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Hello! I'm new to the forum and I hope I'm posting this in the right section. I love vintage fountain pens and I've always wanted a Parker 51. Recently, my mother bought me two at a flea market and one of them looks fine however the other one was not opening for some reason, and since I wasn't there I suspect that she tried to open it in a strange way and that maybe the scratches deepened for that reason (or it just had them to begin with). I haven't seen the pen yet so I only have pictures to go off of but I'm wondering if it's possible to lessen/remove the scratches or if they're too deep? How would I go about trying to remove/lessen them? I'm grateful for any help I can get.

So I finally bit the bullet and bought a Pelikan m800 this weekend at a pen show. It writes wonderfully, I got a pretty good deal on it, and seems like a fantastic pen. One problem: although it's brand new, I brought it home to realize it's got some scratch marks, particularly on the metal part of the cap. I figure this is probably because it was laying out at a few pen shows before I bought it, so people were handling it, their rings and things scratched it, etc. It's otherwise in pristine condition. I should be able to return it, but I'm wondering if these are scratches that I could remove myself and return it to a more pristine condition. I have been collecting and using fountain pens for about a year but don't have any repair or scratch removal experience. Any advice on whether--and how--I should try to repair it? The scratches don't seem deep at all, but I don't want to mess up the plating of the pen or anything. Thanks for any thoughts!

Hey guys, I need your advice!! I always liked the Parker Urban but didn't really think it was worth its 60 EUR price tag. I found a nice deal on ebay for 17,5 GBP + 6 GBP shipping (brand new) and thought I should go for it. The pen arrived today and although I would say that it is genuine, there are some things that bother me. A ) The pen arrived with a few small bumps/dings on the cap. They're not terribly visible but they're there and shouldn't be. B ) The pen arrived with a slide converter and no cartridge. I know that the Urban is supposed to come with a cartridge and no converter. The item description was ambiguous about that. At one point it says indeed that the pen comes with a converter and no cartridge and later on it mentions a half full packet of cartridges. C ) I contacted the seller to ask about the nib size (item description was ambiguous about that too) and although I was told I would get a M nib, I got a F instead. That's not really a problem as I would change the nib either way but I didn't like the misinformation. The seller (from Israel) does list some obviously fake pens among the authentic ones, but the packaging of this specific Urban seems genuine to me. The engraved date code is IIU, the seller lists the pen as made in India, and the manual has the Newell Rubbermaid logo on it. So, what do you think I should do with this pen? Should I return it? Should I ask for a partial refund and if so how much would you ask for? Or should I just accept it as I got a really good deal either way?

I bought one of the clear acrylic Gama Jumbo demonstrators from Asapens, and it's been a very nice writer from day one. Here is a photo (copied from their site): http://asapens.in/eshop/image/cache/data/GD-01-500x500.JPG I have had it for a few months now and use it regularly. And with use have come the scratches - inside of the cap, and nowhere else. The cap is scratched from all the way to the top of the nib to the rim. I've contacted Asapens and they have offered to help remedy the problem, but it will take time. To begin with, shipping to and from India takes, on average, 3 weeks - it's not unusual that it takes longer. Add the time to work on the problem, and it looks like I'd be missing my pen for at least two months. I am adding a picture of the cap only. I am asking for suggestions as to how I might fix this myself, in order not to have to send my pen away for fixing. If it is not doable with simple methods then I will avail myself of Asapens offer, which I find very generous. Thanks in advance for your thoughts and suggestions.

I'm a new FP convert...and now officially a Lamy addict...7 Al stars, 4 safaris, 1 cp1, 1 studio; anyway, bought a coffee "New" from an ebay dealer...just recently looked closely at it and the "LAMY" on the barrel has lines coming off the letters to the edge of the surface. Sort of like there was a problem with the machine that created the logo...all the lines are continuation of the lines in the letters (hope that is not too confusing)...it's driving me crazy...it is obviously a defect, (I hope)...and the place I got it from won't take it back... anyway, any help on this mystery would be GREATLY appreciated!! ***I've attached a picture (that thing on the A is dust)

What, exactly, makes a pen a "user grade" pen? I see this term all the time, and am sure it applies to most of my pens...is there a specified amount of wear on an older pen that puts it in this category? Or something unusual like a really deep scratch or a personalization or a cap that doesn't quite fit? I'm asking for knowledge, but I'm also asking because, if I decide to sell any of my pens, I want to be able to describe them properly. Thanks.

If you use only vintage, high-quality fountain pen, please move on. This subject matter is strictly for people like me who mess around with "genuine, non-imitation" plastic fountain pens. Plastic pens can receive minor or major scratches. So can metal pens, but many metals can be polished to remove most scratches. My Waterman Phileas began life as an inexpensive student pen. No lacquer finish. No solid-gold nib (at least that I've seen). No wood, glass, or ivory inlay. It was and still is a molded plastic pen cast in one solid color (and others bear a faux-marble appearance). I shouldn't be finicky about this, but it bothers me when my favorite pen suffers cosmetic scratches or gets that hazy patina resulting from countless small scratches. I have tried buffing it back to a glossy shine using toothpaste. (Hey don't laugh—toothpaste is a very gentle polishing compound that works on certain plastics without creating new scratches.) But considerable work was required to produce any visible improvement. I have one "freebie" Phileas that shows sings of a previous owner's butchery. They must have attempted to use a coarse grit sandpaper because the "polishing" left more scratches than it could possibly have removed. I would post photos but I seem to have used up my limit of download space. Has anyone had any luck polishing or buffing scratches out of their Phileas? If so, please share. If you think it is absurd to put this much effort into a low-end plastic pen, please refer back to the first paragraph. —www.twelvedrawings.com