Saturday, March 28, 2009

Friday, March 27, 2009

Y&C Permawriter II


I have always been a fan of the Y&C pens, What? You have not heard of them? If you haven't... then you are in for a surprise. Surprisingly smooth and sturdy, these pens have been a constant in my rotation for a long time. I buy these by the dozen without any hesitation and I never have had a bad batch.

For some reason, I have attached (not literally) these pens with my Moleskins. They seem to go together and I get a consistent very fine line that I need with this 00 tip. I do not get any bleeding and it's kinda like they were meant for each other.

Upper right hand corner of this photograph shows where one of these consistently lives. It's handy, easy to grab and I know its there. Most of the online Hobby stores carry these. You can get them here if you like.

I am tracking a very special FedEx package that I hope to share with you for my Monday post. -Let's just say it feels a little like Christmas eve to me....Have a great weekend everyone and remember to be nice to your pens!
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Thursday, March 26, 2009

Parker 21 Fountain Pen and a new giveaway tease


I was due to write about a comfort pen. Like mashed potatoes and gravy, this one makes me happy. Some days I actually need it. When my latest fad pen skips, I grab this one and let the ink flow.

Here's all the working bits. 3-4 squeezes and this one fills and writes perfectly. There's a little rust (or something) on the filler bar and I will get it off one day but for now it stays. It came that way and I gave it the nickname "Rusty" (you name all your pens right?)

The Parker 21's were made between 1948 and 1965. (I love my hooded nibs) I heard rumors of some 21 demonstrators (clear versions) out there. That might be a "have to have" pen for me if I ever see one.

In the spirit of giving, I am giving away the unopened pack from yesterdays post- but to keep it fair, I will wait till next week to post the silly rules. Just an FYI for now.

Twitter has been hot and heavy on the pen talk, good stuff over there, plenty of solid pen people if you do that sort of thing. Feel free to follow.




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Wednesday, March 25, 2009

What did she bring me #3 Bic Mark-it


If you have not seen it before, every now and then I ask my wife (The lovely Mrs. Youhavetoomanypensalready) to casually pick up a pen for me to review, no questions asked. The last one one can be seen here. This time, she picked up some Bic Mark-it Permanent Markers in Ultra Fine Point. Let's dig in.

I have a serious love for Sharpies so this might be a tough one. This view shows that for $5.00 you buy one and you get 1 free at Staples. .21 a pen.... That seems like a good deal.

I started off the testing process with a solid 20 minutes of sniffing these just to be sure they were safe. (kidding, no really, I am kidding.) Colors included Fandango Pink, Playful purple, Deep Sea Blue, Blue Skies Blue, Hot Aqua, Forest Green, Margarita Green, Yellow Blaze, Sunset Orange, Rambunctious Red, Tuxedo Black and Woodsy Brown. What?... wait...No Moulin Rouge? Dammit. From the start it looks like a nice fine point which I thought would be great.

But I have to give the nod to Sharpie. The fine point on the Sharpie is just a little more precise. The Bics are a little fatter and shorter than the Sharpie, although I will admit I like the idea of a grip on these pens. Bottom line, it's a good deal, I am glad I have them and I will use them, but they will not be replacing my Sharpies any time soon. Unless I can't get my hands on the New Stainless Steel...then all bets are off.
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Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Scripto Fountain Pen in Classic Black and Chrome


It may look like a Sheaffer cartridge Filler but this one is a little different. Apparently, Scripto is still in business making pens and other stuff. I always liked this pen. The nib says medium, but it is a little finer than that to me.

Scripto is Latin for "I write." The founder of the company invented the mechanical pencil and has been making lighters since 1955. (I did not know that.) The angles are a little off, but trust me...it's a little longer than the Sheaffer which makes me happy to write with it. This is a cartridge filler that I was lucky enough to find a cartidge that fits well enough.

If you have not seen it yet, you can win an original piece of art from Biffy Beans. It's as easy as leaving a comment on her site and tomorrow is the last day-- so enter quickly and good luck!

And finally a shot of the nib. This pen was about $2.00 on ebay last year... I picked it up on a whim and was never dissapointed. Between the Wearever yesterday and this today, I am the master of cheap cartridge filled fountain pens lately. That's ok, these are fun to write with and I would not be afraid to loan this one out. Good Pens.
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Monday, March 23, 2009

Wearever Fountain Pen Restoration


Before shot: I spent some time this weekend working on an old Wearever. It was old, grungy, broken and needed some love. Who am I to keep this pen down? Some people will say that this pen is not worth the time or the energy to get back in the game...but I disagree. It's a solid writer and it only cost me a few bucks to get rolling again. I posted a better broken shot here on Thursday.

All it took was a new sac, some polish and a tiny bit of nib work to make this a happy pen (and me a happy owner.) All the scratches polished out (thanks to my new polishing kit.) Click for better views.

Now it is shiny!

Ignore the feathering, its the cheap paper but the nib is very smooth. Who knows...I might have put another 30 years of use into this pen over the weekend and that is a pretty good feeling. Don't worry I will be back tomorrow with the latest new pen that will last me 2 weeks! Cheers.
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Moonman AKA The Camry

OK,  Camry MIGHT be a little bit of a stretch comparison.   Low cost and will run forever.  The Moonman M2 is a super fun Chines...