The Pen Addict Podcast: Episode 350 - Superbacker

Myke got me. We went through the episode as normal - well, normal for us - and then boom. All the feels. For something I have been doing so long, and plan on doing for much longer, it feels weird to celebrate milestone numbers, but darn it, it’s fun, and we are proud of it!

Thanks to everyone who makes this community so special. Y’all are the ones worth celebrating every day.

Show Notes & Download Links

This episode of The Pen Addict is sponsored by:

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Posted on March 15, 2019 by Brad Dowdy and filed under Podcast.

Franklin-Christoph Model 46 in Autumn Oak: A Review

(Susan M. Pigott is a fountain pen collector, pen and paperholic, photographer, and professor. You can find more from Susan on her blog Scribalishess.)

The Franklin-Christoph Model 46 is a new design based on the smaller Model 45 but with a #6 size nib. It’s a sleek design with smooth lines tapering to flat finials. Uncapped, the barrel drops gently to a large, curved grip. Even though there’s a distinct edge between the barrel and grip, it’s not sharp and it doesn’t interfere with writing.

The cap is clipless and is a bit shorter than other FC caps. I like this design choice because it suits the pen’s simple aesthetic and shows off the beautiful acrylic. Etched near the base of the cap is “Franklin-Christoph 46,” but the etching is so light you can barely see it except in bright sunlight.

The top finial is etched with the FC logo.

Model 46 currently comes in three colors: black, Autumn Oak, and Winter Pine (at the time of this review Winter Pine appears to be out of stock). Although I initially thought about buying Winter Pine, I decided on Autumn Oak. It’s a beautiful reddish-brown acrylic with flecks of gold and darker brown. The pen shimmers in sunlight and has depth reminiscent of celluloid.

The pen is a cartridge/converter filler and comes standard with a Franklin-Christoph converter. As with most FC models, you can turn the pen into an eye-dropper by rubbing a little silicone grease along the threads. After a few disastrous “middle-age” moments when I unscrewed an eye-droppered Franklin-Christoph, spilling ink everywhere, I just use the converter. Pens like the Opus 88 that have built in rubber O-rings are much easier to use as eye-droppers in my opinion (it also helps if the pen happens to be a demonstrator). Regardless, the FC converter holds a good amount of ink and works really well.

I chose a medium steel nib with a Masuyama stub grind for this pen. I’ve found that Franklin-Christoph’s steel nibs are every bit as good as their gold ones, especially when you get a Masuyama grind. The tines on this stub are perfectly aligned and the nib is decorated with beautiful scrollwork and a tasteful FC logo.

I inked the pen with Diamine Autumn Oak, because, duh! I mean, if you have a pen that is called “Autumn Oak” why wouldn’t you ink it with Diamine Autumn Oak? I wrote with the Diamine ink for several days and was dissatisfied with how dry the pen wrote. I feared that perhaps the nib and feed were ink-stingy.

I decided to switch inks to see if the pen wrote better. I chose Kyo-Iro Higashiyama Moonlight, and it made a world of difference. The nib writes wet and smooth with this ink.

The Franklin-Christoph Model 46 is a medium/small-sized pen, measuring 5.25 inches/133.35mm capped, 6.65 inches/168.91mm posted, and 4.95 inches/125.73mm unposted. It is the smallest member of my FC collection (I don’t own any pocket models).

I am quite pleased with the Model 46. It has a distinct shape and style that sets it apart from my other FC pens. It exudes typical Franklin-Christoph quality, and the color is exquisite.

You can purchase a Model 46 from Franklin-Christoph with a regular steel nib for $150 (music nibs cost $10 more). With a SIG nib, the pen costs $165, and with a Masuyama nib, the cost is $175. This model with a gold nib costs $240.

(I paid for the Franklin-Christoph Model 46 with my own funds.)

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Posted on March 15, 2019 by Susan Pigott and filed under Franklin-Christoph, Fountain Pens, Pen Reviews.

Raymay Kenko Adjustable Book Stand Review

(Sarah Read is an author, editor, yarn artist, and pen/paper/ink addict. You can find more about her at her website and on Twitter. And check out her first novel, The Bone Weaver’s Orchard, now available where books are sold!)

If you are happily ensconced in an analog bubble, as I am--and I suspect a number of you are--it can be galling when digital necessity rears its ugly head. I love to write a lot, and I love to do that with pens in notebooks, which does neither of us any good if I'm writing down thoughts I'd like to share with you. Thoughts like: This Raymay Kenko Adjustable Book Stand is the bee's knees and is a super handy tool if you spend a lot of time typing up handwritten work.

In the course of half an hour, my thoughts on this product went from "This seems pretty handy" to "Oh, this is nice" to "Okay, now I can't live without this" to "This is my book stand 'Stan' and we're best friends now."

The design for this product has been fine-tuned over the course of 58 years, and its simple perfection reflects that. The frame is made from steel, with a thin but strong supportive base. The kickstand can slide up and down the center bar to adjust the reclining angle. The kickstand is tipped in silicone so it doesn't slip against the steel base. At the very front of the base is a hinged bar with silicone-tipped arms that hold the book open for easy viewing. The whole thing folds down flat for easy transport.

The steel is strong enough to hold heavy books or tablets, and the silicone prevents the support bar from scratching pages or screens. It can hold a book up to A4 size, and does well with smaller notebooks also. I imagine a very small notebook might not work as well with the front page holders. Very beefy novels may not fit on the base, either, as the front strip is a bit narrow and doesn't leave enough room between the back support and the page holders for Epic Tomes. But for general use cases, it's perfect.

I tried this out with A6 and B6 hard and softback notebooks, and all were well supported and stayed open nicely to display the work inside. Having the pages upright and facing me has helped tremendously with my work, which can sometimes consist of typing up 400-600 pages of scribbles. It has saved me back, neck, and eye strain. Needless to say, Stan the Stand now has a permanent place on my desk.

(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)

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