[Cancan82]

I recently switched to a fountain pen - way easier to write with and way less tension. Neil Gaiman suggested it and so I gave it a shot. Never going back - my handwriting is better (but I write cursive) and it is easier to write longer without strain.

That said - super cool story.

[wombatmobile]

I love fountain pens too, and recently tried to switch back to my classic Parker 45.

Sadly, the plastic lining of the reservoir had perished, so the pen wouldn't suck ink up. I tried a replacement reservoir, but it didn't work. So I tried a different type, with a screw based impeller mechanism, and got ink all over my fingers and desk. Some of the ink went up into the reservoir, but wouldn't flow back down through the nib for the purpose of writing.

I don't like disposable fountain pen ink. The plastic is bad for the environment, and the experience is half of what I am trying to get away from by returning to the mechanism of the refillable apparatus.

I tried buying a new fountain pen, for $50 from Officeworks. It has a screw based impeller mechanism that has the same shortcomings as the one I tried with my Parker 45.

Has anyone seem a replacement reservoir for Parker 45 that works?

Can anyone recommend a non-refill fountain pen?

I'd love to return to using a fountain pen! Not just for ergonomic reasons. The writing looks better too.

[adolph]

I'm new to fountains and enjoy my Lamy Safari even if it is inexpensive plastic. The refillable reservoir is of the screw-suction type but I don't use it that way. I use an inexpensive syringe to transfer ink.

https://www.jetpens.com/JetPens-Ink-Syringe/pd/22182

[Cancan82]

Did you get the converter for the Lamh Safari? I actually use the same for cost reasons (and I like the grip) but I use the disposable cartridges, which seems wasteful. I have just heard that the Safari converter is pretty quick to run empty?

[adolph]

Yes, I did get the official converter. I think it was a waste as it doesn't do anything aside from the not very useful screw-suction thing. Even when fully out the suction mechanism does take up space that could be ink volume and after the first disposable that came with it refills have come more often.

If I ever use a disposable cartridge again I'll try reusing it instead.

[citrusybread]

Refilling with a syringe is fairly easy. Lots of places sell blunt-tip syringes or you might be able to get away with insulin needles (I'm not sure -- pink tipped luers are the smallest I've ever used).

Do use luer-lock though, because the other kind of syringes suck. Just ask your local pharmacy -- they usually carry them and they can be used for all sorts of non-illicit-drug reasons.

In the US/Canada Lee Valley sells a set of blunt tip syringes for inks and glues.

[dbtc]

Lamy converters and cartridges fit in my Parker 45.

You can also use a syringe to clean and refill disposable cartridges from an ink bottle.

[wombatmobile]

Thanks for this tip, dbtc! I just ordered a 3ml syringe from eBay. I think this will solve the problem!

[wenc]

I use a TWSBI ECO F (~$30) every day. It is one of the more inexpensive piston filled demonstrators out there. The writing experience is the best I've had so far (when paired with heavier Rhodia or Clairefontaine paper). The only downsides are (1) it uses a screw cap mechanism (which is preferred by some in the fountain pen community because it doesn't fail like snap-on cap mechanisms; but is slower and less convenient) (2) It's made of plastic -- very high quality plastic -- but plastic nonetheless. It's more of a technological pen than a classic pen. That said, I would rate the writing experience of the TWSBI much higher than that of the more popular Pilot Metropolitan (I should know, I own 4 Pilot Metros).

Also, as much as I'm a fan of fountain pens, they do have some downsides. The ink tends to smear/smudge easily (even quick drying ones) on normal paper, which makes them less suitable for scribbling marginalia on paperbacks. And even their extra fine nibs aren't that fine, so one can't squeeze as many words into the margins. Therefore, I use a different pen for marginalia: a Pilot Hi-Tec-C 0.3mm (~$3). It's a gel pen with a very very fine nib (0.3mm is finer than Western F fountain nibs). Fountain pen inks are also usually water soluble so they're less suitable for use cases that require permanence, like say signing the back of a credit card, so I find myself having to switch to a cheap ballpoint in such cases.

To me, fountain pens optimize for one experience and one experience only -- the pleasure of writing on good paper. It trades off versatility to achieve this optimization.

[citrusybread]

you might already know this, but Noodler makes an extremely quick drying ink called the Bernanke. It's available in blue and black and dries way faster than anything I've ever seen. It doesn't feather or bleed on any paper I've tried it on.

I used to use Staples Sustainable Earth notebooks, now I've started using their TruRed series. I also use Rhodia notebooks, but am switching to TruRed because they're easier to find, cheaper, and handle my other inks better (the rhodia stuff actually performs terribly with all my other inks -- no idea what the deal is).

Combined with a 0.3mm Platinum nib I never have any issues. If you've tried Parker Quink it's significantly faster.

[wenc]

Thanks. I haven't tried the Bernanke (sounds like it's popular among left-handed folks) but I have a bottle of American Eel. It's just me, but I like really black inks. Noodler inks while quick drying aren't black enough for me. I've tried a bunch and finally landed on Rohrer & Klingner's Leipziger Schwartz. Thanks for the tip on TruRed. I have several Platinum Preppy Fines but results are still a little less fine than the Hi-Tec-C 0.3mm (likely due to higher inkflow).

[Snitch-Thursday]

I settled on Noodler's Heart of Darkness (the onyx black that is also bulletproof) and Roller Eel (which is Heart of Darkness but lubricated for refillable rollerball use) for my black ink needs. Noodlers BP Black was more like Noodler's Bulletproof charcoaly gray for me.

Shaking them before use is a habit I have, not sure if that helps or is just a placebo tho.

[citrusybread]

Platinum Plaisir is also a great pen! I combined with Noodler's Bernanke Blue. It dries extremely quickly and it's very smooth writing. At 0.3mm (Platinum Fine), it's really hard to tell the difference between inks but Bernanke Blue is a fairly pleasant blue.

I think I paid 1000 JPY for it, but these days it's around $10-$20 on amazon.

[BeetleB]

Apart from Lamy Safari, another option is the Pilot Metropolitan. If you want smooth writing, get a Medium or larger. Pilot Medium's are the equivalent of Fine in most countries.

[tvb12]

I have a fine Pilot Metropolitan and went looking for a Medium tip to try it out. Unfortunately, they don't sell the tips separately, but I did find a list of Pilot pens which are said to have compatible tips: Plumix, Pluminix, Prera, Penmanship, 78G, Kakuna. It looks the Plumix is $10, which seems steep for the tip, but I guess it's better than paying another $20-ish for a second Metropolitan.

On another note, I came across the Platinum Curidas pen. It's a clicky fountain pen! I'm very tempted to buy one, but I've never spent anywhere near $80 on a pen before.

[freerobby]

Check out the Pilot Vanishing Point. Fantastic pen, also click-style and with a reasonably good seal while disengaged. I've been using mine as a daily writer for the better part of a decade. Unfortunately the price has crept up in recent years.

[NewOrderNow]

Same, once I used one, there is no no going back.

You can certainly go deep with ink and pens and whatnot, but you can buy a Lamy for cheap on Amazon and just stick with cartridges and still get a far superior result.

If anyone feel like their writing is sloppy and avoid writing because of it, try a fountain pen.

[karlding]

For what it's worth, the consensus on /r/fountainpens and other fountain pen enthusiast sites is that you risk receiving counterfeit Lamy Safari pens when purchasing from Amazon. These fakes often have poor quality nibs and ruin people's first experience with fountain pens. The recommendation is to purchase a pen through a reputable dealer so you know that you are getting the real thing.

There's a post here on Imgur [0] regarding an individual's experience after receiving a fake on Amazon if you want to compare the fake and original.

[0] https://imgur.com/gallery/RC0hU

[mih]

Thanks for this post. Bought a Lamy several years ago and never crossed my mind it could be counterfeit. It felt so scratchy when writing that eventually I just gave up on it. Now when I compare it to the fake one from the images in the post above, it has all the telltale signs.

[PlainDishonesty]

You know, mine felt scratchy too. Always just figured I was doing something wrong or that's what you get for getting a cheaper fountain pen.

Fairly sure mine was from an official reseller but I'll have to double check

[BeetleB]

Goulet Pens (https://www.gouletpens.com/) is a good place to buy FP items.

[phone[phone]]

Goulet Pens were fantastic for my fiancee.

She has lupus, so holding and writing with a ballpoint pen is agony for her and her hands on bad joint days. She can usually do okay with a gel ball roller, but one day I let her try my fountain pen and it was the least painful writing experience in her life.

She emailed the Goulet Pen company for suggestions on good pens for lupus/arthritis and got a detailed response with suggestions. They were fantastic and helped her place an order for a less expensive pen that fit her hand better to test the waters for future orders.

Their YouTube pen videos are good too.

[citrusybread]

In Canada, Wonderpens is an excellent source of fountain pens & inks (based in Toronto). Stylo is also great in Montreal and ships.

But you might have a local shop (most cities seem to have at least one -- either catering to artists or catering to the wedding/cards types).

The Lamy Safari is a great starter but I found the Platinum Plaisir and the cheaper Platinum Preppy to also be great introductions. The Plaisir also comes in finer tips, down to 0.3mm, which helps for those of us with angry writing :) It's also quite a bit cheaper, and the piston refill is cheaper.

(although these days I just use a syringe to refill as drawing ink up any other way seems to never work right...)

[NewOrderNow]

This is true, most use https://www.jetpens.com/

More making the point that the barrier to entry is low considering Pilot makes a $3 disposable fountain pen. I suppose that would have been a better example.

[ImprovedSilence]

I second jetpens. I trust them, and it seems like they always have what i'm looking for.