Coffee And Danish Plus A Few Sunday Morning Links

If you provide the coffee and Danish, I’ll bring the links. Deal?

• Scientist beams up a real “Star Trek” tricorder
• COLOURlovers: Layers of Iridescence 
• Innovative packaging keeps open carton of milk fresh – for a month
• Man Uses Physics to Fight $400 Traffic Ticket
• New Mensa member is only 4 years old and has an IQ of 159, a point below Einstein and Stephen Hawking
• Alvaro Romillo/estilográficas: Parker Art Deco Pen and Parker Vac Nibs
• Robin Pedrero: Gorgeous Fine Art Silk Scarves
• Science News: New motor does without rare earth metals
• A different business model: NanoMedica puts the focus on low-cost drug research

Noodler’s Black Ink – The Proof Is In The Photos

Ha! Thought you were going to see a bunch of photos in this post? Why reinvent the wheel when PenFisher has posted the definitive lot at FPN.

If I had to make do with just a single ink, Noodler’s Black would be the one. When I rediscovered fountain pens over ten years ago, black ink was all I used. The now discontinued Parker Penman Ebony worked well in my art pens so that was good enough for me. Then I discovered Noodler’s Black and realized a fountain pen could write even better, smoother, and clean more easily than with Penman. That opened the flood gates to the world of ink and I’ve never looked back.

Recently I ran across a Moleskine journal from seven years ago that had been paired with a Parker ’51′ Aerometric F. Mind you this is an old journal with arguably better quality paper than the more recent stuff but it’s clear that Noodler’s Black, Moleskine and the ’51′ were a winning combination. My daughter has used NB in a Lamy Safari F on inexpensive paper for the past year with nary a whiff of trouble. Moms and daughters don’t always agree, so take this as high praise.

Note to Nathan Tardif, the man behind Noodler’s:  If you ever decide to rename Black, consider Basic Black. Basic fits well because it is a foundation ink as well as a foundation color. As of today at least, it would be a unique name and you are almost as well-known for that streak of quirkiness you bring to ink naming as you are for your excellent inks.

Additional remarks from 2009 on Noodler’s Black in a calligraphy pen.

Leonardo Calligraphy Pen Meets Noodler's Black Ink

More on Noodler’s Black from Dave Garrett.

Fresh Links – Get ‘Em While They’re Hot!

It’s only Tuesday but a few fresh links might help the week pass a little faster…

• Noodler’s Ink 2011 Artist Contest (h/t Gold Spot)
• Reader’s Digest: How To Have Beautiful Handwriting (h/t Flax Pen To Paper)
• Zero calorie chocolate? Try Choco Magnets from Jet Pens
• Office Supply Geek: Noodler’s Ahab Flex Nib Fountain Pen
• Nikira’s Moleskine Art especially this portrait
• 35 Examples Of Stunning Macro Photography

Links From Big Nibs To Moleskine To Ridiculous Lawsuits

Talk about random links…

• Carved Book Landscapes by Guy Laramee (h/t Leigh Reyes)
• Tech startup taking a stab at a real, working Star Trek tricorder
• A “honking big nib” as Leigh describes it.
• Researchers deconstruct the physics of a revered centuries-old process: writing with a fountain pen. (h/t Writer’s Bloc)
• Recording Thoughts: Hello Leuchtturm1917, goodbye Moleskine!
• Most Ridiculous Lawsuits of 2011
• Most Ridiculous Moleskine Hack of 2011
• Jack Row Luxury Fountain Pens at Harrods
• Writing Uni notes in fountain pen? What some students are saying.

Starting Out The New Year With A Clean Sweep

What better way to start the year than with a thorough cleaning. Ten pens got the treatment and are drying, nibs down, in a wad of paper towel. That leaves a mere five for general use and two for testing. Does that sound like a lot? I assure you that is lean for me.

• Parker ’51′ Aero F with Noodler’s Zhivago
• Parker ’51′ Aero Special XF with Noodler’s Black (pen test)
• Sailor 1911 F with Noodler’s Red-Black
• Lamy Vista 1.1 with Iroshizuku shin-ryoku
• Levenger Mink True Writer Masuyama CI with Noodler’s Kiowa Pecan
• Montblanc 220 OB with Rohrer & Klingner Magenta
• Pilot Elite Socrates F Pocket Pen with Diamine Presidential Blue (ink test)

When a fountain pen won’t do, there are four more writing instruments at hand.

• Levenger Starry Night Roller Ball with a black felt tip refill
• Autopoint Mechanical Pencil
• Pentel Pocket Brush Pen with a black cartridge
• OXO Pink Highlighter

Elena sent a couple of Mitsu-Bishi 9800 2B pencils that will get some playtime soon. It’s likely the Levenger Kyoto True Writer Masuyama Stub will get a load of Iroshizuku syo-ro or possibly Private Reserve Ebony Blue in the near future. I love writing with this pen so it never stays clean for long.

That’s my winter rotation. What’s on your desk to start the new year?

Levenger Discount And A True Writer Fountain Pen

Saw a Levenger discount this afternoon that made me wish for another True Writer to stub. Mike Masuyama did a great job with my Kyoto and it would be useful as well as fun to have a second one for ink variety. The colorful Sea Glass version with a stubbed bold nib could be just the thing to brighten my desk.

Yes, I do have several True Writers but they are retired colors and I like to keep those with the original nibs unless the nib is imperfect. So a Sea Glass pen with its happy colors could be just the thing and would work perfectly with my True Writer black pen stand, too.

No new pen for me this year but you could get one with the 20% discount on a $50 order. The code is 20PC2011A.

Hint: It’s okay to buy a gift for yourself especially if it’s a nice one.

Levenger True Writer® Sea Glass Fountain Pen

Lazy Sunday Links

Got some time to waste? Grab your favorite cuppa and enjoy some of the links that caught my attention this past week.

• Incredible Photographs Look Like Traditional Chinese Paintings
• Sugru – A Hacker’s Dream
• BMW launches new fountain pens
• Dinotopia Special 20th Anniversary Edition released
• Exhibition Monet 2010
• Calabarte’s Amazing Gourd Lamps
• Review of Some Waterproof Black Inks
• Mauricio, a flex-pert, recommends some favorite inks
• Whitelines paper now at Art Supply Warehouse
• Aw! NYPD Horse And Civilian Dog Make Fast Friends
• A talent for pointed brush lettering

A Pelikan Tradition

Fountain Pen Hospital has a special on the Pelikan M200 Tradition with a variety of nib options including the italic. There aren’t many italic pens that look this good for under $100 especially with the build quality of a Pelikan. So if you’ve been waiting to take the plunge, now might be the perfect time.

Pelikan M200 Tradition at Fountain Pen Hospital

Levenger True Writer Blue Delft Fountain Pen

Levenger has a new True Writer® in shades of blue and it sure is pretty.

Levenger True Writer® Blue Delft Fountain Pen

The pattern is called Blue Delft after the blue and white pottery that originated in the Netherlands in the 16th century. Chrome furnishings perfectly complement the delicate colors of the barrel. If you like matching pen to ink, this gem will suit a huge range of cool blues. Certainly black would be practical and elegant but a shocking pink might just the thing to express your wicked sense of humor.

Many of my True Writer pens are conversation starters and this new model is no exception.

Can you tell this is one fountain pen I would love to own?

When A Pen Falls Out Of Favor

Sooner or later most of us trade or sell fountain pens but which ones to keep can be tricky. So I’ll share my criteria if you’ll share yours. Deal?

No doubt my pen preferences are evolving. Over the past ten years my tastes have expanded from a fixation with tiny Asian nibs to an infatuation with chunky Western ones. Consider me an equal opportunity pen fancier. Lesson learned is to maintain a varied collection and hang onto the odd ones. With the right ink and paper, almost any pen can be fun.

Another criteria is size. Thin or short pens can cause fatigue and are best suited to brief sessions. A heavy pen must balance well or it will flip out of my grip making it a poor choice unless I don’t mind a little ink flung here and there. Medium to large, light-weight pens work best these days though there are exceptions.

Filler mechanism is important and with few exceptions, levers are out unless the nib pops out easily. I like getting a pen really clean when changing inks and lever fillers are too much work. Most of mine have been sent to more appreciative collectors.

How often I use a pen is less relevant than whether another pen is similar. If two nibs are virtually identical, I might let one go if I’m not thrilled with it. Not foolproof but helpful.

Here’s a case in point. A couple of years ago I gave up on Pelikan pens. Nothing wrong with them. Good build quality, swappable nibs, etc. When I sold or traded them, those nibs and exuberant flow didn’t suit me. Now that I’m exploring wide nibs, Pels are a much better fit and the few still here are getting renewed interest.

So despite modifying my criteria for re-homing pens, I still make mistakes. Put all that together and it makes a lot more sense to keep pens that have potential than it is to let them go.

A keeper, the navy gray Parker ’51′ Aero, though with Noodler’s Zhivago today…

Moleskine, a Parker '51' and Herbin Vert Empire Ink

Remember that deal we made? Now it’s your turn to share how you decide which pens to give the boot when they fall out of favor.