No-name postal pen

[penburg]

Picked this pen up recently... a no-name, postal (bulb-filler) pen with a butterfly nib.

 

For a third-tier it has a beautiful celluloid design and feel. The nib says "warranted Duridium 14K gold plate". The nib is a butterfly... cut with wings and folded downward to make the point, and writes smoothly. No iridium point, so I'm wondering what the Duridium refers to.

 

Richard's glossary has some helpful notes on these topics... http://www.richardspens.com/. The bulb-filler works well and seems a great idea for a filler.

 

Apparently these pens were popular at one time, and available through the mail only, and hence the name "postal"?

 

Any more info would be appreciated, and some things I'm wondering...

 

...when were postal pens popular and how would I go about guessing a date on this pen?

 

...why would a FP company, even third tier, manufacture a relatively nice FP with no name?

 

Thanks.

 

http://www.picturebay.net/img/members/penburg/postal_003.jpg

 

http://www.picturebay.net/img/members/penburg/postal_006.jpg

 

 

 

 

[publius]

The nib says "warranted Duridium 14K gold plate". The nib is a butterfly... cut with wings and folded downward to make the point, and writes smoothly. No iridium point, so I'm wondering what the Duridium refers to.

The Federal Trade Commission banned the sale of nibs marked "Durium Tip" or similar, on the grounds that they were meant to mislead the buyer into believing that the nib was conventionally tipped — "Durium" being merely a trade-name for the steel the nib was made of, it is in fact a description of an untipped nib. Much the same applies to "Warranted 14K Gold Plate". In other words, I wouldn't dare put my name on such a pen, if I had made it!

 

[penburg]

The nib says "warranted Duridium 14K gold plate". The nib is a butterfly... cut with wings and folded downward to make the point, and writes smoothly. No iridium point, so I'm wondering what the Duridium refers to.

The Federal Trade Commission banned the sale of nibs marked "Durium Tip" or similar, on the grounds that they were meant to mislead the buyer into believing that the nib was conventionally tipped — "Durium" being merely a trade-name for the steel the nib was made of, it is in fact a description of an untipped nib. Much the same applies to "Warranted 14K Gold Plate". In other words, I wouldn't dare put my name on such a pen, if I had made it!

 

Well, that makes sense.

[Vintagepens]

Please -- let's call a bulb-filler a bulb-filler.

There is no such thing as a postal pen.

There is such a thing as a Postal pen -- one particular brand, whose heyday was in the 1920s.

Pens made by Postal were bulb-fillers, but many other companies made bulb-fillers before and after. So it can only lead to confusion when other bulb-fillers are called Postals or postals, instead of simply "bulb-fillers".

[penburg]

Please -- let's call a bulb-filler a bulb-filler.

There is no such thing as a postal pen.

There is such a thing as a Postal pen -- one particular brand, whose heyday was in the 1920s.

Pens made by Postal were bulb-fillers, but many other companies made bulb-fillers before and after. So it can only lead to confusion when other bulb-fillers are called Postals or postals, instead of simply "bulb-fillers".

 

Thanks, that's helpful to know... I wondered why they were called "postal". This bulb filler seems a really nice design, relatively simple, easy to use and to replace, picking up a good supply of ink... one wonders why it never really caught on beyond these third tier pens. Most of my vintage pens are lever fillers, and others are button-fillers, Vacumatics, Snorkels, Touchdowns, etc. My preference in use and servicing is the button-filler, such as a Duofold and a VS I have, but this bulb-filler seems a pretty good design.

[PaulLeMay]

I have a couple of bulb fillers, none of them as nice as yours. I like the filling mechanism very much. Simple, effective.

 

If I had a lathe and free time I'd make one!

[jimhughes]

I have a couple of bulb fillers, none of them as nice as yours. I like the filling mechanism very much. Simple, effective.

 

If I had a lathe and free time I'd make one!

What about the Wahl Bantam? That's a bulb filler from a first line company. Jim

 

[penburg]

What about the Wahl Bantam? That's a bulb filler from a first line company. Jim

 

According to Dubiel's book, the Eversharp thin Doric and the Eagle Prestige were also bulb-fillers. The drawback to this filler, it seems, would be that knocking out the nib from the section might be a bit more difficult. Dubiel did not recommend removing the section.

 

 

So... if Paul had a lathe he might be tempted to "go postal"?

 

:ltcapd:

[Vintagepens]

The Bantam was not actually marketed as a top-line Wahl-Eversharp model, and Bantams are rather ambiguously imprinted -- not simply "Wahl" or "Wahl-Eversharp", but "by the makers of Eversharp". Most have plated nibs with no maker's mark, though some have 14K Wahl nibs.

 

Earliest bulb-filler I can think of is the Swan, from the first decade or two of the century. Not easy to find!

 

The Postal pen was so named because it was sold by mail, directly to the consumer.

 

[penburg]

The Bantam was not actually marketed as a top-line Wahl-Eversharp model, and Bantams are rather ambiguously imprinted -- not simply "Wahl" or "Wahl-Eversharp", but "by the makers of Eversharp". Most have plated nibs with no maker's mark, though some have 14K Wahl nibs.

 

Earliest bulb-filler I can think of is the Swan, from the first decade or two of the century. Not easy to find!

 

The Postal pen was so named because it was sold by mail, directly to the consumer.

 

Thanks for this background info!

[denis]

Well, I also got this pen recently, which seems to be a brother of Penburg's pen. The same inscription on the nib. The difference seems to be only in the making of the reservoir. My pen is marked with the inscriptions: 76 DROPS, 70", 60", 50", 40", 30", & REFILL. Please, see the images below. I do not know anything about its name or history and would appreciate your assistance.

 

In advance thank you very much.

 

Denis

Edited July 15, 2009 by denis

[Dennis B]

Well, since no one else has done it, I'll add a photo of a capital P Postal pen to this thread. Large pen, 14K nib, bulb filler, pretty neat. I have just the one.

 

Dennis B

 

http://www.parkvillepen.com/images/misc/postal.jpg

[Univer]

Hi,

 

If one were seeking a top-quality vintage bulb-filler, I think it might be difficult to do better than Hicks.

 

Among modern offerings, Brian Gray is currently producing a bulb-fill version of his #76 model.

 

Cheers,

 

Jon

Edited July 17, 2009 by Univer

[penburg]

Well, I also got this pen recently, which seems to be a brother of Penburg's pen. The same inscription on the nib. The difference seems to be only in the making of the reservoir. My pen is marked with the inscriptions: 76 DROPS, 70", 60", 50", 40", 30", & REFILL. Please, see the images below. I do not know anything about its name or history and would appreciate your assistance.

 

In advance thank you very much.

 

Denis

 

Wow, that does look like a twin of the one I have. I wonder if the swirl celluloid parts were made by one company and used by more than one no-name company? Very, very interesting: the calibrated reservoir... I've never seen anything like that!

 

I still have not come upon any way to date these no-name bulb-fillers, or origin for that matter, except that they are U.S. made.

[penburg]

QUOTE (Dennis B @ Jul 17 2009, 01:00 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, since no one else has done it, I'll add a photo of a capital P Postal pen to this thread. Large pen, 14K nib, bulb filler, pretty neat. I have just the one.

 

Dennis B

 

http://www.parkvillepen.com/images/misc/postal.jpg

 

 

This is a beautiful pen!

[Johnny Appleseed]

Well, I also got this pen recently, which seems to be a brother of Penburg's pen. The same inscription on the nib. The difference seems to be only in the making of the reservoir. My pen is marked with the inscriptions: 76 DROPS, 70", 60", 50", 40", 30", & REFILL. Please, see the images below. I do not know anything about its name or history and would appreciate your assistance.

 

In advance thank you very much.

 

Denis

 

Wow, that does look like a twin of the one I have. I wonder if the swirl celluloid parts were made by one company and used by more than one no-name company? Very, very interesting: the calibrated reservoir... I've never seen anything like that!

 

I still have not come upon any way to date these no-name bulb-fillers, or origin for that matter, except that they are U.S. made.

 

Celluloid was generally made by plastic manufacturers such as DuPont. There are many examples of identical celluloid patterns that show up in multiple manufacturers, even on the lower-end models of the big 5. Their are many examples of common rod stock or sheet stock (these barrels are often made from helically wound strips of celluloid).

 

The calibrates reservior is a copy of the Conklin Nozac, a US piston filler that featured a calibrated barrel in some configurations. There were 3rd tier pens that copied the concept, though they are less common than the plain reserviors.

 

It is hard to say who made any of these no-name bulb fillers. It was a simple but relatively reliable filling mechanism, and a cheap one. Many no-name pens seemed to use it, though I suspect the hayday of cheap bulb-fillers was the mid 1930s. Certainly that celluloid pattern is typical of that time.

 

John

Edited July 20, 2009 by Johnny Appleseed

[denis]

Celluloid was generally made by plastic manufacturers such as DuPont. There are many examples of identical celluloid patterns that show up in multiple manufacturers, even on the lower-end models of the big 5. Their are many examples of common rod stock or sheet stock (these barrels are often made from helically wound strips of celluloid).

 

The calibrates reservior is a copy of the Conklin Nozac, a US piston filler that featured a calibrated barrel in some configurations. There were 3rd tier pens that copied the concept, though they are less common than the plain reserviors.

 

It is hard to say who made any of these no-name bulb fillers. It was a simple but relatively reliable filling mechanism, and a cheap one. Many no-name pens seemed to use it, though I suspect the hayday of cheap bulb-fillers was the mid 1930s. Certainly that celluloid pattern is typical of that time.

 

John

 

Thank you very much, John, for taking time to share your knowledge with us. I highly appreciate your input.

 

Denis