Name Engraving Is Not The Worst Thing You Can Do To A Pen!

[andybiotic]

Hey everyone

 

I receive a black Swan L442E today which I bought from an online auction. It is a beautiful pen with a smooth No.4 nib and the filling mechanism is not rusted and the sac is still usable, which is actually quite amazing for a vintage pen sold by someone who doesn't know much about fountain pens.

 

The problem with the pen is that it has a name engraved (the photo in the auction didn't show that and is not mentioned in the description), but that is still ok...

 

What I am FURIOUS about is that some one has attempted to SCRATCH THE NAME OFF!!!!!!

 

There are a whole lot of DEEP vertical scratch marks covering the name! I hope the seller was not the one who did it! It was a poor job too, I can still see the name " C. HARRISON".

 

If there are bite marks, I understand (well... not really), its because you are bored.

Bended nibs? Ok, you dropped accidentally, things happen.

Dried sac, cool, you forgot to clean it, we all did it before.

 

But deliberate scratches on a pen? For crying out loud!

 

Why on earth would someone think they can live with a whole bunch of random scratch lines on the pen while they can't even stand a properly engraved name?! How is that in anyway better than the name?

 

The scratches you see in the photos are already the result after almost a whole day of vigorous polishing!

 

Incidentally, does anyone have any alternative solution to cover/restore these kind of things?

 

 

 

Edited February 10, 2012 by andybiotic

[andybiotic]

Huh? Moved to the repairing section?? I thought I am just telling a story of (or complaining about) something that has happened to me... maybe it is because of the minor question at the end?

Edited February 10, 2012 by andybiotic

[Sam119911]

 

I don't mind if the vintage pens I buy have engravings or not, but why would you scratch it like that!?

[rdh]

I doubt an owner of the pen would scratch the name off. More likely an angry child, spouse or co-worker. I believe there are ways to fix it, but I haven't tried them. They involve saving the dust from polishing (the pen or a donor) and filling in the inscription with it. I believe this is how the pros fill cracks in the cap or barrel after fusing them together.

 

Dave

[XiaoMG]

You might want to consider the satin finish that a few of us have been doing for our pens, if you plan on keeping the pen as a user. It's quite easy to do and the results can be quite handsome...vastly moreso than the scratches over the engraving.

 

On the other hand, if you're looking for restoration...I'm not sure I can offer any suggestions. Either you need to fill the scratches or polish down until they're gone.

[Garageboy]

The satin finish on that would look worse than that does...

A neat strikethrough would have looked cool,though

[XiaoMG]

I suspect it would be difficult to do anyway, since the cap would need to match, and it would probably be hard to give it the right finish without damaging the "SWAN" logo on the cap.

 

Hmmm.

[OakIris]

That's awful! In my opinion, it was also very dishonest of whomever sold you the pen. Whether or not the seller knew anything about fountain pens, I find it unbelievable that he/she did not make full disclosure of this damage in the description.

 

Hope you can restore it, but....I guess I would be asking for a refund....

 

Holly

Edited February 10, 2012 by OakIris

[pjsmithe]

Holly,

 

Is that a long haired-dachshund in your avater? I've never seen one colored like that. I have a long-haried red with a very complex coat, and a long-haired black and tan.

 

To the OP....

 

My guess is that somebody got the pen after the original owner, and tried to scratch it off. Probably a long time ago. I woulnd't try to sand out the scratches, as it looks like you'd have to go too deep. I think filling them in is your best option. I'm about to try experimenting with filling in deep teeth marks.

[mirosc]

Reminds me of bad movies when they scratch away the registration number of a car that has been involved in some crime...

Or have you bought it from the ex-wife of dear divorced Mr. Harrison...

[olivier78860]

Try to contact eckiethump, maybe he'll have a replacement barrel. Or fountainbel, he can create a new one.

Maybe other people, but these two above are very good at what they do.

Good luck, it looks like a nice pen !

[mikkolopez]

if i am buying pre-owned and with engravings then I won't mind the engraving a bit coz the pen was pre-owned, but like the OP, it would have been better if the engraving was left as it is instead of scratching it out. i guess the satin or brush finish would at least be a fix or just scout around for a replacement barrel

[BrandonA]

Pretty retarded to think that you'd be able to improve the pen by doing such a destructive action.

 

I'd be very upset though if I bought a pen and they did not acknowledge that it was defected by having a name engraved on it. I'd be furious to receive the one you had, they blatently hid this from you.

[Uncle Red]

You should give the seller the option of a partial refund before you post any feedback. Talk to the repair services, maybe someone has a solution. I'm glad the pen writes well.

[ethernautrix]

Is there some kind of filler? A compound -- the equivalent of bondo for cars that you could stain and polish?

 

My first guess that was the person who scratched it was angry at the person whose name is on the pen. Maybe some creepy, stalker fellow who stole the pen from the lady after she started going out with someone else.

 

Or an angry ex-spouse.

 

Or someone who hates engraved names so much, he would rather scratch it out! Sad man. (Woman. Whatever.)

[majorworks]

Is there some kind of filler? A compound -- the equivalent of bondo for cars that you could stain and polish?

 

My first guess that was the person who scratched it was angry at the person whose name is on the pen. Maybe some creepy, stalker fellow who stole the pen from the lady after she started going out with someone else.

 

Or an angry ex-spouse.

 

Or someone who hates engraved names so much, he would rather scratch it out! Sad man. (Woman. Whatever.)

 

I dunno... sounds to me like you're getting ready to write a story about this pen. Actually, that might not be a bad idea.

 

I only have one pen with an engraved name, which is my Parker 51, a teal blue aerometric that my father gave me when I was a kid. It does not have his name on it, unfortunately. But I have never minded the name. It's a reminder that the pen has a history, and I see nothing wrong with that.

[PAKMAN]

My real concern would be the seller that did not disclose this defect. I would send it back or ask for a substantial amount of my money back. I have seen names professionally removed by polishing when they are shallow or by filling in with something like epoxy resin when they were deeper then polished back to shape. There are restorers that could do this for you.

[OakIris]

Holly,

 

Is that a long haired-dachshund in your avater? I've never seen one colored like that. I have a long-haried red with a very complex coat, and a long-haired black and tan.

Yes it is - my long haired mini-Dachshund, Sammy (Full name is Sweet Carob Samson. ) I love Dachshunds; he is my first long-haired one. He is a LH chocolate and tan piebald (official name for the colouring.) He has almost amber coloured eyes. Because of the piebald markings, he looks as if he is wearing an ermine robe. I also have two other mini-Dachshunds, both short haired females, a black and tan and a black and white piebald. Your babies sound beautiful, too.

 

andybiotic - have you decided what to do about your lovely but defaced pen? Since the pen writes so nicely, a barrel replacement or restoration sounds like the best solution - with the seller paying for it, of course.

 

If the seller doesn't make good on this, perhaps, if it is not against forum rules, you could share the name with the rest of us so that we can avoid the heart-ache of buying from him or her.

 

Holly

Edited February 10, 2012 by OakIris

[andybiotic]

yeah... not too happy with the seller but it is a nice pen with a rather good nib, so I think I may keep it. It is going to be a user's pen, at least I don't have to be too careful when carrying it around!

 

As for the satin finish... I am not into the whole matted black look on a vintage pen...

[777]

Let me tell you a pitiful story:

 

I was once browsing "the bay" (it was definitely fleabay this day), searching for good Orange Duofolds.

 

One popped up, for a good price, and heck, everything looked good on it, except.

The man who was selling it decided to use a knife and CUT OUT the imprint!!!

 

 

It was the ugliest job I've ever seen. Horribly done. Just a huge chunk taken out of the side of a beautiful Orange Duofold.

 

What a waste. Makes me cry every time I think of it...