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#1
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FP-friendly [European] papers - brand names? What to look for?
Hi,
Thank you guys for a load of suggestions on finding a 'foolproof' fountain pen! Now, could anyone please mention some fountain pen friendly papers - loose sheets, letter pads, note pads, notebooks; preferably (or at least also) by European manufacturers? When searching paper for a fountain pen, what exactly should one look for? Linen-based paper? Smooth surface, weight heavy enough; what else? Are smooth drawing papers acceptable? (Some of the papers are rather expensive and it is not possible to try them out in a stationery shop - that's why I am fishing for ideas here.) Molekine notebooks seem to be very good but they don't sell loose leaves, do they? What do you think is the paper used in them? Is it worth buying "newspaper-sized" sheets and having them cut to various sizes to be used for letter writing, personal short notes, (perhaps glued together to make small pads) and so on? Would love to use a fountain pen for personal notes, but copier paper is just useless in most cases and other papers are too soft. Thanks for any ideas, Mike |
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#2
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Mike Dee wrote:
Thank you guys for a load of suggestions on finding a 'foolproof' fountain pen! Now, could anyone please mention some fountain pen friendly papers - loose sheets, letter pads, note pads, notebooks; preferably (or at least also) by European manufacturers? When searching paper for a fountain pen, what exactly should one look for? Linen-based paper? Smooth surface, weight heavy enough; what else? Are smooth drawing papers acceptable? (Some of the papers are rather expensive and it is not possible to try them out in a stationery shop - that's why I am fishing for ideas here.) Molekine notebooks seem to be very good but they don't sell loose leaves, do they? What do you think is the paper used in them? Is it worth buying "newspaper-sized" sheets and having them cut to various sizes to be used for letter writing, personal short notes, (perhaps glued together to make small pads) and so on? Would love to use a fountain pen for personal notes, but copier paper is just useless in most cases and other papers are too soft. I don't have all the answers by any means, but here are a couple of things: If a certain kind of paper works, then by all means use it. There are some kinds of special coated paper that could clog your nib with sludge, (you would just wash it out, but that's inconvenient of course) so don't buy unfamiliar paper in large quantities - try it out first. There's nothing wrong with ordinary copier paper. Most pens & inks go just fine on it. (Recycled copier paper, however, causes most inks to feather horribly. Nathan Tardif is claiming that his new "Noodler's" brand of ink works well on recycled paper, so you should try that if you have no choice about paper.) Ink can make a big difference. You may find a brand of paper that works well with some ink and not with other ink. (So if you're using a strange brand of ink, don't blame the paper right away.) Some people have said that the paper in Moleskine notebooks may not be ideal for fountain pen ink - that it tended to feather or bleed through or something. (I haven't used it, so I can't comment directly.) One popular brand of paper that I have used is Clairefontaine (made in France). They are a large company and make all kinds of paper products, including many sizes and shapes of notebooks and pads. The notebooks, pads, and letter paper I've bought here in Canada all use the same paper, which is generally quite fountain-pen-friendly - very smooth surface, and no feathering or bleeding, even with a very heavy line of ink. Not everyone likes it (some people find it too slick, I think), but it's just fine for me. (And it was what I could find in the store that looked nice for a reasonable price.) :-) David |
#3
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"Mike Dee" wrote in message
... Hi, Thank you guys for a load of suggestions on finding a 'foolproof' fountain pen! Now, could anyone please mention some fountain pen friendly papers - loose sheets, letter pads, note pads, notebooks; preferably (or at least also) by European manufacturers? When searching paper for a fountain pen, what exactly should one look for? Linen-based paper? Smooth surface, weight heavy enough; what else? I use at least 24lb paper but prefer 28lb "color laser paper" (also sometimes called color copier paper) which is very smooth and designed to take the heavy inks of bubble jet and laser papers. Some do have too much coating. I have seen Rhodia paper and think it is lovely. I think it can be purchased as pads or sheets but not sure about the latter. Don't know how expensive it is. I liked it better than Clairefontaine. I prefer a very smooth paper but I use some rather sharp nibs that would hang up on rough paper like some linens and such. But some people feel they don't have control or like the nib is skating on very smooth papers and prefer something that provides more "feedback." some folks have done paper trades - might be worth asking if folks are willing to send single sheet samples. i don't have any European brands to offer or I'd be happy to send samples. I've stuck with my cheap US laser copier paper for the most part. kcat |
#4
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On Sun, 29 Aug 2004 23:35:50 GMT, Dave wrote:
Mike Dee wrote: Thank you guys for a load of suggestions on finding a 'foolproof' fountain pen! Now, could anyone please mention some fountain pen friendly papers - loose sheets, letter pads, note pads, notebooks; preferably (or at least also) by European manufacturers? I don't have all the answers by any means, but here are a couple of things: Ink can make a big difference. You may find a brand of paper that works well with some ink and not with other ink. (So if you're using a strange brand of ink, don't blame the paper right away.) Ditto on this one. Noodler's ink works pretty well for me on paper that other inks bleed like crazy on, but it's American. Just guessing here, you might try some dry-writing inks and see how they work. Montblanc comes to mind, if it doesn't work, toss the ink and save the bottle. One popular brand of paper that I have used is Clairefontaine (made in France). They are a large company and make all kinds of paper products, including many sizes and shapes of notebooks and pads. The notebooks, pads, and letter paper I've bought here in Canada all use the same paper, which is generally quite fountain-pen-friendly - very smooth surface, and no feathering or bleeding, even with a very heavy line of ink. Not everyone likes it (some people find it too slick, I think), but it's just fine for me. (And it was what I could find in the store that looked nice for a reasonable price.) :-) Clairefontaine is nice; I've also had good luck with G. Lalo paper. Pat Email address works as is. |
#5
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Patrick Lamb wrote:
Ink can make a big difference. You may find a brand of paper that works well with some ink and not with other ink. (So if you're using a strange brand of ink, don't blame the paper right away.) Ditto on this one. Noodler's ink works pretty well for me on paper that other inks bleed like crazy on, but it's American. Just guessing here, you might try some dry-writing inks and see how they work. Montblanc comes to mind, if it doesn't work, toss the ink and save the bottle. Montblanc blue-black ink feathers much less than most for me, and is apparently a better ink than their other colours. Worth a try for sure. Rinse your pen a little more carefully after using a tankful of that stuff, though - it does have a small amount of solid matter in it. (And, like Patrick said, save Mont Blanc's very nice bottle when you're done - if you get ink that comes in a not-so-good bottle, you can put it in there instead.) David |
#6
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Hi All,
Lalo and Clairfontaine are among my favourites, along with Rhodia, Amalfi, and Pineider. Lalo, Clarifontaine, and Rhodia can be purchased from www.pendemonium.com. OH!! Swisher carries some nice papers, also, including Diane de Poitier. www.swisherpens.com. Pineider is kind of hard to find sometimes. Check with Richard jarvis at www.penspiration.com. Amalfi (in the USA) can be purchased from www.scribesdelight.com. Don't forget the ink!! satrap ready to order Tardiff's "Apache Sunset" ink. |
#7
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I use Niceday 3000 Laser/copier paper 80g, purchased at a
computer fair in Leicester and Rey 160g card purchased from Staples in Leicester. The ink used is Pelikan Violet. Both papers and ink are manufactured in the EU. Both papers work very well with all my nibs, XF to 1.5mm. Only when viewing with a 10X magnifier can I see extremely small amounts of feathering when using a wet writing fountain pen. Adrian. Please remove 12345 from my address when replying "Dave" wrote in message ... Mike Dee wrote: Thank you guys for a load of suggestions on finding a 'foolproof' fountain pen! Now, could anyone please mention some fountain pen friendly papers - loose sheets, letter pads, note pads, notebooks; preferably (or at least also) by European manufacturers? |
#8
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Mike Dee wrote in message ...
Now, could anyone please mention some fountain pen friendly papers - ... by European manufacturers? I assume you want European brands because that's where you are. Availability varies by country, but some good and inexpensive brands are Brunnen (Germany), Elco (Switzerland), and Miquelrius (Spain). I think that in Europe, most stationery you find will work with fountain pens, whereas in America most of the cheaper stuff doesn't very well. Molekine notebooks seem to be very good but they don't sell loose leaves, do they? What do you think is the paper used in them? Moleskines are quite nice but their paper doesn't take ink well; fountain pen ink tends to bleed through. If you are determined to use them, try a thicker ink like Mont Blanc Black or Platinum Blue-Black. An alternative notebook is the Kompagnon from Brunnen. The paper doesn't feel as nice but ink won't bleed. |
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