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FP-friendly [European] papers - brand names? What to look for?



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 29th 04, 10:35 PM
Mike Dee
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Default 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
Ads
  #2  
Old August 30th 04, 12:35 AM
Dave
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Default

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  
Old August 30th 04, 01:35 AM
KCat
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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  
Old August 30th 04, 02:59 AM
Patrick Lamb
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Default

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  
Old August 30th 04, 05:36 AM
Dave
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Posts: n/a
Default

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  
Old August 30th 04, 08:24 AM
so what
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Default

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  
Old August 30th 04, 10:18 AM
Adrian Lawrie
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Default

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  
Old August 30th 04, 07:31 PM
Tom Quinn
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Default

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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