Which Mt?

[cunim]

I have an idea to get one apex pen from each of the vintage manufacturers. This would be not a collection, but a representative sampling of vintage pens. The key criterion is that the pens were made for someone with the leisure to value expression more than speed. I suppose that values flex or edged nibs.

 

Place yourself back in the 1930s and you are about to visit the pen shop. If you had to limit yourself to one MT pen and nib combination, a tool for letter writing and journaling, what would it be?

[Cob]

I would have been pleased to have found this one:

 

 

i admit that it might date from the late 1920s - old stock perhaps?

 

Cob

[MarcShiman]

Its an interesting discussion, but I don't think you should apply the way we think about pens today to the way people bought them in the past. Specifically, flexy nibs from the past are flexible because they were cheap - not because people relished flexible nibs. The thick slabs of gold on Parker, Sheaffer or Mabie Todd eternal nibs were impressive in the thickness of the gold of the nib. To today's pen user, that becomes quite disappointing because you can't get the sort of expression you could get from a thinner, cheaper nib.

 

 

[cunim]

Its an interesting discussion, but I don't think you should apply the way we think about pens today to the way people bought them in the past. Specifically, flexy nibs from the past are flexible because they were cheap - not because people relished flexible nibs. The thick slabs of gold on Parker, Sheaffer or Mabie Todd eternal nibs were impressive in the thickness of the gold of the nib. To today's pen user, that becomes quite disappointing because you can't get the sort of expression you could get from a thinner, cheaper nib.

 

 

You know, I never thought of that. So the wealthy were using fairly rigid round nibs or, I guess, dip pens for all those nice items of correspondence. The working man had his cheap and cheerful flexy? Wonder what he did with it?

[Greenie]

The working man just wrote gently with his less expensive and less thick nib.

The Sheaffer Lifetime flat tops have huge thick rigid nibs, as do the Swan Eternals, Parker Duofold Seniors, etc.

 

But as for your other question.... My cautionary tale. I started with a single inherited Parker Duofold Senior. Next I wanted one "representative" pen from Sheaffer, Wahl, and Waterman, to have a complete "collection" of the big 4 pen makers. It. Just. Never. Stopped.

 

Having said that, and in light of the "top of the line" from the 1920s or 1930s, you would be looking at a Black Swan Eternal #4 or #6.

 

From a collecting standpoint, some prefer the colors 142 series, or perhaps some of the flat top leverless pens that came in a range of beautiful celluloid patterns.

[cunim]

The working man just wrote gently with his less expensive and less thick nib.

The Sheaffer Lifetime flat tops have huge thick rigid nibs, as do the Swan Eternals, Parker Duofold Seniors, etc.

 

But as for your other question.... My cautionary tale. I started with a single inherited Parker Duofold Senior. Next I wanted one "representative" pen from Sheaffer, Wahl, and Waterman, to have a complete "collection" of the big 4 pen makers. It. Just. Never. Stopped.

 

Having said that, and in light of the "top of the line" from the 1920s or 1930s, you would be looking at a Black Swan Eternal #4 or #6.

 

From a collecting standpoint, some prefer the colors 142 series, or perhaps some of the flat top leverless pens that came in a range of beautiful celluloid patterns.

 

I have a mental picture of a group of ironworkers taking a break from erecting metal beams and ... ever so gently.... writing delicately flourished notes to their mothers and sweethearts. The foreman is using his eternal to back rivets.

 

Thanks for the warning. I recognize the danger and am old enough to have been through this sort of thing before. My interest is function, not form. When I finally find that one thing that best demonstrates a function (in this case copperplate with a fountain pen), I kinda stop looking. At least, it's worked for me in the past.

[Christopher Godfrey]

Your mental picture is very amusing, cunim!

 

Greenie: re this: <Having said that, and in light of the "top of the line" from the 1920s or 1930s, you would be looking at a Black Swan Eternal #4 or #6> Is there any truth to the suggestion I have seen (in the classified section) that Eternals generally carried stronger, or less flexible, nibs? (It seems unlikely to me, but what do I know...?)

 

BTW, in the past, I have spent most of my time in the Pelikan section (no explanation necessary, I imagine?); but this feels like it is going to be a nice spot in the sun...

[Cob]

Your mental picture is very amusing, cunim!

 

Greenie: re this: <Having said that, and in light of the "top of the line" from the 1920s or 1930s, you would be looking at a Black Swan Eternal #4 or #6> Is there any truth to the suggestion I have seen (in the classified section) that Eternals generally carried stronger, or less flexible, nibs? (It seems unlikely to me, but what do I know...?)

 

BTW, in the past, I have spent most of my time in the Pelikan section (no explanation necessary, I imagine?); but this feels like it is going to be a nice spot in the sun...

There has been an exchange of views about Eternals.

 

I have had, I suppose about a dozen Eternal nibs - all have been absolute nails. I have a 2 a 3, and a 4 in my spares box as I write this and they are indeed nails.

 

Eternals would have been very handy in the days of carbon paper, but then anyone who has had experience of Sheaffer Lifetimes, Parker 51s, and 1940s and '50s Duofolds or indeed most Conway Stewarts, will know very well that Mabie Todd was far from being alone in manufacturing nails!

 

Cob

Edited March 9, 2018 by Cob

[Greenie]

Eternals are nails.

Even though some softer Eternals are said to exist, this does not change the fact the almost all of us have only seen and handled an Eternals with absolutely rigid nibs.

[MarcShiman]

Rigid nibs are not only for carbon paper. They are much better for fast writing / notetaking.

 

Anyone that has tried to take lecture notes with a wet noodle will find they missed quite a bit. Nibs designed to be flexible were meant to be used slowly and carefully. They didn't have the option of picking up a rollerball when it came time to scribble something down quickly.

 

Remember, fountain pens back in the day weren't for this curious bunch that we are now that take delight in the quality of our script. They were every day working instruments. There were no spreadsheets or email, so you put your pen to WORK. Writing words with a flourish might be pleasurable, but it certainly wasn't going to earn you productivity awards at work.

 

We also know that flexible nibs put down a lot of ink that doesn't dry all that quickly. They railroad, hard start, catch on imperfect paper and spray ink. Rigid nibs had a lot of advantages.

Edited March 9, 2018 by MarcShiman