March 17, 2013
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Fountain pens...do you use one?
Do you recognize this and when if anytime have last used one? Know how to refill?
Sitting on my desk for a year or two, this is my father's fountain pen, a Parker 51, my dad was a lawyer in the 60s and 70s,.The Parker company has been around for quite a while and the new ink is a blue/black, picked up from Staples. Re-filling simple with internal squeeze mechanism. Actually did two handwritten letters recently.Some of you, no doubt, remember it was grade four when we were allowed to write with pen and ink, in those wooden desks with holes for ink wells,
You may have had the fountain pens at school with the insertable cartridges....and messy for little hands.Grad student friend said..I have a pair of fountain pens and their main use is for scribbling, drawing chemical structures, jotting down ideas. and taking notes during seminars! And the Safaris come with their own refill mechanism (a converter) or cartridges.Refilling the pen? There are a few different types with regard to the filling mechanism: http://captainchang.com/pens/filling.html
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captainchang.com
The blogger above is a collector of fountain pens and like this comment.." Many pen aficionados will tell you about the romance of using obsolete writing implements, about how it forces them to slow down and think, about how it provides a much needed psychological break from this hectic Electronic Age, and that this alone is reason enough to use a fountain pen.
Poppycock. If the above reasons aren't enough, you certainly shouldn't be swayed by these warm and fuzzy emotional appeals. My pens aren't for writing the Great American Novel, they get used for grocery lists, scribbling on scrap paper, meeting notes, doodles, and credit slip signing. This is hardly the dignified image of slow elegant writing in a bygone era. They are easier to write with than ballpoints (for me), and that's good enough."I am unlikely to take up this collection hobby but the research has been interesting. -
What are your memories dear readers?
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Comments (2)
I used Parker pens for many years -- they were easy to fill, and in those days ball point pens were new, and would also leave inky spots on little fingers. We were constantly scolded for pressing too hard with pens -- when my parents inherited the dining room table from my dad's family, my mother found his arithmetic problems embossed into the wood! Fountain pens helped us to not press too hard!
@slmret - Thanks for your memories! Yes wooden desks did have lots of graffiti. I wonder is teaching cursive writing will become a thing of the past...I like the feel of the fountain pen but have to admit a fine nipped flow pen is easy writing.