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Steps To Restore A Vintage Wahl-Eversharp For A Complete Newbie?


hu-327

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I bought this pen on eBay recently and thought I'd stumbled on a wet noodle pen (seller had this in all caps in the title) for a steal at ~$62. Problem is, this pen is almost certainly not a wet noodle, as defined by going off of what I know of them, based on me trying to flex the tines (which are about as flexible as an Ahab (so not very flexible at all), and much sharper, for those wondering). There's a fair amount of scratching, damage, and bite marks to it, which brings me to my next point. The section and barrel won't come apart, and the lever filler clip stops at a certain point. As someone who is totally inexperienced with restoration, could I restore it on my own or would it be better to send it off to an expert? I could deal with the latter, but as a student, if it costs too much, I don't know if I can.

 

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  • GlenV

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It looks pretty cool, I dont know if any Wahl pens of that era were threaded section but mine have not been. If it doesnt wiggle a tiny bit with hairdryer warming I would be concerned about threads. I dont have that particular pen, the nib appears to be a replacement from a Skyline which are often pretty nice my 2 Skyline pens dont have much flex although I have a Wahl from the 30s like yours thats more flexible. Cool pen I think though.

Regards, Glen

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Disappointing to hear that it's not actually a vintage flex. I've been pining after one for a long time. :( Do you think the price for it was fair then, considering the condition? I will warm it up with a hairdryer tonight and see if the section comes loose from the barrel.

It looks pretty cool, I dont know if any Wahl pens of that era were threaded section but mine have not been. If it doesnt wiggle a tiny bit with hairdryer warming I would be concerned about threads. I dont have that particular pen, the nib appears to be a replacement from a Skyline which are often pretty nice my 2 Skyline pens dont have much flex although I have a Wahl from the 30s like yours thats more flexible. Cool pen I think though.

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I may be mistaken but that does look like a skyline nib, they were made in the 1940's and some were awesome flexible nibs. I would consider that vintage for sure. I have older pens with no flex, as manufacturers each would offer their pens with a great variety of nibs, to fit various writing preferance of the buyer. It's a pretty pen with a pretty nib. The roller clip is a cool one, too.

Regards, Glen

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If you haven't had the opportunity to work on pens you may want to take apart a few cheaper pens to get the feel of loosening the section.. good luck I hope you can get to use this one.

Regards, Glen

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This may give you an idea whether you want to do the repair yourself or not. The scratchiness of the nib can be dealt with by aligning the tines and smoothing, if necessary, on suitable abrasives like micro-mesh.

 

It's a beautiful pen at a very good price, even though you have been disappointed by the exaggerated estimate of the nib's flexibility.

Regards,

Eachan

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Thanks for the guide Eachan, and for all the other advice everyone! I think I might attempt repairs in the future but for now, I think I'm going to just send it to Danny Fudge for repair. I don't want to accidentally go too far and damage it in any way, as this will be my first American vintage pen. Up to this point, I've only used Japanese pocket vintage pens, which are neat little things, but a completely different ball park. None of those are really any older than the 50s though so I've never had to deal with any repairs so far.

This may give you an idea whether you want to do the repair yourself or not. The scratchiness of the nib can be dealt with by aligning the tines and smoothing, if necessary, on suitable abrasives like micro-mesh.

 

It's a beautiful pen at a very good price, even though you have been disappointed by the exaggerated estimate of the nib's flexibility.

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