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The nib has always been one of the most important parts of a fountain pen, and plays the final role of bringing the ink on paper. Fountain pens nibs derive from [[dipping nib]]s; the main difference is that being fountain pens much more expensive objects with their nibs continuously in contact with the ink, these were traditionally made of gold to have greater resistance to corrosion of the inks of the time (with different carats, although the most common remains the 14 carat, followed by the 18 carat).  

The nib has always been one of the most important parts of a fountain pen, and plays the final role of bringing the ink on paper. Fountain pens nibs derive from [[dipping nib]]s; the main difference is that being fountain pens much more expensive objects with their nibs continuously in contact with the ink, these were traditionally made of gold to have greater resistance to corrosion of the inks of the time (with different carats, although the most common remains the 14 carat, followed by the 18 carat).  

[[File:AikinLambertNib.jpg|thumb|An [[Aikin Lambert]] nib]]

[[File:AikinLambert-CapitolCabinet-Nib.jpg|thumb|An [[Aikin Lambert]] nib]]

When with the evolution of technology it became possible to create steel nibs resistant to corrosion, the biggest obstacle to their spread became that of marketing, and still today we tend to think of a pen with a gold nib as of higher value, although on the technical level this is probably lower. Gold, although strengthened by the metals added to the alloys used to produce nibs, is a very malleable metal, and for this reason a gold nib is subject to bend permanently much more easily than any steel nib and in general ends up being much less robust.

When with the evolution of technology it became possible to create steel nibs resistant to corrosion, the biggest obstacle to their spread became that of marketing, and still today we tend to think of a pen with a gold nib as of higher value, although on the technical level this is probably lower. Gold, although strengthened by the metals added to the alloys used to produce nibs, is a very malleable metal, and for this reason a gold nib is subject to bend permanently much more easily than any steel nib and in general ends up being much less robust.

A "gold" nib, however, cannot be entirely composed of gold (ie 24 carats), as mentioned this material is extremely malleable, <ref name=malleabilita_oro>malleable (see [http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malleabilit%C3%A0]) is meaning a very soft material, easy to deform without losing its mechanical properties, in essence the exact opposite of strength and flexibility, gold is one of the most malleable materials that exist.</ref> so it is generally strengthened by mixing it as with other metals to obtain 14 carat alloys, which are the most common, or 18 carat, used to give greater value to the pen, but generally less robust. The ancient pens are however for the most part equipped with 14 carat gold nibs, the 18 carats have been introduced only where, as in France, an object with a lower carat could not be qualified as gold for legal reasons.

A "gold" nib, however, cannot be entirely composed of gold (ie 24 carats), as mentioned this material is extremely malleable,<ref>malleable (see [https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malleability this Wikipedia entry]) is meaning a very soft material, easy to deform without losing its mechanical properties, in essence the exact opposite of strength and flexibility, gold is one of the most malleable materials that exist.</ref> so it is generally strengthened by mixing it as with other metals to obtain 14 carat alloys, which are the most common, or 18 carat, used to give greater value to the pen, but generally less robust. The ancient pens are however for the most part equipped with 14 carat gold nibs, the 18 carats have been introduced only where, as in France, an object with a lower carat could not be qualified as gold for legal reasons.

In the period of the second world war, however, with the restrictions caused by the war, the use of gold for nibs was greatly reduced and in some countries, such as Germany and Japan, even explicitly prohibited. At that time there was a flourishing of various steel alloys, often renamed, especially in Italy, with imaginative and high-sounding names, and experimentation with alternative materials, such as palladium, which now seem to be back in fashion. But the use of steel for nibs can certainly not originate from the constraints of war. In fact, it was adopted by some producers, in particular those oriented to the lower end of the market, well before the war and for simpler economic reasons. Even in that case, however, they often tried to "embellish" the metal with a gilding.  

In the period of the second world war, however, with the restrictions caused by the war, the use of gold for nibs was greatly reduced and in some countries, such as Germany and Japan, even explicitly prohibited. At that time there was a flourishing of various steel alloys, often renamed, especially in Italy, with imaginative and high-sounding names, and experimentation with alternative materials, such as palladium, which now seem to be back in fashion. But the use of steel for nibs can certainly not originate from the constraints of war. In fact, it was adopted by some producers, in particular those oriented to the lower end of the market, well before the war and for simpler economic reasons. Even in that case, however, they often tried to "embellish" the metal with a gilding.  

The nibs are classified classically<ref>by classically it is meant referring to the initial period of the spread of the fountain pen, this type of classification has now virtually disappeared.</ref> based on a series of numbers expressing their size, although more or less all manufacturers have adopted similar figures (with values ranging from 00 to 12) the numbers do not have a reference to a precise measure, but are simply a relative indication (a nib #4 is usually larger than a #2 of the same manufacturer), and are different between a manufacturer and another. Very often, see for example the [[Numerazione Waterman|Waterman numbers]] and the [[Numerazione Montblanc|Montblanc numbers]], they were also used to identify the different models of a production line.

The nibs are classified classically<ref>by classically it is meant referring to the initial period of the spread of the fountain pen, this type of classification has now virtually disappeared.</ref> based on a series of numbers expressing their size, although more or less all manufacturers have adopted similar figures (with values ranging from 00 to 12) the numbers do not have a reference to a precise measure, but are simply a relative indication (a nib #4 is usually larger than a #2 of the same manufacturer), and are different between a manufacturer and another. Very often, see for example the [[Numerazione Waterman|Waterman numbers]] and the [[Numerazione Montblanc|Montblanc numbers]], they were also used to identify the different models of a production line.

{{:Tabella misure pennini}}

{{:Nib sizes table}}

Another possible classification is that made on the basis of the size and possibly the shape of the tip of the nib itself (fine, medium, wide, etc..). Even in this case, there is no universal standardization adopted by all, even if many manufacturers have ended up using abbreviations that are quite uniform among them, such as those shown in the table on the right, most of which are still in use today.  

Another possible classification is that made on the basis of the size and possibly the shape of the tip of the nib itself (fine, medium, wide, etc..). Even in this case, there is no universal standardization adopted by all, even if many manufacturers have ended up using abbreviations that are quite uniform among them, such as those shown in the table on the right, most of which are still in use today.  

* [[musical nib]].

* [[musical nib]].

Una terza possibile classificazione, ancora meno uniforme in quanto alla terminologia utilizzata, e che spesso non ha alcun riferimento ufficiale nella produzione delle varie aziende è quella relativa alla maggiore o minore flessibilità del pennino, una classificazione che inoltre tende a perdersi con la produzione moderna, dominata da pennini rigidi. Uno dei problemi delle stilografiche infatti (considerato uno svantaggio nei confronti della sfera, e quando risolto usato come fattore di promozione per le proprie penne) è quello che una pressione eccessiva sul pennino può nuocere allo stesso, cosa che rende abbastanza difficoltoso il ricalco.<ref>oggi il problema non sussiste quasi più con la diffusione del digitale, ma non era banale quando le copie dovevano essere fatte a ricalco con la carta carbone.</ref> Per questo una delle poche terminologie coerenti (almeno nel mondo anglosassone) è quella dei cosiddetti pennini da contabile (''[[accountant nib]]''), chiamati spesso anche ''[[Manifold]]'', molto rigidi e duri, utilizzabili per questo anche per lavori contabili dove le copie a carta carbone erano la norma.

A third possible classification, even less uniform in terms of terminology used, and which often has no official reference in the production of the various companies is that one relating to the greater or lesser flexibility of the nib, a classification that also tends to get lost in modern production, dominated by rigid nibs. One of the problems of fountain pens (considered a disadvantage against the ballpoint, and when solved used by manufacturer as a promotion factor for their pens) is that excessive pressure on the nib can harm the same, which makes it quite difficult to  trace.<ref> Today the problem hardly exists with the spread of digital, but it was not trivial when copies had to be made by tracing with carbon paper.</ref> For this reason one of the few coherent terminologies is that of the so-called accounting nibs (''[[accountant nib]]''), often also called ''[[Manifold]]'', very rigid and hard, usable for this reason also for accounting jobs where carbon paper copies were the norm.

Non esistendo riguardo la flessibilità una terminologia ufficiale, (anche se alcune marche, come la [[Eversharp]] marcavano esplicitamente alcuni fra i propri pennini flessibili con la scritta ''Flexible'') quella adottata nasce dalle convenzioni stabilite dai collezionisti, ed ha quindi anche un ampio margine di aleatorietà. Si è pertanto deciso, in maniera del tutto arbitraria, di fare riferimento alle seguenti definizioni:<ref>si è fatto riferimento alle definizioni di Davis Nishimura, come riportate in [http://www.paperpenalia.com/flex1.html questo articolo] pur non seguendole completamente.</ref>

Since there is no official terminology about flexibility, (even if some brands, such as [[Eversharp]] explicitly marked some of their flexible nibs with the words ''Flexible'') the adopted one comes from the conventions established by collectors, and therefore also has a wide margin of randomness. We therefore decided, in a completely arbitrary way, to refer to the following definitions:<ref>we started from the definitions of Davis Nishimura, as reported in [http://www.paperpenalia.com/flex1.html this article] even though they are not completely followed.</ref>

* '''molleggiato''' pennino che risponde alla pressione, ma senza creare una significativa variazione del tratto, molti pennini moderni dichiarati ''flessibili'' rientrano in questa categoria.

* '''sprung''': a nib that responds to pressure, but without creating a significant variation in stroke, many modern nibs declared ''flexible'' fall into this category.

* '''demi-flex''' (''semi-flessibile'') pennino che risponde alla pressione con una significativa variazione del tratto, ma che usato normalmente non presenta variazioni significative.

* '''Demi-flex''' (''semi-flexible''): a nib which responds to pressure with a significant variation in stroke, but which is normally used without significant variation.

* '''flexible''' (''flessibile'') pennino che produce una variazione di tratto anche nella normale scrittura, in risposta alle piccole variazioni di pressione in essa esercitate.   

* '''Flexible''': a nib which produces a variation in stroke even in normal writing, in response to small variations in pressure exerted on it.   

* '''[[wet noodle]]''' (''super-flessibile'') pennino estremamente flessibile, che deve essere usato con cura anche nella normale scrittura, portando a variazioni di tratto molto accentuate alla minima pressione.

* '''[[wet noodle]]''' (''super-flexible''): an extremely flexible nib, which must be used with care even in normal writing, leading to very accentuated stroke variations at minimum pressure.

Infine essendo un elemento essenziale della stilografica, il pennino ha conosciuto alcune variazioni costruttive da parte delle aziende. Inizialmente si è avuta una differenziazione portata avanti principalmente nei materiali costruttivi del corpo e della punta, ma fino agli anni '30 è sempre rimasto praticamente identico nelle forme e nelle funzioni. La prima significativa diversificazione è stata quella introdotta dalla [[Eversharp]] nel 1932, con il pennino a flessibilità variabile "''[[Adjustable Point]]''" dotato di una ghiera scorrevole.  Ma i cambiamenti più significativi sono iniziati nel 1941, con l'uscita ufficiale sul mercato della [[Parker 51]], che segnò il debutto del [[pennino carenato]]. Da allora si ebbero evoluzioni come il [[pennino conico]] della [[Triumph Pen|Triumph]], le varie versioni di [[pennino alato]] dalla [[Wing-flow]] in poi, o il particolare "''[[inlaid nib]]''" introdotto con la [[PFM]].

Finally, being an essential element of the fountain pen, the nib has undergone some constructive variations by companies. Initially there was a differentiation carried out mainly in the construction materials of the body and the tip, but until the '30s has always remained virtually identical in form and function. The first significant diversification was the one introduced by [[Eversharp]] in 1932, with the variable flexibility nib called "''[[Adjustable Point]]''" equipped with a slider.  But the most significant changes began in 1941, with the market release of the [[Parker 51]], which marked the debut of the [[hooded nib]]. From then on there were evolutions such as the [[conical nib]] of the [[Triumph Pen|Triumph]], the various versions of the [[winged nib]] from [[Wing-flow]] onwards, or the particular "''[[inlaid nib]]'" introduced with the [[PFM]].

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== Note ==

== Notes ==

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==Brevetti correlati==

==Related Patents===

{{ListaBrevettiFeature|Pennino}}

{{ListsPatentsFeature|Pennino}}

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