My Top 10 fountain pen brands in the world (and the pen that I love the most from their offerings)
Oh, hello, fellow fountain pen enthusiasts. Here’s the weekly submission. Pardon me for trying out this format (please let me know if I pass muster)!
This week, I have attempted to address a long-standing “demand” of yours – to list the top 10 fountain pen brands according to yours truly, and present to you the fountain pen that I feel is the best from each. Mind you, I have always desisted from embarking on such a voyage for several reasons – I think I am too insignificant a user to be compiling such a list, and that choices like these are always subjective: your choice can be way different from mine.
I have personally used almost all the fountain pens that I have listed here, and liked as I may have, I have had to leave out some, constrained by the slots in the list. And yes, I have considered the brand’s history, its legacy and recall, even as I have considered the sheer pleasure of owning or writing with the particular fountain pens. Mind you, for a pen and ink freak like me, compiling this list was not an easy one, and I cannot guarantee that if I do the same again, it will look exactly the same.
I have tried to restrict my choice to a single model, that I feel (again) to be the most representative of the brand – though I was forced to make an exception for Lamy for obvious reasons. For Pilot though, I have resisted the temptation to include the Custom 823, which continues to be one of my favourites, but the capless won, as it was my father’s favourite too!
Similar is the case of Parker. I left out the Duofold, rooting for the Parker 51, after all, is the most sold fountain pen in history! For Montblanc, Pelikan, Sailor, Sheaffer, and Waterman, the choice was equally tough, and I beg forgiveness if my choice does not tally with that of yours. TWSBI, and Visconti, were not that tough though for the simple reason that I own (and have extensively used) only a few of their models.
I have also taken the liberty of adding Faber-Castell and Benu to the list because Faber-Castell nibs are yummy and because Benu is the enfant terrible of this group, using the body of the pens to paint psychedelic dreams that take a rare kind of courage.
To see the video, click here:
