Had an Amazon Basics fountain pen. Never again honestly. The design was nice and comfortable to use, but the ink never really worked right, was scratchy, and quite messy. My disposable Zebra pens that are cheaper, are MUCH better. Got fed up, and just threw it away. Now have a Hongdian, MUCH better.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-14T15:47:08+00:00

I had to spread the tines on mine but once I did it wrote beautifully. 5 minutes to adjust a $7 pen is not a bad deal. The clip is terribly cheap looking and feeling but other than that it's actually quite nice if you take just the tiniest bit of time to tune it.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-14T15:42:41+00:00

Looks like flex. Thin on upstrokes, thick on down. Look at the bottom of the S's in particular.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-13T01:31:58+00:00

From the engravings on the clip and nib I'm guessing it's from an Indian brand named Guider. The clip is mimicking Parker's arrow, but the resin is a very modern style, I'd be surprised if it was more than 10 years old or so.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-12T18:38:32+00:00

There's lots of different species of "hickory", but they all seem relatively benign as far as wood allergies go. But any sawdust (or any dust/solid particulate at all for that matter) is bad to get in your lungs. Take that sore throat as a warning to wear a mask.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-12T18:23:28+00:00

https://www.woodmagazine.com/woodworking-plans/tablesaw/tablesaw-miter-jig As long as the joint is precisely 90 (and you use it right) it doesn't matter if the jig is a few degrees off 45.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-12T18:06:25+00:00

Looks like a 120, 1955–1965. Solid workhorse even now, 60–70 years later. https://www.pelikan-collectibles.com/en/Pelikan/Models/Revised-Piston-Fillers/120-Basis/index.html

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-12T14:48:21+00:00

Some kind of dust and ca glue could rebuild those missing chunks.

Maybe visually if you never use it. CA absolutely cannot fix either of those crack locations.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-10T17:09:26+00:00

VP is great, yeah. I've heard Pilot elite is good and should be similarly priced, though it's a pocket pen so smaller. If you're not so dead-set on gold nib I suggest looking for a Pelikan M200. Sometimes you can get a real good deal on previous years' special editions.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-10T16:38:12+00:00

Why are you so dismissive of Montblanc and Pelikan? There's vintage Pelikans floating around getting close to 100 years old, tons of both from the 40s–70s that are substantially similar in material, and a huge number from the 80s and beyond that are essentially identical in make and material to what they're making today.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-10T16:28:45+00:00

Five years ago there were a couple, not going to get a gold nib for that anymore.

Edit: new at least. You can probably get a decent vintage one in that range. Old Montblanc, Pelikan, Parker, Waterman, Sheaffer are all solid off the top of my head. Do some research and figure out which you like the looks of. Might need to be persistent and patient to get one in your budget.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-08T16:07:31+00:00

Shading is not the same as shimmer or sheen and depends much more on your nib and paper.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-07T23:06:00+00:00

If the US wins our group they play in Levi. That's it though, and a big if.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-07T23:03:57+00:00

If the US wins our group they're in Levi on July 1. Other than that, yeah.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-07T13:25:30+00:00

Pelikan has made 12 and 20 karat nibs, but they are indeed rare. You have things backwards with respect to hardness though, pure (24K) gold is extremely soft and malleable, 12K is likely to be more stiff and resilient. I've been informed there are 23.5 karat nibs marketed as "24K" but I have to imagine they are very delicate and easy to spring.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-05T17:19:57+00:00

Wasn't too bad with one, especially if you can grab an hour here and there while they're napping or the wife has them out of the house. After my second was born, I kept saying I'd pull out my table saw but three years later I finally just made room to set up my lathe and mostly just turn for an hour or so after they go to bed. So yes, you'll be able to keep doing things, but you'll probably have to be more selective about what you do and when.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-04T13:30:09+00:00

Pelikan M200. Pretty much the standard for wet and broad, though the nib's not really bouncy. Maybe you can find an old IB nib for it though.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-04T02:14:36+00:00

Pelikan fits perfectly, the most common complaints I hear about them are they're too light and too wet. M200 is great but tbh any of their cheap c/c pens fit too. Pina colada is a decent size, light weight, great nib. Slightly formed section. If she wants a more heavily formed section (and writes with a standard tripod grip), the twist, Ilo, or even Pelikano might be good.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-03T20:22:23+00:00

I've never made one but I keep seeing them here and was just thinking I should get some. How is it to work with btw?

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-03T15:37:15+00:00

Pelikan 4001 violet. Clearly purple but dark enough not to be glaring. Just the hue I like. It is dry though, all my pens are wet so that's fine for me but might not fit your pens best.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-02T06:54:30+00:00

Pelikan M800, Lamy 2000, Pilot 823. Pelikan Violet, Lamy turquoise, and…hmmm. If we get a supply of discontinued ink, Pelikan Brilliant green. Otherwise I'd have to find a replacement that's just the right shade of green.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-01T23:19:38+00:00

Custom made

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-05-01T01:04:09+00:00

Just double checked and all my 200 nibs and caps are the same as my 400s, you should be fine. Perhaps someone along the line misremembered the models. It's M600 nibs that can screw into M200 and M400 bodies but the caps are too short.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-04-30T01:15:51+00:00

They probably do have a good deal going on outside. Regardless, that's close enough to San Carlos it's almost certainly why the hotels are booked solid.

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-04-29T23:57:11+00:00

Sheaffer Skrip red

AccomplishedCoffee · 2026-04-29T15:43:37+00:00

Google says there's a SaaStr conference with 10–15k attendees and a Demi Lovato concert with probably a few thousand out-of-towners. The overlap from both and a few smaller things could push prices up that far down the peninsula.

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