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srdiamond
3
May 15, 2017
Let me ask a naive question. The description, not uncommon, says, "The threaded cap posts to add weight and length while you write." Is added weight something writers usually find _desirable_? (Or is this just a rationalization for the cap, with which the wroiter must do something or other?)
choiceweb0pen0
276
May 15, 2017
srdiamondIt depends on the pen and the writer. Some pens write well with the cap on top or what pen enthusiasts call posted, while other pens are difficult to write with the cap posted. For shorter pens, posting the cap can help balance a pen in your hand.
LeadingEdge
35
May 15, 2017
srdiamondIf I may expand on what choiceweb0pen0 has said: it's not the overall weight of a fp that's desirable or no. It's more the distribution of its weight and how that distribution impacts the pen's balance. Designing fps in two sections made them much more portable, reduced the distress caused by leakage (rubber bulbs containing ink? yep, that'll ruin your day - greatly), but also, created some challenges: too heavy tired the hand, too light made writing difficult. The key was to design for balance. In a way, balance is quintessential to the fp writing experience. Posting the cap is more than what else are you going to do with it while you write. It is important in balancing the fp in hand for prolonged writing. Writing with a fp is a synergy of angle, pressure, and incline as well as individual penmanship style and paper composition. Integral to that synergy is the balance of pen in hand. That balance is an outcome of the weight of the pen which itself is the outcome of the materials used and constructed or distributed along its length. With some fps, posting the cap - or not - makes no difference. Nothing can compensate for the lack of balance caused by the use of inappropriate materials or careless design. Heavy, solid, or not, they tediously scratch and scrape their way across paper sometimes skipping or blobbing irritatingly annoying like nails across a chalkboard or static midst dolce legato. Others are a writer's nirvana, an impeccable flow from mind to paper, from concept to concrete. I digress. IMHO, the main reason for "The threaded cap posts to add weight and length while you write" in the description is to let folks know that the posted cap actually screws on and will stay where it's supposed to stay w/o needing to be powered into position and scratching up the lacquer/finish as a result. After all, all posted caps add weight and length. That's how they balance the business end.
srdiamond
3
May 16, 2017
LeadingEdgeVery useful reply. Thank you.
If balance is of the essence, shouldn't it be possible to rate pens objectively using balance as the criterion?
LeadingEdge
35
May 16, 2017
srdiamondIf all hands were standard, then everyone's penmanship would be the same and it would indeed be possible to rate pen's balance objectively. Fortunately, everyone's penmanship is a *unique* consequence of biology and physique as well as their personal sense of style. Also, writing, like all forms of communication, serves many functions. Some writings flow with a playfulness or wit that must be embellished with light flourishes to end or even within portions of the text. Others, demand the clarity of the abrupt let there be no mistake as to the meaning, contractual, all business depiction. Then, there's the design element. It is difficult after all to write without seeing both the pen and the paper. In my case, there are pens used only for note-taking while others are sought for writing the (increasingly rare) snail-mail letter to a familiar. My go-to pens vary in size and construction. Their commonality is my experience of them is that they well-balanced for prolonged writing, the kind where the pen while visible disappears as the conduit - which, btw, is partly attributable to the construction of the nib. However, I'll leave that for another discussion. So, the short answer is: yes, it is possible to rate pens using balance as a criterion. The caveat is that rate is unique to the individual, not objective. Bottom line: YMMV. With fountain pens, one size, length, construction, weight, nib metal/flexibility/slant, etc will never fit all.
writerstephen
480
May 17, 2017
LeadingEdgeYour posts should be required reading for anyone who asks "What's the big deal with fountain pens? Seem like more trouble than they're worth."