Silvine vs Clairefontaine

Looking forward to this... I was considering Silvine the other day.
Clairefontaine bought Rhodia in 1997. They're both what they are, but it's interesting to know.
FWIW I'm currently using Atoma paper. I don't know who makes it for them, but it is rather nice with a little feedback. Designed to be FP friendly.
I'll catch this later. :)
Thank you.

Very good presentation. I like the comparison. I have been looking for new notebooks. The Silvine. May be worth considering. My main concern is the dry time of the ink on the paper. Tomoe River paper has too long of a dry time for me.

I see no need for antimicrobial paper unless you work in a sterile environment. Maybe it would be a concern if you share the notebook with others and worry about a person with non hygienic hands.

I love Silvine stuff. I have over 100 (yes 100) red exercise books. Same for the smaller Silvine memo notebooks. I also have 40+ of the Silvine marbled hardback exercise books. I could say I'm a bit of a fan.

Your mileage may vary. 😁 (I prefer Clairefontaine over Rhodia, personally. So... 😉)
Just a guess, but the antimicrobial paper might be because of the grubby hands and such of the younger students. (Boys and girls go through a stage of being filthy little animals during primary school, generally. 😁) A possible attempt to prevent transmission of disease.
Support your local business! Sadly, there's nothing like Cult Pens near my location in southern Michigan. Closest is iPenstore in Dexter, Michigan. (And I have gotten Diamine inks for cheaper than US sellers from Online Pen Company in Stourport-on-Severn. UK vendors generally seem to have better prices than US ones, and I'm on a fixed disability income. Even shipping to the US, the UK vendors are cheaper for me. Go figure...)

I love paper almost as much as I love ink, which I love almost as much as I love pens.
I don't need anti-anything paper.

FWIW, I've been getting a bit cranky with Clairefontaine of late, because the A4 tablet I've been using has been giving me feathering on the "back" side. And Rhodia and TR do not. The local bricks & mortar store only carries Rhodia, so I'm not getting too flustered. And, of course, at age 79, I have only a few years left anyway.

I remember the red Silvine note books well. Going to spray them with antibacterial kitchen cleaner after writing this. Thanks as always for your time, and insight!

Anti microbial sounds like a marketing gimmick. I bet it's their archival grade sheets and they discovered it fends off bacteria.

I've been using various kinds of paper since I was a small child. Hundreds of different kinds, and I can't remember ever having a problem with microbes, fungus, although I think I did once have a problem with Martian Dry Dot (MDR) left behind by a passing UFO. Until someone coated a paper with an MDR repellant, I think I'll just stick to my regular paper.

I have ten three ring binders filled with 8.5x11 notebook paper that holds up to most fountain pens pretty well. I've been using Black N' Red A4 Casebound books for my journals because times being what they were in 1968, and considering how far in the middle of nowhere I lived, it was a miracle that a local store started carrying those notebooks. I like the way they handle fountain pens, and I like the look, so I never saw a reason to change.

But I have so many different brands of notebooks, and so many type within the brands, that I have no clue how many I've amassed. I use Rhodia for many things, and I fool around with all sorts of brands, but I started using Apica notebooks, and I like them a lot. The size I use most is 7x10 inches. I don't have one with me now, but I think there's fifty sheets, or one hundred pages. At about eight dollars each, they are more expensive than I like, but the page setup is perfect for one of my uses, so I bite the bullet and buy them as needed.

I really shouldn't have to buy any notebooks. I have stack and stacks, shelves and shelves full of notebooks and journals of every size. Probably more than I would ever use, even if I stopped buying more. But you know how that is.

I buy the pocket Silvine Notebook from the Range, about 70p, back home I use a sharp knife and steel ruler and trim off the open edge about 1/2” this then makes them a good replacement for the Midori Travellers Notebook refills which cost considerably more

Memories! Yes, I had a Silvine 'roughbook' at school in the 70s, and I carried round a small Silvine in my back pocket for my sparkling epigrams, brilliant poems and earth-shattering aperçus (plus other juvenilia). I never really used them with fountain pens, for sinister reasons. 😉 But they fared well for the purpose. My colleagues tensed to use something called a Handy Andy pad, which had absolutely dreadful paper.

Now, I use Rhodia dot paper, and it's good for writing on, but less use for shade sheen and shimmer. Now I'm making my own notebooks, I'm considering experimenting with other papers.

It is only the cover which is treated, as per on the exaclairlimited site. One can read "Treated with an organic antimicrobial active ingredient, the Clean’Safe notebook cover helps stops the spread of bacteria and viruses, helping eliminate them by more than 99% for the lifetime of the product...The pressboard cover is treated with a quaternary ammonium-based biocide, an organic antimicrobial additive. FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and BFR 36 (Paper & Board for food contact) approved, this additive is safe for health, and not bioaccumulative. It is also frequently used in disinfectant gels."

ETA: "the lifetime of the product" - just how long would that be, though?

Very interesting as always Mike

Antimicrobial paper??
😂

Maybe, when you were at school, you had a pen with a poorer quality nib.
I like the coating that Rhodia put on its paper, but don't like the flip-over pads that seem a peculiar size.
The last time that I looked, Sylvine products were made in the UK. So , I buy Sylvine on price, and in a very small way , support British companies.
Your finger problem must have been somewhat frightening, at first. I hope that your coming operation manages to sort it out.
As for Morris Dancing and fountain pens, stick to taking your metal Kaweko Sport, in future 🖋

I imagine a hypochondriac would love an antimicrobial paper pad 😅 but seems to me like their banking on Covid, judging by that illustration on the cover

I love Silvine. I use their Perfect (Perfecto/Perfect🔍) range almost exclusively. It's lovely to write on, minimal bleed through for the price and I get through quite a lot as a minute taker who still uses a fountain pen.
Re the microbial resistant paper, I guess if someone's going to find one's dull old musings in the cellar in 50 years it might be a bit less musty for them, but I expect the anti-microbial trend is just an added selling point in these virus--sy times.

The Silvine school books can be bought in red yellow and blue colours, 99p from B&M stores.
Excellent quality paper and made in England.

You have lovely handwriting, don’t listen to the complainers

Silvine every time.