[HN Gopher] The Best Pens for 2023: Gel, Ballpoint, Rollerball, ...
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The Best Pens for 2023: Gel, Ballpoint, Rollerball, and Fountain
Pens
Author : axiomdata316
Score : 119 points
Date : 2023-04-11 16:57 UTC (6 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (www.jetpens.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.jetpens.com)
| ben7799 wrote:
| I'm left handed and have used this site before.
|
| I have a bunch of Uni-ball Jetstream pens that I'm real happy
| about. I learned about those from this site in one of their
| previous articles.
|
| I can't tell if they're saying the Jetstream is no longer as good
| as it was, or these other new pens are even better, or they're
| just kind of pushing something new.
|
| I'm tempted to order some of the Pentel Energels, Pilot
| Multiball, etc.. I'm not a highlighter person so don't care about
| that one. I guess the other thing is knowing some other options
| to look for in a pinch. The Uni-ball Jetstream is not commonly
| found in stores near me. I generally have to order them. If the
| Pentel/Pilot options are more common I need to keep that in mind.
|
| Their specific articles on left handedness explain a ton.. I
| never connected any of the effects (cramping, calluses, scraping
| the paper, etc..) other than smudging because I never really
| thought about how righties are pulling across the paper in left-
| to-right languages and lefties are pushing across the paper. It
| also explains why fountain pens are so brutal for lefties.
| They're so annoying maybe it explains why they used to try so
| hard to get left handed people to learn to switch for writing. I
| actually think I'd have been fine if forced to switch.
|
| My silliest pen story was walking into a fancy pen store and the
| sales person was a total snob. He lost a sure fire sale instantly
| based on judging me on my clothes or something. None of the pens
| had prices and when I asked about one he said if I had to ask I
| couldn't afford it. I wanted to come back and say I could buy
| every pen in the store or maybe the whole store, which I might
| have very well been able to. They went out of business. (Part of
| this was they were renting space in the mall, they didn't own
| their premises)
| rationalist wrote:
| > he said if I had to ask I couldn't afford it
|
| When people act that way to me, I just laugh and walk away. It
| feels much better than being mad, and they often look confused
| rather than smug. I have no problem with not rewarding them
| with a sale. Sometimes they'll even backpedal, I just say "Have
| a great day, bye!"
| ben7799 wrote:
| It was pretty much a laugh and walk away thing. Way way too
| silly to get mad. They didn't really sell anything truly
| exotic or expensive.
| Rebelgecko wrote:
| As a fellow southpaw, I was convinced to buy a bunch of their
| recommended pens (IIRC their standalone "best pens for lefties"
| article is more thorough than the left section in the "best
| pens of $current_year" article).
|
| The Pentel EnerGel (specifically, the "Pentel EnerGel Alloy Gel
| Pen - 0.7 mm - Black Ink - Silver Body") is the best pen I've
| ever used. It feels magically smooth with minimal smudging. For
| me it writes much better than the Jetstream, although if you do
| a ton of writing you might prefer the grip on those. I also
| really like the multiball (for writing on non-paper surfaces),
| the power tank (aka the poor man's space pen) and the Sarasa
| dry gel pens (less smooth than the Energel but the designs are
| fun)
| ben7799 wrote:
| Some of my Jerstreams do tend to gunk up.
|
| I wouldn't say I write a ton.
| ablyveiled wrote:
| I've tried a few fancy pens, but still prefer my Pilot G2 07s.
| jasode wrote:
| _> Pilot G2_
|
| I like Pilot G2 pens but unfortunately, they have a limited
| shelf life as the gel ink inside dries out.
|
| I just found this out recently when I went to get some more
| "new" Pilot pens from my supply closet and noticed every one of
| them was dried out. I bought them 7 years ago. Various websites
| and youtube hacks suggested putting the tips in boiling water
| for a while to try and revive them but that didn't work.
|
| I had 3 boxes of black, blue, and red Pilot pens so I guess
| that's about $30 wasted.
| dumpsterlid wrote:
| [dead]
| oaththrowaway wrote:
| Pilot G2 .38 or .5 for me
| MengerSponge wrote:
| Did Pilot ever fix the G2's failed rollerball retention
| issue? I had a few pop loose before I gave up on the line.
|
| I've been a uniball signo 0.25 (math/subscripts) and 0.38
| (text) fan for years now. It's one of the few pens that
| actually makes my handwriting better.
| cyanf wrote:
| Have you tried the 0.7 energels?
|
| G2s used to be my favorite until I gave them a try.
|
| Very smooth.
| unmole wrote:
| The Energel pens are a bit too light for my liking. So, I use
| Energel refills in G2's body. Best of both worlds.
| Infernal wrote:
| Ah jeez. I have 9 tabs open on JetPens now. 30 minutes ago I was
| reading the linked article and now I'm comparing pocket planner
| dimensions and researching the practicality of retractable
| fountain pens. I've been thoroughly nerd-sniped.
| zohvek wrote:
| Jetpens is an evil website, truly. Spent so much money on
| fountain pens on brands I didnt even know existed until I saw it
| on that site.
| upmostly wrote:
| I can't describe the feeling I feel when I view a website like
| JetPens, but it's there.
|
| It's the same feeling I had when I visited my first website.
|
| It's that same feeling I got when we had software instead of web
| apps.
|
| Tangible springs to mind.
| autoexec wrote:
| For most of us the best pen is the one that is functional and
| within reach when we need it. Everything else is just for fun or
| for show. It's nice to know what artists and people who regularly
| spend hours writing things out by hand think about specific
| brands/models, but I can't justify the expense of getting
| anything too fancy when I can go many many months without even
| touching a pen or a pencil and none of them are so advanced that
| they can make up for my bad handwriting.
| doabell wrote:
| The Nevada State Bank once recommended a Uni-ball 207 (any
| pigment ink pen will probably do) to prevent check washing fraud:
| [video] https://youtu.be/zhR-koBU4zM
| todd8 wrote:
| I've seen Uni-ball 207 recommended too. I also have some Mont
| Blanc fountain pen ink that claims to forgery resistant
| (meeting ISO 14145-2) that I've used to for check writing.
| Here's a YouTube video about the subject [1].
|
| Noodlers ink (also available on jetpens.com) is said to have
| forgery resistant inks as well. I don't have any of it, but I
| do have some of Noodlers invisible ink--you need an ultraviolet
| light source to see it.
|
| [1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH_Yb4-0p0o
| jayroh wrote:
| If anyone from JetPens is reading this(?) - would love to hear
| about the effects of this article ending up on HN today.
|
| Why? Because I'm about to drop ~$40 on pens as a result of the
| post, and discussion here.
|
| Echoing other people's sentiments here - love the site, love the
| density, love the niche'ness, love the information.
| bmarquez wrote:
| I can vouch for the Pentel EnerGel recommendation.
|
| As a left-handed person who tends to smudge a lot of other inks,
| EnerGels write smoothly without smudging. They're also cheap
| enough to buy a whole pack and not worry about losing them.
| Mezzie wrote:
| You'll pry my EnerGels out of my cold, dead left hand.
| armoredkitten wrote:
| I had a friend of mine recommend them a while back. I was
| _extremely_ dubious -- a gel pen? For lefties?? No way.
|
| Well, he was right. I've been converted to the church of
| EnerGel.
| eitally wrote:
| +1
|
| Additionally, they come in a number of colors, all of which are
| quite rich. Big fan!
| m463 wrote:
| Pentel Energel 0.7mm is the best pen I've ever used, period.
| Effortless writing with almost no friction. Clear contrasty
| quick-drying ink. Never too much ink (blotchy) or too little
| (streaky).
|
| I don't trust the recommendations of this page. They recommend
| pens as blanket statements not mentioning size, and that's
| just... wrong. and imprecise. For example, the Pentel Energel
| 1.0mm is too blotchy. The 0.5mm is too scratchy. The 0.7mm is
| just right. Also their uniball recommendation is strange. I've
| tried all kinds of uniball pens and never liked any of them.
| They seemed to require too much effort, or had ink that
| wouldn't go down cleanly.
| 0x00washere wrote:
| Agreed. These are gold for lefties. I have yet to find a better
| pen. It's a joy to use and the .5mm ball also makes my writing
| look very neat and tidy.
| kstrauser wrote:
| Fountain pens completely changed how I write. I've always gripped
| ballpoints like my life depended on it and gotten hand cramps
| from how hard I press them down. I don't _want_ to, and can
| temporarily stop doing that when I consciously notice, but then I
| forget and go back to trying to stab the desktop through the
| paper.
|
| A Lamy Safari's triangular shape makes it physically hard to hold
| the "wrong" way. It nudges me to write with my fingertips, not my
| wrist. The effect on my hand pain, and my ability to hand-write
| long bits of test, was immediate and huge.
|
| I wouldn't have thought that simply switching pens would make
| such an enormous difference in my ability to put ink on paper. It
| sure did, though.
| adfm wrote:
| It's worth investigating the effect of ballpoint pen technology
| on society. Beyond cleanliness and general convenience, the
| ballpoint pen has stood as an example of technological
| innovation that makes the rounds in one form or another as the
| central figure of progress, yet there is a dark side to its
| past. The Fisher Space Pen did its part to promote the American
| space program of the 1960s and Xi used the lowly ballpoint as a
| sticking point to drive innovation into the 2020s, but you
| don't hear about the poor ergonomics, handwriting atrophy, or
| lack of cursive being taught in elementary school. We need to
| consider the analog along with the digital if we're going to
| elevate ourselves out of the mess we're wallowing in. The
| education system needs all the help it can get, but in addition
| to one laptop per child, it would be a good idea to give them
| analog clocks so they can tell time and fountain pens so they
| can learn the why and how to read cursive.
| kstrauser wrote:
| Does anyone actually _care_ about cursive beyond personal
| interest? I haven't used it since 5th grade and haven't
| missed it one bit.
| meindnoch wrote:
| I'd love to use fountain pens. Unfortunately, I'm left-handed.
| NullInvictus wrote:
| Commenting with the others: I'm a left-handed writer and an
| avid fountain pen user. It isn't so bad.
|
| The best thing I can say is: try to learn to write under the
| line (under-hand) as opposed to hookwriting or sidewriting.
| Those make things pretty tough. If not, there are things you
| can try: Prefer extra-fine (EF) or fine (F) nibbed pens.
| Private Reserve and Noodler's make some fast-drying ink. This
| combo will often allow the ink to dry faster than your hand
| can get to it.
| quora wrote:
| I'm a leftie fountain pen user. It definitely can be done,
| but might need some adjustments to how you hold a pen / what
| inks you use. I've using a lamy safari with waterman ink for
| about 10 years with no trouble.
| cevn wrote:
| I use em Left Handed. A proper notebook with fast drying
| pages and ink will reduce smudging but I always have some ink
| on my hand lol.
| throw0101a wrote:
| https://www.gouletpens.com/blogs/fountain-pen-
| blog/fountain-...
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QemooqfJcfg
|
| ?
| dragontamer wrote:
| I spend way more money on jetpens's selection of notebooks than
| pens though. Also, I tend to prefer pencil, and will recommend
| the Pentel Kerry.
|
| ---------
|
| I've said it before, and I'll say it again. The future of online
| stores is jetpens and websites like it. Jetpens is useful because
| I trust their reviews.
|
| They're a store, yes, but more importantly, they're a trustworthy
| source of information. Amazon reviews are no longer trusted by
| me, but all of the discussion / reviews from Jetpens has been
| 100% accurate in my experience. They've managed to build up this
| relationship with their customers (such as myself) where I will
| trust their reviews and prefer to buy from them.
|
| Bonus points: a shop like Jetpens organizes their journals in A5,
| B5, A4, (etc. etc.) sizes. Amazon does not. Custom browsing
| experiences / categorizations is a big deal. Logically presenting
| Jetpen's catalog to the user makes me more likely to use their
| site and end up buying something.
| bluGill wrote:
| I always look for small suppliers of a small niche. The people
| tend to know something about what they sell. It is worth paying
| a little more just to get good advice from someone who cares
| more than I do about the subject.
| aidenn0 wrote:
| > Also, I tend to prefer pencil, and will recommend the Pentel
| Kerry.
|
| You can pry my Zebra DelGuard from my cold, dead hands.
| aidenn0 wrote:
| How many people read the reviews on Jetpens and then buy the
| pen from Amazon though. Obviously not so many to put them out
| of business, but that's always the danger.
| jerlam wrote:
| I think it's pretty unlikely. It's not easy to know what
| you're buying from Amazon, especially when you're buying a
| very specific pen with a very specific color in a very
| specific tip size that's not even sold in your home market.
| Even if you do find it on Amazon, the rarer items are
| unlikely to be sold by Amazon and you'll be paying shipping
| from an unknown seller, maybe even shipped from overseas -
| and you might as well skip the effort and just buy from
| Jetpens.
| dragontamer wrote:
| Hardly a danger. Amazon store is filled with counterfeits and
| scammers due to its comingling policy.
|
| When you buy from a small shop where its reputation is on the
| line, you're assured you're getting what you ordered. When
| you buy from Amazon, it could be comingled scammer-goods from
| that one guy who ruined the collective commons for everyone.
|
| Its clear how Amazon works. They merge SKUs together, and
| "Fulfilled by Amazon" means those goods are comingled with
| other marketplace sellers (possibly even "Sold by Amazon").
| It only takes one bad actor in the marketplace for
| counterfeit goods to be mixed up with everyone.
| dan-robertson wrote:
| When I was a student I think I read online that (for water
| based inks) laser printer paper works well and better than a
| lot of notebook paper. I think something about feathering or
| drying time but I don't really remember. I'm not sure how true
| it was and I preferred having loose leaf paper with no lines so
| I was pretty happy feeling like I was getting well suited paper
| on the cheap.
| dragontamer wrote:
| A notebook isn't just about the paper, but also the binding.
|
| If you're making your own notebook out of printer paper, I
| suggest you spend $10 on a 2-point hole punch and then buy
| the 2-point binders, which is far superior over staples. This
| should get you a good binding for personal use (sized for ~10
| pages to 100 pages or so) with only 10-cents or so for the
| binding. Still, this gets you a "notebook" of size 8.5 x 11,
| which is too large for most purposes. (3-hole punch binders
| are a bit too big / heavy in most purposes in my experience,
| the 2-hole punch methods / folders / binders are superior for
| most purposes)
|
| Folding in half is usable, but now you gotta cut the edge if
| you want the paper to line up right. I guess good for ~10
| sheets (20 pages after folding), but any more and things are
| pretty bad in my experience.
|
| -----------
|
| B5 notebooks are just the right size: fitting inside of
| purses, my desk on the go. They're also auto-numbered (If
| you're buying higher-priced ones like LEUCHTTURM1917), come
| with built-in bookmarks, and come in a variety of styles
| (lines, dots, or plain).
|
| The main advantage to "making your own" is the ability to
| print out whatever design you want (ex: music sheets, or in
| my case... breadboarding plans for electronics). So I still
| make my own notes with 2-point binder + 8.5x11 paper these
| days.
|
| But for typical note-taking / day-to-day use, nothing beats a
| properly sized B5 notebook or pocket "Field Notes".
|
| --------
|
| Auto-numbering is a surprisingly important thing in my
| experience, to the point that I have bought an automatic
| counting machine (aka: a stamp that auto-increments). This is
| useful not only for page numbers, but also for lists within a
| page. It turns a $2 Walmart notebook into something usable
| for work and is cheaper than buying a fancy pre-numbered
| notebook.
|
| Still though, those higher-quality notebooks from Jetpens are
| just really, really nice. And the fact that they have tested
| their paper and pages with a variety of inks, pens, and
| pencils with photographic proof is proof of Jetpen's quality
| of information.
| falcolas wrote:
| Jet Pens is a dangerous site. They'll convince you to part with
| your money far too easily.
|
| Studio Ghibli pens. I mean, how can you not buy them?!
|
| On a slightly more serious note - I agree with the Uniball Signo
| recommendations. They're good, reliable pens. I don't care for
| writing with Frixion pens, but they are _the_ player in the
| erasable pen arena.
|
| I really appreciate how they provide samples with metadata on how
| each pen/paper works. Even if you disagree with their "Best of"
| lists, they give you the data you need to make informed buying
| choices. Something all too absent for other online ordering.
|
| And they have a better selection of really fine point pens than
| other sites.
| entelechy0 wrote:
| the uniball signo rt 0.38mm tip has been my goto pen since 2002
| at least, to a degree that i do not purchase other pens.
| morsch wrote:
| I bought a couple of Frixion pens after reading a similar
| thread here. I like them. But keep them away from kids,
| Stiftung Warentest (essentially, German _Consumer Affairs_ )
| found lead in the ink and recommends other pens.
|
| https://www.test.de/Stifte-und-Tinten-im-Test-Unterm-Strich-...
| iammjm wrote:
| I own a LAMY ST Steel Fountain Pen and I love it. I really like
| its steel, simple bauhaus-like design. Feels like something
| Dieter Rams would've designed.
| mewse-hn wrote:
| Ahh I went down this rabbit hole recently - wanting to find what
| was good but also affordable from Amazon Canada.
|
| Ended up landing on sharpie s-gel metal pen bodies (there's a
| blacked out variation that is appealing) with pentel energel
| refills.
|
| I am really fond of the zebra G-750 (all metal gel pen, also
| blacked out) but I'm able to get a dozen of the above combo very,
| very cheap.
| Maxburn wrote:
| I did this rabbit hole about 15 years ago and have a couple
| vanishing points as a result. Today Zebra Sarasa at work.
| Fountain pens are fun but fiddly with refills and blots. Fun to
| write with.
| todd8 wrote:
| Featured in this list are two of my favorite fountain pens, the
| Pilot Vanishing Point and the Lamy 2000. Both of these in my
| collection write very well and both have unique and interesting
| designs.
|
| The Pilot Vanishing Point doesn't need a cap, the nib is exposed
| and protected in a manner akin to clicking a ball point in and
| out. Mine works perfectly.
|
| The Lamy 2000 is sleek and modern looking with a sophisticated
| design. It looks like a fountain pen that one might see in a Star
| Trek movie, but this model has been around since the mid 1960's.
| After half a century, the design is still the favorite of my
| collection. It operates flawlessly.
|
| I own the other, less expensive fountain pens mentioned as well;
| they would be good choices too. I started out with some of these
| and I still like them, but it is easy to get hooked on buying
| more fountain pens and fancy inks.
| eschneider wrote:
| I heartily agree with their fountain pen choices. The Pilot
| Metropolitan is insanely good for a cheap pen that you can take
| anywhere and the TWSBI GO is my go-to daily driver. It leads me
| to believe that the rest of the reviews are likely good.
| rektide wrote:
| I bought a moonman m2 a long time ago and really love it but
| also if I travel with it I end up bringing a whole cleanup kit
| because even with care I tend to have at least once where ink
| comes out into the cap.
|
| Is this just a fact of life with fountain pens in general? I
| love the writing but keeping them clean & operational has been
| non-trivial for me.
| giraffe_lady wrote:
| If you drop one or bang it hard you'll usually get some ink
| in the cap yeah. Finer or more recessed nibs reduce the
| effect. Pilot also has a line of retractable fountain pens
| that almost completely eliminate it.
|
| The pressure changes when flying can force ink out the nib as
| well. I've heard people say you can prevent it by having the
| reservoir completely full but I fly with it empty or usually
| just leave it at home.
| convolvatron wrote:
| it seems to depend on the pen for me. some deposit
| substantial ink in the cap and some don't (except flying,
| that's always gonna be a mess unless you prepare).
| falcolas wrote:
| Not in my experience. Though ink seepage definitely seems to
| be related to how it's stored (and probably shaken). I've had
| one seep when stored point down, and dozens not seep when
| stored horizontally or point up.
|
| That said, I don't travel with them, practically speaking.
| falcolas wrote:
| How TF did Pilot be the company to create such great
| inexpensive fountain pens? I mean, I'm not upset about it, I
| love them.
| todd8 wrote:
| In the early 1900s, three Japanese fountain pen companies
| were founded: Sailor (1911), Namiki (1918), and Platinum
| (1919). Namiki changed its name to Pilot in the 1930s, but
| some Pilot pens are still sold under the Namiki brand.
|
| I have pens from all of these companies and they are some of
| my favorite brands.
| RobotToaster wrote:
| The vanishing point is an amazing pen too, if a little pricy.
| chrisweekly wrote:
| Tangent: When it comes to mechanical pencils, the Pentel
| GraphGear 1000 is really, really good. Let alone for like $10.
| dragontamer wrote:
| Depends. Its a heavy pencil with a sharp-ish point, making it
| ill-suited for carrying in your pocket.
|
| I'd say the GraphGear 1000 is great as a "stay on the table"
| kind of mechanical pencil. But if you plan to carry it around
| with you all day, Pentel Kerry is far superior.
|
| GraphGear 1000 might be good for a backpack or purse though.
| ideal-stingray wrote:
| Maybe you're thinking of the GraphGear 500? The 1000 has a
| retractable point -- the clip is actually part of the
| retraction mechanism, so it's impossible to clip it to your
| pocket with the point out. (Since around 2016 I've carried at
| least one GraphGear 1000 in my jeans pocket on a daily basis,
| and they've never let me down.)
| dragontamer wrote:
| The retractable point does nothing. If your leg moves in
| such a way that squeezes the top, you'll end up with a hole
| in your pocket. I know, because I did this and ruined my
| pocket in one of my jeans.
|
| The heavy metal construction is also extremely abrasive. If
| I ever accidentally put my phone into the pocket with the
| GraphGear 1000, the screen protector would crack.
|
| As I said earlier: its a great pencil for writing / desk
| usage. But in my experience, its terrible to carry it
| around all day, especially in a pocket.
|
| ---------
|
| Pentel Kerry still has a sharp point... but the cap
| mechanism is just more "correctly braindead" in regards to
| protecting your pockets from the sharp point. The cap also
| balances out the Kerry to an appropriate "swing-weight /
| balance" for writing.
|
| GraphGear 1000 is actually very well balanced for writing,
| though the heft / weight might surprise someone. Its a joy
| to use, until you get a hole in your pocket.
| LegitShady wrote:
| I used to advocate for the sharp kerry but I've had two
| completely stop feeding official pentel leads and need
| replacement from pentel for no reason. They are shorter
| lived than even the graphgear 1000s, and I've broken the
| plastic parts on those too.
|
| The graphgear's retractable tip has never put a hole in
| my pocket, and I can always clip it to the top of my
| pocket (with the pen in the pocket) if I'm really
| concerned.
|
| The biggest issue I have with the graphgear 1000s is that
| the texturing on the barrel just isn't very comfortable
| for extended duration use. I always end up putting a
| stupid puffy piece to make them easier to use for long
| periods of time.
|
| Lately I've just given up on all of those and end up
| using 2mm lead holders. I've probably got $150-200 worth
| of fancy pencils and the 2mm leadholders get the most
| use.
| alberth wrote:
| I really appreciate the information density (site design).
| MisterPea wrote:
| Glad to see fountain pen enthusiasts here. I'm embarrassed to say
| how much I've spent on them over the years.
|
| I agree with their recommendations, especially the TWSBI ECO
| Fountain Pen - would recommend that over the Pilot Metropolitan,
| but both are great.
| rcarr wrote:
| I've been working my way through Kawecos, started with a Brass
| Sport with F nib which I've still got, then I bought a stainless
| steel Sport with BB nib that I ended up selling. Next I tried a
| copper Liliput with B nib and a plastic sport with M nib. I love
| the Liliput more than any of the sports so I think I'm going to
| buy the fireblue one with a M nib and I might end up selling all
| the rest.
| jszymborski wrote:
| I bought the TWISBI ECO on a lark. I was hesitant because I
| already had the GO and the ECO was just more expensive.
|
| Well boy-howdy is the ECO not only leagues better than the GO,
| but I much prefer to all my other pens.
|
| Folks recommend the really cheap platinum preppy pens, but be
| warned they are super scratchy. I would go a size up from what
| you normally prefer wrt to nib (if you are new, try M as F and EF
| are extremely scratchy IMHO).
|
| The opposite is true about the TWISBI in my experience. Go a size
| down. Their F nibs write quite fat.
|
| Then again, I mostly write on cheap paper so this advice def
| doesn't apply to e.g. Rhodia pads.
|
| Finally, I don't love the metropolitan. Feels great in the hand
| but I always find myself reaching for the smooth writing I get
| from my Eco.
| NullInvictus wrote:
| > Folks recommend the really cheap platinum preppy pens, but be
| warned they are super scratchy.
|
| The reason people recommend the platinum is that its cheap and
| its cap system is especially good for avoiding dry-out. To me,
| the platinum preppy feels like a rounded pencil. I think its a
| good pen, but my reservation is that the plastic is a bit
| brittle on the preppy. I'd personally probably go with the
| Pilot Kakuno, or the more expensive Platinum prefonte, or if
| you're really worried about costs, the interesting and fraught
| world of Chinese fountain pens
|
| > I would go a size up from what you normally prefer wrt to nib
| (if you are new, try M as F and EF are extremely scratchy
| IMHO).
|
| This is a feature of all the Japanese pens - they tend to have
| a finer grind. The European and other pens (e.g., Lamy) are
| about what you expect.
|
| > Finally, I don't love the metropolitan. Feels great in the
| hand but I always find myself reaching for the smooth writing I
| get from my Eco.
|
| The Metropolitan is a love-or-hate pen for some people, due to
| hand feel. I personally like it. If you can hold one, that'd be
| best. I think a couple of things make the Metro a better
| beginning pen than the Eco, if you like how it feels in your
| hand. It's cheaper; its got a metal body and cap (can be banged
| around), its got better QC (The first Eco I was given had the
| infamous 'barrel crack'. The second just flat didn't write. I'm
| a bit miffed at the brand), It can take cartridges or its
| included converter-sac, and it is by far one of the easiest
| pens to tear down and clean. The Eco can be taken apart with
| its special wrench too, but people commonly crack it in the
| process.
|
| I just wish pilot sold the nibs separately for repair, like
| Lamy does, of TWSBI does with their more expensive pens.
|
| For the crowd around here: I'd also say that one of the joys of
| a fountain pen is that you can tune, smooth, and even grind
| your own nibs if you're that adventurous.
| bookofjoe wrote:
| Original headline: >The 42 Best Pens for 2023 I dunno, I always
| have trouble with "Best" lists that feature double figures; it's
| as if the maker of the lists isn't willing to use their expertise
| to winnow it down to a few.
| KRAKRISMOTT wrote:
| Anyone tried the Sharpie "S-gels"? How do they hold up to pilot?
| warner25 wrote:
| I have a bag of BIC Cristal pens that I've been working through
| for over a decade now. There are still a few left. What am I
| missing?
|
| I've used a lot of random pens when signing my name at various
| places of business, and none of them seemed better to me than a
| BIC Cristal. In fact, many are so much worse that I usually bring
| my own BIC Cristal to places where I know I'll be filling out
| paperwork.
| giraffe_lady wrote:
| Tactile experience and aesthetics mostly. If you're fine with
| what you use don't worry about it.
| ArcMex wrote:
| Highly agree on tactile experience. I have Zebra Blen 0.7 and
| 0.5 for everyday use and they are much better than my BIC
| pens to me.
| nordsieck wrote:
| My favorite are the Bic Round Stic pens. I like to write small,
| and I find that most other pens have more flow than I want.
|
| It also helps that they're dirt cheap, so I can just get a big
| bunch like you and I don't have to care if I lose one here or
| there.
|
| Ironically, I find that if I only have a few pens, I start to
| lose them over time, but if I have a large amount, I actually
| accumulate pens. Not sure how that works.
| zikduruqe wrote:
| I have been using the same Bic Round Stic pen for almost ten
| years. Whenever the ink is used up, I just switch the ink out
| from a brand new one.
|
| It has almost a decade of battle scars and character.
| dumpsterlid wrote:
| [dead]
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