Fountain pen sales double - Telegraph The day after his letter was printed teachers, barristers, wine-tasters, aromatherapists and registrars all contacted the paper saying how they prefer using ink pens to biros or ball-point pens. Mike Huntley, from Salisbury, wrote: "When I joined the Army, officers were expected to sign all correspondence using a fountain pen as a sign of mutual respect, not unlike the principle behind saluting. Most of us still do. Judy Miller from Toller Porcorum in Dorset said that she still uses the Parker 51 that she confiscated from my nine-year-old son in 1975. I told him it was too expensive for him. He had swapped it for five marbles," said Ms Miller. Meanwhile Robin Chapman, who wrote to the Telegraph from the south of France, said: "I use a quill; always have done, always will. Those from a peacock's wing feather are both sturdy and well balanced, and in plentiful supply about my garden. As well as claiming that ink pens improve their handwriting, readers said that traditional pens flow better than plastic biros. Sharon Hughes, a buyer for department store chain John Lewis, said that people relish returning to traditional objects during tricky times. They are an old-fashioned thing but people like the personal touch. It is nice for things to be handwritten and not having everything via email," she told the BBC. Gordon Scott, vice-president for office products at Parker pens in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, said that pens have become a fashion accessory. "The relationship we have with a fountain pen is changing from it being a working tool towards more of an accessory," he said. The revival in fountain pens could prove lucrative for some people. One Telegraph reader, Christopher Egerton-Thomas, said: "People who have abandoned their fountain pens will do well to check their drawers. My four old Parkers have been valued at £1,200. They are collectors' items. Others are not so sure about the economics of fountain pens. Andy Wright from Codicote in Hertfordshire, wrote: "I use my father's 60-year-old Parker fountain pen. However, I was shocked when I had to pay £6 for a small bottle of ink.