Pen Recommendations

[Beef Boss]

After I just received my Pilot fountain pen, I'm in love. I thought no pen can easily replace my Space pen but, I stand corrected. Although not being able to write underwater, in grease, upside down, or in sub zero temperatures really limits my usage on this pen, I want more. What pens do you like? I'm looking for other good fountain pen manufacturers. I'm in the $20-50 range. Something unique or satisfying to write with. And please, none of that, "Who would even pay for a pen that costs $20 or $50, what a waste of money." You have no right to criticize my pen budget or budget on anything, in all seriousness only buying and writing with more expensive utensils can explain it. The Spacepen is one of the smoothest writing pens I own and ever used. The ball has no wiggle and remains tight but not too tight, it is so satisfying to write with and just scribble. And the fountain pen is just on its own field. 

[Drak3]

Custom commissioned pens or nothing.

 

Kappa.

 

I go for Tul, Foray, and Zebra pens. I've yet to find anything better, including multiple fountain pens.

[moltencrystal]

ive really enjoyed the lamy fountain pens, and while not to everyone's taste ive knocked out hundreds of pages on them with no complains

[Guest]

 

Customs all the way! There are lots of pen makers on IG & Etsy. Most use quality cartridges.

[Beef Boss]

Just now, Legendarypoet said:

 

Customs all the way! There are lots of pen makers on IG & Etsy. Most use quality cartridges.

Stare...~

[Guest]

Just now, BadluckBrian said:

Stare...~

Be careful.. I never thought pens would be addictive, lol.

This is a fraction of my pen collection.

[SeriouslyMikey]

Disposable Bic. 

I have every right to criticise purchasing habits. Waste of money. 

[Beef Boss]

16 minutes ago, SeriouslyMikey said:

Disposable Bic. 

I have every right to criticise purchasing habits. Waste of money. 

*Criticize 

I use Bic pens when I'm angry and it gives me something to break. I rather spend $20 on a pen that wont dry out and always function like a spacepen than some bic pen. But they're useful for more than writing... 

[Beef Boss]

23 minutes ago, Legendarypoet said:

Be careful.. I never thought pens would be addictive, lol.

This is a fraction of my pen collection.

Like watches, these are becoming an addictive collection lol

[Guest]

32 minutes ago, BadluckBrian said:

Like watches, these are becoming an addictive collection lol

 

Add bands and buckles to that list lol.

[Beef Boss]

8 minutes ago, Legendarypoet said:

Add bands and buckles to that list lol.

Stop it, my bank account cannot handle this... but oh my gosh... thats amazing..

[Guest]

12 minutes ago, BadluckBrian said:

Stop it, my bank account cannot handle this... but oh my gosh... thats amazing..

Lol. Yeah.. the custom rabbit hole goes deep.

[Beef Boss]

Just now, Legendarypoet said:

Lol. Yeah.. the custom rabbit hole goes deep.

I dont want to leave...

[Guest]

Let's see.. more pens then:

[Dash Lambda]

Never really cared about pens as north of 90% of the writing I do is math (as pretty much everything else works on a keyboard), but as for pencils...

I use a Rotring 800 .5mm with Pentel Ain Stein HB lead. I've use a Pentel Graphgear 1000 and I like that too (not as much as the Rotring), and Zebra's drafting pencils are basically just enough to be nice without costing much more than a normal pencil.

Aside from the Graphgear, I've never tried a pencil that even approaches the Rotring.

 

1 hour ago, SeriouslyMikey said:

Disposable Bic. 

I have every right to criticise purchasing habits. Waste of money. 

Just like any tool in existence, how much it's worth depends entirely on how much you use it. It's like the difference between a Snap-On ratcheting screwdriver and a Husky ratcheting screwdriver -The Husky's a great value if you just use it every once in a while, but if you use it heavily then you start noticing the flaws and the cheapness.

[Beef Boss]

1 minute ago, Dash Lambda said:

Never really cared about pens as north of 90% of the writing I do is math (as pretty much everything else works on a keyboard), but as for pencils...

I use a Rotring 800 .5mm with Pentel Ain Stein HB lead. I've use a Pentel Graphgear 1000 and I like that too (not as much as the Rotring), and Zebra's drafting pencils are basically just enough to be nice without costing much more than a normal pencil.

Aside from the Graphgear, I've never tried a pencil that even approaches the Rotring.

 

Just like any tool in existence, how much it's worth depends entirely on how much you use it. It's like the difference between a Snap-On ratcheting screwdriver and a Husky ratcheting screwdriver -The Husky's a great value if you just use it every once in a while, but if you use it heavily then you start noticing the flaws and the cheapness.

Yes, after multiple essays being 5-10 pages each you can honestly feel the difference. even little changes or burrs can be really annoying. 

[Q29saW4gU3VwZXJmYWtlCg==]

Your price range and the mention of "Pilot" indicates you likely have a Pilot Metropolitan. At that price point there are few uncontroversial entry-level pens.

• Lamy Safari (or one of its basically identical variants)
• Kaweco Sport
• TWSBI Eco

On the grey market you can find a Pilot Custom 74 in the United States or Europe for less than half the local MSRP. That is the only good recommendation for a person with a pen they like already and a very small budget. Your money will go further buying a good quality notebook and ink than another cheap pen.

 

I've been using these two recently. They're more durable than other quality pens yet provide a satisfactory writing experience.

Being "made of stone" increases their resilience to heat and cold should you leave one in your car. The lava/stone is more impact resistent than celluloid or resin used in other premium pens.

They're not extravagant but they wouldn't fit in your budget.

 

Most "Custom pens" are a turned blank with a "$3 pen kit" inside. Nakaya and other high-quality manufacturers make quality pens but not within your budget.

 

You sould save your money to buy a pen that is a large improvement over whatever you already have. A Lamy 2000, Pilot Vanishing Point or Custom/Heritage are good choices. Save more and then consider a Sailor Profressional Gear or one of the Pelikans-for-poor-people like the M200.

[Dash Lambda]

1 hour ago, Q29saW4gU3VwZXJmYWtlCg== said:

Being "made of stone" increases their resilience to heat and cold should you leave one in your car. The lava/stone is more impact resistant than celluloid or resin used in other premium pens.

Celluloid or resin? Half the reason I love the Rotring 800 is because it's machined brass, I can't imagine spending even more than that on a pen that still feels like plastic... Maybe it's just because I'm into pencils rather than pens, the way it actually writes isn't really up to the pencil itself so the priorities shift...

 

Also, I looked on Visconti's website 'cause I was curious about the material, and they don't actually say anything about whatever the hell that stone is. They just say "Volcanic Lava." Is it like obsidian? Granite? Basalt? I really am curious, since whatever it is it sounds like a cool thing to make a pen out of.

[Nup]

Lamy have a very nice selection of fountain pens!

 

Iv been using the "AL-star", pretty nice pens, don't look too overdone either - you can get fine or medium tips for them, and they dont break the bank.

Mine failed after about 6 years, the body-screw is plastic and after asking in a shop I was told it's a common point of failure.

Got it in Belgium for 20, here in ireland they're at 30 (which is a bit too much) but it seems to be the price in the us too. Not the worst price i guess.

And they also have very nice blue-black ink.