From IT to Ink: My Fountain Pen Journey

[Piston Pirate]

Hello everyone,
 

I’m Arjun, hailing from the beautiful place named Kerala. I have been working in the IT industry, but recently, I felt a strong urge to pursue my dream of becoming a writer. To fuel my enthusiasm, I started looking for a good pen and stumbled upon the TWSBI fountain pen. Its demonstrator nature and piston filling mechanism fascinated me, leading me to dive deep into the world of pens.
 

I became curious about the different technologies used, the history of various brands, and the variety of models available. This curiosity led me to start collecting demonstrator pens from different brands. Currently, my collection consists of entry-level pens from all the prominent brands.

I’m excited to be here and look forward to gaining great information and knowledge from this community.

[Claes]

Namaste (or perhaps Namaskar?)

and welcome!

 

Here are two links that will keep you busy for a  l-o-n-g  time  🙂

 

https://pencollectorsofamerica.org/reference-library/

https://www.fountainpen.it/Main_Page

 

Have fun!
Claes in Lund, Sweden

 

[inkstainedruth]

@Piston Pirate Greetings from Pittsburgh, PA!  

I found my way here while trying to replace a Parker Vector a number of years ago that I was ONLY using for journaling at the time (I had started reading a book called The Artist's Way, a creativity course, and one of the things you do is to keep what is called a "morning pages journal" -- every morning you get up and write three pages (whatever goes into your head goes down on the pages and then you put the book away and go about the rest of your day).  I hadn't kept a diary or journal since I was in high school, so in order to get into the habit I bought a "nice" journal (which turned out to have lousy paper -- who knew) and a "nice" pen (a $6.95 US Parker Reflex cartridge pen).  When the rubber on the section started to disintegrate, I bought a replacement; when it happened to the second Reflex as well, Staples no longer carried them.  So I went online to find another one and in the process found my way here (and a local old-time stationery store Downtown and bought the Parker Vector -- and felt SOOO extravagant spending NINE DOLLARS just on a pen...  who knew ?).  When I accidentally left the pen and current journal at my in-laws' house in CT one winter, I started looking for a replacement pen and in the process found the Goulet Pens website (you could buy PURPLE ink?  Who knew?  And one of the reviews was from a guy I've known almost as long as my husband through my other hobby).  And also found my way here and have been on FPN for more than a decade at this point.  

I generally suggest that new folks click on the "New Content" button when they log in, to get a good overview of a range of topics (you can adjust how much/often it refreshes) -- and to NOT do what I did when I started, which was to read the Parker forum.  ALL of it....  Back then it was 175 PAGES of threads, and is a LOT larger now.  And to also have a look at the Ink Reviews Forum (we live in the Golden Age of Ink -- with new companies popping up all over the globe).  Even though a lot of the images were lost in the Great Photobucket Hijack a number of years ago.

But I also warn new people that they have found themselves amongst evil enablers, who will happily help them spend their discretionary funds on pens, inks, paper, desk accessories, repair tools, pen shows, and ephemera.

So, what pen(s) are you currently using?  I fell down the vintage pen rabbit hole (but my two most expensive pens are modern Pelikans) and have coaxed my husband over to the dark side as well (although HE will tell people that the pens were just the gateway to the REAL collection -- the ink stash... ).

I'll admit that I'm not overly find of the TWSBI pens I have (although I really do like piston fillers in general) because I think there's a design flaw -- the piston head does not extend to the back of the feed, so if you're not careful you can get air bubbles in the chamber that will block ink flow.  I also have (had) a TWSBI 700 Vac which seems to have gone walkabout -- right after I refilled it a couple of weeks ago .  That pen I have trouble getting the ink chamber to dry out thoroughly after flushing, and I don't want to pull the nib and feed more than I absolutely have to.

At any rate, have fun here, and don't be afraid to ask questions.  I'm constantly amazed at the breadth and depth of knowledge on FPN (and not JUST pen-related!) and the generosity of the members in the sharing of that knowledge.  Plus, the only dumb questions are the ones that don't get asked.

Oh, and I just looked Kerala up to see where it was -- so thank you for me learning something today! 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Mark from Yorkshire]

Welcome from the UK

[Piston Pirate]

@Claes
Hi Claes,

Namaste is used in the part of India where Hindi is the native language.
You are almost correct; Namaskar is also widely used.
In the southernmost state called "Kerala" where I’m hailing from, we use “Namaskaram”! 😄
Thanks for those links. I’d say there’s a massive amount of information in there.

 

Edited August 14, 2024 by Piston Pirate

[Piston Pirate]

@inkstainedruth
Hi Ruth,
It’s great to know that everyone has a story! 
Thanks for the wonderful comment because it made my day.😊
It felt like reading a good short story; I was hoping the comment would never end.

I wish I could write like you. If you ever publish a book, I will be the first in line to buy one !👍
 

[Piston Pirate]

I’m yet to enter into the ink part of this vast pen world.😎

I use Parker Quink for daily use.
 

Out of fascination with the look of the bottle and color, I recently bought Iroshizuku Winter Persimmon Orange.
Maybe it’s my first step towards the ink area.
 

 

 

Edited August 14, 2024 by Piston Pirate

[Piston Pirate]

Thanks Mark😊 @Mark from Yorkshire

@inkstainedruth

I’m using or have only these in my small collection:
 

Pilot Kakuno and Prera
Sailor Lecoule
TWSBI Eco and Eco T
Pelikan Twist and Pelikano
Platinum Preppy
Nahvalur Original
Jinhao 166 and 992
Parker Beta
Pierre Cardin Penomatic
Camlin Kokuyo

My Favourites are Pilot Kakuno and Twsbi Eco T

 

[PAKMAN]

Hello and Welcome to FPN!! So glad to have you as a member!!

[inkstainedruth]

17 hours ago, Piston Pirate said:

@inkstainedruth
Hi Ruth,
It’s great to know that everyone has a story! 
Thanks for the wonderful comment because it made my day.😊
It felt like reading a good short story; I was hoping the comment would never end.

I wish I could write like you. If you ever publish a book, I will be the first in line to buy one !👍
 

Thanks!  I have ONE published poem to my (maiden) name, from back when I was a freshman in college.  I didn't even know the little magazine had accepted it until I got my *one* contributor copy.  I've been doing NaPoWriMo for a number of years now; I did try NaNoWriMo one year, but November is a terrible time to try and write 50K words in 30 days (I was amazed as to how much I was able to do the first few days, even with going to the Ohio Pen Show the first weekend).  But between that and Thanksgiving, how ANYONE manages to get 50K words on paper is just astounding.  Poetry is easier in that respect because it's so much more concise (the first year of COVID, when everything was pretty much in lockdown, I was able to get something like 38 poems written -- and for some of which I was really happy with the results.  

I like doing the daily "prompts" (although they're not a requirement) because I take them as a challenge.  Sometimes the result is an oblique angle from what the prompts actually are, but at least they're making me write.

Fiction is a lot tougher (my mother was a writer, but she did everything on a typewriter, and then, much later, on a small tablet word processor.  I remember the time she called me up, all excited because she had JUST figured out how to "find and replace" stuff (I think she was maybe changing some character's name or something).  And I was like, "Oh, yeah, in Apple it's "command F...."  and sort of rolling my eyes.

I keep thinking about taking another writing class at the local community college but the novel-writing class is not in person -- it's over Zoom.  Which would mean I'd have to log in on my husband's work computer.... 

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

[northstar]

Hello and welcome to FPN.

[Bisquitlips]

Welcome!  Glad you are with us!

 

[OCArt]

[all my hues]

Great to see another Indian/South Asian here! 

 

Good luck with your writing endeavors! What is your favorite pen/ink combination thus far?

[Piston Pirate]

On 8/28/2024 at 7:08 AM, all my hues said:

Great to see another Indian/South Asian here! 

 

Good luck with your writing endeavors! What is your favorite pen/ink combination thus far?

Thanks☺️ @all my hues

I’m not that far into this hobby,

I’ve just started. My favorite pen right now is the TWSBI Diamond 580.

I haven’t started collecting inks yet, but I did buy one Iroshizuku ink and liked it. I’ll probably buy more Iroshizuku inks in the future.

[Piston Pirate]

Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone!
@inkstainedruth

@Claes

@Mark from Yorkshire
@PAKMAN @all my hues @northstar@Bisquitlips

@OCArt

I’m thrilled to be here and look forward to learning and sharing with all of you!

[Wil D]

Welcome!

[Stompie]

Hello and Welcome!

 

I have a pen friend who lives in Kerala

[Wahl]