Fountain pen thoughts: Noodler's Ahab
The Noodler’s Ahab is divisive pen, in part due to the pen’s characteristics, Noodler’s actions, and people’s feelings about Noodler’s overall.
But focusing on the pens themselves, the first thing many notice is their scent. I personally find that they remind me of my dad’s screwdriver handles, but plenty of people find the scent repulsive, bordering on vomit. So, if you must try one of these, I strongly recommend that you consider a second-hand purchase.
The pens are fairly utilitarian. They come with a plunger-style converter, you can purchase Noodler’s .307 cartridge that you can eyedropper and cap, and you can eyedropper the pen. They’re intended to easily modify and repair, which also means that you should expect quite a bit of fiddling with an Ahab to get it to write how you’d like.
But they’re also fairly fiddly pens. I recommend that you thoroughly wash the pen, cartridge or converter, feed, and nib before using one. You’ll likely need to heat-set the nib and feed. Then there’s the fun of moving the feed and nib in and out of the pen and in and out in relation to each other to find just the right ink flow. What works for one pen may not work for the next.
In short, these look like simple pens, but they can turn out to be quite frustrating for the novice and the expert alike.