5 Next-Level Fountain Pens that Won't Break the Bank!

[@surendrandamodaran3218]

The clarity of your ideas and the way you express them are very precise. The way you speak is refined and capturing the attention .Great work

[@roderickfemm8799]

The best thing about the Esterbrook Estie is the available adapter for vintage Esterbrook nibs, which gives you access to dozens of different line widths and styles and flexibility options in nibs for just a few bucks each (for most of them).

[@Truphae]

I couldn't agree more! I should have mentioned that in the video but it just slipped my mind. Actually, the Estie is probably worthy of its own video just to demonstrate that ability. Thank you for watching and commenting.

[@kevinu.k.7042]

I have heard that you are focussing elsewhere in your life now. So just a big thank you for your well informed and enjoyable vlogs. They have been authoritative and so very helpful. Be well and I wish you every success in your new ventures.

[@Truphae]

Hi Kevin! Hopefully we haven’t created any confusion, but Tim is still with us, and will continue creating as much content as possible for the foreseeable future 🤗

[@dadSophia1]

I agree with 100% of your recommendations! Thank you for such a well curated, easy to watch presentation. Says a lot about your brand.

[@greggregson1365]

I only have 7 pens right now, so I don't really care to buy any pens that don't bring something new to my table. Great list!

[@Truphae]

A curated collection, I’d wager. I admire your discipline.

[@jennstns9]

I also have 7 pens. One from each brand I like. I’ve been in this hobby for 6 years, so I know what I like now. And I agree, if it doesn’t bring something new, I don’t need it.

[@donnasteelman2171]

Love the information that you share.

[@parhamf5066]

great choices.. Twisbi is great but i love my Pilot VPs... they are amazing writers. Chris has helped me get a few for myself and my kids and we all use the VP the most. Great video

[@Truphae]

Thank you for your kind words. And I do love my Vanishing Point, as well. That nib is buttery smooth!

[@jamesaritchie1]

Great until the mechanism breaks, and it breaks in far too many pens. I just don't like the clicker. If I want to click a pen in order to write, I'll buy a Pilot G-2. Better writing experience for far lass money.

[@anguswhite8233]

Agree with your thoughts on Platinum 3776 Century pens: my EF w J Herbin Eclat de Saphir is my favourite contemporary fp; my favourite vintage pen is my lovely Esterbrook model J w 9550 (EF) nib which I’ve inked w Pelikan 4001 königsblau: this fp is just a masterpiece!:)

[@hannahblakeney]

I'm coming from Instagram! I've passed the Greenville store so many times! I can't wait to come in and check out the next level pens!

[@Truphae]

Thank you for being part of our Insta family, Hannah!

[@neilpiper9889]

I have a Pilot Custom heritage 912 with the falcon FA nib. It has the Con 70 vac converter that holds a ton of ink. I prefer vintage pens now and have stopped buying new. My favourite is a Conway Stewart 84 with a gold fine stub flexy nib. It's in a green and black celluloid cracked ice finish. Best writer of all my pens. My daily carry pen is a Jinhao X750 shimmering sands with a Bock 1.1 stub calligraphy nib. The nib cost me nearly three times as much as the pen. Beautiful pen and an excellent writer. I also have one with a Jowo 1. 1 nib. I like both.

[@MrGyges]

Nice selection

[@elemuri]

Yay! I have at least one of each of these!

[@Truphae]

I’m envious!

[@andrewtongue7084]

I have four of those five, Elemuri - only missing the Lamy - tho' not particularly keen on that specific model - sure, & we're all different - keep safe there, Andrew :)

[@manoloyloles]

You say that Platinum is a little more expensive... well... Unlike the others, this one and the Pilot have gold nibs!

[@Truphae]

Both are true statements!

[@jfgreen1959]

Okay, I came for the pens, yet I’m fixated on the wall behind you. That’s how I’d like to do the wall in my sunroom, and perhaps my basement that I plan on doing in a Steampunk style.

[@sajjadhusain4146]

Very fine presentation of a very impressive list of ‘next-level’ pens. Kudos for that! I’m a lifetime fountain pen enthusiast, so I’m on to a lot of next levels in pens already. 🙂 Btw, Esterbrook remains my absolute favourite American fountain pen maker. My many Esties are my pride & joy.

[@Truphae]

So now I am a bit envious of your collection! Thank you for sharing.

[@TheRealJanKafka]

My wife bought a Safari. We both hate it and it never gets used.

[@Truphae]

What an unusual experience! Very sorry to read that. Did you purchase the pen from an authorized dealer?

[@ichirofakename]

Guy looks just like William T. Vollmann.

[@Truphae]

I do not see the resemblance, but as long as he is an outstanding citizen trying to make the world a better place, I am fine with the comparison.

[@jamesaritchie1]

You lost me early on. If you pay more than sixty-five dollars for the best 580 TWSBI makes, you're shopping at the wrong place. A standard 580 can be had for fifty bucks, and even the ALR only goes for sixty-five. I have a 580 ALR, and an ECO, but I've been at this too long to be impressed with piston fills. My experience is that most who love piston fill pens are either beginners, or people with so many pens that needing or wanting to change ink means you don't have to clean out a piston fill to do so. It's rare that a huge ink capacity is an advantage in the real world. If you enjoying using many different inks, a cartridge/converter pen is infinitely easier and faster. Easier and faster to clean, and to fill. And considerably more reliable because there isn't much about the fill system that can break. But you climb a whole flight of stairs from the 580 to the 3776 and the Vanishing Point. You couldn't pay me to own a Vanishing Point, but my3776 cost a little more than twice what my 580ALR cost, and nearly three times what a base model 580 does.

[@Truphae]

You have some fascinating metaphors going on here. I’m curious, James. Is your main point that anything above $65 for a fountain pen is an unnecessary and unwarranted expense: that there is no appreciable difference between the TWSBI 580 and the Platinum 3776? You write how unimpressed you are with any piston filler, but laud the 580 over the 3776 which is a cartridge/converter pen, so I am thinking price is the issue. It’s fine that you dislike and disagree with the video. I appreciate your taking the time to express your dislike, I’m just having a little difficulty parsing your key point(s).

[@nagamanian5243]

After watching this video I bought A pilot vanishing point

[@Truphae]

I hope you enjoy your Vanishing Point as much as I enjoy mine.

[@victorr4844]

First