Wearever Pen/pencil Combo

[warblerick]

So I bought this marbled green Wearever fountain pen (lever fill) with a steel nib, and it has a mechanical pencil on the other end. Looks to be late 50's or early 60's. Any ideas on what it might be worth? It needs a sac and the clip is slightly sprung. It has a wide steel case band and a marbled green jewel cap.

Edited October 26, 2014 by warblerick

[lmarine0510]

It's hard to say, but I'd say from it being a Wearever, it would not be worth much. Probably ten bucks in good, working order. It would be worth about the nib's weight in scrap steel if it is in bad condition. Pictures of it will help, if you could post some.

[ISW_Kaputnik]

I have two of these that I restored myself, just the sac on one, the sac and J-bar on the other. Oh, and the inner cap on one was rotted and I had to find a replacement. Plus cleaning, a little nib alignment, and 1.2 mm leads for the pencil part. They both work nicely now, although not enough that I bother to keep them inked. One cost me about $10, the other was in a lot of pens, probably about $2 each. I wouldn't expect them to sell for much even in their restored condition; the build quality just isn't that high. Maybe $15 if someone really wanted one.

 

But I'm no expert, and it's possible that some might be higher quality than others, and sought by somebody. If you post a picture, someone else might have an opinion. On the ones I have, the pen and pencil are inseparable, but I think that on others, you could unscrew them from each other in the middle.

[warblerick]

Well, I paid only $1.00 for it at an antique mall. They even paid the $.06 tax so I wouldn't have to break another bill! It will be fun to try my hand at a bit of restoration. Thanks for the info. Any idea of when they were made?

Edited October 26, 2014 by warblerick

[lmarine0510]

Well, I paid only $1.00 for it at an antique mall. They even paid the $.06 tax so I wouldn't have to break another bill! It will be fun to try my hand at a bit of restoration. Thanks for the info. Any idea of when they wete made?

The Wearever brand was made from the mid 30's to the early 60's. I think the pen/pencil combos were most likely made in the 30's or 40's. Pictures really would help here.

[Gloucesterman]

I have a number of these in mint - NOS condition. They were part of a salesman's sample kit I bought. I even have a "mini" combo which writes quite nicely.

 

In addition, Wearever made some pens with 14K nibs (a friend has several).

 

Also,some of the regular Wearever pens have extra fine, Gregg and even flex nibs. I have some that are labeled as such.

 

I can only comment on the Wearever pens I have used and I found them to be fairly decent writers with smooth nibs. No idea what they might sell for but I will go ahead and restore some of the ones I have. Once restored, I would probably sell them for $20-25.00 with shipping.

Edited October 26, 2014 by brgmarketing

[79spitfire]

It's worth a buck any day!

[montserratplay]

Hey, I happen to have one of these, too. A somewhat boring-looking green one. I guess I'm surprised that it might be from the 1930s/1940s. It seems to me that the pencil is of much use; there isn't much room for a lead. The pen itself will probably be fun to use.

[estie1948]

Hey, I happen to have one of these, too. A somewhat boring-looking green one. I guess I'm surprised that it might be from the 1930s/1940s. It seems to me that the pencil is of much use; there isn't much room for a lead. The pen itself will probably be fun to use.

I'm afraid you will find there is not much room for ink, either. Most combos suffer these two problems regardless of who manufactured the pen. I have several from different third tier manufacturers that are really attractive even if they are not too useful.

 

-David.

[montserratplay]

I'm afraid you will find there is not much room for ink, either. Most combos suffer these two problems regardless of who manufactured the pen. I have several from different third tier manufacturers that are really attractive even if they are not too useful.

 

-David.

 

Yes, I peered into the barrel (I've just begun repairs) and it doesn't look like I'll be able to get much sac into the space.

[Bo Bo Olson]

Stick a key under your clip and bend it down....works.

Edited October 26, 2014 by Bo Bo Olson

[warblerick]

Thanks everyone for all the help. I just had a chance to try out the nib, dipping it, using Conway Stewart Edgcumbe purple. It writes well enough, though a bit scratchy, like a fine nib. It isn't marked except to say Stainless USA on it.

[Gloucesterman]

I'm afraid you will find there is not much room for ink, either. Most combos suffer these two problems regardless of who manufactured the pen. I have several from different third tier manufacturers that are really attractive even if they are not too useful.

 

-David.

 

Being an optimist and having several of these "combo" pen/pencils, I find that they fit a particular situation for me.

 

I like to use different color inks and because of the smaller capacity, these pens let me write 8/10/15 pages of notes and such, flush the sac several times to clean it out and then use another color ink.

 

As much as I love using some pens I really don't use 4/5/6 pens enough (with filled sacs or or body space) to warrant a full load of ink. Yes, I know with "semi or full transparent body or converter I can do a partial fill, but, with a lever mechanism it's a bit more of a challenge.

[Moshe ben David]

Take a look at Peyton Street Pens under 3rd tier Vintage Makers { http://www.peytonstreetpens.com/other-u-s-pen-makers/3rd-tier-vintage-makers.html } Teri is showing a few in the $30 ~ $35 range.

[inkstainedruth]

I just saw one of those yesterday in an antiques mall booth. It was quite large, and I think may have been designed to look like a Parker Big Red. Dunno what they were asking for it. I passed on it (and on some random c/c Shearer with an inlaid nib) in favor of what was labelled as a Parker Frontier. Which was actually a Burgundy 51 with a Frontier cap on it....

I figured that since I haven't fixed the Arnold combo yet, I didn't need another combo at the moment.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[rwilsonedn]

I have a minor thing about combo pens, and hence, I have way too many of them lying about. By coincidence, I had just inked a multicolored celluloid Wearever combo yesterday, and I've been appreciating what a good writer it is. Several things I like about these pens:

Usually easy to restore (or total basket cases).

Most of these second-third-tier combos write very well once restored.

They are rare and expensive, but there are superb combos from first-tier companies as well, including Sheaffer and Conklin, if I remember correctly.

The combo lets me take notes in ink and make calendar entries in pencil without carrying two instruments--very handy for long meetings or conferences.

Always a conversation piece when you reveal a beautiful fountain-pen nib on what everyone thought was an old mechanical pencil.

So even though the market value may not be high, I would encourage you to get it restored and use it.

ron

[pen lady]

Wearever pens were the "great pretenders" of their day. I have a striped one that looks like a Parker Duofold, another that resembles the Sheaffer Ebonized Pearl pens and I narrowly missed another pink one looking like a Sheaffer Lady Skripsert. Their Christmas advertising in the 40's told buyers that they could "lower the cost of Christmas" by purchasing Wearever pens. Clones and copies of consumer goods are not just a recent phenomenon.

 

For the money, and especially if you can find a wartime one with a 14k nib, they are easy to restore and once adjusted make great daily users. Lots of flash for the cash!

[79spitfire]

I have several combos as well. I look for them in the backs of 'antique' (read junk) shops. I mostly find third tier Arnold and Wearever pens, but I do have a Swallow, which is a Marbie Todd sub brand. It's very well made and has a 14K nib. One of the things that makes it unique is on the cap there is a small screw off cap with an eraser, a fairly large one at that. It would have made the pen more practical to use on a daily basis. Unfortunately I can't take it to work, (It's celluloid). I work around solvents that would damage it.

 

I do have a combo made from a modern thermoplastic, it's a Wearever. Even after tweaking and adjusting the nib it writes so poorly it's useless during the day. I've been debating retro-fitting a more modern section into the housing (the pen has ZERO collector value).

 

But even at that I like to keep them original, even if I can't use it...