Quality pens....... Who likes them? And which ones?

Walking Man

Walking Man

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My Dad likes the nicer pens by Parker.
I've never really been that into pens, but I like having a dressy pen around.
SO, I just bought a steel Dunhill for $130 clams, which seems like good price, and it retails for $350. It's only my second expensive pen, besides the occasion Cross that I've owned now and then, the first being a Mont Blanc.*-
It seems like a really nice pen, but as I've said, I really don't know that much about them. What are some good quality pens, and which ones sell based on "name value" alone. Also, if someone could give me a few hints as to why some pens are just better than others.
Also, is there a pen forum anywhere?
Thanks.
 
I use a Mont Blanc sterling silver "Solitaire" BP as my EDC, but what I would really prefer is a nice classic high-end Waterman. The old Mont Blancs, the original "Meisterstück" series, etc. were decent writing instruments but I don't think much of the stuff they have issued in the past 20 years. There are plenty of "pen forums" - Google is your friend. ;) (BTW, I was shopping with my wife in some discount place last weekend and I saw a few dozen Cross pens (yes, they were the real thing) that had been marked down about 4 times to ---- 7 dollars each! :eek:
 
You didn't say what kind of pens. If it's a ballpoint or rolling ball pen, I think a disposable Uniball Jetstream beats any expensive pen I have used. If you are talking about fountain pens, it's a seriously addictive hobby that's more subjective than knives. Just an example, most of us would say a Spyderco Delica or Benchmade Mini Griptillion are nice mid-priced knives. In the pen community, there would be some who would hate those and love others. I have a lot of fountain pens- I don't know how many (over 100). Some good mid-priced fountain pens to consider are the Pelikan M800, Aurora Optima, and some of the Delta pens. I like Visconti and Conway-Stewart pens but the quality control isn't perfect and some will hate them. I think Mont Blanc is badly overpriced and haven't bought one in over 10 years. Some Cross fps are nice and some are not so good.

If you get into the pen collecting hobby, it's rewarding but your wallet will have another collection to support.

Good writing,
David
 
I don't think I'll ever really get into pens. I just enjoy having a few nice ones.
The one I just bought is a ball point, and is bit thick for ergonomics, I think.
It's stainless steel, and ribbed, and has a twist mechanism at the bottom.
I'll get a model or link soon.
 
My personal favorite for EDC is the Faber Castell E Motion series. I personally like a pen with some weight to it and a thicker barrell. These come in a variety of excellent finishes (wood, rubber overlay, fine resin, etc.) and colors and are available as either rollerball, fountain, or 1.4 mm lead mechanical pencil. The pencils are awesome, by the way. Lead thick enough to use as a carpenters pencil, if need be. Anyway, they're not very expensive either ($20 - $90) especially when compared to the Mont Blancs and such.
Quote - "Never sign a sales order with an inexpensive pen", from the book "365 ways to be a millionare, without being born one"
 
I've been carrying the same Parker Stainless Classic every day since 1986 (it is on the seventh refill). I really don't see any need for more ;)
 
I love a good fountain pen. I have a few Pelikans (M400, M405, M605, M800), a Filcao Nobile and a Parker 51. I've had others in the past, including a breif stint with a Grayson Tighe titanium (and yes, it is as impressive as you would expect given the price). So yeah...I do love a good fountain pen. I blame the interest on my brother who is a big fountain pen guy and introduced me to them.

My daily use pen is a black M405 w/ medium nib filled with Aurora black or my Parker 51 w/ Waterman Blue Black....both excellent writers.
 
I like pens!! I have been a Cross pen fans for a long time. I recently (Dec) got into Caran d'Ache pens. I really like the Caran d'Ache pens.
 
I'm a Pelikan fan. I have a beautiful M320 I got from the good folks at nibs.com. My current favorite ink is Noodler's Aquamarine.
 
I have had the traditional Cross ball points in the past and I grabbed a Mont Blanc ballpoint (heresy, I know) at a kiosk in Gatwick airport last fall and I am very pleased with it.
 
I have carried a Sensa retractable for a long time (About $50). Comes with a Fisher Space cartridge which is nitrogen pressurized, doesn't dry up and can write upside down and on most surfaces. The grip area is of a soft polymer material which molds itself to your fingers and slowly returns to its original shape. It has not deteriorated in any way!
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The other pen I carry is a Uniball Signo retractable ($2.50?) for making out checks. The gel ink is reputed to resist erasure with acetone, commonly used by forgers.
 
Thanks for the input guys.
I really like the Fisher space pens for my car. When it gets cold, and I need a pen, (usually for signing checks, but sometimes other things) it is the only one that will work without having to warm it up for a bit.
 
Fisher makes in my opinion the best ballpoint refill around, I'm just not a huge fan of most of their pens. But I still use them. For mid-high end I would def. stick with Parker and Waterman. Both have lifetime warranties and are excellent at writing regardless of the type of pen. My personal favorite non-fountain pen is a Waterman Expert ballpoint due to its lacquer over brass construction (I like a heavy pen) and its barrel diameter fits me perfectly. Parker's Sonnet and the Cross Century II are comparable but are a little slimmer and that particular Waterman just seems to fit my hand best.

For lower-mid priced pens I would stick with Cross for a dressy pen bc they are classy and of excellent quality. My favority daily user pens (besides the Waterman Expert) though are all Lamys, I love the 2000 and the Safari series, use the Safaris all the time.

Word of warning if you are going to get into fountain pens find a good pen shop that will let you try pens out in the store, don't order a 300+ dollar fountain pen on-line unless you are exactly sure what you are getting. Nib sizes vary from brand to brand and from model to model, for example German nibs tend to run broader than Parkers (a fine Lamy is about equivalent to a medium Parker) while Japanese pens tend to run narrow. If I were to order a fp online I'd get either a fine nibbed Lamy or a Parker Sonnet with a medium nib. Hope this ranting helps:)
 
I've been using Cross pens since I was 10 when my grandma gave me a set--I see no reason to change and I have about 20 scattered between the home and office---they all work--just seems like I pick up a new set when they start lookin shabby. I'm 44 now.
 
omaha-beenglockin said:
I've been using Cross pens since I was 10 when my grandma gave me a set--I see no reason to change and I have about 20 scattered between the home and office---they all work--just seems like I pick up a new set when they start lookin shabby. I'm 44 now.
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I don't like Cross pens for the simple reason that everyone has one. I mean I don't dislike them, it's just that everyone has one. I like to show a little more style than than.
 
Caran d'Ache has taken over as my favorite pens!

I will never buy another Fisher space again, as all the ones I had have always fallen apart on me.
 
This still probably qualifies as my favorite. Titanium with olivewood spiraled inlays. Pretty fancy for a desk, but not very good for carrying around though. :)

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When making it, I did check into different refills for a rollerball version and tried a lot of different ones including the Space Pen. I didn't care for the thick goopy ink of that one. Written lines tended to be thick and sloppy. Rollerballs are much smoother and write nicer, but most of those dry out unless they are capped tightly. There are some out there that claim a 1 year cap off time, and they seem to work great. If you haven't tried one, they are worth the effort to find.
 
Hehe-being in law enforcement, I've always used the cheapest throw-away pens I could find for everyday use.
And since I have absurdly bad handwriting, I use a word processor for everything else.
 
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