All Pens and Ephemera

A shimmering mother-of-pearl design is sure to turn heads with this limited edition Danitrio Brillante ballpoint pen. We love the ivory ends with golden Greek key designs capturing the iridescence of the middle. Twist the tail cap to advance or retract the working blue ballpoint refill. This is actually a Parker-style refill that lasts for a long time and is easily replaced. Minimal wear on the pen. 12.7cm.

Conklin Crescent 40 pens are a wonderful mid-size vintage pens. These black chased hard rubber pens just don't quit after more than 100 years. We restored this one with a new ink sac. There are no chips or cracks in this pen, but you there are scratches, worn chasing and imprints, brassing on the clip and crescent. The clip is still attached, but we wouldn't trust it for any use. It seems weakly attached. The cap band is marked "14k 1/5." You will write a fine-medium to 1mm wide lines with its semi-flex Conklin #4 nib made of 14k gold. 13.5cm capped.

We got this pen from a friend who loves to tinker. When we got this pen to sell, we said, "Wait a second, what's this Danitrio Brillante doing with a 14k gold Sailor nib?" Then we remembered where we got the pen. This preowned pen is a limited edition numbered 101 of 200. Given that the pen originally came with a steel nib, we think this wrong nib is an upgrade. Click the headline for a close-ups. The pen is otherwise in great shape with minimal wear. It comes with its original converter. You will write a fine line with a hint of feedback, which makes sense given it is stamped H-F. 14cm capped.

Blue Parker Vacumatics seem more difficult to find these days, but we lucked out with this Debutant-size double-jewel model from 1941. We restored its aluminum speedline filler with a new diaphragm. The barrel is too dark to see the ink, but it is working well. The pen has some wear from use and visible brassing on its cap band and jewels. Click the headline for close-ups. We tuned the nib after shooting the nib photo. You will find it writes a smooth medium line. The clip is on tightly. A great vintage pen daily user. 11.9cm capped.

You've always wanted a Parker Snakes pen from the turn of the last century, but the $10,000 price tag has scared you off. Well, here is a larger, modern version called the Danitrio Phantas I. Filling with a standard international converter (or cartridges), this pen has a two-tone steel nib. It is marked M for medium, but we find it writes more of a nice fine line. We don't believe the filigree has any precious metal, but we still like the red glass eyes of the serpents. Light wear from use. 14cm capped.

Going strictly on the nib, we're going to call this the Boston Safety Pen. There is no company branding on the cap or barrel. Yet, each has an matching imprint of a patent date of July 5, 1904. It looks like a later 1920s ring-top, but there is no lever. This appears to be a traditional eyedropper and not what we think of when we think of a safety pen. An additional imprint says "18 1/8." We think that means it is 18k gold filled at 1/8th thickness. There only appears to be brassing at the very edges. The ring top's top plate spins when the tassie is turned. You will write a nice fine to 1mm line with this semi-flex nib. The nib is a little stiff but flexes with gentle pressure. Click the headline for close-ups. 9.3cm capped.

Some pens get kinda beat up in the service of their writers. This Diplomat Attaché is structurally sound but has a pretty scratched up cap, as you see in the photo. The gold plating also is coming off the steel nib. Click the headline for photos. Otherwise, this is a normal fountain pen. It comes with a standard international converter and can use like cartridges. On like most fountain pens, this one requires a little pressure to write a smooth medium line. If you are a heavy-handed writer, this is likely better for you. 13.8cm capped.

Lookin' mighty fine from the 1950s, here comes a Sheaffer Admiral. Kindofa high rank for a base-line model of the famed Snorkel pens. Nevertheless, we love these pens and their Rube Goldberg overcomplicated filling systems. We restored this one with a new sac, point seal and O-ring. It fills well, but sometimes you have to give it an extra second to suck in the ink. When it comes to Snorkels, we prefer these 14k gold open nibs to the conical Triumph nibs. You will find this pen needs a little breaking in. It writes a very nice fine line with a little feedback, which we think with smooth out a bit with time the more you write with it. No cracks. Light wear. Click the headline for close-ups. 14.3cm capped.