As you might guess from my love of the Lamy 2000 and the Parker 51, I have a thing for hooded nib fountain pens. An icon of mid-century modern design, a hooded nib allows you to have the fountain pen writing experience in a slightly less conspicuous format, because to the untrained eye, this sort of fountain pen will resemble a standard ballpoint or rollerball. I often prefer this type of fountain pen at work - especially in meetings - because it’s not flashy or distracting.
I was excited to see Diplomat release the Viper fountain pen last year, and we now have them in our own shop in all three guilloché colors (Blue, Brown, and Black), in both fountain pen and rollerball format. Priced at $100 for the fountain pen and $88 for the rollerball, the Viper has one stainless steel nib option (a fine/medium), and I’ve found my own blue to be a smooth, reliable writer. The rollerball uses a standard long-style rollerball refill, which is Diplomat-branded and comes in a medium black tip size. I did not opt for a matching set, and chose the blue fountain pen and the brown rollerball for my own personal demos. I’m still trying to work out which tone I like the best, but I’m leaning towards the brown.
We Now carry Lamy Crystal Inks!
Need some new ink to go with your new Viper fountain pen? We’ve expanded our lineup of Lamy Inks, offering the Lamy Crystal line which is inspired by Gemstones. (Peridot and Amazonite are longtime favorites.) Lamy’s standard line of inks, while dependable and a reliably safe standby, is sometimes criticized for being overly… standard. The Crystal inks combine the quality of Lamy ink with a bit more saturation and some fun colors.
We are an authorized reseller of both Diplomat and Lamy products. Come see these and more in-shop! We will be open this week from 1pm-6pm Thursday and Friday, and 10am-6pm on Saturday. Be sure to check the shop page for up-to-date hours.