(This is a guest post by Garrett Kubat. You can find more from Garrett on Twitter @gazkubat.)
Flex pens have been something both interesting and intimidating to me. On one hand the idea of a flexible nib for a varying line is intriguing. On the other hand, I have no skill at calligraphy and my handwriting is likely too poor to make an effective us of a flexible nib. Regardless of these factors I chose to dive in and purchase a Noodler's Ahab Flexible Nib Fountain Pen.
I was drawn to the Noodler's Ahab by three things:
1) The price of the pen is amazing. For $20 you receive a well crafted and solid fountain pen. As this was my first pen with a flexible nib this seemed to be an extraordinarily reasonable price for my newest pen adventure.
2) The appearance and feel of the pen is exceptional. There are by last count 48 different colour variations available so regardless of your personal taste there will be something that catches your eye. The body is made of a "celluloid derivative" which is almost soft and warms to the touch while feeling both solid and durable.
3) The pen comes with the ability to customize. The nib and feed are friction fit which allows for the user to adjust the position of the feed to suit their purposes. It is still something I am working on but I love being able to make my pen a wetter or drier writer to my own preference. For someone wanting a larger amount of ink the pen is easily converted into an eyedropper with an o-ring and some silicone grease giving it around 6.0 ml of ink capacity. Finally, the pen is able to fit different nibs if you are not interested in a flexible nib. More diversity is always a benefit and I have a EF nib on its way for when I want this to be a simpler writer.
This pen performs well. While other pens will certainly be smoother or more reliable this is a pen that is enjoyable to use. As you may have noticed in my writing sample I had a few issues with the line variance demonstration. I would blame my adjusting of the feed rather than the pen itself for some of the troubles, although the pen does occasionally run dry. This is not a pen that you take out of the box and immediately write with, it is something you use and adjust to fit your own needs. That being said, I would recommend this pen for anyone who wants something that can be customized and looks and feels great. For the price it is an exceptional pen.
