Geekhack Handwriting Thread and Fountain Pen Thread

[demik]

i need to buy that red twsbi 580, it's calling my name.

[Larken]

1. Rohrer & Klingner - Alt-Goldgr�n

2. It's the US Namiki Falcon.  I have not yet tried their "FA" nib.

Ah I see. I haven't seen much of R&K inks where I'm at. That green is nice and unique.

How was your experience with the namiki falcon? I thought about getting it before but reviews of the SEF being scratchy gave me some pause, and I eventually went with the FA nib instead.

I'm cheap. I use a Speedball Pen Holder (Size B), with either a Speedball Hunt Pen No. 512 or No. 513-EF nib. Cost me all of $6 at the hobby store.

Thanks for the info! Cheap is what I'm looking for, since I'm not sure about dip pens as a whole.

On another note, anyone heard of these pens before?



It's a pen from germany (I think) called the Switch Plus. Has a nub that doubles as a stylus on one end, black nibs (only in fine or medium), cartridge/convertor capable. Price point is slightly below the Safari (might be different depending where you're at, geographically)

It's been making the rounds in my local hobby circles and being touted as a great alternative to the Lamy Safari.

[CPTBadAss]

It just looked so pretty.  Ok though.  The Diamine, Noodler's, and De Attramentis were the ones I really wanted to try the most.  Noodler's Bernanker Blue and Baystate Cape Cod Cranberry, De Atramentis Plum, and Diamine Oxblood, Red Dragon, and Marine all look like such cool colors.

Right now I just have Pelikan Violet (which does not like my Pilot Metro) and Namiki Blue.

I've got a bunch of Diamine, J herbin, and Noodler's inks along with some other stuff. PM me and I'll get some samples out.

[Air tree]

God. The Namiki Falcon is so nice.

I'm tempted by it so much. Mmmm...

[Binge]

1. Rohrer & Klingner - Alt-Goldgr�n

2. It's the US Namiki Falcon.  I have not yet tried their "FA" nib.

Ah I see. I haven't seen much of R&K inks where I'm at. That green is nice and unique.

How was your experience with the namiki falcon? I thought about getting it before but reviews of the SEF being scratchy gave me some pause, and I eventually went with the FA nib instead.

It was positive except that compared to other pens that I had which performed the same task... they were all better.  It's great if you feel it resonates with you on a very deep level, but I would not say it is an exceptional pen.

Personally I am more of a fan of customizing noodler's nibs and placing them in adequate bodies to achieve similar line variation.  For pure elegance I would suggest a pilot soft medium, or a sailor.  Sailor's nibs are fantastic and the pro gear series demand respect without being too flashy.

[Larken]

I see. Thanks, that was very helpful advice.

Does 'the same task' refer to its use as a flex nib, or its use as a soft nib? I do see quite a bit of polarization between opinions on the falcon pens, especially with regards to whether it is really considered a flex pen without modification. Some seem to suggest that it would be better just used as a everyday non-flex writer with some softness in the nib, in which case, I'd have to compare it against the pilot/platinum soft nibs instead.

I've modified my own noodlers as well. Results were nice, but I did find their feeds to be a little too wet. Looking into putting a dip nib in an ahab, as well, but that's another thing I'll have to explore further.


@Air tree
That doesn't look like a stock falcon. From the shape of the nib, it seems to be a custom italicized grind. Wouldn't be surprised if it had flex added either. I'd recommend you check out more writing samples from a stock pen if you're thinking of getting one.

[genkidama]

Maybe someone can help me with this pen. So I finally found the pen I searched, it looks more like one of Jinhao's pens than a Waterman. It seems my memory tricked me.
Anyway, I tried to clean the pen but the "converter" is somewhat glued or welded or something like that. I cannot take it off without risking to rip it off the bezel. Other than it is made in China and has "white feather" written on the cap I cannot see anything company related or what kind of nib it has. But seems to be a fine nib.

Here you see everything I could take apart.

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The converter seems purple-ish this is the rest I had while I tried to clean it (cleaned it twice overall in 3 days). I didn't know how to clean it other than but the pen in a glass of water and feed the container with clean water and clean it that way. I remember my parents telling me that here were no cartridges for this pen, only this converter system that is fixed onto the pen itself.

Here is a close-up if you need.

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Have I damaged it or is it just harder to clean because the pen wasn't in use for many years?

[CPTBadAss]

It's probably a cheap converter that's been stained by ink being dried up in there. I'd try using a 10% bleach to 90% water combination to see if you can clean it out. Just suck the combination through the pen like it's ink and squirt it out. If it doesn't work, just embrace it. As long as the stain doesn't affect ink (read changes the color of the ink you load into it after cleaning) when you refill it, then it's cool. Make sure after you use the bleach rinse, that you rinse it a bunch with just plain water to get the bleach out.

Stained =/= Damaged

[genkidama]

While I clean it with pure water the converter has a more clear tone, it only looks so purpley when I let it stay to dry.
Thanks, I'll try it with the bleach.

[Larken]

Looks like a clone of the Parker 51. Possibly a Hero 100/616, or a knockoff of the hero (yes, knockoffs of the knockoff exists). I think the Hero clones require a special tool from China to disassemble the convertor further, but as CBA has said, it doesn't matter if the staining doesn't affect the color of the ink that you put in your pen. Just wash it out a few times and you can ignore it.

[genkidama]

It's seems like it's a Hero 616. I've seen a comparison on a site and from the pics or rather looks of the Hero it's similar to the Hero. If I didn't mix up the pens themselves on the pics as they are really similar.

I could get off some of the staining but there is still some left. As the water runs clean when I press it out it shouldn't bother the ink once I refill it.
Unfortunately some of the water is still in there. If I tip it to the bottom it fills somewhat 1cm in height, so it's not that much but I was just thinking it could be too much for the ink as it'll be more watery. Is this a problem or do you know how I can get the water out? Squeezing the converter doesn't help. I tried to pull the water to the tip of the converter and squeeze it out through the level that is connected to the feed/nib part but still the water doesn't come out.

[CPTBadAss]

It's seems like it's a Hero 616. I've seen a comparison on a site and from the pics or rather looks of the Hero it's similar to the Hero. If I didn't mix up the pens themselves on the pics as they are really similar.

I could get off some of the staining but there is still some left. As the water runs clean when I press it out it shouldn't bother the ink once I refill it.
Unfortunately some of the water is still in there. If I tip it to the bottom it fills somewhat 1cm in height, so it's not that much but I was just thinking it could be too much for the ink as it'll be more watery. Is this a problem or do you know how I can get the water out? Squeezing the converter doesn't help. I tried to pull the water to the tip of the converter and squeeze it out through the level that is connected to the feed/nib part but still the water doesn't come out.

Sit the pen on a paper towel and wait a day.


For people who are always asking what some nice introductory pens are, I like Ed Jelley's article on the topic. I perpetually forget how good Kaweco Sports are.

[genkidama]

I forgot to mention I already did that and there is still some water left. It's not in the sun or anything. Just sitting on a paper towel somewhere save from light.

[CPTBadAss]

It's just water. It'll dilute your ink a little so the color looks off for a little while until it evaporates. I think you're over thinking it. Just fill your ink up and enjoy writing.

[genkidama]

Yeah I tend to.. I'm not always noticing this.
Thank you!

[Jokrik]

Need help, I'm a total newb here

Purchased myself a Pilot Metropolitan, first week of use has been a total joy
but the last week or two it kept leaking, my hands are inked everytime I use it

I use the plastic refillable cartridge, what usually went wrong when it leaks?

[nubbinator]

Is the cartridge seated properly?  How do you carry the pen?  What ink are you using?  I haven't had any issues like you are with mine, but the times I've seen people having issues like yours it's because the ink is "too wet", they're carrying the pen with the nib facing down instead of up, or the ink cartridge isn't seated all the way.  Others with more experience could chime in.

[Jokrik]

Is the cartridge seated properly?  How do you carry the pen?  What ink are you using?  I haven't had any issues like you are with mine, but the times I've seen people having issues like yours it's because the ink is "too wet", they're carrying the pen with the nib facing down instead of up, or the ink cartridge isn't seated all the way.  Others with more experience could chime in.

I'm pretty sure the cartridge is well seated and I put the pen with the nib facing up but sometimes I chucked it in my work bag and it's seating horizontally

I'm using a parker ink, the only ink accessible to me is only parker or mont blanc with MB ink price is three times the parker one

[Larken]

the plastic cartridges don't last past more than 3-4 refills in most cases, more if you're more careful with them. the mating surfaces wear down each time you plug and remove them, and when the seal deteriorates, you'll get leaks. might last longer if you take the time to grease the edges with lube, but most people just discard them after a few reuses and put in a new cartridge; they aren't made to last, after all.

[Jokrik]

the plastic cartridges don't last past more than 3-4 refills in most cases, more if you're more careful with them. the mating surfaces wear down each time you plug and remove them, and when the seal deteriorates, you'll get leaks. might last longer if you take the time to grease the edges with lube, but most people just discard them after a few reuses and put in a new cartridge; they aren't made to last, after all.

Thanks for the info, I tried to refill it yesterday and see nothing is wrong
Well its an entry level fountain anyway, but I feel the eager to get into this hobby

Might be cptbad fault for posting his pens

[rowdy]

the plastic cartridges don't last past more than 3-4 refills in most cases, more if you're more careful with them. the mating surfaces wear down each time you plug and remove them, and when the seal deteriorates, you'll get leaks. might last longer if you take the time to grease the edges with lube, but most people just discard them after a few reuses and put in a new cartridge; they aren't made to last, after all.

Well its an entry level fountain anyway, but I feel the eager to get into this hobby

Might be cptbad fault for posting his pens

+1

Something else to spend money on ...

[TheGreatAntlers]

Hey guys, what is the next step up from a Lamy safari, but looks like a safari or is as brightly colored as the yellow one. People keep snagging my pens at work but now that I have the safari its not happening any more and when it does, well it's neon yellow, so not hard to find. Is there a way to upgrade the internals while keeping the cheap shell? I like the shell being cheap because I work in a machine shop so I'm ok with it being potentially broken, but the cheapo cartridges it uses are starting to bug me

Tldr; better lamy internals?

[TheGreatAntlers]

Also, what in the best way to improve my cursive/penmanship in general, I have never had a good hand and now my bad habits are deeply ingrained

[Binge]

Stole *cough cough* borrowed some letters from Booper and decided to do some practice at flexing. I have to admit that some letters gives me quite a bit of problem, still figuring things out.

[

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Looking good! I love that F and the N is pretty sweet too. I hate doing M and N :(  All these cool alphabets make me want to make fonts out of GH handwriting samples

I know railroading isn't technically good, but I love the way it makes a letter look like it has outlines. I wonder if there is a pen for doing that style of lettering?

You can *borrow* any of my letters you like!

Hi guys, are there any general but important pointers to help improve your handwriting?

Like what kind of mental image should I have/ do you point the pen up straight / grip it firmly / do you focus on your elbow, etc.

edit: I guess the question's a little broad, since I don't own a fountain pen yet and I'm just practicing with my normal .3 and .5 pen :P

I'm not expert at fountain pens or handwriting, but I do know some things about type / fonts which I think have helped me with my handwriting. I made a little explanation of some basic "typography anatomy" and things to think about as far as overall aesthetic of your writing go.  I think it's easier to explain things visually so I made this!

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Also, I like to browse google images for calligraphy/script fonts to come up with ideas on new ways to make letters interesting. If I'm trying to make a fancy quote and I'm nervous about spacing and such, I'll lightly sketch it out in pencil first and practice making small "thumbnails" to figure out how I want to do my lettering. I did a little evolution of the word "handwriting" in the top corner showing how you can take the base word, analyze it, and add more flair to it. I'm not a huge fan of how the "d" came out in that set, but o well.

In the bottom left corner I took a simple base line and tried to show how you can manipulate the same base stroke to make different letters in varying degrees of fanciness. Several of the letters in the alphabet start with some variation of a long downstroke so you can come up with one line style you feel comfortable with and use it to give your handwriting more consistency.


Hope this helps!

^

[Air tree]

Making some progression at making my not look like a 8 year old's handwriting. It still looks bad, but It's effort.

I'll update when I can get something that has a modicum of prospect that I'm getting better. 

[demik]

Making some progression at making my not look like a 8 year old's handwriting. It still looks bad, but It's effort.

I'll update when I can get something that has a modicum of prospect that I'm getting better. 

[FrostyToast]

I have found my calling.

Now I just need to get money.
Also, for a guy who lost his previous $100 pen I don't know if it's a good idea to get something twice as expensive...

[CPTBadAss]

Thank you based pelikan for understanding that this is the best colorways. I'll be copping that purple at launch.

Also, what in the best way to improve my cursive/penmanship in general, I have never had a good hand and now my bad habits are deeply ingrained

https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=59329.msg1606461#msg1606461

Hey guys, what is the next step up from a Lamy safari, but looks like a safari or is as brightly colored as the yellow one. People keep snagging my pens at work but now that I have the safari its not happening any more and when it does, well it's neon yellow, so not hard to find. Is there a way to upgrade the internals while keeping the cheap shell? I like the shell being cheap because I work in a machine shop so I'm ok with it being potentially broken, but the cheapo cartridges it uses are starting to bug me

Tldr; better lamy internals?

Fountain pens aren't really about the "internals". People typically care about the filling system, body, and nib. The feed system isn't usually really cared about and I honestly don't care about it until I get a pen that doesn't work. I suggest ditching the cartridges and going with a converter. If you really wanted to go all out, you could get a gold nib. But that's a bit much for my tastes. I suggest hunting down a nib you may like to try such as one of these. Lamy Vista and Al Star pens are also the same pens but in a different material. Vista is a demonstrator and Al Star is anodized aluminum.

There's a bunch of Lamy pens that you may like as well. I'm currently eyeing a Lamy 2000. But I wouldn't carry that in a machine shop. I really like the Al Star so maybe check that out.

[FrostyToast]

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Thank you based pelikan for understanding that this is the best colorways. I'll be copping that purple at launch.

"Ladies Collection"?
Dafuq are they smoking? They don't know nothing about style. Apart from the decision to make a pink m600. Ballin.

[Larken]

pelikan fans might be interested in this - see link:

http://thepelikansperch.com/2015/06/25/pelikan-m201-bayou/

[Dihedral]

My first proper fountain pen - Pilot MR.
Looks even cooler in real life than in online photos.
Writes nicely and seems to be getting smoother as I use it.

[CPTBadAss]

pelikan fans might be interested in this - see link:

http://thepelikansperch.com/2015/06/25/pelikan-m201-bayou/

Swirly brown? Ew. Looks like icky Hudson River water.

My first proper fountain pen - Pilot MR.
Looks even cooler in real life than in online photos.
Writes nicely and seems to be getting smoother as I use it.

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I love the Metropolitan so much. Been writing with mine. Got some pilot hermes ink in it for that swag too. Wish hermes would do their orange in an ink...

[Air tree]

Can anyone recommend a good elegant and minimalistic fountain pen? I'm craving another and It would be a good change from the clear twsbi mini. 

I Don't really have a clear budget, just not $300+ 

[CPTBadAss]

Can anyone recommend a good elegant and minimalistic fountain pen? I'm craving another and It would be a good change from the clear twsbi mini. 

I Don't really have a clear budget, just not $300+ 

Can you be a little more specific in what you're looking for? Do you have a filling system or nib you like? What do you see as "elegant and minimalisitic"? I think TWSBIs are minmalistic but that's my taste.

As usual, I'd recommend looking into a Pelikan of some sort but that's always my recommendation. If you can define your tastes a little more I'd be happy to suggest something that I think would suit you.

[Air tree]

Can anyone recommend a good elegant and minimalistic fountain pen? I'm craving another and It would be a good change from the clear twsbi mini. 

I Don't really have a clear budget, just not $300+ 

Can you be a little more specific in what you're looking for? Do you have a filling system or nib you like? What do you see as "elegant and minimalisitic"? I think TWSBIs are minmalistic but that's my taste.

As usual, I'd recommend looking into a Pelikan of some sort but that's always my recommendation. If you can define your tastes a little more I'd be happy to suggest something that I think would suit you.

So far I have only used piston, and that has served me well and hasn't led to any problems, but again, I don't have experience with the other filling systems.

I haven't tried a variety of nibs thus far, I do like the fine nib on my TWSBI, but there's flex nibs. I'm open to trying anything. Flex nibs sound interesting.

The mini has done very well for me, I just want to explore with other pens.

Overall I'm not a huge fan of TWSBI's clear pen styling, but I love it as a writer.


I mean just to gauge my tastes, I find the Full metal falcon pilot to be really quite nice looking.

[CPTBadAss]

So far I have only used piston, and that has served me well and hasn't led to any problems, but again, I don't have experience with the other filling systems.

I haven't tried a variety of nibs thus far, I do like the fine nib on my TWSBI, but there's flex nibs. I'm open to trying anything. Flex nibs sound interesting.

The mini has done very well for me, I just want to explore with other pens.

Overall I'm not a huge fan of TWSBI's clear pen styling, but I love it as a writer.


I mean just to gauge my tastes, I find the Full metal falcon pilot to be really quite nice looking.

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If you want to try an affordable flex nib, pickup a Noodler's Ahab and modify it ("Ease my Flex" mod) with a Dremel. I'm talking $20 will set you up with an Ahab. You can then learn how to mod a fountain pen with the mod and nib smoothing.

Good modern flex pens are kinda hard to come by imo. I prefer vintage flex but the vintage flex stuff is crazy expensive and hyped right now.

I think you might like a Pelikan M200. They're not too expensive if you wait for a sale, you can swap the nibs incredible easy, they look understated but look good (Like that Falcon), and they always write. Otherwise, maybe check out some Pilot stuff like the Metropolitan, Prera, or Stargazer/Stella. Parker and Waterman also have that classic look. But I'm not really a fan of most American stuff. I really only like Esterbrooks (vintage), Franklin Christoph, and Edison.

[Binge]

Can anyone recommend a good elegant and minimalistic fountain pen? I'm craving another and It would be a good change from the clear twsbi mini. 

I Don't really have a clear budget, just not $300+ 

Lamy 2000.  Mine still tickles my nuts even after collecting many many more expensive pens.

[CPTBadAss]

Lamy 2000 is definitely a good recommendation

[tp4tissue]

BMW pen (ball point,  cool looking,  but very meh as a pen..)

I get a few of these in the mail every year.

Apparently people buy these,   DON"T..    There's literally NOTHING actually special about this pen..   If you catch someone using it.. you just KNOW they're a wannabe snob. {also, you'll know they don't know jack **** about pens}

[Larken]

So far I have only used piston, and that has served me well and hasn't led to any problems, but again, I don't have experience with the other filling systems.

I haven't tried a variety of nibs thus far, I do like the fine nib on my TWSBI, but there's flex nibs. I'm open to trying anything. Flex nibs sound interesting.

The mini has done very well for me, I just want to explore with other pens.

Overall I'm not a huge fan of TWSBI's clear pen styling, but I love it as a writer.


I mean just to gauge my tastes, I find the Full metal falcon pilot to be really quite nice looking.

Got a chance to try the falcon out a few weeks back, and I kinda get what Binge was talking about. If you're looking for flex, I honestly wouldn't bother with the stock falcon; it 'flexes' but doesn't really feel quite right in use. As a soft nib however, its fairly nice, but I'd rather take a Pilot Custom 74/91 with a soft-fine in that case.

The Pilot FA nib (available with the custom heritage 742/743/912) is probably the best modern flex nib at the moment, but railroading due to the feed/ink flow issues is fairly common, and needs a good amount of patience, tweaking, and good flowing inks, to make it work well, and even then, it isn't as good as going vintage. I love my 912/FA, however.

The noodlers are okay if you do the mods mentioned well, but provide a crappy experience in their stock forms. Build quality leaves a lot to be desired imo.

On the topic of american pens, I actually really like the Franklin-Christophs. Great pens for the prices they're charging, and getting a Masuyama ground nib for an additional 15 bucks is a really good deal. Newton pens is doing some pretty awesome stuff as well, but the prices are a little out of my range for now.

Instead of the falcon, I'd recommend taking a look at either the Pilot Custom 74/91 with a soft-fine/soft medium fine; decently priced pens (if you buy direct from japan) which allows you to try out some flex (not as soft as full flex, but it gives a similar type of line variation) and see if you like it. It also takes the con-70 converter, which is probably the largest cartridge convertor right now (capacity is comparable to some piston fillers). Another pen in a similar price range would be the platinum 3776 with a soft fine (either Chartres Blue or Burgounge (sp?) Red). The Pilot SF is softer however.

[CPTBadAss]

http://i.instagram.com/anintran

For anyone who's ever asked "How do I improve my handwriting?" @anintran and other instagram calligraphers are doing a series called #handletteredABC. There's drills and videos on how each letter is made. Start practicing.

[FrostyToast]

If you actually want a proper modern flex pen then you will need to pay a pretty penny for the Justus 95.
It has a little gimmick where you can change the hardness of the pen, but the real reason why it is good is that it has the least railroading issues to the point where you can use it to its best potential.

[Binge]

If you actually want a proper modern flex pen then you will need to pay a pretty penny for the Justus 95.
It has a little gimmick where you can change the hardness of the pen, but the real reason why it is good is that it has the least railroading issues to the point where you can use it to its best potential.

Even then the noodler's pens beat it pretty hard... there is no such thing as modern flex. :-/

[Air tree]

http://i.instagram.com/anintran

For anyone who's ever asked "How do I improve my handwriting?" @anintran and other instagram calligraphers are doing a series called #handletteredABC. There's drills and videos on how each letter is made. Start practicing.

It's such a bitter thing handwriting and I. Every time I try to copy or do my best to make something nice I see from somewhere else, I *try* to write cursive style, I fail horribly and it looks like ink splotches that aren't even readable or look anything like letters. 

Then I get angry at my pen for not making me write well, because I have to divert my problems onto objects...

[Larken]

If you actually want a proper modern flex pen then you will need to pay a pretty penny for the Justus 95.
It has a little gimmick where you can change the hardness of the pen, but the real reason why it is good is that it has the least railroading issues to the point where you can use it to its best potential.

Even then the noodler's pens beat it pretty hard... there is no such thing as modern flex. :-/

the point on there being no modern flex - very much agreed.

The Justus is at best as soft as a FA at its softer settings, but due to the tension bar, it has an additional reservoir of ink that helps decrease the odds of railroading. Still a very nice pen, maybe more so if you had Mottishaw do additional flex mods on it, but that's gonna cost upwards of 400 at the very least, and it still won't measure up to vintage flex.

I wouldn't say Noodlers beat it hard though. They're a good introduction to flex and can help decide whether you want to really invest in a better flex pen. Imo they're more a novelty than a reliable pen; but I've had too many problems and mishaps with the konrad that I would never consider to bring any of their pens around as a everyday basher. However, it's okay as a doodling pen that I keep at my desk.


Also, for a really good flex experience, the Noodlers can be made into a frankenpen by fitting a Zebra G nib into them. The nibs are basically consumables as they're not tipped (get the titanium coated ones, they last longer), but given that they're actual dip nibs, they're better flex-ers than any modern flex nib.

this guy does a pretty good overfeed mod for the noodlers (original nib, not the dip nib). They come up on ebay every once in a while. fun for doodling or if you do actual flex calligraphy, but imo not very usable for regular writing due to how much of a gusher the result is.

[Seranite]

Is this blasphemy?

[CPTBadAss]

Is this blasphemy?

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You spelled "****ty" wrong in the first line :(. Nothing wrong with ballpoints though. Sometimes you need them.

[Seranite]

Is this blasphemy?

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You spelled "****ty" wrong in the first line :(. Nothing wrong with ballpoints though. Sometimes you need them.

Wow I did, didn't I. Ah well, I spell my own name wrong half the time when I write my signature...I'm a terrible person.

[Air tree]

Is this blasphemy?

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Step it up.



Didn't even capitalise my "i's" Get gud pls.

[Seranite]

Is this blasphemy?

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Step it up.

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Didn't even capitalise my "i's" Get gud pls.

I surrender. Although it should be considered cheating writing on paper with no lines. Of course it's gonna look like ****!