Ink-Stained Wretch: My Absurd Dive into Fountain Pen Mania
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- Опубликовано: 7 июн 2024
- Strap in for a bizarre journey through my latest obsession: fountain pens. Yes, it happened. What started as a childhood terror in the sophisticated classrooms of Bordeaux has morphed into an all-consuming passion that's bordering on ridiculous.
Rewind to a 7-year-old me, freshly plucked from Perth, Australia, and plopped into a French primary school. The foreign world of cursive and ink nearly broke left-handed me. Fast forward a bunch of decades and something clicked (not just the Pilot Vanishing Point).
Since January, my enthusiasm has escalated at an alarming rate, making my past fleeting fascinations look like mere flirtations. In this video, I'll take you through the absurd highs and lows of my fountain pen saga, showcasing the beautiful, the bizarre, and the downright bank-breaking moments of my journey.
Prepare for a healthy dose of introspection and pen-worship as I explore how a simple writing tool turned into my latest, greatest, and possibly most expensive enthusiasm yet. If you enjoy watching a grown man lose himself in the depths of niche hobbies, you're in for a treat.
Hit that like button, drop a comment below, and maybe subscribe if you want to see where my next whim takes me-hopefully not to vintage typewriters. Let’s get inky!
0:00 An Aussie kid in Bordeaux
4:00 Uni Kuru Toga
4:34 Uni Kuru Toga Roulette
4:45 Uni Kuru Toga Advance Upgrade
5:04 Uni Kuru Toga Dive
6:16 Montblanc Starwalker Metal & Rubber Ballpoint Pen 8857
7:16 Pilot Kakuno with Pilot Iroshizuku Yama Budo ink
8:10 Clairefontaine Essentials A5 Lined Notebook Tobacco
9:47 LAMY Safari Fountain Pen Medium Transparent with Van Dieman's Feline - Mad Half Hour Ink
13:02 MB Starwalker Metal & Rubber Fountain Pen with Van Dieman's Underwater - Blue Ringed Octopus Ink
14:43 The Cup of Doom
15:08 Pilot Prera with Van Dieman's Feline - Emerald Eyes Ink
15:18 Pilot Custom 823 M Nib with Diamine Ox Blood
18:45 MB 146 Clones with Diamine Writer's Blood and Parker Blue Black Inks
20:13 Wing Sung 630 M Nib with LAMY Dark Lilac Ink (2024)
22:13 LAMY Dark Lilac Ink Bottle (2024)
24:00 Majohn A2 EF Nib with Diamine Pansy Ink
25:50 LAMY Dialog 3 with Van Dieman's Feline - Mad Half Hour Ink
27:10 Yong Sheng 3013 M Nib with Diamine Writer's Blood Ink
27:50 Jinhao 82 EF, F and M Nibs
28:50 Jinhao 450 G Calligraphy Pen
29:30 Noodlers Ahab Flex 
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I started july 2023 and here we are into the rabbit hole 😂.
Many fountain pen people will tell you that after you purchase a Pilot 823 you can stop buying. That pen is perfect 🤩
Is it really true? I would like to stop lusting after FPs 😅
@@b.l70 It seems to be, and now that you can get the 823 vacuum filler or the exact same pen as a cartridge-converter model called the 743. Perfection either way. I have mine with a medium nib and it's a very wet writer.
No.
Honestly, I hate mine. I would call it the worst pen I have. Maybe because of all the hype I was just so disappointed with it. I think my TWSBI Vac 700 is a much better pen. However in the 200-400 price range where the 823 sits. I would go with any of the Visconti in that range. I have 3 they are perfect and a pleasure to write with. Maybe I just got unlucky, and got a bad one.
Don't believe it.
Great! Hahaha! Since January? So many pens. Another one caught the disease. Bon Voyage down the rabbit hole.
I’m 1 month in and am in the same obsession. lol. 13 pens at home and 3 more on order, en route. And the same bottle of Lamy ink because of the story. lol. Let the fun begin!
... Look at my other videos to see if any of the other nerdy hobbies have consumed you too?
@@WondersUnlocked The rest of your hobbies look like things my youngest son is into....periodic tables and Rubik's cubes and Star Wars. I stumbled on this pen hobby through the planner world, journaling, and creative journaling. I am excited though to show my 19 year old that I've found someone on RUclips who shares both his and my passions. That's fun. Maybe I can sway him into realizing that pens can be cool too. Haha
Just noticed this message! I will be extremely surprised if your son doesn't eventually move on to fountain pens too. These hobbies have similar attributes, and the genetic predisposition is clearly there! Just wait until he gets over the "parents aren't cool" stigma.
You’ve built up quite a collection over a few short months, welcome to the hobby!
Ouh look!
One of my favourite reviewers is also here !
Thanks! :)
@@nccastro653 RUclips’s algorithm is working well today 😂
Hi, really nice video, I’ve also started with the Uniball Kurutoga. I have a question, are you neurodivergent by any means? Because I’m and I also enjoy those tactile experiences as you said.
Lol, I'm Canadian. We all learn French in school. My father once told me that all you needed to do to translate French was to cross out the little words and hold it up to a mirror. Kind of funny but also kind of mean. Very Archie Bunker. It was 1977. Not the worse thing that I heard back then.
I also got interested in fountain pens in grade 2. My school was built around 1955 and the original old wooden desks were still there. The older kids had holes in their desks. I always had to why, so I asked. The teacher said, "It's for this," and pulled a bottle of ink and a very old dip pen from the bottom drawer of her desk. She put some of that hard, brown paper towel down on a desk, gave me some paper and let me try it. I loved it. I used fountain pens off and on whenever I could talk my parents into buying me ink and/or a new pen. I gradually got away from it. During the pandemic, I found a pen with 30 years of dried up ink in it. I managed to get it working. Then I found all of you guys doing videos on RUclips. It's been expensive but I'm glad to be back.
That doesn't sound mean to me. It's absurd silliness, just like the absurd silliness of conventions in Germanic and Romance languages. French are the best at creating it was absurd silliness, because of their dogmatic enforcement of tradition. I think it's also why they struggle with comedy, but that's another story!
Fountain pen content! I’m here!
Oh my god, I laughed so hard,😂😂😂😂😂😂so many same thoughts spinning in my head😂
The 823 is my current favourite pen! Love the size and heft of it, and that filling mechanism gives it some engineering points for me too.
Funny how quickly the Jinhao 9019 and Wingsung 630 have altered my perception of what a pen with "heft" is! The 823 feels decidedly dainty these days lol!
I hope this was meant to be funny because I loved every minute of it. Yeah of course I myself have also been through this classic consumer trap so related to every nuance instantly. They will all get used as I'm an arty farty illustrator...but the absurdity of the choices.... Fantastic. Thank you.
That is so wonderful to hear, thank you! I never really grew up, and tend to go over the top in a broad range of topics (check my other videos lol). Silliness and humour is never far away. Throw a little Autism in the mix and it's pretty much guaranteed. I drive most people crazy though, so it's encouraging to hear from people who are enjoying it!
I laughed hard at the cup!
Nice video and overview of your collection. I'm also a lefty-overhand-writer and discovered that flex nibs are only for the right-handers. We lefty's tend to push our nibs along rather than drag them for writing. For me, the Lamy LH nib helps a lot.
Hmm I need to look into the Lamy left handed nib. Not heard of this before! Thanks 😊
I’m a leftie, as well, but hold my pen a bit differently than you, so I don’t run into the same smudging problem you have. My hubby and I had covid for about 16 days starting a bit before Christmas, and lasting into January, and 8 had nothing better to do than watch YT videos about fountain pens. I fell down the rabbit hole easily, attended my first pen show on March1, and have 5 fountain pens (3 gold nibs, including the 823 and the E95S, which are both excellent)), a good collection of journals and inks to experiment with. Great fun! I’ve been writing pages and pages in my journal every day!
I'm curious: how do you hold the pen and was it to improve your no-smudge to smudge ratio, or does it pre-date your time with fountain pens?
@@WondersUnlocked I think lefties have to learn their own style over their writing life. I have typically held my pen/pencil so that the writing tip sits on the line, and my hand sits below the line. My grip may be farther back than other folks. For fountain pens, that means I often turn the nib a bit counter-clockwise for the best writing experience. It has worked for me for 60+ years, even if I never got stellar grades on my penmanship in school.
neither the pilot and the mb you showed are supposed to be #8. the 146 has an approx. #6 sized nib and the 823 has what Pilot calls a #15 sized nib which again is closer to a #6. If you want something the size of a #8 in a mb you should go for the 149 and for pilot #30 in the Custom urushi. also in a piston filler there is no need or logic behind "cracking the ink reservoir" as you might do in the 823. That works in some if not most vacuum filled pens and in Japanese eyedroppers. The point in doing it is that there is a little gasket that closes the ink reservoir off from the feed and nib. No such thing exists in a piston filler, and if you see that it gets wetter is because you have just pushed in down the feed.
Thanks for the corrections. I have much to learn! Isn't the Wing Sung 630 a #8? I received a Jinhao 9019 this morning with a steel heartbeat nib. They say it's a #8 too.... My vernier calipers have both at a smidge over 7.5mm
ah! That's my first Kakuno too, same colour! My first was a Lamy Safari, I followed it up with Pilot MR and then got the Kakuno (wrong order, right?) 2yrs later I'm a regular at my local pen meet. So yes, it can escalate quickly. Van Dieman's Blue Ringed Octopus is indeed a lovely ink. I'm not one to enjoy blue inks, but I had to buy that one. It's the closest Australian equivalent to Organics Studio Liquid Nitrogen.
Do you have any issues with the ink drying times with wet pens as a lefty? I noticed you assessed the drying time of the Pilot Kakuno which generally is slightly drier and finer than the others. But not as you progressed to wetter pens and more lubricated inks.
If you're keen to give it a try, Iearned how to be an underwriter to learn pointed pen calligraphy, then ended up using it for daily writing as well, despite being a right-hander. I think underwriting as a lefty not only helps with using flex pens, but also prevents potential smearing with wetter inks on more fountain pen friendly paper (not that you seem to have any issues with it at the moment!)
Drying times are indeed problematic on the wetter pens. Pity these are also the preferred ones. A4 notepads help, but still risky
Truth of a lifetime: "... what are you going to do the addiction starts you just got to feed it..." (another Subscriber, I clicked....). Thank you for sharing... we fellow South Paw have to stick together. Great storytelling....
Thanks buddy!
Hi! amazing collection. Are you on the ASD by any chance? I am and I find so many similarities in our journeys. I've seen you also have so many different and diverse hobbies, that's a typical characteristic.
Yes indeed mate! Well... the government doesn't think so because I'm "not impaired". Lol what a slap in the face. I'm well trained at pretending I'm not impaired....
@@WondersUnlocked Exactly the same as me! My friends don’t even know that I’m on the spectrum, I’ve been diagnosed a year ago, (I’m 30) and my girlfriend and I got shocked with the result. But going back to my childhood I can clearly see the sign, it’s just that I became really good at pretending as you said!
...what makes you sure your friends don't know? You'd be surprised what neurotypical people don't say to each other!
Yeah... I know... Weirdos huh :)
@@WondersUnlocked that’s a good point but I genuinely think they don’t know, I wonder if it’s because I’m good at masking
You happy mad man! Welcome! If no one has told you about Wing Sung (or however they name themselves), their gold nibs are wonderful and affordable.
Thanks buddy - nearly ordered one last night after bending the steel one while trying to get some flex happening!
The 823 is glorious and the dialog3 a disappointment. Keep at it and take a breather out of the rabbit hole occasionally. Best of luck. I appreciate your gentle manner.
Gotta say, I'm loving the Dialog 3, or more accurately its (assuming) inferior Chinese clone. The Majohn A2 and A3 with their restrictive EF nibs are just so much worse, that the Dialog 3 holds a place in my heart. That said, it's probably unfair of me to be judging their performance with Dark Lilac 2024 inked up. The ink ages in the feed by expanding into a weird green paste, that clogs the EF feeds far worse than the Dialog 3's larger offering.
...and maybe you could explain the French ruled paper. I'm probably not the only one who just doesn't get it.
Oh that one I know! It's to help keep the proportions of letters even. Capital letters go from the bottom line (thick) up to the third line (of 4 lines total). The tall lower case letters (t, f, h, k, l, b) go up to the 2nd line, with the lower bits of those letters, and the remaining lower case letters hitting the 1st line. Letters with bits under the bottom line (q, y, p, g, j) go down by two lines under the bottom line. Clear as mud?
have saved all of the pens and pencil sets the my father used in 30s and 40s and all that I used in school during the 40s and fifties. At 91 what should I do with them?
Do what you did as a 90 year old: enjoy them!
My dad turns 93 this year. Last month, I gave him a Uni Kuru Toga which he loves for his Spectator crossword puzzles! Enjoy your pens buddy!
I’ve decided to be content with my collection of Sheaffers
Wise
I'm almost done experimenting with the FLEXXXX options -- i was thinking of selling all of my tinkering supplies as a whole kit ! Save the next guy some time
It took 22 purchases to find the Nib - Ebonite Feed - Pen size and Pen material combo
Now that i found my match i should sell the rest to an enthusiast
Plus I need money to buy fancy paper now 😂❤
.....and the match is?!
Any pen shop you would recommend in Newcastle NSW
No idea buddy sorry.... Not my side of the country!
Hi. Very funny. After 50 years of this pen insanity I am still learning, still saving for a Namiki-Emperor.🤗🦘 cheers from Adelaide.
judging by your writing grip i dont think flex nibs are going to suit you. u can try fude or stub italic nibs for some nice line variation
I struggle to get any decent results with a fude nib. Stubs are good but I love artitect or Hebrew nibs. I would love to grind one myself some day.
Not tried any funky nibs yet. The flex nibs are totally out for me. No chance of my sinister writing style working with them.
....
As an aside, did you know that "sinister" came from the Latin word for left, and "dextrous" is from the Latin word for right? Cool hey...!
Wait till you write with a gravitas ultem sentry 🤯
Those pocket Gravitas look so cool. The zirconium one in particular: no more worrying about corrosion from accidentally dropping it into a vat of boiling sulphuric acid! Won't be long until I buy one. What's the deal with the Ultem Sentry?
It feels perfect in your hand as far as weight goes, and is just so smooth to write with. The grip section is steel so it’s well balanced.
Pull the rip cord, and try to parachute your way down the rabbithole, lol. On YT, there is Clara, I think, who has 350+ pens in 2 years, almost one pen every 2 days. Just don't sell the family farm for it, though. The FP world is certainly no stranger to consignments.
Challenge accepted lol