Fountain Pen Communities, Video and Podcasts

Oct. 15, 2026

Where fountain pen people gather online today: forums, Reddit, YouTube channels, podcasts and pen shows.

Links checked Oct. 15, 2026. Pentrace has no business ties to any site listed here. If a link has stopped working, or you know a site that belongs on this list, use “Suggest a correction” below.

When Pentrace began, the fountain pen world met on message boards. It still does, but it also meets on Reddit, YouTube, Instagram and podcasts, and in person at a pen show nearly every month somewhere in the United States.

Pentrace

Pentrace Message Board, the community’s discussion board.
PenMarket, the buy, sell and trade board.
Pentrace on Facebook.
Pentrace on Instagram (@pentrace.ink).
The Pentrace Letter, a monthly email of new and rediscovered articles.

Forums and Reddit

The Fountain Pen Network: the largest fountain pen forum, with a deep archive of reviews and repair threads.
r/fountainpens: the busiest place for new users’ questions, with a beginners’ guide in its wiki.
r/Vintagefountainpens: identification and collecting of older pens.
r/fountainpenrestoration: resacs, cleaning and nib work.
r/pens: every kind of pen, not just fountain pens.

YouTube

SBRE Brown: Stephen Brown’s long-running reviews of pens and inks.
The Pen Habit: thoughtful reviews and essays on using pens.
Figboot on Pens: vintage and modern pens, with a collector’s eye.
The Goulet Pen Company: how-to videos for beginners, from filling a converter to cleaning a pen.
JetPens: product guides, with a strong line in Japanese pens.
Richard Binder: demonstrations from one of the best-known pen restorers.
Fountain Pen Hospital: the New York shop’s videos.
The Gentleman Stationer and The Pen Addict: video companions to the blogs of the same names.
Pentooling: repair tools and techniques.

Podcasts, blogs and Instagram

The Pen Addict podcast: a weekly show about pens, paper and ink, with the Pen Addict blog alongside.
The Gentleman Stationer: reviews, pen show reports and a weekly reading list.
The Well-Appointed Desk: pens, paper and desk tools.
Inkstable: news, reviews and pen show lists.
Fountain Pen Love: guides for collectors and new users.
On Instagram: @sbrebrown, @penaddict and @gouletpens.

Pen shows

The Pen Show Calendar lists shows around the world for the next twelve months. The biggest in the United States:

Washington DC Fountain Pen Supershow (August), one of the largest in the world.
Chicago Pen Show (spring).
Empire State Pen Show, New York City (November).
San Francisco International Pen Show.
Baltimore/Washington International Pen Show (March), run by Bertram’s Inkwell.

Shows are also run by local clubs; Pen Collectors of America and the Writing Equipment Society list events for members. Pentrace’s own pen show reports go back to the late 1990s.