Reviewing My New Pens

The ink rollers aren't turning out anything like I expected. The Kaweco Sport, in particular, has raised a new issue.

Playing with my new pens, I discovered that the line from the ink rollers depends on the ink. The Pelikan is supposed to write a finer line than the Kaweco, but using the short standard international cartridge that came with the Kaweco, the Pelikan makes the same broad line that makes my writing sloppy and unattractive.

Switching over to the Sepia ink that I bought solely to have the great Montblanc bottle it's in, the Kaweco line shrinks down to only about .4mm. Very nice!

I've yet to try the drier Montblanc ink in the Pelikan, but since it followed the Kaweco by producing a broad line when I inserted the short cartridge, there's no reason to expect a drastic difference.

Have you guessed the issue?

I bought the ink roller pens to use up ink that I bought only so I could have the terrific bottles and now, I'm anticipating having to buy more bottles so I can have the ink.

How perverse.

(If you see discrepancies in the reasons I give for buying pens and ink, that's the addiction talking. The plain truth is that I just gotta have them as any true addiction demands. Good thing that I'm a writer, huh?)

So, the Kaweco Sport is turning out to be a nice writer. It's comfortable and lays down the fine line that I like.

The Pelikan is less so. Although it takes the long standard international cartridges, not only the short ones I reported previously, and would be better because I can go longer before needing to refill, it isn't as comfortable to use because there are hard ridges circling the grip. Also, the plastic clip feels like it would break if handled carelessly, although it makes a nice, clear, sharp, clicking sound when I play with it.

Yes, there's more to pens than merely writing with them.

Other than the dilemma raised by anticipating having to buy more ink that I intended to never buy again, the only disappointment is that the ink rollers aren't quite as effortless as my Parker Reflex rollerball. This translates to my not being able to write as long with them. The Parker rollerball Fine refills are among the best I've found (others are from Retro51 and Schmidt) and it's too bad that Parker discontinued the Reflex series a few years ago.

(If you'd like to have an excellent, inexpensive rollerball, Kingpen bought up the remaining Reflex stock from Parker and has the Reflex rollerball pen left only in green, a pretty emerald green, for $4.19 including a Medium refill.)

As for my new Pilot Petit1 and Platinum Preppy fountain pens - oh, my!

Forget what I said about my worrying about ruining fountain pens during travel. These pens are so inexpensive, yet are so comfortable and write so wonderfully, that it should be a crime for a pen addict not to have them.

I have to post the cap on the Petit1 to make it long enough to be comfortable, but once that's done, it's fantastic as is the Preppy. The only thing I can say against them is about the Petit1 - the posted cap lays against the base of my index finger which rubs it off if I don't post it securely. Other than that minor inconvenience, it's great. Anyone who has yet to try a fountain pen, or who tried a fountain pen and wasn't impressed, should give these tipped, Fine nib pens a chance. They write so much better than other fountain pens made by other companies, especially those priced under $7. At $3 for the Preppy and $4.50 or less for the Petit1, there isn't much money at risk and a whole lot of writing pleasure to gain. Accolades to Pilot and Platinum for producing such excellent writers for so low a price!

In regards to the Uni-Ball Signo UM-201, the lime green is great but the .18mm line is too fine for me. As a result, I ordered the .5mm pen.

That's right. The lime green ink compelled me to order another one along with more Petit1 and Preppy fountain pens for traveling. (Ahem!)

Salivating

I yielded to my pen addiction, yet again, by ordering a Pelikan ink roller from Pendemonium and a Kaweco Sport Classic ink roller from Swisher Pens. Nathan Tardif, the inventor of Noodler's inks, figured out how to retrofit the Kaweco Sport ink rollers into eyedropper pens and it was one of these that I ordered.

These purchases are justified because fountain pens aren't always practical; two of my more expensive fountain pens dripped ink from the altitude and temperature changes of my last road trip to the extent that I was afraid that they were permanently damaged. Fortunately, they're not, but I wasn't able to use them during that time and my creativity feels constrained by the black ink of my Parker Reflex rollerball.

As colorful as they are, I don't like to use gel pens because they don't write as easily as fountain pens or rollerballs which use liquid ink. Over time, they're also more expensive than using bottled fountain pen ink and, being disposable, aren't earth-friendly.

Another reason for these purchases is the difficulty I had locating the .5mm Uni-Ball Vision rollerball. The 8-pack I found was the only one left and that was only because it had dropped from its peg to hide amongst the ballpoints boxed for bulk purchasing while it was waiting for me to come along and buy it.

With the ink rollers, I can use the fountain pen ink I already have. The pens use the short standard international cartridges made by several companies such as Pelikan, but I like to refill cartridges by using the syringe from my inkjet printer's refill kit because cartridges cost more than bottled ink and don't provide as many colors. To fill the Kaweco barrel with ink, all I'll have to do is uncap and squeeze the Nalgene drop dispensing bottle to which I transferred my bottled ink for traveling. The Kaweco is more practical, but writes slightly broader than the Pelikan's .5mm line. Since .7mm pens and pencils drive me nuts, it's anybody's guess as to how I'll like the .6mm line of the Kaweco.

I also ordered a glass dip pen. There is no justification for this; I simply wanted it. Glass pens are attractive and are good for testing ink. I don't test ink, but I've wanted one ever since I saw my first glass pen over 10 years ago, anyway. They are that attractive. Maybe I'll be able to use it for those seldom-used bottles of ink pushed to the back of my cabinet shelf because I don't like the colors well enough to keep a pen loaded with them. Maybe it will be only eye candy.

I'm mentally salivating in anticipation.

Pen Slut

Hi, my name is Gail and I'm a slut for pens.

[Other pen addicts respond: "Hi, Gail!"]

I'm partial to fountain pens and use other types of pens as the needs arise. As a result, I have to shop for refills or replacements only once every several years; the last time being six years ago. This gets to be aggravating because the stores in town don't usually have what I need, even though they carry it when I don't need to buy any.

Yes, I keep an eye on them. I see how they are.

Therefore, I can't find any Pentel medium ballpoint stick pens and it takes me a few weeks to locate the .5mm Uni-Ball Vision that I need. Instead of getting the single rollerball with black ink as planned, I succumb to the pretty colors in the 8-pack. Several days later, a friend receives a correspondence card from me written with one of the new rollerballs in the 8-pack...orange.

I've never before written with orange ink, but it was in the pack and looks really nice, all cheerful, spring-like, and rather frivolous; a party in a pen.

A few days after that, an orange lust causes me to decide to get orange fountain pen ink and a new pen in which to put it. Going to the website that has a pen that I like at an affordable price, with dismay, I see that the price has doubled. Ow!

Off I go to other websites to discover that Noodler's has come out with new colors and shades and more inks that are waterproof since I last shopped for fountain pen ink. Now, I can get waterproof turquoise and waterproof pink and waterproof gray and waterproof burgundy and waterproof orange and...

Oh-oh. The inks are adding up.

To make matters worse, that expensive Pelikan Souverän M400 Tortoiseshell & White (some call it Honey and White or White Honey) that I've lusted after ever since before I saw Judge Judy wield hers on her television bench is now discontinued and at half price. I put it in my shopping cart and concentrate on school pens that cost less than $20. That way, the expensive fountain pen is "mine" temporarily while I look for an affordable pen that can be mine for real.

In the process, I notice that a free fountain pen comes with a bottle of Noodler's Heart of Darkness. What's this? A free fountain pen? Why can't I like the shade of ink so I can have the pen? What kind of pen is it that it's offered for free? A Platinum Preppy? Gee, Platinums are reputed to be good pens. I've been wanting one, but not at the prices I've seen.

Can I get the pen by itself?

No, not at that site. No, not at another site. Yes, at this site, except they're sold out. No wonder, the Preppy is refillable and costs only $4 each or five pens for $15.

I google for reviews, attempting to assuage my lust. Most of the reviews are really good but for the few that suggest a glitch in quality control. For the price though, it can be treated as a disposable and I read that somebody did until someone else pointed out that it's refillable.

I finally locate the Preppy for $3 each at JetPens and put a pink one in my shopping cart. Whoo-hoo! Oh, look. JetPens has the refillable mini fountain pen, the Pilot Petit1 for $4.50. Goody-goody! I add an orange Petit1 to the cart and a brown one, too. And, the Uni-Ball Signo UM-201 gel pen for $3 in lime green. Of those, I get two. One is to give to someone I know whose favorite color is lime green. And...

ONE HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-FIVE DOLLARS later, I start deleting items from the shopping cart. I don't need the Pentel watercolor set (What was I thinking? I don't do watercolors!), or the Ohto Tasche or the Pilot Cavalier or Young Rex fountain pens (The barrels are too slender for me!), or the....

Delete! Delete! Delete!

Oh, well. It was fun while it lasted. Maybe the Preppy and the two Petit1s will provide enough of a fix to save me from buying all that ink.

The lime green Signo may revive the lust again, however, just as the orange Vision Elite did.

I've never before written with lime green ink.