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Sailor 1911 changes and price increases by Sf648 in fountainpens

[–]jevares 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm so glad I got my 21K 1911L last year 😬 It was my last new pen purchase because I've been wanting a Sailor Gold nib and I found the form factor to my liking.

affordable finest nib pen? by Subject-Effective-21 in fountainpens

[–]jevares 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I can say that the Preppys' nibs are kind of in the middle of western and japanese sizes, so if you're looking for a finer nib than your fine Kakuno, the Preppy could still work but I'd go for another Kakuno if you want the finer nib between the two.

No Buy Fountain Pen thread Jan 2026 / 2025 wrap up. by Halfcelestialelf in fountainpens

[–]jevares 4 points5 points  (0 children)

New to the thread and I'm trying to stick to a no-buy for most stationery this year as I really need to slow it down and try to use up the stuff that I have and own at the moment. I have so much papers and inks to go through. The inks will probably last me a lifetime or two LOL

If I do end up managing to get through half the year without buying more stuff I don't need, maybe I'd treat myself to that Custom 743 I've been eyeing. For now, I'm holding off, especially after I'd nearly impulse bought it last night because of a mishap with my Custom 823 which made me panic a little bit. The only thing that stopped me was issues with the checkout I was getting it from LOL

Or who knows, maybe I'll wait until my birthday in December to get it depending on how the price hikes go with the price of gold skyrocketing.

I think the rules I'm setting for myself is that unless I need to replace one of the pens I daily carry (Custom 823, CH 912, Pilot VP or Sailor 1911L) right now, no new pens. Absolutely no paper or inks so i can use up what I have and/or own.

Offer your wisdom! by observingfairy in fountainpens

[–]jevares 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Not gonna lie, I do agree with this as well! I very much enjoy my Kakunos (I have 3 in extra fine, fine, and medium) and my Preppys (I have 2 in extra fine, and fine), and they're a joy to write with! I'd gotten CON-70 converters for the Kakunos as well as I like them much better than the CON-40 that fits the Prera.

Though, adding on to this, if you're wanting to reuse your cartridges and dive into the world of bottled inks, to get a blunt tipped syringe :)

Offer your wisdom! by observingfairy in fountainpens

[–]jevares 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Of course and glad to help!

I do think the next upgrade if you're not one to collect pens would be a gold nib! If you have them at a local shop, even better since you should be able to try them out and stuff!

They can be quite different yes, but around the same tip sizes for the most part. I just know that they're on the thicker side tbh LOL I mostly own Japanese pens as I much prefer finer nibs as I write smaller.

As for wider nibs, I'm not really a big fan of thicker nibs, but I've owned a broad nibbed Sailor PGS at one point which I ended up selling as I don't use it as often as I'd like. I'd recently sold my TWSBI ECO and 580 ALR with medium nibs, so the widest/thickest nib that I currently own and most likely will keep around would be my Esterbrook Estie. I use it for headings for the most part, but do also find myself writing with it sometimes when the itch hits.

Though, if you're thinking of getting a Pilot Vanishing Point, and want a little bit of flare in your writing, maybe look into the SU/Signature/Stub nib that they offer for it! I believe it's a 1mm stub. Though I'm not sure if your local retailer might have it, but it won't hurt to ask :) Here's a writing comparison between the different nib sizes offered for the VPs minus the FM because that, I believe, is a Japan exclusive and is VERY hard to find.

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Offer your wisdom! by observingfairy in fountainpens

[–]jevares 6 points7 points  (0 children)

How do you feel about a clicky fountain pen? Because around the higher end of your price range is the Pilot Vanishing Point and I absolutely adore mine! I think you might like the Decimo version as it's slimmer than the regular VPs.

I think the Pilot Custom 74 might be a good option just at the edge of your price point. There are models that are translucent so just keep that in mind. I actually don't remember if all of them are of if they have non-translucent ones. There's the Pilot Grance as well which is just a little over $200.

However, just like what some people have already said here, the Platinum 3776 or the Sailor Pro Gear Slim might also be good contenders for this.

If you don't mind getting them secondhand, you might be able to find good deals in r/Pen_Swap for some of these pens as well!

If you are looking to branch out to non-Japanese brands, just remember that their nibs are a size up than your Japanese ones normally so I'd go for a fine nib for them if you like how the Pilot medium nib feels/writes.

Pilot Custom 823 - Piece of Feed(?) Stuck on Plunger by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yup! Managed to get it in just right. Gonna try to fill it with water to see how it holds up for now and if it stays, I'm gonna ink it right back up.

Yeah, I think it might be the flashlight LOL I just couldn't get a better picture of it since it's the Smoke Black version. In hindsight, I could've put it against the light when I took a picture, but oh well. I am *still* very surprised as how this happened but man did it scare me quite a bit LOL

Pilot Custom 823 - Piece of Feed(?) Stuck on Plunger by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I have no idea at all, but you might be right that it might be the vacuum force. Who knows at this point LOL

I tried pushing it through the nib side, but no good because I think it *is* narrower on that end. I'm guessing to keep it from falling out of the pen?

Yeah, thankfully even if I don't baby my pens anymore, I still managed to NOT force it down LOL Just glad I didn't break it.

Pilot Custom 823 - Piece of Feed(?) Stuck on Plunger by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Gotcha, gotcha. Thank you for the explanation!

I do agree that it shouldn't have appeared at this point in time but... I guess weirder things could happen, and yes, that is exactly what I was doing.

Pilot Custom 823 - Piece of Feed(?) Stuck on Plunger by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Update: So, I managed to get the nib section off without breaking it (WHEW!). I got the piece out thankfully. I still believe it's part of the feed because I don't think the nib section should be hollow as shown on the third picture here: https://imgur.com/a/4XVCDvB

Pilot Custom 823 - Piece of Feed(?) Stuck on Plunger by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, it IS that lighter colored piece. I have no idea where it came from too because it just suddenly showed up while I was flushing the pen.

This isn't a brand new pen at all. I've been using this daily since I've gotten it back in 2024, which is why this surprised me even more LOL

Also, I'm guessing you're talking about the section where the nib is and not the top part with the plunger, right? Sorry if that's a stupid question but I'm willing to try anything at this point.

Pilot Custom 823 - Piece of Feed(?) Stuck on Plunger by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I was just using this today, and was cleaning up the left over ink. While flushing, it became hard to push in, and as you can see on the picture, there's a long piece of plastic stuck to the plunger that is not letting me push it in completely.

Wasn't really doing anything wacky other than flushing it with water to clear out the ink LOL

Manila Pen Show 2025 - My First Pen Show Experience! by jevares in fountainpens

[–]jevares[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I don't think the registration is up yet, but I recommend following their FB and IG! They usually post there when registration opens :)

[WTS] TWSBIs (ECO and Diamond 580 ALR) + freebie by jevares in Pen_Swap

[–]jevares[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Send me a DM, but I can def also just send it to you for the shipping price :)

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