The MOST under rated fountain pens of all time!

[@clarem4402]

You sound fab with the new mic! Gotta love a shark or three! They even love a shimmer ink too!

[@tdslovey]

Good to know. I have a pink shark.

[@TraceyDuncan-sv7ow]

New mike sounds great and leaves you hands free for showing the pens, etc.

[@pamelasnyder9745]

I love my E95s…probably my fav for long writing because it is freakishly light! I want to get a couple of the sharks just to play.

[@janisstewart2217]

The mic is working great. I totally agree with you about the e95s. I love mine and use it weekly.

[@tdslovey]

My E95s is my daily pen in my planner. Love it.

[@mellow-jello]

Imo, Faber-Castell fountain pens in general do not get enough play time for their steel nib pens, along with Diplomat, though the Viper is raising eyebrows nowadays. Their affordable pens make good writers, especially F-C medium S/S nibs.

[@Stelios1fan]

Excellent new mic. And, someone else who loves their shark. Resisted getting one for a while - I was being a bit of a fountain pen snob - but once I inked one up and wrote with it I was really surprised at how much I liked it. Now I'm going to get a backup just in case I lose the one I have. In fact it's the pen I carry with me because it writes well, it's kinda cute, and it's inexpensive to replace. What’s not to love?

[@thevahandbook]

I think Hongdians are really underrated - or not even talked about. My fine Hongdians (I have 4) are sooooo smooth. They are inexpensive and write beautifully. I also just bought a Ystudio Classic Revolve and it is now my favourite pen. It's beautiful to look at, and writes like a dream.

[@judyjacobs5827]

Love the sharks, so thanks for the mention. Years ago I bought an elite 95 in black, possibly the Korean out-sourced model, second-hand. Light, very dry-lubed feel to the closure, and it writes like a champ. A couple of weeks ago I bought another one, second-hand again, cleaned it up and it's good. Dip? yes, a glass nib converted Pelikan that is bizarre, and a funny multi-colored pocket pen with a glass nib, easy to use and cute. No Aurora. Yet. Best wishes for great and monstrous happiness with your new mic.

[@pejmansehatpour7838]

Aurora Optima is one of my favorite (fountain) pens. The way it writes and the way it fits my hand is just perfect for me.

[@sajjadhusain4146]

@@pejmansehatpour7838 Seconded! I feel the same. Ditto the Aurora 88.

[@georgeluke1883]

I absolutely love my black E95S with an EF 14kt gold nib. I don't bother with the converter. I just syringe fill a cartridge. I can see the ink level and it holds more ink than the converter. I was informed that the name means Elite, for Pilot's 95th anniversary and the S stands for "short". The new mic is great.

[@Sonicman415]

I love mine.. I own both colors.. I want an EF.. my others are both custom ground CI nibs, M and M-F. Cool name trivia.

[@jacobus57]

The mic is great, and it frees your hands. I agree with your choices, and would add one; the standard, non -transparent/special edition Platinum 3776s. I thought the pens looked cheesy and were horribly overpriced and assumed they would feel cheap in hand, but then I had a chance to try a plain old black "experienced" 3776 with the C nib, and WOW! The price was incredible and it immediately came home with me. It has a lovely feel, perfect weight, and a very decent converter. And if you want a great value, an experienced pen from a reputable source is a great way to get a wonderful new writing pal.

[@schawo2]

I wouldn't call E95s / Elite underrated. It is the pen that everyone and their grandmother have. It is not as talked about, but still extremely popular.

[@catchlight940]

You sound great and the noise reduction is perfect too!!

[@leahsovine8390]

Love the new mic. Sounds great and you don’t have to hold it!

[@SingleBarrel_Snob]

The new mic sounds great!

[@MrG0CE]

THANKS FOR SHOWING SOME LOVE FOR DIP PENS !

[@themisterchristie]

First, mic sounds good. Good selection of pens, the Shark probably gets very little talk because it's so toy like. As for the E95s, a little history, when Pilot followed Sailor and Platinum on the pocket pens, from my understanding, they had another pen known as the Elite is some markets, so they called it the Elite S (for short). Come to today, I think Elite was being used by someone else in some markets, so they reduced it to E. The 95 is, like the Custom 74 and 823, referring to how many years after the founding of the company, in its case 95 years. Then the S is simply meaning Short. I agree, the name is kind of lame. But, at least with my experience of the older Elite, they are an excellent pen and deserve more talk.

[@carolyncoppola974]

Yah! The new mic sounds great! Of course you would’ve dropped the old one in tea! Anything else would’ve been the wrong channel! I agree about the Shark! Love mine but still am protective of permanent/shimmer inks. Definitely will be getting the E-95S, as well as the Kakimori dip pen. I’m too clumsy for the glass dip pen - and well…😮! Great video, great mic! Thanks for sharing!

[@marilyngardner4269]

I agree with another commenter that the Diplomat Excellence A2 deserves more attention. I find it more comfortable to hold than the Diplomat Aero, and it writes beautifully. Diplomat makes fantastic steel nibs. I agree with everything you've said about the Pilot E95s. Every time I pick mine up, I'm amazed all over again at how beautifully it writes. Not being able to see the ink level is the flaw for sure. I sometimes use Pilot cartridges I've refilled with a syringe instead of the CON-40 converter.

[@miahoover9225]

The mic sounds great. We use a wireless at church and it's about 4 years old now and still works well. Hands-free is wonderful.

[@Calcprof]

Sounds great. And the holding of the old microphone was distracting. So 2 pluses. I love the Aurora Optima (and the 88). I don't like their current prices, but that's a different story. (Most of mine are 20+ years old)

[@MaiikaAMRS]

The Noodler’s Ahab is so versatile with just about any #6 nib. The heat setting process is necessary but the results make my Ahabs an all time favorite. Heat setting a well adjusted Jinhao medium nib to my oldest Ahab has created the wettest smoothest writer in my collection, which includes many 14 and 18 k gold nib pens.

[@sajjadhusain4146]

You’re so right about the Aurora Optima. It’s a near-perfect fountain pen. I’ve occasionally commented on social media how Aurora, in general, is rather under-rated. People seem to continually pine for and praise pricey Pelikan, or Montblanc. For a very comparably priced pen, I’d recommend the Aurora Optima/88 as a great alternative. I agree about the E95s. Many others will, too. I can think of a few straightaway: Diplomat Excellence A2. Everybody talks about and seems to buy the Aero. The Excellence pens need more attention and love. I sure like them far better than the Aero (which I never bought). I have the Excellence A2. Stipula Etruria (steel or gold nib). Classic pens of beauty, style and performance. Pilot Justus 95 - a unique Pilot and a still overlooked but great alternative to the universal favorite PC 823. Platinum Procyon

[@LisaPottinger]

The Aurora Talentum is more under rated when compared to the Optima. It has the same nib, but is a fraction of the cost. It also feels larger in my hand than my 88. I don't have an optima because it feels too small in my hand and I prefer a larger, heavier pen.

[@sajjadhusain4146]

@@LisaPottinger You’re spot-on about the Talentum. How did I not mention it here myself? However, I’ve already in the past strongly recommended to other people to seriously consider the Talentum (one of my firm favorites; I own two) as an ideal, more affordable alternative to the pricey Optima/88 etc. You’re right; the Talentum is longer, more comfortable in hand, has the same 14k nib, the advantage of being a C/C filler and is considerably cheaper. It only lacks the array of different color/finish options and the alternate 18k nib option. Not a big loss, really. Btw, I never post my pens and have medium/large-ish hands. I somehow find the Optima perfectly alright unposted. It’s a stout pen with a long, thick section. Works very well for me. The 88 is slightly longer than the Optima.

[@michaelbell9811]

Literally, on Thursday, I bought a couple of Sailor dip pens, one fine and one medium, though I haven’t had chance to try them yet. The new mic is great.

[@RainmanP99]

New mic sounds great! I cannot hear the heater at all.

[@tomsheehan4091]

The new mic sounds great. I could not hear any background noise from your heater.

[@archivist17]

New mic works well. And great to hear some love for humble pens!

[@bryanmarsh9886]

Just some reactions to your choices; I think I have a different notion as to what 'underrated' means. For me, it is something that isn't appreciated for its qualities, or considered to be less good than it really is. It seems to me that you are talking about pens that aren't talked about much. (Although, the E95S and the Shark have gotten a lot of air time, at least in my circles). But I do have one quibble: dip pens aren't fountain pens, by definition. I can't stand glass dippers any more 'cause I always break them. I like the steel dip pens, mostly when I can get them to fit into my Desiderata pens. Makes for a great fountain pen experience.

[@harmonybat]

I love my Aurora Optima, but she leaks around the ink window -- I really need to get her repaired. It's been far too long since I got to write with her. I fell in love with the Viola and saved up until it was going out of stock most places, though it seems to be more available now. I want to pick up an E95S one of these days, but I wish they'd do like... navy and rose gold. Drew Brown sure loves his!

[@masheldon]

I enjoyed the mention of dip pens. I don't have any (though I have a leaky fountain pen that I use as a dip pen 🙂). I would be interested in hearing more on that topic, in addition to information about fountain pens, paper, pen cases, etc., etc. Thanks!

[@hoozat007]

The new mic sounds great and is far less distracting than your old one. I could never figure out why you didn’t clip that one onto your collar instead of holding it. It seemed a bit awkward at times. This all looks and sounds more polished now.

[@drrev40]

Welcome to Mic's and Tea

[@norm5785]

Thank you for sharing. Have a wonderful weekend

[@Art_culture_livin]

Sad that you are moving to wireless Mike, always loved to see an extra pen as a Mike holder . Hope that past Mike " Rest in Tea "😪

[@PalehorseThirteen]

You can get sharks with regular Jinhao nibs as well Lamy style nibs. I actually have a cool swamp green shark with an actual Lamy medium nib.

[@davegoodridge8352]

I really use the heck out of my Pilot Varsities. So I ordered a couple of Shark Pens. My most overlooked pen would be the Travelers Brass pen. It goes for long time unused but yet works when I need it. And it writes well. How is your Cat doing?

[@impish22]

great collection thanks for sharing

[@miahoover9225]

I want a Pilot E95 eventually when finances allow.

[@TheCreedBratton]

I have been wanting an E95S but have been syockong up on other pilot pens and some benu. Hopefully soon

[@Jason-L-Ledford]

I want the Pilot E95s pen because it is a pocket affordable Gold Nib Pen. I will be buying one at some point in the future. I have just started my collection of Fountain Pens and Dip Pens. I have four fountain pens three dip pens.

[@kellylaliberte548]

I always wonder why I don't hear about Pineider Avatar pens more. I really enjoy mine--very nice bounce for a steel nib.

[@nope8535]

New mic is good. I say the Jinhao 9016 is underrated. Huge capacity, goldilocks in size, uses #6 nib so easy to swap, and affordable enough to have a few always handy.

[@hangaroundainkwell1450]

+1 for Parker Sonnet. I mostly eschew modern pens but this one sits comfortably beside its vintage Parker brethren and sistren in my collection and stands up to their heritage in terms of utility as a writing instrument, design, and quality of construction. This pen is not popular in the community, being unfairly lumped in the "gift-pen" category; YMMV in terms of how this lines up in the definition of "underrated" - a most click-baity term.

[@ceilidh1111]

As everyone says, new mic is great!

[@duncang7372]

Is the Optima significantly better than the 88? I think they're beautiful; especially the design of the clip. Also, can you recommend a dip pen?

[@marcelfeillafe]

Sounds good!

[@Averagepenguy]

I’m sticking with lamy safari’s as Im just starting out with fountain pens. But one day I’ll get a more expensive pen.

[@kjellgolsen8521]

Ok mic - and great show. Like your knowledge.

[@alanroderick7153]

Sounds good

[@tbayless8324]

agreed

[@elspethdarby4015]

have you tried the Kalimori dip pen

[@rgcainmd]

Do you mean the Kakimori dip nib?

[@georgerichards2713]

MUCH BETTER AUDIO!!

[@aikonoklas]

just ordered the jinhao shark pen. too cheap not to give it a try! LOL

[@juicylouisey]

Mentmore. Lever filler, gold nib and screw in section.

[@elizabethevans5931]

You sound great

[@marcorothley6039]

I think Parker Sonnets are underrated. They are very reliable in my experience, they are robust and there are many nice looking finishes out there. Yes, big problem is, there are so many fakes out there as well and usually the pens aren't very flashy. But I like the balance, I don't like the versions with the metal grip sections though. The steel nibs are working great for me and are rather inexpensive (at least the used once, I got some good ones for around 40€), with the gold nibs you have to be very careful not to get a Chinese fake unfortunately.

[@vishwarajchauhan2779]

Try Moonman 159 #8 Nib Fine it is superb the most undervalued fountain pen

[@ichirofakename]

1. The entire brand Jinhao is underrated. 2. Up a couple levels, the entire brand Faber-Castell is underrated. Truly excellent steel nibs. 3. I won a $300 glass dip pen in a giveaway and it was fantastic. I broke it the second time I used it. It's made of GLASS. Now I have a Kakimori.

[@andreas9119]

I second this. Faber Castell and the Graf Classic pens are amazing.

[@rgcainmd]

Agree with points 2. and 3.!