Obtaining a pen recommendation from me is a fairly mundane experience. “Go buy a Lamy” I say. Job done, easy.
It seldom works out like that. More often than not people see right through my dastardly deception and demand the full experience. They don’t want a recommendation, they want a fitting. And to be fair that’s fair enough: acquiring a fine writing instrument should be an experience.
Here’s what that experience entails. I admit I actually enjoy it, it is good fun. This is the kit I use which I’ll get to in a bit:
First there’s the questions I either ask or observe. Pens come in a variety of shapes, sizes and characteristics and tailoring to the person’s style, physiology, tastes and purposes all have a bearing on selection.
Have you used a fountain pen before?
Are you right or left handed?
Would you say the characters of your writing are small, medium or large?
Would you say your hands are small, medium or large?
When you hold a pen do you clasp it between your thumb and forefinger and rest it on your middle finger or is your grip different?
When you write is the pen perpendicular to the page or do you write with a bit of an angle?
Besides its function a pen is also an adornment, like jewellery. Is this aspect important to you?
Can you show me a photograph of your handwriting with a common object in the picture to show scale?
Will you be using the pen mostly for short pieces like note taking, longer pieces like letters, or very long pieces like journaling or even a novel?
With this information I can offer some pretty good options for manufacturer and model but the sine qua non of obtaining a tailored writing instrument is nib selection. This where the kit (and the fun) comes in.
90%+ of fountain pens in the world are standard round nibs, Fine, Medium and Broad. Add in Extra Fine to capture the Oriental calligraphy market and it’s probably 99%. Most people will be entirely satisfied with one of these standard round nibs.
That remaining 1% though, contains some truly delightful writing experiences. The attraction isn’t just the feel, it’s the character such a nib can add to your handwriting. This can be challenging because pen boutiques, if they carry them at all, seldom carry a broad range. Maybe a Stub, Cursive Italic, Formal Italic, Oblique, Flex, Fude, Music, Architect or even a Naginata might be the right nib for you though?
Increasingly these specialist nibs are available factory-fitted though many still need to be custom ground by an artisan nibmeister. How do you know which might suit? The answer is spending a couple of hours splashing some ink with Simon, giving each nib a try.
This is a relatively unique experience. High-end pen boutiques (notably Montblanc) conduct a similar process which typically includes Obliques and Stubs and maybe an Architect if you’re lucky. For a broader range you really need to engage a collector, an enthusiast, a pen turbonerd such as me.
After my game of 20 questions and a session of nib playtime I seldom need to offer a recommendation: you will know which pen, fitted with which nib, is right for you.
Be warned: you’ll probably change your mind in about a year though, when you remember there was this other nib you tried in another pen you admire that you really really really want, too.
Because that’s how it starts.
-SRA. Auckland, 9/vi 2025.
Who has only one fountian pen? FWIW, fine or italic, steel nib, plunger. Asian nibs are best.