I got a Lifetime Marine Green Balance from about 1930-1932 on Ebay. I will need to have it restored-- I don't have a heat gun and pliers to get the section out, and I paid too much for the pen to fall prey to my amateur hands.

(I have a Craftsman and very brassed Vigilant for that. )

I can't tell if it's standard girth or OS, since I just have a slim Balance and a Defender to compare it to. I suspect it's standard. But what's really weird: There is a deeply engraved ring/notch around the rear taper of the pen, about 3/4" in. It looks about like a blind cap would on a vac-fil, but this is a lever filler.

It does not appear to unscrew-- so one could mount a taper and use it as a desk pen.

I have not seen this feature before. Could anyone help me out? My camera needs batteries at the moment, but I don't know how much the picture would clear things up: the ring looks professionally engraved and deep enough that I'd think the end would unscrew. It doesn't, but I don't really want to apply excessive force.

Whatsit?

I may be wrong wthout photos but my guess would be that this "ring/notch" is the result of fairly firm posting of the cap. The "ring/notch" you describe could have been caused by the threads of the cap, most likely from turning the cap while posted and cutting into the barrel.

Mark.

Mayyyybbbeeeee nooooooot

Don't suppose yer notch looks like this...

-d

Telephone dialer?

converts to a desk pen?
Steve

As shown, not telephone dialer.

Rather... potential telephone dialer

Or so i currently believe.

-d

Converts (at least) to Phone Dialer. I have yet to see an OS Balance era desk pen, though I don't hunt these as assiduously as some other East Coast fellows.

Note, too, that TBOMK the OS Phone Dialer (which is known to exist, as are convertable pens), is uncatalogued.

-d

Mine looks more like David's contraption.

It is definitely not a "wear" notch carved from posting the cap too hard, unless the cap has an engraving tool mounted inside and the former owners worked it in a semicircular fashion all the way around. It is a definite seam.

I have not tried unscrewing it. It does not seem to respond to the standard level of effort needed for such a thing.

I'll get some batteries and post some pictures ASAP, but for most purposes, the notch is quite similar to David's example, though the seam pretty much starts at the point where the barrel is straight and when it angles down to taper. It looks like should unscrew, but I haven't tried to force it. I think there may even be a change in the plastic indicating two different molded parts.

Thanks for all the suggestions so far.

How clean is the jade color? If clean, i might be... interested

-d

Oh My.

It does have some of the dark green turning to olive that I believe is a sign of discoloration on the barrel. None of it is a solid brown, but it's not that irridescent bright green either.

The nib needs tuning, too. The tines are misaligned.

I would find out Exactly what the pen is and Exactly what it is worth before I entertained offers from anyone to buy it.

It may be worth $5, $50, or $500.

How do you know a good price if you have no idea the pens value?

Ahhh, but who would one ask? I love pavlov. Instead of backchanneling as I usually do when engaging in serious business , i toss the bone online just to see who will say, "arf".

But, i will try hard to offer a bad price. I always overpay for the pens i really like.

Like that 100 pen Parker 51 pile. Or the other 100 pen Parker 51 pile. Pain in hiney having 300 Parker 51's lying about.

heh

-d

I think I have see this pen before

Yeah, i think i saw you post about it similarly to how this one appeared, then I expressed interest in it, then I paid a really rediculously bad high price to get it, and now it is comfortably in my pen collection, making that fellow from NJ drool a bit.

Of course, he outbid me for a green one with the dialer tail that was hiding up on ebay. That varmint!

-d

I've got an oversized in jade with good colour, although I'm not willing at this point to part with it. David, do you know if they made any colours other then blk/prl, black and jade.
Pearce.

Hi Pearce,

Those be the three I have seen.

Here is my OS B/Pearl Dialer (i lack the convertable end piece) along wiht NON Dialer often mistaken for such- just the long end of a first style Balance Standard

regards
d

Circa 1930 H74TDC. Long standard convertible in marbled Marine Green, missing the desk taper. I find the blind cap joints tend to chip; perhaps the edges have been smoothed, producing the grooved appearance.

--Daniel

Okay, I have unscrewed the thing. It freaked me out a little, and it's an operation I don't want to do often-- due to that chipping problem mentioned above-- but here's yer eye candy.









So it looks like... Desk Pen it is! Thanks for all the help. I feel like a |\|00|3 for not unscrewing it in the first place!

Yep. Standard marbled Marine Green Balance convertable.

regards
d

Better to have felt the fool and asked the question than to have forced it and been the fool. Glad you've figured out what it is, I'm kinda jealous...

Christian

It will still need restoration, and there are two pretty good nicks on either side of the lever-- they are visible in the picture. I like the fact it has sort of a story, although I'm not going to try to get the replacement parts to convert it into a desk pen.

Those spots are not damage; they are the holes that the lever pivot pin runs through.

--Daniel