Category: Ink

Pen of the Day: Montblanc 146

Laura5 Comments

Montblanc 146 with Caran d'Ache Infra Red

Montblanc 146 with broad nib. Well, I am nothing if not consistent, because I just realized that the last time a 146 was Pen of the Day, it was this very pen.

That’s not my fault, though. It’s because Montblanc makes a great broad nib. Look at this thing.

Montblanc 146 with broad nib Caran d'Ache Infra Red

The ink is Caran d’Ache Infra Red, a red so special it had to be named for something outside the human visible spectrum.

(Although, actually, it’s now been shown that humans can see infrared light under certain circumstances. And that it looks green. So thanks, science, for wrecking everything.)

But science schmience. Ink is my thing. Caran d’Ache Infra Red ink is very visible, very red and very awesome.

Montblanc 146 with broad nib Caran d'Ache Infra Red writing sample

Pen of the Day: Pelikan M205 Transparent Blue (Again)

Laura2 Comments

Pelikan M205 blue demonstrator Caran d'Ache Idyllic Blue ink

Pelikan M205 Transparent Blue with fine nib. This was pen of the day fairly recently, but I’m repeating it because it’s got a brand new bag — I mean, ink.  This time I filled it with Caran d’Ache Idyllic Blue, another pure blue. I really like the combination.

Pelikan M205 blue demonstrator Caran d'Ache Idyllic Blue ink writing sample

I get the feeling that Caran d’Ache inks may not sell very well. They are so expensive in the US that I only buy them on sale, or from Europe. But it can’t just be price: other inks that are even more expensive get a lot of internet buzz. And Caran d’Ache inks fly under the radar.

Sample a few if you want to try something new. They are excellent inks. With great bottles.

Caran d'Ache Idyllic Blue ink bottle

Fountain Pen Style: The Official Preppy Handbook

Laura2 Comments

J. Herbin Vert Pré Callifolio Andrinople Pelikan M600 Pink Pelikan M400nn

If you are a certain (excellent) age, and also a woman, you’ll remember The Official Preppy Handbook, a well-thumbed tartan paperback owned by you and your friends. You’ll remember wearing Shetland sweaters, chinos and boat shoes. You’ll remember pink and green everything.

Why not rock that look with fountain pen ink?  Let’s go retro. Let’s go fun. Let’s go little-whales-on-shorts here.

For me, it’s J. Herbin Vert Pré and Callifolio Andrinople.

J. Herbin Vert Pré Callifolio Andrinople Pelikan M600 Pink Pelikan M400nn

Pen of the Day: Pelikan 400nn

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Pelikan 400nn fountain pen J. Herbin Vert Pre

Pelikan 400nn with medium nib. I still have a few vintage Pelikans hanging around, and this is one I’ve always liked the look of. The original green stripe Pelikan celluloid binde is a beautiful thing. And the 400nn shape is sleek.

Pelikan 400nn fountain pen

I desperately needed to add a little color to my roster of inked pens, so I filled the 400nn with J. Herbin Vert Pré. It’s a little wild and a lot of fun. And it is yet another example of one of my favorite ink categories: the barely legible.

Vintage Pelikans like this often have lovely semi-flex nibs. I couldn’t resist.

Pelikan 400nn fountain pen with J. Herbin Vert Pre ink writing sample

 

Pen of the Day: Parker 75 with Graf von Faber-Castell Carbon Black

Laura3 Comments

Parker 75 sterling silver ciselé

Parker 75 Sterling Silver Ciselé with fine nib. The Parker 75 is a business-like pen with a no-nonsense, no-flair nib.  It a fairly slim pen by today’s standards, but it’s comfortable to use and works without fuss. It could easily be the one pen you use every day.

The 75 comes in a number of finishes. In fact, this weekend I just saw a beautiful, new-to-me 75 pattern that a pen friend had purchased. I’ve had a few 75s over the years, but I’m down to just this one: the US-made flat top sterling silver ciselé pattern.

This is probably the most common 75, but it’s also my favorite. I’d say it’s the iconic Parker 75.

Parker 75 sterling silver ciselé

Being a total wild child, I threw caution to the wind and filled it with a random ink sample, Graf von Faber-Castell Carbon Black.  I know, settle down, right?

Well, it all worked out because Faber-Castell Carbon Black seems to be my kind of black ink: not dark-as-night, but more interesting to me because it has some shading. This ink also writes very smoothly and resists feathering nicely.  It reminds me of all my favorite black inks: Pelikan Brilliant Black and the black inks from Stipula, Montblanc and Seitz-Kreuznach.

Parker 75 sterling silver ciselé Faber-Castell Carbon Black ink writing sample

Montblanc Golden Yellow Ink: Mold Inside the Ink Cartridges?

Laura6 Comments

Montblanc Golden Yellow Ink cartridge with SITB

I was going to send some of my Montblanc Golden Yellow ink cartridges to friends today, when I noticed something strange. There was something floating inside the cartridges that wasn’t just ink.  As you can see, it looks like mold.

This is a first for me. I’ve never seen mold grow inside sealed cartridges before.  I have occasionally seen it develop in bottles of ink that had been opened and partially used. But never in any Montblanc ink.

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Pen of the Day: Pelikan M205 Transparent Blue

Laura2 Comments

Pelikan Classic M205 Transparent Blue Demonstrator with writing sample

Pelikan M205 Transparent Blue with fine nib. It’s full name seems to be the “Classic M205 Demonstrator Transparent Blue Special Edition” which certainly is a mouthful. But that does say it all. The pen is blue, it’s a demonstrator and it has chrome-plated trim.

Despite some internal struggle, I just had to have it. And it really looks great.

Pelikan Classic M205 Transparent Blue Demonstrator

As you can see from that photo above, the piston is black, but the spindle and other fittings are a lighter color — beige or gray. That makes the assembly less obtrusive, but still visible. I like Pelikan’s attention to detail there.

The only things I don’t love about this pen, and I knew both going in, are the Pelikan steel nib and the pen’s light weight. There’s nothing to do about the weight, since I don’t like writing with the pen posted. But as for the nib, because it’s a Pelikan I can swap in other nibs. And maybe I’ll have the steel nib stubbed or something. As we say in Chicago, “I know a guy.”

But, the look of the pen, I just love.

Pelikan Classic M205 Transparent Blue Demonstrator