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Fountain Pens
Fountain Pens
The further from centre, the more strongly this hobby leans that way. Your quiz answers are scored against exactly these fifteen.
Collecting fountain pens and learning how nib width, ink and paper change how writing feels. Usually leads into inks and paper too.
TonightTime to first win
10 minutesA session
Mostly indoorsWhere
Step 1: Get one cheap pen, a bottle of ink and decent paper.
Is it you?
What you need
3 thingsThe honest floor, taking the cheapest option in each$35
How we make money: if you buy through one of these we take a small cut, and the price is the same either way. The cheapest option that works is always listed first.
The path
13 questsASetting up2 things to sort, in any order$35
BThen the quests
- Flush a pen properly and refill it from a bottle
- Try a few different inks
- Write with the same pen every day for a fortnight
More on Fountain Pens
Everything else we have written about it. Free to read, no account needed.
Guides1
What to buy3
Best Beginner Fountain Pen (2026): A Japanese Fine Is Not a European FineThe most common first disappointment with a fountain pen is a line that comes out narrower than expected, and it is not a fault. Japanese nibs are ground finer than European ones at the same letter, so a Pilot Fine is roughly a Lamy Extra Fine. Knowing that before you order decides whether the pen feels right.Best Fountain Pen Ink (2026): Almost Everything Is Safe, and a Few Things Are NotThe pleasant surprise about fountain pen ink is that a bottle costs less than a decent lunch and lasts a year or more, so this is a hobby where experimenting is genuinely cheap. The unpleasant surprise is that two categories of ink will wreck a pen permanently, and one of them is sold in the same shop aisle.Best Fountain Pen Paper (2026): Feathering Is a Paper Problem, Not a Pen ProblemA new fountain pen that writes a furry, spreading line on office paper is not faulty. Copier paper is barely sized, so wet ink wicks along the fibres and spreads outward from the stroke. The same pen on properly sized paper lays a crisp line, and nothing about the pen changed.
From the blog1
Learn it with a course
UdemyRecommended course
Fountain Pen Ink Art - The Basics
Start on UdemyAffiliate link
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