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Yama-Budo by Pilot Iroshizuku
Iroshizuku is Pilot’s higher end line of inks that are available in all the colors of the rainbow. The ink that I’ve chosen to write about today is Yama-Budo, a lovely burgundy color. This inks shades from fuchsia to plum, and on certain papers it’ll sheen a nice gold. In the photo above, the sheen…
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Fun with Gel Pens
Sometimes, you may feel like using a pen that isn’t a fountain pen. Situations may arise where you just want to take a note with a retractable pen. You may want a low maintenance change of pace. Sometimes, you just want the pleasant sensation of feeling a tiny gel coated ball rolling against your paper.…
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Reverse Writing!
My girlfriend, who is a righty, has been looking for a really fine-nibbed pen to take notes with at work on small pieces of paper. She recently got a Sailor Pro Gear Slim in fine, and a Sailor 1911S with a 21k zoom nib. She got a zoom nib so that it could eventually be…
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The Scale of Paper Absorption Part 1
This is the lefty fountain pen dilemma: do you want to be able to see all the lovely ink properties but have to contort your hand so you don’t smudge? Or do you want to be able to write how your body wants to without a cramping hand and without worrying about smudging? There are…
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Happy Fountain Pen Day!
On this very special day for the fountain pen enthusiast I’d like to say hi and thank you to the small handful of people who’ve decided to follow this blog recently! Today isn’t a new pen day, but last week my Desiderata BAMF came in the mail. Here are some initial thoughts, a full review…
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The TWSBI Go
The first fountain pen that I purchased was the TWSBI Go. I watched Brian Goulet’s videos about the Go, and how it compared to the Eco. I think I ended up purchasing the Go because it seemed simple, and it was 10$ cheaper. I ordered the smoke grey color with a medium nib. The day…
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Fire and Ice by Robert Oster
Finding the perfect pen and ink combination for you can be one of the most gratifying aspects of using a fountain pen. For this first ink post I’d like to talk about Fire and Ice, a fast drying ink by Robert Oster. Most Robert Oster inks have fast dry times. The only smudging I’ve had…
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The Sheaffer Balance Jr.
Nib: 14k Feather Touch #5 In my last post, I wrote about how I restored this little guy. If you’re interested in reading, please click here. This Sheaffer Balance jr. is from about 1934. Its slender size and shape make it a nice pocket pen, and great for small hands. As you may have been…
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Adventures in Pen Restoration: The Sheaffer Balance Jr.
About a year ago I purchased a Sheaffer Balance from the early 1930s on eBay. From the photos I knew that it would need some work, but I wanted a fixer-upper. A previous owner had carved their initials into the body and cap of the pen, but the whole body was in otherwise good vintage…
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Rhodia Paper
Paper is important to the lefty writing experience too! Some papers are super absorbent, some papers are laminated so that ink sits on top. Some papers show off ink properties very well while others don’t. I thought that I would start off this paper section of Left Hook Pens with Rhodia, one of my favorites.…