A scientific comparison of filling mechanisms

And why you should probably stick to the Occam’s razor of filling mechanisms

I’m sure everyone and their grandmother has a favorite way to fill pens. You may be one of them odd people who refill cartridges (don’t knock it till you try it, you say, and I try and I begrudgingly agree that some pens just beg for this method). Or, maybe you believe higher tier pens require an inner filing mechanism because if you’re paying hundreds of dollars for a pen, you will not stoop to a lowly C/C filler!

Does it really matter, though? Let’s talk about different mechanisms.

Once upon a time when the first fountain pen was patented, or rather, when our society decided enough was enough and we could do better than dip feathers in inkwells (instead of bananas into coffee I guess?), the inner reservoir became the norm. The idea behind building the ink reservoir into the pen body is the epitome of laziness meets genius. Suddenly, you don’t have to carry an inkwell with you (although we definitely do carry around vials and Traveler’s Inkwells nowadays, don’t we), you don’t get ink splatters everywhere, and you can cap your pen and it will probably not leak. Perfect.

So if the only thing that matters is getting away from the inkwell, what’s the point of having more than just one filling mechanism option?

I mean. ‘Because we can’ is a perfectly good answer.

I’ll rank the ways you can do that based on my perfectly unbiased and scientific way of measuring what’s totally the best way to do anything.

Note: this is just my opinion on the most common modern ways to fill your pen; I didn’t want to talk about lever fillers as they aren’t as common as the rest.

No. 5: the ‘bulk filler’

If you want to spend a bunch of money on a Conid (I’m hearing it’s a hella good pen) — or if you want something cool to look at that won’t break your bank (Penbbs) — boy do I have a filling system for you. Pens that use ‘bulk filling’ mechanisms hold a stupid amount of ink because they combine the piston mechanism and the, I guess, vacuum filling mechanism without the vacuum. What I mean by that is that you get to detach the big, chonky piston end and leave it at the end of the barrel, leaving just the rod in it and if you squint at the pen from the end of your desk, it may look a little bit like a vac filler. However, this system also super complicated and, honestly, not really user friendly, especially not towards the newbies.

Recommended for those people who really like tinkering with pens but with extra steps and too much disposable income. My favorite is naturally the only one I have, the Penbbs 355 V2 (model wise… the Smog. I waited years for that one).

No. 4: the Japanese eye dropper

Again, stupid amount of ink, but you have a rod sitting there and pretending to be a shut off valve, but you need to fill your pen with a pipette, and I’m lazy, so it feels like having a regular eye dropper with an extra step that I need to clean. Sure, it’s fun to shut off the ink and then get on the plane and tell everyone how your pen doesn’t leak until the flight attendant offers your neighbor a free seat upgrade, but otherwise… you’re gonna be fine with other pens. I promise.

I recommend this filling system to those of you who are into flying, traveling, not buying inks for a long period of time, too lazy to clean your pens, or any combination of those. My favorite model has to be the Opus 88 mini; I like the Endless Pens exclusive Kitty Cafe series (no affiliation).

No. 3: the actual eye dropper

Drew Brown once tried to call this mechanism ‘barrel filler’ and I agree with him because you technically use an eye dropper to fill the pen, not the other way around — it may be a tad silly to try to write with a pipette, I assume. Anyway, you use whatever vessel you want to transport the ink from the bottle to the barrel, and voila, you have a pen ready to write. Right?

Eh. It takes a bit of time, most times, to saturate the feed enough for the nib to work. I sometimes dip the nib in the pen in the same fashion I dip bananas into coffee, and it makes the writing experience less frustrating, most times. My favorite eye dropper is very likely the Penbbs 487 in Fireworks. Just dump the ink there, flip it nib side down, and wait for it to be usable. It will absolutely leak into the cap but whatever.

I’d recommend this filling systems for those of you who like the idea of obscene capacity while having a few pipettes in your pocket.

No. 2 the vacuum filler

If you still want a shut off valve and a stupid amount of ink, look no further. Sure, it’s hard to clean — unless you’re brave and up for disassembling pens that probably should be left alone — and most good models aren’t cheap, but this is the perfect pen if you’re looking for a demonstrator and have several friends who would love to see physics happening in a non-school setting. The way this thing fills makes me giggle like a 13-year-old boy in a candy shop. It’s so satisfying and so pleasant, and then the pen writes forever (if you don’t forget to unscrew the blind cap), and it’s just… bliss.

Minus points for me only because I like swapping inks. Unless it’s the Van Dieman’s Prickly Pear. Side note, I really wish Pen Chalet would get it again.

Favorite pen: Pilot Custom 823 Clear with a SFM nib.

Yes, I frankenpenned it.

No. 1 is a tie because I’m a cheater, the piston and the c/c filler

It’s like picking between your favorite pets; I couldn’t decide. I’m sorry.

I like piston fillers because they’re fun. I like c/c fillers because if the mechanism malfunctions, I can replace it easily. Cleaning is way easier too. And swapping parts between pens somehow feels even more straightforward!

The advantage of the piston is the capacity, especially if you compare apples and oranges, i.e. any TWSBI model and any Pilot pen that insists on using the Con-40; the advantage of the c/c is that — maybe you don’t want to lug a bottle/sample around and just want to ruin the planet and use cartridges.

Favorites? TWSBI Eco Crème and most any c/c pen I’ve ever used.

Honorable mention goes to the pump filler: Wing Sung 618 and, fun fact, Esterbrook Estie Raven. You smash that button and your pen gets filled and you hope you don’t lose the little straw. It’s fun. It’s a decent amount of ink. Honestly, this would be my second favorite if it was more common.

Again, this ranking is my own; no pens were harmed during the writing of this post. I’d love to hear y’all’s opinions on filling mechanisms. A poll shall be created for your choosing pleasure. Let me know in the comments if you’d prefer to fill your pens some different way.

Side note, if you’re coming to the Orlando Pen Show, come say hi. I’ll be the super shy dork with a banana shirt.