Demonstrator pens were usually clear pen models used by sales clerks to show customers how the insides of a pen works, to show off the parts of a pen, how a particular filling mechanism worked, and more. Check out our post on Waterman’s Ink-Vue demonstrator pens. Some demonstrators weren’t clear, but were actually full pens with parts cut away so the inside could be seen. It wasn’t that long ago that this practice was stopped. …
What is an oblique nib? An oblique nib has a tip that is cut or ground at a slight angle, and the pen must be rotated slightly to achieve proper contact on the page. If you’re unfamiliar with this, it can look and feel funny, and it may take some practice to get the hang of it and become comfortable with using your oblique nib.
We have previously written about the Waterman 20S – a flask disguised as a pen. See the original post here! Visconti has just launched the Speakeasy – a modern take of that prohibition era pen, representing the Speakeasy establishments in the US. The back of the pen harbors a sanitized compartment for the beverage of your choice. This pen, like many other Visconti pens, is quite large.
If anything in Catalog #73 still remains and it has caught your eye, now is the time to have a second look. There are about 40 items in the Catalog, and all are 10% off. Have a look here. Catalog #71 and #72 are also on 10% off. Catalog #76 will open to the public at 11:00 am EST on Tuesday, September 1st. Subscribe here for early access.
If you ever find a few drops of ink in the cap of your piston-filling fountain pen after you have inked it, you have probably overfilled it. The combs of the feed hold ink, but that can leak into your cap, so once you have inked the pen, try turning the piston-turning knob to release one to three drops. That will clear the excess ink from your feed and combs, which should stop your pen …
What’s the point of the second inner cap inside the cap of my pen? This helps prevent the ink from drying out by making an air tight seal. In modern pens, you can see these quite easily on clear or ‘demonstrator’ pen caps. Platinum’s system is called the Slip and Seal and is quite effective.
Sometimes with use, a nib may lift off from the feed. This can happen if pressure is applied to the nib in excess of what it can tolerate. If you slide a piece of paper between the nib and feed and it slides in easily, there is too large a gap. This gap can prevent capillary action of the ink to the paper, and you may find your pen runs dry. Vintage pen feeds were …
My vintage pen cap has some holes in it. Does it need repairing? If they are small, clean holes, they were intentionally drilled into the cap to reduce condensation. They should not be blocked, but if they do become blocked by ink (or lint, for example), it can cause a vacuum to pull ink out when you uncap your pen.
There are five buttons you might see on vintage pens: plastic, top hat, twist, aluminum, and brass. Plastic and top hat buttons were used in cheaper pens. The twist button was used in Mabie Todd Swans and Blackbird pens. The aluminum button was found on postwar Victory and Duofold Parkers. However, the brass button was most popular. Button-fillers also required a button bar to operate – when the button was depressed, the bar would compress the …
I bought a vintage pen on eBay with a name engraved on it. Is my pen more or less valuable than one without a name engraved on it? The addition of a name doesn’t necessarily add monetary value, unless it’s Frank Sinatra! What it does add is sentimental value because you know the pen was used and loved by someone enough to have their name put on there. It also adds some historical value to …
