Both the Capless and Decimo are, as you can see from the exquisite photography there, gorgeous pens. I liked the idea of using one, and was really glad of the opportunity. However… I picked up the pen and I couldn’t write… I was in the grip of EPPA, and could only be rescued by putting the Capless away and continuing to work with my Birdie. I’m convinced that using expensive pens affects my handwriting, too.

It’s time to research EPPA and find a cure. Maybe our lovely shiny new bosses-to-be could offer a solution. Or a Bic biro.

Sam Randall
Devon knows how they make it so squeemy

Buy a box of ink cartridges. They last longer than the converter because they don’t require space for the screw mechanism.

If you want to use your own Noodlers Ink? (Blue is my favorite.) Do this:

Empty a few cartridges in the sink and remove the small round plastic seals with tweezers. But a syringe (hypodermic needle) from Walmart and use it to fill one of them with your own ink. Save the other empty cartridges as backups.

If I use the cartridge, I can write for three weeks (using it everyday) before needing a fill-up.

…dave
My Everyday Writing Pen

Yes, I can imagine it being a poke in the eye for your wife. I’ve not seen the converters available on their own anywhere. If they’re interchangeable with the Birdie, it would be cheaper to buy a Birdie fountain pen, and just keep the converter, than to buy another nib unit for the Capless. I’m not 100% sure they’re interchangeable – I’ll have to try it at some point, but it’ll mean emptying them both or making quite a mess…

The Birdie comes with a sac and bar converter, the current UK Capless comes with a piston converter.

But a fantastic pen for taking notes. The two nibs I had were among the smoothest I’ve ever used.

I’ve had no problems with Noodler’s Eternal Black in it – never even seen any ink on the nib. I’ve got some Walnut coming soon (hopefully tomorrow), so I’ll see what it’s like with that too.

I can’t see any reason why cleaning it would be too much of a problem – I imagine you could just run it under the tap in both directions, then shake it out well – maybe even gentle heat from a hair drier to get it properly dry before putting it together again. If it did get ink in the front part, though, it might be a dripping risk.

I’m glad you’ve mentioned the nibs, actually – I’ve read in several places that the nibs are on the fine side, but our mediums seem to be fairly standard medium – certainly not fine. Mind you, I’ve also heard them described as fairly dry, and neither of these are dry writers – maybe the newer 18k nibs are a bit different, or maybe they’re doing different nib units for the international market now.

As far as the filling trick goes, I couldn’t find it documented anywhere, so I thought it was worth doing – hopefully it’ll save someone else having to stumble on it themselves.

I don’t think the ink capacity is any lower than most other converter fillers, and I’ve used plenty where you can’t see how much ink is left at all, too, so these are hardly unique problems.

What do you actually use most, btw? Pelikans?

One thing to mention is that the nibs seem to be a bit wider than other nibs. Mine came with a M that laid down a very fat line; I bought a F and its line is comparable to my Parker 51′s M.

You mentioned Noodler’s ink. I’ve been reluctant to try my Eternal Brown (which I love) in the pen because the ink tends to coat the nibs of my other pens, and I’m concerned about having to clean out the innards of the Capless’s “nose.” Have you had any problems?