I've wasted a lot of money on fountain pens chasing the fallacy that my drawing would improve with better tools. No tool will teach you to draw, but it's no fallacy that some tools are more practical, comfortable, and dynamic than others. This Duke fude-nibbed fountain pen fits me like a glove and I think it will suit others as well.
Fountain pens can be an addictive hobby because of their many variables: weight, balance, ergonomics, capacity, flow, nib style, convenience, durability, aesthetics. Finding a pen with all of these variables in the Goldilocks zone is extremely difficult - some people spend hundreds of dollars on nibsmiths getting custom nibs and feeds exactly as they want them, or build huge collections of mass-produced pens without being satisfied.
For my quick gestural ink studies I wanted a light and balanced pen that was ready to go every time I pulled it out. It needed a special nib capable of creating thin contour lines and large areas of tone, like a pencil. The feed had to lay these lines with perfect consistency no matter how fast I stroked. It needed a massive ink capacity since drawing - especially when laying tone - consumes far more ink than writing. And it needed to be durable since I'm not interested in babying a pen.
From the five star review you can guess this pen satisfies all of the above - at an incredible price. The attached gesture study was done in a few minutes on cheap newsprint paper using Waterman "Serenity Blue" ink. You can see there are no skips in any of the strokes even as I blocked in tone on the bird's chest with quick and heavy lines - even on this cheap, thirsty paper.
Capacity was solved by using large international standard cartridges. I can comfortably draw for over an hour on a single refill and fresh cartridges are quick to swap in. Waterman and Pelikan offer these larger cartridges but they're not very cost effective so I recommend buying a bottle of Noodler's and refilling them.
To the layman $20 may seem like a lot for a pen. But to a studious ink-loving artist who will get years of mileage from this tool it's nothing. In fact when buying ink in large bottles you will easily save money over ballpoints and felt-tipped markers in the long term.
Buy yourself a new toy - you deserve it.
Update January 2022:
I'm still using this regularly, usually with Noodler's Heart of Darkness. I've added a few more sketches.
I left it idle for about two months and it was a bit scratchy at first but with a bit of water and plenty of ink it came back. Once the current load runs out I'm going to try it with Platinum Carbon Black.
| Manufacturer | Duke |
|---|---|
| Brand | Lanxivi |
| Item Weight | 1.44 ounces |
| Product Dimensions | 6.5 x 0.98 x 0.59 inches |
| Item model number | Sapphire |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Color | Sapphire Fude Pen |
| Closure | Snap |
| Material Type | Stainless Steel, Brass, Metal |
| Size | 2 Piece Set |
| Point Type | broad,fine |
| Line Size | 0.5mm,0.7mm,0.9mm,1.0_1.9mm |
| Ink Color | Black |
| Manufacturer Part Number | Duke Sapphire Fude Pen Pouch US |
