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My New Esterbrook


Carl Fisher - F3 Pens

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Wanted something different to play with and pull design ideas from for my custom pens so I won a nice condition green desk set from ebay. Section pulled off with just a little wiggling encouragement and the sac is in good shape but does have one small hard spot.

 

Lever and J bar seem to be in good shape and other than needing a bit of tuning on the nib I think it was an overall good buy at $15. It has a 9450 nib in place now but I have a fair amount of Este renew points to swap in.

 

So how do I find out more about this pen? i.e. rough estimate of when it was produced, anything special about the color scheme, etc...

 

This was the picture from the auction. I'll get some better shots and macro details the next time I get my camera out.

 

Thanks!

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Edited by Carl Fisher

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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Ah so YOU were the one that snagged it.

N-joy

 

http://esterbrook.net/

Then look at the desk pen and desk set sections on the left.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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Beautiful base!. Your pen looks grey in the picture. I've seen them in a teal and/or solid green. If you can find one of those, it would make a spectacular set. Nice catch.

 

The 8-ball shows up in the 1938 catalog, along with the "doorstop" and Dipless "tower", but it may have been originally produced earlier. Maybe someone with more precise info will weigh in ....

Best Regards
Paul


“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”
– Albert Einstein

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That picture unfortunately doesn't show off the coloring very well, but it is indeed a solid green base with that wonderful green metallic looking Este body. The pen itself is in GREAT shape, the base has a small section of the black trim ring around the opening that is cracked, but that's not so bad and I can probably repair it.

 

I saw on Esterbrook's website that the desk pens seemed to be late 30's but I didn't know if that meant they stopped production around that time or not. Sounds like that's quite possibly the right time frame then.

 

If I had to guess, I'd say it's been restored once in it's past.

 

Thanks for the info :D

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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Desk pens continued from whenever they started making them until well into the '60s. They changed the design of the Dipless sets and also made some pretty pastel colors. But yours is one of the better colors of the 8-ball style.

 

Here's a link to one of the pretty pastel desk sets, now on the bay. A bit expensive, and a fountain pen, NOT a dipless ....

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-ESTERBROOK-Deco-green-porcelain-DIPLESS-FOUNTAIN-PEN-HOLDER-paper-weight-/291250395577?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item43cfe059b9

Edited by Hobiwan

Best Regards
Paul


“Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”
– Albert Einstein

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These are the shots I was able to get tonight without breaking out the light box. Coloring is a bit different between the base and the pen so I don't know if they are a true set or an approximation. From what I've been reading there were 2 greens out there.

post-85626-0-91912700-1411517742_thumb.jpg

post-85626-0-19065300-1411517751_thumb.jpg

post-85626-0-75228700-1411517758_thumb.jpg

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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I just got a desk pen in that exact color, along with a sort of muted olive desk pen, and a black dipless. I can see where this is leading me...

 

Nice pen!

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I spoke too soon. I went to ink it up and found a small tear in the sac that of course led to a complete breakdown.

 

Oh well, easy enough repair.

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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These are the shots I was able to get tonight without breaking out the light box. Coloring is a bit different between the base and the pen so I don't know if they are a true set or an approximation. From what I've been reading there were 2 greens out there.

I don't recall ever having seen an 8-Ball and pen make a perfect color match (but I haven't seen that many). Isn't it likely that the difference in materials would have made a perfect color match difficult?

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I spoke too soon. I went to ink it up and found a small tear in the sac that of course led to a complete breakdown.

 

Oh well, easy enough repair.

 

Carl

Given how old they are (50+ years), for a pen that I plan to use, I would just replace the ink sac. Then you can feel safe for the next 15 years and not worry about a leak. That is my SOP.

 

I don't recall ever having seen an 8-Ball and pen make a perfect color match (but I haven't seen that many). Isn't it likely that the difference in materials would have made a perfect color match difficult?

 

PaFitch

There are solid color desk pens that are probably a closer match to the colored bases. Because of the marbelling, the marbelled pens would be a difficult match. Just finding matching pairs of the same color can be a challenge with those pens. I have several red Js and none of them match close enough for me to call them a pair. Too much variation in the plastic.

 

 

I just got a desk pen in that exact color, along with a sort of muted olive desk pen, and a black dipless. I can see where this is leading me...

 

Nice pen!

 

Welcome to desk pens annonymous.

Now you just have to get a base for those pens ;)

And since you have both fountain and dipless, you need both types of bases.

Edited by ac12

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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Yeah, I had to put a small order for parts anyway so I added a few #16 sacs just to have on hand. Now I have to find pure talc somewhere locally since I forgot to add that to the order :wacko:

 

I've got a bunch of renew point nibs on hand since I use them in my custom pens, but most are the firm medium or fine (2668, 9556, etc...) variety. Still on the lookout for a nice flexible 9128 to pair up with this one though.

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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I just got a desk pen in that exact color, along with a sort of muted olive desk pen, and a black dipless. I can see where this is leading me...

 

Nice pen!

 

Just add a shelf above your desk and when that one fills up, add another shelf. Rinse and repeat as often as necessary :lol:

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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Terrible low light cell phone picture, but got the new sac installed today and it's ready to do it's thing again.

post-85626-0-53809500-1412191312_thumb.jpg

Edited by Carl Fisher

Carl Fisher - Owner and chief artisan at F3 Pens

https://bio.site/f3pens

 

 

 

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I don't recall ever having seen an 8-Ball and pen make a perfect color match (but I haven't seen that many). Isn't it likely that the difference in materials would have made a perfect color match difficult?

I have the 8-ball the same color as Carl's in both the single and double pen type with a pen that is a perfect color match. Just bragging a little.

 

-David.

No matter how much you push the envelope, it will still be stationery. -Anon.

A backward poet writes inverse. -Anon.

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There's a double pen 8 ball? I'd love to see a photo of that.

I am unable to take or post pictures. I am sorry. If I get a camera, I'll try it. I am constantly jealous of all who can post such beautiful pictures of their pens. The paper on the bottom says "No. 326" and is dated "1-23-40". I don't know if the paper on the bottom is from Esterbrook or from the store selling the deskset as it servers also as a price tag: $8.00. It is six and one eighth inches by three and one eighth inches and has holds two pens.

 

-David.

No matter how much you push the envelope, it will still be stationery. -Anon.

A backward poet writes inverse. -Anon.

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No matter how much you push the envelope, it will still be stationery. -Anon.

David - Thanks, added to the list of my favorite quotes.

 

Brian

 

Time's fun when your having flies. - Kermit D. Frog

One test is worth a thousand expert opinions.

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