All Pens and Ephemera

Pale-green hard rubber forms the impressive Ranga Bamboo pen from India. This large fountain pen includes all of its original parts and only shows minimal wear from use. You fill the pen with its standard international converter or like cartridges. Our pen includes its original steel JoWo nib. You will write a very nice, smooth broad line. Click the headline for close-ups. 15.3cm capped.

Here's a little something you don't see every day. It is a modern Ranga Bamboo pen from India that someone modified with a vintage 14k gold Weidlich nib from Cincinnati, Ohio! We find it writes a medium line with a little scratchiness. The preowned pen is shaped like bamboo and made of black hard rubber. It comes with a standard international converter. It is a fairly large pen, too. Click the headline for close-ups. 15.3cm capped.

Spring is almost here. Why not celebrate with this perky green Esterbrook SJ fountain pen? We restored it with a new ink sac. The cap and barrel are nearly perfect, except for the big chip missing from the top black cap jewel. Its fine-point steel Venus nib is a later replacement nib. We find it writes a little dry and closer to the extra-fine spectrum. 12cm capped.

We have featured many Esterbrook SJ fountain pens over the years, but this is our first with an Osmiroid nib. Osmiroid made a threaded nib assembly the same size as Esterbrook's. Osmiroid typically made nibs for calligraphers. As such, this nib is an extra-fine italic. You will write a surprisingly smooth extra-fine line with subtle line variation. We restored the vintage pen with a new ink sac. No cracks or deep scars on the pen. Justexpected wear from use. 12cm capped.

Ranga hard rubber pens have taken the collecting community by storm. We love this blue Ranga 4CS fountain pen's look. In like-new condition, it has minimal wear. We fitted it out with a converter. It comes with a box that shows more wear than the pen. You will write a fairly smooth fine line with its steel Bock nib. 14.9cm capped.

We don't think we can call this a pure-bred Parker Challenger. It seems to us that some long-ago repair person fitted it with a new cap band and section. We don't think that Parker Challengers ever came with an ink-view window. And although this section fits well in the barrel, the grip seems a size to small for the barrel. Regardless, we restored it with a new ink sac. ANNNND, it is a great writing pen with a delightfully smooth medium-point 14k gold nib! Our vintage pen shows the wear of past hard work, but there are no cracks. Ready for more hard work, this pen can make for a great daily driver. 13cm capped.

We wish we could tell you that this Rotring 600 is one of the classic ones from longer ago, but it is much more modern. You can tell by the crack in the barrel near the tail. You can see the brass beneath the black. Click the headline for close-ups. We've never seen a metal pen crack before. Otherwise, this pen is nearly perfect. The crack won't effect the writing. It has a firm, extra-fine steel nib that is reasonably smooth for an extra-fine nib. It fills with standard international cartridges. There is a silvery disc on the tail that has "EF" in black letters, indicating the nib size. 14cm capped.

Some pen historians blame the Eversharp CA line of pens for effectively bankrupting the company. Spending millions on the rights to the Biro ballpoint refill patent, the company rushed their ballpoints into production without perfecting their manufacture and use. It also slapped a lifetime warranty on the pens, and nearly all the pens failed, resulting in crippling refunds. This is the Eversharp CA from the Fifth Avenue line, the second model to include a ballpoint design. Click the headline for close-ups. This pen is burgundy with golden trim. It shows light wear but no cracks or dents. The pocket clip jiggles. Notice the coiled refill? It was the company's effort to include even more ink in each pen. We don't think there is a replacement refill that will work in this pen. 13.4cm capped.