I would go further. The term 'grail' is not overused in this hobby, it simply is not applicable. Especially when considering that for the majority of the time a person's 'grail' pen is merely one that is out of financial reach for now, and that when eventually acquired that person will choose another 'grail' to save up for. Kind of cheapens the whole concept if you ask me. There is considerable peer pressure in the hobby that drives people onto the entirely false trail of 'more expensive = better'. Personally, I am down to 20 pens, half of which are inked and all of which have different nibs for different purposes. The most expensive was around $200 - which I think pricey for a fountain pen (I am a user not a collector after all). The last (when it gets here) is a Pilot 912 extra fine (for a specific writing practice) costing around $130 and which I have given much thought to before pulling the trigger. After this, nada. I have no need of more pens and am immensely happier for it. I deplore the current comparison culture that we live in, so I choose not to take part.
I agree in a lot of ways here. In many other hobbies, be it watches, gaming, knives, or whatever. Spending more usually (but not always) offers a performance increase, in some form … watches can offer more accurate movements or tougher cases. Knives use better materials, or can hold their sharpness for longer. With pens, things aren’t so clear cut. Subjectively, the performance of my platinum preppy is as good as my platinum Kaga maki-e. With pens you really don’t have to spend a lot to get a great writing tool, but what we end up doing is spending cash for the visual impact. But because we are hard wired to believe that spending more offers better performance, we can at times end up feeling either dissatisfied, or fall in love under false pretences. Of course I appreciate that gold nibs can offer certain elements that are desirable for some. But the fact remains, that the term grail worthy diminishes the status of one’s previous purchase, when one buys their next pen.
@@PenFriends Indeed. One of the points you raised was about another pen coming into view that competes with what one has. For me, that feeling no longer exists. Taking the 912 extra fine for example, there is no pen that can compete with it... for me! It does what I want it to do and does it perfectly. Other pens may be more artistic in their construction, but none sufficiently so to tempt me into spending money. I don't believe another pen can compete on performance alone, in this example. Hope that makes sense. Really enjoyed your vid being in nature. That's where true joy can be touched, IMHO. Take care.
I was mentioning to a lady yesterday, how Fountain pens in many ways has opened up many other paths in my life for appreciating craft in general. If one can filter out the marketing, one can really enjoy what one owns. I’m glad you found the 912! It is a truly wonderful pen.
An excellent video - viewers may also enjoy SBRE Brown and Fountain Pen Therapy thoughts on this subject. Like many others if I had my time back I would buy 3 or 4 pens on the highest quality rather than ending up with a dozen or more which I struggle to rotate. Same goes for inks ! Thank you Andrew for a video which will resonate with many.
The unfortunate nature is that fountain pen shops are a rarity these days. Consequently, it’s very hard for people to be able to try out pens before they purchase. This lead us to buying pens, without trying them to start with. I strongly believe that being able to try and touch a pen to start with is so important. I was on the fence with the new Kaweco Piston, but it’s just too expensive for the size and ink capacity.
I agree with you. To me, a grail pen would be the pinnacle and I wouldn’t need any more. I have very much slowed down my acquisition, and I’m pretty much in the use and enjoy stage.
It’s a wonderful feeling in many ways to be satisfied. We all have a tendency to go a bit crazy when we start off. But, I do wonder if fountain pens could be found in more stores, would we accumulate as many pens?
Great question. My Holy Grail is the Mont Blanc 149 with a medium nib. In saying that, if I was to ever manage to buy one, the next one would be the Pilot Custom Urushi, however, it wouldnt classify it a grail pen. If I had to choose one pen for life it would be the 149. So, its not to say if you ever manage to be lucky enough to get your hands on you grail pen, you wouldnt purchase another one. I went through the same thing with guitars. Grail guitar was a Gibson Les Paul standard. Managed to get that. Then it was a Taylor acoustic k24ce builders edition. Got that too. It doesnt end but if you were running out of your burning house, you know which one you would take with you.
I dived into the Nakaya Dorsal Fin 2 rabbit-hole a couple of years ago. I have two which I rotate throughout the day, and they are a joy to use. Buy what you want. I have no interest in having a large collection of FPs which I cannot use. I already have four inked, and that's probably one too many.
It’s funny how we approach grail pens. It’s as though a mist forms before our eyes shrouding other pens from our viewpoint. Yet, once we purchase said pen, a little itch in the back of our mind starts to encroach our senses!
I’ve collected pens, and watches, since the late 90’s. Before the 20teens I can’t recall much use of the term grail. Personally, I don’t use the term. Even today there are pens out of reach for me either financially or because of availability that I would like to acquire. I reckon some would call those grails. What’s interesting is that of late I’ve been buying pens I wanted years ago but couldn’t afford or whatever. Pens are pretty durable and can be acquired down the road for the most part. If one chases the grail one must choose wisely.
Thanks fellow Andrew for the fine thoughts. My idea of grail comes more from Monty Python than classics, so I do agree that we overuse the term and guilt others into spending a lot for pens that are expensive … sometimes for good reasons of reward craftsmen like the good Makie,but also can confer status on mass manufactured ‘precious resin.’ I thought you were going to take us for a boot sale at first. Cheers.
When you alluded to others influencing people into spending beyond their means. This is something I take very seriously when I do reviews. Because you have to take into account that not everybody has the same budget, what’s cheap for one person could be extremely expensive for someone else.
@@PenFriends very responsible attitude. I think some reviewers instead feel like they have to keep churning reviews even of rather boring pens just like a consumerist addiction. Do we need every color limited edition of a mass manufactured pen? 😅. I’m easily OCD along those lines but should be happy to have a limited allowance. It keeps the addiction in check. Cheers.
To be honest, the only channels I really listen to these days are inky rocks and doodle bud. Both offer unique content. Whereas I’m finding most other channels pretty generic. I’m going to do a video on this topic actually! Because I’m finding that the more I look into the tastes of people’s pens, the more clear cut it is that price, brand really means very little. You see pens are like shoes, they are very individual and everyone has completely different tastes. Some pens fit certain people’s hands, some don’t. Take Santini for example, I love their pens, but they are also incredibly large! I always remember recommending that pen to my friend Alica and whilst she enjoyed the writing experience, the size was just to uncomfortable. At the end of the day, we buy what we desire. I know I’ve bought pens based on the opinions of others and have been left wanting. There’s also the issue that I don’t feel some reviewers are always completely thorough with their reviews. They may talk about the pen, but they often don’t talk about the brand, their quality control, their customer service!
@@PenFriends good points. It’s too bad we don’t have a Wikipedia on FPs. I enjoy analog cameras and that hobby has two options, which are good for research on models. I also enjoy a few more videos and blogs. You probably know about Chronicas Estillographicas (blog) and Tokyo Inklings (podcast) since you also like Japanese FPs. You can also use Google translation with the leading FP magazine from Japan. My public library gets it online. Not sure how common it would be in the UK. I often enjoy FP videos while doing dishes, especially when I can’t handle more newscasts (Trump PTSD). Enjoy walking (with your fav shoes) and writing or drawing with your other favorites.
When you’ve been in the game long enough, pens, watches, carbon bikes, etc., what you learn is that it’s not the pen or the watch or the bike that, once obtained, drives nirvana or an epiphany. It’s like that like the line in the song that says suggest we want what we’ve got not what we don’t…. Wanna be a faster rider? Ride more. Wanna be a better writer? Write more…. Wanna tell time better? Well, there it falls apart a bit, but you get the message…. The tool doesn’t really make you netter, it may make you FEEL better…
Sage words! This is why I try to explain to people that there is absolutely nothing wrong to owning pens at lower price points. Especially if one is only concerned about writing performance
I doubt that the "Grail" pen defined as the ulimate exists due to the reason that our species were gatherers to survive and this has remained integral to human nature. The great joy is in the hunt. So my definition of a grail pen is that it is coveted because of its qualities or because it is rare to find. For me, although not my most expensive pen, my recently acquired Sheaffer Legacy II is a grail because it was produced in Madison during Sheaffer's days of glory and difficult to find. I thus assume what we call a grail is subjective and here it may slip into overuse.
It’s a hard word to quantify in many ways. You are right it can be a subjective term. But, I feel it’s a phrase that has been over used. Still, it’s fantastic you managed to locate this pen! How long did it take for you to achieve this?
Unpopular opinion: I believe the concept of a grail pen exists, only we may not immediately discover it. That is to say that we may discover many attractive pens in our collecting journey and mistake them for grails. It’s easy to see something beautiful and ascribe that thing as our grail but really, it’s grail for the moment. The status is short-lived until the magic wears off and something new and prettier comes along. Is a pen elevated to the status of a grail pen for a season of time really a grail? I don’t believe it’s that easy to identify. A grail pen, at least to me, causes one to be unmoved at the sight of other pens.
That is a brilliant description. An unwavering fascination with the pen, that nothing else will ever compare. The problem is that we often then justify to ourselves why we need other pens in our lives.
I would go further. The term 'grail' is not overused in this hobby, it simply is not applicable. Especially when considering that for the majority of the time a person's 'grail' pen is merely one that is out of financial reach for now, and that when eventually acquired that person will choose another 'grail' to save up for. Kind of cheapens the whole concept if you ask me. There is considerable peer pressure in the hobby that drives people onto the entirely false trail of 'more expensive = better'. Personally, I am down to 20 pens, half of which are inked and all of which have different nibs for different purposes. The most expensive was around $200 - which I think pricey for a fountain pen (I am a user not a collector after all). The last (when it gets here) is a Pilot 912 extra fine (for a specific writing practice) costing around $130 and which I have given much thought to before pulling the trigger. After this, nada. I have no need of more pens and am immensely happier for it. I deplore the current comparison culture that we live in, so I choose not to take part.
I agree in a lot of ways here. In many other hobbies, be it watches, gaming, knives, or whatever. Spending more usually (but not always) offers a performance increase, in some form … watches can offer more accurate movements or tougher cases. Knives use better materials, or can hold their sharpness for longer.
With pens, things aren’t so clear cut. Subjectively, the performance of my platinum preppy is as good as my platinum Kaga maki-e. With pens you really don’t have to spend a lot to get a great writing tool, but what we end up doing is spending cash for the visual impact.
But because we are hard wired to believe that spending more offers better performance, we can at times end up feeling either dissatisfied, or fall in love under false pretences.
Of course I appreciate that gold nibs can offer certain elements that are desirable for some. But the fact remains, that the term grail worthy diminishes the status of one’s previous purchase, when one buys their next pen.
@@PenFriends Indeed. One of the points you raised was about another pen coming into view that competes with what one has. For me, that feeling no longer exists. Taking the 912 extra fine for example, there is no pen that can compete with it... for me! It does what I want it to do and does it perfectly. Other pens may be more artistic in their construction, but none sufficiently so to tempt me into spending money. I don't believe another pen can compete on performance alone, in this example. Hope that makes sense. Really enjoyed your vid being in nature. That's where true joy can be touched, IMHO. Take care.
I was mentioning to a lady yesterday, how Fountain pens in many ways has opened up many other paths in my life for appreciating craft in general.
If one can filter out the marketing, one can really enjoy what one owns. I’m glad you found the 912! It is a truly wonderful pen.
An excellent video - viewers may also enjoy SBRE Brown and Fountain Pen Therapy thoughts on this subject. Like many others if I had my time back I would buy 3 or 4 pens on the highest quality rather than ending up with a dozen or more which I struggle to rotate. Same goes for inks ! Thank you Andrew for a video which will resonate with many.
The unfortunate nature is that fountain pen shops are a rarity these days. Consequently, it’s very hard for people to be able to try out pens before they purchase. This lead us to buying pens, without trying them to start with.
I strongly believe that being able to try and touch a pen to start with is so important. I was on the fence with the new Kaweco Piston, but it’s just too expensive for the size and ink capacity.
I agree with you. To me, a grail pen would be the pinnacle and I wouldn’t need any more. I have very much slowed down my acquisition, and I’m pretty much in the use and enjoy stage.
It’s a wonderful feeling in many ways to be satisfied. We all have a tendency to go a bit crazy when we start off. But, I do wonder if fountain pens could be found in more stores, would we accumulate as many pens?
Great question. My Holy Grail is the Mont Blanc 149 with a medium nib. In saying that, if I was to ever manage to buy one, the next one would be the Pilot Custom Urushi, however, it wouldnt classify it a grail pen. If I had to choose one pen for life it would be the 149. So, its not to say if you ever manage to be lucky enough to get your hands on you grail pen, you wouldnt purchase another one. I went through the same thing with guitars. Grail guitar was a Gibson Les Paul standard. Managed to get that. Then it was a Taylor acoustic k24ce builders edition. Got that too. It doesnt end but if you were running out of your burning house, you know which one you would take with you.
The custom urushi has a stunning nib from what I hear. Which colour would you go for ?
I dived into the Nakaya Dorsal Fin 2 rabbit-hole a couple of years ago. I have two which I rotate throughout the day, and they are a joy to use.
Buy what you want. I have no interest in having a large collection of FPs which I cannot use. I already have four inked, and that's probably one too many.
It’s funny how we approach grail pens. It’s as though a mist forms before our eyes shrouding other pens from our viewpoint. Yet, once we purchase said pen, a little itch in the back of our mind starts to encroach our senses!
I would abdolutely agree with you! I would say it was that one pen that is untouchable.
Which as we all know is nigh on impossible due to the unseen designs out there and the amount of choice available!
I’ve collected pens, and watches, since the late 90’s. Before the 20teens I can’t recall much use of the term grail. Personally, I don’t use the term. Even today there are pens out of reach for me either financially or because of availability that I would like to acquire. I reckon some would call those grails. What’s interesting is that of late I’ve been buying pens I wanted years ago but couldn’t afford or whatever. Pens are pretty durable and can be acquired down the road for the most part. If one chases the grail one must choose wisely.
Absolutely agreed, I feel social media at times exasperates people’s need to buy such items.
Beautiful video!😍Great thoughts!
Thank you x
Thanks fellow Andrew for the fine thoughts. My idea of grail comes more from Monty Python than classics, so I do agree that we overuse the term and guilt others into spending a lot for pens that are expensive … sometimes for good reasons of reward craftsmen like the good Makie,but also can confer status on mass manufactured ‘precious resin.’
I thought you were going to take us for a boot sale at first. Cheers.
When you alluded to others influencing people into spending beyond their means. This is something I take very seriously when I do reviews. Because you have to take into account that not everybody has the same budget, what’s cheap for one person could be extremely expensive for someone else.
@@PenFriends very responsible attitude. I think some reviewers instead feel like they have to keep churning reviews even of rather boring pens just like a consumerist addiction. Do we need every color limited edition of a mass manufactured pen? 😅. I’m easily OCD along those lines but should be happy to have a limited allowance. It keeps the addiction in check.
Cheers.
To be honest, the only channels I really listen to these days are inky rocks and doodle bud. Both offer unique content. Whereas I’m finding most other channels pretty generic.
I’m going to do a video on this topic actually! Because I’m finding that the more I look into the tastes of people’s pens, the more clear cut it is that price, brand really means very little.
You see pens are like shoes, they are very individual and everyone has completely different tastes. Some pens fit certain people’s hands, some don’t. Take Santini for example, I love their pens, but they are also incredibly large! I always remember recommending that pen to my friend Alica and whilst she enjoyed the writing experience, the size was just to uncomfortable.
At the end of the day, we buy what we desire. I know I’ve bought pens based on the opinions of others and have been left wanting. There’s also the issue that I don’t feel some reviewers are always completely thorough with their reviews. They may talk about the pen, but they often don’t talk about the brand, their quality control, their customer service!
@@PenFriends good points. It’s too bad we don’t have a Wikipedia on FPs. I enjoy analog cameras and that hobby has two options, which are good for research on models.
I also enjoy a few more videos and blogs. You probably know about Chronicas Estillographicas (blog) and Tokyo Inklings (podcast) since you also like Japanese FPs. You can also use Google translation with the leading FP magazine from Japan. My public library gets it online. Not sure how common it would be in the UK.
I often enjoy FP videos while doing dishes, especially when I can’t handle more newscasts (Trump PTSD).
Enjoy walking (with your fav shoes) and writing or drawing with your other favorites.
When you’ve been in the game long enough, pens, watches, carbon bikes, etc., what you learn is that it’s not the pen or the watch or the bike that, once obtained, drives nirvana or an epiphany. It’s like that like the line in the song that says suggest we want what we’ve got not what we don’t…. Wanna be a faster rider? Ride more. Wanna be a better writer? Write more…. Wanna tell time better? Well, there it falls apart a bit, but you get the message…. The tool doesn’t really make you netter, it may make you FEEL better…
Sage words! This is why I try to explain to people that there is absolutely nothing wrong to owning pens at lower price points. Especially if one is only concerned about writing performance
I doubt that the "Grail" pen defined as the ulimate exists due to the reason that our species were gatherers to survive and this has remained integral to human nature. The great joy is in the hunt. So my definition of a grail pen is that it is coveted because of its qualities or because it is rare to find. For me, although not my most expensive pen, my recently acquired Sheaffer Legacy II is a grail because it was produced in Madison during Sheaffer's days of glory and difficult to find. I thus assume what we call a grail is subjective and here it may slip into overuse.
It’s a hard word to quantify in many ways. You are right it can be a subjective term. But, I feel it’s a phrase that has been over used.
Still, it’s fantastic you managed to locate this pen! How long did it take for you to achieve this?
@@PenFriends to find the Sheaffer I coveted it took several months searching on eBay and Etsy.
Unpopular opinion: I believe the concept of a grail pen exists, only we may not immediately discover it. That is to say that we may discover many attractive pens in our collecting journey and mistake them for grails. It’s easy to see something beautiful and ascribe that thing as our grail but really, it’s grail for the moment. The status is short-lived until the magic wears off and something new and prettier comes along. Is a pen elevated to the status of a grail pen for a season of time really a grail? I don’t believe it’s that easy to identify. A grail pen, at least to me, causes one to be unmoved at the sight of other pens.
That is a brilliant description. An unwavering fascination with the pen, that nothing else will ever compare.
The problem is that we often then justify to ourselves why we need other pens in our lives.