Noodler's Ahab vs. Noodler's Konrad: Fountain Pen Battle

Every week, a Goulet team member pens a quote for the community using the #FlexNibFriday hashtag. Most of the time, that pen is a Noodler's, since they offer the most affordable flex pens currently on the market. This has led to a lot of debate around the Goulet office- which is better, the Noodler's Ahab or the Noodler's Konrad?

Madigan and Lydia are bringing this battle to you and letting you know their opinions of each of these pens. Read on to see what they think and vote for your favorite!

Noodler's Ahab

Madigan here, kicking off this pen battle by talking about the Noodler's Ahab. I love this pen, not only for the flex nib but because of all the interesting details. If you are looking to try your hand at flex writing, I don't think you can go wrong with the Ahab. I love the fact that it comes in 44 color options, including demonstrators so you can find one that fits your personality. It also features a unique clip that is made to look like a whale's flipper.

The Ahab runs toward the larger size of the fountain pen spectrum, but still fits comfortably in your hand. The grip section is also unique- it has a slight additional slope right where your fingers grip the pen. This is not only comfortable, it gives you increased control when writing with the pen. I find this especially useful when writing with a flex nib since that increased control lets you get greater line variation.

I think one of the best things about this pen is the ink capacity. It has a slide piston mechanism that holds a substantial amount of ink. If you want to increase your ink capacity even more, you can also eyedropper the Ahab, giving it one of the most impressive ink capacities in the fountain pen world. The Ahab also works with the Noodler's 308 Refillable Cartridges, which give you the best of all worlds- it's the ease of cartridges but the economy of using bottled ink.

The last thing that makes the Ahab the best, is that you can take it entirely apart to clean it. The piston-filling mechanism can be completely disassembled and removed. The nib and feed can also be removed for easy cleaning! This is great if you are using a highly saturated, dark hued, or shimmering ink.

To sum it up, I love the Noodler's Ahab because:

• 44 color options, including demonstrators
• Large size with interesting design details
• Sloped grip section for increased control
• Large ink capacity, with multiple filling options
• Eyedropperable
• Easy to clean

The Noodler's Ahab is available at GouletPens.com in a variety of colors for $23.

Noodler's Konrad

src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vwpy7_wwxZVfhwGkQHguZW5JOTrKdk4MMnSv2k7OicmQAqF49u8MwM5uQhaeCFw--a2JgMUY_4OQ=s0-d" width="640"> Lydia here, bringing you my thoughts on why the Konrad flex pen should be the king of your heart! First of all, the Konrad was my first flex pen so I may be a little biased! I love how many different varieties of the Konrad are available. There are the translucent bodied resin demonstrator options (which I have), the swirled acrylic options, as well and the ebonite versions. There is definitely a color option to suit everyone's taste, whether you enjoy the subdued look of the brown and black accented Ebonite Konrad, the bright and bubbly hues of the Acrylic Konrad, or you want to put your ink on display and showcase it with the resin demonstrator Konrad.  These all vary slightly in posted size too, so there is an option that feels perfectly balanced in every hand. The resin flex pens come in at 145.5mm posted, the acrylics are 155mm, and the ebonite pens are 161mm posted.

I enjoy the fact that the Konrad has so many options to choose from. The design of these pens feels very balanced and proportional to me. I like that neither the cap or the body make up the majority of the pen and they look proportional when posted or capped. The biggest selling point for me with the Konrad was the twist piston filling mechanism. There is no worrying about a converter and extra parts to clean. The Konrad holds the ink right inside the body of the pen and can be taken apart if need be just by twisting the mechanism out of the back of the pen. So easy and fast!

So to recap, the Konrad wins in my book because:

• So many different colors and variety of materials
• There's sure to be a color for everyone!
• Slightly different posting sizes between models so there's is one to fit most hands
• Balanced design, cap and body are evenly or proportionally sized
• Piston filling mechanism is part of the pen
• Easy disassembly and no extra pieces

The Noodler's Konrad fountain pen is available at GouletPens.com for $20-$40 depending on the model.

What do you think? 
Now it's your turn to weigh in! Do you prefer the Noodler's Ahab or the Noodler's Konrad?



Leave us a comment as well and let us know why you love the Noodler's Ahab or the Noodler's Konrad! We'd love to hear what you think.

Write on,
Madigan & Lydia

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