Ink Journal Scans Part 1

I have been trying to keep an ink journal for a few months now.  I am now finding that the hardest thing is now making scans that are true to the color of the ink.  The paper is pure white Clairefontaine 90g/sm paper.  The first page has almost too much contrast, and the others, maybe too little, but it will get better as I go along.  The first date is when it was inked, then the ink, then the pen, with nib size, and finally there is a date in parenthesis when I flushed that ink out of that pen.  

(Noodler's Liberty's Elysium, Noodler's Kung Te Cheng, Pharmacist Urkundentinte, MontBlanc Oyster Grey, Pilot Iroshizuku Yama Guri, Waterman Serenity Blue, Iroshizuku Kon Peki, Noodler's Bulletproof Black, Noodler's Green Marine, Noodler's Black Swan in English Roses)

(Diamine Poppy Red, Pharmacist Turkish Night, Iroshizuku Kon Peki, Noodler's Bulletproof Black, Noodler's Kung Te Cheng, Waterman Serenity Blue, Pharmacist Turkish Night Diluted, Noodler's Bulletproof Black, MontBlanc Irish Green, Pharmacist Urkundentinte, MontBlanc Oyster Grey)

(MontBlanc Toffee Brown, Noodler's Bulletproof Black, Iroshizuku Tsuki yo, Noodler's Apache Sunset, Waterman Serenity Blue, Noodler's Polar Black, Noodler's Liberty's Elysium, Waterman Serenity Blue, MontBlanc Irish Green,  Noodler's Black Swan in English Roses, Iroshizuku Kon Peki)

Sheaffer Legacy 2

I know that I should never walk into a brick and mortar pen shop without an idea of what I am coming to look at... 

Over the Easter weekend (end of March, beginning of April, 2013) my family was in Little Rock.  I have a habit of visiting several places... not least of all, Vanness Pens.  As much as I would like to make a plug for them, the reality is, they still exist because they do what they do so well, and their work speaks for itself.   

Needless to say, there are a handful of pens that I have bought online, but I generally try out the more expensive ones... you never know... there are always little differences even within the same make and model.

I went in with some intention of test driving a sailor pen, trying to talk myself into a Parker Vanishing Point, pondering the Faber-Castell basic, I even thought about the Waterman Exception.  I loved the nibs on the Sailors, not sure about the body... still can't get over the clip placement on the Vanishing Point... the Basic did not sit right with me... and I am still fascinated by the Waterman Exception.

I perused the cases... tried several pens... 

Eventually, I made it to the Sheaffer case.  

I had made an offhand comment to Mike Vanness several months ago about my perceived decline in the quality of Sheaffer products, he told me I shouldn't give up too easily on them, they still had several great products.  Several months ago I tried a Legacy and I wasn't sure.  I liked how it felt, I liked the nib... but I couldn't get over the "modern Sheaffer" hang up.

Shortly after I had tried the Legacy... I acquired a MontBlanc 149.  I did a writeup here... Review of the MontBlanc 149 by a former anti-montblancite

Somewhere in there FPN's jar reminded me of the Legacy and of PFMs... That has stayed on my mind...

So THIS trip, after trying it once before, after writing with a MB 149 for several months... when Mike took the Legacy 2 out of the case... it didn't take much convincing.  I haven't looked back.

I got the black lacquer with gold trim.  I have wondered if I should have gotten one with a silver cap... but when I see pictures of them all together, my eyes are always drawn to this one.

 It is a hefty pen.  Lite pens make my hand cramp.  It is not in any way unbalanced.  I am not in the habit of posting my caps, but I could if I wanted to, and it would not make the pen unwieldy.

I love the inlaid nib.  I went for a medium, and I would say it is fairly true to that.  The section is also very nice.  I would say it has a very similar girth to a Lamy 2000, but it barely tapers.  The cap is held in place by an O-ring on this model.  I have tried several hand holds, and they are all comfortable.  I wrote lesson plans and lecture notes with it and did not have any problems with fingers slipping on the lacquer or finding any annoying bumps, threads, etc.

In my ignorance, I had glossed over the filling mechanism until after I bought it.  I know the pen is a reincarnation of the PFM (Pen for Men) and I am aware of the touchdown filling system... but it really is a treat.  It really works well.  I also like the idea that I can swap out the touchdown adapter with a cartridge.  I don't think I have used a cartridge in close to 15 years... but the adaptability is nice.

I will admit to being mystified by the touchdown filling system.  I understand that it compresses the chamber when you depress the plunger... essentially squeezing the sack inside the converter, and that a small grove in the end of the rod allows air back in, allowing the sack to return to normal and suck in ink... but how does it let air in when you are pulling the plunger out... The only thing I can figure is that the plunger rod tapers ever so slightly at the end...

Also, how difficult are these to repair if something breaks?  I guess there is always the cartridge or squeeze converter options...

Comparing it to other pens... from left to right: Noodler's Nib Creeper, Sheaffer 330, Lamy 2000, Sheaffer Legacy 2, Noodler's Ahab, Lamy Safari, MontBlanc 149.  I thought about throwing a few others in there... but I had a black pen theme going... so I stuck with it.

I am happy with the pen.  If you have been on the fence and can find one... go for it.  I don't know about the Legacy 1 or the Heritage... but I like the Legacy 2...

Jinhao 159 Desk Pen

I have been in the market for a desk pen.  I have looked at several of the ones available... and have come up short.  I find the ultra skinny pen... painful.  I have looked at the MontBlanc 149 desk pens, but I am a school teacher, and the price is prohibitive.

So, my solution was to make my own.  I would not recommend this with any pen you have sentimental value for... or that can't be replaced for less then 10$.  If you read the title and thought Jinhao had come out with a desk pen... I am sorry to disappoint.

We start with a piece of beveled wood.  I decided I like it a little square, but round works well.  If you don't have a router, it is easy to find pieces this size at hobby and craft stores.  It was important to me to have a little heft... but probably not necessary.  Part of the reason I went with the Jinhao 159 is the amount of metal in the pen.  I don't think it is going to put undue stress on the pen or cap.

I removed the cap finial and the clip   The finial is brass.  I don't think this would have worked well if it was not metal.  I carefully drilled a small hole and inserted a screw.

I drilled a larger hole in the wood, so that I could angle the pen down when it was drilled in.

I dry fitted everything to make sure it was going to work.

I stained it with some cherry wood stain... I liked it but realized I wanted more shine.

I am very happy with it.  It is sturdy, it is easy to remove the pen and I am happy.  

I really like the actual pen a lot.  I have heard people complain about the lacquer chipping off, etc.  I like to think this will help avoid that.  

Spending Money on Pens NOT Cases

I am a school teacher.... I have always thought that carries a lot of meaning.  1st of all... I write a lot.  2nd... I can't carry just one or two pens.  3rd... I don't have much money.

I have written with fountain pens since grade school.  I have had plenty of time to acquire a lot of pens.  Different pens get tasked with different things.  I have black for writing on most things, blue for anything that is going to be copied (so you can tell the original), red for marking normal homework, green for marking typed-homework, non-feathering ink for sticky notes, a random color in a broad nib for long writing sessions... etc...

I hit a point at the beginning of this school year where I was going to have to travel for a couple classes.  I always had a number of pens that stayed in my desk... but I kept finding that I was needing them.  I needed a better solution to just taking what fit in my coat pocket or the pen or two in my shirt pocket.

I have a big case at home that I keep everything in... but it holds something like 30 pens.... too big to take everywhere with me.

I looked at a number of pen cases, pen pouches, pen wraps and penvelopes.  There were several that I liked very much... but for the cost, I could buy a decent pen or two.  I was about to but a 80$ pen case when I found this at a local office supply store for 1.25$ on sale.

It is a simple pencil case, but I had a moment of clarity and bought it.  The other two pens are ones that I carry on my person.  The little silver bullet shaped one is a Fisher space pen... the other is a Montblanc 163 rollerball.  The paper for the discipline referral forms is coated and FP ink does not penetrate.  I got the MB as a freebie of sorts when I bought my MB 149.  It's not bad... I wouldn't spend money on it... but it isn't bad... it's the one I had people so they have a nice writing experience... without using one of my fountain pens.

The moment of clarity, was the it would fit a cigar case I had bought a few years ago from a pen store in Arkansas (Vanness Pens).

From left to right... Small vile of extra ink... in this case Pilot's Kon Peki, Extra Led, non-latex eraser, Retro-51 Hex-O-Matic Mechanical Pencil, Parker Jotter fitted with a fisher space pen refill, Permanent marker, Platinum Preppy highlighter with Noodler's Firefly, Platinum Preppy with Kung Te-Cheng, TWSBI 540 with Pharmacist "Urkundentinte"....

The TWSBI gets slipped into my coat pocket a lot of the time... it shares time in the case with a Noodler's Ahab.  The other 5 there are pretty standard.  The ink in preppies doesn't EVER seem to evaporate... so they just stay there until I need them without worry of them getting knocked around.

The pens in the hard case alternate through my nicer pens.

When I bought it, there were cardboard sleeves inside.  I took felt with sticky backing and installed it inside. It has been brilliant.  Right noew, there is a Parker 51, MB 149, and my Noodler's Music Neponset.

The hard case cost me next to nothing... less then 20$ I think (it was on sale 5 years ago)  Felt was 5$.  Soft case was 1.25$

I feel like my pens are safe.  The soft case is sturdy enough that nothing is going to fall out or get snapped.  The hard case holds all my nicer pens safely.  It is big enough to hold a MB 149 with ease.  Yet not so big that a Parker 51 bounces around.

What do you all use?  Do you go for the ready made solution (nothing wrong with that)?  Do you retro fit something else?  Do you do something completely original?  I am interested in what other people do.  I have a feeling there are as many solutions as there are pen-users.

Pharmacist's Urkundentinte

I got a package from Belgium today.  It was from FPN's own ... Pharmacist.  I got two inks.  The one I am looking at today is the Urkundentinte, or Iron Gall Document Ink.

It really doesn't do any justice to post a scan, so I put up a video... check it out.

MB Toffee Brown vs PR Copper Burst

I have been a fan of Private Reserve Copper Burst for a while.  I had held off on Montblanc's Toffee Brown because it seemed so similar.  I tried to find review that compared one to the other to no avail.  Finally, I found Toffee Brown on sale, so I bought a bottle.  Here is what I found.

Not much to tell from that picture....

This is with a different camera... still hard to tell.

From this angle and light... I can start seeing a little bit of a difference.  The top 3 lines are MB Toffee Brown, the Bottom 2 lines are PR Copper Burst.

I scanned in the sample, cropped out a C from each color and enlarged.  The Toffee Brown seems more saturated (but that could be the pen) and a little bit more.... purple.

With the above picture, I took samples of the lightest and darkest for each sample, compared them, found something in between and dumped the color.  I think it is somewhat representative of the difference.... well... maybe it slightly exaggerates the difference.  It is not spot on of the color.... there is so much shading going on in both inks.

I wouldn't necessarily say TB has more red.  It does have a slight hue to it... and CB is just more brown... I guess.

I like both inks a lot.  They are slightly different, but I don't know I would be able to tell the difference in 5 years if I went back and read my journal, trying to differentiate.

Review of the MontBlanc 149 by a former anti-montblancite

So, I will be the first to admit that I have said nasty things about MontBlanc, and those who buy their pens.  If you look, you can find all over Fountain Pen Network... my disapproval of the company, the pens, and most especially... the cost.

I have been using fountain pens for a long time.  I first used a dip pen from HobbyLobby... 20 years ago... when I was in grade school.  I made quills from goose feathers my sophomore year of high school (not very practical... but amused my English teacher. They did not last for long...) and I used a kit-pen with a steel nib for college.  I have been through Lamy, Sheaffer, Waterman, Pelikan, Pilot, Noodler's. Platinum, Parker, Stypen, Wearever, Retro 51, and even some Hero pens.  Through it all, I swore I would never use a MontBlanc.

I now use a lot of pens for work.  I am a history teacher.  I LIKE taking notes... which is why we give so many notes....

Having children softens you.... When you are teaching your children not to hate something, or to have an open mind... it has an effect on you.  I can remember being in and out of the great ink battles shortly after Noodler's came out with ink.  I finally concluded that it is.... ink... just ink.  The thing that really urked me was that there were people that just would NOT try a brand because of one thing or another.  I always thought they were silly... but my MB thing was different... I had just cause... or so I thought.  After several years, I concluded that if someone handed me a MontBlanc for cheap... I would give it a whirl... just to see what the fuss was about... but I was not about to be impressed...

Shawn Newton ... the infamous 'watch_art' may be the most laid-back fountain pen user I have ever met... actually he may be the most laid back person I have ever met that still works in education.  I went down to visit him in Arkansas, the last time I was down south.  We talked about pens, ink, students, and all the personalities on Fountain Pen Network.  I realized that I was as judgmental about somethings as some of the people I complain about... the anti-this or the anti-that.  He handed me a MB 149 and I thought it was a nice pen... but I didn't know if I thought it was the end-all-be-all.  That trip, I also got to go to a pen shop in Little Rock... Vanness... and played with a Waterman Exception Slim, a Sheaffer PFM (or rather the reincarnation... think it is called the Legacy), and a Pilot Metal Falcon.  I loved the look of the Waterman and the nib wasn't bad, it was just so scrawny... it hurt.  I hated the the look of the Sheaffer Legacy, but loved the feel in my hand; the nib was... generic.  I loved the weight of the Metal Falcon... but the Soft-Broad skipped waaaay too much.  I was lost as to what pen I wanted next.... everything seemed inadequate.

Then I visited Craig's List.  Idle hands are never good, and teachers get summers off... I found someone listing "Montblanc Meisterstück Le Grand Fountain Pen and Meisterstück Le Grand Rollerball Pen". They were listed cheap... really cheap.  If you really want a price tag... look at this post To Buy Or Not To Buy ... Montblanc.  I bit...

The pens were not what was advertised.  Pictured are the pens I got.  The top is a MontBlanc Meisterstuck 149 fountain pen, the bottom is a MB 163 Roller-ball.  Both pens were damaged.  The 163 has a crack in the cap, but it is not a big deal.  I may fix it someday, but I am in no rush... I am not really a RB user.  The 149 had a crack in the finial (top of the cap where the star is.)   That did bother me.  The seller did give me a discount because of the cracks... so I can't complain too much...

Finding a rough manufactured date was not difficult using this resource:  http://www.fountainp...montblanc-149s/   It had plastic threads on the filler mechanisum, a 14K two-tone nib, and a split ebonite feed.  Some of that can be seen below.  It is a late 80's model.

I did send it off to MontBlanc.  It took 10 days from when I put it in the mail to when I got it back... this afternoon.  I did have some issues with the quote... I called customer service.  Both times I called, I talked to Miriam.  She was one of the nicest, most knowledgeable, customer service reps I have ever worked with, and everything was taken care of to my satisfaction.

I did loose a few things... They replaced the entire body... and the entire cap... The only original parts are the clip and the nib.  The most important part... the finial was fixed.

I also gained brass threads on the the filler mechanism....

While loosing the split ebonite feed...

All things considered, I think I came out ahead.  Considering I got a brand new pen (save the nib) for a very nominal fee... I think I came out ahead.

As far as the pen goes... I said earlier that when I was looking at some other higher endish pens there were things I really liked and things that really bugged me.  I just was not satisfied with any of those pens.  So I guess we start with the superficial... This pen is a looker....

I never get tired of looking at this pen.  There is something very classic about it.  This is the first pen of mine that people spot in my pocket and know it is a fountain pen and comment... and I have been using fountain pens for a long time.  There is a flow to it that really works.  I know the material is fragile... but it does keep a shine to it that tries hard to impress... and I don't drop pens... 

I don't see it as "bling" per-se ... but it is darn perty...

How does it feel?.... well... do you like big pens.... If you answer "YES" than it is a very comfortable pen.  The first night I had it inked, I wrote 6 extra pages in the journal... it was just so comfy. Here's how it compares to some others.

Front to back, or left to right: Parker 51, Lamy 2000, TWSBI 540, Noodler's Ahab, Lamy Safari, MontBlanc 149, Noodler's Neponset.

It is a big fat pen... no denying it.  It does not fit in my shirt pocket very well.  It fits fine in a sports blazer inside pocket.  It will not fit in my pen case.  I have really considered getting a Franklin-Christoph Penvelope 6.

The nib... 

(I love the effect of Pilot Kon-Peki on the Nib)

CAUTION:  Don't use this pen outside... you will get a sunburn on the bottom of your nose.

It is not the smoothest nib, but it did not have the best owner for the past 20 years.  The little bit of tooth can be smoothed out with a little micromesh.  It is a little springy.  It is more springy that any of the modern Bock nibs, less springy than a Pilot Falcon.  I am content with the nib.  Any of my problems have easy fixes. It looks like a medium to me, but I am not an expert...

There is always a comment on these reviews about price.  This has always been a bone of contention with me. How can people spend that kind-of money... etc... Here is the thing.  I am satisfied.  I could have bought 3 pens adding up to 800$ that could have made me happy... combining the best features.  I am not blown away by the pen, but I am satisfied.  A good point is that there is a strong used market for these pens... they can be had for half the price... on par with a lot of other vintage pens.  Even new, they can be found for 650$ (MB lists them for upwards of 800$ or more).  I have been working on a project to teach geography to my students using celestial navigation... I fund raised... and one of the things I was able to buy was this...

THAT... boys and girls... is an Astra IIIB Deluxe sextant.  This is one of the most affordable sextants that still retain maximum accuracy... it is a sweet tool... and I dropped 770$ for it and some accessories.  When I did  restorations on antique furniture, we spent a whole lot more on tools and equipment. Don't even get me started on what people will pay to have the latest Apple IPad etc...

What I am trying to say is that the Montblanc 149 removed distractions in my writing.  It is easy to use for long periods of time, it holds a ton of ink, and I don't spend all my time thinking about other pens that I am not writing with...

Every profession has its tools.  Sometimes the name on the tool is Klien, Apple, CodaBow, Global Knives, Dewalt... and sometimes it is Montblanc.

So... in conclusion... 

Dear Montblanc Users,

I have offended a lot of you in the past.   I was wrong.  I take back everything I said about them being COMPLETELY overrated (maybe just a little tiny bit overrated).  I take back what I said about the price... they have their reasons.  I am not saying I am sold over.  These may be the only MB pens I ever have, but I understand.  I was not disappointed...  I will say the MB 149 is one of the first pens in a long time that did not disappoint me... I will start calling y'all Montblanc users... not people who have been used by Montblanc.

I am not over the moon... but I am satisfied...

Sincerely,

Tom