Author’s Note: If you missed my first fountain pen post, you can view it here:Write On! Hopefully this will explain some of my geekiness, though I don’t think all of it will ever be fully explicable.
Anyone who is involved with the online fountain pen community will, at some point, come across the Edison Pen Company’s name, either in a review or a discussion. All I can say is, save your money and treat yourself to one of Brian Gray’s pieces of art without hesitation. You will definitely not be disappointed, though you will probably need to win the lottery so you can buy one of each style and color. A few weeks ago, at the end of a very stressful week, this beauty came in the mail and has barely left my hand ever since:
Yes, I handwrite out my blog posts before I post them…..I am just that geeky/anal/OCD/whatever:)
This is the Edison Beaumont Pneumatic in purple dew acrylic with an 18K gold nib. Isn’t she gorgeous? The first thing I wrote with her was a love note to my husband, and I’ve been feverishly writing with it since. I had decided a while ago that I wanted to have the one thing my small collection was missing: a “splurge pen” (meaning one that I would put more than $100 into). I had heard many excellent things about the Edison Pen Company and the first thing I had to decide was whether I wanted a production model or a signature model. The difference is that the production line of pens are the basic models Brian has created that offer no customization (and therefore, a lower price) and the signature models can be customized out the wazoo like I did with mine (yes, I have checked, wazoo is a technical fountain pen making term). They’re all amazing looking and I’ve read many great reviews about the production line models, so you really can’t go wrong with any of them. It just depends on how fancy you want to get with your pen and how much money you have in your pen budget.
I am quite surprised at how well this photo turned out….the beauty of a gold broad nib is a joy forever….isn’t that how the quote goes?
After looking and drooling (and nearly electrocuting myself by doing so on my keyboard) I decided to take the plunge and go with the Beaumont Pneumatic because I love the filling system and the vintage look. It’s a jump into the way-back machine to a time when pens like Parker Vacumatics were the norm, and I love the extra ink capacity a piston filler affords (trust me, I’m as long winded when I write as when I speak- I need all the ink I can get into a pen). The next task was to choose a color, and Brian has pretty much anything under the sun in that regard. From subdued classic colors like burgundy and royal blue to shocking neons, you can have whatever your heart desires. When I came across the purple dew acrylic, my mind was immediately made up. Purple is my favorite color, and sadly, my crappy (at indoor photography) camera can’t take a decent picture to do this finish justice. It’s even got a subtle sparkle to it that I noticed when using it outdoors the other day. Since this was a birthday present partially funded by my parents and in-laws, I took the plunge and got the gold nib; I wanted all the hardware to match the nib, so a gold clip and cap band were a must. I placed my order and the only difficult part was waiting for him to make it. Three weeks has never tested my patience so much!
Finally, I got the email I’d been waiting for and Brian let me know my pen was ready. After a slight payment malfunction due to the fact that Paypal really prefers that you use the right email address to send a payment (note to future customers- it’s edisonpen.com, not plural), my pen was on its way. When I opened the box, I knew that I had made the right decision. The Beaumont has a classic look that reminds me of the old vacumatic pens in that it has a flat top and the words “Edison Pen Co. Beaumont PN.” etched lightly into the barrel. The body is slightly translucent and the gold of the piston shows through a bit, giving the pen an air of mystery that I really quite like.
The weight of the pen is excellent – I have incredibly small hands (I wear extra-small gloves to play handbells) and I don’t like really heavy pens because I end up getting writer’s cramp with them. This pen has just enough weight to be balanced without feeling heavy, and I can use it for over an hour without noticing any fatigue. The nib is a lovely wet broad (ok, so outside of fountain pen circles that would sound really bad!) and suits my handwriting nicely – as all gold nibs are, this one is a bit springy which allows for a little line variation that, with the right shading ink, looks quite sophisticated.
What impresses me the most about the pen is the filling mechanism. A pneumatic filler isn’t new technology, but it is a very efficent way to fill a pen. You unscrew the blind cap on the top of the pen and pull the piston out before submerging the nib in ink. The two most important things to remember are 1) to put your finger over the hole in the top of the blind cap to ensure that a proper vacuum is created, thereby collapsing the ink sac when you push the piston down and 2) to release the cap after the nib is submerged. You also should hold the pen in the ink for about 10-15 seconds to ensure the sac completely fills. I’m not sure how much ink it holds compared to my other pens, but I’d take a wild guess that it’s twice as much.
So, do I love my pen? Yes. Would I recommend the Edison Pen Company to anyone who wants a quality pen that they can pass on to future generations? Without a doubt. Now go buy yourself one. You know you want to!
Jen's Rambling Thoughts... 
Never knew fountain pens were a “thing”, if you will. I think you’re pen is quite lovely 🙂
Thanks. I guess fountain pens are a “thing”, at least for me and the online communities I frequent. Beats me why, except they’re so pretty and old fashioned and write about 50 times better than anything else (certainly better than ballpoints). Just saw a video the other day where Neil DeGrasse Tyson admitted to Larry King that he uses fountain pens and bottled ink – I always thought he was awesome but now I’m convinced he totally rocks. Thanks for stopping by!
Lol! I do think fountain pens are pretty cool, just honestly never even thought to look into them being in existence still.
Yeah I think they’re one of those things people think of as relics, but trust me, there’s a whole fountain pen community out there. It seems a little silly how devoted people are online to analog tools such as fountain pens, but I don’t think they ever truly went out of style. If they did, they’re making a comeback:)
it is very useful to have fountain pens. A few of my family members love to collect fountain pens. It brings them back a lot of memories. Have a good day. Melissa
Thanks for stopping by, Melissa. I appreciate it!
Your pen looks amazing! I have never written with a fountain pen and am intrigued. I will have to look at some videos on this. I just love how lovely your handwriting looks with it. Thanks for the kind visit today and comment about my cards. Made my evening!
Awww…. I’m glad I could do that. I am just in awe of your artistic skills. I have none to speak of (ok maybe besides writing). Check out FPGeeks.com for a good informational forum about anything you could ever think of fountain pen related. Fountain pens are so much easier on the hands than regular pens, and they’re elegant. I’m an attention hound so I guess I love it when people ask me about my pens…
Now I have pen envy and I didn’t even know I needed one ten minutes ago.
Muahahahahahaa my evil work is done!
Sigh… As you already know from my comment on your previous blog about fountain pens, I appreciate this compulsive behavior of years. I continue to write a lot with a pen (on the cheap, however), because somehow my brain functions very differently then than writing via the keyboard. I like the eeriness of having “two” brains for writing. I recently ran across an article about “The Writing Tools of 20 Famous Authors” that you might get a kick out of at: http://flavorwire.com/410384/the-writing-tools-of-20-famous-authors/
…should have been “this compulsive behavior of yours.” Sorry. I wouldn’t have made that mistake had I been using my pen. 😉
Thanks for posting!
You’re welcome! I enjoyed writing this first with my pen and trying to get decent phots (though I failed miserably!).
Lovely, lovely choice of the “purple dew” acrylic for your first Edison. I see that you matched your pen with a nice Iroshizuku purple, too. Congratulations. There’s something to be said for a sweet pen to “lift” one’s writing along, ay?
On a personal note, I too have small hands, and need lightweight pens to write with. It was frustrating when I first “came back” to fountain pens and all the recommendations, or the pens in stores, were very heavy pens! I too didn’t find the pneumatic filling system too heavy at all for my hand. (No, don’t have one. Got to try a friend’s out for awhile.)
Thanks Julie! I do love purple, so it was the classic no-brainer choice, and after seeing a couple of Iroshizuku reviews online, I knew I had to have it to match my pen. Actually I don’t do that with any of my other pens now that I think about it….
Yes, a lot of fountain pens are pretty top heavy, but the Edison is perfect.
Thanks for stopping by:)
That pen is a work of art. I’m not a pen enthusiast (you’d cringe at the 99 cent pens I use!) but your post makes me want a pen like that. (Purple is my favorite color, too…and who doesn’t like gold? :))
Hey, I’m a totally pen tramp – I use anything that writes, so your $.99 pens are just fine by me. Whatever helps you create and get your voice out there….I’m just a non-pen snob who prefers fancy pens, but will write with anything.
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I really am excited to see this post! Thank you for checking out my post about Handwriting and how Penmanship is going to no longer be a school requirement. Hopefully, cursive will be used, for example on credit cards, mortgage papers, all kinds of legal things and the banks! I enjoyed reading about your precious pen and your many journals, notebooks and love the way your handwritten pages look! You do have great penmanship! I am following you just from this one post!
Awwww….that’s very sweet, thank you! I loved your post as well.
Interesting, I too, was unaware of a fountain pen community..The way a pen writes definitely make a difference, though! May have to try one out.
I’ve attempted carving fountain pens out of agate and jasper, but after a couple of prototypes haven’t made much progress on them, they’re still too bulky and heavy. I have a variety of tips that I bought and when I get back to it, I’ll have to send you one to try out.
Wow, that would be awesome! Thank you:)
Wow! That would be wonderful. I’d be honored to test one of your pens if you get back to it 🙂