I got my first fountain pen around late 2017, curious about the writing experience. It was some kind of Jinhao (not pictured) that isn’t often in circulation any more because despite being labeled as a fine nib, it writes way too heavy for me.

Pictured are the pens I typically keep in use:

Pilot e95s (F) Pilot Metropolitan (F) Pilot Prera - Slate (F) Pilot Prera - Demo Green (F) Pilot Vanishing Point Decimo (F) TWSBI Diamond 580 ALR (F) Pelikan Souveran M400 (F) Faber Castell Ambition (M)

The M400 is the newest addition. The Preras were recently cleaned out and are awaiting new ink.

Not pictured, my current ink collection consists of:

Diplomat Burgundy Graf von Faber Castell Cobalt Blue Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-Syogun Pilot Iroshizuku Murasaki-Shikibu Pilot Iroshizuku Shin-Ryoku Waterman Intense Black Waterman Serenity Blue

Somtimes I look at my Pilot steel nibs (Metro and two Preras) and think I should have gotten some other sizes for variety. Then again, I really like writing with fine nibs.

My favorite tends to be whatever I wrote with most recently.

    • ItsJasonOP
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      1 year ago

      They are quite different! My Pilot pens have fairly narrow bodies, while the Pelikan M400 is more stout. As a western fine, the M400’s nib is a little broader than the Pilot fine nibs. I can feel this as a write, a little more contact with the page. Perhaps the nib is also a little firmer. Nothing I don’t like, just a different feel.

      My biggest complaint about my Pilots is they seem to dry out quickly. (But I still really like them!) I haven’t had the M400 long enough to know how it holds up. I expect it to last longer, by virtue of having a screw cap.

      Overall I’ve been enjoying the M400. The nib, being slightly broader, can produce more shading than my Pilots. It is a newer M400, and in the last few years, Pelikan stopped making the barrels translucent, which is a bit disappointing.