Esterbrook Nibs On Ebay

[Larry Barrieau]

I got eight NOS 2668 nibs on ebay for $77. I know it's not a spectacular price, but the way Estie nib prices are going, I'm happy with the purchase.

[corgicoupe]

It's certainly a fair price for 2668 nibs, which are one of the smoothest writing nibs.

 

Might the prices be going up because they can be used in the new Esterbrook? [pure speculation]

[inkstainedruth]

My how times have changed. Just 6 or 7 years ago I bought two grey Mackerel tabby pens (a full-sized J and an SJ), both with 9xxx nibs, for about $15 US....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Estycollector]

I get most of my more exotic nibs with a pen attached.

[corgicoupe]

Well, the 2668 is hardly exotic, but it is one of the smoothest and usually sells for $10 or so.

[pajaro]

My how times have changed. Just 6 or 7 years ago I bought two grey Mackerel tabby pens (a full-sized J and an SJ), both with 9xxx nibs, for about $15 US....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

Times have changed. The market appears to have a better appreciation for Esties.

[Larry Barrieau]

Ruth, I'm in the same Freshman fountain pen class as you. I'm beginning my 7th year. I put most of my Estie collection together in the first two years and 95% of it consists of pens cheaper than the fifteen dollar mark that you mention.

[Estycollector]

Well, I started in then Fall of '19 and haven't paid that much. I sure have some nice writing pens.

[Larry Barrieau]

Yes you do.

[inkstainedruth]

Ruth, I'm in the same Freshman fountain pen class as you. I'm beginning my 7th year. I put most of my Estie collection together in the first two years and 95% of it consists of pens cheaper than the fifteen dollar mark that you mention.

 

Yup, me too (although I've been around here a little longer -- just over 8 years at this point).

I did pay $20 buck each for a few of of the 9xxx series nibs in the past couple of years at FPH (there are a couple I hadn't yet gotten my hands on, with a couple more still to go) but nearly all of the pens were in the ten to twenty buck range. I think the most I ever paid was $35 US (at the Ohio Pen Show a few years ago on a Sunday morning) down from the $40 the seller was originally asking, for a black LJ with a 9284 signature stub nib -- and that was mostly for the nib.

While I'd dearly love to get one of the 8440 Cartography nibs (in case my husband doesn't like any of the other EF nibs I could put on the red J he wanted) -- the cheapskate in me just balks at the prices for the few I've seen for sale. (I was explaining to a guy I know over the weekend that I'm a cheapskate, and his response -- probably to be polite -- was "No, you're frugal....". And I said "Nope -- I'm a cheapskate!"

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Estycollector]

My how times have changed. Just 6 or 7 years ago I bought two grey Mackerel tabby pens (a full-sized J and an SJ), both with 9xxx nibs, for about $15 US....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

I've been able to acquire two 1930's black rubber dollar pens for $18 each. Both with flat feed nibs. $18 is equal to $1 in 1930's. I think the pens are still affordable with sneaky search words. You have to think like a non pen hobbyist and look at more estate finds than pen sellers.

[Estycollector]

 

Times have changed. The market appears to have a better appreciation for Esties.

 

They appear to me to be the best kept secret. They are made of quality plastic, and good metal. I don't have a cracked part that I am aware. Everything is simple and functional. Simple straightforward functionality should be the goal for all manufacturing. I've stayed away from other vintage brands because they are too complex to restore. That said, I bought a '42 51 that had been restored. I paid $80 and figure that's just the cost of restoration and expertise.

[gweimer1]

Esterbrooks were made to last, and to offer a wide writing variety with a single pen purchase. They were all about the nibs, from back when a pen was the nib that did the writing.

 

They have survived, in better condition, than many of the more expensive and luxurious pens of the era. I just sold a customer his first Esterbrook ( a J with a 9668 nib), and he's really impressed. He says, and rightfully so, that it writes better than some of his better pens.

 

Perhaps my best find was an auction of an old drug store estate not far from here. I bought over 250 boxed Esterbrook nibs, including some of those really desireable ones.

[Estycollector]

To date, I've found the 2788 and 3556 to be my favorite nibs. Both came with a pen attached.

[pajaro]

What amazes me is a couple of Esterbrook Safari push fillers I have that fill almost like a Sheaffer Touchdown, and these pens don't appear to have been restored. Work fine. They have lasted.