Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Glass Top Tables

OK, so this is an Update Just to Update (UJTU) in disguise...

But if I may say so, glass top coffee tables could have been designed with clumsy fountain pen users in mind. Especially those with an affinity for Noodler's ink, which comes in bottles that are filled to the absolute brim. Especially when the clumsy fountain pen user with an affinity for Noodler's Ink is still attempting to learn a new filling system--say, for example, someone who just got a TWSBI Vac 700 vacuum filling pen just after Christmas.

I like glass top coffee tables...

6 comments:

teeritz said...

Still, gotta hand it to Noodlers for giving us value for money. Although, filled to the brim means that it's tricky to dip the nib in.

Elizabeth H. said...

Yep, those first few fills are...interesting. I really only spattered a few drops, thankfully! Didn't even muss the label. Still, a lot easier to wipe off glass than wood.

Noodler's Liberty's Elysium, from Goulet Pens, in case anyone was wondering. It's a very nice blue.

Anonymous said...

Oh yeah! With my first bottle of Noodler's I found out how quickly and thoroughly ink can soak through several layers of paper towels. Don't have a glass top table but I dug out a large flat ashtray I haven't used in years. Works great for filling fountain pens and using dip pens while avoiding that 101 Dalmations motif.

Jeff The Bear

notagain said...

I need to refill my fountain pens but all I have is black. I'd like to try some different colors.

Elizabeth H. said...

I've gotten so I'm mostly refilling the same ink in the same pens, with the exception of the Safaris, which I'm still using for playing with ink samples from Goulet Pens. Most of my standard inks are dark blues/blue-blacks or black: Noodler's Navy in my Pilot VP, Noodler's Air Corps Blue-Black in the Lamy 2000, Diamine Majestic Blue in the Pelikan M200, and now Noodler's Liberty's Elysium in the TWSBI Vac 700. However, I think I've found my new editing ink, and it's about as far from blue, blue-black or black as you can get! Crazy color. More on that in a few days, if I get the chance to take some pictures. It's really tough to photograph, though.

I do also really love Noodler's Black Swan in Australian Roses. It's a wonderful color that shades from nearly black to a sort of magenta. And browns are nice, too: different from the average, yet still subtle. I have two brown inks, though neither are in rotation at the moment.

Ink samples are a good way to try out a number of different inks in person, though it's best if you have a pen that's relatively easy to clean out between colors. I use a bulb syringe to flush out the Safaris--makes quick work of it. And the way I figure, samples are no more expensive than, say, buying gel pens or roller balls.

Bill M said...

I do not have any glass top tables, but I do need to order more ink.