🦊 Rofu Thinks #1

Why Fountain Pens?

I am a dedicated fountain pen user. Why am I writing with a supposedly outdated tool like a fountain pen in "the modern day and age"?

They are better

Fountain pens are actually - for the specific purpose of writing - much better suited than most modern tools. That's easily said, but …

How are they better?

Ah, I see, you are the inquisitive mind! Unlike ballpoint pens and pencils - the most widespread competitor to fountain pens - you do not need to apply any pressure onto the surface of the paper. This is so because the ink just flows due to capillary action (the magic of physics).

If you don't know about capillary action and aren't satisfied with the magic-explanation, either, Wikipedia (Web) has you covered.

Therefor, your hand is reliefed of this tension and you will be able to write longer and more comfortably. And not only that: This will also support any serious attempts you might be making at improving your handwriting. This does not magically happen itself, unfortunately: It is still your handwriting. If you don't make any deliberate effort and smear your letters as if they were nightmares from a Japanese horror manga, you can't blame it onto the fountain pen. It's a dedicated tool, and tools must be consciously used.

And what if the ink doesn't "just flow"?

There is a few reasons this could happen, admittedly. The most common one: You haven't taken good enough care of your fountain pen friend and thus the ink dried!

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And now, that we have sufficiently established why they are better, we can also conclude:

Fountain pens aren't trash

Using a fountain pen has not only a personal touch to it - fountain pens are surprisingly varied in form and certain features, despite all providing the same function - it has an ecological quality. Ballpoint pens are literally for the most part trash and are treated in the majority of cases treated accordingly. If they don't perform satisfyingly anymore, they are disgarded, thrown away. This amounts to a considerable pile of waste; not to mention the resources and labour wasted on producing them.

A sidenote on the use of ballpoint pens and pencils

Now of course there are certain situations that may require a ballpoint pen or a pencil. For example, if you need to sign three carbon copies, the beforementioned disadvantage of putting pressure onto the paper becomes a prerequisite. Also if you are drawing and desire the sketchy look of a hard grade pencil, obviously a fountain pen won't do the job for you. So, I am not claiming that these pens have no right to exist at all, but they shouldn't have overtaken our day-to-day writing.

"Day-to-day writing?" I hear you exclaim, "I hardly ever need to write anything!" Yeah, maybe you don't, but that's a shame you'd come to regret if you'd give it a try, because, you see... well, that's a whole other subject for another time. So expect a "Why Write By Hand?"-article in the future.

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The charme of ink

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It should also be mentioned that, unlike what most people expect, there are various forms of waterproof ink.

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Fountain pens that I recommend