Whch pens do you carry?

[finesse_r]

My bank has the best ball points I have ever used and they give them away free. I certainly don't get any interest to speak of but I pick up a pen every trip in there. I cannot imagine buying something when so many places give perfectly good ones away for free. In fact the ones from my bank are better than I could buy.

 

[timjake]

I carried a Cross pen for ages. Now I carry the pen I get each year for donating $$ to the university I graduated from. Pretty reliable and they last a lot longer than those US Gov pens they hand out at work.

 

[Auburn4]

I carry a Zebra F-301 fine point black or blue. I have yet to have one leak on me. My mode of dress is shirt with patch pockets. Left side, billfold inside with Flag pin on outside over heart. Right side, folded hanky, comb, Zebra F-301. I am so lucky to be able to carry a COMB!!!

 

[mtgianni]

As I am in motels 12 nights a week mine usually have their logos on them. I carry a pencil most of the time, if someone wants something signed in ink, they usually have a pen.

 

[les.b]

Well, when I was still in law enforcement, I carried what used to be the standard police pen, a cross. Pen and pencil set. When I retired and entered academia, I started using a fountain pen. Have about five or six that I rotate through. Don't use cartridges, though, refill them from a bottle of 'Scrip', if I remember correctly. Much less expensive, and a bottle lasts forever. Like reloading .32 S&W Longs with Bullseye. But, we buy advertising pens to give away, and when someone wants to borrow my pen, I hand them one of those, and tell them to keep it. Good for business, and saves my delicate nibs!

 

[whitecoyote]

Bullet Pen
This pen is made from barn wood (the exact same wood you see in the background). The barn (1850's) wood is from a razed barn from Wasington Twp., MI.

This pen is made from Kauri wood from New Zeeland. The wood is 30,000 to 50,000 years old!

Here is a bullet pen made from reclaimed wood from the Coney Island board walk (cir. 1920's).

 

[TX-Dennis]

Bullet Pen
This pen is made from barn wood (the exact same wood you see in the background). The barn (1850's) wood is from a razed barn from Wasington Twp., MI.

This pen is made from Kauri wood from New Zeeland. The wood is 30,000 to 50,000 years old!

Here is a bullet pen made from reclaimed wood from the Coney Island board walk (cir. 1920's).

I am in possession of a pen that appears to be an exact replica of the last one. The fittings are the same, and even the wood appears the same. I found it on the floor at work, and I've never been able to determine its rightful owner. It sure would be nice to be able to return it to whoever lost it.

 

[Andyd]

On my desk are always fountain pens from Montblanc and Rotring that are in use. I have several sterling silver ink pens from Dunhill, too. They were made by Montblanc for Dunhill when they were both owned by the same company but never sold officially.

I was born in Hamburg, where Montblanc is headquartered and use their pens since highschool. On a daily basis I also use a couple of gold filled Cross ballpoint pens that I had bought at Service Merchandise in Chicago around 1985.

 

[Bkreutz]

I use whatever pens or pencils that are lying around. Mostly Bic or a similar ball point. I have a Cross set that was given to me on graduation day 1969, still have them.

 

[2hawk]

Zebra F-701 Stainless Steel Ballpoint with a space pen cartridge. Best of all worlds, and not too much to cry about if it goes missing.

 

[Gryff]

I am a dedicated fountain pen collector and user, but in my line of work there are days when they are very impractical. I'm not a snob, so I won't roll my eyes if I have to use a Bic, but my preference is my 1952 Montblanc 256 fountain pen or 1948 MB 246.

Here is the 256. I like it because it was MB's first venture into a "space age" type design:

My collection focuses primarily on pre-1960 German pens (specifically Montblanc, Pelikan, and Sonnecken), although I have some modern stuff and some vintage Italian pieces. I wish I had some of the stunningly beautiful vintage Japanese maki-e pens, but those are prohibitively expensive since each one is a work of art. I do have a sterling silver Namiki Dragon that is very, very nice for being a modern pen.

My fountain pen is a Parker 51 Flighter, with a stub nib, and matching pencil.

VERY nice. I've never had a personal taste for the Parker 51, but the Flighter is a very attractive pen. I love the brushed stainless steel.

I did manage to learn to decline handing a nice fountain pen to someone as a loaner. If you can't carry a ballpoint in addition for a loaner, you must learn to decline in a polite way. "Sorry, this pen might get ink on you."

I am usually OK with letting somebody jot a note or sign something with one of my fountain pens, but I never loan it to them for very long. I have learned to take the cap off and keep it when I hand the pen to someone. Many of the vintage pens have screw caps, and the value is devastated if someone pulls the cap off and destroys the threads.

I still have a Parker pen/pencil set that used the liquid ink in the little plastic tube but it is no longer made, that I know of.

Do you mean like these?

If so, they are available in most office supply stores, as is a limited selection of bottled ink. If you have a fountain pen that can use botteled ink, though, there are some killer offerings in ink color if you know where to look.

 

[Donn]

When I worked and wore a shirt with a pocket, used a Parker. Now that I'm retired and wear T-shirts, use whatever's free.

 

[loknload]

I have a Parker set my uncle gave me as a graduation present in 1972, Still have that set and still use them but not as much anymore!

 

[brucev]

I started using a fountain pen in elementary school... about 1968... little Shaeffer. Then in college... got a Parker 75 which I used hard. My brother gave me a nice 14k gold filled Cross that I used for many many years as a pastor. Used it so much that the mechanism wore out. Cross repaired it. I have a nice Waterman fountain pen w/ a gold nib... medium point. Very nice pen. Pleasure to use. A few years ago my wife gave me a platninum and gold Cross pen that I positively adore. I have a Shaeffer Targa that I've used since 1990. A few months ago I picked up a Pilot retractable fountain pen that my wife bought. She can no longer use it at work so I am using it. Very nice pen. Refills? So far... no problems. I order the refills for my fountain pens from off Amazon. The Cross refills are easy to find at Staples, etc. Sincerely. bruce.

 

[Salty RI]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bic_Cristal the Bic with the clear plastic barrel is the one to look for. A fine point one makes a fair shank when you are prison. Though in some of the max units you can only get felt tip pens.

Those clear Bic pen's were great spit ball shooter's.

 

[H Richard]

I have a set of Cross Gold filled laying in the drawer where they have been for many years, my Mont Blanc pen & pencil I retired when I retired and are in my desk for special occasions. I daily carry a Pilot G2 07. It fits well with cargo shorts and polo shirts or bluejeans. The majority of people I tend to associate with no longer carry a pen (mostly retired), but I seem to feel undressed if I don't have a writing instrument with me.

 

[soFlaNative]

Whatever's handy. Haven't used a fountain pen since I was seven and learned not to shake a tired hand with the pen in it when the teacher with the polyester dress on is looking over my shoulder.

 

[old tanker]

I carry an Esterbrook J with a 9461 manifold nib because it is stout enough to fill out multi-part forms at work. Most other fountain pens can't take that kind of pressure.

 

[johngalt]

Pelikan M215, F, green ink. I also have a TWSBI 580 with black permanent ink. For the price, the TWSBI is a nice pen.

 

[CoMF]

I've used Parker Stainless Jotter ballpoints for years. They're classy, able to take some punishment, and priced well enough that if you lose or break one, it's not heartbreaking. I've considered trying the Fisher Space Pen refills in mine once the factory cartridge runs out.

On the job, I also carry a Pentel Sharp Kerry with me for marking lines or sketching electrical schematics. It's the Stainless Jotter of mechanical pencils, IMO.