The blog since 2013
262 posts since September 2013 by Nathaniel Cerf: how to start collecting, what happens at the repair bench, inks under the sun, fake Montblancs, and the pens of presidents and writers. "It is a space dedicated to pen lovers old and new."
March 20, 2020 · Pen News
Have you ever lived through a hurricane? I was visiting my grandmother in Cocoa Beach, Florida, in 1995 when Hurricane Erin struck. It was a minor, catagory 1 hurricane, but it was impressive for this Midwestern boy to witness and experience. Whereas hurricanes strike a much smaller location than a global pandemic, hurricanes were all…
March 10, 2020 · Pen News
Honestly, I haven’t even caught my breath from the Baltimore Pen Show, and now I’m heading out the door to attend the Arkansas Pen Show in Little Rock! Wowzers! If you are anywhere within a few hundred miles of Little Rock this weekend (March 13 – 15), you have got to come out and see…
February 25, 2020 · Pen News
For the last several years, we have heard about the splendor of the Baltimore Pen Show. This is what we’ve heard: It is well organized by our buddy Bert Oser. It is a premier place to buy and sell premier luxury pens. It is well advertised to the public, and it is becoming the premier…
February 16, 2020 · Pen News
You can now search for our pens by nib size. Although this box is just an illustration, the one near the top left column of the vintage pens or pre-owned pens pages is live and will show you the way. Size matters…at least when you’re writing and want to use a specific nib point. Following…
February 14, 2020 · Pen News
As many of you have probably noticed over the past couple years, the United States Postal Service has raised its rates three or four times. Our payment processor, PayPal, has also raised its rates. We have resisted raising our shipping & handling rates for as long as we could, but, we finally had to give…
February 5, 2020 · Notes from the Work Bench
You can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs, the old saying goes, and it is true for learning how to fix vintage pens. Today, we are going to learn how to restore a lever-filling fountain pen…or re-sac it, as they say. But first, you are going to have to get used to the…
January 31, 2020 · How Do I Start Collecting Pens?
We recently received two more great examples of fake Montblanc pens from a collector to share with you. As you might recall, we wrote a much more extensive piece about identifying fake Montblancs in a piece we called: Don’t Be Fooled by Fake Mont Blanc Pens. This time we are just going to showcase the…
January 8, 2020 · Famous People & Pens
Did you know that toys paid for the pen that ended WWII with Italy? For several years, with the help of many readers, I have written about the pens that ended World War II. After solving several mysteries about the pens that ended the war with Germany, I thought this fun and fact-filled segment had…
December 30, 2019 · Notes from the Work Bench
(There is risk in doing any repair. We will not be held liable for what happens to your pen if you break it while trying the following advice.) Changing a nib on a Lamy Safari or AL-Star is easy. All you need is the pen, tape and a replacement nib. Lamy Safari and AL-Star pens…
December 10, 2019 · Pen News
Season’s Greeting from Wausau, Wis. We hope your holidays are joyous and bright. Wasn’t it John Lennon who said that “Life is what happens when you’re making other plans”? I had a lot of plans for ThePenMarket.com in 2019. SQUIRREL! There are still so many blog posts I’ve started and haven’t yet finished. Oh, look at this…
August 25, 2019 · Pen News
Dawn and I take a coffee break during our busy summer of 2019. I’m engaged! Certain friends have accused me of “burying the lead” in my news of late, so I’m just gonna put this out there at the top. Pen shows lead to true love, it turns out. Dawn and I met at the…
May 27, 2019 · The History of Pens
Susie Thomas was given this Conklin M31 in 1905 for her high school graduation. She looks way more sophisticated than most high school kids today. It is the romantic in me that makes up the story behind an individual pen when I pick it up and look it over. Who owned it? What did it…
