Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 102

 Today's new acquisition belongs to VPCer Armando, who was kind enough to send us his photos and impressions of a modern fountain pen he recently acquired...

A PRESIDENT OF A PEN

Armando: "It has been said that Bill Clinton was the first US President to use a Japanese pen.  Whether this was the reason why the Platinum Pen Co. called their flagship pen "President" is subject to debate.  The Platinum President pen was released in 1994."

 

(all photos courtesy of Armando ~ please click on images to enlarge)

"I recently acquired a Platinum President Pen.  I was interested in having a pen with a double broad (coarse) nib.  I thought it might be good for a Presidential type signature."

"The pen arrived in a nice brown felt box, covered by a white cardboard box.  What got my attention initially was the two tone 18 k gold nib, with a heart-shaped breather hole.  In addition to this, the nib has a massive tipping material, and it has the mark "C" for coarse, or double broad.  The pen uses a proprietary cartridge converter."

 

 

 "This cigar-shaped pen is similar in looks to a Montblanc 146 (on the left in the above photo).  In fact, they have the same length and almost the same girth.  The pen is not heavy, and quite comfortable in the hand, when using unposted.  When posted, it becomes a bit back heavy, but still usable."

 

 

 

"I inked the pen with an Iroshizuku Shogun Grey.  Writing in a normal 45 degree angle shows the wide lines.  When I hold it more vertical, the lines are just broad or medium.  With reverse writing, it is very smooth, and produces a fine line.

Overall, I think this is a versatile pen, with even a possibility of changing the nib to a cursive italic."

Many thanks to Armando for his photos and review of this handsome fountain pen!

Fountain Pen Day 2020! (Friday November 6th)

From the official Fountain Pen Day website: "Taking place on the first Friday in November each year, Fountain Pen Day is celebrated by enthusiasts worldwide as a time to embrace, promote, and share the use of fountain pens."

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 101

Happy Fountain Pen Day! Today's featured new acquisition is a beautiful sterling silver Italian fountain pen owned by Jerred....

(all photos courtesy of Jerred ~ please click on images to enlarge)

Jerred: "This is the Delta Profili.  It is a faceted pen, with 8 sides, and the cap and barrel are made of sterling silver.  The pen has accents in red celluloid, and has a 14k nib (I said 18k at the meeting, oops!)."

 

"There are at least two versions of the Profili of which I am aware, and this is the second.  The first version of the Profili was engraved on all body facets, and the "Delta Italy" logo is engraved on the cap.  This second version is recognizable from the first as only alternating facets of the body are engraved, and the "Delta Profili" logo is on the body, not the cap.  This second version of the Profili is a little bit more rare than the first."

"This particular pen came with Delta's #5.5 nib in 14k solid gold, with Rhodium plating.  The pen was not used much, but the nib is still a pretty decent writer."

 

What a gorgeous fountain pen! Congratulations on your new purchase, Jerred, and thanks for sharing it with us!

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 100

For post #100, I thought it'd be nice to feature a pen belonging to the person who suggested our pen club's ongoing virtual "show & tell"-- René!
The pen in question? His Sheaffer '330' fountain pen....

(all photos by René ~ click on images to enlarge)

(photo above : Sheaffer '330' fountain pen)

 René: "Not long ago I acquired a Sheaffer 440 from VPCer Jerred. The 440 is what is called a "quasi-Imperial" pen from Sheaffer, from the 1970s, inspired by the successful Imperial line, several models of which came with the elegant and beautiful inlaid diamond-shaped nib. The 440 is called "quasi-imperial" because it also has the diamond-shaped inlaid nib, but a shorter one and is made of steel, instead of gold."

"While the 440 model has a plastic body and brushed steel cap, the 330 has the same body, but with a plastic cap with a metal cap ring, reminiscent of the Imperial IV cap."

 

  "As it shares the same nib section as the 440, the 330 is also a lovely writer, but the cap is a bit more difficult to post securely for some reason. 

 

 "Still, it's a beautiful pen that is cheaper than one of the Imperials but has the same elegant look, an underrated vintage pen."

 

"For comparison, here is a picture of the 330/44x quasi-imperials. From the top, the 444 (steel cap and body), the 440 (steel cap, plastic body), and the 330 (plastic cap and body)."

Love the short inlaid nibs on those 70s Sheaffers! For a nice article on this nib and its cousins, check out this article on Penhero.com - The Evolution of the Sheaffer Inlaid Nib 1959-Present

To René and all the VPC members who have contributed to our virtual show & tell --Thank you so much!

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 99

 A few weeks ago, longtime Vancouver Pen Club member Christopher asked me if I happened to know anything about the manufacturer of this vintage fountain pen he recently acquired - an attractive Refograph bulb-filler...

(all photos courtesy of Christopher ~ please click on images to enlarge)

Christopher's initial thoughts on the mystery pen: "The Refograph is a bulb filler covered by a long shiny black blind cap, and may I add, of considerable quality. The barrel supports a very large ink view window, which has a spiderweb pattern etched on the surface, The section is the best shaped one for my fingers yet. The cap has the most beautiful mottled red pearl and back finish topped off with a black cap screw which secures an even more attractive clip. The clip is also imprinted ‘Refograph’ and looks German 1930s in it’s design. Beautifully finished and shaped. There are also three distinctive cap bands, the middle one being wider. All the fittings are 14K gold filled."

"But I have saved the best for last. The tiny nib, a Warranted one is of super high quality and definitely 14K gold. And I would have to add that this little beauty is a semi broad with more flex than can be imagined. I took the liberty of an educated guess as to the dating as mid 30s. Actually I have had several 1930s German Reform pens and their clips were somewhat similar to this one."

I subsequently did a bit of digging and found a reference to Refograph in a list of Hungarian pen brands on FPN. You certainly don't see too many Hungarian fountain pens (vintage or modern!) around, so I was very pleased that Christopher sent it in for our online "show & tell". Many thanks, Christopher, for sharing your interesting new find with us :)

Stay well, everyone!
~Maja

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 98

Happy Hallowe'en! Today's newest acquisition is a fountain pen made by a pen company whose name begins with "Water"... and no, it's not Waterman...

Meet my new Waterford 'Marquis Arista Prism' fountain pen!

(all photos by Maja ~ please click on images to enlarge)

Though Waterford is best known for its hand-cut fine crystal, it also put its name on fine writing instruments (the company named their 'Beaumont', 'Lismore', 'Kilbarry' and 'Marquis' writing instruments after famous Waterford glass patterns). My first Waterford pen was the very first fountain pen I bought online, way back in October 2002. It was a shiny chrome Waterford 'Marquis' that I bought from PenCity.com in Ellijay, Georgia. I still have the pen and I still use it :)

 

 My particular 'Marquis Arista Prism' fountain pen is a wonderful colour named "Caramel", so I couldn't resist snapping a shot of it next to some Hallowe'en candies. It's a yummy mixture of light orange & warm brownish tones that are hard to capture in a photo (especially with my photographic skills), and the resin has a lovely depth and shimmer, too. 

 

 
The 'Marquis Arista' model also came in Rainbow, Mocha and Purple colours, but I had my eye on the Caramel for many years, although I somehow never got around to buying it until a few weeks ago when I saw it on Amazon.ca for $50 CAD (+ free shipping from Ontario). It was a snap purchase, but I hadn't seen the pen for sale in ages, so I jumped at the chance to acquire it...and I'm so glad I did.

At 20 grams, it's a fairly light fountain pen and it's very well-balanced when posted. Unposted, it's nicely-balanced as well, likely due to the metal disc on the barrel end. As well as being an attractive pen that feels good in the hand, it writes really well. The steel nib is extremely smooth and has no start-up problems at all. The cap screws onto the barrel and I've had no drying-out issues with the pen. 

I love how the section matches the rest of the pen...

So what don't I like about the pen? Not too much, actually. If I could, I'd make the nib slightly larger so that it's more in proportion to the rest of the pen. The finial on the cap top (made of the same material as the rest of the pen) creates a rounded top to the cap, which doesn't match the flat barrel end. Normally this kind of design mismatch drives me crazy (I almost didn't buy my Laban '325' fountain pen for this reason) but I think I'm becoming more tolerant of these stylistic quirks because I didn't hesitate to buy the Waterford when I saw it.

My only real quibble is that the metal cap ring nearly fell off when I took the pen out of its box. A very small amount of cyanoacrylate  (Krazy Glue ®) carefully applied to the cap ring groove did the trick--the cap ring hasn't budged since. Aside from that, I'm very happy with this purchase from Amazon.ca.

~Pics & review by Maja

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 97

From Stuart's "Starwalker" to Glenn's "Moonstone", the highly-anticipated Pelikan M205 "Moonstone" Special Edition fountain pen belonging to our Aussie honourary VPC member...

 (all photos courtesy of Glenn ~ please click on images to enlarge)

The "Moonstone" is Pelikan's M205 Special Edition for the year 2020 and was inspired by the Moonstone gemstone. As they've done with the previous five M205/M200 Special Editions inspired by gemstones, a matching ink (Pelikan 'Edelstein' "Moonstone" ink) was released this year, as well.

 

There's a nice article on the pen on Joshua Danley's excellent Pelikan website here:
News: M205 Moonstone Special Edition Demonstrator

As Joshua notes in his article, it's the second year in a row that Pelikan has used sparkles in their yearly M205 Special Editions (the first being 2019's lovely "Star Ruby"). This shimmering iridescence gives a real "oomph" to what could be a relatively ho-hum grey demonstrator fountain pen (GoldspotPens.com, in a recent newsletter, calls the M205 Moonstone "unassuming and opulent at the same time.")

 

 Glenn's own thoughts on the colour of the pen: "Very different with pretty but muted sparkle that might look even better on a less transparent pen." 

  Many thanks to Glenn for sharing this beautiful new acquisition with us :)

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 96

Today's featured new acquisition is a lovely Montblanc 'StarWalker Doué' fountain pen that Stuart purchased at the Vancouver Pen Shop a few weeks ago. The shop is having its annual October sale so if you're interested in buying some pens/pencils/inks/paper/accessories there, head on down before the sale ends on Saturday!

 (all photos courtesy of Stuart ~ please click on images to enlarge)

Stuart: "Here are some shots of my Starwalker!  I picked it up yesterday, and I’m so pleased with it.  The nib is super-smooth, it’s comfortable to hold, and the look is great."

"I’m actually not sure if the point if Medium or Broad, I can’t remember! Anyway it’s a great writer. Shannon put in a Monteverde converter, because it has a softer end than the one MB makes. It works fine. The transparent cap end isn’t the lovely blue shade of some other versions, but the floating snowflake still looks very cool." 

"I managed to capture the subtle ribbed pattern of the cap and barrel, which I love...
 So after 39 years I have another Montblanc, LOL!"

Congratulations on your gorgeous new purchase, Stuart, and thanks for sharing it with us!

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 95

 From Andy's "Year of the Rat" PenBBS pen to René's Sheaffer "Dolphin" fountain pens!

(all photos courtesy of  René ~ please click in images to enlarge)

 Rene:"Sometimes included as part of the Sheaffer Imperial pens of the late 1950s - 60s, the so-called "dolphin" (not the official name) pens are pens of a rather odd design that does gain inspiration from the Imperial and PFM lines. They initially came out in 1962, after the Imperial line was released and lasted until 1964. "

"There were three models (see photo below) in the line, numbered after the base selling price point of the particular model (like most of the other "numbered" vintage Sheaffer models): The '500' cartridge model (plastic body, steel cap, steel nib) sold at $5.00, the '800' cartridge model was sold at $7.95, and the '1000' model sold as $10.00.  

Note that I omitted that $10 was the price of the cartridge 1000 model. This was because, while the 500 and 800 models also had Touchdown versions (which sold at $1 higher than the cartridge versions), the top of the line 1000 model oddly did not."

(Photo above, top to bottom: the '1000' model, the '800' model, and the '500' model)

"Some time ago I obtained a (cartridge) Sheaffer 500 from VPCer Jerred, but recently came across an '800' and a '1000' and couldn't resist completing the series. The difference between the two is that the '800' has a plastic cap with a metal cap ring, while the ' 1000' has a gold-filled cap." 

 

"Unlike the '500', the dolphin nibs of the '800' and '1000' are 14-karat gold. The "diamond" inlay in the plastic isn't actually part of (or connected to) the nib, but a decoration meant to look like the Imperial/PFM nibs. The '800' I got is a (functional) Touchdown model, while the '1000', of course, is the correct cartridge model. The bodies of the 800 and 1000 are otherwise identical and would be interchangeable."

 

 (the eponymous dolphin's head profile of the pen's nib section)

Love the shape of that nib-section unit! Many thanks to René for another great contribution to our virtual "show & tell" :)

Newest Acquisitions (Virtual "Show & Tell") ~ part 94

 Brand-new VPC member Andy was kind enough to send in a nice write-up and photos of two very cool PenBBS fountain pens (both belonging to him) with an intriguing filling mechanism...

In his own words:
"A bit about the company Penbbs....

Penbbs is a Chinese online fountain pen community similar to the Fountain Pen Network. They talk about fountain pens and inks and have also produced their own inks and pens since 2005. They use high quality components and acrylic resins to produce very well made pens of unique designs."

 (all photos courtesy of Andy ~ please click on images to enlarge)

 

"This particular Penbbs Model 492 is a special edition celebrating The Year Of The Rat.
It is a magnetic piston filler demonstrator with a matching ink bottle. I chose this particular pen because it was a recent purchase and I was born in this significant year as well."

 

"Here it is compared with the standard line-up magnetic piston-fill Model 487.

The 487 is finished in a Cordierite color scheme.

The filling mechanism is a simple neodymium magnetic on the piston and also one in the cap finial."

 

 

 

"Here is a diagram of the filling system and instructions of how to operate it.

I find the mechanism to be very fun but also finicky at first. The silicone combined with the rubber gasket piston needs a bit of breaking-in and with prolonged use, it becomes easier to move."

 

"The nibs are steel and these ones are in fine with their signature semi-upturned tip.

I find their upturned tips to be an extremely smooth experience without being too wet."

 

 

 "The cap band, clip, barrel finial and nib are finished in rose gold and the extra details such as the lantern on the clip and the mouse on the nib make it quite special."

 

 

 "Another look at the cap details.

I do like the standard model 487 with its stamped insignia. It gives it a high end look and tactile feel."

 

Andy---welcome to our pen club and thanks so much for contributing to our online "show & tell"!