Are Fountain Pens relevant in today's world ?

Hello everybody

Most of us have heard about fountain pens, many of us have even seen or used one sometime during our school life. But somehow, as I grew up and got promoted to higher classes, they became obscured. This occurred in such a way that the whole ink and nib pen concept was completely out of my existence. Neither I thought about any way of writing other than ball point pens, nor did I come across somebody who actually used them in their practical lives. It was as if they'd never existed.

So, what now brings me to them?

I was doing some window-shopping on ebay, which sound much foolish thing to do to kill time. But nevertheless, I was at it, mostly visiting gadget and electronic stores. I had no intentions of buying anything, as neither I nor my stone-age gadgets were giving up yet.  So, how surprised I got when one of those stores hosted a vintage 'Wing Sung' fountain pen. That picture and description instantly brought back a whole lot of memories. I was suddenly flooded with pure 'Nostalgia'.

Beautiful memories inside brain

My father first brought a pair of Wing Sung '233's when I was in sixth or seventh standard. One was maroon (Burgundy) and another was green. He always wanted good things in life, but lack of money was a constant problem for him. So, I can only imagine he must have been aiming for a good Waterman or Cross but settled for a Wing Sung! The pens were unique in that they had an odd  rounded nib attached to the end of grip section, unlike other indigenous cheap eye dropper pens whose nibs were inserted into the grip. And so the pens fascinated me. I don't remember much about the writing experience. The ink was Sulekha ink in the largest bottle available, probably 500 ml, and the nib was most probably smooth but too broad for my liking. Still the experience of holding such a unique gift from my dad was immense. 

                                         

The Wingsung 233 fountain pens

Then we (me and my elder sister) discovered 'Hero' hooded fountain pens with fine nib, probably the 329 and 332s in our local stationary shop. This may seem a miracle of sorts in today's context, but was perfectly normal back then, so even small book shops kept a few copies of cheap eyedropper and Hero pens.  

I liked those pens, since they laid down the perfectly fine but wet line for me. I practiced mathematics with these pens to my heart's content, notebook after notebook. Those costs rs 20-30 each (around 1996-98), a high price for my parents when I look back. We were small children then, and I was a bit demanding too. I always eyed my sister's pens, for they appeared better to me, but never got them. Once she bought a Hero 343 white, the only piece in the shop. And I was green with jealousy, I wanted that white beauty too much, and whenever she went outside to take a break from studying, I picked that up. I was captivated by the peculiar hooded nibs, feeds, golden caps and aerometric filling system of these pens.

Hero 332 fountain pens

What happened to my fountain pens?

I don't remember. As I got older, there was simply too much writing to be done. There was the fear of my answers wiping out in rain or water during transport by teachers, ink getting low/empty during exams, ink marks damaging my image to examiners, clothes getting soiled.....all non specific reasons. It might be possible that we never got a good enough fountain pen which will write fast enough for the exams. Our surroundings changed, all students (and teachers) embraced ball point pens in place of fountain pens. There was a problem getting ink bottles. The ball point pens were very cheap and disposable. So, I lost them from my mind. The last memory I have of them is that of keeping all of them inside a geometry box and placing that box in a corner of the wall cabinet. I was never to see them again. It is possible that my sister took them to her college hostel and gradually lost them one by one, or gifted them to somebody. The box might have been lost during the change of house at my father's retirement. But I remembered the box almost 15 years later!!!!!! Some love is never lost.

So, can one use them today?

I bought a few in quick successions from ebay. First the fine nib hooded Hero pens. Gradually I shifted to Jinhao and Baoer traditional medium nib pens. Later I bought a few 'Parker' s, 'Sheaffer' VFM, Rotring Espirit and Freeway, Platinum preppy, Pilot Metropolitan, and the list is growing each month. I'll create a separate post on why I got hooked to these pens once again, but concentrating on the salient question 'Could these fountain pens be used on a daily basis?', the answer is definitely a big YES. One can permanently shift from ball points to fountain pens even today, without much problems.

Jinhao x450 fountain pen

Baoer 79 star

What are the basic problems for a beginner?

1. Choosing the right pen for your type of writing is very  important. It's difficult for someone else to predict the proper nib and fountain pen for you unless you give a try with at least a few pens, and that too for some extended time. All ball point pens write same, the pressure required is excessive and our brain gets used to giving such pressure to the paper. The first thing while using a fountain pen is to decrease the pressure, relaxing your fingers. A good fountain pen must write with minimal pressure. So just practicing a bit with the new pen  at home before taking it for vital work is important.
2. Some pens are smooth out of the box, but most cheap pens (including the Chinese pens) are not. They require a good amount of flushing of the nib and feed before being inked. You can use gentle dishwasher as the cleaning agent with lots of water. This step will remove the grease in nib/feed and otherwise you may prematurely stamp these pens as unusable.
3. Writing with a pen adjusts our motor cortex, and regular writing with a particular grip and pressure will make the writing experience even better. Writing with a fountain pen requires careful control of the pen. It may slow you down initially but the experience is worth the extra work.
4.  The largest barrier to fountain pen use is not the pen or ink factor, but the poor quality of papers these days. The ball point pens work well on most papers, but fountain pens are comparatively picky when it comes to paper. There may be feathering, bleed through or dryness of pen if lower quality papers are used. But that doesn't disqualify these beautiful works of art from being your daily companion.
5. Initially, your fingers will get stained while filling the cartridge/ converters, even your clothes may suffer if you are not careful enough. Accept these as a part of (re)learning a new thing.

Thanks everybody and enjoy your new fascination.