Faber-Castell offers the popular classic pencil Castell 9000 in 16 hardness grades. Soft pencils are preferably used in the artistic field. An ideal writing pencil (e.g. for use in the office) has a medium hardness ("HB"), a school pencil has hardness grade B. Faber-Castell uses the following designations: B = Black H = Hard HB = Hard Black Faber-Castell, as the leading manufacturer worldwide, has found the perfect solution to this problem of the transportable pencil: A pencil with integrated sharpener and eraser with a clip, which can be carried like a ballpoint or fountain pen and can be sharpened again in no time wherever you are. This is a common problem with smooth, over-polished nibs, and Graf von Faber-Castell is one of the brands known for over-polishing. This can be fixed yourself as well with a little work, and there are dozens of posts on it in this subreddit and on YouTube. I am trying to figure out what is causing a problem with my Faber-Castell Grip (M nib) - namely, the fact that every ink that I put in the pen has a peculiar tendency to keep flowing and writing without any issues, but becoming very dark and brownish. Do check if c/c is properly seated in your Silver, and if not done already, try using it with ink cartridge. GvFC are on a dry side while their nibs are on the wet side, this balances well, so I would not necessarily go in direction of changing the ink. I only used the converter. 35 degrees for very long, or very heavy pens, is at the pit of the web of the thumb. And as said, let the pen rest where it feels comfortable.. (behind the big knuckle)forcing it to be at 45 degrees takes pressure and leads to the Death Grip. Look up Tripod grip. This is not the Tripod grip, but the Forefinger Up. Looking at the Faber-Castell Hexo Fountain pen in black, silver and rosé. As well as having a look at the Hexo Rollerball and Ballpoint Pens.Thank you for wa If you are using blue ink this procedure is recommended at least after three months or if the pen hasn't been used for a while. If you are using coloured ink this procedure should be performed every month, because these inks can contain more pigment which might lead to a congested ink system. Hold the tip of the pen to a flame for a few seconds to unclog the ink. Use a lighter, match, or candle to create a flame, then place just the very tip of your pen in the flame for a few seconds. In many cases, the heat will melt any gummed-up ink near the tip and get the pen working again. Correct cleaning: We recommend that you clean your fountain pen regularly - at the very least if the ink has dried up, when you are changing the ink colour, or if the flow of ink is slowing down. The rule of thumb: if you are using blue ink, clean your fountain pen approximately every three months. clwk.