Pen-Fi (FPs, RBs, BPs, etc...) [56k Warning]

[milkpowder]

The Lamy Safari is a great first fountain pen. Relatively cheap, good looking and reliable. I'd take a Safari over a Parker Jotter or Vector.

[Steve The Egg]

Originally Posted by Mr. Tadashi

I like the Lamy Safari as an introductory pen. I have two of them myself and use it daily.(May change when I get my pilot though)

Hmm looks good. I've never used a fountain pen before. Is there anything I should know before I use one?

[Mr. Tadashi]

I myself am very new to fountain pens but, one thing I can say is well it will be a pain using some paper as the ink is likely to feather and bleed through and well it will be a new experience. Especially when one is used to having to apply pressure when using a roller ball pen.(I am left handed so that has its own set of things to deal with.)

As others have mentioned fountain pen network is a great site with a lot of information at your fingertips. It is a great way to wet your nib in the world of fountain pens.( Bad joke :P )

[Uncle Erik]

Originally Posted by Mr. Tadashi

I myself am very new to fountain pens but, one thing I can say is well it will be a pain using some paper as the ink is likely to feather and bleed through and well it will be a new experience. Especially when one is used to having to apply pressure when using a roller ball pen.(I am left handed so that has its own set of things to deal with.)

A fellow lefty! I knew there was something I liked about you.

Not to worry, you'll do fine. I usually use a quick drying ink and a finer nib. However, for some reason, the Stipula oblique works for me, so you may not be limited to fine nibs. Depends how you hold it, too. I hook and the nib hits the paper almost completely upside down from the way a righty writes.

Check out various inks with the paper you usually use. I like Noodler's and don't get much feathering at all with it.

Also, here's an interesting read about lefty fountain pen users:

The Left

I've met them at a few shows - the nibs.com people are exceptionally nice. I write like #2 on the list, usually with a 51, as well.

[leftnose]

Originally Posted by milkpowder

The Lamy Safari is a great first fountain pen. Relatively cheap, good looking and reliable. I'd take a Safari over a Parker Jotter or Vector.

x2. I have both a Safari and a Jotter. The Jotter was my first fountain pen but the Safari is a better pen.

The one piece of advice I can give you is to start with an F nib. Coming from ball points or roller balls, fountain pens (especially those made in Germany like the Lamy) tend to write a wider line and getting one with an F nib will help the transition.

Are you looking for a black pen or a pen with black ink? Part of the fun with fountain pens is that you can put any color ink into them that you want as long as the ink is designed for fountain pens (read: not India Ink, among others). The Safari is currently available in two blacks: Charcoal and Black. Charcoal is matte finished and the black is a shiny finish. I have the Charcoal and like it a lot.

I would also suggest starting with ink in cartridges as they are easier to manage.

[leftnose]

Originally Posted by milkpowder

Havana Brown looks superb. I've been using Mont Blanc Season's Greetings for brown ink, but the scent is infamously difficult to flush out of the pen. This Waterman will be a nice substitute.

Also take a look at Private Reserve Chocolat. Havana Brown is one of my three favorite inks but it is not as deep, dark, brown as Chocolat. I use Havana in that Pelikan because the pen is an amber colored demonstrator and it is not one in which I want any staining.

[Mr. Tadashi]

Another good pen to check out is the Pilot Knight(It can be found in Office Depot if you live in the states.) It comes with a converter already in it so if you want to use bottled ink off the bat it is no problem and it comes with two cartridges. I just got one and out of the box it is smoother than my Safari's Fine nib(I also have a safari with a LH Nib and it feels about the same off the top of my head but, the Pilot has a M nib that is simular in line width as my safari F nib.)

[shiosai]

Originally Posted by Steve The Egg

For an introductory pen what would you guys recommend? Black.

x2 for the Lamy Safari. The Pilot 78G is IMO also a great first fountain pen, it writes finer line (Asian medium and fine, meaning western fine and extra fine) and an incredible value for the price. You can get it for $12 from isellpens.com. No affiliation with the store, just a happy customer.

[milkpowder]

Originally Posted by leftnose

Also take a look at Private Reserve Chocolat. Havana Brown is one of my three favorite inks but it is not as deep, dark, brown as Chocolat. I use Havana in that Pelikan because the pen is an amber colored demonstrator and it is not one in which I want any staining.

I got the Havana today, filled it into my M600 and started writing on my beloved Clairefontaine paper. First impressions are very positive. As you had described, it isn't a very dark ink. It flows very well and looks nice on paper. I'm glad I got it!

[AlanY]

I picked up my first fountain pen, a Pilot MYU last week and really love it:

(Actually, it's not quite my first. Someone gave me one of the middle-priced Watermans as a gift years ago but I never warmed to the medium nib and the pen itself was a little too fancy to use everywhere, so I got rid of it on eBay.)

I find the fine nib on the MYU works well on all kinds of paper and the single-piece design is distinctive without looking like fancy jewellery. Thumbs up. I guess I now have to investigate various inks.