Fountain Pen 101

 Eyedropper conversion for fountain pens is something that is talked about often in the pen community but can be hard to learn for new fountain pen users. The term might be confusing, and manufacturers often don’t advertise this capability on their pens, so it’s usually more experienced pen users that get to enjoy this pen capability. We wanted to make eyedropper fountain pens less mysterious and teach you how to do your own eyedropper conversions! The 'eyedropper' term dates back over 100 years well before self filling pen mechanisms were invented. The first fountain pens were just an empty [...]

 One of the most exciting things about fountain pens in recent years has been the rising popularity of flexible nibs. What makes them appealing is that you can write with a varying amount of pressure to change your line width from a finer line to a broader one, giving you a lot of expression and versatility in your writing. But did you know that flex nibs have been around for decades? How about the fact that there's a specific way you need to write with them to really get them to work properly? As a retailer of flex nib [...]

One of best things about writing with a fountain pen is the wide range of nib size options. However, it can feel overwhelming trying to learn how all of the different nibs write. I created a Fountain Pen 101 video called Nib Sizes and Grinds to help explain all of the different options out there. But in this video, our Customer Care manager Drew and I dig deeper into the stub nib specifically. We talk about what makes a nib a stub, the differences between the various kinds, and how to properly write with one. These nibs offer a unique [...]

  I started a Fountain Pen 101 Series more than three years ago, and ever since then at GouletPens.com we've been getting asked about doing one especially for left-handed fountain pen users. It's a great idea...but I'm definitely not a lefty! Well, we've talked to a lot of lefties and put together the best information we could (with some left-handed chicken-scratch to demonstrate). Enjoy! Fun facts about lefties: Today is International Left-handers day: August 13! That's why we decided to launch this post today :) Of the last 7 US Presidents, 5 are left-handed! 10% of population that’s left-handed Why [...]

There are a lot of parts and pieces to a fountain pen, and sometimes it's confusing which parts are called what, especially if you're newer to the hobby. Depending on who you're talking to, there are different names for different parts, and it can be tough to try to troubleshoot when you're calling parts different things to someone else! We've noticed this when trying to help our customers over phone or email, so we put together this infographic to show some of the most commonly talked-about pen parts. This pen is the Platinum 3776 (in Chartres Blue), which is a [...]

It's about time to gear up for back-to-school, and I thought it might be helpful to share with you some of the best pens for students in the $50 and under price range. Keeping in mind that value, reliability, and durability are some of the key factors for student pens, here are some that I will gladly recommend. This is the first Fountain Pen 101 video I've made in about a year, so if you haven't seen my others already, definitely check them out here. Pilot Metropolitan, $18.99 Pros: Great value Attractive Durable Very reliable writer Good ink capacity Cons: [...]