Does Anyone Have Access To A Big Chief Writing Tablet?

[Gnome DePloom]

If anyone has access to a BC Writing Tablet, I have a few questions about them.

 

Were they newsprint, or some other grage of paper?

 

How many lines per page, and what was the spacing? What color ink for the lines?

 

Thanks for any help.

 

Rob

[Strang]

Ignatius Reilly, I suspect.

[funkypeanut]

My parents recently brought me some things I had written on Big Chief tablets as a child. I'll try to remember where I put them. These tablets were made in St. Joseph, Missouri, and I had a relative who worked in the plant. Production ceased about ten years ago when Mead sold the factory and the BC name to Everett Pad & Paper, which was then the largest manufacturer of newprint in the US. EP&P closed down the plant and ended BC. The BC pads had newsprint-quality paper. If I can find the pages, I'll scan one and post it.

[WendyNC]

For some reason, I have a recollection that they had 20 lines, but that memory comes from 40+ years ago, so I wouldn't bet on it.

[Gnome DePloom]

My parents recently brought me some things I had written on Big Chief tablets as a child. I'll try to remember where I put them. These tablets were made in St. Joseph, Missouri, and I had a relative who worked in the plant. Production ceased about ten years ago when Mead sold the factory and the BC name to Everett Pad & Paper, which was then the largest manufacturer of newprint in the US. EP&P closed down the plant and ended BC. The BC pads had newsprint-quality paper. If I can find the pages, I'll scan one and post it.

 

 

Don't it always seem to go,

That you don't know what you've got till it's gone?

 

They paved paradise;

Put up a parking lot!

[Gnome DePloom]

My parents recently brought me some things I had written on Big Chief tablets as a child. I'll try to remember where I put them. These tablets were made in St. Joseph, Missouri, and I had a relative who worked in the plant. Production ceased about ten years ago when Mead sold the factory and the BC name to Everett Pad & Paper, which was then the largest manufacturer of newprint in the US. EP&P closed down the plant and ended BC. The BC pads had newsprint-quality paper. If I can find the pages, I'll scan one and post it.

 

 

As much as I would appreciate that, it would probably be more helpful if you could measure the distance between the lines in mm, and post lhat info.

 

Measuring from ano online scan would be questionable, as it can be hard to tell if the size is really being displayed correctly.

 

thanks.

 

rob

[Minty]

I have a stack of Big Chief Tablets. They are not all identical but all were made by The Mead Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, U.S.A. They are 7 7/8 x 12 inches. Some have 115 sheets & 28 lines per page. Some have 42 sheets & 27 lines per page. The lines are blue & go from edge to edge. There are a number of different covers, all some faded shade of red, all have an Indian in feathers printed in black. Most of us kids had them at school in the 1950s & wrote in them with fat pencils. We practiced our letters on a Big Chief tablet. The paper is newsprint in all of the examples I have ever seen. The cover is cheap. The cover has lines for:

 

Property of____________________

 

School ________________________

[Gnome DePloom]

I have a stack of Big Chief Tablets. They are not all identical but all were made by The Mead Corporation, Dayton, Ohio, U.S.A. They are 7 7/8 x 12 inches. Some have 115 sheets & 28 lines per page. Some have 42 sheets & 27 lines per page. The lines are blue & go from edge to edge. There are a number of different covers, all some faded shade of red, all have an Indian in feathers printed in black. Most of us kids had them at school in the 1950s & wrote in them with fat pencils. We practiced our letters on a Big Chief tablet. The paper is newsprint in all of the examples I have ever seen. The cover is cheap. The cover has lines for:

 

Property of____________________

 

School ________________________

 

Thank you!

 

The only info I now lack is the tine spacing.

 

I have found one site that purports to be selling them, and says the spacing is 3/8 inch. Is that what you have on the Mead tablets?

 

Thanks.

 

Rob

[Minty]

The lines are 3/8 inch apart. The top line is 1 1/2 inch from top edge of the paper. The bottom line is 1/4 inch from the bottom edge of the paper.

 

"Don't start vast projects with half-vast ideas."

[funkypeanut]

That's about right. I measured mine, and it's a smidge over 9mm. It's from the mid-1970s, and they wouldn't have been using metric. I just have loose sheets and not the pads, but I remember that when I was in school they made two versions, one with a matte cover with the Comanche on it and another with a glossy cover with what we called "hippie chief." I don't remember whether the paper inside was different. Does anyone else remember this, or was the glossy version from a different line or company? Or am I just mistaken about it?

[Gnome DePloom]

That's about right. I measured mine, and it's a smidge over 9mm. It's from the mid-1970s, and they wouldn't have been using metric. I just have loose sheets and not the pads, but I remember that when I was in school they made two versions, one with a matte cover with the Comanche on it and another with a glossy cover with what we called "hippie chief." I don't remember whether the paper inside was different. Does anyone else remember this, or was the glossy version from a different line or company? Or am I just mistaken about it?

 

 

I think your "Hippy Chief" was "Son of Big Chief," from the 1970's. Both were made by Mead corp, although "Big Chief" was made over the years by a variety of companies.

 

"Son of Big Chief" was strictly a Mead product, and had at least thre different covers, with the young man's "politics" being toned down with each incarnation. you can see them here:

 

http://www.ddranchwear.com/blog/2010/08/son-of-big-chief-tablet/

 

 

Don't know about the quality or type of paper within.

 

Rob

[jbb]

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7148/6521616063_0a757f626c_b.jpg

 

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7007/6521614773_363cb68ef2_b.jpg

[Gnome DePloom]

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7148/6521616063_0a757f626c_b.jpg

 

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7007/6521614773_363cb68ef2_b.jpg

 

I found some, in case anyone else is interested. The cover is not lke any Ihave ever seen before, and the paper quality is different. (It's a little too good, actually. i would feel a little strange asking that they be made of poorer quality paper. 8-)

 

They sell by the case. You can find them here:

 

http://www.cometschoolsupplies.com/k12supplies_primarytablets.php

 

Rob

[John Cullen]

Gnome-- what do you mean by the paper being too good? I remember those tablets as having really low grade newspaper like paper that I imagine would not be at all good for fountain pens. Is this run of tablets you found different and suitable for FP use?

 

By the way, thanks for posting the photos.

 

J

 

PS: Stephen King will be interested to see this too. Isn't this the tablet he refers to frequently when he talks about kids writing?

[Gnome DePloom]

Gnome-- what do you mean by the paper being too good? I remember those tablets as having really low grade newspaper like paper that I imagine would not be at all good for fountain pens. Is this run of tablets you found different and suitable for FP use?

 

By the way, thanks for posting the photos.

 

J

 

PS: Stephen King will be interested to see this too. Isn't this the tablet he refers to frequently when he talks about kids writing?

 

I cannot take credit for the photos . . .that was another poster. They duped when I posted a reply.

 

I testedthe paper wi a FP, and it looked okay, but I can't recall which pen and what ink.

 

I'll be back home in a couple of days, and I'll pull a BC out of the closet and test it against some Parker Quink and some Waterman. I think I have a bottle of Noodlers Orange, as well. I'll let you know.

 

Rob

[Gnome DePloom]

Gnome-- what do you mean by the paper being too good? I remember those tablets as having really low grade newspaper like paper that I imagine would not be at all good for fountain pens. Is this run of tablets you found different and suitable for FP use?

 

By the way, thanks for posting the photos.

 

J

 

PS: Stephen King will be interested to see this too. Isn't this the tablet he refers to frequently when he talks about kids writing?

 

 

Oh, I almost forgot. the link above is only sort of good. It no longer worls for an iPad or other IOS device. comet School Supplies changed to a Flash website sometime after I posted the link. As long as your browser can handle Flash, just go to their site, and click on the link to Primary Supplies.

 

Rob

[Gnome DePloom]

Gnome-- what do you mean by the paper being too good? I remember those tablets as having really low grade newspaper like paper that I imagine would not be at all good for fountain pens. Is this run of tablets you found different and suitable for FP use?

 

By the way, thanks for posting the photos.

 

J

 

PS: Stephen King will be interested to see this too. Isn't this the tablet he refers to frequently when he talks about kids writing?

 

I have moved my review, such as it is, to here:

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php?/topic/211502-big-chief-tablet/

 

Rob

[gungemini]

1/2 inch from the top

 

each spacing was 3/8s

the paper itself was a cheap mass produced news paper stub which was run off a roll on a WEB PRESS which was over sized and cut off at the ends to "bleed" the image off the sheet

 

thermal bound and stapled at the top.

 

i still have a box my mom saved of all my SHOGUN WARRIORS drawings

 

-later, Printer for 30 years

[trent]

These tablets are for sale again on Amazon.com.