Editing The Pen Addict 431/transcript (section)

== Buying Decisions ==


'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. That's. That's a good. Perspective. To think about. If you're considering a purchase. Yeah. I like that. I'm. I'd say that's. Kind of how. Without. Realizing it. That's probably how. How I am with purchases. Right.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' That makes a lot of sense. You know. The thing I think is more important. I like that as an idea. You can't always have that. Like as a thing. But you will sometimes.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' The bigger thing for me. Is. And we said this so many times. On this show. Is. Don't buy this stuff. Out of money. You don't have. Don't buy it on credit cards. If you can't pay for it off. The next month. Never buy it on like. A loan account. Right. Like. You have to be able to afford this stuff. If you can't. You won't be able to enjoy it. I think that's the real thing for me. Is because. It's going to become. A burden. And then you don't get to enjoy it. And there's so much great stuff. In this. Fountain pen. Pen community. That isn't the mega expensive stuff. You don't need the mega expensive stuff. All the time. To be able to enjoy this. You know what I mean? Yep.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I completely agree. Yeah. I mean. You know. This gets all into like. You know. Using versus collecting. And all of these things. So. You got to figure some of these things out. Lay a little bit of groundwork. Yeah. You know. I've made. I've certainly made some mistakes. Oh. In purchases. You know. We're all going to make those mistakes. Um. But I feel like. I've gotten into. A better place now. Of understanding my needs. And where. I'm spending good money. And not spending bad money.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. I completely agree. Look. And like. Make those. You got to make the mistakes. Make the mistakes. But learn from them. Don't go crazy. And blame yourself for it. But like. Just learn from them. And then it's okay. To make the mistakes. Yep. Yep.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right. We have a question. That comes from Florence. And Florence says. I'm having some fountain pen troubles. The cartridge is emptying itself. I've cleaned the pen. Hasn't worked. I've let it soak in vinegar. To remove dry ink. And clean it again. Still hasn't worked. I'm not sure what else I could do. Do you have any ideas?

'''Myke Hurley:''' So. I apologize to Florence. For not getting back sooner. To this question. Because I. I. I had to think a lot about it. And. There was an image. And.

'''Myke Hurley:''' So. Cartridges. They can. They can. They can evaporate. Being sealed up. And then they can evaporate. Even quicker. Without usage. When they are.

'''Myke Hurley:''' In a pen. And it's just kind of the nature. Of how. The ink cartridges work. But I think the problem. Which Florence was having. Which. I still haven't wrapped my head around. On was. It was almost. Sweating out. Of the cartridge. Like there was almost. Something in the barrel. So. I don't know. If anyone's ever experienced. Anything like this. I think a lot of us. Have experienced. Like cartridge ink vanishing. Like when we. Hey. I haven't used this pen. And why is this cartridge. Now half. Full. Like. I think a lot of us. Have seen this. But what Florence was explaining. I haven't experienced. And I'm wondering. If anyone else did. And it just. Honestly. I don't know. That there is a solution. Other than. You just need to try. Something different. Try different cartridges. You know. Try different converters. Things like that. And. I'm curious. On what the environment. Was like. Was it very hot? Was it very cold? Or was there a change. In. In environmental issues. Around that. But it was really strange. In that it was more. More of a. For lack of a better term. Sweating out. Than an evaporation. And. I just found that interesting. And wanted to keep this question in here. Because I don't have an answer. But I'm curious. If anyone else has ever seen that. And what. What brought that about. So. Yeah. Let me know. You know. Y'all can hit me up. Myke. Myke. Myke knows all my. All my deets. At the. At the end of the show. So we'll give you all the ways to contact me. But I'm. I'm curious. So. And I. Florence. It's been a long time. Since you asked this question. If you have any follow up. Let me know.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Sorry. I'm terrible.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right. Today's show is brought to you by Pen Chalet. They sell authentic. Amazing. Roller balls and fountain pens. Mechanical pencils and ball points. They have all of the accessories you're looking for. Maybe you want a carrying case or a pen holder. Maybe you need some refills or some converters. Some ink. They got it all. They have all of your favorite brands. And they're doing great discounts all the time. So every month. They're having multiple discounts. Close out specials. They're always adding new products as well. There's always something going on. At Pen Chalet. They have very fast. Very reliable customer service. And they back everything up. Of a 100% satisfaction guarantee. On their high quality pens. That they sell. At low prices. They sell internationally. With great shipping rates. But if you're in the US. And you order over $50. You will get free shipping. On your order. We love Pen Chalet. Here at the Pen Addict. They've got everything that we're looking for. Whenever I want to buy a new pen. I go to Pen Chalet first. Because I know I'm going to get a great experience. And also. Because. You can get the best prices. And Pen Addict listeners. Get even better prices. Because you can save. 10% on anything. At any time. At Pen Chalet. When you go to Pen Chalet. Pen Chalet.com. Click the podcast link. At the top of the website. And enter the password. Pen Addict. You will get this code. As well as access. To some special offers. Just for Pen Addict listeners. What do we have this week? Brad?

'''Myke Hurley:''' I am. Really interested. In what it is. About. A red stripe. Around the barrel. That does it for me so much. The Conklin Empire. I have not tried this pen. The price of this pen. Is ridiculous. And all I see. Is the red stripe. On the cap band. I was like. Man. That looks good. And then you scroll down. Myke. There is even a better looking one. Like that one is good. Up top. It is called Oatmeal. This one down here. What is the name of this? It has this really wild. Red and blue acrylic. Look. Harlequin. Harlequin is the color. And it has also got that red stripe. But Myke. What I am most interested in. Is a different Conklin. Which I have never seen before. And it is almost.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Like just a throw in blindly price. It is called the Conklin mini graph. And I am wondering. Is this a mini fountain pen. From Conklin. Because it looks like. It might not be much bigger. Oh it is tiny. I will say it this way. It looks like it might be bigger. A slightly bigger version. Of the Kaweco Lilliput. Like a more usable. Mm-hmm. Version. Of the Kaweco Lilliput. And it has a clip. Already built into it. Which I know a lot of people like. On the Lilliput. This is intriguing. I have never seen this pen. It's five inches posted. I want this pen.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' So.

'''Myke Hurley:''' It's very small. Very small. And. As is the price Myke. The price. Very small. Is very small. That's a five inch price. You should buy that pen. Yeah. So. Yeah. Really good. And then you just keep scrolling forever. And then you get into all your Pelicans. And your Lamys. And your Diplomats. And your Platinums. And your. All your amazing stuff. So yeah. That is.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That is interesting. That is compelling. I am interested in that pen. I'll have to look into that more.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Penchalet.com. P-E-N-C-H-A-L-E-T.com. Click the podcast link. At the top of the website. And enter the password. Pen Addict. To see these deals. And to get that 10% off. At any time. At Penchalet. Our thanks. To Penchalet. For their support. Of this show. And Relay FM. Alright. So our next question. Comes from Nick. Says. It might seem weird. But I was wondering. What is the best refill. To take notes. On your arm. Fisher Space Pen. Does a pretty good job. It feels a bit dry. Extra points. For not being removed. Easily with water. Also needs to be fine. To write text. Brad. I just want to offer. Up here. Nick. If you want to go hardcore. Use a Sharpie.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I love this question so much. I mean. I love Nick already. But I love this question so much. Because there is thought. Into this question.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. I mean. I'm just going to say. I really recommend. Not doing this. But if it's something. You need to do. For some reason. I mean. I'm sticking by Sharpie Brad. I think that's. That's it.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. I think it's fair to have a disclaimer. On this. No. Which is fine. No. It's fine. No. No. No.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Just use the Sharpie. It's fine. I don't know what the problem is.

'''Myke Hurley:''' The Sharpie is obviously a great choice. But the Sharpie Ultra Fine. Not the marker. The standard Sharpie. Yeah. The big felt tip. You want to use the needly tip. Because you're still going to get. Like some feathering. On your skin. That's just going to happen. But I'm curious about a certain pen.

'''Myke Hurley:''' And that. Oh man. I just totally blanked on the name. I have to look it up. But basically.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Pilot makes a pen. That's designed to write. On all kinds of surfaces. Like including glass. But it like. It writes on paper. It writes on glass. And. It's not a marker. It's a roller ball. With roller ball type ink. And it makes me wonder. If this would work. In that situation. The oil base pens. Like. The Fisher Space Pen Refill. Is still. I think. Going to be the best choice. If you're not. Going to use. A Sharpie. But. Gosh. I'm sorry. I'm blanking on. On the link. I should have put it in the show notes. Beforehand. But there is a. There is a pen. Designed. To write on glass. And. Like. Pottery. And like. Fabric. It's all this. This pen. And I just think. That might be. Something to work. Worth looking at. So let me. I will find that. We'll put it in the show notes. Afterwards. Or I'll email it to Nick. Or something. But. Yeah. It's a. Interesting pen. We'll see if it pops into my head here. I haven't had enough coffee yet. Myke.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Twitless Dan asks. Is there a Parker style refill. That would fit the Karas Customs. EDK V2. With copper ink.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I have never seen a copper ink. Ballpoint style refill. Or gel. Parker style refill. With a copper ink. Like. That's pretty cool. Like. I think that would be an awesome idea. The best I can tell you. Is Monteverde's. Parker style gel refills. Come in a lot of colors. Like. You can get oranges. And greens. And purples. And teals. And things like that. But I have never seen a copper. Refill like that. You would just have to buy. You know. A. A gel. Like. Some gel. Some off brand gel pens. You can get in a copper ink. But those refills. Aren't going to fit. The EDK. So. I think that's just a match. That does not exist. But you can get. At least some interesting. Parker style refills. With the Monteverde gel refill. It will fit that. And. At least be something. Even though it won't be copper.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Greg Coe asks. Do you find that caps. Unturned acrylic pens. Come loose in your pocket easily. I have a couple. And the caps don't seem to stay on. So I'm nervous carrying them. In my pocket.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I get this. Like. I get this idea. And I get that this happens. And I just don't see it enough. To where. That it's been a consideration. For me. That it would prevent me. From carrying the pen. And if I like the pen enough. I wouldn't carry it in my pocket. Right. Like. I. I would agree. That this could be a problem.

'''Myke Hurley:''' For. Like a technical problem. It's like. Okay. If I put this specific. Acrylic pen. In my jeans pocket. And. The cap comes a little bit loose.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I would agree. That that can be a problem. But I would just solve it. By not doing that. I mean. I know that sounds stupid. Right. Yeah. But. I'm serious. When I say that. It was like. Okay. Well. Then I'm going to.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' The pen to carry around. In your pocket.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Right. Like. I don't think there's a solution. Like. You're not going to want to grease. The threads. Or anything like that. To. To make it a tighter fit. Or put. You know. Like plumber's tape. On the. In the cap. So. The threads don't thread. That you just carry it in your pocket. Or a pen case. Or a bag. And I. I mean this in. In the nicest way possible. Like. You just. You just don't do that. And. And. You know. I. Because you want to use the pen. Clearly. Right. And. If it's going to be your carry pen. You. Find the way. To carry it better. Not. Manipulate the pen. So. It stays better in your pocket. And make the writing. The using of the pen experience worse. So. I don't know that there's a solution. There is definitely. A problem. I find it more on metal. On metal pens. If. The threads. You know. If I'm carrying it in my pocket. The threads. Tend to come loose more. Than acrylics.

'''Myke Hurley:''' But. If that's the case. Well then I'll just. I'll. I'll do something different. And. So. I think that's. Probably not the advice. You're looking for. But I think it's. I think it's the best answer. I. I think you just. Don't do that.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' I think this is maybe. A.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Quality thing.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Right. Like. Yes. I feel like. This is this thing where. There is. Varying levels. Of. What a turned acrylic pen. Means. Where it's coming from. Who's making it. And what they're pricing it at. And especially. On the threading. This is someone who is. Who made this pen. Is. Would not be particularly. Like very well experienced. Or. Is charging a high amount. I don't know that to be the truth. But I would imagine. That's the thing. Just because I've known people. That have like. Started out doing this. And I've seen their pens. And the threads have been a bit. Not great. But they get better at it over time. Because this is a tricky thing to do. The threading is hard to do. And get right. That's from the sense of like. Making it smooth. Making sure the cap stays in place. And not having too many threads. Like you see. I see this quite a lot. Like the way that people try and solve it. Is by having too many threads. Right. And that makes the uncapping of the pen a nightmare. Because you're just unscrewing it forever. You know.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. There can definitely be some QC threading issues. It's not easy. No. To make that part. So yeah. Like I. But I. My point in all of this. Is I wouldn't try to fix. The cap. Threading coming loose. In your pocket. No. Because you're going to be less happy. With actually using the pen. If that makes sense. Right. Yeah. Like. You might fix it. It's spinning in your pocket. But then you're going to go. Oh. I really don't like what I had to do. To do that. Therefore I'm not going to use the pen. And I wouldn't want to see that.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' The only thing I would recommend here. Is maybe just getting a sleeve. For the pen. That might help.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Myke. That was a smart answer. Single pin sleeve. Yep. We could have been three questions down the line now. If I was as smart as you.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Because it might stop the. The friction. The action. That is uncapping the pen.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. It would. It would be tighter fit. So it wouldn't move.