Reliable Modern Pen

I hesitate to post this as it will get me started down the rabbit hole of Fountain pens, but here goes:

A few years ago I got into FPs but quickly gave up because -- except for a few vintages that were hand tuned for me -- I couldn't find many modern pens that would lay down a dark fine to medium fine line with consistency, no blobbing and no drying out. I have various Montblanc, Waterman, Chinese, Pelikan, Diplomat, and Namiki pens but none of them seem to have the consistency and reliability of a standard Pilot disposable Varsity blue pen. I used to have a Targa and an Imperial Sheaffer that wrote the way I wanted but both nibs were damaged by others and I haven't gotten them back in shape. I have a Sailor pen that writes consistently but the black from its standard cartridges seems too faint and watery for my tastes (compared to even Sheaffer Quik in the old Targa). I have a Parker big red that writes beautifully but I don't want to use it as an everyday pen. And I have an old Waterman flex that writes well but that tends to drip every now and then.

Is there any ink/pen combination under $50 that will reliably best the Pilot Varsity pens I now tend to use as defaults? I just want a wet, non-blobby fine line in blue and black inks.

Thanks for any suggestions.

I'm really surprised by your experience, given the number of pens you've tried, and since I haven't tried many modern pens and non very expensive, I'm more than a little hesitant about replying.

I've tried the Pilot Varsity, and yes it writes well, but I don't care for disposables. My other modern pens that I would say write as well and reliably are as follows:

1) Lamy Safari in EF, both with the cartridges and a converter in Waterman blue-black.

2) Kaweco Sport in F with the Kaweco cartridges. This is a little thicker and wetter than I prefer, but as I recall, it's fairly close to the Varsity.

3) Platinum Preppy in F (0.3mm), both with the Platinum cartridges and the converter. The design on these may have changed. I recently ordered an EF - the appearance was different and the cap cracked after very little use. (The EF was also too dry for me.) But it's not much to try it out, and if you like it you could get a Plaisir or something.

Definitely not an expert here - just giving you my experience.

coase said:

I have a Sailor pen that writes consistently but the black from its standard cartridges seems too faint and watery for my tastes

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It sounds like you would be happy using the Sailor if you could get a darker line...If it takes a converter, I would buy one of those and a bottle of Aurora Black, and you should be good to go.

The TWSBI 580 yields a reliable dark line for me.

I would second the TWSBI 580. For right about $50, it's a hard pen to beat. Piston filler, completely user-serviceable, and replacement nibs come attached to the feed at a very reasonable price. I have one knocking around in my bag that I carry every day. It's an excellent pen. Get the fine nib. I have the extra-fine, and it's a bit too toothy for my tastes (I'll probably replace it with a fine nib soon). Diamine makes some nice blue inks with good color saturation. That should give you just what you want.

I like Pilots, and a Prera would be right in the price range you're looking at if you want s new one. I've got a used one with converter I'd be open to selling/trading though if you're interested.

Foyle said:

I would second the TWSBI 580. For right about $50, it's a hard pen to beat. Piston filler, completely user-serviceable, and replacement nibs come attached to the feed at a very reasonable price. I have one knocking around in my bag that I carry every day. It's an excellent pen. Get the fine nib. I have the extra-fine, and it's a bit too toothy for my tastes (I'll probably replace it with a fine nib soon). Diamine makes some nice blue inks with good color saturation. That should give you just what you want.

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What Foyle said. My 580 AL is extremely reliable and lays down a nice dark line. It holds a ton of ink and writes first touch every touch.

TWSBI is a great choice.

Ive always had great luck with the Waterman "Expert 2" (with piston converter). Ive no idea what they're running now, but I believe its like a razor: good quality produces in quality results.

To give you a slightly different option, I'd recommend sending one of the pens that you have now to a nibsmith and get it tuned more to your liking. If you still have that collection of pens, it'd be a shame to let them go to waste. Ship one off to one of the respected nibmeisters and see if they can tune what you have. It may end up being a better investment and give you a smoother and more consistent line than buying another pen that may still need tuning when it arrives.

Is there a list of nibmeisters? I am also thinking of driving to the DC Pen Show tomorrow.

coase said:

Is there a list of nibmeisters? I am also thinking of driving to the DC Pen Show tomorrow.

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If you get to the show, let us know. There will probably be several of us from B&B there tomorrow.

Bob L. said:

Pendleton Brown and Michael Masuyama have both made customized stub nib for me. I like their work. I don't know if they will be in DC.

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Mike Masuyama will be there. Pendleton Brown hasn't been doing pen shows recently.

If I had to choose a single pen right now, it would be a Parker Sonnet.

Yes, I know that they have a reputation of drying out when not in use, and that there are many fakes out there. But the three that I have (a "flighter", a cisele, and a gilded LE) perform flawlessly, have a great nib, and have the ideal size and balance for me.

As always, YMMV!

As others have said, I'm surprised by your poor experience given the pens that are in your collection.

I'm wondering if the pen is not your problem, but the ink. For dark lines and consistent flow, I don't think you could do much better at any price than Noodler's 54th Massachusetts.

While there are literally hundreds of wonderful inks out there (Pilot Iroshizuku, Diamine, J. Herbin, etc.), a $13, 3 ounce bottle may very well solve all your problems.

While 54th Mass is not the most interesting (no shading, relatively common dark blue color) it IS very consistent and has very good qualities (fairly quick dry, permanent, low bleed, low feather).

A lot of people dog Noodler's, but I don't understand why. They have beautiful inks, some highly specialized (highliter, black light) and are a terrific value.

Goulet Pens offers samples of every ink that Goulet sells (1000s); that may be a cheap and rather fun (experiment) way to solve your problem.

Nathan Tardiff, the creator of Noodler's ink, once restored a vintage Aurora 88 for me. It's still one of my favourite writers.

I re-read your original post and noticed that drying out was as problem for you. Platinum 3776 Century is a fantastic writer and comes in a couple of very pretty semi-translucent colors in addition to black. I'd be extremely surprised if that thing dried up on you.

While I hate to recommend purchasing writing supplies from any one other than Goulet, that pen can be purchased directly from Platinum via *cough*amazon*cough* for about half the cost of any U.S. supplier. Just make sure to add a converter because they don't include one.

Bob L. said:

Pendleton Brown and Michael Masuyama have both made customized stub nib for me. I like their work. I don't know if they will be in DC.

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+1 They both do excellent work and I believe you will find them a much better choice for your $50. Michael did three of my Pelikans and Pendleton did the last one. They all fill your requirements.

Any place people congregate Saturday morning? i plan to come to pick up and try a variety of inks.