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Enough Interest In Mabie Todd, Swan Or Otherwise?


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Well - any way we can convince the FPN people to start a Mabie Todd forum? Or am I deluded that this deserves its own forum?

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Well of course I am a great enthusiast for Mabie Todd's wonderful fountain pens, and indeed was aggrieved not to see the company mentioned in the heading to this forum, as M, T & Co was undeniably one of the very best English manufacturers.

 

Should Mabie, Todd get its own forum, then of course one need no longer fret about this regrettable lacuna!

 

Cob

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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And I was very happy to have purchased last week this small publicity poster:

 

fpn_1427792325__a_lucky_find.jpg

 

Cob

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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They say that if something is repeated oft enough it becomes accepted as fact.

 

Cob is obviously succeeding with the message

 

“The pen of the British Empire"

 

 

Even though he would not object too much to me commenting that, like McDonalds and WWE, it is simply a American import.... with Curzon being the true claimant to the title ;-)

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I would very much appreciate a forum dedicated to Mabie Todd fountain pens. There seems to be a large amount of untapped knowledge about MT's on FPN.

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They say that if something is repeated oft enough it becomes accepted as fact.

 

Cob is obviously succeeding with the message

 

“The pen of the British Empire"

 

 

Even though he would not object too much to me commenting that, like McDonalds and WWE, it is simply a American import.... with Curzon being the true claimant to the title ;-)

Not at all: it was an American import at first but a British acquisition - in 1916. And the slogan funnily enough comes from American advertising between the wars!

 

And in times of conflict the makers were proud to claim that the pens were manufactured in Britain, by British workers and with British capital.

 

Incidentally, I was once outbid on a Swan the nib of which was clearly stamped "Mabie Todd Toronto" Do you know anything about this? I have found no reference to any Canadian operation.

 

And anyway Northlodge you know I have a big soft spot for National Security pens! (Still hoping for a Rosemary pen to match the pencil I have).

 

Cob

Edited by Cob

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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I, too, would be delighted to see a subforum devoted to this important Anglo-American-Canadian company - especially if it was moderated by FPN's resident MT guru Cob. :)

http://i.imgur.com/utQ9Ep9.jpg

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I, too, would be delighted to see a subforum devoted to this important Anglo-American-Canadian company - especially if it was moderated by FPN's resident MT guru Cob. :)

It's not true - honestly!

 

C.

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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I'm certainly no Cob, but almost 60 Mabie Todd pens spanning eyedroppers through snakeskin and lizards, and ever increasing, it is my favorite part of my collection (or "favourite", to translate for Cob).

 

Who do we annoy to get a dedicated Mabie Todd forum?

 

Just to try to spur a little interest, here is a quick a dirty set of pics of my Swans (and a Blackbird). A sterling hand engraved pen is still in the mail ("post" for Cob) as well as a gold filled with an interesting split lever.

 

post-84454-0-15286400-1427858865_thumb.jpg

post-84454-0-56707700-1427858870_thumb.jpg

post-84454-0-01422300-1427858876_thumb.jpg

post-84454-0-07612800-1427858881_thumb.jpg

post-84454-0-33716800-1427858887_thumb.jpg

post-84454-0-20376300-1427858891_thumb.jpg

post-84454-0-98262400-1427858895_thumb.jpg

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Good Lord! What a collection!

 

Whatever can you mean by "I'm no Cob"? Truth is I like to own them for a while, restore them and move them on - I enjoy the restoration as much as the pens them selves. At present I suppose I have about 20 Swans or so and a few Blackbirds and a few awaiting parts (mostly clips).

 

I haven't a small fraction of this - most of those I have never even seen. Nice to see that you have a 242/52 (lapis blue) I had one but sold it because the nib was a disappointment.

 

Next to that are two green "swirly" patterned pens; I have a 230/50 (jade) with two golden bands, but its cap is the same as yours - so it is one of my numerous frankenpens I'm afraid. Could you tell me the number stamped on the green pen please?

 

I see three very smart Eternals there from the mid 1920s, a very smart Blackbird next to a SM200/63 in russet jade. And what a selection of lizard skin pens! You also have my "grail" pen - a L205/47 - mosaic - all I have in that pattern is the pencil! The 47s are always too expensive for my poor budget. And there's a nice SM205/59 Italian Marble; I rebuilt one of those from a sort of wreck, but sold it on; I see also a 142/54 (black/jade) I have one of those.

 

The only "competition" i can offer is this snap of my 2 leverless pens in brown amber (64):

 

fpn_1424107371__2.jpg

 

Thank you for showing us this magnificent collection - now everyone can see the beauty and craftsmanship that typified Mabie Todd.

 

Best wishes and thanks again.

 

Cob

 

P.S. The split lever pen you are awaiting must be incredibly rare!

Edited by Cob

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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Short reply - off to work

 

The Jade with black and gold cap bands are 242/50. The 242's are caps with interesting band variations. A 230/whatever is usually with two barrel bands, and then at the very top of the cap a narrow MHR band and then gold band at the top. In the first picture, the 8th and 9th pens - blue marbled and black. The black has an incorrect band at the cap lip from a repair - but I like the look anyway. It is next to a MHR missing a clip (that I keep waiting to find) and a shortened cap lip.

 

1. Love the amber - want one, need one

2. Please post a pic of the jade 230/50. 230/60 - black are the usual pattern. My blue is the only one I have ever seen. Never seen a jade at all!

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I might be able to help with a clip for the MHR pen - if the slots are short and it takes the Swan clip; if it takes the 1915 clip (long slots) like my golden pen then I cannot do anything. What I want is 1930s chrome-plated inserted clips

 

OK here's another of my awful photos showing a selection of Mabie Todds.

 

fpn_1427905519__swan_selection_1_iv.jpg

 

Left to right:

 

Blackbird Frankenpen; cap from irreparable push button model, 5245 barrel, French 18ct uber-flex L'Aigle Blanc nib. This pen is called "Morning Dress"

A pair of delightful SF130Cs - note the difference in band widths

A nice rolled gold NY lever filler with lovely original nib

The 44ETN showing its domed finial

The 142/54

The SF230/50 with its incorrect cap

An art-deco clip self filler in unusual 72 pale green

 

I might sell the gold banded brown amber: it is marked L330/64 has a nice flexible fine No 3 nib. And it has a name engraved on the barrel which I am tempted to remove - rather a lot of work but maybe worth it.

 

Rgds

 

Cob

Edited by Cob

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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We have some mutual pen envy going on. I have never seen a Jade 230. I wonder how many other colors of this model are out there. I only have one nickel plated old style clip. They don't seem to be too common. Best of luck hunting for that.

 

My MHR missing the clip was part of a cheap parts lot. When I got it, the chip out of the cap lip seemed reasonable for just shortening it a bit. Otherwise, it is actually a nice pen. Only time will tell if I find the right clip first, or if I find a great pen needing the nib or feed first. The problem is that when I hold the cap up to other clips, a standard clip seems that it will look a bit too long, with the ball just barely htting the cap lip or maybe slghlty hanging off. I have toyed with the idea of extending the slits higher to place a clip slightly higher. Or, if I really get lucky, there are rare short clips. My BCHR with the wide floral band has an unusually short clip, and I occasionally see a pen with one of these. 4th photo, third pen, next to the black with jade bands.

 

Maybe we can message our list of parts, frankenpens, and needed parts and see if anything mathces up for some trades? I could be interested in the L230 amber if the engraving is either interesting, or shallow enough to remove.

 

(by the way - I failed to up load the picture with my lizards - All 4 colors, two is size 212, two size 312, and then the bonus 412 with wide band that is in the last picture.)

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We have some mutual pen envy going on. I have never seen a Jade 230. I wonder how many other colors of this model are out there. I only have one nickel plated old style clip. They don't seem to be too common. Best of luck hunting for that.

 

My MHR missing the clip was part of a cheap parts lot. When I got it, the chip out of the cap lip seemed reasonable for just shortening it a bit. Otherwise, it is actually a nice pen. Only time will tell if I find the right clip first, or if I find a great pen needing the nib or feed first. The problem is that when I hold the cap up to other clips, a standard clip seems that it will look a bit too long, with the ball just barely htting the cap lip or maybe slghlty hanging off. I have toyed with the idea of extending the slits higher to place a clip slightly higher. Or, if I really get lucky, there are rare short clips. My BCHR with the wide floral band has an unusually short clip, and I occasionally see a pen with one of these. 4th photo, third pen, next to the black with jade bands.

 

Maybe we can message our list of parts, frankenpens, and needed parts and see if anything mathces up for some trades? I could be interested in the L230 amber if the engraving is either interesting, or shallow enough to remove.

 

(by the way - I failed to up load the picture with my lizards - All 4 colors, two is size 212, two size 312, and then the bonus 412 with wide band that is in the last picture.)

OK I'll send you a PM when I get a bit of time. I doubt that chrome inserted clips are rare - all the cheaper Swans had them from the mid thirties up to the early fifties., The amber is a L330. The engraving reads "H. Hubbard." and is not very deep.

 

More later

 

C.

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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Cob, your poster is indeed a lucky find.

Yes it was: 'Buy it now' on eBay £2.95 - I couldn't click fast enough!

 

C.

fpn_1428963683__6s.jpg “The pen of the British Empire” fpn_1423349537__swan_sign_is.jpg


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I think after all the "fuss" a simple British pens forum is sufficient. Being bi-continental MT does create an issue in this context. I doubt an MT forum would generate enough posting to be worthwhile.

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An own forum would solve the bi-continental issue, but I am also not sure if there would be enough posts.

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