Vintage Fountain Pens: To Use Or Not To Use?

[Ash1]

Hello,

I am starting to get into fountain pens and would like to assemble a small collection of vintage fountain pens. My question is should I be using vintage fountain pens or not? Due to their age are they more delicate then modern pens?

[jar]

Some are, many are not. It really depends on the pen, the materials and how it was stored over the last half century or so. There is really no answer that is definitive.

 

I do use quite a few of my vintage pens fairly regularly and to be vintage I figure they need to be at least 73 years old at a minimum. I use quite a few of my pens that are only fifty or sixty years old quite often.

 

Get those pens you really want to use checked over by someone that knows their weaknesses and then listen to their advice. For example I have one Conklin I love but there is a crack so minor it is only visible with a well lighted loupe and even then only when held just right, but the crack is right at the stress point of the lever filler and one day I'm sure it will give up the ghost. When that happens it is likely it will simply become a pretty but useless thing,

[Ernst Bitterman]

I'd use them unless they are notably ancient and brittle. Today I've using a mid-'50s Snorkel and I've got a late '40s "fat" Touchdown that has been on desk duty for a couple of months at work. The oldest pens I'll carry are the early celluloid models from the late 1920s, but that's just because I worry about discolouring hard rubber with the steamy conditions which sometimes develop in my pocket. The older rubber pens I tend to use around the house.

 

But as Jar says, it's best to attend to what the pen says regarding use.

[redbike]

The safest way to get a vintage fountain pen to use is to purchase it from a reputable dealer, or member here. If you are not familiar with vintage pens and the challenges they can present, you risk getting stuck with a fragile, damaged and unusable pen. There's a lot of information here on vintage pens, their purchase cost, cost of repair, and recommended dealers. Good luck.

Edited May 10, 2016 by redbike

[linearM]

The majority of the pens in my collection (I stopped counting at 70 pens) I would consider vintage. Many of the pens I regularly use are from the 1920's and 30's. If they have been refurbished by a person that knows what they are doing they will have years of good service ahead of them. Find out about any cracks in the cap or body, distortion in the celluloid (by the lever for example), nibs which may have cracks or been straightened or bent, the general condition of the pen. A pen that has desk wear, brassing of the clip or cap rings or lever, or a few shallow scratches may serve you well as a user pen and be more affordable. A pen in collectable condition, almost like new and reconditioned, will cost you more.

 

Buy your pens from reputable dealers or from classifieds here on FPN. I would suggest not buying on eBay when you are first starting without doing some research and reading posts about vintage pens here on FPN for a time. Beware of lousy photos (the seller may be trying to hide something) and vague descriptions.

[iveyman]

I have several vintage fountain pens in my collection and I use them to write daily. All of them are made in the 1920s and 1930s and are wet noodles. I have 2 Waterman pens with pink nibs, a Diamond Point pen made in the 1920s - 1930 and a Waterman 52 that writes like a brush, softer than the pink nibs that I have. I take good care of them and keep them in vintage pen boxes. I keep them in my study on my desk and I don't take them outside of my study at all. I write with them daily and put them back in the boxes after writing with them.

Edited May 10, 2016 by iveyman

[ac12]

That also depends on what you consider vintage.

One definition puts the pens that I used in grade school to college as 'vintage.' And those are definitely pens that you can use, and that I indeed use. My 1960s Sheaffer cartridge/school pen, my 1960-70s Parker 45, my 1970s Parker Classic.

I would also consider the specific pen. If it is a 'collector grade pen' I would not use it. If it isn't collector grade, I would consider using it. I use my 194x Parker Vac, my 1950s Esterbrooks, my 1950s Parker 51.

It also depends where. I would not take most of my older pens out of the house, too risky. But I would use them at home.

 

Sometimes, I would get a 2nd pen, to one in my collection, specifically to use. This could be a 'user grade' pen, that might be scratched or worn, or otherwise less than collector grade. Then I don't worry as much about using it.

Edited May 10, 2016 by ac12

[sandy101]

It depends entirely upon the condition of the pen, and frankly if it's a pen I can't write with, then what's the point?

 

I'm not a huge vintage pen fan. I have some Parker Slimfolds, A Parker 51 and a few Parker 45's. I also acquired a waterman gentleman

 

The Parker 51 is perfect, one of the three slimfolds is 100%, one leaks a little, and the last one has a bent nib. The Waterman Gentleman was corroded and fell apart not soon after I bought it, and the cost of restoration plus the amount I paid for it, really does not make it worthwhile.

 

By all means, go for vintage, but there's no point in paying a premium vintage price for a pen that can't or won't write.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I have a '20's Waterman inked and ready to go.....if I feel like it I have some '30's pens I use.

My '50-65 pens are always in use.

 

I prefer the better narrower, clean line of semi-flex nibs of the vintage German pens...over the junk on modern pens.

If you like nails, they too can be made interesting by having someone grind them into cursive italic or stub.

 

I don't have any Japanese pens so can't comment on them.

[Dickkooty2]

I use pens from the 50s-60s back (mostly German) at home and gently and for the fun of it. I wouldn't carry them outside as an edc. I have collected them as examples of the times and really prefer seeing them with the manufacture's ephemera and trinkets and trash from the time.

[sidthecat]

I recently paid too much money for a Conklin ringtop: a collector pen rather than a user, since one of its attributes is an ancient sticker still on the barrel. Perhaps it belonged to Minnie Pearl. I however, am not Minnie Pearl: I bought the thing for its extraordinary nib, so I'll probably peel off the damn sticker (which will probably decrease its value by half) and write with it.

[Runnin_Ute]

My oldest pens are my Esterbrooks and P51 Special. The one that gets the least use is the SJ because it is the smallest and not because it won't hold up to use. No intention in selling the SJ though either. All are 50's Era pens.

[peterg]

Most of my pens are old (mostly 1920-50's). I do not hesitate to carry and use them unless they are new old stock, on the basis that I have numerous working pens and NOS cease to be as soon as they are used. There are a few high value pens that I avoid using too, due to their value and fragility.

 

Most hard rubber and celluloid pens are pretty robust, even after all these years so you shouldn't have cause for concern.

 

But there is always the caveat: it's your pen and you can do what you want with it.

[Water Ouzel]

I've got pens from the late '20s, '30s, '40s, '50s, '60s and some made within the last five years.

 

I use all of them, to a greater or lesser degree, except for a few that are in the "to be repaired" cup.

 

A pen that you can't use to write with is sort of like an inaccurate rifle; usually not very interesting.

[Bo Bo Olson]

I guess I'd use a Paul E. Wirt 1890-1900 eyedropper pen in they were hard rubber, and once the best pen made. But it would be perhaps used with proper ceremony, the burning of incense, with the chanting in Gregorian in the background, with the proper prayers to the Ink and Paper Gods.

 

But I'd use it at least once. There are posters here with a Wirt.

 

There are fragile celluloid? pens from the '30's that could be 'wall decoration' only. By the time you get that far, you will know, what I forgot.

I had decided not to chase them....so forgot more than I should have.

[dadbar]

I have 10 fountain pens...all vintage and from the 1960's through 1990's. I use them all in rotation.

 

Why bother if you are not going to use and enjoy them? I won't purchase any pen that I can't use and get writing enjoyment from.

[ac12]

he he

It is the users vs. the collectors, and it will NEVER be settled.

Both camps will still exist as long as there are pens.

Edited May 11, 2016 by ac12

[Wahl]

I use all my vintage pens (20´s-30´s) except the Parker Duofold Mandarin, which is rather fragile.

 

I also use my Parker 21,45, 51, but don´t consider them as vintage.

[Garageboy]

I recently paid too much money for a Conklin ringtop: a collector pen rather than a user, since one of its attributes is an ancient sticker still on the barrel. Perhaps it belonged to Minnie Pearl. I however, am not Minnie Pearl: I bought the thing for its extraordinary nib, so I'll probably peel off the damn sticker (which will probably decrease its value by half) and write with it.

Can you at least photograph the sticker?

From the collector perspective, I don't use NOS pens because of the tiny details, like the chalkmarks, the packaging, etc - it all adds to the history, and is much rarer than the pen itself - funny enough, most "collector pens" i.e. modern "limited editions" - I'll ink up and use no problem, because most of them are going to still be in their boxes years from now. Hell, it's relatively easy to buy unsealed MB Writers Editions

[bsenn]

Hello,

I am starting to get into fountain pens and would like to assemble a small collection of vintage fountain pens. My question is should I be using vintage fountain pens or not? Due to their age are they more delicate then modern pens?

 

Wait, What?!? There are "modern" pens? Nobody told me.