Help Identify Vintage Pen With Startrek Lookalike Logo

[jctsoares]

I received all these old fountain pens recently as a gift from my daughter's godmother. She always wrote with FP´s but told me she prefers her Parker (no idea what model) and doesn't use these pens anymore. The three on the right are brandless cheap plastic pens (not interesting). The one on the left is a nice Sheaffer Triumph Imperial from late ´90s. The mistery pen that draw my attention and I need help to identify is the second pen from the left. According to the last owner she bought it many years ago on a flee market. It looks like plastic with a brass nib that looks flexi (didn't try it yet) and has a ebonite feed (forgot to take a picture from the feed side with the nib). No writings on the pen only this arrow point with a circle logo on the nib that reminds me of Startrek

If anyone knows what pen it is I´d appreciate your help. It was bought on a flee market in the Netherlands so it's probably european ...

[Ergative]

"Ridiculous regulations," grumbled Picard. He looked quite dashing in his suit and and tie, but his expression of distaste as he glared down at the fountain pen in his fingers showed that he took no pleasure in his appearance. "Surely Starfleet requisitions should know by now that the Prime Directive should have a temporal counterpart! There's no telling what damage we can do in the past if we leave clues to the future."

 

"Nevertheless, Captain," said Data, "a cost-benefit analysis suggests that the risk of damage to the timeline is far outweighed by the advantages of retrieving Geordi from the mid-twentieth century before the temporal rift caused by the overload on the dilithium crystals closes permanently. Without his expertise and experience researching this side effect of our current wiring system, there is no telling how many other such rifts will be accidentally opened before other Galaxy Class starships can be retrofitted."

 

"I'm with Data," said Riker. "Everyone, just be careful in the 20th century and don't leave behind any Starfleet-branded materials."

 

"I still don't understand why we even have fountain pens with Starfleet logos," said Worf, who was particularly grumpy that his forehead disqualified him from being a member of this particular away team. "Why does Starfleet still make such archaic technology? Wasn't there a suggestion of issuing everyone Weereavers or something more appropriate to the period?"

 

"I believe you mean 'Wearever,' " said Data, "a third-tier brand of fountain pen that was cheap and widely used, and could be surprisingly durable throughout the early and mid part of the twentieth century. However, since we decided to pose as higher-status individuals, in the hopes of benefitting from advantages of rank and money afforded to the upper class in our search for Geordi, a Parker 51 would have been more appropriate--"

 

"In any event," interrupted Picard, icily, "Starfleet did not have any vintage fountain pens available, so they had to make do with what they could extract from their own stores, and some people happen to like to write with a proper pen. Archaic, Mr. Worf, does not mean useless or irrelevant, unless you want to argue for the end of Shakespearean actors as well?"

 

"Mr. Worf, you'd better energize," cut in Riker smoothly, and the away team disappeared from the 23rd century in a shower of sparkling tachyons.

 

********************

Upon their return (with Geordi, safe and sound), Riker confessed he had left his pen on a table in disgust after it bled purple ink all over his hands. The next year, the Temporal Prime Directive was enacted, and all officers of rank Captain and above were required to sign their compliance. Captain Picard used a Parker 21.

 

[rwilsonedn]

This seems to have come up before. See this thread.

Best guess then was that it is a low-end Reform pen, but there was no definitive answer. It does seem to be a low-cost pen that was somehow associated with Western Europe.

ron

[jctsoares]

"Ridiculous regulations," grumbled Picard. He looked quite dashing in his suit and and tie, but his expression of distaste as he glared down at the fountain pen in his fingers showed that he took no pleasure in his appearance. "Surely Starfleet requisitions should know by now that the Prime Directive should have a temporal counterpart! There's no telling what damage we can do in the past if we leave clues to the future."

 

"Nevertheless, Captain," said Data, "a cost-benefit analysis suggests that the risk of damage to the timeline is far outweighed by the advantages of retrieving Geordi from the mid-twentieth century before the temporal rift caused by the overload on the dilithium crystals closes permanently. Without his expertise and experience researching this side effect of our current wiring system, there is no telling how many other such rifts will be accidentally opened before other Galaxy Class starships can be retrofitted."

 

"I'm with Data," said Riker. "Everyone, just be careful in the 20th century and don't leave behind any Starfleet-branded materials."

 

"I still don't understand why we even have fountain pens with Starfleet logos," said Worf, who was particularly grumpy that his forehead disqualified him from being a member of this particular away team. "Why does Starfleet still make such archaic technology? Wasn't there a suggestion of issuing everyone Weereavers or something more appropriate to the period?"

 

"I believe you mean 'Wearever,' " said Data, "a third-tier brand of fountain pen that was cheap and widely used, and could be surprisingly durable throughout the early and mid part of the twentieth century. However, since we decided to pose as higher-status individuals, in the hopes of benefitting from advantages of rank and money afforded to the upper class in our search for Geordi, a Parker 51 would have been more appropriate--"

 

"In any event," interrupted Picard, icily, "Starfleet did not have any vintage fountain pens available, so they had to make do with what they could extract from their own stores, and some people happen to like to write with a proper pen. Archaic, Mr. Worf, does not mean useless or irrelevant, unless you want to argue for the end of Shakespearean actors as well?"

 

"Mr. Worf, you'd better energize," cut in Riker smoothly, and the away team disappeared from the 23rd century in a shower of sparkling tachyons.

 

********************

Upon their return (with Geordi, safe and sound), Riker confessed he had left his pen on a table in disgust after it bled purple ink all over his hands. The next year, the Temporal Prime Directive was enacted, and all officers of rank Captain and above were required to sign their compliance. Captain Picard used a Parker 21.

 

Lol, very funny :-), but still no clue on the pen ...

[jctsoares]

This seems to have come up before. See this thread.

Best guess then was that it is a low-end Reform pen, but there was no definitive answer. It does seem to be a low-cost pen that was somehow associated with Western Europe.

ron

Tnx, it's exactly the same pen but it looks as if mine lost the plated chrome on the brass nib. According to the German name engraved on the other pen it might be a german brand. Makes sense, because Netherlands is next to Germany. Pen looks cheap made, nothing special. But the startrek logo is curious.

[dogpoet]

Maybe it's some sort of promotional thing?

[carlos.q]

Ha! It's a glitch in the Matrix!

[Mangrove Jack]

Klingon Cloak perhaps.

[dogpoet]

I like the idea of a pen with a stealth device: you wouldn't get some drooling jitters coming up to you and asking: 'wot's dat fing den, innit?" when you take it out on public transport...

[Perdendosi]

Maybe it's some sort of promotional thing?

Just for the record, this is not a Starfleet (the overarching military body of the United Federation of Planets in Star Trek) logo. The oval is wrong (as compared to the communicator badges); the arrow has a broader backside on the left than the right, and there's a star inside it (usually).

 

The Starfleet insignia is loosely based off of NASA's logo, which incorporates a Delta Arrow / Swept Wing.

https://www.quora.com/Why-are-the-logos-of-NASA-and-Roscosmos-so-similar

 

But NASA wasn't formed until 1959, and Star Trek didn't air until the mid-60s. Was the pen copying Star Trek, or was it coincidental?

 

(P.S. amazing short story there, Ergative!)

[jctsoares]

Just for the record, this is not a Starfleet (the overarching military body of the United Federation of Planets in Star Trek) logo. The oval is wrong (as compared to the communicator badges); the arrow has a broader backside on the left than the right, and there's a star inside it (usually).

 

The Starfleet insignia is loosely based off of NASA's logo, which incorporates a Delta Arrow / Swept Wing.

https://www.quora.com/Why-are-the-logos-of-NASA-and-Roscosmos-so-similar

 

But NASA wasn't formed until 1959, and Star Trek didn't air until the mid-60s. Was the pen copying Star Trek, or was it coincidental?

 

(P.S. amazing short story there, Ergative!)

You're completely right. I also said in my first post when I started this thread that it reminds me of the Startrek logo but I know it's different just as you described. Also in the topic subject I wrote lookalike for the same reason because I knew that it's slightly different. Still no serious clue about the pen or nib ... but at least we're having some fun ... :-) Edited February 11, 2016 by jctsoares

[jctsoares]

I found exactly the same pen here stating that it is a Marksman:

https://olx.pt/anuncio/caneta-marksman-nova-tinta-permanente-IDwN22v.html#437b9207b0

 

After some research for this brand, which seems to be Korean and maybe related to Pilot, I found several threads about this brand on this forum and on one of them the same nib and logo. Here's one of them:

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/194950-marksman-pens-not-the-current-famous-brand/

 

Looks like the old logo was a rounded arrow point but later they probably changed to an archer. Or a new (chinese brand?) picked up the name and changed the logo. Mistery solved. Pen is cheap made and because of it's shape I was hoping for a nice semi flex nib but got dissapointed, it's a scratchy F and hardly any flex.

Edited February 14, 2016 by jctsoares