Copperplate practice 'out-and-about'...

[Lann]

Hey all!
I read the post on wet noodle fountain pens (can't afford) that was started in January. I've been thinking about an Ackermann pump pen so I can practice when not in the studio. Does any one else have experience that they can share with me? I'm not put off by the fiddling about with nibs aspect but would like to know of any other drawbacks...
Thank you!

[Moya]

I haven't tried the pump pens, although I'd love to, so I'm interested to hear any feedback from anyone else on this!

I just popped in to say I have the Noodler Ahab with the flex nib, and that's my out-and-about copperplate pen (very handy to do birthday cards/etc in the office).  It's not a patch on a real nib - hairlines are impossible - but you can produce fancy writing, if not actually calligraphy.

I'm still tempted to just put a cheap oblique holder, couple of nibs, and a bottle of ink in my desk drawer, but it's difficult to justify all of that for the once or twice a month someone needs a birthday card written!

[Blotbot]

The Noodler's pens are affordable, but the nibs are stiff and the flow is insufficient.  There are "hacks" (literal and figurative) that people recommend, but I haven't tried them.  I don't know if any of the fountain pens get the fine lines of the dip nibs.  Perhaps the broad-edge styles are better for fountain pens.  The parallel nib fountain pens have a very nice flow.

[YokePenCo]

Not familiar with the Ackermann but I do have a Noodlers Fountain to goof around on. They work well and are inexpensive.

For broad point the Pilot Parallel is great

[Lann]

Thanks guys - useful info! During the day I researched the Ackerman and found this review on their blog

http://www.parkablogs.com/content/review-ackerman-pump-pens-pens-using-hunt-101-g-nibs-crowquill-nibs-and-more

which they admit is unbiased and independent. It left me with a less than positive attitude towards the product. The Generation 6 was the model reviewed and they are now on Gen 8 but I'm still not convinced - there's lots of very negative feedback on the whole customer experience...

If I change my mind or find a viable alternative I'll update the thread

[Heebs]

I own a (heavily modified) Noodler's Ahab and for $20 its hard to beat the value. However, as has been mentioned, they don't flex much and unless you modify the tip of the nib  with some ultra fine sand paper it wont give you hairlines close to what a traditional nib can do. You also have to modify the ebonite feed (easily done with an xacto or other sharp blade) to allow for a higher ink flow, it takes some playing around with so you cant expect it to work the first time. It took me about 4-5 rounds to get it right: opening up a feed channel with xacto, inserting nib/feed, testing, removing the nib/feed to clean, opening up another feed channel, reloading ink, testing etc...Not it's a very wet Ahab that can flex to about the same as a Nikko G consistently without railroading (running dry), however because the feed has been opened up so much, if I store it nib down it tends to leak ink so I keep it up.

I couldn't find any pictures of any writing samples but I posted this clip on IG a while back (I was mostly testing the new slow motion feature on the iPhone 5S  )
http://instagram.com/p/j3LbNYJdot/

It's a very fun pen to practice when a full nib/ink setup is unavailable.

[schin]

There are several possibilities to practicing outside of the studio.. but none of them as good as using a proper dip nib of course.

You can of course just use a fine pen or pencil to practice letter forms. Leave the shading and that when you have a dip nib at home.

You can try the Akkerman pump pens. I have tried one but many years ago, and was put off at how messy, fiddly and the high need for a learning curve it requires. By the time I put on the nib, clean the feed, fiddle with the placement and feed and clean off the ink from my desk and table, I could have pulled out a dip nib and ink. But this was 2 years ago, maybe it has improved, though I maintain that a clean nib is necessary for clean lines and shading, so I don't know how much it could improve without that important point...

You can also try cheaper fountain pens such as the Noodlers Ahab. I have one and while it shades okay, remember it requires a lot of pressure to shade and thus will not develop a sensitive touch. Still, it's okay for making fancy letters outside of the studio.

If you have the money, you can consider a vintage flex fountain pen which costs like $70+, a Namiki Falcon which costs $144 or a Spencerian modified Falcon for $250+.. or a wet noodle at $500+? I have recently reviewed the Namiki Falcon and modified Namiki Falcon in the point of view of Spencerian here, hope it helps:

If you have the tinkering skills, I have heard of people putting a Nikko G in their Noodler's pen.. a quick google search will reveal the step by step. I have not tried this but am quite interested if anyone tries it!

[garyn]

I was interested in the Ackerman pens, until I read the reviews of customers being charged and product not being delivered.  Bad business practice.  Maybe he has improved since then...but those reviews do not make me feel good about buying from him.

[Heebs]

I wish I could afford one of those nice vintage flex fountain pens but at the same time I'd never get anything done at work haha.

[AndyT]

Noodler's pens are pretty good value in my opinion, but without taking a deep breath and grinding it the nib falls a bit short of semi-flex.  I've had fair results with that and some feed modifications, but you wind up with a delicate, temperamental writing instrument ... and inky fingers usually.  (The temperamental bit comes as standard, by the way, but feed hacks tend to exacerbate it).  If funds allow a vintage pen is probably a better bet, but the Noodler's pens all have the signal advantage of being much easier to clean than a lever or button filler.  Incidentally, it's perfectly possible to transplant a Waterman #2 nib into a Nib Creaper, giving vintage flex with simple disassembly.

If money is no object, a nice ebonite Waterman with a pink ring is supposed to be the gold standard ... it'll run to a high three-figure sum, at least.  I've had most luck with workaday Mabie Todds from the 1930s, the kind with the little #1 nibs and dowdy finishes which are beneath the attention of collectors.  My advice would be to look for very fine semi-flex nibs as opposed to the softer ones which tend to lack snap.  It's a tall order for a fountain pen of any kind to write proper copperplate, but a pen of that sort is nice for modest Spencerian.