Ready for another dive into my fountain pen collection? As of this post I own 22 fountain pens. At any given time I have three or four of them that are inked and ready to use. You may have seen some of these pens in my previous posts regarding my collection. This round of questions come from Fountain Pen Community on YouTube, much like the #8penquestion tag that I answered a little while ago.
1. First pen Purchased:
While it might not actually be the very first fountain pen I purchased it is the first that has any memory attached to it. This is the fountain pen that came over with me from Germany in 1994. There aren’t any markings on the pen to indicate the manufacture. Thanks to Google I found references to a pen that was marketed as the AW Sizzle Stix Pen in the US that seems to be the type of fountain pen I have. According to the threads that I followed they were made by Reform. Looking Reform up just led me down a rabbit hole with even less information.
2. Most Recent Pen Purchased:
My most recent purchase is the Traveler’s Company Brass Pen. It literally arrived three days ago. I wasn’t looking at getting a brass pen any time soon though I was interested in them. However it ended up in my shopping cart when I decided to get a Traveler’s Notebook which was spurred on by my continuous watching of fellow pen/ink enthusiasts on YouTube. I don’t mind having been influenced into getting this pen as the other brass pen I considered was almost twice the cost. And I have a general rule about metal pens that are made of copper and brass – one is enough. I do look forward to seeing how the patina will form with use, just like the aging of the Traveler’s notebook.
3. Smallest Pen:
The smallest pen I own is actually my most recent purchase but I didn’t want to just repeat that answer. Instead I’ll tell you that I have three small pens in total. The Traveler’s Company Brass Pen, a grey Kaweco Sport, and a Monteverde Poquito in pink. I think there might be a converter for the Kaweco Sport but I haven’t looked into it, otherwise all of these pens take ink cartridges to use some of which are proprietary to the individual brand. I own only one Kaweco and one Monteverde fountain pen.
The Poquito fountain pen is no longer being made. It has a tip on the cap that you can use on touch screens though I haven’t actually tried it. The ballpoint Poquito is still being made but the current version has a soft tip to use on touch screens.
4. Largest Pen:
Overall I think the Pelikan Twist in Mystic Shine is the largest pen in my collection. I bought it shortly after talking to my mum about fountain pens and our memories of them. It’s meant to be a “starter” pen. It has a triangular grip section that is really comfortable to hold (for me at least). I can’t recall if I chose to get a medium nib or if that was the only option when I bought it. I love the color and the way it shifts.
5.Youngest Pen: (By Year) / Least Expensive
I’m combining two of the Superlatives for simplicities sake. The Preppy Wa in the color Fukura Suzame is both the least expensive pen I own and the youngest by manufacturing year. The Preppy Wa first came to market in 2021. This particular color was released this year (2023) and is a limited edition.
6. Oldest Pen: (By Year)
It took a bit of research and I was actually surprised that it wasn’t the Sengebusch handi-pen that I was gifted by a friend that was the oldest by manufacturing year. The Kaweco Sport is the oldest pen by manufacturing year in my collection. Kaweco introduced this pen to market in 1911.
8. Most Expensive:
Another recent acquisition I talked about in a previous post, the Twisbi Diamond AL-R in Prussian Blue is the most expensive pen currently in my collection. I took it out of the case it was in just for this picture. It’s not that I am worried about damaging it or anything. It’s just so pretty. I haven’t even inked it up yet.
9. Favorite EDC:
As my collection stands right now, the Retro 51 Lincoln (copper) is my favorite every day carry pen, though I have recently been leaving it on my desk which is where I do most of my writing. I adored this pen the moment I opened up the tube it came in. The weight, the way it writes, the look… it all just came together for me.
And that covers my 2023 Pen Superlatives. I had to do a bit of deep diving to answer these questions and I had to decide how to answer a few of the questions. (Youngest by year it was made or when it arrived in my collection for example) You wouldn’t get to see (and I wouldn’t get to share) much of my collection given the some interpretations and that’s not exactly why I’m writing these posts right?
Much love,
Charlie
Loose Endings Studio 