Since I discovered this hobby, I've popped into our local antique mart from time to time to peruse any pens they might have. About twenty different dealers fill spaces with all manner of both antiques and junk, so it's pretty random. Today I finally found a pen in good enough condition, for a good enough price to tempt me - a little research once I was home with the new find proved it to be some variation of an Esterbrook J - here are pics:






I couldn't get the nib to even budge as far as unscrewing it from the body goes, so I took a chance and cleaned it (someone hadn't bothered), and filled it, and it writes very smoothly. The nib is a 2668, and seems on the fine side to me. For $19, I can't complain.

I know where I'm going this weekend! Oh, wait, I'm broke. Seriously, congrats on the find!

Hey...Congratulations on your first vintage pen it's a great find and a great price. Esterbrook's are great durable vintage pens. The 2668 Esterbrook nib is a firm medium nib marketed by Esterbrook for General Writing. I think Richard Binder has a good article on Esterbrooks on his site that may help you date the pen.

With regards to the nib coming off you should be able to remove the nib section as well as the nib/feed. You may want to try again at least the nib section just to check the sac as they often need to be replaced and it's a pretty easy job Again Richard has a good article regarding that on his site too.

Again congrats! Oh and be careful, I have found that the vintage slope is even more slippery that the regular fountain pen slope


Cheers!

You've picked up a very nice pen. Sturdy, pretty much bullet-proof and with a nice range of sizes, colors and nibs. You can do a lot of serious collecting with Esterbrooks. There's even some pretty nice emphemera lurking out there.

They're also an excellent way to become familiar with different nibs: stiff, fine, oblique, stub. But beware, they can also be a starter drug, leading to more pens and more expensive ones too!

Enjoy,
gary

Congrats! An Estie is what got me into vintage pens. Now I have collected all six colors of "J" and still can't stop...

I would still read back in this forum or the repair forum for info, then remove the gripping section and check the sac. If you don't, I wouldn't keep it in the pocket of a good shirt. My first two Esties had "working" sacs, but one eventually came loose.

BTW, you have there a standard double-jewel "J", the larger version (compared to the shorter "SJ" and the thinner "LJ".

Good for you!
Hopefully you can get the nib to budge with some warm water and a little effort.
Experimenting with different nibs is a lot of fun.
Congrats!

Thanks for the info! I'll check out Richard's Esterbrook articles. So far, the nib writers consistently and smoothly, though it seems 'fine' compared to the modern medium nibs I have.



LOL, Gary - isn't that the case w/all aspects of this hobby? I'm interested in trying an oblique nib, I may have to search for one...



Oh, thanks! Good to know which model I have. I'll check out the repair forums - I admit I'm a little intimidated about taking it apart, especially since it didn't seem to 'want' to come apart.



I hope so - I'll give it another try once I go through the ink I filled it with.

Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone.

Well CharityV, welcome to our bane/addiction/frustration/passion..........

Esterbrooks are pretty durable and as another member said one time "They are the Jeep of the vintage pens". Have faith and be patient but the nib will come loose. Richards site will get you there plus you might want to visit the "Repair Q & A" forum as yours is not a unique problem.