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Ratnam Pens - photos, packing case, et al...


shrujaya

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When I got my Jinhao FP, along with the superb looking pen I was fascinated with the paraphernalia that came with it…and according to me it was not merely packing material, but material that was filled with historical details…all those of you who had checked out the Jinhao post would have seen the photos of the wooden box, the Chinese inscriptions on the outside and inside, the Chinese inscriptions on the scroll, the etched characters and so on…I was intrigued and a few FPNers were kind enough to go through the inscriptions and give me enough leads to understand them…

 

When I received my first Ratnam FPs…(a GN 302 and a steel nib 32), I was kind of surprised to see the paraphernalia that came with the pens…I had written to Dr K V Ramanamurthy before ordering the pens and he sent me a photograph of the FPs for me to choose from and a kind of flier with the price lists for all the kinds of pens they made…I had sent the photo back to him indicating the model and colour…after I received the pens, I asked him for another photo and he was good enough to send me more…and this actually made me collect FP paraphernalia… when one sees the photos, one can actually see that the focus is on the pens…and the only piece of advertisement is Gandhiji’s letter…and since this is the forum where I hang out and post my stuff and I am familiar here, I thought I’d post this one too here…and since this is also about Indian FPs and somehow this forum has become a kind of proxy forum for Indian FPs, I think it is temporarily appropriate…

 

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnamopeningpagewithgandhiletter.jpg

This is the opening page of the price list flier…it has the facsimile of the letter written by ‘Mahatma’ Gandhi (along with Gandhiji’s photo) to Mr K V Ratnam, the founder of Ratnam Pens, and the photo of Mr Ratnam on the top right, just above Gandhiji’s photo…and on the top right margin is my name in Kannada, the first thing I wrote after filling my Ratnam 302 gold nib pen...

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-MKGandhisletter.jpg

This is the close up of Gandhiji’s letter which goes…

“Dear Ratnam, I must thank you for the fountain pen you have sent me through Shri Kumarappa. I have used it and it seems to be a good substitute for the foreign pens one sees in the bazaars…Yours sincerely, M K Gandhi; 6-7-1935, Wardha”…

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-photooffountainpens.jpg

Photo of Ratnam range of fountain pens…

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-fountainpenpricelist.jpg

Price list of fountain pens…(the prices have changed now) and specification details for each model...barrel and cap diameters and pen length...

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-photoofballpens.jpg

Photo of Ratnam range of ball pens…

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-photoofsilverandgoldpens.jpg

Photo of Ratnam range of silver and gold pens with hand engraved design…

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-stickeronpackingcase.jpg

Usually the pens arrive in this thin cardboard case…even my Ratnam GN FP arrived packed in this case…I was surprised…my brother, however, was lucky, his Ratnam GN came packed in a velvet pouch…and the funny part is I had paid and ordered for his Pen…!!!

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnampencaselabel.jpg

The most interesting part is the ‘care note’ on the sticker on the case…the tone is finger wagging headmaster-ish and almost admonitory…no frills…no long list of dos and don’ts…straight to the point…

 

I hope all of you found this interesting…

 

Regards,

 

Jai (shrujaya)

 

Writing and posting about fountain pens exclusively on www.jaisiri.blogspot.in ... recent posts on Hema Pens (Hyderabad), Haul at Majestic (Bangalore), and Asoka Pens (Tenali)...

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Jai! Thanks for sharing! Ratnamsons also make same lines. Good representation of their rumentary advertisement.

I have no. 15 & 32 with 14C nibs. Somehow 32 misbehaves. it writes a page& stops.

Any such advertisement for Guider etc.??

Abhik

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Ratnamsons also make same lines.

 

Ratnamson = Ratnam Ballpen works. So Jai's post is about Ratnamson.

 

 

Oh! Do original 'Ratnam' produce different designs?

Jai/ Hari, any of you have their catalogue?

It would be nice if both lines are shown side by side? Guider?

Thanks Hari, for correcting!

Abhik

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Jai/ Hari, any of you have their catalogue?

 

Ratnam pens (KV Brahmam and Bros) and Guider do not have a catalog with model numbers as such. Only Ratnam son has a well organised catalogue.

In case you wish to write to me, pls use ONLY email by clicking here. I do not check PMs. Thank you.

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Thanks...Abhik, Hari...

 

Abhik for such sustained interest...Hari is right, none of the other AP-based pen makers have anything like a catalogue...Mr Lakshamana Rao usually sends 2 kinds of publicity cards, one large and one small, both different, with Guider pen photos along with the pens ordered...but that is all...the pens shown in the card may be some of the iconic Guider models...but there is no price list, model name, specifications, etc., like what Mr Ramanamurthy does with Ratnamson Pens...Thanks to Steve, we have some names now for Guider pens...

 

But that does not mean that Ratnamson makes and sells only those pens that are in the catalogue...in the photograph of the letter along with price list of Ratnamson Ballpens below, you can see Mr Ramanamurthy writing that they can also make pens according to the customers' specifications...

 

I thought I'd append some photos here...

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/DSC01690.jpg

The Guider publicity card...large

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/DSC01691.jpg

The Guider publicity card...small

 

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn280/bambli_mass/Ratnam-pricelistandletter.jpg

Towards the end of the letter you can see Mr Ramanamurthy's offer...the letter also gives an opportunity to see Mr Ramanamurthy's hand...I thought he'd write with a FP, but the letter is written with a Ballpen, maybe because his firm is called Ratnam Ball Pen Works...!!!

 

Thanks Tom...for your constant encouragement and love for Indian handmade pens...keep the support going...! I was looking for a good word to describe all this...and had to settle for 'paraphernalia'...'ephemera' is a much much better word...thanks...

 

Regards,

 

Jai (shrujaya)

Writing and posting about fountain pens exclusively on www.jaisiri.blogspot.in ... recent posts on Hema Pens (Hyderabad), Haul at Majestic (Bangalore), and Asoka Pens (Tenali)...

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So is there anyway to buy the Ratnamson pens in the US? I missed the boat when Vikas was offering to make arrangements.

 

I would love to get a 21.

 

John

So if you have a lot of ink,

You should get a Yink, I think.

 

- Dr Suess

 

Always looking for pens by Baird-North, Charles Ingersoll, and nibs marked "CHI"

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 6 years later...

any links where i can get an updated catalogue of the the Ratanam pens and if possible contact details...

and if they sell online a url for the same

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  • 1 month later...

Hi...one has to place an order with Ratnamson...contact details are given at the top (phone number 0883-2498782) ... call this number and speak and discuss with Dr Ramana Murthy ... and lo and presto, you will get your Ratnam FP ...

 

Cheers ...

Writing and posting about fountain pens exclusively on www.jaisiri.blogspot.in ... recent posts on Hema Pens (Hyderabad), Haul at Majestic (Bangalore), and Asoka Pens (Tenali)...

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I just received a 302 today after a long trip back from India. I just wanted to ask any advice anyone might be able to offer on flow with eyedrop fillers? Is there a proper fill level? I filled it pretty full and it doesn't seem to want to feed at all. When I dip the pen I can tell it's a nice writer, but when that ink is spent the flow just isn't coming from the internal reserve. Can anyone give me some insight into what to do? Thanks so much in advance for any help.

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I just received a 302 today after a long trip back from India. I just wanted to ask any advice anyone might be able to offer on flow with eyedrop fillers? Is there a proper fill level? I filled it pretty full and it doesn't seem to want to feed at all. When I dip the pen I can tell it's a nice writer, but when that ink is spent the flow just isn't coming from the internal reserve. Can anyone give me some insight into what to do? Thanks so much in advance for any help.

 

Dear Gr5lakeson ... by far the most sensible advice on filling instructions for Indian eye dropper pens is this post by my friend Hari ...

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/287765-filling-instructions-for-indian-eye-dropper-filled-pens/

 

Many Indian FP enthusiasts have benefited from this post over the years ... I do hope you too would find this useful ...

 

Regards ...

Writing and posting about fountain pens exclusively on www.jaisiri.blogspot.in ... recent posts on Hema Pens (Hyderabad), Haul at Majestic (Bangalore), and Asoka Pens (Tenali)...

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I just received a 302 today after a long trip back from India. I just wanted to ask any advice anyone might be able to offer on flow with eyedrop fillers? Is there a proper fill level? I filled it pretty full and it doesn't seem to want to feed at all. When I dip the pen I can tell it's a nice writer, but when that ink is spent the flow just isn't coming from the internal reserve. Can anyone give me some insight into what to do? Thanks so much in advance for any help.

Do NOT fill it to the brim. Fill it in till the ink becomes visible (maybe 10 mm below the opening.) That will allow flow of ink and prevent any vacuum inside.

Reminds me of old school days when i used to fill in my Camlin ink pens for school.

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