Why do I use fountain pens?

Fountain pens cost more than regular ball points and rollerball pens. Many of my peers have asked me why I use fountain pens. I shall take this opportunity to detail the reasons behind my choice.

Zero hand fatigue. Ball pens requires you to press down on the paper to roll the ball in order to write. This introduces unnecessary hand fatigue and may cost issues with your hand muscles and tendons as you grow older. Fountain pens require no downward force to write. You just glide the nib over the paper.

Environmental-friendliness. Instead of supporting consumerism and polluting the environment by throwing away metal and plastic materials every single time you finish a refill or a pen, fountain pens inks come in huge bottles that lasts for months and even years. You no longer pollute the environment by buying a manufactured item that only lasts you a few weeks before you add it to the landfill.

Low cost. While fountain pens are more expensive than ball pens, they are not that much more expensive. Fountain pens can be purchases for under S$10, and the refills which come in huge bottles provide better cost per volume ratio compared to disposable or refillable ball pens. In the long run, you save. Big time.

Freedom of expression. Fountain pen inks come in every single color and shade you can think of. Most big time ink manufactures provide more than 10 shades for just a single color alone. You can choose the exact color and shade that best express your individualism.

Duo-point nibs. Duo-point nibs are special fountain pen nibs that writes with one stroke thickness the normal way (e.g M size) and a different thickness (e.g F size) when you flip the nib over and write with the other side. Most fountain pen nibs can do this out of the box, but specialty duo-point nibs are designed to excel in this. Duo-point nibs are particularly useful when writing notes or drawing, as you can write in different stroke thickness without switching to another pen.

A piece of history. Fountain pens have rich history. I love things with history.

Weikiat September 21, 2009 1 comment full post »

Pen Obsession

I tend to be very obsessed with my writing tools. This obsession stopped when I entered the army, but I can feel it coming back now…

Here are some of my favorite pens I have currently..

From left to right:
1) Pilot “The Shaker” H-1010
I bought the first Shaker pencil when it was first introduced when I was in Primary School. It was priced at $4.50 at that time, and I kept that pencil all the way until my last room-clearing I did before school start in July, during which I think I have accidentally threw it away:( The H-1010 is the current top of the line Shaker pencil and uses very high quality material that is built to last, compared to those cheaper models.

2) Cross Limited Edition Mickey Mouse Ball Point Pen
I had this pen since Primary School when an aunt gave it to me. She got it from the Mickey Fiesta held in Singapore many many years back. I kept it around but didn’t really use it for the fear of dropping the pen and breaking off the dedicate Mickey Mouse ears. Replaced the ink once before. The gold colour parts had visible stains on them but I was able to remove most of the stain with a contact cleaner.

3) Parker Ball Point Pen
This pen is something you can easily buy from any Popular stores now, and is one of the cheapest steel Parker ball point pen available. This is a gift from my girlfriend. This pen has the disadvantage of reacting to your sweat and giving off a strange smell. Not for those with sweaty palm.

4) PaperMate Epic
I got this from my Primary School tuition teacher for Christmas in Primary 6. This pen is made of metal, but feel as light as any plastic pen. This pen is also special because it uses a rotating head to retract the pen rather than a clicking mechanism. It also has stripes of rubber for extra grip. This model used to sell for under $10, but was discontinued more than 5 years ago. Due to the continued demand for this pen, however, prices on Ebay has reached USD45 and above. Hunting for ink replacement is hard, I just bought the last replacement ink from my neighborhood bookshop and was told that the ink replacement is no longer in production by PaperMate. Need to use this last ink sparingly.

Whats next?
I have ordered a Pilot G2 Limited (a limited edition G2 with metal barrel) to add to my collection.

At the same time, I also realized that the Rollerball ink replacement for Mont Blanc (their pens all costs 3 digit figures and upwards) pen could fit into a regular plastic G2 with some modification. Many businessman uses Mont Blanc pens as a form of status symbol, and I am going to pwn them with my Mont Blanc ink in $2 Pilot G2.

Weikiat August 18, 2009 1 comment full post »

First day of school after 2 years

The excitement of school. The quick, unsure steps. Today marks school day again for me after a long period of more than 2 years where I was put into an entirely different situation, one that of extreme regimentation where every single things I do was dictated.

Now, with my freedom back, I embark on a new milestone of my life. I can’t help feeling lost. There is no one to force me to wake up on time for school, and there is no one to knock me down if I never arrive 10minutes early for any lessons. What should I do? But in the company of fantastic friends, this lost sheep has found its favorite tree.

And i passed my IS200 exemption test in half the time given and with flying colours. According to beloved scary Prof Yeow Leong, mine was a “clear-cut” pass.

Congrats me by making a donation to Feed-Hungry-Weikiat-Investment-Fund?

Thank you.