Relaunches Of Iconic Vintage Models

[amk]

I can't help thinking that despite the name, the Sheaffer No-Nonsense is really a reissue of the Flat Top.

 

And Waterman in the 1980s (maybe late 70s?) started a revivalist phase. The Waterman pens I'm thinking of are not outright reissues but close; the Hundred Year Pen becomes the Charleston (though with a much smaller nib than the amazing 100 year nibs which I love), then there's the ringtop/Lady series in vintage galalith. And as someone noted the Man Patrician comes back with its name unchanged - a glorious pen.

[sansenri]

sansenri: Thank you for your comments. What you mentioned prompted me to dig a bit deeper into the Omas history. I can see why Milord can fit into this category but I am not sure about Paragon. Ms. Letizia Iacopini's write-up on the subject of Omas Milord and Paragon models: https://www.tenpen.it/article/milord-paragon

 

The Milord came from Milord of 1960s, and Paragon came from 55x facetted models (not called Paragon at the time). Here what I also find difficult to define is also what's vintage. Can Milord from 60s be called "vintage"? In a loose sense, I think it can. However it's no longer the golden ages of fountain pens. So I am going to put both models in the answers, but with Paragon question mark attached.

that is up to you to define,

for sure both the Paragon /557F and the Milord /556F were made by Omas for many years always with the same characteristics, then suddenly in the last period of Omas' life they were re-launched with different size and design.

Both pens are in my opinion iconic (and still sought after today). I am not quite sure when the first Paragon or Milord appeared (I have seen a 61 Omas catalogue that lists them) but a 60s pen is vintage enough for me...

 

By the way, regarding Tibaldi, they have just re-launched the Bononia, a nice looking resin pen with steel clip and nib.

The original Tibaldi Bononia in celluloid, gold nib and trim is nonetheless a much more beautiful pen! (anyone surprised?)

[pajaro]

Oh, gee thanks, mana. Now you're making ME feel old (in 1975 I was in high school).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

You are both making me feel old. I graduated from the U. of West Florida in 1970, was out of the Air Force in 1974, retired the first time in 2004 and for good in 2014. 72 this year. Time passes so quickly.

[Jerome Tarshis]

I don't know if we are still adding pens to the list, but:

 

Aurora DuoCart, originally released in 1954. Mine is actually a good pen, and on the outside it is relatively faithful to the earlier design. Inside it takes the current long Aurora cartridge or converter, consistent with Parker cartridges and converters, whereas the original took two short proprietary Aurora cartridges. (Hence the name DuoCart.) The original had a gold nib; the reissue has a steel nib. Higher price today, of course.

 

New Aurora 88 line. In 1989 Aurora released with the vintage-pen model number 88 a line of pens seriously different from the original 88s, which had semi-hooded nibs. In other respects there is some echoing of the original look, and I like my little modern Aurora 88 Piccola (small) pen, but it's hard for me to think of these as revivals of the earlier pen.

 

Good pens, yes. Perhaps I should think of 88 as a top of line designation, like Parker's word Duofold, not as referring to one particular pen with a certain kind of nib and a slip cap closure like that of the Parker 51, which the original 88 was meant to imitate.

[fpupulin]

The OMAS Paragon, Milord and Dama were perhaps never really discontinued, as they changed their names but remained in production – even with continued modifications – throughout the entire life of OMAS.

 

There is however a model that truly represents a relaunch of a pen of the past, and this is the OMAS Princess.

 

During the Thirties (and arguably also during the Forties), OMAS was used to have in its catalogue a Extra Lady, with a tassel instead of the clip (as it was quite common for ladies pens at that time). During the 1950s and the 1960s, and until the beginning of he 1990s, OMAS had a Senior size Extra (557, then Gentlemen, then Gentleman, then Paragon), a Junior size (556, then Milord), and a Small size (555, then Dama, then 1930, then Dama again), but there was no "Lady" model with a tassel in their catalogue.

 

The "Lady" was effectively relaunched in 1992, under the name of "Princess", in different types of celluloids. I saw at least Arco brown (my Daughter Margherita owns one), Arco green, Saft, Purple, Royal Blue (my daughter Carlotta owns one), and Senape.

 

Below you can see a couple of photos I took from a page of Andres Lambrou's "bible", Fountain pens of the world, featuring OMAS pens from the 1930-1940s, where I added, live, a modern Princess for comparison.

 

Number 1 indicates Lambrou's photo of the 1930 Extra Lady, and number 2 is the modern OMAS Princess from 1992.You may see that the new pen is boldly inspired to the historic model.

 

 

 

[sansenri]

Great addition Franco! The evolution and nomenclature of Omas pens has always been complex.

It is slightly OT, but although I do not own a Gentlemen (i.e. the senior size Extra in black Celluloid), I do own a 557F in resin  - which, being resin, I assume comes after the Gentlemen, and which has two greeks one on the cap and one on the barrel, while the Gentleman in resin only has the greek on the cap.

I then also own an Extra (no other marking) in resin, of the same size... which being resin I believe comes after the 557F and Gentleman.

The exact location in time of these models still escapes me somewhat.

[sgphototn]

Having been involved with firearms for many decades, I developed my own ideas about originals verses 'reproductions' and I have the same ideas about fountain pens.

 

I prefer originals. If Winchester today came out with an "1873 Lever Action Winchester" it wouldn't be made like or reflect the original 1873 Winchester. Might look the same? Maybe, but probably big differences. I might not shoot an original Winchester, but I wouldn't buy a 'repo' myself.

 

Same with fountain pens. I have two modern Conklins, an Ohio Sandstone from the early 2000s and a Duragraph purchased this year. Both are, at best, second tier pens. They are in my give-away drawer but frankly I'd almost be embarrassed to foist them on someone new to the hobby.

 

Too many pens produced today as versions of older pens are still, IMHO, not the same and the brands are looking to capitalize on past glory. 

 

Just like that Winchester 1873, I'd rather have a well-used original than a brand new reproduction. The same with pens.

 

This is not to knock anyone's choices, but simply my choices.

 

[bunnspecial]

4 hours ago, sgphototn said:

I prefer originals. If Winchester today came out with an "1873 Lever Action Winchester" it wouldn't be made like or reflect the original 1873 Winchester. Might look the same? Maybe, but probably big differences. I might not shoot an original Winchester, but I wouldn't buy a 'repo' myself.

 

I'm mixed on that particular originality preference. My oldest gun is an S&W Model of 1899 in 32-20. The best I can figure it was made around 1901-the model of 1902 was so much better that I think it completely superceded the 1899(unlike the 1905, which just squared off the butt of the 1902 and is still made right along side the same basic 1902 frame).

 

I have two "classic" reproductions, a Rossi 1892 in 357 Magnum and an Uberti SAA in 45 Colt. Of course you can still buy a new Colt SAA, but they're pricey, and old ones are too. For the $300 or so I paid for the Uberti, I have a gun that functions just like an old one and shoots well, but I'm not afraid to hand it off to anyone who wants to shoot it. It's the same deal with the Rossi 92, and you can't shoot it and not smile. Unlike a Winchester 73, the 92 action is always going to be notchy and rough, but every Winchester I've handled did run a lot smoother than my Rossi. I've polished the Rossi up a bit, but a lot of it comes from the bolt locks and those are not something you want to do anything more than work the action to smooth out. My big barrier, there again, is that old Winchester rifles are $$$$.

 

I do have a 97 in 16 gauge. I think I've dated it to 1905ish. It's not the prettiest 97 around, but it shoots great and since I'm not really a shotgun guy it's the only one I've felt the need to keep(I did have a Winchester 12 around for a while, also in 16 gauge, which is everything good about the 97 made better, but it had a Cutts that kind of killed it for me).

 

I'm no stranger to showing up at the range with a handful of old guns. In fact it's not unusual for me to show up at the range with nothing in my range bag made past the 1970s-people do notice since it's a big change from the tupperware most other folks are shooting, but to me the 1960s and 70s S&Ws especially are just guns I shoot/carry.

 

[sgphototn]

9 minutes ago, bunnspecial said:

 

I'm mixed on that particular originality preference. My oldest gun is an S&W Model of 1899 in 32-20. The best I can figure it was made around 1901-the model of 1902 was so much better that I think it completely superceded the 1899(unlike the 1905, which just squared off the butt of the 1902 and is still made right along side the same basic 1902 frame).

 

I have two "classic" reproductions, a Rossi 1892 in 357 Magnum and an Uberti SAA in 45 Colt. Of course you can still buy a new Colt SAA, but they're pricey, and old ones are too. For the $300 or so I paid for the Uberti, I have a gun that functions just like an old one and shoots well, but I'm not afraid to hand it off to anyone who wants to shoot it. It's the same deal with the Rossi 92, and you can't shoot it and not smile. Unlike a Winchester 73, the 92 action is always going to be notchy and rough, but every Winchester I've handled did run a lot smoother than my Rossi. I've polished the Rossi up a bit, but a lot of it comes from the bolt locks and those are not something you want to do anything more than work the action to smooth out. My big barrier, there again, is that old Winchester rifles are $$$$.

 

I do have a 97 in 16 gauge. I think I've dated it to 1905ish. It's not the prettiest 97 around, but it shoots great and since I'm not really a shotgun guy it's the only one I've felt the need to keep(I did have a Winchester 12 around for a while, also in 16 gauge, which is everything good about the 97 made better, but it had a Cutts that kind of killed it for me).

 

I'm no stranger to showing up at the range with a handful of old guns. In fact it's not unusual for me to show up at the range with nothing in my range bag made past the 1970s-people do notice since it's a big change from the tupperware most other folks are shooting, but to me the 1960s and 70s S&Ws especially are just guns I shoot/carry.

 

I have an Civil War Enfield. I also have an Italian repro of the Enfield. That's the one I shoot. But the difference in cost of the two is at least 10-15 times between the original and the repo. I also like S&Ws from the 50s-early 70s witht the diamond grips. Just like early Ruger handguns compared to those produced after the transfer bars were required. 

 

For me, I'd buy an old Esterbrook, but not a new one. Far cheaper and certainly a true Esterbrook, not a pen merely bearing the Esterbrook brand. Same with Conklins.

 

But that's just me and I'm old.

 

[inkstainedruth]

52 minutes ago, sgphototn said:

For me, I'd buy an old Esterbrook, but not a new one. Far cheaper and certainly a true Esterbrook, not a pen merely bearing the Esterbrook brand. Same with Conklins.

 

Not to mention the brouhaha on here when that guy bought the brand name and resurrected the pens with no consideration of their history of inexpensive but well-made second tier pens, and then sold the company to a bigger conglomerate in return for a seat on the board.  There were several threads back when he "re-issued" the brand about the guy -- not the least of which being him calling someone on an unlisted phone number after there was an issue with a Conklin his wife sold that person on eBay; buyer asked for a replacement and instead got a lot of verbal abuse from the guy.  And someone else asked where the reissued Esties were being made on the Estie website -- and got his question REMOVED outright (with no answer given to what was a legitimate question).

Yeah, I'm with you -- the most I think I've ever paid for a vintage Esterbrook was $35 US for a black LJ with a 9284 signature stub nib at a pen show a few years ago on a Sunday morning.  I'll admit that I do like the look of the new "Peacock" color -- but I'm not sure I like it well enough to actually want to buy it.  I did look at the reissued Conklins a few years ago, but the one I was looking at (don't remember the model offhand) was a bit too heavy to be comfortable for me to write with.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[como]

On 10/22/2020 at 11:33 PM, sansenri said:

that is up to you to define,

for sure both the Paragon /557F and the Milord /556F were made by Omas for many years always with the same characteristics, then suddenly in the last period of Omas' life they were re-launched with different size and design.

Both pens are in my opinion iconic (and still sought after today). I am not quite sure when the first Paragon or Milord appeared (I have seen a 61 Omas catalogue that lists them) but a 60s pen is vintage enough for me...

 

By the way, regarding Tibaldi, they have just re-launched the Bononia, a nice looking resin pen with steel clip and nib.

The original Tibaldi Bononia in celluloid, gold nib and trim is nonetheless a much more beautiful pen! (anyone surprised?)

@sansenri: It’s nice to see everyone coming back! I’ve noticed the new Tibaldi Bononia in resin thanks to another member bbs’ separate post. Do you know if the vintage Tibaldi also had a model named Bononia, or it’s just the modern Tibaldi celluloid Bononia? Thank you!

On 10/28/2020 at 4:56 PM, fpupulin said:

The OMAS Paragon, Milord and Dama were perhaps never really discontinued, as they changed their names but remained in production – even with continued modifications – throughout the entire life of OMAS.

 

There is however a model that truly represents a relaunch of a pen of the past, and this is the OMAS Princess.

 

During the Thirties (and arguably also during the Forties), OMAS was used to have in its catalogue a Extra Lady, with a tassel instead of the clip (as it was quite common for ladies pens at that time). During the 1950s and the 1960s, and until the beginning of he 1990s, OMAS had a Senior size Extra (557, then Gentlemen, then Gentleman, then Paragon), a Junior size (556, then Milord), and a Small size (555, then Dama, then 1930, then Dama again), but there was no "Lady" model with a tassel in their catalogue.

 

The "Lady" was effectively relaunched in 1992, under the name of "Princess", in different types of celluloids. I saw at least Arco brown (my Daughter Margherita owns one), Arco green, Saft, Purple, Royal Blue (my daughter Carlotta owns one), and Senape.

 

Below you can see a couple of photos I took from a page of Andres Lambrou's "bible", Fountain pens of the world, featuring OMAS pens from the 1930-1940s, where I added, live, a modern Princess for comparison.

 

Number 1 indicates Lambrou's photo of the 1930 Extra Lady, and number 2 is the modern OMAS Princess from 1992.You may see that the new pen is boldly inspired to the historic model.

 

 

 

 

@fpupulin:Thank you for your comments and photos. It never ceases to amaze me that Omas stuck to their roots for so long! One can put a vintage and a modern Omas side by side, and instantly recognize that they are from the same family, with very similar designs, and the modern one just looks slightly bigger. It’s no wonder that so many consider Omas the darling of Italian pens.

[sansenri]

11 minutes ago, como said:

@sansenri: It’s nice to see everyone coming back! I’ve noticed the new Tibaldi Bononia in resin thanks to another member bbs’ separate post. Do you know if the vintage Tibaldi also had a model named Bononia, or it’s just the modern Tibaldi celluloid Bononia? Thank you!

@fpupulin:Thank you for your comments and photos. It never ceases to amaze me that Omas stuck to their roots for so long! One can put a vintage and a modern Omas side by side, and instantly recognize that they are from the same family, with very similar designs, and the modern one just looks slightly bigger. It’s no wonder that so many consider Omas the darling of Italian pens.

 

That is actually what I was saying, como.

"The original Tibaldi Bononia in celluloid, gold nib and trim is nonetheless a much more beautiful pen! (anyone surprised?) "

Tibaldi had a Bononia named pen (perhaps even an earlier one, but I'm no Tibaldi expert unfortunately, they disappeared too early!) which was made of celluloid. The last Bononia dates around 2000 just before Tibaldi went out of business, and came in a beautiful green and black marbled celluloid, that reminds me of the celluloid used in the Stipula Etruria Gran Sasso, but if you look closely it's still probably different). I read that they had planned to produce 500 of these but only about half saw the light.
an image from the web, the design is not exactly the same (notably the threads are on the section end), but similar

 

Regarding Omas, as I was saying in an earlier post, and adopting the firearms analogy in the few previous posts, this is one of the few cases in which it is debatable whether the newer Omas is better than the older one. Some would swear it is!

 

[AL01]

2 hours ago, sgphototn said:

I have an Civil War Enfield. I also have an Italian repro of the Enfield. That's the one I shoot. But the difference in cost of the two is at least 10-15 times between the original and the repo. I also like S&Ws from the 50s-early 70s witht the diamond grips. Just like early Ruger handguns compared to those produced after the transfer bars were required. 

 

For me, I'd buy an old Esterbrook, but not a new one. Far cheaper and certainly a true Esterbrook, not a pen merely bearing the Esterbrook brand. Same with Conklins.

 

But that's just me and I'm old.

 

 

 I don' know much 'bout Civil War era guns, but I can say that the whole reproduction thing is quite popular with a famous speaker manufactured for the BBC for a few decades called the LS3/5A.

 

 Since those speakers are really collectable, the prices for them have gone through the roof, and people who don't want to spend over 2 grand for them by reproductions instead, as they are of matching specifications, etc.

 

 However, with Esterbrooks, it is still much cheaper to buy a vintage specimen rather than a newly manufactured one, so if one were to remove all emotional attachment to the brand and its history, (as well as other biases aside, and I am full of them), it still would be financially better for the wallet for an individual to buy a vintage Esterbrooks.

 

 (I think you can tell that I enjoy my vintage Estie! )

 

[como]

Some thoughts after reading comments from the above page or so:

1. The comparison of vintage vs. its modern revival and similar situation in guns, car is very interesting and a good one. Many here can relate to that. Somehow fountain pen aficionados also tend to like other mechanical things that are esthetically beautiful.

 

2. As fpupulin mentioned above, some pen manufacturers never really discontinued their historical models, like Omas. This is their DNA, tradition, identity. You can see that in Montblanc and a few others too. While they can be innovative and “wild”, their core is not all over the place.

 

3. @sansenri: Being an Omas fan, I just have to say this - Omas pens are beautiful, no matter vintage or modern. Luckily they are just pens, so I don’t have to pick one over the other.😀😀😀

4. This is a bit off topic, but all the discussions here have made me think about what makes a “good” pen company in the design aspect. One is that it cannot be all over the place all the time, nor stale for long. Two is that I feel that if the main lines are generally accepted as being “nice” and stand for the test of time, I can say that the company gets the design mostly right. One company I can think of is Visconti. Here I leave out the filling system (not self serviceable, the power vac/plunger) and nib QC issues discussed by many in the past, and just focus on design.  The Homo Sapiens, Opera Master, Divina are all quite attractive and have a large fan base. I can say that about Omas and Montblanc too. Ahhhh, perhaps I should start a separate discussion? 😀

[sansenri]

"Ahhhh, perhaps I should start a separate discussion?"

 

possibly

 

my opinion is that design is one thing but in the end it has to marry with ergonomics...

a nice looking pen that is awful to hold will not make the grade.

 

[sgphototn]

I have a neighbor who has a 1932 Ford, as that's what on the registration. However, it's a fiberglass body, modern engine and transmission, better suspension, etc. There's nothing about the car that is a 1932 Ford except the outline.

 

It's a kit car assembled by someone who sells them to people who want a hot rod. But would you claim it's a 1932 Ford?

 

That's how I see many of those who take old pen brands, make new pens, and call them by the old brands.

 

 

 

 

[sansenri]

at any rate, yes, I found reference to a Tibaldi Bononia model from 1950, I recall that I had spotted an image time ago but cannot retrace it, it was in cream colour celluloid. It seems the early Bononia was produced for quite some time.

(btw, Bononia is an ancient name for the city of Bologna)

[como]

@sansenri: I sense from another thread and your preference of no-stepdown section that you might get that new Bononia soon? 😜

@sgphototn: I guess that 1932 Ford inspired car is not for the purists! 😀

[sgphototn]

28 minutes ago, como said:

@sansenri: I sense from another thread and your preference of no-stepdown section that you might get that new Bononia soon? 😜

@sgphototn: I guess that 1932 Ford inspired car is not for the purists! 😀

It's for those who want to make you think it's a 32 Ford.🤣

[como]

I just discovered while casually browsing Fontoplumo’s website that apparently someone has relaunched the Italian vintage brand Radius! The Radius Superior looks similar not the same as their vintage counterpart. Radius is not as well known as Omas, Aurora, Ancora, Tibaldi etc but it’s a significant brand. Does anyone know the story behind the brand relaunch? I don’t seem to be able to find any info except that this happened in 2020. Great that they named the model finishes after Cinque Terre, the five villages on the west Italian coast north of Pisa and south of Genova. I love this region. Italian pen industry seems to be going through a modern “Renaissance”phase!