Fountain Pen Hobby: Rediscovering My Italian Collection

Wrote for three hours this morning (with breaks, of course!) using a fine-point nib and pigmented ink on 70gsm paper. I was thrilled to find the ink felt incredibly fine and smooth on such flimsy paper, leaving absolutely no echo or bleed-through on the reverse side.

Dusted Off the Display Case

Lately, I realized I’ve been taking my collection of Italian fountain pens completely for granted. To remedy that, I dusted off my long-neglected display case. Inside sat my true grail fountain pen. I tested the internal ink-loading mechanism, and it still works like a charm.
However, instead of fueling up the precious grail pen right away, I decided to pull out a steel-pointed, entry-level pen from the same Italian maker.

Taming a Scratchy Nib

The Extra Fine weight on this specific nib was incredibly scratchy—even by usual extra-fine standards. After a little patience and smoothing work, I successfully tuned it. The result? It handled the lightweight paper beautifully, laying down crisp, clean, Extra Fine lines.

The Ink Lineup

I put three specific inks to the test today:

• Edelstein Topaz

• Diamine Oxblood

• Itoya Black
  All three performed flawlessly on the 70gsm paper in both Fine and Extra Fine line weights. I was so pleased with the setup that a swift 1,100 words ensued for the morning session!

Why Fountain Pens Beat Hybrid Ballpoints

Previously, I thought I'd have to rely on hybrid ballpoint ink for this kind of thin paper. Hybrid ink is much wetter than standard, oil-based ballpoint ink.
While it is undeniably smooth, it almost feels too smooth. The writing remains legible, but it tends to look wild and uncontrolled. That exact lack of control is what ultimately prompted me to switch things up and try the fine-point fountain pens today—and I'm so glad I did.