The first pen is the Lamy AL-Star. It's regarded as one of the best "cheap" fountain pens. The body is made out of shiny royal blue aluminum and it has a wonderful ergonomic grip. This pen came with the extra fine nib and I used the included ink cartridge (a pretty standard blue). The point was amazingly fine, but a little scratchy. The Lamy is definitely the classiest looking of the three pens.
Lamy AL-Star writing sample:
Lamy AL-Star closeup:
The second pen is the Platinum Preppy with the 03 fine nib. I used it as an eyedropper pen, so it's technically a fountain pen that has been converted. I got one of the Noodler's Ink kits from JetPens. It includes a bottle of Noodler's Ink (in this case, Polar Blue) and a Platinum Preppy modified to be an eyedropper pen. I really liked the color of the ink. It's blue, but not the typical disposable pen blue ink. Noodler's claims that the ink is waterproof and forge-proof. I loved writing with this pen. So smooth.
Platinum Preppy writing sample:
Platinum Preppy closeup:
The last pen I tried was the Kaweco Sport Classic. It was recommended by as a good fountain pen to convert into a eyedropper by Writer's Bloc. There is no size specification on the nib, but it seems like a medium point. It came with a blue ink cartridge, which I inserted. Unfortunately, I had a hard time getting the ink to start. This pen seems the most "buggy" out of the three. I have to draw a bunch of test strokes before I can get the ink flowing reliably. I'm not sure if the pen is defective or if I have to try some tricks, but I find that I have to press down with the nib. Fountain pens are supposed to flow easily without pressure. The nice feature of the pen is that it's so small. I haven't tried converting it to an eyedropper yet.
Kaweco Sport Classic writing sample:
Kaweco Sport Classic closeup:
Here is a comparison of writing with all three pens.
My favorite pen thus far is the Platinum Preppy. Amazing for a $3 pen!
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