but they write just fine, and you can fill them with just about anything, including inkjet printer ink. The only glitch I've had is that the aerometric feed tube _can_ come loose, but it's easy to fix. Just pop the aluminum cover off, and manipulate the tube with the sac and shove it back into place.

 

Right now, on E-Bay, there's a package of 10 of them for 8.18, including free shipping, under the search term "10x Classic Hero 616 Plastic China Fountain Pen"

Thank you!

Edited February 11, 2019 by goodpens

[Arkanabar]

I'd be a little leery of a Hero 616 on Ebay for less than $1 unit price. There are knock-off versions with stunningly abysmal QC. If I'm going to buy Heros on ebay, I'm buying from jewelrymathematics.

[Bibliophage]

I'd be a little leery of a Hero 616 on Ebay for less than $1 unit price. There are knock-off versions with stunningly abysmal QC. If I'm going to buy Heros on ebay, I'm buying from jewelrymathematics.

 

When they first hit E-Bay, they were all about a dollar each, and that was a long time ago *cough*. They all write fine, the only issue I had was the aforementioned tube coming loose. I didn't even know that someone would knock off a pen _that cheap_. You sometimes have to wonder - it's like the safety razor blade knockoffs. _Why_ bother? If you can make even a halfway decent blade, you can sell it under your own name - there aren't any patents on it, and the profit margin is tiny to begin with.

[Bibliophage]

Okay - from jewelrymathematics, there's a set of 10 for $17.

 

Looks roughly like the same 10 pack I bought.. a decade ago?

[Lomi]

As far as i understand it - for china low price isn't always the deciding factor of fake, in some cases it is, but in most store just sells product produced by third factory under agreement, it's what they call OEM product and it's the same as original but produced on the factory that might have lower QC usually leading to alot lower price in the end, you can ask store before you buy if this pen is original produced by Hero or it's OEM, they will tell, I asked twice and got answer twice. Maybe i'm wrong but thats how i feel what really is going there, and I remember that real fakes was more common in 2015 when sites like aliexpress was flooded with montblanc fakes, fakes still can detected but they are not as common as before.

[Restored]

I'm a programmer. I find it very useful to scribble stuff on paper to organise my thoughts between blocks of coding, or when I'm momentarily stumped - my version of rubber ducking I guess. But then I find that useful when doing other things too; seems it just helps me organise my thoughts.

 

I am the same way but the younger crowd around here inputs everything into a phone or a laptop. I gave a notebook to a new employee and she stared at it like it was a booger. Their way makes better sense but I don't recall things that I type like I do when I write. I keep a sheet of paper in front of me to make notes during the day along with my planner

[Restored]

Jinhao shark pen in black. I've mentioned these before, and I think they are great pens. It won't attract too much attention, it is cheap, and it has an ink window. It also ONLY comes in F and Ef nibs, which is what you are looking for.

 

Which is odd because Amazon advertised them as M.

Hillento Jinhao Fountain Pen Set, Shark Series Plastic Medium Nib Fountain Pen Set, Diversity Color(Black, Light Blue, Pink, Purple, Grey, White), Set of 6

[rudyhou]

in my experience, if you want to leave your fps out in the open for others to see and potentially use/borrow, best to do so with the cheaper line of fps, considering they may get damaged by inexperienced users.

i write small, and so i tend to lean towards the Japanese fp brands with their finer nibs.

my suggestion is PILOT Kakuno.

originally marketed for the younger generation in Japan, but has a great quality for the low price.

it is available in EF, F, M nibs, and a variety of color choices, and can be used with a converter or cartridges.

if you want a more grown-up looking fps, you may try PILOT Metropolitan and PILOT Prera.

i have no experience with the lower end of fps under the brands of Platinum and Sailor, but i'm sure they too offer cheaper line of fps.

Edited February 13, 2019 by rudyhou

[A Smug Dill]

if you want to leave your fps out in the open for others to see and potentially use/borrow, best to do so with the cheaper line of fps, considering they may get damaged by inexperienced users.

i write small, and so i tend to lean towards the Japanese fp brands with their finer nibs.

my suggestion is PILOT Kakuno.

 

 

I think I'd prefer to do that with a desk pen or two sitting in a suitable pen stand, or use something like a Pilot Penmanship or Plumix (on which I can swap the nibs easily to a Fine or Medium from a Pilot 78G/Kakuno/MR/Prera anyway, if I so choose), instead of a pen that is pocketable such as the Kakuno. While people may still 'borrow' such fountain pens, it isn't something they'd want to stick inside their suit jacket or their briefcase (since they don't fit inside 'regular' pen slots), or take into a meeting unless they're desperate, especially if the matching cap is missing. The Pilot Penmanship and Plumix pens have such tiny caps that it isn't attractive for general use (or carry), except to leave on one's desk or in one's pen cup, but then the long barrels would stick out like a idiomatic sore thumb, especially if they're not known for being 'the fountain pen guy' at the office that you are.

[CS388]

Another vote for the Hero 616. With a bit of tweaking and tuning, they can be great writers. I bought a pack of three and made two good pens out of the set. I often carry one around with me, along with a genuine Parker 51. I'll often be halfway through writing something before I realise which pen I'm using.

 

I bought them out of curiosity, being a Parker 51 user. Yes, they're a bit shoddy - but for the price, they're unbeatable.

I've just ordered a Wing Sung 613 (at just over £4 incl P&P, it's four times the price of the Hero), to complete the comparison.

 

Enjoy.

[ke4pcx]

++ for the Jinhao 991/992s.

 

 

or the Jinhao 599 pens.

 

I picked up a set to use and give away when someone shows interest in the fountain pen. Note the grip on the 599 is shaped much like the Lamy Safari which can help folks that are not accustomed to using a FP orient the nib. Each pen in the set has a piston converters which is also a nice touch.

[Pan5N3]

Jinhao 992s are great little pens that tick most of the boxes. They are only $2 CDN (Shipping lncluded) from eBay but have surprisingly good nibs. They come with converters but if you fill the bottom 2cm / 3/4" with some from of epoxy / adhesive (I use a Lepage 'Pure' Adhesive), they work well as eyedroppers. And at $2, if someone walks off, it's not a big deal. I bought my first one a while back and then bought a 15 pack, with multiple colours, for $27.

 

Most of them come with a "Fine" nib, but it is more like a medium. Good for general purpose, but if you feel like shelling out6 another $2 or $3, you can get a bunch of
EF nibs. Just make sure that you flush the pens before use.

[Sailor Kenshin]

 

Which is odd because Amazon advertised them as M. Hillento Jinhao Fountain Pen Set, Shark Series Plastic Medium Nib Fountain Pen Set, Diversity Color(Black, Light Blue, Pink, Purple, Grey, White), Set of 6

I HAAADDDA look, didn't I?

 

I hatez u nao.

Edited March 6, 2019 by Sailor Kenshin

[bemon]

Obviously the best choice is the Lamy 2000. It ticks all the boxes. Won't steel the show, refillable, smooth writer. In 3 years of using the same L2K someone has taken note of it literally once because he was a collector himself.

 

Pilot Vanishing Point is a good one too, but it'll only fly under the radar if you get a stealth model. Mine occasionally gets comments just because the rhodium catches light coming form a window or something and someone comments on my "fancy pen" without even knowing what it is. People put it and my Cross Century in the same league because they both have some shine to them. But no one bats an eye at my L2K.

 

I occasionally leave my PVP or L2K at my desk when I get up and they're always there when I get back. But if I'm going to be away for any long people then I pack them back in my bag. I also leave an old Parker Jotter in plain site so if someone wants to leave me a note they'll pick up that one first. Though no one's left me a note in years- they just text me!

[Mech-for-i]

a Muji ( long ) fountain pen or similar , look like X-acto

[Says]

for something a bit more, how about lamy 2000 or Pilot VP (Depends on colours, can be quite understanded)

very nice, performs well, XF available, refillable..