Platinum Preppy: An artist fountain pen review
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- Опубликовано: 12 июл 2024
- Pen lovers,
Today I will be looking at the first fountain pen I ever bought, (and also the cheapest) the Platinum Preppy!
Today, we are going to look at the parts that make up this pen, fill it with ink, draw for a bit, and then I will tell you what I think of it as a tool for creating art!
You can find the pen here:
bit.ly/PtnmPpyF
I started off trying to use Platinum Carbon Black(which I love!):
bit.ly/PltCrbBlk
...but it came out too thick (I think my nib needs maintenance). Check out the ink I used instead, Noodler's Bulletproof Black:
bit.ly/NdlrBltBlk
Please like and subscribe if you want to see more content from me.
bit.ly/3iVayOb
Thanks for stopping by! 
Развлечения
Thank you for your work! I love fountain pens and as it turned out, your artwork, too! Just love it!!!
Aww thank you! There’s more to come! Appreciate your support!
I bought mine by chance and fell in love with it. Bought 2 red ones and a black one for school but ended up losing 2 and was devastated. Am going to replace them and once I get through all my cartridges I am definitely getting converters.
The converters cost more than the pen, but they’re worth it. Platinum and Sailor, in my opinion, make the best converters in the industry, and the preppy is an absolute gem!
You can also make them eyedropper pen
You can also just refill the cartridge with a syringe
I love my ef preppy! I have platinum carbon ink and haven't had any problems.
You know, I actually found that there was an issue with my nib many months later. I made a video about how I fixed it, and now the pen takes all types of inks with no issues. You can check out the video on this channel if you are interested!
@@stepheninks I've been slowly working my way through them!
A bought a couple of medium, fine, and extrafine preppies. My first ever fountain pen was a Parker fountain pen, about 35 years ago. I still have it and it still works perfectly. I've also got more Parkers, and a Faber-Castell. Then some other little fountain pen from France, and a Penalli ( might it come from Germany?). But I do love these Preppies, to my untrained hand.
A preppy was my first, but It is still a great pen, and I have mine to this day. It holds its own against pens that are 10x as expensive. That’s pretty impressive!
Thank you a lot specially to the tips on the inks ! And that I can actually make art with a fountain pen ! Oh ! And thank you again to show that "internet artists" are not perfect ! 😉
If you’re looking for imperfect art, this is the channel for you!
I liked this affordable pen when I started fountain pen writing. Very light weight and nice looking. The downside is that the feed part cannot be dissembled. So some inks with big carbon particles would be hard to thoroughly cleaned out. A little bit OCD myself, I'm not sure if I want to put carbon ink in this pen. The nib is slightly less steady compared to Pilot Kakuno or Penmanship, so I prefer writing with the latter more. But overall still a good starter pen and it's cheap and quality!
Yeah, the funny thing about that feed is that it looks like it SHOULD be possible to remove it. I even tried once. Cleaning it is an issues as well, since when you pull water into the feed, it kind of stays there until it gets “written out.” I’ve had a few fills post-cleaning where the ink came out really watery for even a few days.
I still love this pen though. If anyone wants to dive into fountain pens and doesn’t have a lot of money, this would be my recommendation. I have pens that cost 10-20 times this one, and I still use it from time to time. It’s inked up right now, actually!
@@stepheninks this is really a good choice if you don't mind the clean look gets unclean lol! The best thing about this pen is that it's super air-tight so that it can keep the ink for a long long time which is really economical if the ink is expensive. I like that ;)
Stephen hey! Thank you for a review! May I ask for how long did this pen lasted for you? I saw some other reviewers saying it will last a year if taken care.
I have had this one for 6 years, and it’s still going strong! Actually it was my first fountain pen. I have had to tune the nib once (there’s a video of that process only my channel), but there’s no indication that it is going to break down any time soon! If it did, probably the most likely thing to happen would be the cap cracking, but it hasn’t yet.
I wanted to try one of those but they do look cheap, since I can only buy those by mail maybe I'll try one of those some other time. I prefer the Kaküno aesthetics.
The one difference I can see between this nib and the Kakuno is that the Platinum nibs are dryer, which is nice when using cheaper paper, or if you (like me) are a bit of a control freak!
Hi, if the nib maybe to much used, do I buy a new pen or can I just buy a nib? Thanks for all information in this video. 🙏🏼
For this pen, you’re more likely going to need to buy a new one if the nib goes bad on you. If you love this brand and have a few laying around, you might find that keeping a broken one around for parts is a good idea. If you’re looking for a low budget pen that you can replace the nib on, I highly recommend the Lamy Safari.
Hello Stephen. Jim from Madrid, Spain (a New Yorker expat living abroad for... Love! - my wife and kids).
I am an "artist in the wors" (that is... always learning and growing - 😁😁) and I have been really getting into Fountain Pens for Art purposes since 6 months ago, though I always used fountain pens in my previous "business life"... I am also an artist on a budget, though (who isn't, right?!), but I was recently surprised with a Lamy Safari with an EF nib as a gift that just blew my mind for Sketching and the fine lines it produces...
But... I have a question for you, if you can help me...
I am looking to buy a few more (maybe 2 or 3) fountain pens with the finest line width possible at an affordable price (the cheaper the better) but with sufficient quality so they don't break nor clog easy, I mean, I need them to last a while for daily drawing purposes but sturdy to carry them wherever in my bag and that they won't dry easily (I use SketchInk from Rohrer and Klinger as waterproof ink for my line and wash with watercolors, as well as other water soluble inks too, depending on what I'm using them for artistically speaking). And I always use my own inks, never buy cartridges (it's way more ECO FRIENDLY!).
WHICH FOUNTAIN PENS WOULD YOU RECOMMEND? (Platinum Preppy, Lamy Safari, etc...).
Sorry for my long message and I hope you can help me figure it out!.
Cheers from Sunny and Lovely Spain!😁😎👍
I think it’s going to be hard for me to recommend “budget pens” in European countries, because some brands will cost more or less based on your geographic location.
I highly recommend you check out the Penbbs 308 if you are able to access ebay from where you are. It’s a very well-made and (relatively) inexpensive cartridge/converter pen that even comes with a converter!
I think that my favorite budget pens are from Japanese pen manufacturers like Platinum and Pilot. The Kakuno (Pilot) is pretty affordable, and even made from 80% recycled plastic if you’re interested in being environmentally friendly. The Platinum Preppy is very affordable as well, and you can get the exact same (excellent) nib and feed setup for just a bit more in aluminum if you buy a Platinum Plasir.
I’m guessing that Japanese pens are not going to be easy to get ahold of in Europe. For European pens, I think that the Faber Castell Grip has an excellent nib. I don’t like the build quality of this one so much, but better pen bodies are available with the same excellent nib if you’re willing to shell out a bit more cash.
I haven’t experienced this yet, but I have heard wonderful things about Diplomat pens (made in Germany). The Magnum is a fairly reasonably priced pen that they produce.
As an expat, if you have any ties to the US, and are planning to travel, I would sometimes purchase something and mail it to a relative I was planning to visit, and ask them to hold on to it for me, then take it back with me when I went back. Kind of an overly complex solution, but it works if you can be patient. I actually got a lot of my European pens from there when I lived in Korea (Japanese pens were easier to find there). Lots of options, hope that helps.
This is my first time trying fountain pen, I'm glad to hear that it can be used as a sketching pen as well. Are fountain pen ink non-waterproof, or are there any that I can use with light washes?
That was my first question when I started using fountain pens for art.
Most fountain pen inks are dye based, meaning that they will bleed when exposed to water. Also, you should know that waterproof “India” inks are not meant to be used in fountain pens because they will clog and ruin your pen.
That being said, I highly recommend Platinum Carbon ink, which does not bleed at all. Check out my video on the Pilot Kakuno on this channel to see it with My Daniel Smith watercolors!
Another that seems to do well is Noodlers Bulletproof Black ( though it’s not perfect if you put a lot of heavy washes)
I have also heard that De Atrementis Document ink is also great, but I haven’t used it personally.
@@stepheninks ah so that is why I see India ink only reccomend for brushes or dip pens. Thank you, I just got my Platinum Preppy pen (extra fine) and it is so much better than my old micron pens!
The preppy was my first fountain pen as well! If you’re nervous about finding the right ink, you might just use the cartridges for a while (that’s what I did). When I finally bought a converter, the Platinum Carbon Black was an excellent companion to it for ink/watercolor drawings! After about 5 years (and several cringe-worthy mistakes) that preppy is still going strong! I just filmed a nib maintainable video with it, to upload onto this channel later. Stay tuned (pun intended)!
What inks would you recommend for this pen, since you said the Platinum Carbon does not flow as well in this pen.
I think one of the issues with this pen not flowing well was that the nib needed tuning. I did that in a later video on this channel, and now it takes pretty much everything.
However, for ink recommendations, I would say anything that’s not glistening or shimmering (they put reflective particles in the ink to make that stuff work) and generally anything not stock-standard dye based ink will work fine. I’m partial to Noodlers bulletproof black, Walnut, and Nightshade these days!
How are you bro ? Kindly reply which convertor I can use in platinum preppy please
This kind of pen only takes Platinum converters. If you search on the internet, you will find them.
@@stepheninks Thank you so much
The new Platinum Preppy design is different, or maybe it's for European markets. It comes in many colors to match the ink inside. And it comes without a converter. A buyer needs to buy dedicated Platinum's ink cartridges which look quite specific. What's the converter hole size in your pen model? Is it 3.4 mm or 2.6 mm? This could give me a clue on what converter may fit into the new Preppys as well, unless the producer had changed it too.
For Platinum, it needs to be the Platinum converters. I have however heard that EU regulations make is so that all pens sold in the EU are required to have standard international converters. I don’t really know if that’s true, but I had heard someone in Europe say that.
@@stepheninks Thank you Stephen! Yes I wouldn't be surprised if the Union had regulated it too.
There's something like 'International Standard European Fountain Pen Converter' but the item description doesn't say what's the hole size in mm. It mentions a list of pens it fits in and the other list it doesn't. So let's say Jinhao, Herbin, Herlitz, Faber Castell, Luoshi, Rotring, Pelikan, Montblanc, Duke, Hero, Lanbitou, Waterman, Zhenjue and many more are on the first list (standard) even though some of these pens are made in China, not so much in Europe. And Platinum, Kaweco, Lamy, Pilot, Sailor, Parker, Scheaffer and others are on 2nd list (non-standard). Which is why the latter companies make additional money on forcing people to buy dedicated and expensive ink cartridges, which at some point could be refilled with just a syringe ;) A matter of preference, or a budget.
Have a creative day!
@@inkextasy all the comments about converter size makes me think I should doo a video on that subject. I’d have to do some research to get ready for it though because I only know converters by brand and not hole size.
@@stepheninks Please do when you collect some data on that subject. I also get questions about converters because some fountain pens are sold without these, or with just a single ink cartridge :)
May get one of these, just lost a Rotring art pen, can't really justify spending £50 on another.
You know, the art pen is really expensive for what you get. I have one, and I regret buying it. I plan to do a video on it some time, but I’m still figuring out how to do videos on pens that I don’t like. The Platinum Preppy and the Pilot Kakuno are two examples of much cheaper pens that I like a lot better than the art pen.
@@stepheninks cool, thanks will check those out.
Thanks. Where did you buy the Preppy for US$5 ? Thank you.
God bless.
I’ve got to be honest with you; I bought my preppy about 6 years ago (my first fountain pen) in South Korea when I was living there. Recently, prices have gone up for everything, so I would imagine the $5 price would be more like $7-9.
New subscriber here.
Welcome!
Why it looks different then the other preppys
It think because it’s an older model? I’ve had this one since 2016.
@@stepheninks thanks mate, video is great
Any chinese pen on AliExpress that would be better than that?
Considering how many pens are on AliExpress, it certainly is possible. From my personal experience with those pens, I haven’t seen something as high quality as the Platinum Preppy at that price point. Keeping in mind that this pen is still under 10USD at most retailers, It is a phenomenal value, from a very dependable brand. Just my two cents plus shipping :)
@@stepheninks thank you very much! I’ve ordered hongdian 1861, I don’t really know how to repair the nib if it comes with any defect. I guess for more colors I will get some preppys!