Pelikan M800 | inginkpen

I love fountain pens and all types of pens and pencils, each had a place in my writing instrument universe.

Fountain pens are for writing in my journal, when I want to share my deepest thoughts and want to handwrite at length, the fountain pen is the thing. I like to use different pens as my hand gets tired easily, differences in barrel width, nib drag on paper and ease or difficulty in creating the line on paper all factor into my decisions on which pen to use.

For many years I’ve been working on improving my handwriting and have practiced calligraphy to facilitate this effort. Now there are so many more resources on the web, it’s a joy to explore. Gaining access to flexible nibs with their super expressive line widths such as the Montblanc 244 or the the Namiki Falcon Metal soft fine nib are fabulous. I’ve discovered the varied line widths found in the oblique nibs in the Pelikan M800, M400 and vintage 140. I’ll do write up on the Montblanc, Namiki Falcon and Pelikan in the future.

A partial list of the pens in the photos: Pilot M90, Tornado Retro pencil for Sudoku, brown Platinum, Platinum PG-200 (the short fountain pen with the pink barrel), Pilot with Arabeque designs on the cap and barrel, two Platinum Sterling Silver with 18kt white gold nibs, four more PG-200s (I use different colors in each pen and match the barrel color, Pilot PG-200 type in White with Pansy flowers on the cap, another Platinum with stripes and vines, leaves and flower designs in a band on the cap, this one has an 18 kt gold nib, Namiki Vanishing Point, Cross roller ball, Waterman Carene, Cross ball point, Pilot H1076, Sheaffer Targa, Waterman cartridge fill and multi-lead pencil for highlighting.

Why so many types you might ask? Each one is useful for a different purpose, I use the pencils for sketches or if I really need to write with an instrument that has no drag on the paper and need to write fast. The downside of pencils is their line is impermanent and doesn’t copy well. However, if I’m doing a pen and ink drawing, often I’ll use a pencil for the preliminary sketch.

You can probably see the photos of part of my collection that I use and own, “gasp” rollerball, pencil and ball point writing instruments. Sometimes you need a pen that can write on soft paper, like Moleskins or copy paper, ball points are great. When I write a check, I use a ball point pen as I have duplicate checks and need to press a little harder. Happily, check writing is nearly becoming a thing of the past. Rollerballs are great because they often have a wider, more expressive line. The durability of the written word with the ball point pens are rarely matched by roller balls, gel pens or fountain pens. Sometimes, I’ll discover my calligraphy practice sheet has wet paw prints from my buddy, Chaz.