Mother of Pearl dip pen

[jbb]

Yesterday out of the blue I got one of those Ebay second chance offers. I immediately checked my ebay messages to make sure it was legit and much to my delight this group of 2 dip pens and one fountain pen (with no cap) that I had been outbid on a couple of weeks ago was available. I love mother of pearl and for me these three items were a great deal. I paid about $23 (including shipping.)

 

 

[Heirphoto]

Nice pens. I won a MOP dip pen on ebay a while back for les than $20. The seller mailed it to me in a plain white business envelope and it arrived neatly broken in two. They made me mail back the 2 pieces in order to get a refund. Gotta love some ebay sellers.

 

Tony

[jbb]

Nice pens. I won a MOP dip pen on ebay a while back for les than $20. The seller mailed it to me in a plain white business envelope and it arrived neatly broken in two. They made me mail back the 2 pieces in order to get a refund. Gotta love some ebay sellers.

 

Tony

Bummer! Those Victorian mother-of-pearl dip pens seem pretty fragile. They show up on ebay a lot so they must have been quite popular in their day.

[hamadryad11]

Good deal! Those look really nice. Do you know what the dark dip pen is made of? It looks like painted wood, but the picture is pretty small so I can't tell. I like the fountain pen, too. Maybe you can find a cap for it someday, or have one made. Do you have any idea how it fills? Please post more information on the fountain pen (with close-up photos if you can) when you get it.

[jbb]

Good deal! Those look really nice. Do you know what the dark dip pen is made of? It looks like painted wood, but the picture is pretty small so I can't tell. I like the fountain pen, too. Maybe you can find a cap for it someday, or have one made. Do you have any idea how it fills? Please post more information on the fountain pen (with close-up photos if you can) when you get it.

I've seen dip pens like that dark one say they're ebony -- but who knows? I also know almost nothing about the fountain pen. I just thought it was so pretty that I'd use it as a dip pen no matter what its condition. The group is being shipped today so I'll post more information when they arrive.

[MattN]

Those are beautiful. I'd pay $23 just to have them adorning my desk, regardless of whether they worked or not. Good catch!

[jbb]

Those are beautiful. I'd pay $23 just to have them adorning my desk, regardless of whether they worked or not. Good catch!

The fountain pen is not something I've seen on ebay inexpensively before but those dip pens often start at $9.99 USD and I've seen them sell after only getting a bid or two.

 

Does anyone know of specific dip nibs that fit those holders for replacements? I have one where a Gillott 303 works because it's a small size. Which other nibs are small sized?

[pengoddess]

Looks like you got a good deal on those 3 pens, congrats!

 

Many M-o-P dip pens were marketed as souvenir pens, once in awhile you find with a famous beach location or some other touristy type area. Many more M-o-P dip pens were sold in slim velvet lined leather boxes to the gift market. These are very rarely marked with a maker name on the dip pen. Nibs can vary from nice little No. 0 and No. 1 flexxies to later replacements. If you find one with a gold nib, the nib is the treasure because they were thin and split easily, wrote nice though. Be careful if and when you have to replace a nib on these, the ferrule is somewhat thin metal also and steel dip pen and fountain pens nibs are much thicker than what the dip pen was originally designed for, trying to shove one in can easily crack the ferrule. If you come across a dip pen and nib marked by Aikin Lambert or one of the other early dip pen makers you'll not the quality is far above the souvenir/gift type dippers.

 

I'd guess from the pic that the black tapered dip pen is wood painted black, typical for pens having a metal ferrule and there also looks like there is a little wear and wood showing through at the very end of the taper. Ebony tapered pens usually had fancier ferrules with a bit of engraving on them.

 

The fountain pen is probably an eyedropper, I've seen a bunch of these over the years, they almost always have large gold plated nibs, the bands are stamped brass instead of engraved, but they're pretty and fun pens. The original caps bandless and we all know how poorly black hard rubber caps without and support around the open end fare ... lotsa' cracks and chunks go missing over the years!

 

Enjoy your new-old dip pens!

 

Sam

[jbb]

Looks like you got a good deal on those 3 pens, congrats!

 

Many M-o-P dip pens were marketed as souvenir pens, once in awhile you find with a famous beach location or some other touristy type area. Many more M-o-P dip pens were sold in slim velvet lined leather boxes to the gift market. These are very rarely marked with a maker name on the dip pen. Nibs can vary from nice little No. 0 and No. 1 flexxies to later replacements. If you find one with a gold nib, the nib is the treasure because they were thin and split easily, wrote nice though. Be careful if and when you have to replace a nib on these, the ferrule is somewhat thin metal also and steel dip pen and fountain pens nibs are much thicker than what the dip pen was originally designed for, trying to shove one in can easily crack the ferrule. If you come across a dip pen and nib marked by Aikin Lambert or one of the other early dip pen makers you'll not the quality is far above the souvenir/gift type dippers.

 

Sam

Sam, Are there any specific brand nibs that come in No. 0 and No. 1? Do you carry them at Pendemonium? I have a tiny old ringtop Wahl with a 0 nib, is that what you mean?

 

[Kimo]

The price is maybe a couple of dollars on the high side. As was mentioned these are fairly easy to pick up for about half that price, but still it is hard to go too far wrong for $23.

Edited February 27, 2009 by Kimo

[jbb]

The price is maybe a couple of dollars on the high side. As was mentioned these are fairly easy to pick up for about half that price, but still it is hard to go too far wrong for $23.

 

The $23 was for all three items shipped: under $8 per item.

 

[Gran]

Those are pretty! Congratulations! Hope they turn out to be good writers.

[Rena]

Really cool, JBB! Not only did you get a second chance, but these pens get a second chance, since we know that YOU will put them to good use!

[jbb]

Nice pens. I won a MOP dip pen on ebay a while back for les than $20. The seller mailed it to me in a plain white business envelope and it arrived neatly broken in two. They made me mail back the 2 pieces in order to get a refund. Gotta love some ebay sellers.

 

Tony

OMG Tony!!! My seller did the same thing!!!! Amazingly nothing broke. I think the sturdiness of the mother of pearl fountain pen kept the two dip pens from snapping. When I saw the plain old envelope they were all mailed in I was shocked... but immediately thought of your post.

 

By the way, the mother of pearl fountain pen has a 14K nib. It needs adjustment so I can't tell how it's going to write. The black dip pen is just a beat up wood dip pen.

[Gran]

JBB, your pens really did get a second chance. I can only shake my head, amazed, the way some folks pack things...

 

I wish you much enjoyment with your new pens.

[jbb]

Those are pretty! Congratulations! Hope they turn out to be good writers.

I can switch to better dip nibs if the nibs they came with aren't great so they will all write well ultimatley. The mother of pearl fountain pen-looking one is really quite stunning in person. It was worth the price of the entire group and then some. Ah, it's an eyedrop filler -- I just unscrewed the section from the barrel -- but since it has no cap I'll just use it as a dip pen.