What a great selection of flex pen options! As an avid user of flex pens, I would offer this recommendation. If you are serious about flex and really enjoy writing with them, save your money and purchase a vintage pen. There are many options still out there from $75 and up. Yes, the cheaper ones may have some cosmetic damage or need to be re-sacked, or be an "off brand", but there is nothing on the market today that can compare with a vintage "wet-noodle." The vintage pens will flex with almost no pressure and bounce back quickly. The feeds keep up and refuse to rail-road. Once you've written with a Waterman 52 or Mabie Todd Swan, or Wahl-Eversharp, you won't want anything else. My current inked flex pen is a Waterman 512 1/2 which goes from an extra-fine to a BBB.
Yeah, the vintage pens are simply amazing. And like you said, if you look for "off-brand" pens you can get something really nice without breaking the bank. A proper vintage Waterman is on the list. I've been told many times that if you want flex, those are the best!
an alternative is to save up about £35 for a dremel and cheap jinhao nibs and mod them until they flex like vintage nibs. Probably won't look as nice though haha
I'm new to fountain pens. What makes vintage pens so much better than brand new pens? Is it that the nib has aged or are there some superior manufacturing techniques that have been lost to time?
It was a very nice comparison. I am glad you brought up the PILOT No. 10 FA nib for comparison. Using this fountain pen as a benchmark, I can imagine the performance of other fountain pens. The PELICAN 140 is what I want too.
Thanks for the video, I love vintage Pelikans but have stopped going for flex with them though. I just enjoy the soft/bouncy and controlled writing instead. :)
Yup that would help. Having 3 seperate flat surfaces all line up on a thread with dissimilar materials is pretty damn tricky to do LOL. Doesn't bother me, but just a little detail I thought I'd bring up
Thank you, sir, for showing us your “puppies”. ❤ I have the Pilot but I’m too terrified to change the feed on it. Too expensive to have to pay to ruin my pen. Maybe next time I’m in Canada …
Flex off!! While I don’t have the Pelikan, I like that it’s small but with a mighty flex! My personal faves out of your bunch are the Omas vintage and the Osprey with the Zebra nib. Fun vid!
I bought my first Flex about when you did this video, totally coincidentally. I got a Noodler's Ahab Demonstrator. It's loaded with their Baystate Blue ink, which I totally love, even if it does smell funny.
My favorite flex pen? My Noodler's Ahab with a Fountain Pen Revolution flex nib. It works excellently. The prices are so reasonable, it was a great experiment and it works!
@@tiffanybluetarot I did this exchange for two reasons. The FPR pen I had did not work well. The piston broke twice. The nib, though performed nicely. The Ahab nib did not perform well as it was very scratchy but the pen, itself functioned very well. So, I combined the FPR nib with the Ahab body. The result was a very good working pen that had the right amount of flex to provide character to my everyday writing.
@@paulmchugh1430 thank you kindly for taking the time to give me the bigger picture here. I’m new to all this, so I need all the help I can get! (haha) I love the way my FPR Muft (UltraFlex) writes, aside from the fact it leaves me covered in ink…but I’m at the point where I’m eager to explore more. However, options to me are very limited since flex nibs are not part of the typical lineup and when they ***are*** available, they can get pretty pricy. I think I’m basically left with Noodler’s & FPR as options until my budget says otherwise. I’m sure I’ll be giving the Ahab a try here soon. I’ve just been reluctant because their pens are quite fickle; I didn’t want to risk getting a dud. If I do, at least I know I can get an FPR nib & feed and it won’t be a total loss!
Truly sorry it didn’t work out with the Jinhao. Not only really sorry but not a little embarrassed too. Great video as ever. The Osprey looks interesting. I’m a fan of the FPR but it needs the right ink mine works well with Washable Blue Quink. Mind you I like pretty much all of the pens featured. I think I need to get my 912FA tuned with an ebonite feed. The Omas is great but I reckon you won’t get to love it as you haven’t so far. Regardless I think that the choice of ink used is vital varying from pen to pen. Pure Pens, PR and KWZ are among my favourite inks. Great video catch ya next time. D
Kon-Peki is fine, a good benchmark blue that I find plays nice with pretty much anything you throw at it. Even works fine in those Hilroy scribblers and as a fellow Canadian I think you know exactly which ones I’m talking about. I think its general agreeableness while still looking fine probably has something to do with the hype behind it much like many entry into a hobby hype trains you see in any hobby. I’m not a big fan of blues though, much prefer purples, greens and browns. My only black is Carbon Black for writing stuff expected to have a bit more resistance and permeance. As for the flexes I’m a fan of soft vs a full fat flex but my writing is small so I wouldn’t get much mileage out of a proper flex. My niece wants a flex for drawing so I have a few ideas for back to school time and this video is very helpful narrowing it down.
the pelikan vintage is my fav too, not the smoothest or the softest but it just really really nice to write with perfect amount of flex and controlability and its super wet too XD
@@Doodlebud the only other pen i have that write kinda similar is a vintage pilot elite custom 18k 1970, it is also an exellent writer that i really recommend if you can get your hand on it.
With the zebra g jinhao, you are supposed to flatten out the zebra g before you insert it in the pen. The curve is more acute than a standard FP nib. Even when you get it working, the feed has a hard time keeping up. Worth a try tinkering with it though.
Ahhhhh thanks for the info. I lost the instructions for it 😆. Like you said, still tricky for the feed to keep up. The custom feed on the Osprey does a great job fitting & keeping up
When I altered my Zebra G and Jinhoa pen, I had to slightly open the slot on the top of the feed. A 'Noodlers' fix for a slow flowing feed. The comment about the inner diameter being incompatible is also correct. The nib has to be 'flattened' or opened a bit to make contact with the feed. It does work.
Don't forget to scrub the nib with a toothbrush and toothpaste to get the oil off...i know there's other ways but it just seemed to be the "least mess" 🤷🏼♂️🙃
I love the Pelican 140 as well. Mine also has a cap thread issue in that it’s very difficult to get the cap tightened just right. It easily skips the threads if too tight but the cap will come loose if not tight enough or if you nudge it to one side. I was hoping you could give me some ideas since you are the thread expert!
Worn threads are a tricky one. If it jumps when you tighten a bit harder then they're getting stripped. That's why it's so good to have a thread stop designed into the pen. Completely stops this issue. As far s fixes go it's a bit tricky. Check the comments as someone asked the same thing & I gave my thoughts. But I was just guessing
hii i have a question, i got the ahabs, overall i dislike the flow, even more considering i draw on a tilted surface... will the ink flow on any of the FPRs be better than the ahab? enough for it to write with a decent flex on a tilted surface? thanks!
You should add Tom’s Studio Spark pen to your next video, after watching Gemma on that amazing Calligraphy lesson on your channel I looked on their site and their flex pens look really practical and thoughtfully designed. Being from the UK, this was a great discovery. I also fancy a Pilot Falcon. Thanks for another great video :j
That spark does seem like a well made pen with some great nib options. Glad you enjoyed the calligraphy lesson! The video hasn't gotten many views, but for those who want to learn calligraphy basics I think its a great starting point with some good tips & tricks to save frustration when getting going for the first time like I experienced prior to chatting with Tom's studio.
It was considerate and thoughtful to make this video, I like the out of the box thinking. Writing is an art form by itself, I do not do Calligraphy, but I learnt Cursive during COVID, the video is very helpful for writing technique which normal writers may not realise the similarity in strokes dependant on their style!
Thanks for a fantastic video. I'm mostly a vintage fountain pen collector. I really like your Omas flex pen. Maybe you wish to part with it. It would be perfect for cursive Cyrillic. (I am a Russian Orthodox priest.) Love all of your videos. Great sense of humor.
Alright... Late to this party... BUT I HAVE TO SAY THIS... Reader(s)... TAKE NOTES... Doodlebud is THE real deal. I took his (okay... somewhat dubious) advice... EVEN against my usual instinct on the market "You get what you pay for"... BUT Doodlebud said it in another vid'... "Give the Jinhao's credit. If you're just looking for a fountain pen to work out of the box and not break the bank... there does NOT need to be a BIG FAT budget for it." While I can't say something like I'm somehow magically in love with them... Jinhaos just work. I think this video's a clear example of "Don't fix it if it ain't broke!" {Especially on a budget}... BUT just a workaday pen for EDC and a touch of class... no need to break the bank or tinker yourself to death... AND Doodlebud, thanks... I'll keep polishing pennies and skulking around the vid's and all a while... BUT for the basic needs, you had it pretty well right. Loving the ink advice too... (just in case you ever see this)... haha ;o)
Been waiting for this one!! Out of all of these the Pelikan 140 and the Pilot Custom 912 are on my radar. Any tips for buying a vintage Pelikan 140? Where to go perhaps what to look out for or look for? I see on ebay there are a lot of them from Serbia?
Mine might have been from Serbia as well, can't remember. There are online retailers that sell vintage pens to give better peace of mind. You could look for pen shows/meet ups as well. When it comes to ebay, I look for sellers with lots of transactions, good feedback, & quality pictures with a write up.
I'm pretty sure that these Serbian pens are the ones formerly used by the New Class officials, the communist party insiders (a Serb, Djilas, coined that term...) It's sort of a hard currency thing in a post-communist country
The cap coming of is an issue that even modern Pelikan seem to struggle with. Just a few weeks ago there was a post on a German fountain pen forum (funnily enough the one sponsored by Pelikan) of someone's M1000 cap coming of and the pen leaking everywhere. And in the comments were many more who experienced something similar or at least the cap not staying tightened and loosening. Interesting to see that it might be a longstanding issue.
I've found the vintage caps can get like your Pelikan one. Seems it's all about how much it was originally used. Threads got worn. (I have a bunch of vintage pens, from different brands, and it just seems like a thing after a while.) I've heard of people touching up the threads, but not a clue how.
I guess you could put a wee little bit of the right type adhesive on the threads. Cap on/off several times for the adhesive to conform, then let it dry cap off. Could add just a touch to the threads and make the fitment a bit more snug. Just spit balling 🤔
@@Doodlebud I've seen something about it on Fountain Pen Network. Maybe from one of the "old guard." Give me something to look into, or maybe get that "trade secret" from Stef from Grandmia Pens. 😁
LOL, I don't want to tick people off but I would agree its an "old guard" thing. We can make the new James Webb Space Telescope but we don't know how to make a nice little bendy piece of metal?? LOL I actually have a project in the works to make a modern day flex nib from new materials. It's going to take time as I have almost no spare time and don't have a shop. But I was thinking about methods to do it with my very limited resources and equipment and have a viable concept. It's always easy to think you need to do something the way it was done before rather than come up with something new all together. But that is how we innovate and make cool new stuff all the time. It takes work, ingenuity, and a bunch of trial and error. But that's the process where you learn so much and come up with even better stuff
@@Doodlebud There's a guy on Fountain Pen Network that had a vintage grade flex nib made on a lark by his local jeweler. 14K, seems to be thin gold, and longer tines than anyone is really doing today, on average, but then there's the Waterman's Taperite with a fairly tiny semi hooded nib and still more flexible, generally, than today. Frankly, the tripe about the flex nib being a "lost art" like I've heard from several manufacturers and retailers is absolutely wrong. Like the claim that an ingredient in many vintage inks is highly toxic to contact (but it's in Chloraseptic...) "It's artesianal" is wrong, too, if the sheer number of flexible Warranted nibs is an indication. Mass production and still has flex generally. Hope you have success! I'd love to get something modern as flexible as my 1912 Mabie Todd Swan C2. 😉
So I LOVE Osprey as a brand. Their customer service is second to none in my experience. Unfortunately I know they have great customers service because I have four of their wonderful pens, but something has gone wrong with all at some point. Some observations: 1) All my issues have been with leaky converters. Three of the four (an acrylic Milano, ebonite Milano, and a Scholar) have had leaky converters. Osprey made it right and sent replacements quickly. I do still have issues with two of them leaking inside their barrels over time (it’s a slow seep, not a catastrophic flood). I’ve used Teflon tape to seal the ones that still leak, and haven’t had anymore issues. I do hope they fix their pens’ tolerance issues, because… 2)Their pens are super attractive and-aside from the converters-incredibly well made for the price. They’re also versatile, being able to fit many different nibs and having ebonite feeds. There are only three real models, but the Milano and the Scholar have a ton of different looks that they come in. My ebonite Milano is one of their special Nikko hard rubber models, and it is NICE. It is such a beautiful pen that I never EDC it. It’s a desk queen. 3)Their Zebra G nib units aren’t as good as Desiderata’s. They’re certainly better than some janky Jonhao, but my Desiderata (I forget the model, but it’s made of eucalyptus burl) had MUCH better flow. After years comparing the Ospreys and Desiderata, I believe this advantage comes down to two differences in their designs: a) the two brands both have ebonite feeds, but they are different in their designs (with the Desiderata being just better designed); and they use different filler designs. The Ospreys use a screw-in converter, but the Desiderata uses a superior silicone squeeze sac complete with a small breather tube that runs to the end of the sac. I think the combination of the sac being more pliable and the breather tube allowing easier air-ink exchange allows the Desiderata to have a much freer ink flow. Overall though, I adore my Ospreys. I hope the company keeps evolving their feed and filler designs. I don’t think a regular old converter will ever offer the ink flow that serious flexible nibs require.
Also, I have to add, their architect nibs are amazing. They’re a step above the FPR architect nibs, which are not bad at all. The only Osprey nibs I haven’t liked were their bronze (I think?…) Zebra G replacement (which is great in theory, but had serious upstroke paper catching issues), and their Zoom nib (which arrived way too dry, but that’s an easy fix). Like I said, overall a great company.
Thanks for sharing your experience! Odd about having so many issues with leaking converters. Perhaps there was a batch of converters or sections they screw into that were off a bit during manufacturing. Thanks for mentioning Desiderata pens too. I completely forgot about them! I saw their stuff once and thought it looked nice and that's about all. Definitely something for me to check out. Good to hear the other nibs have worked out well. I'm actually thinking of trying out their other nibs too. They have such a huge selection and for pretty fair pricing as far as I can say.
They are a fiddlers pen. I've done a few videos of me messing with Ahab: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-STkJZ4-LTiA.html ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Ka3CnD47Axs.html
I did a top 5 blue inks a itte but ago. Also, Pelikan Royal Blue is great. Ben Walsh from Gravitas got me into that one & I love. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-BYQJ6GYALN0.html
I found out you need to actually flatten the nib out to make it fit. Heat setting happens more with Ebonite feeds. The supplied feed is just ABS and doesn't heat set in the same manner
Too bad that we cannot go back in time and get the exact metal compositions used to create vintage flex nibs. Take care and thank you for your video presentation.
We have modern equipment that can tell you the composition of vintage gold nibs. Also has a lot to do with the material thickness & shape of the nib. We could make them again today but someone has to be willing to make the investment with uncertainty of ROI. Also there are modern day materials that would work as well, but again ROI is a bit of a barrier
19:40 The Good Blue R615 Silver series 2022. I have the Anodized version. It still doesn’t line up right out if the package. Its better than what I see in your video. But brand new out of the box I feel it will worsen over time as well. I chose the flex with polymer feed tipped. The nib ripped right into the paper. It was terrible. Long story short, he sent me out a new one, I paid for the shipping, that one just as bad, I bought a third one because before I could return the second one for an exchange it flung out of the container it was in when I opened it to take photos of it for him and I have still not found it. Its in another dimension or something. I gave up on the nibs. I put in the FPR ultra flex nib and that is a wet nib. It doesn’t flex easily though. You can’t really get a great natural flex from it but it has no flow issues due to the nib and the great feed from The Good Blue. I love the pen and very disappointed with their nibs. I wound up trying to smooth the first nib and with only a few figure eights and infinity symbols the very sparse tipping was gone. I now can write better with that one but with a light tough. I should send it in to a nib meister and see if they can do anything with that one. Idk if they do add tipping thing?Idk if its worth it either. The nib is so very thin that you look at it the wrong way and the tines flip. That, I think, is the issue with the nibs. You want a thinner metal so it can flex easily and give you super thin to thick lines when it flexes. Idk. Maybe in time they will hit the sweet spot with their nibs at The Good Blue. They are so close in my book. I really don’t want to give up on them. But idk if I’m ready to buy a fourth nib honestly. Does anyone know of a nib meister that does or adds tipping and all the rest in north eastern states?Well in Michigan anyway. I guess they might consider that Midwest. Cheers
I bought the same but in the raw aluminum. They were out of the calligraphy nib so I bought the gold nib but I find it really stiff. I don’t know how I feel about it but I’ve only had it a few days so I need to use it more to decide. My first flex was the pilot 912 FA and I think that may have ruined me for all other flex nibs because it’s so soft and smooth 😍
Hmm that's so odd you've had all those issues with the nibs. You figure after the first problem they would be checked before being sent to you. The untipped calligraphy one does take some getting used to as they are rough and you have to use them different than a regular tipped nib. Maybe the swapping the other tipped nibs in is the solution for you but that kinda sucks
@@Doodlebud he said he checked out the new nib himself before sending out to me. I spoke with him about it. It doesn’t make any sense to me either. Really. It doesn’t. I tried it on a few different papers types but I use Tomoe River the most. And it just grabs ahold of that paper and rips or if I’m really slow it just stops or scratches across it. I’ve moved the way I hold it, I’ve tried to make my hand light as a feather with it, which is difficult with such a heavy metal pen. Just is terrible. I want to be in love with that pen and nib. There is potential. I wonder if it’s so flexy that the tip is not large enough for it. There seems to be very little tipping material on it as well. Well compared to other nibs I have. I love the bounce of the nibs. Like I said,I wound up taking the little bit of tipping it had, off and it writes better. It’s actually close to what I want. But I didn’t do that on purpose. I used 12,000 grit a couple of figure 8’s and infinity symbols and then on micro mesh and the tipping was gone like that!!! But it’s a little bit grabby. If I could get someone to smooth it really well, or if I knew how to do it better , I would. Do you have any suggestions about a nib meister that will work with this nib to get them fixed. Because I have 3 nibs and 2 that’s aren’t lost. Lol. I really want to use this pen and love those nibs.
@@lauramaclennan8548 really. That is interesting indeed. They didn’t and still do not have the calligraphy nib available. At least when I checked about a week ago. I did consider just going for a 4th nib and get the gold one. But now I’m really hesitant after my experiences and your experiences and several peoples experience with the nibs. There is so much h potential there I feel. The nib itself has give and bounce. But that tipping!?!?! I just don’t understand my experience compared to the owners checking them before he sent them out to me and he said they were “fine.” Am I a baby? Do I not know what a nib is suppose to feel like? I’m pretty sure I do. But maybe I’m an idiot. At this point I am unsure of myself. I’ll have to look into the pen you love. Maybe I just need to go elsewhere for a good nib. Cheers
@@tiffanybluetarot I believe so as Monteverde uses JoWo nibs. My JoWo flex nibs came in a Monteverde and a Conklin. It's a nib I really like. It has enough firmness that I don't flex accidentally but soft enough that when I want to flex I can get the line variation that I'm looking for. It does not provide quite as much variation as a Noodlers Ahab, but I find the Ahab a little too wet for my taste.
@@InkyMD thank you for the info! I’ve tried the Monza OmniFlex, and I did like the firmness/crispness it provided. I guess my preferences lean more toward the ‘wet’ side… And the flexier, the better. ;)
Hello. I have three of these pens. 2 from FPR and the Good Blue. Good nibs on the FPR. The one I bought, for my sisters is the most beautiful, soft, flexing writer that I’ve ever written with, and mine is like a nail that I can’t even flex. Again, they are both the same gold nib. I don’t understand it. And the one with the good blue I had nothing but problems with the nibs. The one that came with it was so sharp it kept ripping any paper I wrote with so he sent me another one I started writing with it and it immediately bent, and it was ruined. So I went ahead and bought a third one which within the first couple hours of getting in the mail I lost when I opened the little capsule. It went flinging through the air in my living room. I have yet to find it. In fact, two days ago, I start tearing apart my couch again trying to find it. I think it fell into a black hole somewhere in my living room. Sad. All the way around sad. But yeah, about the two gold nibs. That really bugs me. That one could be so beautiful a writer and mine like a nail. Even the thickness of the materials look different. The one I bought for my sister looks thinner 14 K nib, and mine looks thicker. They’re both the same nib, so this is a mystery to me.
I have a Himalaya V2 and with a slightly modified feed and eye dropping it, the flow just never runs out and I can flex it like a paintbrush. And the pen itself is great. I agree with your kon-peki opinion, too. It’s just meh. There’s nothing special about it, very overrated
My Himalaya V2 with Flex nib worked right out of the box. I even bought other nibs just in case. I’m not a nib fiddler yet and wanted to try out on a cheaper pen. Love it.
I own a Pilot Falcon. What a disappointment. It's irredeemably flawed. It simply does not work. It hard starts. It railroads. I also own the Pelican 140. Mine is apparently from 1953--according to the large, reputable German eBay seller (missing-pen?) I bought it from. It's an Oblique Fine. And it's so divine. It's so fine, there's no telling where the money went. Simply irresistible! Smooth, wet but controlled (unlike, say, a Lamy 2000 BB fire hose). Soft and smooth with just a touch of crispness as you roll the pen. I don't have another nib remotely like it. They don't make em like they used to.
When it comes to flex, vintage just does it better. There are aftermarket feeds you can get for the falcon just as I got one for my 912. Before the new feed the pen was terrible! Now it never runs out of flow
@@Doodlebud Yes, thanks, I found the after-market feed you recommended (was it you?). I've been going overtime on RU-vid pen sites recently, including at Doug's Inkquiring Minds. I suppose I'll have to bite the bullet and shell out $30 USD plus shipping to make my $200 CAD Pilot work. I think I paid about 200 CAD six years ago. They're more expensive now
Needs more than a heat setting. Apparently I have to flatten the nib first for it to fit. The feed is ABS plastic so doesn't heat set like the ebonite ones
@@Doodlebud Yeah, that too....prerequisite to it all, re adjusting nib curvature, so didn't mention, as, 'of course'. Utoob's loaded with how-to videos showing it.
