Zoltan

[rhr]

Yes, Par, I agree. The key to the identity of the maker is in the buffalo. But then someone came out of the woodwork and identified the Zoltan pen ;~), so maybe someone will come along the same way and identify the maker of the buffalo nib.

 

Thanks for the great link to the unknown nibmakers on penexchange.de. I count at least 5 different animals on those nibs. I don't know what companies used the buffalo, lion's head, falcon, and lion rampant, but the two mountain goat nibs are by Bock.

 

In the meantime, until you get time to translate your site to English, you can use Google Translate to do it for you. If you go to http://translate.google.com/#, you can translate texts from various languages into various other languages, but you can also cut and paste a URL and press Enter, and it will translate the whole website. Here's an example of a Polish pen website by Marta Michnej with multiple links at the top of the main page to translate it into many languages, http://opiorach.blogspot.com/. Here's the translated link to the unknown nibmakers on penexchange.de, http://translate.google.ca/translate?js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.penexchange.de%2Fforum_neu%2Fviewtopic.php%3Ff%3D6%26t%3D2066. And here's your Penshop website translated, http://translate.google.ca/translate?js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.penshop.se%2F. For some reason I can't get your Reservoarpennor site to translate, http://www.reservoarpennor.se/. There must be some sort of inability to recognize the site as Swedish. It keeps trying to read it as German.

 

George Kovalenko.

 

[Strand]

Thanks for the translation tips, It is surprisingly readable but a will nevertheless work ona translation. I will have a look at the html headers on the reservoarpennor.se site (I also added a domain pointer so it is now available as fountainpens.se as well) it may help setting up the language translation.

 

Par

[rhr]

Sometimes Google Translate is surprisingly unreadable. In the translation of the German message board "Füller" and "Feder" are translated as "filler" and "spring", instead of "pen" and "nib". And in Marta's blog the Polish word "piórach", or "pens", is translated as "feathers". ;~)

 

George.

 

[maksek]

 

Lennart your pen is quite exotic, it is actually swedish. I have not been able to obtain much information on the manufacturer except that the Zoltan pens were made in Sundsvall by AB Ingvar Nord. As far as I can tell they were in the pen manufacturing business from about 1948 and were still manufacturing pens in the mid 1960's (I guess moving from fountain pens to ball points as time progressed). They remained in business until 1993 but I believe they stopped manufacturing pens or penrelated material some time well before that.

 

Not a common find at all.

Par

 

Hello, Par. I know that this topic is quite old but I'm looking for swedish fountain pen and this thread contains some information about it. Some days ago I found your web site (reservoarpennor.se) which deals with fountain pens. And there is page which contains information about swedish manufacturers of fountain pens (Projekt->Svensktillverkat). I didn't find any information there about Ballograf pens producer. But on this forum there is some information that Ballograf was producing fountain pens in the past.

 

Do you know something about this? I'm looking for fountain pen which was actually produced in Sweden. Not only assembled in Sweden but produced all pens parts (include nib). And I'm taking interest in, are these fountain pens (Ballograf) really swedish?

[Hundratusen]

Here is a picture of my four Ballograf fountain pens. All have Ballograf-marked converters

 

1. Sterling silver, Engraved Ballograf nib

2. Resin, no-name nib, but it feels absolutely like the 1. nib.

3. Resin, symbol-but-not-Ballograf-symbol nib, a bit coarser nib

4. Steel, "school-pen", generic "Iridium-point" marked nib, much coarser, however this pen is uninked.

 

Ballograf was founded 1945 in Göteborg (Gothenburgh) Sweden by Austrians Eugen Spitzer and Viktor Reich.

Production started 1945 in a garage in S:t Pauligatan, Göteborg.

A few years later, production was moved to proper industry facilities at Krokslättsgatan, Mölndal (a Göteborg suburb), where 200 people were involved in the production in 1970.

 

The sterling pen was my high school graduation present in 1970. The "school pen" had an Austrian price tag from 1981. I can't give any dates for the resin pens.

 

I am avoiding writing too much about modern Swedish political history, and the power of unions, I can put it like this:

- Outsorcing a production line to another country was impossible in Sweden in 1970. It would mean headlines in national newspapers and having one's industry crippled by industrial action.

 

Purchasing nibs was probably possible, but I believe that at least the engraved nib of the sterling pen is made in Göteborg.

[maksek]

Here is a picture of my four Ballograf fountain pens. All have Ballograf-marked converters

 

1. Sterling silver, Engraved Ballograf nib

2. Resin, no-name nib, but it feels absolutely like the 1. nib.

3. Resin, symbol-but-not-Ballograf-symbol nib, a bit coarser nib

4. Steel, "school-pen", generic "Iridium-point" marked nib, much coarser, however this pen is uninked.

 

Ballograf was founded 1945 in Göteborg (Gothenburgh) Sweden by Austrians Eugen Spitzer and Viktor Reich.

Production started 1945 in a garage in S:t Pauligatan, Göteborg.

A few years later, production was moved to proper industry facilities at Krokslättsgatan, Mölndal (a Göteborg suburb), where 200 people were involved in the production in 1970.

 

The sterling pen was my high school graduation present in 1970. The "school pen" had an Austrian price tag from 1981. I can't give any dates for the resin pens.

 

I am avoiding writing too much about modern Swedish political history, and the power of unions, I can put it like this:

- Outsorcing a production line to another country was impossible in Sweden in 1970. It would mean headlines in national newspapers and having one's industry crippled by industrial action.

 

Purchasing nibs was probably possible, but I believe that at least the engraved nib of the sterling pen is made in Göteborg.

 

 

Oh! Thanks a lot for such detailed info! This is very interesting for me. Now I know a bit more about swedish fountain pens and manufacturers Especially thanks for the pens photo and info about atmosphere in Sweden at times of producing of fountain pens. I'm interested in not only swedish FP, but in history of this country too

[Strand]

 

Lennart your pen is quite exotic, it is actually swedish. I have not been able to obtain much information on the manufacturer except that the Zoltan pens were made in Sundsvall by AB Ingvar Nord. As far as I can tell they were in the pen manufacturing business from about 1948 and were still manufacturing pens in the mid 1960's (I guess moving from fountain pens to ball points as time progressed). They remained in business until 1993 but I believe they stopped manufacturing pens or penrelated material some time well before that.

 

Not a common find at all.

Par

 

Hello, Par. I know that this topic is quite old but I'm looking for swedish fountain pen and this thread contains some information about it. Some days ago I found your web site (reservoarpennor.se) which deals with fountain pens. And there is page which contains information about swedish manufacturers of fountain pens (Projekt->Svensktillverkat). I didn't find any information there about Ballograf pens producer. But on this forum there is some information that Ballograf was producing fountain pens in the past.

 

Do you know something about this? I'm looking for fountain pen which was actually produced in Sweden. Not only assembled in Sweden but produced all pens parts (include nib). And I'm taking interest in, are these fountain pens (Ballograf) really swedish?

 

 

Sorry for being so late in responding. I have not much more to offer in terms of information - I am not sure that Ballograf ever produced fountain pens in Gothenburg - I think they were imported and rebranded as ballograf pens - I have no hard facts to support that claim other than some discussions witg previous employees.

[maksek]

Sorry for being so late in responding. I have not much more to offer in terms of information - I am not sure that Ballograf ever produced fountain pens in Gothenburg - I think they were imported and rebranded as ballograf pens - I have no hard facts to support that claim other than some discussions witg previous employees.

 

Hm... Interestingly... I'm a bit confused,,, Thanks for info.

 

And Pär, what do you think about nib of the pen 2 from Hundratusen's post (second pen from the left on the photo)? Who could be producer of this nib? Some days ago I found Ballograf-2000 pen on eBay and nib form of this pen looks like the Hundratusen's second pen. I don't know which company was producing nibs with form like these. Maybe you know?

[Hundratusen]

 

 

Hm... Interestingly... I'm a bit confused,,, Thanks for info.

 

And Pär, what do you think about nib of the pen 2 from Hundratusen's post (second pen from the left on the photo)? Who could be producer of this nib? Some days ago I found Ballograf-2000 pen on eBay and nib form of this pen looks like the Hundratusen's second pen. I don't know which company was producing nibs with form like these. Maybe you know?

 

The ebay pen you linked to has the Ballograf logo stamped on the nib - and it looks the same as the unmarked nib of my pen no 2.

 

The two first pens, no 1. and 2. on the picture above are smashing writers, and give absolutely the same feeling. The no 3. and 4. pens are rather coarse and dull. I suspect that the first two nibs are from a superior production. The fact that the ebay pen has the Ballograf logo makes me suspect that the nibs of the great writers could be produced in-house.

[Strand]

 

 

Hm... Interestingly... I'm a bit confused,,, Thanks for info.

 

And Pär, what do you think about nib of the pen 2 from Hundratusen's post (second pen from the left on the photo)? Who could be producer of this nib? Some days ago I found Ballograf-2000 pen on eBay and nib form of this pen looks like the Hundratusen's second pen. I don't know which company was producing nibs with form like these. Maybe you know?

 

The ebay pen you linked to has the Ballograf logo stamped on the nib - and it looks the same as the unmarked nib of my pen no 2.

 

The two first pens, no 1. and 2. on the picture above are smashing writers, and give absolutely the same feeling. The no 3. and 4. pens are rather coarse and dull. I suspect that the first two nibs are from a superior production. The fact that the ebay pen has the Ballograf logo makes me suspect that the nibs of the great writers could be produced in-house.

 

I would be surprised if they did nibs in house and not the rest of the pens. I have some indications that they sourced pens form Muetschler at least for part of the production- The different style of nibs could be an indication of different manufacturers though.

[maksek]

 

 

Hm... Interestingly... I'm a bit confused,,, Thanks for info.

 

And Pär, what do you think about nib of the pen 2 from Hundratusen's post (second pen from the left on the photo)? Who could be producer of this nib? Some days ago I found Ballograf-2000 pen on eBay and nib form of this pen looks like the Hundratusen's second pen. I don't know which company was producing nibs with form like these. Maybe you know?

 

The ebay pen you linked to has the Ballograf logo stamped on the nib - and it looks the same as the unmarked nib of my pen no 2.

 

The two first pens, no 1. and 2. on the picture above are smashing writers, and give absolutely the same feeling. The no 3. and 4. pens are rather coarse and dull. I suspect that the first two nibs are from a superior production. The fact that the ebay pen has the Ballograf logo makes me suspect that the nibs of the great writers could be produced in-house.

 

I would be surprised if they did nibs in house and not the rest of the pens. I have some indications that they sourced pens form Muetschler at least for part of the production- The different style of nibs could be an indication of different manufacturers though.

 

Interestingly... I started to search info about Mutschler and found this article. There are two pictures which say that Ballograf could be purchasing nibs from Germany (Bock?). These nibs look like first pen nib, and these - as in second pen.

Edited October 16, 2012 by maksek

[Michael Andersson]

All Swedes are most welcome to our community at http://www.facebook.com/groups/367139828996/

 

Cheers,

 

Michael