Custom Fountain Pen
Before I start, I need to reveal to you a secret*. I am a fountain pen lover. Yes, that’s right. I love using them to write and draw. I love the ritual associated with them – the filling and cleaning and care, and I abide by the credo, “DEATH TO THE BALLPOINT”.
Ahem.
Where was I? Oh yes, I am very lucky to have received a pen from US “Nibmeister” Greg Minuskin for my drawing pleasure. A nibmeister is a craftsman who shapes and adjusts fountain pen nibs. In this case, Mr. Minuskin has taken a Japanese Namiki Falcon fountain pen, and ground down the sides of the gold nib to make it more flexible, thereby allowing it to create a more varied line.
Custom-ground nib – photo courtesy and © Greg Minuskin
A little history: In the early part of last century most fountain pens sported flexible nibs, as people cared more about penmanship and had a delicate touch. But with the advent of the ballpoint pen (grrrr) people got used to pressing down hard on the page. So when they started bending and breaking their fountain pen nibs, pen manufacturers responded by producing hard, inflexible, and unbreakable nibs for their customers.
Today, the Japanese are one of the only countries that really take pride in the art of writing, so it is no wonder that they also produce one of the only modern flexible fountain pens, although they really are nothing like the vintage American and British pens of the 1920′s.
But onto the pen. While it doesn’t quite have the flexibility and varied line of a vintage pen, it does have the advantage of being new. Old pens are fragile, and I’m generally not very willing to take many of them out of the house too often. This is not the case here, so effectively I have in my pocket a good, reliable sketching pen.
Now, I’m a mainly a brush guy. I don’t really enjoy drawing entire illustrations in pen only, but I have been using this one to draw small, fine details, touchups and crosshatching (see here, here, and here and the photo at the top). It has saved me breaking out the dip pens, and gives a great result – the only downside being that I can’t use india ink with it (india ink clogs up fountain pens – never fill yours with it). It is also easier to handle than a dip pen, as it doesn’t have the sharp edge to catch on.
So, shameless plug time: Do get in touch with Greg should you be after any custom work on a fountain pen. He can even supply the pen, and he’s a super-nice guy to boot. Be sure to head to his site at gregminuskin.com to see more of his handiwork, and tell him Sir Writealot sent you…
Thanks for reading,
Anton
* Actually, I was outed a couple of years ago by my wife in the Sydney Morning Herald. Here is how it went down.
Nice pen, nice illo, nice fetish!
Hey Anton.
Firstly I’m a huge fan.
I would love to draw with a nice fountain pen but have mixed results when using them. The nibs get easily clogged or for some reason the ink won’t flow at all. I would love to know some tips you may have for cleaning or general maintenance.
Cheers mate.
Thanks, guys!
Mark – what pen(s) are you using? And which ink brand(s)? And how often are you using the pen(s)?
I have a Sheaffer’s fountain pen http://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/uploads/imgs/fpn_1302972529__img_4513.jpg and tried to use Art spectrum black ink
Oops that image is a ball point. My pen looks exactly the same except it has a nib
Mark, I think the problem is your ink. I’m not sure, but it looks like the Art Spectrum ink is india ink – is that right?
You can only use fountain pen ink in fountain pens. Other drawing inks will clog up the pen, sometimes irreversibly.
I would be interested in trying a flexible nib fountain pen. Where do you order the pen from and how much do they cost?
Thank you,
Leslie
Leslie – contact Greg Minuskin: http://gregminuskin.com/
I stumbled over your blog (awesome work dude!) while researching fountain pens. I have a couple of Pelikans (slight flex, medium and fine nibs) I cartoon with and I used to buy and repair vintage pens to find good flex nibs. I’ve tried out of the box Falcons and didn’t dig’em. Too scratchy. I’m hoping when the Noodler’s Flex nib pen is back in stock it’ll be a good cartooning pen. http://www.gouletpens.com/Noodlers_Flex_Nib_Pens_s/903.htm
I am currently using Platinum Carbon Ink in my Pelikans. You may want to research it/try it. It’s pretty black and waterproof. No clogs so far but I use the pens daily. http://www.amazon.com/Carbon-Black-Ink-C-1500-Platinum/dp/B001AVR5A6
Thanks for the info, Dale. That Noodlers Flex Pen looks good for that price, although I doubt the feed can keep up with rigorous pen strokes from the videos I saw.
You’re not the first to recommend the Platinum Carbon ink, too. Will have to check it out! Cheers.
I LOVE my Namiki Falcon. I haven’t done any modifications to it (yet) though. The only peeve I have about the pen is the little gold ring near the nib tends to unscrew itself and fly off and I have to then get out of my chair and chase after it.
I’ve found that Noodler’s Black works well but spent the better part of a two years trying to convince myself that Noodler’s Polar Black was the best – even though it was much too wet and created unmanageably thick lines. Polar Black dries faster and I wanted it to work because I color with watercolors after inking. Noodler’s Black dries more slowly but is eventually waterproof on paper.
I’ve been doing some research over the last several weeks in hopes of finding a better fountain pen for drawing.
I’ve been writing about my search for a better pen, my current pen, and the process of re-leaning to draw after many years away from the pen and paper.
I think we probably have a lot in common; comics and pens and such. Hope you’ll drop by sometime. I’ll definitely be adding your blog to my rolodex.
Oh, and I had heard about Richard Binder and Mottishaw, but not Minuskin. I’ll have to check his stuff out.
I finally got the Noodler’s flex nib. Too stiff. Nice thing is that it’s only a $17 pen so I reground the steel nib using a cheap rotary tool to make it more flexible (I went to a lecture once by Mottishaw). I doubt it is as nice as the Falcon and I am still fiddling with the feed (fast long lines run out of ink) but it’s fun to customize the nib and If I blow it it’s only $17.
As both a fountain pen collector and husband of a horse trainer, I love that cartoon!