Big fountain pen
- Thread starter p.b
- Start date
Vacumatic
Testy
Good point.
I can imagine that grandchildren would enjoy sitting at the dining table with Grandad on a wet sunday afternoon with their own handwriting notebooks and new pens and inks and either draw or write, a simple but useful pleasure. You may be less keen on handing over a vintage Onoto or Mabie Todd for them to practice upon for fear of damaging the nib or causing damage but a £2 chinese pen with a stiff nib should be tough enough and not the end of the world if an accident happens. There are some pen makers from China who are not so good but Jinhao are a good brand.
I understand that some schools are encouraging fountain pen use and children look to obtain a Pen License from schools which is earned by proving that the child knows how to use a pen without too much mess. I forget her name but there was a headmistress in the East End of London,the school where she taught is named after her, who firmly believed that neat and proper handwriting was essential for acedemic success and encouraged all her pupils in what was one of the most deprived areas of Britain to have a pen and to write well.
Vacumatic
Testy
For those of us who are used to the idea that any make of DE blade will fit any make of DE razor it seems logical that any make of converter or cartridge will fit any make of pen, alas, not the case.
Jinhao pens use International size cartridges and converters, basically this refer to the size of the nipple that fits into the pen. The standard converter works ok but not great. You can buy a large bag of cartridges from the likes of WH Smiths, from memory 50 might cost £2 or upgrade the converter to something better, I use a Waterman converter in my pens, happily swapping it from one to another.
Note that not all the converters in this link will fit Jinhao
Search - The Writing Desk
The annoying thing is that the converter plus postage will cost more than the cost of the Jinhao pen including postage from China.
p.b
Forum GOD!
Gentlemen, thank you all for the host of excellent suggestions. I shall enjoy reading up on them and taking my time. In the meantime I have ordered a Jinhao 159 as it's the exact size of a MB 149 but costs a measly £9, arriving tomorrow. This will determine if I really do want a pen that big.
Vacumatic
Testy
Best of luck, let us know how you get along.
As a general rule, they work well straight out of the box. If you want to be extra cautious put a drop of washing up liquid in a cup of warm water and flush the pen with the converter, four or five times should do it, and then repeat with plain water.
I am one of those people who likes objects that can last for generations, whether razors or pens. The idea that my great grand children can still be using my pen or Gillette Tech in 100 years time has some appeal.
Just as a comparison here is a pic of the Montblanc 149 as compared to the Jinhao 159. No one is going to pretend that the two are on a par with regards to quality or writing experience but there are more than a few people who would hesitate before spending £695 for a Montblanc as compared to £9
Last edited:
Because of this thread I visited Peyton Street Pens’ website and ended up ordering a black Ranga ebonite 3NN flat top. This pen is specifically made for Sheaffer nibs, but can be ordered without a nib. I have an orphan 14c Gold Sheaffer factory medium stub nib, which will fit.
HereticHermit
Forum GOD!
Let us know how did it turned out for you. Ranga's work is usually solid and well crafted. It will be good to hear the impressions from someone who gets to use his pen first time.
I already have a PSP Ranga Zayante in brown and black swirl ebonite with a fine 2-tone JoWo nib. I love it: it writes very well with no adjustment necessary and is very well made. I’ll let you know how my latest purchase works out. Several chaps at my pen club have other Ranga fountain pens and they recommend them highly.