Would a Namiki Falcon work for me?

Hello again,

I'm finding good stuff lurking here. Thanks to the resident Pilot
Capless fans for pointing out a great pen.

What I'm now wondering is: Would a Namiki Falcon work for someone who writes
a mundane Scottish cursive, or is this a more extreme pen that is aimed at
calligraphers? I'm charmed by the idea of a soft, yielding smooth nib.

At the moment, the absolute favourite *writer* in my collection (as opposed
to looker) remains the medium Phileas. Inexpensive as it is, it feels as
slick as a skate on wet ice (and even makes a faint noise on paper, like
champagne bubbles).

Can anyone recommend more sensuous pens?
--
Moira - Long-time Phileas lover

I have a Namiki Falcon in soft-fine and I enjoy using the pen. It is
described by some as having a "flexible" nib, but I would report it more as
"springy". It certainly delivers a unique sensation to the hand when writing
and there is some variation in line breadth as pressure is applied, but I
would not say that it is a calligrapher's pen or in the same class as the
flexible nibs of pens from the early twentieth century.

Gordon Mattingly

I have a fine and a medium Falcon, I like them both.
The fine is audible when writing, the medium is much quieter.
Mr Mattingly's reference to springy is a good description of the nib's
behaviour.
I'd be interested in a link to a sample of Scottich cursive, I myself
do a 1950s chicken scratch.
Was scottish cursive developed with a quill pen?
Esterbrook renew nibs may have something you're looking for, of course
you have to battle lots of other people on ebay to get the really good
nibs, 9000 series with some flex are available for those with deep
pockets or lots of luck from time to time.
2 cents.
Hugh

"Hugh" wrote in message
ups.com...
I have a fine and a medium Falcon, I like them both.
The fine is audible when writing, the medium is much quieter.
Mr Mattingly's reference to springy is a good description of the nib's
behaviour.

"Springy" sounds like a refreshing change. Definitely one to have a look at.
On the other hand, I don't have a Pelikan yet (except a Pelikano). I liked
the look of the 400. Have these got just as good nibs as the bigger ones?

I'd be interested in a link to a sample of Scottich cursive, I myself
do a 1950s chicken scratch.
Was scottish cursive developed with a quill pen?

Here is a link to a sample. (Sorry about the bad quality - only had a camera
phone handy.) It is just a joined-up Scottish 1960s chicken scratch. I
think it's based on earlier dip pen styles.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mps_pics/

--

Moira

I have the Falcon in SF and enjoy it, but the pen in my pocket, my "if you
could only have one pen" pen is my Pelikan M400 in EF. The size is perfect
(I have small hands for a man) and the nib is butter smooth.

Gordon Mattingly

"Springy" sounds like a refreshing change. Definitely one to have a look
at. On the other hand, I don't have a Pelikan yet (except a Pelikano). I
liked the look of the 400. Have these got just as good nibs as the bigger
ones?

Hello Moira,
Thank you for taking the time to show me a sample of your writing.
The letter forms look like most cursive writing expounded here in
Ontario, Canada, from the 1900s on. Business hand?
My parents and grandmother had to study penmanship in school, their
writing is very similar. I had to do some penmanship, most of which
disappeared over time. My kids were shown how to make letter forms,
but no real formal study.
The falcon in fine or medium will give you nice variation in line
width, with practice.
I used a dip pen, our ink was made of potassium permanganate and
water, cheaper then real ink.
My father had his left hand tied behind his back so the he writes
right handed but does everything else lefthanded.
Schools in the 20s had a dim view of things lefthanded.
Hugh

"Moira Perkins" wrote in message
...
"Hugh" wrote in message
ups.com...
I have a fine and a medium Falcon, I like them both.
The fine is audible when writing, the medium is much quieter.
Mr Mattingly's reference to springy is a good description of the nib's
behaviour.

"Springy" sounds like a refreshing change. Definitely one to have a look
at.

Please don't confuse the terms of "springy" and "flex" and please beware of
sales people, ad and catalog copywriters who do. I've written with springy
nibs that aren't flex nibs, but have yet to experience a rigid flex nib
simply because the tines have to move in order to give a variable-width
line. Springy nibs are the opposite of rigid - the tines move in
conjunction, up and down together, not sideways and apart like a flex nib
does under pressure as you write. Springy nibs aren't the ones that make
variable-width lines; that's what a flex nib does.

As I posted on Dec. 19 in regards to the Falcon's "soft" designation:

"There's a translation thing going on there according to what I was told by
a
Japanese man I met in Honolulu who has an awesome fp collection. He said
that the English word "flexible" doesn't translate directly into Japanese;
the closest equivalent is what they use for "soft." Therefore, when the
Japanese word get translated back into English, it's "soft" instead of
"flexible." That being said, the Falcon does, indeed, produce varying line
widths depending on the amount of pressure applied while writing.

For modern nibs, the Falcon is flexible and the (older gold) Sonnet is
semi-flexible. Older, vintage pens are more flexible, some refer to them as
superflex."

HTH.

--
~~Bluesea~~
Spam is great in musubi but not in email.
Please take out the trash before sending a direct reply.

Hugh wrote:
Hello Moira,
Thank you for taking the time to show me a sample of your writing.
The letter forms look like most cursive writing expounded here in
Ontario, Canada, from the 1900s on. Business hand?

It looks much like the U.S. cursive I'm familiar with, too, except for the
lowercase "f" -- we were taught to write it with both the upper and lower
loops on the right side of the letter.

My father had his left hand tied behind his back so the he writes
right handed but does everything else lefthanded.

Yikes!

Schools in the 20s had a dim view of things lefthanded.

One of my sisters is also "sinister" :L .

Brian
--

"Gordon Mattingly" wrote in message
m...
I have the Falcon in SF and enjoy it, but the pen in my pocket, my "if you
could only have one pen" pen is my Pelikan M400 in EF. The size is perfect
(I have small hands for a man) and the nib is butter smooth.

Gordon Mattingly

Hi Gordon,

I like the look of the 600 / 800 / 1000 but they don't look like comfortable
writers for me. The 400 looks ideal.

Butter smooth? This sounds more and more like an upmarket Phileas. All the
feedback here on Pelikan seems very positive. I'm going to try a 400 next.

--

Moira

"Hugh" wrote in message
ups.com...
Hello Moira,
Thank you for taking the time to show me a sample of your writing.
The letter forms look like most cursive writing expounded here in
Ontario, Canada, from the 1900s on. Business hand?
snip

Hello Hugh,

This does seem to be a widespread form of cursive. I don't know what it is
officially called, or where it came from originally. With time, it's one
that can get messy; some of the letter pairs in mine don't link up any more,
so it's really a "fractured cursive" that could do with rejuvenation.

The falcon in fine or medium will give you nice variation in line
width, with practice.

I'm liking broader nibs at the moment - maybe the Falcon is more aimed at
the fine-nib end of the spectrum? I'm going to try one out in the shop, if
they have it.

--

Moira