Editing The Pen Addict 388/transcript (section)

== Theme Planner System ==


'''Brad Dowdy:''' You're never locked into anything, right? If you have one yearly theme, you have four yearly theme pages, so you can change your mind. And also, everything is by your own filling, right? You decide the system. If you want to change the system halfway through, change the system. There are more than enough pages to allow you to do that. So, if you own it, use it. That is what I will say on that matter, please. But also, thank you for buying one, but use it. Yes. And we'll talk more about those. It's no good if it's just sealed. It's not helping you.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That's right. That's right. But we'll talk about both those planners in specifics in probably a couple of weeks. Great. Because that's exactly what I'm using.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Perfect time.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' So, I have a question from Matthew. I've been listening to the current shows for about two years now, and I've also been working my way through the archives at the same time. I've grown to realize that my fountain pen preferences are more aligned with Myke's. I'm a lefty. I prefer broader nibs. I've seen Brad's various top five lists, but I don't think I've ever heard Myke's top five lists. My question is, what are Myke's top five fountain pens, including nib size? I'd like to hear what his favorites are, not what he recommends. As an addendum to this question, I'd also like to know Myke's top five fountain pens, including nib size, under $100, as his price range is more suitable for me.

'''Myke Hurley:''' So, you don't have to go all the way here. I put this in to give you into something to chew on and then maybe give a few things that you, you know, everyone hears what I say. They can go and reference the things that I write, but it's not like, hey, what is Myke like? Click. And here's the thing. So, what are your favorite fountain pens, including nib size, that you're using?

'''Brad Dowdy:''' My problem is the under $100. That's where I are about.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That's a tough category.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I just don't own enough pens in that category, under $100. In the under $100 category, I would recommend Twisby. Like, there are multiple Twisby pens that I would suggest, right? Like, the Eco is under $100, isn't it? Yes. As well as the Go. Oh, it's under $30. Yeah, it's like $30 or whatever, right? And what are the Diamond Mini and stuff like that?

'''Myke Hurley:''' The 580s are around $60.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. So, Twisby. Look at Twisby for under $100. That's what I would recommend there personally for pens that not only I like, but that I still use, right? Because I could also say, I really like Kaweco. They're under $100. But I don't use them anymore.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Do you have a go-to Twisby nib size?

'''Brad Dowdy:''' 1.1 stub. Yeah, it's a great one. The Twisby stub nib, turn me on to stub nibs. They make a fantastic stub nib. And it is the nib that I recommend to anyone buying a cheap Twisby because you make it a special pen. So, if you don't own one of those, 100% go in that direction. Outside of that, right? Like, okay. We're talking the Pro Gear, right? Get a Pro Gear. If you don't own a Pro Gear, get a Pro Gear. If you want what I like. And also, my favorite Pro Gear nib. Well, nib 4A Pro Gear. My favorite Sailor nib is the Zoom nib. And if you like broad nibs, you're going to frigging love that because it's like the broadest nib that I've ever used that can still remain usable. Right. Yeah. Because you can go to a music nib if you want, but that thing, you can't use that. You can't write with that. Yeah. But you can write with a Zoom nib. I do all the time. Like, it puts down a lot of ink, but it's a lot of fun. I mean, other stuff. I mean, when you start getting into more of my, like, top fives, you then start moving into the acrylics, which is, like, super expensive pens, right? So you get your, like, can of layer pens, right? I own four. I'm looking at them right now. And, like, they're among my favorite fountain pens that I own. And then Platinum as well. The Platinum 3776 with a, what do I have on mine? Because that's the favorite. I've tried a couple. And my favorite, a broad, the Platinum 3776 broad is just absolutely fantastic. And I've tried mediums and they don't work for me as well. I really love the broad nib on the Platinum 3776.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. Platinum makes a great broad nib. Yep. I mean, all the Platinum nibs are great, but especially, like, I especially like the broad nib. So, yeah. Very cool.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Also, I would, personally, I would skip Sailor's broad.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah, I don't know that I've ever used one.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah, I would go, I mean, Sailor's medium is very nice. It's very comfortable, even for someone who prefers broad. But I would always go with Zoom over broad in Sailor.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That makes sense. A little more character, a little more variance. Yeah. Yeah. That's why you choose, like, the stub for the Twisby, right? Exactly. It's just enough to be different.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yep. Another favorite of mine, which is not fair, but I'm going to say it anyway, because it is one of my very favorite fountain pens is the Pilot M90.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' But you can't get it. I mean, you can, but you kind of can't at the same time. Yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' It's a favorites list, Myke, not a recommendation list. So it's allowed.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' That's a good point. It was a favorites. It is a favorites list. So I'm only listing stuff that you can, in theory, get. Because another, like, my personal favorite fountain pens is the Arushi pen that Jonathan Brooks made for us.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That's funny. When I watched that video today, I went and got that pen out because I hadn't been using it recently. That sits on my desk always. That's great.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' But that's my, I love it because it's my pen that Jonathan made for me as a gift and it's special. But yeah, I guess I think that's it. Yeah. I mean, obviously I love sailors, right? I love the King of Pens. I love the Pro Gears. That's my absolute jam. But so I hope that that has been helpful. Oh, also get Alami Safari. Freaking love that pen.

'''Myke Hurley:''' You know, I love that pen so much. I'm, yeah. I have lots to say on that. Get Alami Safari.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' If you don't own one already, Matthew, like that is again, like another $100 pen that I choose to use. Even though I now own pens that are like five times more expensive than that.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Like that is a fantastic pen. And your grip works fine with the mold grip section. I know everyone's grip is different.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' And they have left-handed nibs. I've yet to use mine. That's true. I'm keeping it for a special Alami that will come my way in the future. But they have left-handed nibs, but I've had no problem with their medium. And that's what I would get, by the way, a medium nib in Alami Safari. It's thick enough because it's German, not Japanese.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yes, they're very juicy. Juicy nibs. All right. Thanks, Myke. Look at me. Look at you. Look at you. All right. Shawnee B. Good says, any recommendations for a pocketable multi pen? I absolutely love my Kalito. The high-tech C refills are the bomb. Twist to select and knock activated pens always seem to open in my pocket. Are there any great options with a refill as nice as the Kalito? The answer is no. I believe the Kalito is the best. The Uniball multi pen. I forget the exact name. Style Fit. That's a very, very good option. Like it's Kalito and Style Fit are one and one A. The mechanism is very similar. The refills are a little bit. Yeah, they're about the same. Same length, same diameter, which is to say they're both skinny and small. You will go through a lot of gel ink if you're using those. If you're not, if you want to step up the game from the Kalito and the Style Fit, I think you're looking at two different types of pens. One is the Zebra Charbo X, which is a multi pen. And that Zebra makes, it's got a very nice twist mechanism that, you know, it just, it's got this, it's Japanese, right? It's like this wonderful Japanese technology that you use it and you go, oh yeah, that's really nice. And then the other one in that same price range, these are like in the $60, $70 price range is the Lamy 2000. And those take, both of the Charbo and the 2000 take D1 refills. So those are a little bit less enjoyable than, and less variants.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' That Lamy 2000 multi pen exists. It's such a good pen. All the time. But it is so freaking cool because of the way that you change the color. You just turn the pen, right? And it changes it. And then like, so whatever color is facing up and when you click, it will change. That is a super cool mechanism that they have.

'''Myke Hurley:''' It's a great mechanism.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I remember when you bought one, didn't you buy it? Doesn't yours say like West Germany on it or something?

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. One of those, was it the multi pen one that I got? I think it was the multi pen. I think it's the multi pen one. Yeah. Yeah. So it has the West Germany stamp on it from the thing. And I paid like 50 bucks for it. And even like the new ones are only like 60 bucks. And the best thing about the 2000 and the Charbo is that neither of them are overly wide. Like they have a traditional feeling barrel. Which multi pens can sometimes go the wrong direction of getting too wide. And the, that causes the refills to come out at an angle because of the, the way they have to travel out of the tip in the front of the pen. So those are my four recommendations. The Colito and the style fit in the under $20 gel pen range. And then the Charbo X and Lamy 2000 in the like 60 plus range. You can't go wrong with any of those. They're all great pens.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right. We've got a few more. We've got a handful more questions to do, but let's thank our final sponsor for this week's episode. And that is Away. Away creates thoughtful products built for the way modern travelers see the world. They start with the perfect suitcase. Now they offer a range of essentials to make your travels more seamless. Holiday season is coming. It can be a nightmare to travel around during the highest peak travel season, but Away's products are designed to work and fit together. So your travel is smoother for the holidays and beyond. Now I love my Romanian family. I love them. We're going to Romania for Christmas. Getting off a plane landing in Romania is an absolute nightmare because everyone wants to get off that plane first, everybody and everybody has bags that they have in the overhead. Nothing is checked because everyone wants to be first to get out of the plane. Right. Like that is just a thing. Being able to have my Away carry on right there when I need it means that I can also be one of the first people of that plane. That is the hardest thing about traveling for me over the holidays is getting off the plane. So I'm always happy to have my Away there because I can move quickly through the hordes of people that push off the plane. It's kind of hilarious. Everyone has a unique travel style. That is why Away offers a range of suitcases, an array of colors, sizes and materials. So whoever you are and whatever you need to pack, whether it's gifts, comfy clothes, holiday treats or more, Away has the luggage to work, how you travel and they all come with a TSA approved combination lock that keeps your belongings safe. Away suitcases are designed to last a lifetime. You get a 100 day trial on everything as well so you can know if it's right for you. Plus free shipping within the US, Europe, Canada and Australia too. I love that. They ship all over the place Away. For $20 off any suitcase or bag, go to awaytravel.com slash penaddict and use the promo code penaddict at checkout. That is awaytravel.com slash penaddict, promo code penaddict during checkout for $20 off any suitcase or bag. I would like to make a personal recommendation before we finish this ad today for a product that I found and bought with my own money from Away's website, which I absolutely adore. It's a new carry-on size that they have. It's called the Daily Carry-On with Pocket. It is a completely different type of carry-on bag. It has like this like folding like concertina thing in the middle of all this organization. It's what I use when I travel now instead of a backpack. I do not use backpacks anymore. This is what I use as my kind of like put all my stuff in bag that I'm going to take on the plane. Friggin love this thing. It's got a pocket on the front to put stuff in, pockets on the inside. Really great organization. Check it out. Super cool. Thanks to Away for the support of the show.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. I need to check that out. I'm a big Away fan myself. To change my game. Yeah. We'll save my Away story for next time because it could get a little lengthy as well. But next time they're up, I'll have a little story to tell. How about that?

'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right. Fibber says, what can I use as an agitator? Every time I see this question, I think it says alligator. Alligator. So what can I use as an alligator in an ink converter that does not come with one?

'''Myke Hurley:''' I put this question in here because I don't have a definitive answer and I thought maybe the listeners could help. My only thoughts are that you could probably find stainless steel ball bearings in various sizes from hardware stores. I don't know what the recommended is, but I would think it would have to be at a minimum stainless steel. So nothing is happening within the ink while it's in the barrel. So I would love to hear if anyone else has any tips and why you would want to do this anyway. Like I get it maybe with like shimmering because it might help, you know, mix up the ink a little bit more. But I always got turned off by the sound. Like when Pilot does that with like the Con 40 or whichever model there use the agitators and it's never my favorite thing because I was like, what's that clicking noise? And it kind of bugs me, but I could see where it would be useful. So that's my first thought. So I don't know anything outside of that what I could recommend.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' A tiny ball bearing.

'''Myke Hurley:''' You got to be able to buy some like stainless steel ball bearings like pretty simply. I guess so. You poke one in there, but you got to get them just the right size. Yeah. I mean, they make them that small.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' But like, do you not like, but it's got to not fall out though, right?

'''Myke Hurley:''' Well, yeah, you're going to have to be careful if you're using a converter that's not made for that. Yeah. I mean, of course, but that's why, like, I'm sure you have to buy them in like a quantity of a hundred. Why is it that important? It'll be covered. I mean, I don't find them to be necessary, but some people like them just to.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' What is the thinking? That it keeps the ink mixed?

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. And, you know, keep it from getting, you know, I don't know, stuck at the top or dried out or something.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' It's a little extra movement in the converter. I guess it could be good for like ink that has stuff in, you know, like glibbery flakes or whatever, I guess, maybe.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Right. But I just got a good violent shake anyway. Yeah. So, yeah.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' The tiny badge asks, will I ever be satisfied with the pens that I own? Will I always want more? Yes. I love this question. Yes, you will always want more. That's why you're here. You're listening to this show because of that. Yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Well, I don't disagree with the will I always want more? Yes. I think you will be satisfied with the pens your own because I'm coming to that realization now.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Well, I think we are both in that state of our addiction, but it doesn't mean we're going to stop buying them. It just means we buy less.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yes. It's definitely more considered purchases these days. So, I think you will hit a satisfaction point. Absolutely.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' But the thing with that, we are both in this too, we spend more money now, but we buy less things.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yes. Yeah. It's a little bit of a natural progression. It's absolutely unnecessary. You don't need to spend the stupid money that we've both spent on pens, especially recently. It's not necessary at all. So, I think you can be satisfied with anything. I know. Right? So, that's why I'm more satisfied than ever because I found like the one, the one pen that, I mean, which doesn't preclude me from buying more pens, which, you know, well, when I answer the next question, you'll see that I'll probably be making purchases sooner than later.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' So, our next question is from Warehouse 40, will you be at the Philly Pen Show in 2020?

'''Myke Hurley:''' I will be. Yes. So, that'll be my first time at the Philly Pen Show. And I have no expectations other than to just go to the show. When is the Philly Pen Show? January 16th, 17th, 18th. Don't hold me to that, but ballpark, whatever that weekend is, right around there. So, I'll be attending. I will not have a knock table. I will not have a pen act event. I will be a normal pen show attendee for the weekend. And I thoroughly look forward to this experience. This will be kind of my first time since, you know, my first pen show or two, like back in 2012 where I was going and didn't have to work during the show. So, it should be fun. I did this on purpose. Like, I said, what, sometime earlier this year that next year I wanted to do that, like pick out a show or two to just go to and enjoy. And that's the first one. And hopefully there's more next year. Probably will be.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah, I'm sure. Lavaz asks, when you say a fountain pen ink behaves, what exactly do you mean?

'''Myke Hurley:''' This, I, yeah. So, there's not, like, I don't use very strict terminology very often. And sometimes I generalize and to say, hey, this ink behaves. But there's a lot that kind of goes into that. It means I'm probably using good paper and the ink is not spreading. It's not feathering. It's drying in a reasonable time frame, like 20 seconds or whatever. And that it also cleans well from a pen. Like, it can fall into a lot of these categories. It's just kind of a general term to say, hey, I had a pleasurable experience when I wrote with this ink because it acted well on the paper. Even though it could be the paper's fault in a lot of situations. And that it cleaned well when I was ready to clean out my pen and change into a different ink. So, it's just kind of a general term I use to say that, hey, this ink played nicely with my pen, my nib, the paper I chose to use, which let's not forget that that's a massive, massive category of things that could go wrong with an ink. And then that it cleaned well. So, it was just kind of a catch-all phrase for me that I was happy with it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. I would just, for me, behaving is just, please don't smear too much and don't, like, explode out of the pen. Right. That's kind of it for me.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Right. So, it's a personal term, right? It's like a dry, I don't want it to be too wet.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' You know? Yeah. It's like, it is, I think the behaving is very much a, does the pen do, sorry, does the ink do what you want it to do? And that 100% differs from person to person.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yep. Absolutely.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right. Finally today, a question comes from Jay Casabona. It looks like the 1911 Standard and the Pro Gear Slim are about the same size. Do they feel the same? I wasn't a fan of the Slim Pro Gear and opted for the regular sized one. They do not feel the same. They do not feel the same. They do not feel the same. The Pro Gear really does feel a lot chunkier than the Slim.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yes. Like, I've mentioned that I've converted myself to only, for the most part, only buying the regular size now.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I'm one of the only people that I have ever known that likes Pro Gears that is happy with both.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Mm-hmm. But... See, I'm happy with both 1911s. I like the 1911 Standard as much as the Large. They feel, they have that same difference in feel. They do feel very different. Yeah. The nib's bigger on both of them, but I like the 1911 Standard more than I like the Pro Gear Slim. Like, I prefer not to have a Pro Gear Slim if I have a choice. Mm-hmm. You don't always have a choice if you, like, really, really want a particular pen. Um, but I prefer the Pro Gear regular, leaps and bounds. If they, if I have an option in both, it's not a consideration, even at the, even at the more expensive price point. With a 1911, I will consider which one because I do like the 1911 Standard. Um, so yeah, like there, there is, you know, appearances can be deceiving on that pen because it's a little bit wider. Both sizes are a little bit wider and a little bit bigger nib and have different nib material. One, the, the slims and standards are 14K and the larger ones are 21K nibs. A lot larger.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah, but they really, they really do feel different in the hand and I do recommend that if you have the ability to try and, try and hold before you buy, if you're not sure.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I think out of all four of these pens, so the two size 1911s and the two size Pro Gears, the regular size Pro Gear feels the best out of all four. I will say that.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I agree with you. Mm-hmm. But the, the, the reason I own so many slims is because that tends to be what the special, like the weird specials are made out, are made, they tend to be slims, which is why I own way, I only own like two or three standard and then like a bunch more none. Like the same.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah, it's a big price point issue there.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. Because you need more material, right? Yeah. Yeah. To make the big, the bigger one. Yep. If you would like to send in a question for a future episode of the show, just send out a tweet with the hashtag AskDPA or you can email longer questions to hello at penaddict.com. Brad twitches every Tuesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. Eastern is my memory.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yes, I was on yesterday and will be on tomorrow.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Twitch.tv slash penaddict. Of course, Brad will always tweet when he's going live and he is at dowdyism on Twitter, penaddict on Instagram. I am imike, I-m-y-k-e. Y-w-y. I am w-y-k-e. Thanks to ExpressVPN, Pen Chalet and Away for their support of this show. Go to knock.co and load up on your holiday gifts.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yes, got some kits built. Yeah. Get some extra goodies in your purchase there. So go check those out.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Very nice. Oh, look at those. The originals kit, green kit, big storage kit. I like big storage and I cannot lie. We'll be back next time. Until then, say goodbye, Brad. Goodbye, Brad.

[[Category:Podcast Transcripts]]
[[Category:The Pen Addict Podcast Transcript]]