Greatest Underappreciated Vintage Pens

[tinkler]

We all know the "great" vintage pen-makers--the Eversharps, Parkers, Sheaffers, Mabie Todds, and so on. But there are a lot of really good, but lesser-known pen-makers, some of which seem to have a significant following, but others seem strangely under-appreciated. I'd really like to hear what others have to say on quality vintage pens that they think are unfairly neglected, or just plain obscure.

[Strang]

I am fond of Good Service pens. I believe they were sold at Sears and Roebuck department stores. Some of them seem to have been made by Parker it seems.

[Biber]

Not to sound flippant but, I'd have to answer that question by saying any vintage pen that works and writes well, and one in good condition is an added bonus. I've dabbled a bit in vintage so called third tier pens and, regarding some, I quite frankly don't understand why they're so looked down upon. As with most anything its the luck of the draw, some pens just stand up better to the ravages of time than others and that's just as true of the little companies as it is for the big boys. Certainly because of this I think its exceedingly difficult to apply a quantification to what makes one company's pen necessarily rise above another. Just take it on an individual basis. THat being said, I'll admit that I've quite enjoyed several pens sold by Rexall Drug, Monogram in particular.

[mdbrown]

I think Ottawa pen company made some very nice pens. I wish there was more information on their products.

[tinkler]

Not flippant at all. And I suppose that unpredictability is part of the "agony and ecstasy" of vintage pens. But it's still good to get pointers towards pens that one might not otherwise even try.

 

Sadly, it does also seem to be the case that stiff nibs hold up better than flexible ones. I know that's an obvious thing to say--it's why companies moved to stiff nibs for their "lifetime" etc models--but I often think that manifolds are the most under-appreciated KIND of pen. You can get some lovely vintage manifold nibs--as good as a modern Pelikan at a fraction of the price.

[rhosygell]

Probably most pens made by National Pen Products of Chicago and several Wearevers from the later 30's on - particularly the ones with gold or "special alloy" nibs.

[JimB]

I bought a Wearever from Tyler Dahl because it had a custom grind. I love that pen and now have 2 more, only one of which was working. But I knew that beforehand. I'm planning on sending them both out for servicing. Great nibs.

[Biber]

I bought a Wearever from Tyler Dahl because it had a custom grind. I love that pen and now have 2 more, only one of which was working. But I knew that beforehand. I'm planning on sending them both out for servicing. Great nibs.

 

By chance do they have the odd reenforced nibs on them? I've wondered how those nibs were.

[Dindi]

The Gold Medal pens I've encountered are nice. Just as attractive and sturdy as the "famous brands." And they often have flexxy nibs -- an added bonus.

[kestrel]

+1 on the Monogram line. Rexall sold some quality merchandise in the 1930's-1940's.

 

Grieshaber. Some amazing pens came from this company in Chicago including the smallest lever filler in my collection and the famous hump fillers from before WWI. Greg Minuskin tells me that the nibs tend to be a bit brittle but I don't flex them so it doesn't matter.

 

Wirt. Great pens when you can find them.

 

Eclipse also made some good pens, including pens with nice overlays. I am fond of Remingtons although they are more of a hit and miss. Their nibs were low quality but most can be tuned to be good writers and some of their plastics are stunning, especially in the combo pens.

 

Drexel (mine is a smallish combo pen), Franklin, Summit, Morrison.

 

I tend to be eclectic in my tastes. As long as the pen writes well and feels good in my hand I'm happy.

[DET]

Another vote for Morrison. It's a shame their pens don't get more attention and respect -- though it keeps the prices low, at least.

[JimB]

I bought a Wearever from Tyler Dahl because it had a custom grind. I love that pen and now have 2 more, only one of which was working. But I knew that beforehand. I'm planning on sending them both out for servicing. Great nibs.

 

By chance do they have the odd reenforced nibs on them? I've wondered how those nibs were.

It does have that design. They write fine. I have no idea what that design was supposed to do for the nib.

[northlodge]

+1 on the Monogram line. Rexall sold some quality merchandise in the 1930's-1940's.

 

 

 

Drexel (mine is a smallish combo pen), Franklin, Summit, Morrison.

 

 

whilst I would have to agree with the Summit (and Lang) recommendation I would also throw Macniven & Cameron & National Security into the mix.

 

There are examples of both the above on my Summit website, along with a large Mottled HR Monogram. Given the comment above I would welcome someone taking a look at this and advise if I have the date / details correct.

 

 

 

[bitterwonder]

I have a pen marked "Imperial" that was my father's. A plated nib, gold worn off - but probably the best nib I have ever used, best in the sense that it is responsive like a quill. Probably from 20's or 30's.

[Scrawler]

+1 on the Monogram line. Rexall sold some quality merchandise in the 1930's-1940's.

 

 

 

Drexel (mine is a smallish combo pen), Franklin, Summit, Morrison.

 

 

whilst I would have to agree with the Summit (and Lang) recommendation I would also throw Macniven & Cameron & National Security into the mix.

 

There are examples of both the above on my Summit website, along with a large Mottled HR Monogram. Given the comment above I would welcome someone taking a look at this and advise if I have the date / details correct.

I like Summits. I have a couple. One is a bulb filler. The other a lever filler is completely unused. It is in a celluloid type material that is machined to look like BCHR, but much more shiny. I have not even got round to dipping it yet.

Edited August 23, 2012 by Scrawler

[rhosygell]

Wyvern also seems to be a forgotten brand.

[Biber]

I bought a Wearever from Tyler Dahl because it had a custom grind. I love that pen and now have 2 more, only one of which was working. But I knew that beforehand. I'm planning on sending them both out for servicing. Great nibs.

 

By chance do they have the odd reenforced nibs on them? I've wondered how those nibs were.

It does have that design. They write fine. I have no idea what that design was supposed to do for the nib.

 

You can research it here and at various other sites, but the gist as I understand it is that they economised by using a smaller and thinner gold nib then reinforced it (because the gold was soft and too flexi) with at steel frame. That design only lasted for a year or so.

[vickiehof]

I have 2 Universal Pen Company (New York, NY) "Dyna-Flo" pens that use the glass cartridges that I fill with a syringe. Their unmarked gold-colored nibs write very smoothly BUT they have an unpleasant odor from whatever plastic material was used. It sounds weird but I even tried to remove the smell with baking soda toothpaste.

[markiv]

I am a big fan of Matador fountain pens. Never came across a shoddy pen - solid quality and their nibs are one of the best IMO.

[tenney]

What about some of the French pens? Would y'all consider Unic, Bayard, and Stylomine to be "lesser known" vintage pens?