What is on your bench?

[FarmBoy]

I had a large accumulation of Webster pens made by Parker at one time. All of them had a removable standard design section. 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

I don't think these are Parker made, I have one of the same model but a lever filler and it very much feels like a National Pen Product pen. I don't think Parker made twist fillers either. I don't particularly like it, besides the section being glued in, the nib is very mediocre. Shame because the pen itself is beautiful, they used a very attractive striped celluloid.

[VacNut]

On 5/6/2025 at 7:03 AM, Nightjar said:

This is another request for advice. I posted photos of this pen on the US Pens forum to see if anyone could ID it... not entirely clear, perhaps it's a pre-Permapoint Eberhard Faber. But whatever it is...

 

... I can't work out how to fix it. I can't separate section from barrel (despite persistent efforts, with heat): I guess it was either made that way (???) or it has been very firmly glued in place with superglue or similar.

 

Even if I were able to remove section, I wonder if it's missing a part: feed doesn't appear to have any sort of nipple to go into, and I can't see how that could work for a lever+window pen. There's something in there (below the asterisk) but that may well be just semi-gooey sac residue. Otherwise (accessed from top with feed removed) it just seems like bare barrel walls plus lever+bar.

 

Photo shows parts in their approximate relative positions.

 

Maybe I'm being stupid and missing something obvious. Can anyone suggest anything? I wish you guys lived down the road!

 

I am not familiar with the Faber pen, but the section doesn’t look quite correct. I would expect the taper on the section to match the diameter of the barrel threads. The section profile straightens before it contacts the threads. Could it be it is not original to the pen and has been “adhered” in place? 
The feed also usually extends the full length of the section. It looks too short.

This may be the reason for your difficulties in restoring the pen, and the odd visulated section.

[Ron Z]

1 hour ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

I don't think these are Parker made, I have one of the same model but a lever filler and it very much feels like a National Pen Product pen. I don't think Parker made twist fillers either. I don't particularly like it, besides the section being glued in, the nib is very mediocre. Shame because the pen itself is beautiful, they used a very attractive striped celluloid.

I wasn't suggesting that it was made by Parker, but pointing out that the practice of coating sections was common in the industry, even on better made pens.

[VacNut]

The section looks similar to a Parker Televisor, which had clear sections in the barrel or section.

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Just now, Ron Z said:

I wasn't suggesting that it was made by Parker, but pointing out that the practice of coating sections was common in the industry, even on better made pens.

 

Oh I was responding to FarmBoy, sorry - should have quoted his post.

[Paul-in-SF]

5 hours ago, Nightjar said:

[Meanwhile, looking for a tiny light on a wire, that'd be handy!]

 

I got mine from Pentooling https://pentooling.com/loupes.html (scroll down to "drop light" listing, just below the loupes. Takes 2 AA batteries. 

[Nightjar]

@Ron Z "You aren't likely to see the sac nipple looking down the center of the section"... okay, noted, thank you!

 

@VacNut "I would expect the taper on the section to match the diameter of the barrel threads. The section profile straightens before it contacts the threads. Could it be it is not original to the pen and has been “adhered” in place? The feed also usually extends the full length of the section. It looks too short." Yep, that's all certainly very possible! Hard to say for sure, since I haven't been able to find other examples of this pen on the Internet.

 

Help and advice from everyone really appreciated.

 

[VacNut]

https://parkerpens.net/televisor.html
 

The “Visiometer”

 

The section is not likely from Parker but here is an example of a clear section. At least you can see the ink.

[VacNut]

1 hour ago, Nightjar said:

@Ron Z "You aren't likely to see the sac nipple looking down the center of the section"... okay, noted, thank you!

 

@VacNut "I would expect the taper on the section to match the diameter of the barrel threads. The section profile straightens before it contacts the threads. Could it be it is not original to the pen and has been “adhered” in place? The feed also usually extends the full length of the section. It looks too short." Yep, that's all certainly very possible! Hard to say for sure, since I haven't been able to find other examples of this pen on the Internet.

 

Help and advice from everyone really appreciated.

 

BTW, Ron is correct about reinstalling the feed before you try removing the section;  but since you have already removed the section, you may consider dripping water or Naphtha into the barrel thru the section. Sometime the water will liquify the dried ink, or the naphtha may dissolve the sack.
There is no harm putting cool water “inside” a celluloid pen.

[FarmBoy]

Webster Pens were a house brand of Montgomery Ward department stores.  There are Webster pens that are identical to Parker Challenger pens only in a different material.  Thus my accumulation of Webster pens at one time.  Others made Webster as well.

The section on the Webster pen shown is clear celluloid and was painted black.  It will be a slip fit and they are often very stubborn to remove.

 

Is there a picture of the whole pen somewhere?  All I saw was a blowup of the section.

[Ron Z]

Naphtha won't harm the celluloid.  I use it all the time, especially taking Vacumatic pumps out where it works as a light penetrating oil.  You do still need to be careful, but at 450 F for V. M. & P. naphtha the auto-ignition point (temp at which it ignites without spark or flame) is well above the ignition point of celluloid. 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

I have yet another Sheaffer Balance with a loose section so I am fattening it up a bit at the end nearest the nib with a little bit of shellac. What's the minimum amount of time I should let it dry for before I try inserting the section?

 

Would 4 hours be okay? I am a little impatient and want to reassemble, but I want the shellac to be dry enough to the point where it won't act like a glue and make the section impossible to take out.

[Ron Z]

I would go with overnight.

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Sigh, I guess I will wait.

[inkstainedruth]

On 4/18/2025 at 5:10 PM, LedZepGirl said:

 

Put my Parkette back together, but now it leaks. 😵‍💫  So back apart it comes again. It's a nice writer otherwise.

That's a pretty color.  I have a couple of red marble Parkettes and a third tier brand green-marble pen/pencil combo.

Ruth Morrisson aka aka inkstainedruth 

[FarmBoy]

2 hours ago, LoveBigPensAndCannotLie said:

Sigh, I guess I will wait.

It is morning somewhere. 

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Sigh, don't tempt me. I'll leave it alone. The nib on this one doesn't look like one I am going to enjoy too much so I'm thinking of passing this one on after I test it. Might as well make sure it's done right if I'm not keeping it. If it was for myself I'd probably just try shoving the section in now, it's been about 5 hours at this point.

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Well, it's in. I was worried I put too thick of a layer but it seems fine. This seems like a common problem with these Balance pens from the mid 1930's, or maybe I'm unlucky. The weird thing is both of these pens had the exact same issue, the section was tight enough at the back, but loose at the front, like the celluloid shrank more towards the front. 

 

Didn't align the lever and nib all that well but that's a cosmetic thing and I don't want to take the section out so it will have to be good enough.

[LoveBigPensAndCannotLie]

Someone tell me why I even do this. Most of the time this hobby is just pure misery. The nib had hairlines on the sides. I pressed down on it a little bit to widen the tines because it was dry and the hairlines deepened and the nib came off the feed. Useless now.

 

I don't even blame myself for this one, the pen was (bleep) from the beginning. I saw the hairlines when I got the pen but I didn't think they would be a problem so I gave the seller a good feedback and went on restoring it. 

 

I think I should just stop restoring junk. If I get a pen with issues, I need to start being adamant about sending them back for refunds. Now I'm down $40 with jackshit to show for it besides a broken bit of gold worth probably $10. Fantastic as always, vintage pens are a joy.