Do you use a fountain pen?
Discussion
I must say I've been inspired by this thread since I recently found it. Not sure how I missed the first 5 years of it!
I really didn't think fountain pens were still a thing.
So thank you to Stewie for starting it.
Looks like I'm about to start on the "slippery slope" as someone put it, and I guess a Jinhao 450 is the place to begin. It looks like a fountain pen, which is important to me. Not keen on the looks of a Parker 51, the way the nib is enclosed, I'd have difficulty writing with that.
This might take over from my current slippery slope of mobile phones, I've owned 37 of those since 1995, and still have 30 of them .... of which I've actually needed about 5 (to keep up with tech advances).
Can I ask, on the Jinhao 450, is it the same pen that does cartridges and/or wet ink? Or do I need some sort of conversion kit?
I really didn't think fountain pens were still a thing.
So thank you to Stewie for starting it.
Looks like I'm about to start on the "slippery slope" as someone put it, and I guess a Jinhao 450 is the place to begin. It looks like a fountain pen, which is important to me. Not keen on the looks of a Parker 51, the way the nib is enclosed, I'd have difficulty writing with that.
This might take over from my current slippery slope of mobile phones, I've owned 37 of those since 1995, and still have 30 of them .... of which I've actually needed about 5 (to keep up with tech advances).
Can I ask, on the Jinhao 450, is it the same pen that does cartridges and/or wet ink? Or do I need some sort of conversion kit?
Yes, the Jinhao 450 or 750 is a good start for those who want to see if fountain pen use is for them, for just a little bit more is the X159, even long term pen users are impressed with that one.
A bottle of Parker or Waterman ink would be good or international cartridges.
You can always move on to vintage or your own modern preference.
This thread has been a delight in seeing that many enjoy using fountain pens.
A bottle of Parker or Waterman ink would be good or international cartridges.
You can always move on to vintage or your own modern preference.
This thread has been a delight in seeing that many enjoy using fountain pens.
M4cruiser said:
Can I ask, on the Jinhao 450, is it the same pen that does cartridges and/or wet ink? Or do I need some sort of conversion kit?
Yes - it's the same pen.It comes with a "converter", which basically looks like a cartridge, but with a plunger in the top. When the converter is fitter, simply have the plunger at its lowest point, put the nib into the bottle of ink, and raise the plunger (either by pulling, or twisting depending on the design), to suck ink into the converter body.
To change the converter for a cartridge, it's usually a case of pulling (or sometimes screwing) the converter off the lower part of the pen (the section), and pushing a full cartridge on to replace it.
Most pens which can take cartridges, can be used with a converter in a similar way, apart from ones which only take the very small cartridges, or "custom" cartridges where a convertor was never made available.
ETA: ..although I'd always use a converter these days, as the choice of ink in cartridges can be pretty limiting, and it's generally way more expensive using cartridges.
Edited by C n C on Sunday 25th February 14:10
C n C said:
ETA: ..although I'd always use a converter these days, as the choice of ink in cartridges can be pretty limiting, and it's generally way more expensive using cartridges.
...and if we are thinking about environmental issues one less piece of plastic.Edited by C n C on Sunday 25th February 14:10
There is the act of flushing the nib also when you fill with a converter.
M4cruiser said:
I think I saw a post saying the Jinhao 450 doesn't have replaceable nibs?
If so, then you need to replace the whole pen when the nib wears out?
Probably a fair trade-off though, given the cost of a pen.
If you like the cap and barrel of the existing pen, you could just replace the section with that from a new pen.If so, then you need to replace the whole pen when the nib wears out?
Probably a fair trade-off though, given the cost of a pen.
TBH at this price point they're practically disposable.
M4cruiser said:
I think I saw a post saying the Jinhao 450 doesn't have replaceable nibs?
If so, then you need to replace the whole pen when the nib wears out?
Probably a fair trade-off though, given the cost of a pen.
Not sure about the 450 specifically, but the only reasons I can think of that you'd want to replace a nib, is because you want to switch to a different width nib, or that your nib is physically damaged due to dropping the pen or similar.If so, then you need to replace the whole pen when the nib wears out?
Probably a fair trade-off though, given the cost of a pen.
I think if you actually do manage to wear out a nib, it'll mean you've used it for several hours a day, every day for many years (20+)? Nibs wearing out isn't something I'm aware anyone worries about.
About 4 hours late to this one looking at just how busy this thread has been today 
On burgundy inks, if you want something that actually looks like burgundy wine - J. Herbin (now just Herbin) Poussiere de Lune. It's the ink that got mjy back in to fountain pens, along with a TWSBI Diamond 580. It's a little on the dry side but does flow well and does not stain.
On cheap sub £10 pens for starters, but one that looks relatively smart. Forget Chinese clones, I'm happy to recommend the Helix Oxford Fountain Pen. Now a pricey £10 at WH Smith (considering I got one at normal price for £5 at Asda just a few years back). Presently £7.30 at Cult Pens.
edit - reduced size of photos now I've found how to do it when linking in from Imgur.
On burgundy inks, if you want something that actually looks like burgundy wine - J. Herbin (now just Herbin) Poussiere de Lune. It's the ink that got mjy back in to fountain pens, along with a TWSBI Diamond 580. It's a little on the dry side but does flow well and does not stain.
On cheap sub £10 pens for starters, but one that looks relatively smart. Forget Chinese clones, I'm happy to recommend the Helix Oxford Fountain Pen. Now a pricey £10 at WH Smith (considering I got one at normal price for £5 at Asda just a few years back). Presently £7.30 at Cult Pens.
edit - reduced size of photos now I've found how to do it when linking in from Imgur.
Edited by dapprman on Monday 26th February 22:46
C n C said:
I think if you actually do manage to wear out a nib, it'll mean you've used it for several hours a day, every day for many years (20+)? Nibs wearing out isn't something I'm aware anyone worries about.
Indeed. My mum has a Parker 45 that belonged to her mum where it was so heavily used that the section has worn badly and conformed to her index finger (looks awful btw), and it's still on its original nib. dapprman said:
On cheap sub £10 pens for starters, but one that looks relatively smart. Forget Chinese clones, I'm happy to recommend the Helix Oxford Fountain Pen. Now a pricey £10 at WH Smith (considering I got one at normal price for £5 at Asda just a few years back). Presently £7.30 at Cult Pens
I think it's an unspoken requirement of membership to this thread that you own at least one Jinhao. 
The nib on the 450,750 and the old 159 were all the same, they can be swapped out and there are vids on youtube showing you how to do this.
Whether you would want to though is open to debate, as CC suggests, at £5-10 they are really a disposable item
Whether you need to, is another matter, these nibs do not really wear in normal use, you could make a mess of them by grinding them etc but not in normal use.
I was about to say that the recommendations that have been made on Jinhao pens are a decent enough pen for the money, good looking and they work pretty well, starter pen if you like.
As Riley pointed out above, he is enjoying his 450 very much and he is a long term pen user.
Whether you would want to though is open to debate, as CC suggests, at £5-10 they are really a disposable item
Whether you need to, is another matter, these nibs do not really wear in normal use, you could make a mess of them by grinding them etc but not in normal use.
I was about to say that the recommendations that have been made on Jinhao pens are a decent enough pen for the money, good looking and they work pretty well, starter pen if you like.
As Riley pointed out above, he is enjoying his 450 very much and he is a long term pen user.
Clockwork Cupcake said:
dapprman said:
On cheap sub £10 pens for starters, but one that looks relatively smart. Forget Chinese clones, I'm happy to recommend the Helix Oxford Fountain Pen. Now a pricey £10 at WH Smith (considering I got one at normal price for £5 at Asda just a few years back). Presently £7.30 at Cult Pens
I think it's an unspoken requirement of membership to this thread that you own at least one Jinhao. - well unless I can sell it next Sunday (yours for £8 !!).dapprman said:
Before i started getting more involved and moved away from clones I did own a x750 (or was it a 450) which was decent enough and used to buy and give away their Sailor Slim clones to get friends in to fountain pens (for anyone who thinks Jinhao always produce good pens, I bought two lots of 12 and I'd say about 8 of them were instant non-recoverable failures. Still meant 16 good pens though). Still got a Jinhao 1200 Golden Dragon Bling monstrosity - well unless I can sell it next Sunday (yours for £8 !!).
The Dragon is a monstrosity. LOL - well unless I can sell it next Sunday (yours for £8 !!).Surprised you had such a high failure rate. The Jinhao X450 and X750 have almost become the mascots of this thread and this is the first I've heard of duff ones.
Clockwork Cupcake said:
dapprman said:
Before i started getting more involved and moved away from clones I did own a x750 (or was it a 450) which was decent enough and used to buy and give away their Sailor Slim clones to get friends in to fountain pens (for anyone who thinks Jinhao always produce good pens, I bought two lots of 12 and I'd say about 8 of them were instant non-recoverable failures. Still meant 16 good pens though). Still got a Jinhao 1200 Golden Dragon Bling monstrosity - well unless I can sell it next Sunday (yours for £8 !!).
The Dragon is a monstrosity. LOL - well unless I can sell it next Sunday (yours for £8 !!).Surprised you had such a high failure rate. The Jinhao X450 and X750 have almost become the mascots of this thread and this is the first I've heard of duff ones.
The Sailor Slim clones were particularly bad but I have known a fair few poor Jinaos. Mainly very minor stuff that can be quickly fixed, though much of this is within the fountain pen community. My real reason to move away from them is because they are plain pirate clones (or were originally). Very few of the Chinese copycats are legit, the Wing Sung 601 being a possible exception as they made the 51 under licence until politics got in the way and Parker withdrew from China. It's part of the reason I like Asvine/Hongdian as their designs are about as unique as you can get these days, though they do also make pens for a lot of other brands, mainly clones, including Jinhao, Moonman/Majohn, Duke, and PenBBS (I know PenBBS originally did unique designs but not they seem to just concentrate on cloning Leonardos) (also rumour has it they make 'Made in the USA' Narwhal/Nahvalur).
edit - BTW the Helix Oxford is now cheaper that most Jinhaos
edit - BTW the Helix Oxford is now cheaper that most Jinhaos
g4ry13 said:
Anyone use Lamy pens? My first fountain pen was a Lamy (similar to the CP1) which was thin and lightweight. I remember it wrote nicely until someone stole it off me.
I had another Lamy quite similar after that. Also have a Cross pen which I recall often felt scratchy.
Yes. The Lamy Safari has been mentioned many times, most recently only a few posts back.I had another Lamy quite similar after that. Also have a Cross pen which I recall often felt scratchy.
Great pens.
Anyone have a Nakaya pen?
I ordered a personalised one during lockdown - I think delivery was around 8 months later.
https://www.nakaya.org/en/review.aspx?id=147&t...
I had an extra fine nib for use with writing Japanese characters.
I also have a Namiki Nippon Art pen, with a more conventional nib, which gets used more often.
https://www.iguanasell.co.uk/collections/namiki-ni...
Sorry the pictures aren’t great!
I ordered a personalised one during lockdown - I think delivery was around 8 months later.
https://www.nakaya.org/en/review.aspx?id=147&t...
I had an extra fine nib for use with writing Japanese characters.
I also have a Namiki Nippon Art pen, with a more conventional nib, which gets used more often.
https://www.iguanasell.co.uk/collections/namiki-ni...
Sorry the pictures aren’t great!
Edited by Sport_Turismo_GTS on Sunday 25th February 23:12
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