Glossary
Hard start
The pen hesitates on the first stroke after a pause.
A hard start is the missed or faint first stroke after the pen has sat — capped for a day or just idle mid-thought. Usual suspects, in order: dried ink at the tip, baby’s bottom, a too-dry ink/nib pairing, or a cap that doesn’t seal.
Platinum’s Slip & Seal caps built a reputation on eliminating exactly this. If a pen hard-starts fresh from a fill, it is a nib problem, not an ink problem.
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