I had a plastic 45 for a while but it was too fat. I have lady fingers. And I hate bottled ink because I always manage to spray it all over myself or have it leak somehow.
Lady fingers? Tee hee!
I have great big hands myself, but I like slim pens too. Unfortunately, more people seem to prefer wider grips, and the trend has been towards fatter pens.
One of the reasons I love vintage ring-tops I s that they tend to be very slim. Today’s selection is this lovely green Eversharpfrom the early 1930s that’s only 4.5" long. I’m not sure exactly what model it is. I can’t find a thing about it online.
WRT the 45 - I seem to think it’s actually slimmer than a Jotter ballpoint. I have both at home so I’ll check later, and maybe take a comparison pic. You’re not thinking of the 51, are you?
The skinniest FP I’ve run into was from Fountain Pen Revolution, which is an Indian site selling Indian pens, run by Americans who live there. FPR doesn’t seem to have the skinny pen any more, and it had a built-in plunger anyway. But it’s a super-fun site to poke around on, and they have all sorts of unique and/or super-cheap stuff, including a decent cheap flex nib. Shipping is $3 globally, and when I’ve ordered from them, it’s taken about 2 weeks to get to NJ.
Holy cheap! Definitely bookmarking that site for later.
No mention of TWSBI yet? Goulet sells them. Piston and vac fillers in the $50-100 range, good value.
I have a TWSBI piston filler with an italic nib. It’s great. Unfortunately I broke the section, haven’t got around to replacing it yet.
Santa brought me a Lamy Safari. I’m not fussed on the ink, but it came with a converter so I’m using that as my daily writer now.
[QUOTE=Green Bean;18010834
- I’ll discuss the differences between stubs, italics, and “calligraphy” nibs if anybody is interested. They all are broad and flat, and make wide or thin lines depending on the directions that the pen is going.[/QUOTE]
Please do! “Italic” and “stub” are words I run across all the time on fountain pen sites, and I’m semi-ashamed to admit that I don’t really know what they are. I mean, I know what Italic script is, and I assume italic nibs are what you use to write it; but I get lost in any discussion of nibs past “Medium” and “Fine”.
Not true. I can usually find a few fountain pens in Staples retail stores - usually Cross pens (can’t think of the model, although the Staples website lists Aventuras). And one of my first pens was a Waterman Phileas that I bought at a Staples. I’ve never used a Cross fountain pen, but I once asked about the brand on the Fountain Pen Network FB page, and the consensus was that it was a good maker until they shifted production to China; now it’s just a cheap pen.
I’d also second the converter - it’s what I use with most of my pens - but I also got my hands on a hypodermic syringe, and use that to refill cartridges. Yes, I get ink on my hands, but so what? Hands can be washed.
The folks on the Fountain Pen Network Facebook page I read seem to hold TWSBIs in high regard - along with Pilot Namiki and Kaweco, it’s the brand I hear about most often.
I actually put one on my Christmas list, but alas, Santa did not oblige. Fortunately, I have a birthday in a month or so, so I’m hoping…
I’m tempted just to order one - they’re only $50.00 on Goulet - but I hate to order something that expensive without trying it first. Still, I keep hearing they’re good pens.
On the other hand, some folks like lighter, smaller pens - Green Bean and Heffalump and Roo, for example - where I prefer larger, heavier pens with long, thick barrels. “Compensating”? What do you mean, “compensating”? So perhaps I’ll mosey on down to my local pen shop and see if they carry TWSBIs, and if they do, try one out.
You obviously like them - how do they compare to the Lamy Studio or the Parker Sonnet??
:: sigh :: Of course you can buy FPs at retail stores, but it’s damn hard to find any worthwhile ones in retail stores that most Americans typically have access to. They used to be much more available. Now they’re not. Retail is effectively a non-option for most.
The Cross Aventura I got for Christmas is a nice pen, though at 40 bucks, overpriced for what it is. Plus, Cross carts only come in 2 colors, and you’d probably need to mail order a converter anyway. But if you want to pick up a FP on a whim, you could to worse. (The tines needed a good tweak though)
WRT the TWSBIs - I have written with many a TWSBI, and they are indeed very nice. Really solid and you get a lot of pen for the money. I like the clear ones. I don’t have one because the grip is too fat for my taste.
Ah? Sounds like it might be up my alley.