rawbunzel
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posted on September 6, 2000 11:39:25 PM
 A Lure For Zippy
I was just sitting here wondering if anyone else has a favorite writing implement. I love vintage fountain pens and have a large ,but not particularly valuable, collection. My collection does not have any of the very ornate pens ,like Mont Blancs,just the more common types- Sheaffer,Parker,Eversharp, etc plus a couple of Watermans. I love them just the same and have used them all at some time or other. What I really love is the way the pen tip glides across the paper when you have the right nib and the way the gold glints in the light. I only use these pens when I am writing letters [or my memoirs!LOL!]. Yes, I still write real ,on paper, letters! I also collect vintage writing paper so I am "in the era" when I write.  . One of my all time favorites is a plain Parker51, not that old, 1950's, turquoise blue with a brushed metal cap. It just writes beautifully! I am left handed and I find it is harder to find just the right fit.
I also have a collection of vintage ball point pens and again the Parkers from the 1940's are my favorites. I carry one at all times with my check book. I lost one once and felt terrible but then found another just like it a few weeks later at an estate sale.Lucky day for me!
In this day of computers and email does anyone else still love the pen?
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bitsandbobs
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posted on September 7, 2000 12:07:34 AM
I know what you mean. I'm not very knowledgeable about collectable pens but when you get one that's right it just feels so good to use.
Even common ball point pens can have a character of their own. I really get annoyed when you finally get one that feels good and lose the darn thing!
BTW. Is there a particular name for pen collectors?
Bob, Downunder but never down.
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rawbunzel
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posted on September 7, 2000 12:21:59 AM
Hi Bob! I am sure there is a name for pen collectors but for the life of me I can't think of it! I used to subscribe to the Pen Fanciers Magazine and don't remember being called anything but just that...a pen fancier!I'll bet someone here knows what pen fanciers really are.
Some of the neatest pens I have are Eversharp Skyline pens, they look like little Mount Palomars' [I am sure I spelled that wrong!It is the observatory.]
A pen is so much more personal than a computer.
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pareau
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posted on September 7, 2000 12:31:25 AM
For amusement value, it's hard to beat the Floaty.
I really get annoyed when you finally get one that feels good and lose the darn thing! The human tragedy--but that's how you discover fresh and exciting new pens, isn't it?
- Pareau
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bitsandbobs
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posted on September 7, 2000 03:57:31 AM
pareau,
How true!
Great GIF.!!!!
Bob, Downunder but never down.
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DWest
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posted on September 7, 2000 06:22:14 AM
I love unique and unusual pens. My favorite of the moment is made by Sensa. It is fabulous -- it can write over spots of oil and it can write upside down.
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loosecannon
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posted on September 7, 2000 06:38:33 AM
Top to bottom: Old orange Astor fountain pen, Dixie fountain pen, pair of Esterbrook fountain pens, rare Evans fountain pen. All from the 1920's except for the Esterbrooks which are circa 1950.
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loosecannon
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posted on September 7, 2000 06:53:58 AM
Eversharp Skyline fountain pen circa 1945, large Majestic fountain pen circa 1929, Sheaffer Jr. fountain pen circa 1936.
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loosecannon
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posted on September 7, 2000 08:21:03 AM
Parker "Blue Diamond" Duofold fountain pen, circa 1940, Parker "Debutante" Vacumatic fountain pen, circa 1940, Eberhard Faber fountain pen, circa 1950.
I like pens if you haven't already figured this out. 
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pareau
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posted on September 7, 2000 08:47:31 AM
It's a shame that so many of the old pens are actually poor performers. They may look good lying on the desk, but often as not they're plagued with unreliable nibs and leaky bladders. I like the disposable gel pens for a good writing experience, and rely on a cheap Sheaffer cartridge model when I want to use a fountain pen. The Eversharp Doric, lovely as it is, stays in the drawer. My next big splurge will probably be a Sensa, if I can ever decide on the color.
- Pareau
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loosecannon
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:02:32 AM
Poor performers? Get them fixed then if you want to use them. After all, many are 50 years old and older. You wouldn't expect a car to last 50 years without some care and feeding. Same with old pens. They are mechanical.
I don't use fountain pens. I just like to look at them...and sell them.
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mybiddness
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:07:23 AM
loosecannon Your pens are gorgeous - makes me wanna start collecting them myself. Personally, I use whatever is handy -
Does anyone know when the pen was invented? - just curious.
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jamesoblivion
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:10:45 AM
I can barely write. My handwriting is atrocious. Other than addressing an envelope or signing a check I don't write at all. I don't think a nice pen would help.
James.
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loosecannon
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:13:05 AM
mybiddness
Thank you but...these are no longer mine. These are pens I have sold recently, except for the two Parkers. I gave those two to a friend.
I believe the earliest fountain pens were patented in the early 1880's. Waterman's and Parker were two of the earliest. They were very simple and were filled by means of an eyedropper, hence the "eyedropper filler" pens. Most fountain pens were made of hard rubber until the mid to late 1920's when plastics came into use. By the 1890's pen makers were working on other more convenient methods of filling the resevoir, and most relied on a rubber bladder. WA Sheaffer invented the "lever filler" around 1910 or so and most makers adopted this filling method with the notable exception of Parker. By 1920 or so, the eyedropper fillers were a thing of the past.
[ edited by loosecannon on Sep 7, 2000 09:27 AM ]
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mybiddness
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:16:08 AM
Darn it! Then, is it too late for us to become really, really good friends? Like the kind you give your cool pens to.
All my friends are rednecks and everyone knows we use bark fer our writin - those of us that know how.
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ShellyHerr
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:26:34 AM
loosecannon-can you tell me where to get a cartridge for a G. Crown Pen?
I've looked everywhere, or will any cartridge work in it?
My brother brought me back this one from Hong Kong, its 24 kt gold on all the gold 'parts' its really cool, came in a really neat case, but no cartridges! I really would rather use it, then display it!
I think the 'art' of writing is becoming a 'lost art' with everyone keyboarding these days.
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loosecannon
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:34:01 AM
Shelly
It's very possible that it was made to use a cartridge that is currently available, like a Sheaffer, Cross, Montblanc or Parker cartidge. If not, it's equally possible that some currently available cartridge can be adapted to it. I'm not familiar with Crown pens. Sorry I can't be of much help.
mybiddness
Of course it's not too late.
I hope I'm not dominating this thread. Don't mean to do that. I was just excited about seeing a thread that was about something close to home, you know...
[ edited by loosecannon on Sep 7, 2000 09:40 AM ]
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ShellyHerr
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:41:01 AM
loosecannon -thanks, I was not familiar at all with this pen. I know Sheaffer and those, but not this one.
I probably should try one of the cartridges sold for the others, never tried! because I thought it had to be for this Crown. (duh )
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rawbunzel
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posted on September 7, 2000 10:39:11 AM
loosecannon Those are some nice looking pens! My husband keeps asking me if it is time to sell mine. I keep telling him NO. I enjoy them too much. No pictures of mine to post! Maybe will do some later but need to be busy listing today.That Astor pen looks quite a lot like a Parker Duo-Fold. I have several Duo-Fold pens but not the big one that is so valuable.
pareau, It is easy to fix a bladder if that is what is wrong with your pen. I have done it many times.[of course,first you have to find the new bladder!]There are many places that will repair it for you.Nibs too can be replaced with little effort. The Sheaffer snorkle pens are really difficult...make that impossible for me to figure out.. so I just look at those if they don't work! They have the most beautiful nibs so are worth just looking at.The small diaphram in the Parkers is harder to do but can be done by those who know how. I have a couple of really oddball pens that have some kind of cork affair that keeps the ink flowing and they are probably impossible to repair.
As for those floaty pens..well I confess I have a few of those as well as the ones where the ladies clothes come off when you tip the pen.
mybiddness You should start a small collection! They are addictive though and it will grow faster than you think! Estate sales are a really good place to find them still.
James My handwriting is also very poor but improves greatly when I use my favorite pen! I don't understand that except I guess I use more care and go slower.
Nice to see there are still a few pen lovers!
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RainyBear
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posted on September 7, 2000 11:16:33 AM
I don't know nuttin' 'bout no fancy pens, but I'll admit I love to use up one of my disposable ones so I can throw it away and start using a new pen! Ah, satisfaction.
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Antiquary
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posted on September 7, 2000 07:38:13 PM
Cool thread, Robin. I like pens too, though I don't really collect them, just have a few old collectible ones that were either family owned or interesting enough for one reason or another to keep. But I still like to write with pens--old habits I suppose and I've written so much for so long that my writing is almost as fast as my typing. The only times I definitely handwrite anymore though is serious personal correspondence. One of my favorite quotations is Cervantes', "The pen is the tongue of the mind." The substitution of "keyboard" doesn't seem to quite equate. Not to mention that it's marginally PC.
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rawbunzel
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posted on September 7, 2000 09:22:53 PM
Hi Antiquary! I like that..."the pen is the tongue of the mind". I always pick a special pen when writing my personal correspondence. It just doesn't seem very personal when typed on the computer! I enjoy recieving a hand written note so much more than a typed one..those are the ones I save, they just mean so much more. Lucky for me my husband loves to write and he has beautiful handwriting!
As for PC I do not know what is and isn't anymore! What I have read on the other thread makes me wonder if anyone really knows!Then again does it really matter? It appears to be an individual thing open to any interpretation. 
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Prudence
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posted on September 7, 2000 10:12:36 PM
All I know about pens is the one I love. I have been using the orange Parker Big Red since it was revived in the early 70's. Refills for ball point and flair tip are readily available, though they quit making the pen years ago. It has a good feel in the hand and the refills last a long time. It gives me pleasure just to look at it. I have what should be a lifetime supply. They can be found new in the box on ebay for $10-30 depending on the phase of the moon or whatever else it is that motivates bidders. Go for the original orange; black and red etc. are a slightly later version of lesser quality. Make sure it has metal trim around the open end of the cap and no advertizing printed on the barrel. The picture will show this. The gold looks better in person than the silver trim. There is also a lady's model with a ring on the end instead of a pocket clip so that it may hang on a necklace. A great pen at a price that won't leave tears when it gets lost.
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OneZippyOne
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posted on September 7, 2000 10:39:09 PM
And who better to a lure?
Pen fanciers are fun!
The pen is mightier than the sword
for men would gladly lay down arms.
Wow, what fine humor. Much more subtle than the earlier thread. The uninitiated might think of a Freudian Mad-Lib.
Serendipity & Peace...
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rawbunzel
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posted on September 7, 2000 10:48:52 PM
Yea!!! It worked! My lure worked!
Hi Zippy, if I had known this was what it would take to get you here once in a while I would most certainly have done it sooner!
Pen fanciers are a fun bunch,aren't they!!
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jt-2007
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posted on September 7, 2000 10:59:44 PM
A page maybe of interest to some of you:
http://www.cynscribe.com/
T
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OneZippyOne
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posted on September 7, 2000 11:07:30 PM
Wow, closely attended too. So am I hooked and/or are you just playing me?
Hi JT!
Serendipity & Peace...
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rawbunzel
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posted on September 7, 2000 11:20:53 PM
When one is fishing one must watch the line carefully for any sign that the prey is near. Hooks not set! You may wriggle free at will. I always catch and release anyway!
Great to see you around. I always enjoy your wit!
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OneZippyOne
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posted on September 7, 2000 11:33:03 PM
Wriggling free willfully. This game is fun! Something's fishy, though.
Serendipity & Peace...
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rawbunzel
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posted on September 7, 2000 11:44:10 PM
Oh dear! Fishy you say? {insert eyelash fluttering GIF here...always wanted one but can't find one!} Well, I know they serve Pike elsewhere ,here more likely Tuna!
White or wheat?
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