The Curse Of The Inked Fountain Pen
Last night as I scribbled random words on some lovely Tomoe River Paper, I found myself proclaiming my undying love for the TWSBI Vac 700. It has a large nib, large body, large ink supply, and it’s just…. large.
In that moment I decided I would flush every inked fountain pen and only use the Vac 700. So it was set: tomorrow I would be a 1 fountain pen user.
Tomorrow is here. I took the day off because World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor comes out today. That’s normal right? Nevermind that, I was talking about pens.
Before we get too far into this story, let’s cover what I currently have inked.
- TWSBI Vac 700 — Broad nib filled with Diamine Prussian Blue
- TWSBI 540 — 1.1mm nib filled with Diamine Ox Blood
- Levenger L-Tech — Medium nib filled with Sailor Sky High
- Pilot 78G — Broad nib filled with Iroshizuku Kon-Peki
- Pilot Custom 74 — BB nib filled with Sailor Grenade
- Kaweco AL Sport — Medium nib filled with Sailor Sky High
That’s not a lot of pens but it’s more than I need. I was positive one pen would be enough last night but today? I’m not quite so sure. I woke up ready to flush all my pens except the Vac 700. Diamine Prussian Blue? What a great ink! Who needs anything more than that?
Oh wait, the 540 has a stub nib and that’s different enough to warrant keeping it inked.
Okay, I’ll flush the rest.
Wait, the Pilot Custom 74 is super broad. Who doesn’t like super broad nibs? I love them! Okay, let’s keep that one inked, plus Sailor Grenade is a gorgeous ink and it would be a shame to flush that down the drain.
What about that Kaweco? It’s a cartridge pen and I carry it in my pocket every day although I never use it. That seems pretty important. Also, who flushes a cartridge pen? I had to fill the cartridge with a syringe! That’s a lot of work and it should stay inked.
That leaves the Levenger, the 78G, and…. I guess that’s it.
What’s that pen sitting in the stand over there? An un-inked Pilot Falcon? I bet Sailor Sky High would look cool in that. There’s no harm in having 5 pens inked right?