Message:

<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Shangas, post: 1759402, member: 360&quot;]Fountain pens are more highly regarded because it actually takes skill to use one, care for one, and make one. </p><p><br /></p><p>A ballpoint pen is a throwaway convenience. If it runs out, you chuck it in the bin and buy another one. Or you rip out the cartridge and shove in another one. </p><p><br /></p><p>You don&#039;t do that with a fountain pen. You fill it with fresh ink, you use it again, you clean it, you look after it. A ballpoint pen might last a few months. Fountain pens last for DECADES, even hundreds of years, if you look after them properly. </p><p><br /></p><p>Yes, fountain pens have gold nibs, usually 14, or 18kt gold. (MB has both). But the gold nib has nothing to do with the value. The amount of gold in a pen nib is minuscule. A few dollars, at most. If you&#039;re thinking of buying a bucket of antique fountain pens, ripping out the nibs and making a fortune - then I&#039;m going to have to disappoint you. Even if you got them for $10.00 each, you would still make a loss. </p><p><br /></p><p>The pens have nibs made of gold because in the old days, steel nibs rusted VERY easily. Since a fountain pen was expected to last for decades, they needed a material that would also last for decades - hence gold. In fact, if you look at the packaging from the earliest fountain pens (1890s, 1900s), you&#039;ll see huge warnings printed inside the boxes:</p><p><br /></p><p><b>&quot;DO NOT REMOVE THE GOLD PEN FROM THE HOLDER&quot;. </b></p><p><br /></p><p>People were used to just ripping out the nibs, throwing them out, and getting a fresh one. Fountain pens were so new that people had to be taught how to use them. </p><p><br /></p><p>Fountain pen nibs MUST be PERFECTLY tuned to write properly. If the tines are misaligned by even a fraction of a milimeter, the pen won&#039;t write properly. If it&#039;s not polished and smoothed EXACTLY, the pen won&#039;t write properly. If the tolerances between the nib and the feed aren&#039;t perfect, the pen will not write properly. </p><p><br /></p><p>This is why fountain pens cost more. This is why they&#039;re WORTH more. </p><p><br /></p><p>You can have a MB fountain pen and a MB ballpoint pen. You might want to sell them. </p><p><br /></p><p>The ballpoint pen might get $200. If you&#039;re lucky. </p><p><br /></p><p>The FOUNTAIN pen will get at least double that, because it&#039;s more prestigious, but also, greater care and higher quality goes into its construction.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

Your name or email address:

Do you already have an account?

• No, create an account now.
• Yes, my password is:
• Forgot your password?

Stay logged in