One probable misconception is that cartridge filled pens don’t need cleaning, as long as you use the same ink. Quite a few vintage pens I brought home could write for weeks, if I only filled them with water, continuosly solving massive internal crusts of dried ink. Another one is that the nib is by design a disposable part of a fountain pen, just like on a dip pen. It caught my attention when a pen in an auction was described as in good working order, and the pen arrived with a broken nib.( No sweat though, I had some spare nibs lying around)
That's fascinating! It must come from the idea of dip pens. It technically is pretty replaceable, but definitely not as disposable as the nibs from dip pens. Wow, I'm still shocked that they referred to a fountain pen nib as disposable. hahah
Thanks for selecting my question this week, Tom! I really enjoyed the variety of responses. The comment sections on both videos (last week's and this week's) has been really fun to read as a consequence. It was so lovely to see how it continued on from last week's Flex nib question. I usually always mention how I initially thought fountain pens were quills, and that "fountain" meant the feather. Hahaha (I think in some languages fountain pens translate to feather pens) It makes for a great embarrassing misconception story. And my disappointment that calligraphy pens were stub nibs and not the flex nibs. My next question (for fun): Does a new nib make your pen a "new" pen? Because I just got a new nib for my Pilot Kakuno (affectionately called the Kakuno Matata, name came from a pen friend), and gosh, I love that it writes like a whole new pen. I feel like I have a new pen. Which may make me spiral into wondering what is the most important part of the pen? Since we get so fancy with the barrel materials and the pen shape. But some people may be like me and say that the nib is the most important aspect.
My question is, does the price equal quality? At what point (no pun intended) do you choose the higher quality over inexpensive pens. What qualities do you look for in choosing a pen that costs $600 or $700? And why?
I've seen this question a few times, and the variety of responses are fun to read. I find that it depends on your background experiences and finances and what qualities are most valuable to you. I'm also curious to see Tom's opinion. An analogy for this question is whether a meal out was worth the money you paid for it. But this is all based on subjective opinions, and since the balance between food taste, customer service, dining location, and restaurant reputation all factor into the experience, it can have a variable opinion about whether one person perceives the experience as value for quality compared to another person.
A misconception for me is that pens come in completely clean! They may have dust particles or whatnot inside that may clog up the nib. I just had one happen to me and luckily I just flushed the pen out and washed it, and it’s all good now!
Thanks Tom. Question for you: what’s the difference between shading, sheen, and shimmer? Under what conditions (paper, nib?) do these effects show up? I’m assuming shimmer is when the ink contains shiny particles. Shade and sheen? Thanks
You mentioned some options for introductory fountain pens (Preppy, Varsity); what about entry-level nice paper/notebooks? I've found my fountain pen sweet spot, but so far I've only been using very inexpensive notebook inserts for a Traveler's Notebook-style journal. I'm thinking of upping my paper game but am not sure where to start.
Hey Tom, I m from India, you r love is something else for pen❤, will you please send me any of two pen which you like to give to a person who love using fountainpen, and using them from school days (I am 34 now).you are a master🙏 Namaste @@GoldspotPens
One of the biggest misconceptions in this hobby is that one must be always looking to spend more, and that higher prices mean better pens. Okay, so that's two things!
Thank you for your wonderful & informative videos!! I’m on my pen journey and am trying different nibs, but am overwhelmed by ink decisions!! How do you decide which ink to use? Fast-drying; sheens; matching to pens and paper; are cartridges sometimes better; etc. Please help!!
Great video Tom! My question of the week for you is, what is your favorite fountain pen story? Something inspiring, or funny. Maybe a moment of genuine gratitude from the pen community.
I love my fountain pens, but I'm a bit afraid to use them at work on the cheap copy paper. What recommendations would you have for using a fountain pen on cheap paper? Avoid fine and extra fine nibs to keep from snagging the fibers? Drier ink to try to prevent bleed through? Thanks.
Noodler's makes a line of inks that are well-suited to cheaper copy papers. They are called X-Feather or Anti-feather. I would actually encourage a fine or extra fine nib as the ink flow will be more manageable. Paper fibers is less of a concern than feathering and bleedthrough.
Tom, another great month of fine writing instruments. In a time where technology captures so much of our youth, how do we get younger generation into fountain pens, writing, etc?
Tom, I always wonder about the names given to pens and inks. How much might the name influence the customers to choose one item rather than something else? Lots of inks have names that seem irrelevant, like "birthday cake" or "I am a cat". A design on a pen, like the Alice in Wonderland you showed in this video, makes sense to have that name. Others? A mystery.
FP Misconceptions: I had no idea there were so many colors and materials available. I thought they all looked like bank or lawyer pens. ? What's the best way for those of us who don't have a pen friend, pen shop, pen group, or pen show in our state to find each other ?
Me too! I thought they were all Montblanc 149 fountain pens (like those clip art doodles). I personally found my pen community by doing shout outs on Facebook Group pages dedicated to fountain pens, or on Reddit. My local journal group formed because two people did a shout out on Instagram. We all come from far and wide across the state (a few hrs drive to meet in the middle) but it's worth it for a full day of pen and stationery shenanigans. I also encouraged a pen pal to form their own pen meet by doing a shout out on the local facebook page.
Have you ever lost a pen and, even if it wasn't a treasured piece of your collection, losing it left an indelible impression? I lost a Scheaffer Targa over twenty years ago and not only do I remember the restaurant where I left it and which friend's birthday we were celebrating, I remember what I was wearing! I didn't even like the pen that much.
Love your channel. Although I’ve used fountain pens off and on for some time I’m fairly new to collecting. I do research but sometimes get pulled in by the look or something interesting or quirky. I have a couple of pens I’ve bought such as the Visconti Van Gogh Sunflower and Mark Twain Brass Conklin that dry up very quickly while others write with no issues. I like the pens, I want to keep them. Can you give me any hints, tips or tricks to combat the drying out?
Nice video, Tom 😃👏 Question: In your opinion, why some expensive fountain pens (like Sailor King of Pens) use a resin body instead of metal? Metal sounds more resistant than resin 🤔
I'm reminded of the owl from the Tootsie Pop commercial. MR. Owl, how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? One... ta-hoo, THREE. CRUNCH THREE. I don't want to find out how much it takes to spring a flex nib, but I'm sure I can do it easily with enough savage force.
@@GoldspotPens my question comes from my own experience. in my case it wasnt one strong press on the nib. It was rather flexing here and there and in some time i found out that the nib puts down much thicker line without any pressure than what it used to.
Hello, this is my first Write Stuff, came here through Juicy Broads and then PenBoyRoy. I'm in the Netherlands and wondering: what is an interesting American-made fountain pen? I'm 9 months into the hobby and have some European and Japanese pens, but as so many of the pen streams are American, I'm looking to get an American pen next. (my budget would be
Hey! Back when I (was trying to) switch from cartridge to bottles I accidentally bought India ink instead of fountain pen ink. I caught it in time fortunately, but I was wondering if there were any pens at all that could write with India ink or if there is anything that would prevent that from working!
Here's my question: What is the best way to get an aeromatic pen fully inked? Often, the sac of an aeromatic fill pen is ink-stained, making it impossible to see if the sac has filled completely.
What do your family and your friends think about your hobby and the moment of spending money in the fp world? Do some of them laugh at you? Or maybe hate? In our time, we have more and more stereotypes about the fountain pen world.😮
I'm looking at a Visconti pen as my next purchase and like the look of the Mythos Poseidon but i am just wondering what the differences are between the ranges that are a similar price point, like the Van Gogh, Remambrant and others are?
In terms of writing performance, nib quality and filling mechanism, the Mythos, Van Gogh, and Rembrandt are the same. The differences are cosmetic in their body shape, colors, designs, and trims.
Hi! Shimmer fanatic here! I haven't heard of anything to make the shimmer flow well if the nib or feed cannot handle the particulate matter. You need a finer shimmer, or a wider feed channel and wider tine gap (also known as a "wet" pen). The particulate size varies between ink brands. The worst combination is a dry pen, a dry based fluid ink and large shimmer particles. A wet writing ink (a potential additive is something to lubricate the ink) may make the liquid portion come out well, but will not flush out the large particles if the shimmer size is too large for the fountain pen feed.
What is the difference between the difference pen price points? Is is simply the crastsmanship and materials, or will there be a significant impact on the pen proformance as you write?
Yes, I have. In Germany back in 2019 we visited Lamy and Pelikan, who let us tour the factory and showed how fountain pen nibs were made. We have a few videos from Germany on our UA-cam channel you can watch at your convenience.
Hello. You say re. cleaning and storing pens that they should be left to dry before storage. Do you think that a little water left inside the pen would do any harm? When I say storage, I mean long-term. Great video.
Do you have recommendations for pens that can be used by people with arthritis? I unfortunately developed it soon after joining the hobby and would like to know what is good/what to look for to have an enjoyable experience.
It's a "feel" of the nib on paper. Some writers might call nib feedback "scratchiness," but it's a little more nuanced. It's like the feeling of writing using a freshly sharpened pencil. You can feel the nib making contact with the page. Some brands, like Sailor, are known for a higher degree of feedback and people like them for that reason. Others are completely turned off by it and want a super smooth nib that glides across paper.
Reliability of new fountain pens out of the box is hit and miss? Fact or misconception? That's my question. Whenever I think of getting a new fountain pen, that always lingers in my mind. Am I going to get a fountain pen with baby bottoms, ink flow issues, or scratchy.
I think it's fact. Comes down to quality control of the brand. It makes it a valuable skill to learn basic tuning if you want to explore brands that have a propensity for lower quality control of their nibs because other factors of the pen or manufacturing process takes priority over the nib tuning.
It's a reality for certain pen brands that have lacking quality control. As a retailer, and first point of contact for the end user, we step in and do our best to check these problematic pens before they leave the shop.
Tom, are you in favor of using 'replica' pens before buying the more expensive real McCoy's? There are a lot of Chinese pens that are really good replica pens, but some are just complete rip offs. What are your thoughts on them?
Hahaha 😂 the close caption says: I am your host Tomato!!!😂😂 instead of Tom Oddo
AI is a ”work in progress”.
😂
I think an explanation of Paper sizes and a comparison/conversion of "pounds"vs "gsm" when rating paper.
Ooh, and "sizing" vs paper "size" (yes, same words to describe different concepts in paper!)
One probable misconception is that cartridge filled pens don’t need cleaning, as long as you use the same ink. Quite a few vintage pens I brought home could write for weeks, if I only filled them with water, continuosly solving massive internal crusts of dried ink.
Another one is that the nib is by design a disposable part of a fountain pen, just like on a dip pen. It caught my attention when a pen in an auction was described as in good working order, and the pen arrived with a broken nib.( No sweat though, I had some spare nibs lying around)
That's fascinating! It must come from the idea of dip pens. It technically is pretty replaceable, but definitely not as disposable as the nibs from dip pens. Wow, I'm still shocked that they referred to a fountain pen nib as disposable. hahah
Thanks for selecting my question this week, Tom! I really enjoyed the variety of responses. The comment sections on both videos (last week's and this week's) has been really fun to read as a consequence. It was so lovely to see how it continued on from last week's Flex nib question.
I usually always mention how I initially thought fountain pens were quills, and that "fountain" meant the feather. Hahaha (I think in some languages fountain pens translate to feather pens) It makes for a great embarrassing misconception story. And my disappointment that calligraphy pens were stub nibs and not the flex nibs.
My next question (for fun): Does a new nib make your pen a "new" pen?
Because I just got a new nib for my Pilot Kakuno (affectionately called the Kakuno Matata, name came from a pen friend), and gosh, I love that it writes like a whole new pen. I feel like I have a new pen. Which may make me spiral into wondering what is the most important part of the pen? Since we get so fancy with the barrel materials and the pen shape. But some people may be like me and say that the nib is the most important aspect.
My question is, does the price equal quality? At what point (no pun intended) do you choose the higher quality over inexpensive pens. What qualities do you look for in choosing a pen that costs $600 or $700? And why?
I've seen this question a few times, and the variety of responses are fun to read. I find that it depends on your background experiences and finances and what qualities are most valuable to you.
I'm also curious to see Tom's opinion.
An analogy for this question is whether a meal out was worth the money you paid for it. But this is all based on subjective opinions, and since the balance between food taste, customer service, dining location, and restaurant reputation all factor into the experience, it can have a variable opinion about whether one person perceives the experience as value for quality compared to another person.
A misconception for me is that pens come in completely clean! They may have dust particles or whatnot inside that may clog up the nib. I just had one happen to me and luckily I just flushed the pen out and washed it, and it’s all good now!
Thanks Tom.
Question for you: what’s the difference between shading, sheen, and shimmer? Under what conditions (paper, nib?) do these effects show up? I’m assuming shimmer is when the ink contains shiny particles. Shade and sheen? Thanks
This article that Vanessa wrote on our blog details the differences well. You can find it here - goldspot.com/blogs/magazine/where-does-ink-come-from
@@GoldspotPens Thanks Tom!
You mentioned some options for introductory fountain pens (Preppy, Varsity); what about entry-level nice paper/notebooks? I've found my fountain pen sweet spot, but so far I've only been using very inexpensive notebook inserts for a Traveler's Notebook-style journal. I'm thinking of upping my paper game but am not sure where to start.
A question for Tom. What was the first fountain pen, or the pen which made you want to delve more into the wonderful world of fountain pens?
My Lamy Safari, which I still have and use every now and then, is the one that convinced me.
Hey Tom, I m from India, you r love is something else for pen❤, will you please send me any of two pen which you like to give to a person who love using fountainpen, and using them from school days (I am 34 now).you are a master🙏 Namaste @@GoldspotPens
I would love to hear what goes in to making a collab with a company? theme, options, what they'll let you do and not do. Super interested.
I'm completely obsessed with that giant Pelikan display.
There's a matching tshirt that says "MYPENISBIGGERTHANYOURS".
Sweet video as always! I would love some tips on deep cleaning with an ultrasonic cleaner.
Check out the Pelikan 10000 in the background... a truly rare model.
Hey Tom Larry here from the old pen club maybe you could start showing your pen of the day the day of the podcast that you are doing.
I've noticed the heavy marketing of the Kaweco, I assume that was because of large minimum orders. Happy to see it on the top!
Kaweco Sport fountain pens are inexpensive. But, when you need to order 1,000 of them, it's a lot!
One of the biggest misconceptions in this hobby is that one must be always looking to spend more, and that higher prices mean better pens. Okay, so that's two things!
100% agree. It's OK that you wrote two things.
Do you see any fountain pen trends that emerged in the first quarter of 2024?
Thank you for your wonderful & informative videos!! I’m on my pen journey and am trying different nibs, but am overwhelmed by ink decisions!! How do you decide which ink to use? Fast-drying; sheens; matching to pens and paper; are cartridges sometimes better; etc. Please help!!
Great video Tom! My question of the week for you is, what is your favorite fountain pen story? Something inspiring, or funny. Maybe a moment of genuine gratitude from the pen community.
I love my fountain pens, but I'm a bit afraid to use them at work on the cheap copy paper. What recommendations would you have for using a fountain pen on cheap paper? Avoid fine and extra fine nibs to keep from snagging the fibers? Drier ink to try to prevent bleed through? Thanks.
Noodler's makes a line of inks that are well-suited to cheaper copy papers. They are called X-Feather or Anti-feather. I would actually encourage a fine or extra fine nib as the ink flow will be more manageable. Paper fibers is less of a concern than feathering and bleedthrough.
Great video! What has been the pen that has been the most fun to use? Why?
Tom, another great month of fine writing instruments. In a time where technology captures so much of our youth, how do we get younger generation into fountain pens, writing, etc?
Tom, I always wonder about the names given to pens and inks. How much might the name influence the customers to choose one item rather than something else? Lots of inks have names that seem irrelevant, like "birthday cake" or "I am a cat". A design on a pen, like the Alice in Wonderland you showed in this video, makes sense to have that name. Others? A mystery.
FP Misconceptions: I had no idea there were so many colors and materials available. I thought they all looked like bank or lawyer pens.
? What's the best way for those of us who don't have a pen friend, pen shop, pen group, or pen show in our state to find each other ?
Me too! I thought they were all Montblanc 149 fountain pens (like those clip art doodles).
I personally found my pen community by doing shout outs on Facebook Group pages dedicated to fountain pens, or on Reddit. My local journal group formed because two people did a shout out on Instagram. We all come from far and wide across the state (a few hrs drive to meet in the middle) but it's worth it for a full day of pen and stationery shenanigans. I also encouraged a pen pal to form their own pen meet by doing a shout out on the local facebook page.
Will Narwhal ever come out with a converter fill pen, which is my preference!
They had previously. It was called the Key West. They decided to discontinue it due to lackluster sales.
Have you ever lost a pen and, even if it wasn't a treasured piece of your collection, losing it left an indelible impression? I lost a Scheaffer Targa over twenty years ago and not only do I remember the restaurant where I left it and which friend's birthday we were celebrating, I remember what I was wearing! I didn't even like the pen that much.
Love your channel. Although I’ve used fountain pens off and on for some time I’m fairly new to collecting. I do research but sometimes get pulled in by the look or something interesting or quirky. I have a couple of pens I’ve bought such as the Visconti Van Gogh Sunflower and Mark Twain Brass Conklin that dry up very quickly while others write with no issues. I like the pens, I want to keep them. Can you give me any hints, tips or tricks to combat the drying out?
I would first try changing the ink you use in both of those pens.
Nice video, Tom 😃👏
Question: In your opinion, why some expensive fountain pens (like Sailor King of Pens) use a resin body instead of metal? Metal sounds more resistant than resin 🤔
Question! Which ink bottles are the most fun and useful in design?
Although we don't sell it, the Akkerman ink bottles (from the Netherlands, they can only be found there) is by far the most fun and useful.
Hi Tom! Thanks for another fun video! My question is what does it take to spring the flex nib from Scribo?
I'm reminded of the owl from the Tootsie Pop commercial. MR. Owl, how many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? One... ta-hoo, THREE. CRUNCH THREE.
I don't want to find out how much it takes to spring a flex nib, but I'm sure I can do it easily with enough savage force.
@@GoldspotPens my question comes from my own experience. in my case it wasnt one strong press on the nib. It was rather flexing here and there and in some time i found out that the nib puts down much thicker line without any pressure than what it used to.
Thanks, Tom. What would be a good way to get my grandbabies interested in fountain pens? The oldest is about to turn eight years old.
Hello, this is my first Write Stuff, came here through Juicy Broads and then PenBoyRoy. I'm in the Netherlands and wondering: what is an interesting American-made fountain pen? I'm 9 months into the hobby and have some European and Japanese pens, but as so many of the pen streams are American, I'm looking to get an American pen next. (my budget would be
Hey Tom! What is the pen that got you into fountain pens? Or the very first pen you ever owned, and do you still own it?
Hey! Back when I (was trying to) switch from cartridge to bottles I accidentally bought India ink instead of fountain pen ink. I caught it in time fortunately, but I was wondering if there were any pens at all that could write with India ink or if there is anything that would prevent that from working!
Here's my question: What is the best way to get an aeromatic pen fully inked? Often, the sac of an aeromatic fill pen is ink-stained, making it impossible to see if the sac has filled completely.
What do your family and your friends think about your hobby and the moment of spending money in the fp world? Do some of them laugh at you? Or maybe hate? In our time, we have more and more stereotypes about the fountain pen world.😮
I'm looking at a Visconti pen as my next purchase and like the look of the Mythos Poseidon but i am just wondering what the differences are between the ranges that are a similar price point, like the Van Gogh, Remambrant and others are?
In terms of writing performance, nib quality and filling mechanism, the Mythos, Van Gogh, and Rembrandt are the same. The differences are cosmetic in their body shape, colors, designs, and trims.
What do you recommend adding to shimmer ink that doesn’t flow well, even if the pen is shaken to mix the ink before writing?
Hi! Shimmer fanatic here! I haven't heard of anything to make the shimmer flow well if the nib or feed cannot handle the particulate matter. You need a finer shimmer, or a wider feed channel and wider tine gap (also known as a "wet" pen). The particulate size varies between ink brands.
The worst combination is a dry pen, a dry based fluid ink and large shimmer particles.
A wet writing ink (a potential additive is something to lubricate the ink) may make the liquid portion come out well, but will not flush out the large particles if the shimmer size is too large for the fountain pen feed.
If money was no object what is one grail pen you would buy and why?
Which fountain pen from the top 5 for March would you recommend for a young artist who wants to use a fountain pen to sketch?
Hi Tom, thanks for the video!!
My question for you is: Do you recommend getting a Kaweco Sport as a starter fountain pen, if not why?
The Kaweco Sport is always on my short-list (top 5) for starter fountain pens.
@@GoldspotPens Thanks for letting me know!! ❤
Is there a secret to getting ink off your hands? Some are pretty stubborn and stand up to even a scrub brush accompanied by loud cursing.
What is the difference between the difference pen price points? Is is simply the crastsmanship and materials, or will there be a significant impact on the pen proformance as you write?
Hi Tom! Have you visited or witness the manufacturing of fountain pen nibs?
Yes, I have. In Germany back in 2019 we visited Lamy and Pelikan, who let us tour the factory and showed how fountain pen nibs were made. We have a few videos from Germany on our UA-cam channel you can watch at your convenience.
I 've heard that the twsbi vac mini only fills up to its 2ml mark only with the twsbi vac20A bottle? Is this fact true?
What is the best fountain pen for self defense?
Hello. You say re. cleaning and storing pens that they should be left to dry before storage. Do you think that a little water left inside the pen would do any harm? When I say storage, I mean long-term. Great video.
A little water inside the pen, even if it has a slight tint of color, should evaporate over time and not cause the pen any problem over the long term.
@@GoldspotPens Thank you.
Do you have recommendations for pens that can be used by people with arthritis? I unfortunately developed it soon after joining the hobby and would like to know what is good/what to look for to have an enjoyable experience.
Hi Tom
Please explain, what the heck is feed back. Is it something I can feel or would I be able to see or hear it?
Have an inky day 😊
David G.
It's a "feel" of the nib on paper. Some writers might call nib feedback "scratchiness," but it's a little more nuanced. It's like the feeling of writing using a freshly sharpened pencil. You can feel the nib making contact with the page. Some brands, like Sailor, are known for a higher degree of feedback and people like them for that reason. Others are completely turned off by it and want a super smooth nib that glides across paper.
What are some things I can do to troubleshoot a nib that is skipping or hard starting?
I'd try the suggestions in this video first before seeking nib repair - ua-cam.com/video/CydUDpr3s2U/v-deo.html
What is the ink in the intro / lead-in ?
Do you have a preferred nib size?
If you could talk pens with anyone, living or not, who would it be?
I'd love to geek out about pens and space with Neil deGrasse Tyson!
Hi, Tom. If you had to say you had a pen that caught your eye, what would it be? Do you have a grail pen?
I like the Edison pen but the writing on the pen body kills it for me :(
Reliability of new fountain pens out of the box is hit and miss? Fact or misconception? That's my question. Whenever I think of getting a new fountain pen, that always lingers in my mind. Am I going to get a fountain pen with baby bottoms, ink flow issues, or scratchy.
I think it's fact. Comes down to quality control of the brand. It makes it a valuable skill to learn basic tuning if you want to explore brands that have a propensity for lower quality control of their nibs because other factors of the pen or manufacturing process takes priority over the nib tuning.
It's a reality for certain pen brands that have lacking quality control. As a retailer, and first point of contact for the end user, we step in and do our best to check these problematic pens before they leave the shop.
@@GoldspotPens that's a lovely service.
I like the fuel in your pen comment.
How did you get into the fountain pen hobby?
Did you just use lightyear as a measurement of time?
A misconception within a misconception video!
My pilot metropolitan dries out while im writing with it. Is there something I can do to fix this?
I would try the suggestions I make in this video - ua-cam.com/video/CydUDpr3s2U/v-deo.html
@@GoldspotPens Thank you! Will watch
Update: Wetting the nib and squeezing the ink in the cartridge worked!! Now it writes beautifully. Thanks :)
Can a nib be repaired from a fall on the floor?
Yes, it happens all the time. Trained nib specialists capable of turning a dropped nib into a like-new writer again.
@GoldspotPens do you think it's worth it on a pilot Metropolitan? It's my favorite pen but the price point is so low
It will probably cost more to have a nib specialist repair it than it would to buy a brand new Pilot Metropolitan.
Is it good practice to flush a newly purchased pen ?
Does anyone make pens with nibs that are as easily swappable as Lamy?
Pelikan nibs are easy to swap. So are any fountain pens that use a Jowo #6 nib unit.
Tom, are you in favor of using 'replica' pens before buying the more expensive real McCoy's? There are a lot of Chinese pens that are really good replica pens, but some are just complete rip offs. What are your thoughts on them?
I'm in favor of whatever gets people to enjoy writing and being creative. Personally, I wouldn't buy replica pens for my collection.