I'm actually surprised at how little my writing feathers when I'm using a fountain pen. (I've bought a couple, in the $40-60 range). As long as I'm using decent paper and a finer nib, I tend to get no feathering at all. If you're using paper that has a rougher, newsprinty texture, you'll definitely get more, but you don't have to buy high-end paper to avoid it.