[leesure]

 

[AppleheadMay]

Now that's a post worthy of both this thread and forum!  

 

[brim71]

  do any of you own or have you used a Sailor 1911?
 
I'm considering purchasing one but I'm a bit concerned about nib replacement (if it needed it).
 
my understanding is that the nibs either cannot be replaced, or it's difficult and expensive.

 
I have a Sapporo, but not a 1911, although I believe that the nib design is similar (the 1911 nib is a bit larger and is 21K).  I wouldn't recommend removing the nib yourself unless you're really sure about what you're doing.  It looks like it's possible, but I probably wouldn't risk it.  I'd leave it to a pro (John Mottishaw over at nibs.com is supposed to be excellent with Sailors), which obviously means it'll be relatively expensive.  He sells specialized Sailor nibs as well, but possibly only on new pens.  It's worth sending a question to him on his website, though, just to be sure!
 
BTW, I love my Sailor!  It's the thinnest and smoothest EF nib I've ever used.
 
 
@leesure
Great pics!  What's the pen in the bottom pic?

 

[leesure]

   
 
 
 
@leesure
Great pics!  What's the pen in the bottom pic?

A Montegrappa

 

[brim71]

For some reason I was under the impression that all Montegrappas had to be octagonal, but not so!
 
It's got a nice timeless look to it, I like it.

 

[leesure]

For some reason I was under the impression that all Montegrappas had to be octagonal, but not so!

It's got a nice timeless look to it, I like it.

It's a great looking pen, but it's my least favorite to write with.

 

[dclaz]

What's everyones thoughts on the Lamy 2000? I truly love the design but am worried about the quality of the nib.
 
http://www.penaddict.com/blog/2013/8/19/lamy-2000-review:

 I went through several cleanings and different inks to see if the writing performance would improve. It didn't, so off to the internet I went. After only a minute of searching I found a common theme: Lamy 2000 nibs are notoriously inconsistent out of the box. Unfortunately for me, I had found a bad one.

 

[jay-w]

  What's everyones thoughts on the Lamy 2000? I truly love the design but am worried about the quality of the nib.
 
http://www.penaddict.com/blog/2013/8/19/lamy-2000-review:

 
I love mine and out of a dozen pens it's in my top two or three. No problems with the nib either.
 
Depending on where you buy yours you can have the nib checked before it's sent to you.

 

[TwinQY]

From the definitive FPN thread on the 2000:

A last word on nibs
All of the above--and much of the chatter on FPN--makes it seem like every Lamy 2000 nib is going to be shoddy straight out of the box. That's rubbish. Are there occasional quality control issues? Yes. Do people make legitimate complaints about wide-writing pens? Yes. Should someone have to put up with a misaligned or improperly finished nib? Absolutely not. You're much, much more likely to find that your Lamy 2000 is an out and out great writer. 

I don't remember the episode of the podcast where Brad talks about getting his 2000 ground by Matsuyama, but I think he ended up doing it twice and the latter was in a more recent episode. I believe the problem ended up to be quite simple and the grind was fairly easy. If you come across a problematic one it should be an easy fix. As mentioned, vendors like John Mottishaw or Richard Binder will always test-drive them unless you ask them otherwise.
 
Out of the couple of 2000s I've tried, most seemed to write fine as long as you hit the sweet spot. The balance is perfect but I do enjoy a bit more weight overall (not to say that they are light; I'm just crazy). The stainless steel ones are far too much for me posted though. Either way I doubt you would have to worry about build with these. Wasn't there a story about these being driven over a couple of times with no problem?

 

[brim71]

If you look a few pages back, link, you can find my thoughts and a few replies regarding the L2K.  I've used it nearly every day since then and absolutely love it.
 
I was worried about it as well, so wanted to make sure I had a chance to test it out in person before buying.  I'm not sure where you're located, but there are various pen shows around (the biggest in the country is coming up in Aug down in DC) that you may be able to attend.  There are bound to be a few L2Ks at the show for you to try.  Some B&M pen shops may also carry them, but you'll need to check around.
 
Worst case, if you get one that you don't like, you could always send it off to a nibmeister to get it adjusted, although this is admittedly a bit of a hassle and more expense.

 

[dclaz]

Thanks for the comments. I'm not aware of any local places that have them in stock that I could try, I'll look around though. I'd also be paying a fair premium over internet prices if I go that route.

 

[dclaz]

Just ordered the Lamy 2000 Fine. Can't wait

 

[dclaz]

Can anyone recommend a waterproof deep black and blue black inks? I bought a bottle of Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-kai - Deep Sea, but turns out it's not waterproof. 

 

[brim71]

@dclaz Congrats on the order!  Let us know how you like it.
 
As far as inks go, I'm certainly not an expert in waterproof inks, but how water "proof" do you need it to be?  There are different levels in the fountain pen ink world.
 
For real "waterproof-ed-ness" the Noodler's brand is probably the best bet.  I've only ever used their "Baystate Blue," so can't really comment on them.  They have some really nice colors, but some people complain about their nib creep.  With the L2K being kind of hooded, you shouldn't have much of an issue with that, though.
 
People tend to like "Heart of Darkness" for a true black, although I've never used it.  Aurora Black is my favorite black, although not waterproof.
 
For a Blue-Black, try Noodler's "Legal Lapis", which is also waterproof.  The Lamy Blue/black is also supposed to be fairly water-resistant.
 
I say grab some ink samples and try them out.  Goulet Pens sells little sample bottles, which are really convenient!

 

[dclaz]

  @dclaz Congrats on the order!  Let us know how you like it.
 
As far as inks go, I'm certainly not an expert in waterproof inks, but how water "proof" do you need it to be?  There are different levels in the fountain pen ink world.
 
For real "waterproof-ed-ness" the Noodler's brand is probably the best bet.  I've only ever used their "Baystate Blue," so can't really comment on them.  They have some really nice colors, but some people complain about their nib creep.  With the L2K being kind of hooded, you shouldn't have much of an issue with that, though.
 
People tend to like "Heart of Darkness" for a true black, although I've never used it.  Aurora Black is my favorite black, although not waterproof.
 
For a Blue-Black, try Noodler's "Legal Lapis", which is also waterproof.  The Lamy Blue/black is also supposed to be fairly water-resistant.
 
I say grab some ink samples and try them out.  Goulet Pens sells little sample bottles, which are really convenient!

Cheers! Will investigate them!