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Vintage Nos: To Ink Or Not To Ink?


proton007

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Just as the question says.

To ink or not to ink?

In a world where there are no eyes the sun would not be light, and in a world where there were no soft skins rocks would not be hard, nor in a world where there were no muscles would they be heavy. Existence is relationship and you're smack in the middle of it.

- Alan Watts

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All depends on whether you are a collector or user I guess. After all a fountain pen is a writing instrument. You don't specify why you are in doubt.

They came as a boon, and a blessing to men,
The Pickwick, the Owl and the Waverley pen

Sincerely yours,

Pickwick

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Well, I guess I'm still deciding if I'm a collector or a user. I started off with new but cheap pens which can be used everyday. But now as I keep collecting more of the expensive vintage pens, its hard to decide if I should even ink them.

Some say it destroys the value of a pen, others say pens are meant to be used. Then there's also the possibility of an ink reacting and ruining a great pen.

Edited by proton007

In a world where there are no eyes the sun would not be light, and in a world where there were no soft skins rocks would not be hard, nor in a world where there were no muscles would they be heavy. Existence is relationship and you're smack in the middle of it.

- Alan Watts

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Ink. Why even bother wondering if you should enjoy the pen for what it was designed ,or try and speculate it's supposed future value as a horder of vintage artifacts.

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I wouldn't be concerned about an ink reacting and ruining a great pen if you use the inks that the manufacturer of the great pen makes. There are also many popular inks that wouldn't ruin a great pen.

 

So you only need to decide if you're a collector or a user. Many collector style pens that have been used still fetch great prices.

 

Would you be happy 'going to meet your maker' knowing you had several great pens that you had never used?

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If it's an NOS Waterman 20 or a Parker Senior in Mandarin then maybe you shouldn't ink. If it's a Reform 1745 or a Sheaffer 440 then ink it already.

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Personally, I would ink it and use it.

UNLESS it is a collector pen. In which case, I would not use it, as using it also risks damaging/loosing it.

 

So you have to determine the value of the pen first.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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Ink it and enjoy is my motto. That is a pen's purpose, no matter how old or otherwise pristine.

PELIKAN - Too many birds in the flock to count. My pen chest has proven to be a most fertile breeding ground.

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THE PELIKAN'S PERCH - A growing reference site for all things Pelikan

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Personally, I would ink it and use it.

UNLESS it is a collector pen. In which case, I would not use it, as using it also risks damaging/loosing it.

 

So you have to determine the value of the pen first.

 

Hmm..collectible is also subjective IMO. Yes, some pens may be too old and rare, that rarity makes them collectible. But there are others like the 51 that have been manufactured in the millions.

Some say its better to use a 'used' pen, and leave the NOS as it is, in other words, have two copies of the same pen.

In a world where there are no eyes the sun would not be light, and in a world where there were no soft skins rocks would not be hard, nor in a world where there were no muscles would they be heavy. Existence is relationship and you're smack in the middle of it.

- Alan Watts

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Ink it and enjoy is my motto. That is a pen's purpose, no matter how old or otherwise pristine.

 

+1. I don't think anything can bring full enjoyment, unless it is doing that which it's designed to do.

Franklin-Christoph, Italix, and Pilot pens are the best!
Iroshizuku, Diamine, and Waterman inks are my favorites!

Apica, Rhodia, and Clairefontaine make great paper!

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Hmm..collectible is also subjective IMO. Yes, some pens may be too old and rare, that rarity makes them collectible. But there are others like the 51 that have been manufactured in the millions.

Some say its better to use a 'used' pen, and leave the NOS as it is, in other words, have two copies of the same pen.

 

Nothing wrong with getting 2 pens.

I have my old Parker 75 and 180 from college, and the clip and barrel show wear.

I would like a get both pens in nicer condition or NOS for my collection of Flighters, and just keep using my college pens.

Or the reverse, store my college pens and buy pens to use.

San Francisco Pen Show - August 28-30, 2020 - Redwood City, California

www.SFPenShow.com

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If you got it cheaply, have no interest in it yourself, and think you can sell it at a bigger profit by leaving it unused, then that's a reason for not inking it. If you're thinking of giving it as a gift, that's another. If it will look better to you on a display shelf when you know that it's never been used, I guess I could understand that.

 

Otherwise, I can't think of any reason for not trying it out.

"So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable creature, since it enables one to find or make a reason for everything one has a mind to do."

 

- Benjamin Franklin

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I am a fan of using - in most cases. Of course I currently do not own any vintage pens, but if I did I would probably still ink it and use it.

Brad

"Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind" - Rudyard Kipling
"None of us can have as many virtues as the fountain-pen, or half its cussedness; but we can try." - Mark Twain

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I have had a couple of dozen NOS Parker 51s. I inked a few and sold the others. I might still have one left, just to look at in the unused state. I enjoy looking at a basically new pen.

 

I have enough pens that I only write with a few, and the rest are there to muse over. A few are sentimental.

 

I think it's enjoyable to have an NOS pen if there are enough other pens to write with.

 

I don't go in for the knee-jerk inking, nor for the knee-jerk preservation of everything. I had considered the NOS 51s as spares, intending to put them into use if necessary.

"Don't hurry, don't worry. It's better to be late at the Golden Gate than to arrive in Hell on time."
--Sign in a bar and grill, Ormond Beach, Florida, 1960.

 

 

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Uninked pens wither and die. True story!

 

Seriously: ink them. Life's too short. And in any case, deciding whether you're more of a collector than a user isn't something you determine going in or during the early days, it's something you come to realize through a lot of messing around with pens, over several years. In the meantime, you just do whatever feels natural, if you try to think in terms of investment, you'll only succeed in driving yourself nuts trying to make complex decisions without the necessary tools or information.

 

Don't bother. Play around because you feel like it, not because you think it makes you look like a toff or some other one-upmanship cr@p, not saying you have that but some people new to pens do and it's too bad 'cause it's just mental clutter). And if it turns out you like it, a few years down the line it'll dawn on you whether you're a collector or a user. I could make a prediction if I knew you a little better, but honestly, it's not worth it. Knowing ahead of time won't make this more fun for you.

I'm not affiliated with ANY of the brands/retailers/shops/ebay sellers/whatever I mention or recommend. If that ever changes, I will let you know :)

 

Looking for a cheap Pilot VP/Capless - willing to put up with lots of cosmetic damage.

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I would say no if it is something very rare and very aftersought.

Pens are like watches , once you start a collection, you can hardly go back. And pens like all fine luxury items do improve with time

 

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To the OP, do you have a particular pen in mind? Or are you thinking about vintage NOS in general? As has been mentioned also by a few other posters, it really comes down to what the specific pen is, in my mind. I am a user, so I wouldn't buy a pen that I didn't plan on using. Plus I don't think I could afford the ones that deserve to be in the "not use" category. :D Whatever you decide to do, I hope that you are happy with the decision. In the end, that is the most important thing of all.

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I collect Parkers for the most part these days. I have 7 vacumatics, one is in silver pearl with perfect trim and the price sticker still on it. I like keeping it how it was, I have lots of other pens to write with.

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I had two very pretty, 'cheap' vintage early-mid '50s ' no name out side of Austria' piston fillers. Yep, inked them. They were not collectors items.

If you can't buy a full tank or two of gas by not using them and selling them...use them. Just remember the guy down the street will play fetch with it and his pittbull, after all it's only an old piece of junk...to him.

 

Hummm, I'm sure I had a third NOS pen...I have no idea which it is now. It writes good...or I'd not still have it.

In reference to P. T. Barnum; to advise for free is foolish, ........busybodies are ill liked by both factions.

 

 

The cheapest lessons are from those who learned expensive lessons. Ignorance is best for learning expensive lessons.

 

 

 

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