Comment by mrob | Hacker News Reader

Comment by mrob | Hacker News Reader

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Favorite pen: Lamy Safari fountain pen with EF nib, and Noodler's Black ink. I've been using this for many years and it's always reliable. The grip is comfortable and the construction feels solid (it's survived being dropped a few times with no real damage). It's reasonably priced and meant as a practical tool, not a fashion statement like some fountain pens. And Noodler's Black ink is waterproof and will write on the cheapest paper without problems. I've tried many other fountain pens and inks but I always come back to this combination because it's so trouble-free.

Favorite pencil: Rotring 500 0.5mm, with Pilot Neox 4B lead. I never much liked pencils before I found this lead. It's the softest I've found in 0.5mm, softer than most brands of 4B. It lets you write with very little pressure so it feels more like using a pen. The Rotring 500 has the same solid and reliable mechanism as the famous Rotring 600, but a plastic body so it's cheaper and lighter. But despite being a good pencil, I can't recommend it as strongly as the Lamy Safari because of one major flaw - it has no end cap. I reserve it for desktop use because the end pipe is completely unprotected and fragile.

I have no strong preferences for paper and IMO a good writing implement should work with any common paper.

I've settled on virtually the same thing. Safari, medium nib, Noodler's Black. The Lamy pens can be had very cheaply and write well. I have several of the Safaris in various nib sizes as well as an AL-STAR, which is virtually the same thing but with a slightly larger metal barrel (which looks a little nicer).

I have a Pilot Metropolitan fountain pen. It's a nice pen but I don't use it for a few reasons. First, the ink evaporates very quickly. Secondly, the ink is always uniformly dark. I like that I can vary the heaviness of lines by varying the force I use as I write. Third, they are messier.

Interesting: I own the same pen, but do not have the issues you listed. Mine is a Medium, but light inks remain light (i.e. the flow is not thick).

If you meant that you want the thickness of the ink to vary with angle, then yes - most modern fountain pens are designed that way. However, they do also make the "italic" type ones.

With ball points, I can vary the heaviness of lines by altering how hard I press the tip into the paper. Very light pressure yields very faint lines. A fountain pen is uniformly dark, which I suppose what most people want for writing.

Yep - that's true. With some fountain pens, you can vary with angle, but not as much control as with pressure.

Personally, one of the reasons I like fountain pens is that I don't have to apply pressure. :-)

I have the same pen. I prefer dark and rich lines, as long as it dries immediately and does not bleed.

One thing i do with all fountain pens are to resurface the nibs using dremel or grinding on any fine surface. Basically a hit and trial to get fine calligraphy like quality, writing after that is more consistent and in control.

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