&%*$#ing Engraved Pens

[goodguy]

We never truly own anything, except our name.

Was thinking a lot about this statement.

What is the definition of own ?

 

If it means its mine, only mine and I can do anything I want to it then yes we do own it simply for a limited time.

If I buy a pen, uses it until I get tired of it and then sell it then I used and owened the pen to full satisfaction there for I own it and discared of it once lost interest.

[coastie]

We never truly own anything, except our name.

Was thinking a lot about this statement.

What is the definition of own ?

 

If it means its mine, only mine and I can do anything I want to it then yes we do own it simply for a limited time.

If I buy a pen, uses it until I get tired of it and then sell it then I used and owened the pen to full satisfaction there for I own it and discared of it once lost interest.

 

 

It can be said that it is the first gift we are given (besides the gift of life). It's ours to do with what we like, we can change it, or modify it with a nickname. Bottom line is we all have one so we "own" a name by default. So yes your definition is correct.

 

There is one other thing we own and that of course is our bodies and as mentioned earlier we can have that engraved too.

Edited January 6, 2011 by coastie

[goodguy]

 

 

 

There is one other thing we own and that of course is our bodies and as mentioned earlier we can have that engraved too.

Did I ever mentioned I also dont like tatoos?

 

Anyone surprised?

[ru32day]

I have sympathy for the "engravings spoil the pen" point of view as, for me, a lot of the feel of a pen is the smooth barrel under the fingers and a patch of "rough" would spoil that for me.

 

I also agree with the "gives a feeling of history" point of view, but I think the former would outweigh the latter for me, unless the engraving was on a clip or somewhere I wouldn't feel it when writing.

 

Looking at some of the beautiful examples of older engraved pens, I think that a contributing factor to the "classiness" of engraving changing over time is the skill of the engraver. These days, engraving is often done at the key cutting kiosk where the most common work of the "artist" is a dog tag. The result, whilst readable, is generally not artistic and definitely does not look at all "classy".

 

So, at risk of drawing the wrath of those who have made it clear that they don't want to be told what to do by anyone else, when I rule the world I'm going to make a law that says you may only engrave a FP if the quality of the engraving is at least as high as the quality of the pen.

 

...and don't give me a hard time over who defines quality etc - it's me, because I rule the world.

[Chris]

I have a lovely gold pen with three initals beautifully engraved upon the cap, but they are meaningless to me. However, it meant that I got a very expensive (and normally unaffordable) pen for a virtual song so I'm happy. And who knows, if I decide to sell it one day, someone with the right initials might even pay a premium for it

 

I also have a much cheaper version (chrome) of the same pen with an ugly block of engraving of the name of a supermarket and the year 2000. But, a lovely writer which came at an appropriately low price and one which I am happy to take travelling as I won't be heartbroken (or wallet-broken) if it came to grief.

 

So, sometimes, engraving can be OK but I prefer without.

 

Chris

 

ps I see my flag is now flying!

Edited January 6, 2011 by Chris

[nxn96]

Given that I'm buying the pen "used", I'm not sure I have much of a right to complain what the prior owner did or didn't do to it; assuming that is reflected in the price. While I tend to be less interested in pens that have engravings or imprinting (other than those of the manufacturer), quite often those pens come at a price discount versus a comparable pen that has no such markings. For a person who is looking for, say, a Parker 51, a pen with the original owner's name on the barrel typically makes that pen less expensive, and thus, more affordable. It's a tradeoff.

 

The only time I feel justified in getting upset over this is when I buy a pen on eBay that has engravings/imprintings and the seller makes no effort to point that out in the listing. This has only happened to me two or three times over the years, but it is irksome. In one case, the imprinting was so discreet and the pen such a great writer that I got over my pique pretty quickly and still use the pen. In the other cases, the pens were eventually traded or sold to someone for whom that didn't matter so much. Life goes on.

[Warriah]

My pens are all engraved with the names of the pen manufacturers.

 

Is there really any pen that isn't engraved?

 

People only don't like a name engraved in a pen, if it is a name they don't know.

 

The name engraved in a pen doesn't always detract from the value, sometimes it can increase the value.

 

So they don't hate that the pen is engraved, they hate the person for being poor and unknown to them.

 

Well, I'm also poor and unknown to Pelikan Co., Parker Co. etc. but I'd love to have a Pelikan, a Parker etc. .. thus this reasoning doesn't seem too consistent. I think it is simply a minimalist or aesthetic (i.e. symmetry) instance.

 

The fact the being the engraving behind the clip would bother far less people should prove it.

Edited January 6, 2011 by Warriah

[Dindi]

Interesting and entertaining thread.

 

Have any of you ever found a pen engraved with your initials? Or your name, for that matter? I once saw a vintage cigarette case engraved "DAL" (my initials) but I didn't buy it. I still sorta regret that decision.

[goodguy]

Given that I'm buying the pen "used", I'm not sure I have much of a right to complain what the prior owner did or didn't do to it

Well assuming you are not buying ultra rare pens then you have every right to consider what the old owner of the pen did and by that you can decide to buy or not buy the pen.

When I buy a used pen I dont look at the owner and dont worry about anything, I look at the pen, its looks and how it writes.

If the pen looks good and it writes well then I dont care if it was lovingly used everyday or it set in a cabinet.

 

On the other hand if its engraved I dont even care if the pen is free, its damaged, I dont want it!!!

Well if it was free I would simply take it and sell it the next day.