The SF range of the mid-twenties to late twenties were – and remain – great workaday pens. They’re not, of course, for those who require pens the size of baseball bats but that’s their loss. There was a time, for a century, when people wrote with pens often little bigger than wooden pencils regardless of the size of their hands.

The SF2 carries the style of pens of that era, almost a century ago. You could create a long list of those subtly tapered flat-tops. All the main manufacturers had one or more; Conway Stewart, Waterman, Sheaffer, Onoto – the list goes on.

It’s a pleasant pen with warm-to-the-touch hard rubber and a shape that sits comfortably in the hand for a full day’s writing. The style was never forgotten and there are many later pens that have a memory of it. I’m writing with one now, a Waterman Forum.

SF2s are often plain, a pen that didn’t cost too much and was generally affordable. This one, though, has a touch of opulence, two hall-marked 9 ct barrel bands. They’ve taken some wear over the years but can still be dated to 1926. It is graced with a glorious stub with a hint of obliquity.