Where Do I Go From Here?

It’s a question I asked myself often over the past weekend at the Atlanta Pen Show.  One of the great things about pen shows is that you get the opportunity to see, hold, and learn about pens that you never otherwise would have experienced.  And since I spent two days surrounded by friends (both new and old) eager to let anyone write with the invaluable pieces in their collections, I experienced a lot of pens.  My takeaway from this?  I need to break the “pen of the month” habit and focus on acquiring fewer pieces that mean more to me.  

This topic came up in a few different conversations that I had over the weekend.  A general consensus seems to be that you reach a point in your “collecting” that you plateau, and begin to derive less enjoyment from the typical “production line” pens that are easily available.  While there are always exceptions to this rule, finding a unique or different writing experience out of the box becomes difficult, and you end up chasing color variants of the same pen or the full line of stock nib options.  Some time ago I reached the point where I don’t feel the need to have more than one TWSBI, especially where I can purchase a bunch of replacement nibs and obtain variety that way.

Leigh Reyes' Nakayas.  While Nakayas are not "custom" (several retailers carry them as part of their regular stock) some of the limited or rare variants are difficult to obtain and made to order, and certain models are exclusive to individual shops. 

Enter the world of custom pens. 

I’m ready to move on.  But to where?  Of all the pens I was able to try this weekend, the custom pens were the ones that really stood out and spoke to me.  By "custom", I'm referring to pens that are generally made to order by a pen turner (typically by hand) according to the craftsman's original design, and can be adjusted to the user's preferences.  I was fortunate to handle a wide range of pens made by several makers, from Shawn Newton's Shinobi Eyedroppers to Brian Gray's Edison Menlos in Tibaldi Celluloid.  I wanted to keep all of them.       

So, I’ll ask myself again, where do I go from here?  It’s dangerous to put this sort of thing out there, but it’s pretty much the only way I’ll be able to hold myself accountable.  The next two pens I will acquire will come from custom manufacturers, once I can afford them, and until then I plan to thin out the accumulation of pens and ink to reduce the amount of "stuff" that I never use. 

If you’re interested in the world of custom pens, here’s some further reading to get you started.  My next pen will likely come from somewhere on this list:   

There are many, many more custom manufacturers out there.  Keep in mind that in order to enter the world of custom pens, you’ll have to suppress your desire for instant gratification (something that will be difficult for me).  Not only will you have to part with some money up front, but it generally takes at least 6 weeks for a pen to be made, and that's on the quick end of the spectrum.  In the end, however, I think the wait adds to the experience.   

Atlanta Pen Show Recap: Day 2

I thought Day One of the Atlanta Pen Show, capped off with the party at the Nock Co. workshop, couldn’t be beat.  I was wrong.  Day Two (Saturday) is up there as one of the best, if not the best, pen show experiences I have ever had. 

The crowd starts to get warmed up early Saturday morning in the second ballroom (the one without Anderson Pens and Nock Co, who conveniently were next to each other).  

Saturday started off fast, like Friday, but this time it wasn’t just the PenAddict crowd.  The vintage collectors showed up in force, and pens started getting picked over quickly.  I didn’t purchase any fountain pens myself, abstaining in favor of a Nock Co. t-shirt and this beauty, which warranted a mention by Mr. Dowdy himself this week.  As always, more coming soon.  

Vintage Lamy 2000 Ballpoint (with modern Lamy refill).  the Makrolon is worn smooth, and has a nice patina. 

Legible barrel imprint reads "Lamy 2000 W. Germany."  The oldest the pen could be is early 1990s.  

The real fun started around 4, when several attendees organized a pen and ink swap/testing table out in the hotel bar that was heavily attended.  I wish I could give you a blow-by-blow, but to be honest I tried out so many different pens and inks, from so many different people, over the course of five or six hours that they all started to run together.  All agree, however, that the main highlight was Leigh Reyes and her traveling set of Nakayas, which included both selections from the standard line of pens as well as some rare editions and prototypes that you probably would not be able to see anywhere else in the world.  Thomas Hall also brought two large cases full of pens, many of which had custom nibs.  

Pen Swap Atlanta 2015

Leigh's traveling Nakayas!  

Leigh's Nakaya Piccolo in Titanium.  

I cannot emphasize enough how incredibly generous Leigh and Thomas both were in allowing all of us noobs (because we are all noobs in comparison to them) handle their priceless pens.  After mentally blowing my budget for the next two years, I “saved some money” by trading a few inks I wasn’t crazy about, and sold a few extra bottles of some inks that I had duplicates of.   

Ana over at the Well-Appointed Desk was there as well, and she has a great writeup containing even more pictures.  (For the full low-down, check out her flickr album!) 

From what I hear, show-'n-tell continued into the wee hours of Sunday morning, but unfortunately I had to be back home by noon the next day.  With a four hour drive staring me in the face, I chose to grab some sleep and leave everyone after an enjoyable dinner at the hotel that featured an all-star cast of Pendom.  I will be back next year, and I hear plans are in the works for a repeat. . . . clear your calendars and stay tuned.  As for other shows, Atlanta will probably be my last pen show until the 2015 D.C. SuperShow in August.  

A bit of additional information on the Lamy 2000 Ballpoint/Multipen discussed in this week’s PenAddict podcast.  Lamy still makes both pens, including the Multipen that takes D1 refills.  The ballpoint runs about $55-60, with the Multipen ticking slightly higher into the $60-65 range.  They are not incredibly easy to find, and Amazon indicates its stock is running low on the multipen.  (Both are Prime-eligible, so you will save some on shipping, and obtain near-instant gratification). (Affiliate Links).