5 Fountain Pens I Regret Buying (2020) 

Btw, you're doing a great job with your videos, lots of fun and useful.

Thank you for making this video!🙏🏽 Saved me from some bad purchases

This is your first video that I have come across and I must say that your analysis has left quite an impression on me. I am now a subscriber and I hope to learn more from your observations. I think that your reviews have a lot of merit. Keep it up!

Thanks for sharing! I own none of the pens mentioned, and you made it probable I’ll never will! With the exception for the Platinum perhaps. Fine dry nibs don’t frighten me, although, I prefer them fine and a bit wet, for shading.

What I regret the most is buying 3776, M805/M1005 or Custom 823 whose nibs are regular, perhaps ok, but not memorable. For regular-ok nibs there are already those of twsbi, diplomat, penbbs, moonman, fuliwen or even jinhao o baoer. Since there is nothing more subjective than your personal writing style, a little of tuning and micromesh and they can become memorable.

For your Ahab. Firstly, I'm thankful there's people who understand you need to adjust the pen. I've seen reviews where people didn't know this, or _did_ know this, and even though it explicitly tells you you need to adjust it, still complain because it doesn't come factory perfect from the box. You mentioned this occurs when you flex as in, ink flow gradually ceases. try pressing down on the reverse side on the paper. if ink flow returns, check your nib the next time it might be because the tipping isn't together and the tines are separated but look before you try to 'fix' it as in when the ink refuses to come out. I sometimes get this with my Creaper and that's my fix, just a quick tap. I think this is due to all the tugging and pulling out and changes I've made to my Creaper that the feed and tines no longer have great contact patch and need to re heatset my nib. Another issue is that you might need to get a box cutter and just straight up dig a deeper channel as your feed may not be able to keep up with your level of use-air locking for example-no matter how wet it is. It happened with my creaper, and all this "making overfeeds" and doodads were childs play to just straight up taking a knife to the thing. (maybe violence _can_ be the right answer after all!)

Great list and I agree with them all! I do like the Conklin however once I took out the flex nib , which simply did not write, and replaced it with a medium.

I was sorry to see the Platinum 3776 Century on your list. On my want list is a 3776 Century in black with rhodium or chrome trim (or "furniture" as you refer to it), with the UEF (ultra-extra-fine) nib. Because I like very, VERY fine lines. Perhaps it is because of a history of doing artwork with dip pens that I want so badly to try this pen. I do know that with such a very sharp nib, one needs a very light hand. I do still intend on getting one at some point in the future.

Oh...that Ahab brought back memories. It was one of the first fountain pens I bought (outside of the Wearevers I bought in grade school last century. I thought I was an idiot, trying to get that piece of junk to write. Lots of battle scars (ink all over) and wasted time. Ugh! I did get the Lamy Aion on the cheap and mine is OK for a pen to do crosswords and samurai sudoku with. For me, I thought the girth made it annoying to write with for any extended time. Conkin nibs for me have been junkers. I like the Platinum, but it's my least favorite of the Sailors I have, and it has a think medium line to it. Nice video- truly enjoyable.

omg the 3776 is my favorite pen ever, the feedback is glorious, I really enjoy write with it, maybe is the pen that I use more often (mine in M nib)

I loved my Aion before I dropped it and the cap exploded. It has the most beautiful metallic green that I have so far seen (and we'll see if that changes with The Good Blue L130 in British Racing Green or the Namisu Ixion Aluminum in green that I have on the way), and I found it very enjoyable as a first fountain pen. I used it even after I bought my Lamy 2000, which has held up to everyone's rave reviews. If only they'd make a forest-green Lamy 2000 to match. Other than the sensitive nature of my Aion, I loved it.

I think if I owned a 135 pound pen that only had a razor sharp scratchy nib as the problem, I'd get the magnifying glass out and see if maybe the nib width or alignment is off. It can also be wet sanded with very very fine sand paper to smooth it out. If you don't feel comfortable you have the option of having a fountain pen expert look at it, or just replace the nib, with one you know you like. Most are only 10-20 pounds unless you get into the 14k gold Lamys. And if it has a poor converter I would replace that as well.

Great information & a very handy 'heads-up' . Wonderful when you're looking for information about potential pen purchases. Wish there were more of these pure 'cons' videos. The only one I have a different view on is the Century 3776. I have an Ultra Extra Fine which is even finer than the Japanese Fine, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT! If only I could find more pens like that. This video is about YOUR regrets and have naught to do with my opinion and I fully realise that. That's what it comes down to for that particular pen (IMO). Personal taste. Whereas the others, I think, are more about malfunctions and poor performance, design flaws and that sort of thing. Thanks for the handy information :-)

The Duraflex is also on my list. I'm actually very happy with my Ahab, but never expected it to be a true flex nib. Higher on my list would be a pair of Pelikan M200s that I bought when I ran across a good deal on them, but before I realized how tiny they are and how insubstantial that they feel.

Noodlers Ahab. Had my first for about 2 months then ordered another. Yes, I did tweak the nib and opened up the ink channel in the ebonite feed slightly because I could. It's ebonite. I also write at about a quarter of the speed of normal if I want to do some minor flex writing. If tinkering and experimenting is not your cup of tea, then this pen is not for you. I can definitely understand your frustration and disappointment with it in this case. For numbers 4, 3, & 2, I have no experience however, in regards to how you yank the cap off of the Lamy Aion, most friction fit capped pens will suck out ink with such a violent action. I've done it on other pens but learned that a gentler removal of the cap will stop that from happening. Love my Conklin Duraflex but I don't flex the nib to a quarter-inch spread either. I use it for minor flexing which is all that modern flex nibs are capable of but it acted as I expected. I agree that if you want to get a really good flex nib pen, you have to get a vintage pen. Mine is the Eversharp Symphony from circa 1950 and the gold nib is amazing for flex writing.

I put Goulet #6 med. nibs on my Ahabs, because I'm not into flex nibs. My experience with the Ahab is very different than yours. I like my burgundy 3776, however, the blue was a great disappointment for the money. My blue is very dry and skips. Never purchased the Duraflex, but have a couple of other Conklins which I am happy with. My Aion did not turn out to be a nice writing experience. I ink up my Jinhao 100 med nib Centennial, and it writes like a dream (for an inexpensive pen); or my 2nd generation Kaigelu 316, which also gives me a nice writing experience.

Sorry to hear about your misfortunes 😢 Thanks a lot for your sincere comments👍 I have three Conklin Duragraph & they're not brilliant but ok. I've had extremely bad luck with Monteverde pens. Can you say something about Cigne fountain pens?

Nice to hear about the gripes for a change haha. You had me wondering what negatives i could say about my pens... Some for sure :P Though i dont think ive actually regretted buying one yet :P

Of those 5 pens that you showed, i only have conclin duraflex (0441 out of 1898) with omniflex nib, i bought it used for 36 US dollars (almost 27 pounds), and i have never had railroading problem, however, the nib is way too soft for me - just touching a paper, it starts with a medium line! So I rarely use it, but for the price I paid, I am ok with it. Thank you for the video.

I won a Platinum 3776 with a medium nib and it provides one or my favorite writing experiences. Also my Conklin Duragraph Turquoise Nights medium nib is a pleasant writer and was acquired at a low price that I have not seen elsewhere. And I bought the Lamy Aion in Green with Christmas 2021 money and have none of the problems you experienced. It is a Lamy writing experience equal to my Al-star. At he price point It is a good addition to my collection. I do share your disappointments with the three flex nibs I own. Simply changed the nibs and love the unique writing experience with the Monteverde, and two Fountain Pen Revolution pens. Still looking for a flex nib that I can use. The FPR Jaipur V2 with a medium nib is one of my top three favorite pens along with a Visconti Van Gogh circa 2002 with 14k medium nib and the afore mentioned Platinum 3776. As you mentioned fountain pens are a personal journey and I have some disappointments, just not the three you mentioned. Sorry for your disappointments and really, really like your videos, so please keep them coming.

I'm just soaking in all of the information I hear along the way! Thanks a lot for sharing your experience. I'm totally sorry for you, btw. Personally, I'm interested in purchasing (some day... in the future ☺️...) a Conklin fountain pen. I fell in love with TWO of their models: * All American in YELLOW STONE * The Duragraph in CRACKED ICE All I knew is that I want a rather stubby nib, so it would fit my shinning inks. Then, what a coincidence, in one of my favorite podcasts I've heard that Conklin have the BEST FLEX NIBS (and so far, that source has been super reliable... 🤔) So, I guess I'd have to search for more tips & answers before I buy my dream pen!

I am late to the party, again. I love both the Lamy Aion and the Platinum. Although my 3776 is a broad nib, which equates to a Western medium.

Gods. The Noodler's Ahab was my first ever fountain pen. And put me off of fountain pens for 5 years !

The Noodle Ahab was the second fountain pen I owned and was an enormous disappointment. I later bought a Pilot Custom Heritage 912 with a Falcon nib, which cost 8 times more but was 20 times the pen.

Thanks for sharing

My regret was a 2021 Lamy safari. The fine nib writes extremely dry and stiff and scratchy. No matter what I did or what ink I put in, I couldn't get a good flow. I was very disappointed, and will not be buying any more pens from Lamy.......

The Lamy Aion looks really bland in silver but I thought the green one looked pretty good. Checked it out in a pen store but it felt cheap. The threads on the barrel felt really rough and made a lot of noise when unscrewing. I didn’t buy it.

I happen to really like the sweet organic chemical smell of Noodler's pens and inks, I like the smell and it gives it a unique character although I see that many people do not share my opinion.

Hey man, were you been, I miss your videos, I hope all is well, hope to see you soon.

You are not cat handed 😉. I don't have any high end or even vicinity of high end pens, but luckily I have no duds. I have a cheap Click eyedropper that burps once in a while, but is still fun. What impresses me are the really inexpensive pens that write as well or better than pricier ones. I am using a Yiren pen that cost under $5 and writes better or comparably to any other pen I have.

The Noodler's Ahab works better if you toss the nib and replace it with a Zebra Comic G titanium nib. You'll need to adjust the Zebra nib a bit because the diameter isn't quite the same, but it will work better. Though if you want a flex, just put that Zebra nib on a Jinhao x750. It's not much good for writing, too scratchy, but great for art. A perfect alternative to the Lamy Aion is the Lamy Studio. Lightly textured, elegant design, solid feel, smooth writing, and beautiful colors. It's a perfect pen in my opinion. That Aion has a serious design flaw in the suction cap and I'm amazed that it made it into production. Lamy isn't typically like that. The Studio has none of it's design flaws. And is that an Acid Cigar box on the desk behind you? Kuba Deluxe perhaps?

if you bought the platinum from a retailer, why not exchange for a different nib if you otherwise liked it?

Panda! Where you at, brother? I see in a comment below that you'll be back soon. Hope so. Your vids are so fun! Take care.

Time to start Franken pen your pens. Replace nibs with good ones. Conklin duraflex nibs never write well.

I despise the texture of the Lamy Aion. Only pen I have regrets about so far

Can't disagree with much here. I have several Ahabs and aside from smelling like a bag of old jockstraps, the flow and consistency issues are just the same as yours. I've also done the tinkering. Heat setting. Washing. Different inks. Different paper. Different angles. Nope. Then the Aion: I'm a major Lamy fanboy with a bonkers quantity of their wonderful wares in my hoardy little hands. My 2000 is a thing of beauty but I'll be honest, my go-to is a simple Safari, one of the first proper FPs I bought. Then came the Aion. I've not noticed the ink splatter issue for 2 reasons. One is that I bought a black Aion. The other is that the spinning top relegated it to storage before even a side of A4 had been written. Lamy for me means nibs not drying out and starting first time. If a cap is flopping around in the breeze then it just feels like a desert of dried out crud is mere days away. The 3776: never felt motivated to buy one as the nib is reported to be a nail. I may as well use a Preppy. As for the number 1 I don't have any Conklins because their shameless ripoff of the Baoer 517 with the Victory really annoyed me. Chinese brands are always being thrown to the lions, sometimes with good reason, for their incessant cloning and passing-off. To see this happen in reverse, for a supposedly mainstream manufacturer to blatantly yoink someone else's work and think nobody would notice... That's a nope from me.

What’s your favourite pen ?

Thanks and I agree with Ahab (it also smell like chip chemical scam) and Lamy (that I dont like at all) - Platinum some old pen is nice but thanks for that modern one so I dont spend money

Haven't we all been disappointed by a long love affair with sailors?

After watching this video, I certainly will be very careful in buying pens. I suppose bad pens are also hard to sell?

Mother of regrets? Pelikan Pura.

Hold on... 7:37. Aren't you a lefty? LOL

I love that you aren't afraid to call out Platinum and Lamy on their pens. So much undeserved worship for the German and Japanese pens. They can make some duds, too. I liked my Aion just fine but I never could love it. Sold it. I had 2 x Platinum 3776 (Medium and UEF). I sold the Medium after about a year of trying to love it and kept hanging on to the UEF because I felt it was a little unique. Never could love it, either. Japanese pens are just boring, plastic nib holders and Platinum nibs are too scratchy. Pilot nibs are too boring. Thank god for Sailor or there wouldn't be a Japanese pen worth owning.

Bad karma. In regard to the Ahab, repeat after me "HEAT SET, HEAT SET, HEAT SET". Do it. It works. Too bad about your 3776. i have one in the same beautiful blue color. Mine has a medium nib, and it writes like a dream. Didn't you know that Japanese F nibs are much finer than most other F nibs? Finally, I have a Conklin with a Duraflex nib as well. Mine is a color different from yours, but the same model, and I paid half of what you paid. If you attempt to write very quickly you may see some railroading. I write at what i think is a "normal" speed, and the feed keeps up very well. The nib offers an impressive modern flex pen experience.

i hate my 3776 - it scratches and tears paper. awful pen.

u're really cute lol