[rramadass]

Oh Man! I went down this rabbit hole quite recently and hence have plenty of information (Note: always check reviews first on Jetpens, Amazon and Youtube ;-)

My current favourite is the classic Tombow Zoom 505 series - https://www.tombow.com/en/products/zoom_505/ Not too costly, well made, elegant and professional looking. I have the Rollerball (i.e. water-based ballpoint), Mechanical pencil and Multi-function pen all in Black.

Next up are the "Parker Jotter Originals" for EDC (https://blog.penvibe.com/parker-ballpoint-pens-ultimate-guid...). They are very affordable and hence i keep them everywhere.

Multi-function pens (which have 2 or more ballpoints and a mechanical pencil) are another must have (I limit myself to 2+1). Buy a good professional looking one (eg. Cross/Zebra/Pentel/Rotring etc.) rather than the cheap plastic ones (they look ugly).

Staedtler has a series called "Triplus" which have a triangular body (supposedly more ergonomic) - https://www.staedtler.com/intl/en/products/writing-pens/

Many of the OEMs who actually manufacture the pens but which are sold under other well-known brand names are now releasing them under their own name. Two of them are TWSBI(Taiwan) and Penac(Japan). You should check out their offerings.

If you are a Fountain Pen connoisseur, you should know that India has a large number of Artisanal Specialist Fountain Pen makers - https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-55314701 and https://www.fountainpenindia.com/

Finally, always check the offerings from Japan (Amazon.co.jp and Jetpens are your goto sites); they make some of the best and most innovative stationery.

[mindentropy]

>Next up are the "Parker Jotter Originals" for EDC (https://blog.penvibe.com/parker-ballpoint-pens-ultimate-guid...). They are very affordable and hence i keep them everywhere.

I for some reason don't like the Parker Jotters as they are too thin for my fat fingers. Also the blue color of the ballpoint is too much on the purple side and gives me a headache. I too have one but I don't use it much but I still love it ;-). I am aware of their Gel lines but not sure whether they work for the Jotter.

>Finally, always check the offerings from Japan

I love the Japanese offerings but I don't get much in India. For eg Pentel has its factory in India but manufacturers limited set of models. I love Pentel pens btw but I am not satisfied with its offerings in India.

I am currently using Uniball Signo retractable UMN 207. Although the build and the ink is very nice it skips a lot and I am not sure whether it is because the ink is not designed for Indian weather or paper quality. I do see people having complaints with skipping but not much. I have ordered some UMN 307s and have to see how it fares.

>Many of the OEMs who actually manufacture the pens but which are sold under other well-known brand names are now releasing them under their own name. Two of them are TWSBI(Taiwan) and Penac(Japan).

I am thinking of buying the TWSBI as I really love its unique see through styling. I was thinking of purchasing a Lamy though. I am afraid to use Fountain pens as I work in harsh environments and I am not sure how it will fare but then again our ancestors were using these pens with ease. :-)

>If you are a Fountain Pen connoisseur, you should know that India has a large number of Artisanal Specialist Fountain Pen makers

Yes I am aware but the problem is I think they they import their nibs and just make the body of the pens. Somehow I don't feel like buying this Frankenstein and would love to buy the complete product if they make it.

[rramadass]

Make sure that you are not confusing "Parker Jotter" with "Parker Classic"; they look similar (the stainless steel ones) but the latter is thinner which many find uncomfortable. And i replace the blue refill with a black one as soon as i get one.

You can find Japanese offerings on Amazon India and if needed, get it directly from Amazon Japan (i do both). You can also contact the resellers (who import from Japan and sell on Amazon India) directly for a better deal. For example, you can get the Tombow pens from https://www.foremostindia.com/

You should also check Aliexpress. I came across a rollerball pen which can be refilled like a Fountain pen which is neat.

Finally, your quote

>Yes I am aware but the problem is I think they they import their nibs and just make the body of the pens. Somehow I don't feel like buying this Frankenstein and would love to buy the complete product if they make it.

This is quite the wrong way of looking at it. These guys are very good and are optimizing their product based on their available skills. Making a nib requires metallurgy, high-precision CNC etc. which as small specialized Artisans they cannot afford to setup. So they focus on what they are good at (this is exactly similar to specialized Artisans in Germany and Japan; you find entire video series on Youtube; eg. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5dekz26Kdw). For example, i have a Tombow pencil sharpener where the plastic body is made in Vietnam but the blade itself is made in Germany!. If you are a Fountain Pen guy you should definitely get one or more of this.

Finally, i should note that a lot of branded Pens are manufactured in India; eg. Parker Pens are manufactured by Luxor India and exported.

[mindentropy]

>Make sure that you are not confusing "Parker Jotter" with "Parker Classic"

I don't think so. It is a "Parker Jotter Standard CT Ball Pen".

>You can find Japanese offerings on Amazon India and if needed, get it directly from Amazon Japan (i do both). You can also contact the resellers (who import from Japan and sell on Amazon India) directly for a better deal

Won't this be too costly due to import taxes?

>These guys are very good and are optimizing their product based on their available skills. Making a nib requires metallurgy, high-precision CNC etc. which as small specialized Artisans they cannot afford to setup.

I think Ratnam makes the complete product. I must say that I am not much into Artisanal pens though. Similarly I am not much into funky anime type colored pens from Japan. :-)

>Finally, i should note that a lot of branded Pens are manufactured in India; eg. Parker Pens are manufactured by Luxor India and exported.

I don't like Luxor very much. I think there are quality control issues with the Parker pens as there is a lot of rattling in their jotter pens. I researched and found that it is not universal and was pretty pissed off as the Jotters are not cheap. Another reseller is Linc who are resellers for Uniball and they don't care about what they are selling. Similarly Pentel has a measly collection even though they have a manufacturing plant in Gujarat.

In my school days I used to use a Hero Fountain pen (Currently Shanghai Hero group) which was pretty good and my daily driver. My mother still had her beautiful Pilot pen from the 70s which I started to use later. I also sometimes used to use my classmates Butterfly pens too. I bought a Hero fountain pen in 2008 and it was horrible. Not sure what happened to it.