As I wrote in a previous post, a Sofer's writing is heavily influenced by their writing utensil. Now, exactly what material can a Sofer use to write with? Al Pi Halacha, a Sofer can use ANYTHING!!! (Keset HaSofer 3:6)
Some major utensils include:
Quills: Many Sofrim uses feather or quills to write STaM. There are some who doubt using a Tameh (not pure/ not kosher) bird's feather to write STaM. Nowadays, the majority of Soferim use turkey or goose quills to write. Of course, you need to shape the quill yourself (Very delicate and bothersome at times!) Personally, I have used a turkey quill to write.
Quills before they have been sharpened to a tip.
Bamboo: Yes, the same bamboo that Pandas eat. Using a reed for STaM has done ever since the times of Moses Rabbeinu. Sharpening a bamboo reed requires woodworking expertise. I used a bamboo reed before I discovered turkey feather for tools for STaM.
Various bamboo writing utensils.
Metal: As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, even metal can be used for STaM. Now, if you look at Majority of Soferim writing, you see many of them use quills or reeds to write. Why is that? Isn't metal the easiest utensil to write with? Well. Yes, it is the easiest to write with. But to sharpen any metal requires a lot of tools and can be very expensive. Another reason why Soferim do not use metal is that metal is used for weapons of war (ie guns swords tank etc). A Sefer Torah is a peaceful object, why would we use a material that is for killing and destruction for an object that is peaceful? I have used a calligraphy fountain pen as a beginner to practice my letterforms, but only on a piece of paper.
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