Declubac's Intro

[DeClubac]

Hello Everyone!

 

My name is Richard, and I became infected with the Fountain Pen Virus about 18 months ago. Since then, my collection has expanded more rapidly--and expensively--than I anticipated. I am fascinated by fountain pens and inks, like the rest of you.

 

I also cannot truly answer the question: what is your favorite pen? It is way too difficult to choose. I can't even decide on my favorite brand! But, I love Lamy, Visconti, and Pilot. I'll give an honorable mention to one Faber-Castell: the Loom, which punches way above its weight, in my opinion.

 

The Lamy 2000 and the Pilot Custom 823 are my top writers, but I have an on-going love for my Visconti Rembrandt with a 1.5 mm Stub nib. I lament not having easy access to an Architect Grind, as I often find myself rotating my Stub nib 90 degrees to create a similar effect. Also, the Visconti Homo Sapiens Bronze Age is the crown jewel in my collection for overall "wow" factor. I have a Pelikan M800, which I love. However, I thought it would write more smoothly given all the reviews. It is very good, but it doesn't quite match the Pilot Custom 823 in terms of smoothness. I would love to pick up an M1000, though, as the "springiness" it is notable for is right up my alley. I enjoy Pilot's Vanishing Point series for work use. I will say, I have misplaced my Lamy Safari and my Lamy Al-Star, and I find myself frequently missing them. They are inexpensive and steel nabbed, but they are among my favorite pens to use. I generally prefer buttery smooth with little to no feedback, which Faber-Catell's Loom accomplishes much better, but for some reason, I enjoy the feedback and overall feel of the Lamy Safari/Al-Star lineup.

 

With respect to nibs, I tend towards mediums and larger, although, I do like having a smooth fine on-hand for business situations (Pilot Vanishing Point Decimo works great for that).

 

Inks...SO...MANY...INKS! Among my favorites are the usual suspects Pilot Iroshizuku Kon-Peki & Yama-Budo, Noodler's Black Swan in Australian Roses, and Noodler's Liberty's Elysium. I love pretty much every single Diamine I've ever used. I still cannot decide between Diamine Autumn Oak and Noodler's Apache Sunset, and I can hardly tell the difference between them most of the time. I also struggle to choose between Diamine's Oxblood and Red Dragon. I love both of those reds. Diamine Sherwood Green is one of my absolute favorite inks. I would love to get more green inks. I will admit: I am not a big shimmering ink fan. Shading, yes, but shimmering, no. I don't need metal flakes in my ink or stuck in my feed. I like deep, rich, and smooth inks that aren't painfully bright. Legibility is important to me, so I tend towards darker shades that also have an elegant beauty to them and "pop" on the page without requiring sunglasses to read.

 

I love my Bullet Journals, and I highly recommend them. Also, the Clairefontaine Basic Notebook in Dot Grid is absolutely fantastic! Of course, there is always Tomoe River paper and Rhodia.

 

Other than fountain pens, I also love cars (I sell luxury brands: Jaguar, Land Rover, Porsche, and Volvo). I am also published author and theologian, and I speak German and Spanish; I can also read French and--to an extent--Latin and Greek. I am a soccer fan: Go Liverpool!

 

That's enough rambling for now: bis später, arrivaderci, au revoir, hasta luego, and goodbye.

Edited March 22, 2019 by DeClubac

[OCArt]

Hello and welcome to this friendly corner of the universe from a fountain pen user in San Diego. There is such a wealth of information waiting for you to discover on this site. Write On!

[northstar]

Hello and welcome to FPN.

[ygv]

Welcome to FPN!

[PAKMAN]

Hello and Welcome to FPN!! Glad to have you as a member!!

[dinupravin]

Greetings, Welcome to the world of FPN

[RedDingo]

Hi DeClubac

I'm sure you'll enjoy what's here and if you haven't been here long then you've only seen the "tip of the iceberg".

 

You have good taste in pens, inks, and paper as well as cars. If a car salesman brought out a Homo Sapien or Pilot Custom then I would see it as a good sign and buy the car. Lucky I'm so far away. :-)

 

I look forward to seeing you're posts and reviews.

 

cheers . .

[jar]

http://www.fototime.com/B966F99CA0A85D1/orig.gif

[Wahl]

Hi Richard

[ThomasB]

Hello and welcome from Baton Rouge, Louisiana...Enjoy your time here

[Henricum_Tropen]

Hello Richard and welcome to FPN, from Cape Town, South Africa.

[mitto]

Greetings and welcome to FPN.

[DeClubac]

Thank you all for the warm welcome! I've been involved with Fountain Pens for a while now. I've even created some Fountain Pen videos on YouTube under "DeClue's Views." They aren't high quality videos like the much missed Matt Armstrong or the ubiquitous Brian Goulet, but they are my small attempt to share the love.

 

I will probably have to downsize my collection soon, which is NEVER easy. But I am enjoying the pens I have and I find they help me get through the work day by adding a bit of enjoyment to note-taking.

 

I try to Bullet Journal, but I am bad about doing it every day. I now have my Lamy 2000 in my journal's pen loop. They go quite nicely together; the tapered design and smooth texture allows for easy inserting and removing from the loop, and they are both black.

 

For my notes, I've been using my Homo Sapiens Bronze Age more, clipping it to my shirt for easy access. I sometimes worry if that's a smart idea given that I do a lot of walking around from lot to lot and moving cars and such. But it brings me joy and the feel of the texture is soothing. I've definitely received comments from co-workers who sometimes look like their staring at an artifact from centuries ago. lol

[georges zaslavsky]

Hi and Looks like you have a great collection, on the opposite of you I haven't downsized but I am accumulating. I would focus on keeping on the pens you feel the most attached with.