Oldest memory was watching my dad when I was about 8 years old fill his bladder fountain pen in an ink bottle with a lever...it was sacred space...his private special pen.. .untouched by even my mother's hands. My father wrote wth it every night in a five year diary. I have loved pens, inks and paper ever since. He showed me a respect for the materials and a love of writing. :) I love there pencasts!
Here is a more nerdy explanation of sheening: A thin film forms on the surface of the dried ink with a thickness such that when light reflects off both the top and bottom layers it interferes with itself and magnifies some wavelengths (constructive interference) and reduces others (destructive interference) depending on how the light waves line up. Each thickness of film filters the wavelengths differently and creates different colors. You also see a different hue when you look at it from different angles because the light passes through more of the film at a steeper angle. I think that is what it is anyway.
This seem like a plausible explanation, I'm pretty sure there's a connection between thickness and wavelength reflection. Although I'm not sure colour variation in sheening depends on the ink thickness. For instance, a blue ink sheening "red" (it's often closer to magenta than "red" but, whatever) will always sheen the same redish colour no matter how thick the ink blot is. Thickness seems to influence sheen intensity, the nuance in the sheening effect (prevalence of base colour our sheen colour ) due to thickness variation in a given blot. What looks to influence sheen hue the most is the dye used. As a rule of thumb, blue inks sheen is magenta-red, green inks sheen red, purple inks sheen green-yellow and red inks sheen yellow-gold. I wonder how the color of the dye influences the sheen colour. Why there's no blue sheen ?
My biggest pet peeve in the FP industry is the practice of special editions. For example, it is just as easy for Lamy to make blue, red, brown, black, etc. Lamy 2000s, so why are they asking double the price? The practice of special editions creates an unnecessary scarcity simply to drive up the price. This practice is why I stopped adding to my pocket knife collection.
What a fun conversation! On a business note, I appreciate your goals-oriented approach to shipping. With new USPS standards, every little bit helps. Meanwhile, stay safe and well!
Feedback: cheesy is fun; the music is fun; the black’n’white pre-open is fun; Drew’s shirts are fun; Brian’s (and Drew’s) humor is fun; fountain pen info is awesome! Love your show. 😊
Totally agree with Noodler's Cayenne! My first order from Goulet included a surprise me random ink sample and it was Noodler's Cayenne. I did not think of myself as someone who liked reddish-oranges but I'm so glad I was sent that sample - I love it! I now always to try to include a random ink sample with my order because I might get an ink I love but would have never ordered myself. Thanks Goulet for the random ink option!
So happy to see Poussière de Lune getting some love! It was one of the very first inks I purchased as a full bottle (along with Herbin Violette Pensée), and has remained a favorite despite the many flashier purples I've acquired since then. It's wonderful for longer or more serious journal entries when a brighter shade might be distracting.
Great episode, I enjoy doing my pen maintenance while I watch/listen to the videos. QUICK TIP: Some TWSBI pens come packed with a nice grippy foam to protect the pen case. I keep some of the foam and keep it in my maintenance drawer. I cut smaller pieces to use as a grip for barrel components that may be screwed together too tightly. Keeps the torque where you need it without crushing the component. :-)
As always thanks guys, finishing this one up early Monday aft. Another great pencast/ Q & A, what ever, like all of the last decade or so. I guess I need to now get started on mowing the lawn.
Talking about classic inks that have surprising sheen- I need to do a shout out to Waterman Serenity Blue. I thought it would be a boring basic blue, but I keep being shocked by how lovely a colour it is and the amount of red sheen.
Yes, a few of the old school Watermans have shading and/or sheening properties that I always seem to forget about, each time I reach for the newest latest greatest ink. It's a bonus that they're also low maintenance. I have most of the J Herbin standard range but many of those feel a little too washed-out or low contrast for my poor vision (with Éclat de Saphir and Perle Noire being notable exceptions).
A lot of blue inks are only boring in context. You see so much of the colour blue that you just become used to it, but in isolation, it's a fantastic colour to write with.
@@florencefortyseven I've been recently rediscovering Lamy Blue and Lamy Turquoise. Lamy Blue in particular would fall into that boring assumption, given that it ships with every entry-level Lamy FP and is even used for their pre-shipment nib tests. However it actually has a lot to offer, feeling far smoother in use than I remember from past use. Maybe I've started to lighten up with the pressure on the page, unlocking some unexpected lubrication here. I will be coming back to this one again in the future.
Your chat about inks with sheen and shading made my think a lot of Inktober. This is the second year that I’m doing it (for myself…no posting, lol), and I found myself reaching for a Lamy for one of my sketches. That sent me on a hunt to see what other artists use and inks they like. Will you all develop an artist corner, highlighting which ones and inks can extend past writing and into art? And of course, perhaps your own Inktober challenges with practicing handwriting skills. 🥰
Thanks so much for discussing 'lubrication-friendly pens'! I agree that the Lamy Studio Stainless Steel and the Lamy 2000 work really well and don't cause me hand cramps like some other slick metal grips do. Great episode as usual, guys, and I'm glad to see the coordinated alien theme (the aliens have beamed Drew back!)
Oh my god, I have so long thought Blue Water Ice is underrated. I am a sucker for blue inks like Brian but it's so unique and fun, especially in heavier flow pens (still loved it in fine nibs, too). I got it as a random sample in an order like 2 years ago and I was buying a full bottle within like a month. Said bottle is now getting low so I'll be headed to Goulet Pens for more here soon. I can't sing its praises enough. I currently have my Konrad inked with it. The shading in that flex nib is borderline sexual. So much fun to write with. Also your point about paper quality with shading or sheening inks cannot be overstated. It's so true. Yama Budo is another all timer for me. I used my bottle up, so I need another soon. Dammit, guys. RIP my checking account... Again. 🤣 I am excited to make it to the part of the podcast where you discuss the 823. I got mine about 2 months ago and it has exceeded my very high expectations for it. Best pen I've ever owned. Pilot never disappoints in my experience but holy crap, the 823 is basically perfect as far as I care. The Beatles are totally overrated. I'd rather listen to Zeppelin, Hendrix or Pink Floyd if we're talking about that era of rock.
Those retro Rickshaw cases are so on my Christmas list, especially if I keep falling in love with the different Twsbi Eco colors. Thanks for another great episode, guys!
Lamy inks in general are underrated! Love your Pencast, you both and all pen, paper, inks and related things since I can remember! Inky fingers! 🤎💜💙💚💛🧡❤☺☔ Drews umbrella 😍☺
I love my Custom 823! I own the smoke and thought the blend of gold and smoke wouldn't look right but the color combo has grown on me. I actually think it works perfectly!
Also, in a couple of years, I will reach 30 years of service at my job and I will celebrate by shopping for a new pen at my favorite shop Goulet Pens😊 of course, in addition to the other pens I have my eye on.
Yay for the Platinum Preppy. It's my favorite pen for Urban Sketching. It's absolutely reliable... another comp-nay just did a test and verified it will right after a YEAR of disuse! That's my experience, too. If I drop it or loose it, no great financial loss. I even feel good about giving it away to another sketcher to pen-able them. I currently have two (F and EF) ink dropper with DeAtramentis Urban Gray in my sketch kit.
Yeah I love my 823. It's incredible. It was my grail pen and now is the best thing I've ever written with. My god it's fantastic. Also as mentioned below, I actually DID hop over to the website and grabbed some Organics Studio Nitrogen instead of more Blue Water Ice so that's gonna be a really exciting new ink for me. I also grabbed a Jinhao 51A with an EF nib and some Noodler's blue. My little brother loves watching baseball and keeping a scorebook so I'm gonna gift him a fountain pen and try to get him on the 'fountain pen team' if you will. Excellent stuff guys!
Another great episode, thanks for keeping me company while I cleaned up! I can say that I love the idea of a Pilot gold nib vac filler with a big old nib, but I can’t lay out that amount of money (esp. with Canadian exchange) on a pen I don’t love the colour. So Pilot: blue, purple, teal or clear translucence with silver hardware and you can have my money!!
The earliest memory I have is of seeing three staggered rectangles of light on the wall. Apparently when I was still in the crib, we had a front door on our house that had those three staggered windows you used to see in the 50s, and a street light outside the house was actually in such a position, as the house was on hilly ground, that it was below the level of those windows and shone in and I could see those rectangles of light high up on the wall. Apparently my crib where I was sleeping was in the living room of that house. I mentioned this to my grandparents, and they verified that this was the front room of the house they owned when I was that age.
What a fun episode, probably the funnest so far. But it's amazing how you can go off people very quickly. I've been thinking about re-watching some of the earlier videos featuring Rachel, as I miss her smiling face and her counter-balance to Brian, then he mentioned that she doesn't like The Beatles - shock, horror. Could things get worse? Yes, Drew then says he doesn't like The Beatles either - collapses on the floor. Can I forgive their blasphemy?😂 I grew up in Liverpool with them as my idols in the 60s and 70s. Some of my first record purchases were 7" singles of The Beatles - which I still have in my record collection.
I was actually born in Liverpool and spent the first quarter century of my life there. I still live only 15 or so miles from the city. While it felt good to have an "international export" associated with the place, I did tire of their over exposure in the region. I get why stakeholders would want to capitalise on the opportunities the association can bring, but I reached saturation point. However, Montblanc special edition The Beatles was a new ink acquisition that I'm very much enjoying at the moment, so there may yet be hope for me.
@@Sonicman415 Most of the time I listen to and play Bach, Beethoven or Mozart. Even for more contemporary music, while I'm sure the Beatles influenced or inspired other acts, I'd be fairly sure they themselves were inspired by their peers and predecessors.
I agree, none of them liking The Beatles was pretty surprising. I had a similar reaction during a recent pencast. I think my jaw literally dropped when they said neither of them read all the way through The Lord of the Rings.
Rouille D'ancre is one of my favorites! I think more of rose petals but peachy. I LOVE how it shades and Blue Ice is one of my new favorites, great punch with that one.
The 823 is great. Own it for just more than 3 years now, and I use it almost every day. Now I have more other pens to play with other ink colors, I dedicated my 823 to use Sailor Seiboku pigmented ink and it works flawlessly.
I just put Sailor Seiboku in my new TWSBI Swipe. I bought a bunch of mostly water resistant blue samples to test in it, but I never went past that one. I love that color and it shades for days. Plus, it just writes so smoothly, and inks that don't are almost always a deal-breaker for me.
Really exciting to see Y Studio coming to Goulet, was looking at the classic for a while but the pure brass model seemed to be out of stock everywhere. Think I might have to go with the green though.
So it's an exclusive ink from another shop (Wonderpens here in Canada), but I think Drew would particularly appreciate Ferris Wheel Press' Writing Desk. It's this dark, rich brown with a beautiful green sheen.
I noticed the new music immediately last week, though I didn't know it was composed specifically for GPC--that's really neat! It reminds me of late 80s-early 90s pop music, a fun combination of upbeat & cheesy! I'm always interested in discussion of ink qualities, so thanks for talking again about shading & sheen. I'm a calligrapher, and with the right conditions these qualities can add extra dimension to a calligraphy piece. Last year I had a commission to write a quote directly onto a watercolor painting of a desert scene. Talk about nerve wracking! I ended up using Rohrer & Klingner Alt-Goldgrun with a Pilot Parallel Pen 6.0 mm. The shading of the ink through that huge nib on the watercolor painting made the letters a perfect partner for the desert scene. I'm still thrilled with how it came out, as is the lady who commissioned it. I got some laughs in the umbrella discussion! I live on the north Oregon coast, where we can spot the tourists because they're trying to use umbrellas which will just get turned inside-out by the wind. People who live here wear waterproof breathable rain parkas. Thanks for another great pencast episode!
Not really underrated, but J.Herbin Cornelian d'Egypte. I absolutely love that ink and my orange Diplomat Aero with a broad nib just feels wrong without it.
Couldn't agree more about the 823 in medium. Fine enough for note-taking, but still gloriously wet and smooth. Mine has been a workhorse for over a decade, and has acquired significant "personal patina." It's an ideal travel pen with the typical vac-filler sealing mechanism. Always has a dark blue in it. Currently it's Diamine Regency Blue, which is another mild sheener with great flow. BTW Diamine Monboddo's Hat is another stealth sheener, with a subtle gold-green sheen on a deep, dark purple base.
I just made my first order although it’s just a handful of samples. I was broke this week but I’ve been wanting to place an order with you guys. Plan on buying more from you in the future! Y’all got it packaged and out the next business day! Thank you!
@@Gouletpens Thank you guys for helping educate and entertain me in this crazy journey I never in a million years thought I’d be on. Yalls videos really helped unleash my love and fascination (borderline obsession) with fountain pens
QUESTION FOR NEXT TIME: please mention some inks that DON'T shade, in various colors. Often I like an even color. My benchmark is Baystate Blue. Thanks.
Poussiere de lune was my first ink bottle! I got a sample of it and never looked back, really pushed me into the ink collecting world lol. Am glad it got mentioned here!
I want to check out the Stone Blue Custom 74.. I have a Blue and a Violet.. love em. Underrated ink: Monboddos Hat by Diamine. A holy grail deep purple wine for me. Petrol by De Atramentis, a gorgeous medium green which leans a hair blue without being teal. 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽 Tesla Coil by Birmingham Pen Co will sheen on pretty much every paper, it’s wild!
Drew I loved your review of the 823! It made me run to my pens to write something. Also: agreed, pools are dumb, outside is a nuisance, summer is pointless.
"Not today, cloud" and "lubricated hands". I died. Fwiw, I'd definitely buy that brass pen -- I love a good patina. And I agree about Poussiere de Lune, that's my favorite ink.
As a huge fan of high shaders (and moderate sheeners, and shimmers), I'm wondering if there's any universal standard about which nibs tend to work best with them? Every time I think I've figured it out, things go a little haywire for me. I use flex, stub, and M, and sometimes there's little to no shading at all- should I be trending toward F? And does your explanation of shaders mean that adding a little bit of distilled water to a saturated non-shading ink might turn it into a shader? I also want to thank y'all for selling samples- I'm making my own advent calendar with ink samples for fellow pen nerd friends (I wanted to cater to their color and property preferences), and your samples are the perfect size to fit into lipstick boxes, which fit perfectly into hollow books. And out of curiosity: any chance y'all gonna carry Yamamoto Cosmo Air paper? I'm hearing a lot of buzz about this one as being better than TR for shading and sheening and pretty curious to try it. Drew, you should try a pagoda-style umbrella, if you ever get the chance. If the rain is coming down, not sideways, it feels like you've got dry corners all around you- like an architectured room of not-being-rained-on. Golf umbrellas are great...except they'll take out passersby on the sidewalk. :D Aaaaalso is it too early to ask if y'all will be at the DC Pen Show?
P. S. on Prefounte (fountain pen -- gorgeous colours -- incredible bargain price -- writes beautifully): I have eyedroppered mine just with LubeTube: the lubricant/sealant I use for my pool equipment. I do not use O-rings: the sealant works perfectly. Simple and effective!
So now I am going to pause and enter the rabbit hole of Battle of Midway! As a Chicagoan I never knew Midway Airport was named after a battle, sad. I assumed it was once a mid-way point between two places. 😆 Never stopped to ask myself if that made sense. I love rabbit holes with this podcast!
Love the brown ink in the brown (B) Pilot 823!! That pen is one of the 4 pens on my dream pen list!! I agree with Drew about the colour balance! My affordable in-the-meantime pen (WS 699) does come in brown with balance but I long to step up past serviceable and on to divine pen & nib writer!
Coincidentally - or maybe not, because I think the seed was planted in another recent Pencast - today I inked up a broad-nibbed pen with Cayenne for the first time and am LOVING it. I’m normally a fine-nib guy, but this has been delightful.
Clearly Drew is an alien because he wants to drive in the rain. And I, too, wish the Custom 823 had more colors. Or at least a silver/rhodium/not-gold trim. Not a huge fan of the rounded ends (I want more CH92s...) but I hear so many good things about the 823. It's also cheaper than the CH 92 SE I want to try (that I think no one else does because of the price, lol). Pen of the week suggestion: The Jinhao 999 Dragon!
A bit of a business question so if you do answer it I understand if you can’t get super detailed - What does a strategic plan look like for a pen company? Especially coming out of a pandemic, I imagine it’s important to consider how you rely on manufacturers or companies to pull through on supply chain and new products to keep people engaged, but Goulet also has a few products of your own as well as UA-cam. How do you manage all of that and plan for the future?
I found out the 823 does come in more colors, but they are not sold outside of Japan. Like a clear one. Now I have to visit the life size Gundam and buy a clear Custom 823.
Do you find it easy to clean out the Pilot CH 823? I've heard that vac fillers are hard to clean and a few people have said that it is better to just use one ink with the 823.
Dusty anchors are found in the sheds where the boats live instead of being taken out on the water - if you're a boater with a dusty anchor, you aren't going out on the water enough :-)
I have " lubricated hands" : lamy nexx , the grip and the fresh aluminun barrel are perfect, lamy safaris matte finish , pelikan twist has a very nice grip too, lamy joy matte.
I have been looking for the pencast for days in hopes of seeing some video footage of the new Blue Stone color Custom 74 in real-time. Maybe next week, please 🙏🏽☺️?
Besides the ones mentioned--Majestic Blue, Yama-budo, Ottoman Azure, Electric DC blue, Waterman Serenity blue (mentioned in the comments)--what are other *OG* sheeners? Nitrogen was a bit too much sheen for me (I couldn't see the blue beneath all the sheen). Yama budo is one of my absolute favorites!
One of my favorite (metal) grips is on the Monty Winnfield Highwater. It has a non-slip brushed texture pattern. I have the Amethyst version - fantastic pen. Will there be new MW pens in the future?
Speaking of sheening inks... Noodler's North African Violet has a surprise gold sheen under certain circumstances. I put ink in porcelain palettes for ink washes and if it's left long enough for the water to evaporate out, a very noticeable gold sheen shows up on N.A. Violet. Same with the feed on the pen that I keep it in.. the underside is gold. I had an "OMG wow!" moment when I first noticed it. lol Unfortunately, there's no trace of it on paper. I do my swatches on smooth bristol board and, under the right light, you can see a very very faint metallic dusting if you're looking for it, but that's it. I'm guessing it has something to do with Nathan's re-creation/reverse engineering. Very interesting!
I will continue to champion the Platinum Iron Gall inks, particularly Blue Black, and their standard dye-based line of Black and Red as underrated inks that are terrific. Platinum Blue Black ink is the ink that I keep coming back to time and time again and remains my primary EDC ink.
This is the first time I have stumbled upon your radio show. I grew up in the fountain pen era. My old school desk had an ink well. There were only three choices in ink colors, blue, black, or blue-black. The pens had no cartridges. We had to fill our pens with a lever and bladder system. Iwant to com.ent on the Barny the Barnicle, but I am letting that go for another comment since I am having trouble typing due to severe arthritis and seizures.
I expect you will be happy with your discovery of Goulet Pens. Speach-to-Text software as incorporated into phones or operating systems may ease your accessibly to digital communication.
Interesting to hear Drew's experiences with the Custom 823. I am still wavering over whether the 823 is my current grail pen or if I would be better off with a Custom Heritage 92. I have three VAC-700Rs including the Iris, and two VAC Minis. I love them all but I really don't use them often enough to require such a high ink capacity. I don't like the VAC-700R stepdown but everything else is spot on for me. I'd be concerned that an 823 would sit unused. The CH 92 definitely appeals to me more but I just don't like the single piston ring/seal. Even my many Ecos have a dual seal and I've never had one of those leech ink even behind the first ring. I just like the extra feeling of security in having a fallback second seal. The 92 wouldn't give me that contingency and this would actually discourage me from making it a daily carry. Better to just fling a couple of Ecos or a 580 in my pocket and have that reassurance. Argh!
@@Gouletpens I finally took the plunge & bought an 823 which arrived yesterday. Just inked it with Take-sumi a few minutes ago and I'm pretty much speechless. Simply WOW. After just one sentence on the page, I get it. I absolutely get it. This is really worthy of the praise and now stands proudly at the top of my grail mountain. I honestly cannot think of another premium pen to buy, now I have this beauty.
I wish I was in attendance of the beginning of the Custom 823.... Questions: Some ink brands I noticed dont work well with the pilot pen. Im not the only one who has thought of this problem That person and now ME notice that Diamine and Monteverde inks dont work well with them; they are dry or the 'drag' along the page...... Pilot really means it when they say use only their inks. Im using a fine. Your thoughts???
For the hypothetical, wouldn't you like to make it so all pens (like mont blanc) could he sold by your store instead of requiring all the brick and mortar stuff?
Brian, I’m with you on the opinions of our community, I personally dislike TWSBI pens a lot and everyone always thinks I’m crazy for it haha. Question for Drew, if brown inks were to suddenly disappear and you only had today to buy one bottle of a brown ink, what would it be?
Yikes! Why would you do this to me?! Right now I'm super into Noodler's Golden Brown, so I'll just say that before I think too hard and start to genuinely become traumatized by this hypothetical loss. ;) - Drew
AWESOME podcast, as per yoosh! Dana K. White at A Slob Comes Clean (YT, website, podcast, etc.) is a GREAT resource for decluttering. I think you would really appreciate her system. She's definitely NOT a minimalist or asking if all-the-things "Spark Joy." Because who has time for that? Plus she's just HILARIOUS!
After I got my Custom 823, it has been hard to get another pen. It is just damn near perfect. Anything beyond the 823 is entering the realm of jewelry; paying for more beauty than function. Nothing wrong with that, but the pragmatic side of me prevents me from going out on much of a limb.
I know it's a year late but I just started listening to these pencasts, out of order, and it's cool to learn that Drew plays Final Fantasy from his recipe quote. ALso, while I normally wouldn't gravitate toward brown inks, that Noodler's Golden Brown looked so beautiful and will have to consider buying a bottle of that real soon.
If you are looking for a truly spooky episode for Halloween, maybe a livestream of Brian going through all his pens and cleaning each one he finds inked up until he's left with three inked up pens. You guys talk about it so much, it's reached Baystate Blue proportions of bogeyman fame. Or maybe just select the pen of the week from Mt. Inked Pens, see if it's physically possible to make a dent in it.
I've shelved my 823. It never wrote well out of the box. It spent a year in the rotation and was finally put away. I bought a Fine and it was like writing with a sewing needle. Mine could have been defective. 🤷♂️.
Question for Brian and Drew. I have seen your favorite ink sample packs and have some, but would like to know what inks almost made the cut, but didn't?
I have to say, RO blue water ice is a very nice ink. Beautiful colour, lots of shading and little jewels of sheen. The only problem is that it is not at all easy to clean, it has permanently stained my Noodler's Nib Creeper and not even pure bleach will clean it out!
Great show! What’s Goulet Pen’s position on mechanical pencils? I don’t do drawing anymore, but when I did I used to always use mechanical pencils and fountain pens. I still don’t mind writing in 2B for a change and have one or two Lamy mechanical pencils around the house. Lamy was my favourite manufacturer of mechanical pencils. You can get the Safari, Al Star and even 2000 as a mechanical pencil.
Christmas decorations being sold "before" Halloween or Thanksgiving is a huge pet peeve of mine, mostly because my mom always decorates for Christmas super early, like end of September early, and packs everything super late, and by late I mean there's Christmas lights still wrapped around our balcony and one or two santa figurine ready to jump scare me when I want to look for something on the bookshelf. Just the other day she was watching a hallmark Christmas movie!! Please help.
@@scarletcloack4853Well, Scarlet, we have just helped Mother move into Assisted Living. And much as we care, it's also a great time to set necessary boundaries! You do your thing *your* way, whatever others want to do their way. Cheers!
Yeah, Drew. Post my 823 while open all the time. All good! Now the Visconti Homo Sapiens, however. DO NOT post that with the valve open. Did that once, and it ended with INK. EVERYWHERE.
Ok guys, I'm thinking about buying one of these two fountain pens. Which would you suggest: the Monteverde Invincia Deluxe in rose gold or the Conklin Endura Abalone in chrome? (Although that Pilot Custom 74 in stone blue looks great, too.) Dam !!! 😒🤔🙄
Personally I love the look of the Conklin, the colors are beautiful and go well with the chrome for a real stand out pen. On the other hand I'd recommend the Monteverde for anyone who prefers a more subtle look.
The rose gold is nice but go for the abalone, I have the gunmetal trim version and it’s absolutely gorgeous if you don’t mind that it’s a little heavy(at least for me, my hands are small).
@@heathergleiser I already have the gunmetal version of this pen and love it. My personal preference is for heavier pens, in the 45-55 gram weight range. I also always post my pens. A heavily back-weighted pen feels fine to me. I guess I need to ask myself this: Other than the chrome, I'd be getting the exact same pen for 116$. Do I want to do that or get the other? Not sure. Price difference is only 8$. Much thinking ahead. The Pilot Custom 74 is fabulous but not for 160$. At least not for me. Choices, choices. 🤔🙄
I remember in your earlier videos, you would demonstrate how to fill a fountain pen with Noodler's Black in every single review, for a very long time 😂. I understand why you put it in your videos, but you made the right decision to pull it. Wait, though, since when did the Pilot Custom 823 have opaque components? Is that a recent change?
Your videos are a highlight of my week. Fun and an escape from crazy crises. Be well and enjoy. Thanks again.
Oldest memory was watching my dad when I was about 8 years old fill his bladder fountain pen in an ink bottle with a lever...it was sacred space...his private special pen.. .untouched by even my mother's hands. My father wrote wth it every night in a five year diary. I have loved pens, inks and paper ever since. He showed me a respect for the materials and a love of writing. :)
I love there pencasts!
Here is a more nerdy explanation of sheening: A thin film forms on the surface of the dried ink with a thickness such that when light reflects off both the top and bottom layers it interferes with itself and magnifies some wavelengths (constructive interference) and reduces others (destructive interference) depending on how the light waves line up. Each thickness of film filters the wavelengths differently and creates different colors. You also see a different hue when you look at it from different angles because the light passes through more of the film at a steeper angle. I think that is what it is anyway.
This seem like a plausible explanation, I'm pretty sure there's a connection between thickness and wavelength reflection. Although I'm not sure colour variation in sheening depends on the ink thickness. For instance, a blue ink sheening "red" (it's often closer to magenta than "red" but, whatever) will always sheen the same redish colour no matter how thick the ink blot is. Thickness seems to influence sheen intensity, the nuance in the sheening effect (prevalence of base colour our sheen colour ) due to thickness variation in a given blot.
What looks to influence sheen hue the most is the dye used. As a rule of thumb, blue inks sheen is magenta-red, green inks sheen red, purple inks sheen green-yellow and red inks sheen yellow-gold. I wonder how the color of the dye influences the sheen colour. Why there's no blue sheen ?
Wow... you two took this to a whole different level. I need to take notes!
My biggest pet peeve in the FP industry is the practice of special editions. For example, it is just as easy for Lamy to make blue, red, brown, black, etc. Lamy 2000s, so why are they asking double the price? The practice of special editions creates an unnecessary scarcity simply to drive up the price. This practice is why I stopped adding to my pocket knife collection.
What a fun conversation! On a business note, I appreciate your goals-oriented approach to shipping. With new USPS standards, every little bit helps. Meanwhile, stay safe and well!
Feedback: cheesy is fun; the music is fun; the black’n’white pre-open is fun; Drew’s shirts are fun; Brian’s (and Drew’s) humor is fun; fountain pen info is awesome! Love your show. 😊
Lubricated hands....!!! Laughed so hard, love you guys, so fun, love the Pencast!
I never know what sort of random awkwardness will, happen, but I know it'll happen! - Drew
Totally agree with Noodler's Cayenne! My first order from Goulet included a surprise me random ink sample and it was Noodler's Cayenne. I did not think of myself as someone who liked reddish-oranges but I'm so glad I was sent that sample - I love it! I now always to try to include a random ink sample with my order because I might get an ink I love but would have never ordered myself. Thanks Goulet for the random ink option!
Here in southern hemisphere is october but actually spring, so Brian has a point! (Greetings from Chile)
So happy to see Poussière de Lune getting some love! It was one of the very first inks I purchased as a full bottle (along with Herbin Violette Pensée), and has remained a favorite despite the many flashier purples I've acquired since then. It's wonderful for longer or more serious journal entries when a brighter shade might be distracting.
Great episode, I enjoy doing my pen maintenance while I watch/listen to the videos. QUICK TIP: Some TWSBI pens come packed with a nice grippy foam to protect the pen case. I keep some of the foam and keep it in my maintenance drawer. I cut smaller pieces to use as a grip for barrel components that may be screwed together too tightly. Keeps the torque where you need it without crushing the component. :-)
As always thanks guys, finishing this one up early Monday aft. Another great pencast/ Q & A, what ever, like all of the last decade or so. I guess I need to now get started on mowing the lawn.
Thank you for joining us! - Drew
Talking about classic inks that have surprising sheen- I need to do a shout out to Waterman Serenity Blue. I thought it would be a boring basic blue, but I keep being shocked by how lovely a colour it is and the amount of red sheen.
Yes, a few of the old school Watermans have shading and/or sheening properties that I always seem to forget about, each time I reach for the newest latest greatest ink. It's a bonus that they're also low maintenance. I have most of the J Herbin standard range but many of those feel a little too washed-out or low contrast for my poor vision (with Éclat de Saphir and Perle Noire being notable exceptions).
A lot of blue inks are only boring in context. You see so much of the colour blue that you just become used to it, but in isolation, it's a fantastic colour to write with.
@@florencefortyseven I've been recently rediscovering Lamy Blue and Lamy Turquoise. Lamy Blue in particular would fall into that boring assumption, given that it ships with every entry-level Lamy FP and is even used for their pre-shipment nib tests. However it actually has a lot to offer, feeling far smoother in use than I remember from past use. Maybe I've started to lighten up with the pressure on the page, unlocking some unexpected lubrication here. I will be coming back to this one again in the future.
Waterman Mysterious blue also has a nice red sheen! I was surprised :)
Mysterious blue was an old favorite of mine. - Drew
Your chat about inks with sheen and shading made my think a lot of Inktober. This is the second year that I’m doing it (for myself…no posting, lol), and I found myself reaching for a Lamy for one of my sketches. That sent me on a hunt to see what other artists use and inks they like. Will you all develop an artist corner, highlighting which ones and inks can extend past writing and into art? And of course, perhaps your own Inktober challenges with practicing handwriting skills. 🥰
Thanks so much for discussing 'lubrication-friendly pens'! I agree that the Lamy Studio Stainless Steel and the Lamy 2000 work really well and don't cause me hand cramps like some other slick metal grips do. Great episode as usual, guys, and I'm glad to see the coordinated alien theme (the aliens have beamed Drew back!)
I am so glad you have a lot of backlog of your Pencast, I am happy no to have to wait 1-2 weeks between Pencasts.
Oh my god, I have so long thought Blue Water Ice is underrated. I am a sucker for blue inks like Brian but it's so unique and fun, especially in heavier flow pens (still loved it in fine nibs, too). I got it as a random sample in an order like 2 years ago and I was buying a full bottle within like a month. Said bottle is now getting low so I'll be headed to Goulet Pens for more here soon. I can't sing its praises enough. I currently have my Konrad inked with it. The shading in that flex nib is borderline sexual. So much fun to write with. Also your point about paper quality with shading or sheening inks cannot be overstated. It's so true.
Yama Budo is another all timer for me. I used my bottle up, so I need another soon. Dammit, guys. RIP my checking account... Again. 🤣
I am excited to make it to the part of the podcast where you discuss the 823. I got mine about 2 months ago and it has exceeded my very high expectations for it. Best pen I've ever owned. Pilot never disappoints in my experience but holy crap, the 823 is basically perfect as far as I care.
The Beatles are totally overrated. I'd rather listen to Zeppelin, Hendrix or Pink Floyd if we're talking about that era of rock.
Sounds like have a lot of the same tastes! - Drew
@@Gouletpens I knew you were a smart man, Drew!
Another fun day with Brian and Drew! Thank you so much!!
Thanks for watching! - Drew
I have two 823, carry them everyday I just love that pen, my medium is the smoothest pen I have ever used
Those retro Rickshaw cases are so on my Christmas list, especially if I keep falling in love with the different Twsbi Eco colors. Thanks for another great episode, guys!
Thanks for watching, Heather! - Drew
Lamy inks in general are underrated! Love your Pencast, you both and all pen, paper, inks and related things since I can remember! Inky fingers! 🤎💜💙💚💛🧡❤☺☔ Drews umbrella 😍☺
Like the new music! My all time favorite Goulet music is the old Q&A theme with the piano and acoustic instruments!🎶
I love my Custom 823! I own the smoke and thought the blend of gold and smoke wouldn't look right but the color combo has grown on me. I actually think it works perfectly!
you show off that awesome design Drew!!!
I'm buying a set tomorrow!
Haha! Thank so much for the support! - Drew
Also, in a couple of years, I will reach 30 years of service at my job and I will celebrate by shopping for a new pen at my favorite shop Goulet Pens😊 of course, in addition to the other pens I have my eye on.
Please let us know if you need help choosing anything! We're got a great team that would love to chat! - Drew
Thank you! Love listening to you guys chat
Yay for the Platinum Preppy. It's my favorite pen for Urban Sketching. It's absolutely reliable... another comp-nay just did a test and verified it will right after a YEAR of disuse! That's my experience, too. If I drop it or loose it, no great financial loss. I even feel good about giving it away to another sketcher to pen-able them. I currently have two (F and EF) ink dropper with DeAtramentis Urban Gray in my sketch kit.
Regarding the hypothetical, I wish price didn't have such a big impact on how a pen is perceived.
That's a really good one. - Drew
You're right. That does apply to everything we purchase. We'll always place more value on stuff we pay more for.
I think the thing to fix is to go back in time and prevent the invention of the ball-type pen.
That way, everyone would still be using fountain pens!
“They should talk to the owner…” I love Drew’s whit! Thank you for the light-hearted escape!
I just ordered the Advent calendar from you and can’t wait to receive it. I will be waiting until December to start the fun.! 💖
Thanks for choosing us, Donna! - Drew
Yeah I love my 823. It's incredible. It was my grail pen and now is the best thing I've ever written with. My god it's fantastic.
Also as mentioned below, I actually DID hop over to the website and grabbed some Organics Studio Nitrogen instead of more Blue Water Ice so that's gonna be a really exciting new ink for me.
I also grabbed a Jinhao 51A with an EF nib and some Noodler's blue. My little brother loves watching baseball and keeping a scorebook so I'm gonna gift him a fountain pen and try to get him on the 'fountain pen team' if you will. Excellent stuff guys!
We hope you love the inks! - Drew
@@Gouletpens Please, we both know I will. 😉
Another great episode, thanks for keeping me company while I cleaned up!
I can say that I love the idea of a Pilot gold nib vac filler with a big old nib, but I can’t lay out that amount of money (esp. with Canadian exchange) on a pen I don’t love the colour. So Pilot: blue, purple, teal or clear translucence with silver hardware and you can have my money!!
The earliest memory I have is of seeing three staggered rectangles of light on the wall. Apparently when I was still in the crib, we had a front door on our house that had those three staggered windows you used to see in the 50s, and a street light outside the house was actually in such a position, as the house was on hilly ground, that it was below the level of those windows and shone in and I could see those rectangles of light high up on the wall. Apparently my crib where I was sleeping was in the living room of that house. I mentioned this to my grandparents, and they verified that this was the front room of the house they owned when I was that age.
Big 823 fan here and I have two so I really enjoyed this chat!
Thanks so much for joining us! - Drew
What a fun episode, probably the funnest so far. But it's amazing how you can go off people very quickly. I've been thinking about re-watching some of the earlier videos featuring Rachel, as I miss her smiling face and her counter-balance to Brian, then he mentioned that she doesn't like The Beatles - shock, horror. Could things get worse? Yes, Drew then says he doesn't like The Beatles either - collapses on the floor. Can I forgive their blasphemy?😂
I grew up in Liverpool with them as my idols in the 60s and 70s. Some of my first record purchases were 7" singles of The Beatles - which I still have in my record collection.
I was actually born in Liverpool and spent the first quarter century of my life there. I still live only 15 or so miles from the city. While it felt good to have an "international export" associated with the place, I did tire of their over exposure in the region. I get why stakeholders would want to capitalise on the opportunities the association can bring, but I reached saturation point. However, Montblanc special edition The Beatles was a new ink acquisition that I'm very much enjoying at the moment, so there may yet be hope for me.
Sorry, Alan! I hope you can forgive me - I admittedly don't have very distinguished or knowledgeable taste in music, so just ignore me! - Drew
Not liking the Beatles is like not liking air, like it or not whatever you’re listening to is probably influenced by them, somehow. 😂
@@Sonicman415 Most of the time I listen to and play Bach, Beethoven or Mozart. Even for more contemporary music, while I'm sure the Beatles influenced or inspired other acts, I'd be fairly sure they themselves were inspired by their peers and predecessors.
I agree, none of them liking The Beatles was pretty surprising. I had a similar reaction during a recent pencast. I think my jaw literally dropped when they said neither of them read all the way through The Lord of the Rings.
Rouille D'ancre is one of my favorites! I think more of rose petals but peachy. I LOVE how it shades and Blue Ice is one of my new favorites, great punch with that one.
The 823 is great. Own it for just more than 3 years now, and I use it almost every day. Now I have more other pens to play with other ink colors, I dedicated my 823 to use Sailor Seiboku pigmented ink and it works flawlessly.
I just put Sailor Seiboku in my new TWSBI Swipe. I bought a bunch of mostly water resistant blue samples to test in it, but I never went past that one. I love that color and it shades for days. Plus, it just writes so smoothly, and inks that don't are almost always a deal-breaker for me.
Really exciting to see Y Studio coming to Goulet, was looking at the classic for a while but the pure brass model seemed to be out of stock everywhere. Think I might have to go with the green though.
It's J-A-Detwiler but jade twyler sounds cool too. Yay pencast!
Thanks, John! I'll remember that for next time! :) - Drew
So it's an exclusive ink from another shop (Wonderpens here in Canada), but I think Drew would particularly appreciate Ferris Wheel Press' Writing Desk. It's this dark, rich brown with a beautiful green sheen.
Thanks, Matthew! - Drew
How about a Barnacle Sticker??😂Love you guys!! AND...getting a sticker when I get an order from Goulet Pens..
💥🔥
Drew was really feeling that intro 10/10 dance lol
Haha! Thank you thank you! - Drew
I noticed the new music immediately last week, though I didn't know it was composed specifically for GPC--that's really neat! It reminds me of late 80s-early 90s pop music, a fun combination of upbeat & cheesy!
I'm always interested in discussion of ink qualities, so thanks for talking again about shading & sheen. I'm a calligrapher, and with the right conditions these qualities can add extra dimension to a calligraphy piece. Last year I had a commission to write a quote directly onto a watercolor painting of a desert scene. Talk about nerve wracking! I ended up using Rohrer & Klingner Alt-Goldgrun with a Pilot Parallel Pen 6.0 mm. The shading of the ink through that huge nib on the watercolor painting made the letters a perfect partner for the desert scene. I'm still thrilled with how it came out, as is the lady who commissioned it.
I got some laughs in the umbrella discussion! I live on the north Oregon coast, where we can spot the tourists because they're trying to use umbrellas which will just get turned inside-out by the wind. People who live here wear waterproof breathable rain parkas.
Thanks for another great pencast episode!
Love spicy food -- yay! (Drew near the half-hour mark)
'Dances into turquoise territory': nice formulation, Brian.
Not really underrated, but J.Herbin Cornelian d'Egypte. I absolutely love that ink and my orange Diplomat Aero with a broad nib just feels wrong without it.
Couldn't agree more about the 823 in medium. Fine enough for note-taking, but still gloriously wet and smooth. Mine has been a workhorse for over a decade, and has acquired significant "personal patina." It's an ideal travel pen with the typical vac-filler sealing mechanism. Always has a dark blue in it. Currently it's Diamine Regency Blue, which is another mild sheener with great flow.
BTW Diamine Monboddo's Hat is another stealth sheener, with a subtle gold-green sheen on a deep, dark purple base.
The 823 is so great! - Drew
I just made my first order although it’s just a handful of samples. I was broke this week but I’ve been wanting to place an order with you guys. Plan on buying more from you in the future! Y’all got it packaged and out the next business day! Thank you!
Thank you so much for choosing us! The size of the order doesn't matter one bit. We sincerely appreciate the support. :) - Drew
@@Gouletpens Thank you guys for helping educate and entertain me in this crazy journey I never in a million years thought I’d be on. Yalls videos really helped unleash my love and fascination (borderline obsession) with fountain pens
QUESTION FOR NEXT TIME: please mention some inks that DON'T shade, in various colors. Often I like an even color. My benchmark is Baystate Blue. Thanks.
I have heard it’s not great for dyslexia so I’m also curious in case I need to recommend any. Heart of Darkness comes to mind…
I know one that I have: Iroshizuku Fuyu Gaki doesn't shade. Puts same amount of colour throughout. The colour is saffron or orange. Hope it helps. 🙂
Poussiere de lune was my first ink bottle! I got a sample of it and never looked back, really pushed me into the ink collecting world lol. Am glad it got mentioned here!
I honestly never get sick of hearing people talk about how wonderful the Pilot Custom 823 is. :D
Underrated ink, Waterman Inspired Blue. Gorgeous colour, shades super well, really affordable. Always in one of my pens.
I want to check out the Stone Blue Custom 74.. I have a Blue and a Violet.. love em.
Underrated ink: Monboddos Hat by Diamine. A holy grail deep purple wine for me.
Petrol by De Atramentis, a gorgeous medium green which leans a hair blue without being teal. 🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽
Tesla Coil by Birmingham Pen Co will sheen on pretty much every paper, it’s wild!
Drew I loved your review of the 823! It made me run to my pens to write something. Also: agreed, pools are dumb, outside is a nuisance, summer is pointless.
LOL It's good for gardening - that's about it. Haha! - Drew
"Not today, cloud" and "lubricated hands". I died.
Fwiw, I'd definitely buy that brass pen -- I love a good patina. And I agree about Poussiere de Lune, that's my favorite ink.
As a huge fan of high shaders (and moderate sheeners, and shimmers), I'm wondering if there's any universal standard about which nibs tend to work best with them? Every time I think I've figured it out, things go a little haywire for me. I use flex, stub, and M, and sometimes there's little to no shading at all- should I be trending toward F?
And does your explanation of shaders mean that adding a little bit of distilled water to a saturated non-shading ink might turn it into a shader?
I also want to thank y'all for selling samples- I'm making my own advent calendar with ink samples for fellow pen nerd friends (I wanted to cater to their color and property preferences), and your samples are the perfect size to fit into lipstick boxes, which fit perfectly into hollow books.
And out of curiosity: any chance y'all gonna carry Yamamoto Cosmo Air paper? I'm hearing a lot of buzz about this one as being better than TR for shading and sheening and pretty curious to try it.
Drew, you should try a pagoda-style umbrella, if you ever get the chance. If the rain is coming down, not sideways, it feels like you've got dry corners all around you- like an architectured room of not-being-rained-on. Golf umbrellas are great...except they'll take out passersby on the sidewalk. :D
Aaaaalso is it too early to ask if y'all will be at the DC Pen Show?
P. S. on Prefounte (fountain pen -- gorgeous colours -- incredible bargain price -- writes beautifully): I have eyedroppered mine just with LubeTube: the lubricant/sealant I use for my pool equipment. I do not use O-rings: the sealant works perfectly. Simple and effective!
So now I am going to pause and enter the rabbit hole of Battle of Midway! As a Chicagoan I never knew Midway Airport was named after a battle, sad. I assumed it was once a mid-way point between two places. 😆 Never stopped to ask myself if that made sense. I love rabbit holes with this podcast!
Yes! Rabbit holes are delightful! - Drew
Love the brown ink in the brown (B) Pilot 823!! That pen is one of the 4 pens on my dream pen list!! I agree with Drew about the colour balance! My affordable in-the-meantime pen (WS 699) does come in brown with balance but I long to step up past serviceable and on to divine pen & nib writer!
Coincidentally - or maybe not, because I think the seed was planted in another recent Pencast - today I inked up a broad-nibbed pen with Cayenne for the first time and am LOVING it. I’m normally a fine-nib guy, but this has been delightful.
Clearly Drew is an alien because he wants to drive in the rain.
And I, too, wish the Custom 823 had more colors. Or at least a silver/rhodium/not-gold trim. Not a huge fan of the rounded ends (I want more CH92s...) but I hear so many good things about the 823. It's also cheaper than the CH 92 SE I want to try (that I think no one else does because of the price, lol).
Pen of the week suggestion: The Jinhao 999 Dragon!
Just ordered my Inkvent Calendar and a few of my fave Prefounte pens! Yay!
A bit of a business question so if you do answer it I understand if you can’t get super detailed -
What does a strategic plan look like for a pen company? Especially coming out of a pandemic, I imagine it’s important to consider how you rely on manufacturers or companies to pull through on supply chain and new products to keep people engaged, but Goulet also has a few products of your own as well as UA-cam. How do you manage all of that and plan for the future?
I found out the 823 does come in more colors, but they are not sold outside of Japan. Like a clear one. Now I have to visit the life size Gundam and buy a clear Custom 823.
Do you find it easy to clean out the Pilot CH 823? I've heard that vac fillers are hard to clean and a few people have said that it is better to just use one ink with the 823.
Dusty anchors are found in the sheds where the boats live instead of being taken out on the water - if you're a boater with a dusty anchor, you aren't going out on the water enough :-)
Very true! Haha! - Drew
I have " lubricated hands" : lamy nexx , the grip and the fresh aluminun barrel are perfect, lamy safaris matte finish , pelikan twist has a very nice grip too, lamy joy matte.
I have been looking for the pencast for days in hopes of seeing some video footage of the new Blue Stone color Custom 74 in real-time. Maybe next week, please 🙏🏽☺️?
We'll see what we can do! - Drew
Besides the ones mentioned--Majestic Blue, Yama-budo, Ottoman Azure, Electric DC blue, Waterman Serenity blue (mentioned in the comments)--what are other *OG* sheeners? Nitrogen was a bit too much sheen for me (I couldn't see the blue beneath all the sheen). Yama budo is one of my absolute favorites!
One of my favorite (metal) grips is on the Monty Winnfield Highwater. It has a non-slip brushed texture pattern.
I have the Amethyst version - fantastic pen.
Will there be new MW pens in the future?
Speaking of sheening inks... Noodler's North African Violet has a surprise gold sheen under certain circumstances. I put ink in porcelain palettes for ink washes and if it's left long enough for the water to evaporate out, a very noticeable gold sheen shows up on N.A. Violet. Same with the feed on the pen that I keep it in.. the underside is gold. I had an "OMG wow!" moment when I first noticed it. lol Unfortunately, there's no trace of it on paper. I do my swatches on smooth bristol board and, under the right light, you can see a very very faint metallic dusting if you're looking for it, but that's it.
I'm guessing it has something to do with Nathan's re-creation/reverse engineering. Very interesting!
Drew, bet you like the song Walking in the rain! ☔️
I will continue to champion the Platinum Iron Gall inks, particularly Blue Black, and their standard dye-based line of Black and Red as underrated inks that are terrific. Platinum Blue Black ink is the ink that I keep coming back to time and time again and remains my primary EDC ink.
I agree with Brian when pen companies make their supplies proprietary becomes difficult for all of us.
This is the first time I have stumbled upon your radio show. I grew up in the fountain pen era. My old school desk had an ink well. There were only three choices in ink colors, blue, black, or blue-black. The pens had no cartridges. We had to fill our pens with a lever and bladder system. Iwant to com.ent on the Barny the Barnicle, but I am letting that go for another comment since I am having trouble typing due to severe arthritis and seizures.
I expect you will be happy with your discovery of Goulet Pens. Speach-to-Text software as incorporated into phones or operating systems may ease your accessibly to digital communication.
We're happy that you found us, Stephen! Take your time with the typing - I'm not going anywhere! :) - Drew
Interesting to hear Drew's experiences with the Custom 823. I am still wavering over whether the 823 is my current grail pen or if I would be better off with a Custom Heritage 92. I have three VAC-700Rs including the Iris, and two VAC Minis. I love them all but I really don't use them often enough to require such a high ink capacity. I don't like the VAC-700R stepdown but everything else is spot on for me. I'd be concerned that an 823 would sit unused. The CH 92 definitely appeals to me more but I just don't like the single piston ring/seal. Even my many Ecos have a dual seal and I've never had one of those leech ink even behind the first ring. I just like the extra feeling of security in having a fallback second seal. The 92 wouldn't give me that contingency and this would actually discourage me from making it a daily carry. Better to just fling a couple of Ecos or a 580 in my pocket and have that reassurance. Argh!
The 823 is SOOOO much more comfortable than the VAC-700. - Drew
@@Gouletpens Then I guess this means I have to buy an 823 *and* a CH 92. My credit card company will be pleased to hear this :)
@@Gouletpens I finally took the plunge & bought an 823 which arrived yesterday. Just inked it with Take-sumi a few minutes ago and I'm pretty much speechless. Simply WOW. After just one sentence on the page, I get it. I absolutely get it. This is really worthy of the praise and now stands proudly at the top of my grail mountain. I honestly cannot think of another premium pen to buy, now I have this beauty.
I wish I was in attendance of the beginning of the Custom 823....
Questions: Some ink brands I noticed dont work well with the pilot pen. Im not the only one who has thought of this problem That person and now ME notice that Diamine and Monteverde inks dont work well with them; they are dry or the 'drag' along the page...... Pilot really means it when they say use only their inks. Im using a fine. Your thoughts???
For the hypothetical, wouldn't you like to make it so all pens (like mont blanc) could he sold by your store instead of requiring all the brick and mortar stuff?
Brian, I’m with you on the opinions of our community, I personally dislike TWSBI pens a lot and everyone always thinks I’m crazy for it haha. Question for Drew, if brown inks were to suddenly disappear and you only had today to buy one bottle of a brown ink, what would it be?
Yikes! Why would you do this to me?! Right now I'm super into Noodler's Golden Brown, so I'll just say that before I think too hard and start to genuinely become traumatized by this hypothetical loss. ;) - Drew
@@Gouletpens Well I am a maniacal person to suggest such a thing but I must say, you impress under pressure with an excellent choice lol
AWESOME podcast, as per yoosh! Dana K. White at A Slob Comes Clean (YT, website, podcast, etc.) is a GREAT resource for decluttering. I think you would really appreciate her system. She's definitely NOT a minimalist or asking if all-the-things "Spark Joy." Because who has time for that? Plus she's just HILARIOUS!
Cool! Thank you! - Drew
After I got my Custom 823, it has been hard to get another pen. It is just damn near perfect. Anything beyond the 823 is entering the realm of jewelry; paying for more beauty than function. Nothing wrong with that, but the pragmatic side of me prevents me from going out on much of a limb.
I’m really worried about Drew’s hubris about forces of nature.
Poussiere de lune and lie de the are my favorite Herbin inks haha
Poussiere de lune was my very first bottled ink purchase and I still love it. Big Baudelaire vibes. 💜
It was my second, but the first I loved. My first was Perle Noire, with my first fp, after doing a pretty small amount of research.
I know it's a year late but I just started listening to these pencasts, out of order, and it's cool to learn that Drew plays Final Fantasy from his recipe quote. ALso, while I normally wouldn't gravitate toward brown inks, that Noodler's Golden Brown looked so beautiful and will have to consider buying a bottle of that real soon.
Yes! I love Final Fantasy! - Drew
@1:05:50 the term you are looking for is probably "hydrophilic" but "hygroscopic" doesn't really sound off either.
If you are looking for a truly spooky episode for Halloween, maybe a livestream of Brian going through all his pens and cleaning each one he finds inked up until he's left with three inked up pens. You guys talk about it so much, it's reached Baystate Blue proportions of bogeyman fame.
Or maybe just select the pen of the week from Mt. Inked Pens, see if it's physically possible to make a dent in it.
That'd be too scary for me. - Drew
Diamine Syrah is so strong, its more about making a statement than actually writing. I love it but I can't use it for long.
How often and with what do we need to treat our Galen handbook holders?
I've shelved my 823. It never wrote well out of the box. It spent a year in the rotation and was finally put away. I bought a Fine and it was like writing with a sewing needle. Mine could have been defective. 🤷♂️.
Question for Brian and Drew. I have seen your favorite ink sample packs and have some, but would like to know what inks almost made the cut, but didn't?
I have to say, RO blue water ice is a very nice ink. Beautiful colour, lots of shading and little jewels of sheen. The only problem is that it is not at all easy to clean, it has permanently stained my Noodler's Nib Creeper and not even pure bleach will clean it out!
Great show!
What’s Goulet Pen’s position on mechanical pencils?
I don’t do drawing anymore, but when I did I used to always use mechanical pencils and fountain pens. I still don’t mind writing in 2B for a change and have one or two Lamy mechanical pencils around the house.
Lamy was my favourite manufacturer of mechanical pencils. You can get the Safari, Al Star and even 2000 as a mechanical pencil.
OMG, I need to get some Herbin Rouille D'ancre, it would match so nicely with one of my pens and it looks beautiful!!
I had no idea about the history of Diamine Syrah! It's one of the few inks that's always in one of my pens
Christmas decorations being sold "before" Halloween or Thanksgiving is a huge pet peeve of mine, mostly because my mom always decorates for Christmas super early, like end of September early, and packs everything super late, and by late I mean there's Christmas lights still wrapped around our balcony and one or two santa figurine ready to jump scare me when I want to look for something on the bookshelf. Just the other day she was watching a hallmark Christmas movie!!
Please help.
Wow! That IS early! - Drew
@@Gouletpens it is. Hopefully she'll hold back setting up the tree now that we have a kitten.
Yeah. Some people ruin the sense of occasion by having no sense of occasion. I feel for you!
@@amandajstar the moment she starts with the Christmas movies I send her memes with "I'm against early Christmas decorating" but she ignores me. /cry
@@scarletcloack4853Well, Scarlet, we have just helped Mother move into Assisted Living. And much as we care, it's also a great time to set necessary boundaries! You do your thing *your* way, whatever others want to do their way. Cheers!
5:45 Barney would have strong alien vibes! The actual animal hiding inside its little ring of plates looks like a messed up shrimp.
Fascinating! - Drew
More options for fountain pen parts would be great - I'm sure more competition would be beneficial for everyone!
the 823 is one of the best writers out there! I have two.
Yeah, Drew. Post my 823 while open all the time. All good!
Now the Visconti Homo Sapiens, however. DO NOT post that with the valve open. Did that once, and it ended with INK. EVERYWHERE.
That's good to know! Thanks for the insight! - Drew
Ok guys, I'm thinking about buying one of these two fountain pens. Which would you suggest: the Monteverde Invincia Deluxe in rose gold or the Conklin Endura Abalone in chrome? (Although that Pilot Custom 74 in stone blue looks great, too.) Dam !!! 😒🤔🙄
Personally I love the look of the Conklin, the colors are beautiful and go well with the chrome for a real stand out pen. On the other hand I'd recommend the Monteverde for anyone who prefers a more subtle look.
The abalone is a lot sleeker than carbon fibre in my opinion, especially with the Chrome trim, but take that with a grain of salt.
The rose gold is nice but go for the abalone, I have the gunmetal trim version and it’s absolutely gorgeous if you don’t mind that it’s a little heavy(at least for me, my hands are small).
@@heathergleiser I already have the gunmetal version of this pen and love it. My personal preference is for heavier pens, in the 45-55 gram weight range. I also always post my pens. A heavily back-weighted pen feels fine to me. I guess I need to ask myself this: Other than the chrome, I'd be getting the exact same pen for 116$. Do I want to do that or get the other? Not sure. Price difference is only 8$. Much thinking ahead. The Pilot Custom 74 is fabulous but not for 160$. At least not for me. Choices, choices. 🤔🙄
@@lemonlizard6026 😎👍
I remember in your earlier videos, you would demonstrate how to fill a fountain pen with Noodler's Black in every single review, for a very long time 😂. I understand why you put it in your videos, but you made the right decision to pull it.
Wait, though, since when did the Pilot Custom 823 have opaque components? Is that a recent change?