Month: October 2012

Waterman No 14 Eyedropper Filler.

 

The Waterman Ideal 14 differs only in size from the No 12. It’s close to as simple as a fountain pen can get and yet there is still, rightly, huge demand for these excellent writers. I believe it came out in 1899, breaking new ground with its cone cap and the overflow reservoirs in the feed, which Waterman now christened the “spoon feed”.

I think it’s worth saying with regard to this particular example that I’m not totally convinced that the cap is original. The person I bought it from, to be fair, wasn’t sure either. It fits perfectly in length and diameter but it’s a little darker than the rest of the pen and I view it with mild suspicion.

Waterman made a virtue of the minimalist simplicity of these pens; there’s a barrel, a cap, a feed, a section and a nib. That’s it. It’s all you need to make a perfect pen! Later models came with a fixed clip as an option, and so popular was this range of pens that it continued on sale until around 1925.

The main reason for their continuing popularity today is the nib. The No 14 nib is noticeably bigger than 12, but otherwise it conforms to the same “Ideal” design. These are wonderful nibs. This particular one is very fine, perhaps an EF, with superb flexibility and snappy return.

I should have photographed the barrel thread. Waterman’s have quite short barrel threads, but they’re deeply cut and unless they’re completely worn out, which is rare, they hold ink absolutely securely. No need to go slapping silicone grease on these pens!

Because the cap may be a replacement, I can’t date this pen with certainty but it’s unlikely to be much, if any, less than a hundred years old. What a privilege it is to share the pleasure of writing with such an exceptional pen with its original buyer all those years ago!

Pen Prices

Back to buying pens in eBay today for the first time in quite a while. It’s one of my favourite things to do. Sitting there for the last few seconds, finger poised over the mouse button – it’s exciting in a good non-stressful way and paradoxically it’s very relaxing, as I shut the rest of the world out and concentrate on the auction.

Strangely, given how terrible the economy is, prices for unrestored pens seem to be rising. Not quite what you’d expect. You’d think that people suffering the squeeze of the wage freeze or the penury of unemployment would be spending the few pennies they have on Rice Crispies and Baked Beans to keep body and soul together, but no, they’re all in there bidding furiously on a tatty Burnham with a missing clip. Perhaps that’s how Britain will rise again from the double-dip depression, by everyone sitting at home fixing up pens and selling them to those who still have some money left, at home and abroad.

Seriously, though, everyday, ordinary old pens do seem to be enjoying a price rise, and they did at this time last year too. While it’s a little annoying to those of us looking to buy in stock, it’s good for the hobby. If old pens have a decent value they’re less likely to be thrown out or cannibalised for the value of the gold nib.

The Shop Door’s Open!

It’s been in planning since April and in development since June. That’s quite a gestation period for a simple little sales website, but it’s ready to go at last! If it ever crosses your mind that you might like a professionally-crafted website, take a look at the bottom right hand corner of mine, note the name and avoid them like the plague! As you know, I’ve had some trouble with those people, she said, using understatement for effect, and though I’ve spent hours checking the operation of the site there are some areas I can’t fully test, so if you come across any glitches drop me an email and I’ll butcher the lot of them have a word with the developers.

Yesterday was a blur of photographing, editing photos, writing descriptions and uploading but looking at the site now I think it will be worth it. There must be around seventy pens there, mostly British, all makes. But why tell you about it when you can go and look for yourself!

http://www.goodwriterspensales.com

Making Progress

I’m hoping to announce the sales site on Sunday. Annoyingly, I had commitments on Monday and Wednesday of this week that were unavoidable and took a whole precious day each. I’ve got some Swans loaded on to the site – I’ll probably add quite a few more – and some Conway Stewarts. There are quite a few in the Bargain Corner and some in Uncommon & Unusual. I still have to load some Watermans, Parkers, Mentmores Summits and others.

My future contains much testing, photographing, describing and uploading.