Faber-Castell Loom, Pelikan Königsblau, Squared Moleskine Review

I bought this in 2015 from Metzner in Bamberg, Germany. I got the metallic blue pen with fine nib. This is quite a heavy pen but the barrel has a very nice feel and grip. The plastic clip is spring-loaded but sometimes makes a squeaking noise when it opens. 

The pen has a decent weight from the metal barrel and section. The pen's weight applies pressure on the page, which means you only need to move the pen across the page to create a stroke. I do like the dotted design on the nib.

I inked this pen with some Pelikan ink, called Königsblau, which has a royal blue colour that resembles the pen cap.

The pen writes quite smoothly for a fine nib. The nib produces a line that is finer than my Waterman Kultur with a fine nib.  I find that the nib dries out when unused for a few seconds and can be a bit hard to restart. On the other hand, the ink dries quickly on the paper and is probably helped by the fineness of the line. The backside of the nib writes as smoothly as the normal side of the nib. This is good for getting even finer lines.

The nib lays down a solid line and the ink flow is consistent. I didn't see much variation in ink shading, but a broader nib might show some. The edges of the ink strokes are sharp.

I used a Moleskine notebook and the ink didn't bleed through the page too much. However, because the ink is quite dark, you can see the writing from the other pages coming through the pages.

Lamy AL-star, J. Herbin Orange Indien, Dotted Leuchtturm1917

I bought my Lamy AL-star in 2015 from Müller in Bamberg, Germany. I got the copper-orange 2015 special edition pen with medium nib. The aluminium barrel and overall design gives the pen an industrial look-and-feel. It is a practical pen and can easily handle rough situations on a daily basis. I do have to see how well the anodised copper colour will hold up to wear-and-tear.

The pen writes quite well but the smooth spot on the nib is quite small. I find that the nib dries out more quickly when uncapped than my other fountain pens. The pen is quite long when the cap is posted, but this isn't a problem. The pen has a nice industrial feel because of its aluminium body and nib that is devoid of any fancy design.

I inked this pen with some J. Herbin ink, called orange indien, which has a copper colour that resembles the pen.

This was my first time writing in a Leuchtturm1917 notebook and I had a bit of trouble writing because sometimes the ink appeared to "slide off" the paper as it wasn't being absorbed. This resulted in some very light ink strokes that are subsequently hard to read. However, I didn't have the same issues when writing with my Waterman Kultur with the darker vert réséda ink.

Because the ink wasn't being absorbed into the paper fast enough, I found myself smudging the ink when making corrections to previous things I wrote. It is currently autumn here in Bamberg, Germany and maybe 8 degrees in my room, which may be affecting the drying time.

The bleed-through is a bit worse than for a Moleskine notebook. Sometimes I can see blotches of ink on the other side of the page when writing at my normal speed. This is not a thinker's notebook!

Waterman Kultur, J. Herbin Vert Réséda, and Lined Moleskine Review

I bought my 12EUR Waterman Kultur in 2012 from a local supermarket store in Grenoble, France. I have the clear and colourless demonstrator pen with a fine nib. I think this is a good pen to use in everyday situations when you don't want to worry about damaging it. It's probably the only pen that I would let others use without feeling protective. I like the clip because it is spring-loaded, which means the clip is less likely to "over bend" on thick sheets of paper or clothing.

The pen feels sturdy and of good length when the cap is posted. The pen is quite light and does not apply much pressure on the paper under its own weight. The line produced by the fine tip nib is quite thick and looks more like it came from a medium tip. The backside of the nib is much thinner, but very scratchy.

I inked this pen with some J. Herbin ink, called vert réséda, which has a nice light green colour.

The ink flows easily from the nib and takes a few seconds to dry. These few seconds allow the ink that's already on the page to react (through water tension) to subsequent movements of the nib. This results in ink strokes with light and dark shading and this gives the writing a bit of character. It's a bit like writing with water colours.

The edges of the pen strokes are sharp. I did notice that the nib sounds and sometimes feels like it's being dragged over a sheet of fine-grained sandpaper.

This was my first time using a Moleskine notebook and the pages are thinner than I expected, although the ink didn't bleed through to the other side that much. My way of avoiding bleed-through is to write faster, thereby enhancing my productivity! I get ink imprints on opposing pages if I close the notebook before the ink has completely dried. My natural handwriting is quite large so the narrow ruled line made my pen strokes feel a bit cramped.

Ink and Notebook Update

This weekend, I went on a bit of a stationery shopping spree. I went to my local stationer, called  Metzner, located on Hauptwachstraße 28, Bamberg. It's a decently sized store with a large range of pens, but a fairly small range of notebooks. I decided to get a white hard covered A6-sized dotted Leuchtturm1917 notebook. It's a German brand that sells slightly cheaper than an equivalent Moleskine notebook.

I'm doing tutorials and practicals for a compiler construction course and I'll use this notebook to jot down some teaching notes and the answers to the practicals. I'm also supervising three software engineering groups and I'll use this notebook to track their progress. 

I got some A5-sized soft covered Moleskine notebooks to write my research notes and German language lessons. They're very simple looking with a single-threaded spine to keep all the pages together. I wonder how well the cardboard cover will hold up because it isn't laminated.

When I was at the counter to pay for my Leuchtturm1917 notebook, I spotted a collection of fountain pen inks. I had been looking for pots of ink by the fountain pen displays but couldn't see any. They have some Lamy and J. Herbin inks. I have never tried J. Herbin inks so I thought I'd get an orange indien for writing comments and vert réséda for normal writing. I already have Pelikan royal blue ink for everyday writing. 

I think I'm all set up for some serious writing and hope to have reviews of my pens, inks, and papers up soon!

Fountain Pens

I've recently moved to Bamberg, Germany and purchased a few more fountain pens. I thought I'd document the fountain pens I own, based on brand. I have ink converters for each brand so that I can use a variety of inks. I use ink cartridges when I'm travelling because of the convenience of not needing to bring a bottle of ink. 

Waterman

This is a French company with some American history.

Charleston

I bought this in 2010 from Whitcoulls in Auckland, New Zealand. I have the ebony black fountain pen with gold trimmings and medium nib. It writes very smoothly, although the nib is quite small so it looks out of proportion with the cigar shaped barrel. Sometimes the cap comes loose during writing when it is posted on the barrel. The cap screws on, which helps to prevent ink from leaking out into your bag or pocket. I was able to get a 15% discount off the 350NZD price because I was a student.

Hémisphère

I bought this in 2012 from Longchamp in Paris, France. I have the matt black fountain pen with chrome trimmings and medium nib. It writes smoothly, even after accidentally dropping it twice on carpeted floor from waist height with the nib pointing down. It runs a bit too wet because of my accidental drops, but it is still smooth. The barrel still has its matt look even after a lot of use and posting the cap. I got this for about 76EUR.

Kultur

I bought this in 2012 from a local supermarket store in Grenoble, France. I have the clear and colourless demonstrator fountain pen with a fine nib. For a 12EUR fountain pen, it writes okay without been too scratchy. This is a good pen to use in all conditions and when you don't care about damaging it. It's probably the only pen that I will let others use without feeling possessive. I quite like the clip because it is spring-loaded, which means you're less likely to "over bend" the clip on thick sheets of paper or clothing.

Lamy

This is a German company that makes fountain pens for students and corporate people.

AL-star

I bought this in 2015 from Müller in Bamberg, Germany. I got the copper-orange (2015 special edition) fountain pen with medium nib. It has an aluminium body and writes quite well but the smooth spot on the nib is quite small. The nib dries out quite quickly when uncapped. The entire design is quite industrial looking, but I have to see how well the anodised copper colour will hold up to wear and tear. I got this for about 20EUR.

Logo

I bought this in 2010 from Whitcoulls in Auckland, New Zealand. I got the brushed fountain pen with a medium nib. The nib is very scratchy and should be sent away and smoothed out. The brushed finish on the slender barrel makes the pen very slippery and hard to write with. I got this with a 35% discount for about 27NZD.

Faber-Castell

This is a Germany company that makes art supplies.

Loom

I bought this in 2015 from Metzner in Bamberg, Germany. I got the metallic blue fountain pen with fine nib. This is quite a heavy pen but the barrel has a very nice feel and grip. The clip is spring-loaded but sometimes makes a squeaking noise when it opens. The pen writes quite smoothly for a fine nib. I do like the design on the nib.

Monte Verde

This is an American company.

Artista Crystal

I bought this in 2012 from Gibert Joseph in Grenoble, France. I got the clear and colourless fountain pen with a medium nib. It writes fairly smoothly but it is quite wet. The metal grip section is quite slippery and this makes it difficult to write with. The barrel attracts quite a bit of fingerprints and makes it look dirty. The cap screws on, which helps to prevent ink from leaking into your bag or pocket. I got this for about 40EUR.

ONLINE

This is a Germany company that focusses on making fountain pens for children and students, but has a few styles for corporate people.

Vision Fresh

I bought this in 2015 from Müller in Bamberg, Germany. I got the juicy green fountain pen with medium nib. It writes very smoothly but it is quite broad and wet. The cap has a solid click when you close the pen. It has a spring-loaded clip, although the clip does curve out quite a bit from the cap. The cap is lined with plastic to protect the end of the barrel when you post the cap. The cap posts quite securely on the barrel.