Seeking For The Vintage Fountain Pens
Vintage fountain pens are being searched because they are not just ordinary writing instruments anymore. They are already history. How they look, write, and feel will give you a glimpse of what's considered trend at the time that they were produced. You can also have an idea of how these fountain pens evolved until today.
How They Are Classified
Aside from brands, these old fountain pens are classified according to their condition. This is important since time can have a huge effect on how these pens would appear and even function.
For example, excellent pens are those that have been used but have been taken care of properly, so they don't show any sign of wear and tear. They are considered Very Good if they are still usable but already have minor dents or marks right on the pen. Mints are pens that have never been inked, but those that were minted but were never utilized are referred to as near mint pens. If a pen already lacks an original part, it's already classified as fair.
The value of the fountain pens, if they are sold, would normally depend on their condition and age. For example, if you're presented with two Parker pens produced by the same year--one is Excellent and the other is Very Good--you're definitely going to pay more for the former.
Great Choices for Vintage Fountain Pens
There are so many old fountain pens that you can collect or buy for yourself or for others as a gift. Sometimes you will not have any idea how to start the decision-making process. Perhaps the following pens can get the ball rolling for you.
Swan Mabie Todd
This pen is produced in the United States during the 1920s. It uses celluloid for both cap and barrel. Around this time, celluloid was used more than hard rubber by pen manufacturers because the former was more flexible. With celluloid, they can come up with better varieties of designs and colors.
You can see that in Swan Mabie Todd. This one is a lever-filled pen--much like the other fountain pens during this decade. However, what makes it very unique is its color. It's tangerine with a hint of white and marble on its barrel and cap. If you're looking for a funky-looking fountain pen, then this one is it.
Waterman 513
A decade after Swan Mabie Todd was produced, Waterman came up with Waterman 513, which is actually a very elegant pen. To add more sophistication into the pen, gold trims were added. The cap and barrel still remain to be made from celluloid, but the cap is already screw on. The nib is made from 14K gold, which is important to make sure that the nib doesn't experience corrosion due to the pen's ink.
Vintage Vacumatic
This one came from Parker, which is one of the highly popular pen brands today, and was produced in 1941 in the United States. The cap and barrel are still plastic or celluloid, but they already had laminated patterns.