Every David Oscarson collection is offered two ways. When you choose a design you choose it once; whether it becomes a fountain pen or a roller ball is a separate question. The sterling silver, the guilloché and the hard enamel are the same. What changes is how the ink reaches the page, and the right answer depends on how the pen will be used.
The fountain pen
The fountain pen carries an 18-karat gold nib engineered in Heidelberg, Germany. It is plated with rhodium, tipped with iridium for durability and paired with an ebonite feed, which regulates the flow of ink to the nib. The nib is offered in three widths: Fine, Medium and Broad.
The filling system is flexible. It accepts a standard cartridge, a converter for bottled ink, or an eyedropper fill, sealed by a series of O-rings. That makes the fountain pen the natural choice for anyone who enjoys choosing inks.
Choose the fountain pen if
- You write by hand regularly and enjoy the feel of a nib on paper.
- You want to choose a line width: Fine, Medium or Broad.
- You like bottled inks and changing colours with the seasons or the occasion.
- You want the pen to become more personal with use; a gold nib settles to the hand that writes with it.
The roller ball
The roller ball is a capped pen that takes a standard roller ball refill. There is no nib to choose, no bottle of ink and no flushing; the line is consistent from the first word, and changing the refill takes seconds.
Choose the roller ball if
- The pen will be used for signatures, notes and travel rather than long writing sessions.
- You want no maintenance: a fresh refill replaces the ink supply.
- The pen will be passed between desks or used on a variety of papers, including forms and copies.
- The pen is a gift and you do not know the recipient's preferred nib width.
Same sterling silver, same guilloché, same hard enamel.
Looks and value
From a distance the two are hard to tell apart: both are capped, both carry the full design on the cap, clip and barrel, and both are presented in the same way. Choose by how you write, not by how it looks. It looks the same.
The edition is shared
Edition sizes are counted across both styles. When a collection is limited to 72 pieces per colour, as the Spirit of St. Louis is, that number includes fountain pens and roller balls together. Choosing one does not make the other rarer; both are part of the same numbered run, and both carry the same collector value.
It is also worth remembering that the choice is not permanent in practice. Many collectors who start with a roller ball for everyday signing later add a fountain pen in the same or another collection for letters and journals, and the two sit well together on a desk.
Still undecided?
A simple rule of thumb: if the pen will live on a desk and be used for letters or a journal, choose the fountain pen with a Medium nib. If it will live in a jacket pocket and sign things, choose the roller ball. Either way, contact El Laguito Cigars and we will help you match the style, colour and nib to the way you write.