I Don’T Think There’S Another Omas Like This

[pieemme]

I don’t think you’ll find another pen like this.

This is an Omas Milord from the early nineties. A few years ago I had an issue with the piston knob and sent it to Omas in Bologna for repair. While the repair wasn’t cheap, nor quick, I eventually got my pen back with this beautiful gold band on the section. I wonder why they made this change, but it certainly makes my pen more unique. The nib is semi-flex and very smooth, a joy to write with.

Edited October 20, 2020 by pieemme

[PAKMAN]

That is indeed unique!

[como]

pieemme: May I ask what does it say on the barrel? I assume that the barrel was a replacement, not your original with the band added on.

[pieemme]

pieemme: May I ask what does it say on the barrel? I assume that the barrel was a replacement, not your original with the band added on.

You are most likely right. It must have been a replacement for a different model, however there’s nothing engraved on the barrel. In fact the cap doesn’t fit flush with the barrel.

[sansenri]

It might be that it was not possible to fix your Milord without changing the barrel, and Omas may have used one of the barrels from the Milord rollers which did come with the band on the barell.

Here is my Milord roller. I have seen gold trim versions, also in black.

 

PS by the way, my roller has no inscription on the barrel, so that might be further suggestion that your barrel comes from a roller.

Edited October 20, 2020 by sansenri

[Paul-in-SF]

I have two small (121 mm) Omas pens, both I think called 1930, but one of them is fancier than the other, and the fancier one is also apparently called Arte Italiano (I base this entirely on what the vender told me). The two pens are very similar, but the fancier (red) one has a roller clip, and it has that same band just above the cap threads. So one data point that this might have been standard in some Omas fountain pen models.

 

 

It surprised me a little that they would put that decoration on there in a place that would be hidden when the pen is capped.

[sansenri]

In the original Omas series the top of the line pens had the greek also on the barrel.

So for example the Paragon and the Gentleman are very similar, they are the same size (557F), but the Paragon has the greek also on the barrel.

To my knowledge however the Milord size (556F) did not have a version with the greek on the barrel.

 

 

[sansenri]

I have two small (121 mm) Omas pens, both I think called 1930, but one of them is fancier than the other, and the fancier one is also apparently called Arte Italiano (I base this entirely on what the vender told me). The two pens are very similar, but the fancier (red) one has a roller clip, and it has that same band just above the cap threads. So one data point that this might have been standard in some Omas fountain pen models.

 

 

It surprised me a little that they would put that decoration on there in a place that would be hidden when the pen is capped.

Thank you Paul, but let's correct the gender, which is important in Italian, I hear too many people say "Arte Italiano" but arte is a feminine word, so the adjective needs to be femimine too, Italiana. See the Omas catalogue...

[Paul-in-SF]

Thank you Paul, but let's correct the gender, which is important in Italian, I hear too many people say "Arte Italiano" but arte is a feminine word, so the adjective needs to be femimine too, Italiana. See the Omas catalogue...

 

I should be thanking you. I have corrected my records, which I transcribed incorrectly from the Italian vendor's site.

 

On the subject of whether the Milord size had the greek on the barrel, this (same) vender claims that it did, as in this example:

 

https://www.novelli.it/en/pens/Omas--Arte%20Italiana--Milord%20red%20gold%20trim%20fountain%20pen_2147466703-regular-edition-pen.aspx

 

I'm no expert, I don't know what the sizes are of the different models (I wish I did) so I'm not arguing either way. This dealer might be misinformed for all I know.

[pieemme]

Thanks for shedding some light into the story of my Omas. From what I can make out, I would assume that the pens in sansenri's picture are both Milords, the red one of more modern stock, while the black one looks very much like my original one. Therefore I would assume that the repair people just replaced my Milord's barrel with one equipping the latest Milords, although the original cap would no longer fit flush.

 

Actually, I wouldn't mind finding a new style cap, as the gold plating on my clip is partly worn out.

Edited October 22, 2020 by pieemme

[fpupulin]

I do not know from which precise époque they are, but there are Milord with the second Greek on the section. Time ago I bought one in HT trim for my daughter Margherita, ad it is one of her preferred pens. I guess they were produced in the last years before the change to the new line of the Arte Italiana in 2005.

[dms525]

I don’t think you’ll find another pen like this.

 

This is an Omas Milord from the early nineties. A few years ago I had an issue with the piston knob and sent it to Omas in Bologna for repair. While the repair wasn’t cheap, nor quick, I eventually got my pen back with this beautiful gold band on the section. I wonder why they made this change, but it certainly makes my pen more unique. The nib is semi-flex and very smooth, a joy to write with.

 

I have a Milord with that sort of section band. It is probably a later version than yours. It is a cartridge filler and has the roller clip. Mine has a B nib that I had ground to cursive italic. There is no writing on the barrel. FYI, I have another Milord with the older-style clip. It does not have the gold band on the section. It is a piston-filler. It has "OMAS Extra" engraved on the barrel.

 

 

 

David

[sansenri]

Yes I was talking particularly of the original series, with the tie clip, and piston filler.

The 557F had the greek on barrel option (marked Paragon or 557F vs Gentleman), the 556F did not (marked Milord).

 

What then happened later is difficult to say, Omas made so many different versions of the same pens that they probably introduced the Greek on the 556F, possibly even after switching to the new Paragon / Milords.

 

The one that is listed on Novelli's site does have the greek on the barrel and is a piston filler, but is a special edition 75th Anniversay and has the roller clip (I cannot see whether it is marked Milord).

 

 

Franco does your version have a tie clip and the Milord engraving on the barrel?

 

I think Omas made some special versions for the export market. The clip with the roller was not common on the Italian market, but I have often seen it in versions that went to US.

The greek on the barrel would actually be unusual on the 1930 too, but as Paul has shown some special versions with the roller clip and greek were made also.

 

 

[pieemme]

I wonder if anyone experienced some minor shrinking or warpage on the cap. It probably doesn't show on the picture, but the bottom part of the cap somewhat shrank, causing the golden rings to loosen. I tried to fix them in place with silicon, but it didn't last. Otherwise, I love this pen. My only criticism, is the lack of an ink window, which I think every fountain pen should have.

Edited October 22, 2020 by pieemme

[sansenri]

 

I should be thanking you. I have corrected my records, which I transcribed incorrectly from the Italian vendor's site.

 

On the subject of whether the Milord size had the greek on the barrel, this (same) vender claims that it did, as in this example:

 

https://www.novelli.it/en/pens/Omas--Arte%20Italiana--Milord%20red%20gold%20trim%20fountain%20pen_2147466703-regular-edition-pen.aspx

 

I'm no expert, I don't know what the sizes are of the different models (I wish I did) so I'm not arguing either way. This dealer might be misinformed for all I know.

thanks yes, actually I just mentioned this because I have seen dealers use that incorrect name.

 

your link does not seem to work, so I cannot check.

Novelli certainly know their info.

As I mentioned it is possible that later versions of the Milord were made with the greek on barrel.

Originally the Milord in resin with tie clip and piston filler and marked Milord, did not.

 

Omas did a good job to confuse us though.

At some point they called all their pens from the Arte Italiana series Omas Extra whether 557F, 556F or 555F size!

 

 

[sansenri]

I wonder if anyone experienced some minor shrinking or warpage on the cap. It probably doesn't show on the picture, but the bottom part of the cap somewhat shrank, causing the golden rings to loosen. I tried to fix them in place with silicon, but it didn't last. Otherwise, I love this pen. My only criticism, is the lack of an ink window, which I think every fountain pen should have.

Unfortunately not unusual, vegetable resin does tend to shrink slightly, it's not uncommon for the rings on the Omas caps to be loose.

It might also be the reason why your cap does not close properly.

On one of my 557S one of the rings was almost coming off, so I had to have it fixed. It's essentially a jeweler's job...

Brunori in Milano had it done for me... when they were still open.

These pens are wonderful though, so worth doing. Unfortunately the cap itself cannot be fixed.

[fabri00]

I wonder if anyone experienced some minor shrinking or warpage on the cap. It probably doesn't show on the picture, but the bottom part of the cap somewhat shrank, causing the golden rings to loosen. I tried to fix them in place with silicon, but it didn't last. Otherwise, I love this pen. My only criticism, is the lack of an ink window, which I think every fountain pen should have.

It can ne repaired.

I did a tool for my Imax which expand from inside the cap, once cap has been heatet, and this fix the shrinking of it, fixing both the loose rings and the too tight screwing.

 

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/343193-omas-cotton-resin-heat-adjustment/?hl=%2Bomas+%2Bcap

Edited October 24, 2020 by fabri00

[como]

This is brilliant! Congrats and thank you for sharing!

It can ne repaired.
I did a tool for my Imax which expand from inside the cap, once cap has been heatet, and this fix the shrinking of it, fixing both the loose rings and the too tight screwing.


https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/343193-omas-cotton-resin-heat-adjustment/?hl=%2Bomas+%2Bcap

[MarcoA63]

Good morning everyone, I have an Omas Gentlemen and had to get it fixed bacause the barrel had shrank so much that the piston did not move anymore. Brunori told m,e some years agoand when I lived in Milan, to forget about using it as Omas had gone out of business. This year though I managed to get it fixed in Belgium, the barrell has been rebored and a new piston holder was inserted into the pen from one of the faceted sides.

The pen now works again as beautifully as it did when I first bought it !! Cheers

[RankAmateur]

On 10/22/2020 at 10:27 AM, sansenri said:

Yes I was talking particularly of the original series, with the tie clip, and piston filler.

The 557F had the greek on barrel option (marked Paragon or 557F vs Gentleman), the 556F did not (marked Milord).

 

What then happened later is difficult to say, Omas made so many different versions of the same pens that they probably introduced the Greek on the 556F, possibly even after switching to the new Paragon / Milords.

 

The one that is listed on Novelli's site does have the greek on the barrel and is a piston filler, but is a special edition 75th Anniversay and has the roller clip (I cannot see whether it is marked Milord).

 

 

Franco does your version have a tie clip and the Milord engraving on the barrel?

 

I think Omas made some special versions for the export market. The clip with the roller was not common on the Italian market, but I have often seen it in versions that went to US.

The greek on the barrel would actually be unusual on the 1930 too, but as Paul has shown some special versions with the roller clip and greek were made also.

 

 

Sansenrei, do you know what year (roughly) that listing is from? Thank you!