A good fountain pen is a piece of precision engineering and design that can serve you well for many years. But do you really need to part with hundreds of dollars to get one?

The Joy of Using a Fountain Pen In our digital world, it forces you to slow down with your thoughts. By Sameer Butt. Jan 19, 2025 9:30 AM. Photo illustration by Slate.

T-shirts at the show read, “My fountain pen scoffs at your subpar writing instrument,” and “Don’t touch my nibs.” Companies had names such as Pendemonium and Penquisition.The DC Metro ...

The fountain pen’s clip, as Pelikan aficionados are well aware, is in the shape of a stylized pelican’s beak—a visual play on words dating to the company’s earliest years.

And in another mention of Montblanc, a collector from Cape Town, South Africa, says, “My everyday-use fountain pen is a Montblanc StarWalker, which I bought in St.-Malo, France, in 2003.It ...

A fountain pen, to me, was something people used for actual calligraphy. I knew fountain pens were part of the whole Classic Man thing that Esquire is built on, but I tapped out at buying a nice suit.

The Alchemy fountain pen by Visconti retails for $3950.00 during a fountain pen event from Visconti at Dromgoole's Thursday, March 1, 2012, in Houston. ( James Nielsen / Chronicle ) James Nielsen ...

I nabbed another fountain pen quickly after college and used it daily for a few years. But it was when I turned 30 that I found my pride and joy: the Lamy 2000.

My fountain pen is a modern one, and probably not a great representation of the typical pens of the 1940s—but it still has some of the troubles that plagued the fountain pens and quills of old.

Fountain pens remain the top seller, ranging in price from $20 to $20,000. A popular option is the 1911 Sailor pen featuring platinum trim and a 21 karat gold nib.