Welcome to Issue#33. We have some nice pens, and a short rant from me.

I am currently wading through some technical information and trying to figure out how to put it in a fun and useful form - so watch out for some good stuff in the next issue!

Since we have only a monthly meeting with fellow fountain pen enthusiasts, a lot of interactions happen on special groups on WhatsApp and Telegram. Over the last couple of weeks, we have been having a bunch of conversations around how fountain pens have become more expensive in recent days. More than once, I’ve seen these conversations devolve into a bit of a free for all with the fountain pen makers being accused of profiteering and indulging in get-rich-quick schemes.

Strangely enough, most complaints seem to be about how small pen makers’ prices have gone up. While I am a relative newcomer to the hobby, I have had the privilege of getting to know one or two fountain pen makers (manufacturers is not a term I would use to refer to these folks!) who have also been the target of the price-gouging accusations.

My take on this is quite simple - the pen makers set the prices that work for them, and these are often the result of simple supply and demand. If it doesn’t work for me, I don’t buy from them.

But, we also know inflation is very real. All we need to do is compare our grocery bills with those from a couple of years ago and we need no further proof. These price rises mean the input costs for the makers go up too, and they have to raise the prices to keep up.

The issue I have with having these long-drawn-out conversations around the moral qualities of pen makers as evidenced by their pricing is that it takes a space where we have gathered for sharing our mutual enjoyment of the fountain pen hobby, and turning it into a place for hating on pen makers. I really wish we stop doing that.

The Hyderabad Fountain Pen Club’s monthly meeting is always a lot of fun. This time it was extra fun because we had a bunch of folks showing up after a bit of a break.

We spent a few hours completely lost in the world of fountain pens and inks and notebooks.

Diya from Acriv pens was also at the meeting, and we had a fun time catching up on all the latest she has been up to.

Raj Ahmed of the Hyderabad Fountain Pen Club has a beautiful collection of Indian ebonite fountain pens, and he brought along a few Kim Pens to the fountain pen meet. Here are a few pictures of them for your enjoyment.

These are sizeable ebonite pens, made by A C Ramachandran in Calicut in India. As they are no longer made, they are not easy to come by, and are much sought after within the fountain pen collector community.

These are eyedropper pens, and write without burping down to the last drop. The thick walls and internal construction of these pens ensure that there is no burping.

Harish G of the Hyderabad Fountain Pen Club brought his Visconti Homo Sapiens Bronze Age to the meeting, and what a joy it was. The touch and feel of the pen is quite unique, and it has been finished beautifully.

I absolutely love the way it looks. Every bit of the aesthetics was perfectly balanced, and it came together to a visual treat. The branding of both Visconti and the Homo Sapiens line was cleanly incorporated, beautifully being part of the design.

The way the pen felt in the hand, apart from the feel of the unique material, was perfect. The weight was comfortable, and the pen was well balanced.

At one point, I stopped writing with it, and just held it in my hands and enjoyed the sheer completeness of its beauty.

The sign-ups are over for the Pelikan Hubs 2024. However, if you thought the Pelikan Hubs updates are done with…

…you’ll have to wait a bit longer!

The hub masters are being announced, and I got a notification from Pelikan that I will be the Hyderabad Hub Master for 2024. I am super thrilled, especially as a whole bunch of us that have signed up for it.

Plans are afoot to make sure we have a really memorable hub this year!

Share your take on fountain pens and related things in one (or more!) of our upcoming issues.

Any and all content you share will belong to you and will be credited to your name (or a pen name of your choice) and linked to any of your online profiles. Ideal content would be a write-up between 200 and 400 words with 1 to 5 images.

Here are a few things that can go in the Fountain Pen Weekly:

• Pen / ink / paper ownership experience

• Favorites in FP, ink, paper etc.

• Your social handles with your FP content - Insta, FB, Twitter, Reddit

• Any FP-related content you want to call out - articles, podcasts, videos.

If you have any other ideas as well, do share, and I will be happy to think about it.

That’s all from me this week.

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