Hello!

Found a deep, deep burgundy desk pen with lighter maroon desk base that's not the round "eight-ball" base I've seen before. It narrows toward the front and has a bit of a deco detail on the sides. Marked Dest Set #117 on the felt underneath, it seems to be ceramic/stoneware.

Good looking, really, with a nice 9556 nib.

Any information you could provide about where this set fits in (age, rarity, etc.) would be much appreciated.

Thanks!

Hmmm, I took a quick glance in my Esterbrook book and couldn't find a #117 desk set.
Does yours resemble any of the ones here ?
http://www.pendemonium.com/pens_esterbrook_gallery.htm

Yes! It resembles the DB #114, in maroon, only the back seems to flare a bit more. So-- what's it mean? Early? Unusual? Thanks for the excellent resource; I looked at Pendemonium's info but didn't find this page.

That's why I love FPN...

You're welcome...but I'm just good at Googling , not an Esterbrook expert.

I'm hoping that the author of my Esterbrook book, Paul Hoban (FPN member name = "Hobiwan" ) and/or our Esterbrook forum moderators Brian Anderson and Gerry will chime in with their thoughts.

There is a model DB #111 that looks like (just based on the illustration in my book above) a very angular cousin of the DB #114 base. The 111 base looks like it has very straight lines (no curves that I can see) and a steep, non-curved back. Any chance that the #117 on your base might say #111 instead? It's just a thought I had...

Nope-- definately #117, and there is a curve at the back. Hoping others might chime in, and in the meantime I'll try to take a picture...

Ah OK, if it says #117, then I'm out of ideas

A picture would be great!

Here's a pic. Sorry it's 1.7 MB; still trying to figure out how to save a smaller-sized version...

I've got a set like that, but the 117 label must have fallen off. Not sure how rare they are. I also have the matching eight-ball desk set, and an extra eight ball base.

Thanks for posting the pic. I've long wondered why the pens in these sets, and the eight ball sets, no matter what color, were darker than the base. At first I thought that Esterbrook must have made darker bases to match the pens, but I have yet to see a set where the pen is not darker than the base.

Thanks for posting the photo of your set, ljwahl---very nice colour!

It sure looks like a similar desk set of my own (aside from the colour) which I assumed was a DB #114 ....Mind you, Brian has a photo of set labelled DB 116L here on his site http://www.esterbrook.net/desksets.shtml ....whereas I don't see the 116L (or 116, if there is such a creature) in my book.... so I am rather right now with these model numbers!

I'll alert our Mods to this thread and see if they can shed some light on your Esterbrook base. Once again, nice find!

A web site named "The Southern Scribe" shows an Esterbrook Desk Set advertisement (which it recently sold), that might contain the answer. (See the link below.) Among other things, the advertisement shows a 114 desk set, as well as a 117 desk set. The primary difference I see between the two is that the 114 base is black, whereas the 117 base is in color. It may be significant that the 117 model number is followed by a letter (possibly to indicate the color), but the 114 has no letter following the model number. I note a similar difference between the black (model 112 without chain and model 113 with chain) and colored (model 116) eight balls. The colored eight ball has a different model number, and the model number is followed by a letter.

The Southern Scribe

I looked at the 116L and I think you're right about the colored ones having the letter following the model number. The "L" might well stand for "Lapis" (blue). At least that's how I'd take it.

Good eye spotting the model number in that Esterbrook pamphlet on Rick Horne's Southern Sribe site, Ray....and thank you for your post, Paul (Hobiwan).

Now, if someone has *really* good eyesight and can read the desk set models numbers here: http://billspens.com/billsreprints/shopsit...52catalogss.htm
...

Great find, and thanks for sharing! It seems, then, that mine was made concurrently with the eight-ball sets, and the style, at least, was made in 1950. Wondering which design preceded the other...

I've seen a few of these on the net. They are interesting. They're a bit more streamlined. Actually, the other day I saw a bunch of desk sets in general on Ebay. Somebody's been cleaning out the closet.