There Are Pandas, and Then There Are Pandas.
And this isn't either of them! The Pandas we're talking about here, are watches, not bears. And what got me thinking about them (again) was a link posted this morning by @cm.rook who pointed a few of us to the very attractive (and not terribly priced) Yema "Rallygraph" Panda which, in it's most traditional arrangement, looks like the one on the left, but can also be had in the version on the right: The model on the left is a true Panda, while the model on the right is called a reverse Panda. The reason for that distinction is clear--Panda bears, only come in the first arrangement. Now at this point, everyone should be thinking about the most well-know Panda, The Rolex Panda, which is actually a Daytona, and among Rolex Daytonas, the most famous of which is the Paul Newman Daytona, which was famous first, because it was Paul's, and second because it sold at auction for $17.8 million (US Dollars). The story of that auction is well-known so I'll only...
Nov 8, 2019
What kind of nibs do you prefer? -Flexy, Italic, Fine
Are there particular models and brands you like? -Yes! I like Noodlers, Visconti, Sailor, FPR, Waterman, and Platinum designs. Thick, substantal pens are more to my liking, I dislike thinner fountain pens, Lamy designs, and hooded nibs.
I like pens that can imitate high quality because the land of diminishing returns in the fountain pen community is extremely real.
I would love to buy a Visconti Starry Night, but I can't justify spending over $100 on a pen to sign contracts. I tend to gravitate towards pens in the $50-$100 range for those reasons.
For shape and design, I prefer the classic cigar shape. I like substantial sized pens because the thinner, more delicate designs remind me of mechanical pencils which is a big turn off for me; alternatively, I dislike hooded nibs because they make me feel like they are cheaper in design, as if everything was made of one solid mold which takes the character away for me.
I appreciate high quality pens, and because of Massdrop I got into this world to begin with. I am just not in the right place financially to buy what I would like to. Also, an $80 basic brushed metal steel nib is a hard sell, the higher we get in price, the more I would like to see something different or new. Either way, if there are any more drops like the Fountain Pen Revolution 2 pen pack where I could choose from a bunch of styles and nibs for cheap than I will most likely be in on that drop every time. Massdrop is doing great things for the community!