this post was submitted on 08 Sep 2024
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The trouble with fountain pens is that they don't really expect you to not write for a month or two. The ones with built-in tank would be less annoying there as you can easily uncrust everything by pulling in some ink through the feather (is that what the tip is called in English? I have no idea), but their great downside is that when they make a mess, they make a real mess. Ink rollers you can put in a pocket without worrying and they don't really dry out. Mostly though you don't have to ram them into the paper to write.
Also, clutch pencils. Those mechanical ones that take leads that are as thick as usual wood-encased ones, and that you sharpen. If you ever have like 10 bucks burning a hole in your pocket get yourself some koh-i-noor clutch pencils and collection of leads (usual is HB but I'd suggest trying out 2B for writing), suitable sharpener (pencils come with an emergency one but it's not too nice), as well as two tombow erasers: The ordinary one, and the dust catch one. Life's too precious to waste nerves on shoddy leads and erasers. Also a Faber-Castel kneadable eraser: Even if you don't draw it's occasionally useful to be able to have a fine eraser tip. koh-i-noor leads are reportedly good enough for both artists and engineers and, truth be told, what could be a more perfect combination of endorsements. And, as said, like 10 bucks total.
Feathers are the things birds have that are part of their wing and help them fly. Pens were made from feathers at sorme points in history. I think the term you are looking for is nib, if you mean the metal part of a pen that touches the paper.
You have pens like the platinum Preppy and platinum plasir which have double seals around the nib. I left my preppy for an entire year and it still didn't dry out. They aren't the only brand to use tricks like this, my TWSBI Eco was also left for a year and was a-okay. It's always good before buying a pen to check the reviews and see what their cap seals are like. Rollerballs do require less maintenance though you are correct. If you do leave a fountain pen and it gets clogged there are ways to fix it, as I had to do with two more of my pens that did clog when they were left with the others.
I've used cheap mechanical pencils before but not expensive ones. How much better are more expensive mechanical pencils?
I'm not talking exclusive, here, koh-i-noor clutch pencils start at... wait no those are plastic ones and a ten set (30 Euro). Metal ones 4.50 Euros or such. Cheapest Staedler I'm seeing is 9 for metal, 5 for plastic. The real difference is the leads: No scratching, just pure smoothness, from either company. 2mm diameter x 12cm length, it's a standard. Bought a handful for sketching purposes, you can actually use 6B leads in clutch pencils those would instantly break with modern mechanical pencils, and you can shape the tip, expose lots of lead to have lots of surface area, etc. I then went ahead and also used them for less artistic purposes. What you do have to get accustomed to is the lead falling straight down and out when you press the button if you don't catch it with the table. Oh and bonus: Those 2mm leads also should fit your compass, just break off a piece and sharpen it.
I'd say they're more like better wood pencils than mechanical ones with thin leads, where you have the choice between constantly breaking leads or using 0.9mm leads which are less likely to break, but you'll be stuck with producing thick lines as sharpening them really is silly.