Arnold Pen Company

[MTSIMON]

My latest purchase. Sold as a child’s fountain pen which I can believe going by the size of it.

Any ideas as to the date of this pen, model etc would be appreciated.

 

All I know is that the Arnold Pen Company of Petersburg Virginia was started in 1935 and went on until 2005 but made ball point pens.

 

By the style of this pen it looks to me to date from 1950 to 1970 perhaps. I’m probably completely wrong on this however. It has just the letter A on the clip instead of the word ARNOLD of the earlier models.

[PPPR]

I don't know all that much about Arnold, but it t could be a "vest pocket" or other style miniature FP rather than a child's. The style is probably pre-1960 because not many companies were manufacturing LFs with the popularity of c/c FPs and BPs by then. Hopefully someone else can be more helpful.

 

An aside: placing a pen next to a ruler or another common FP of recognized size is a better way for others to judge. Hand size varies.

 

[amberleadavis]

It is cute.

[mallymal1]

Maybe you've already seen it, but I came across this...

 

https://munsonpens.wordpress.com/category/arnold-pen-company/

 

 

[MTSIMON]

It is cute 😁 Thank you for your advice but I really didn’t think it necessary to put the pen near a ruler as I thought on this occasion that the hand of a man - mine, would give enough of an idea as to the tiny size of this pen.

 

As you say, hand size does indeed vary but that isn’t as important here - you can still gauge the size perfectly well. But as I said, thank you for your advice and I will keep it in mind for future reference.
 

Thinking about it a little more, as it is a lever filler, it’s unlikely to date from after 1960. Thank you all for any and all comments and information.

[inkstainedruth]

I don't know a lot about Arnold, other than that they are considered a third tier company.  I have a mini-pen (about 3 inches long, capped), a combo pen/pencil, and one that has a "flexible" medium nib that says "Veri Smooth" on it (may NOT be an Arnold nib) for which I paid way too much....  All three are lever-fillers, and all three will need to have repairs/resacking done on them at some point (but I have  higher priority pens in the repair queue at the moment).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[kestrel]

My guess on your pen is late 1930's to early 1940's.  Most of the Arnolds I see in the field are in deplorable condition, unsuitable even as parts pens.  C rings distort barrels, nibs corrode beyond repair, cap and barrel threads don't engage due to shrinkage, levers are bent, J bars are broken/corroded, and caps are cracked around the clip and the lip.  Occasionally I stumble across Arnold's with pretty plastic (they liked a nice marbled caramel pattern) in better condition that are worth cleaning and resaccing but not often.  The larger combos tend to be a little more robust and have endured better than the conventional lever fillers. 

[MTSIMON]

Thank you Kestrel. So they sound pretty poor quality pens on the whole. Mine is a little faded at the end of the barrel near the section as can be seen, the lever is straight and moves easily but other than that seems in reasonable condition.
 

The Arnold nib is in quite good condition. I’ve seen a 1940s pen which I think is in the marbled pattern you mentioned and has been restored - in very good condition. I might buy it. 
 

I’m finding it hard to date pens properly - hence the request for information.
 

My thinking behind the pen being towards the end of the lever filler era was simply because of the colour and plain style but you think it might be much earlier than 1950/60s.
 

That’s really interesting. Probably never know for certain but it’s not vital for me to know exactly when it dates to - I like the little thing. 😎

[inkstainedruth]

If the pen writes well for you, that's all that really matters.

Some guy at an antiques fair gave me a Wearever (another third tier company) that he said he couldn't sell.  It has the imprint for a jewelry store which more recently was an antiques mall (I'm sorry I didn't ever get back down to the place while it was still open, because I thought the people running it would get a kick out of seeing it.  

I had the pen repaired (no clue what the model is, just that it's also a lever filler) and it's actually a decent writer -- I think it has an IM nib on it.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[kestrel]

5 hours ago, inkstainedruth said:

If the pen writes well for you, that's all that really matters.

 

Sometimes we forget this.  I have a number of vintage pens from brands that make Wearevers look like luxury models that cleaned up nicely and, because I have learned how to make those lousy fourth-tier nibs write pretty well, they are good pens.  Any pen that generates endorphins is a good pen.