Who can tell me more about this 'Universal' pen?

[Edgar Allan Bo]

HERE and HERE are more simmilar FP's

[DAYoung]

Thank you. Although the hood is quite different. Notice the weird little rubber hood on mine - it looks like they've a normal nib, and have simply covered it with a rubber sheath.

[Feanaaro]

I've seen, just today, a pen like the one in the OP. New old stock, perhaps not in perfect conditions though, sold for 15 euros. Should I bite, in your opinion?

[tryphon]

Typical Italian school pen from the mid sixties, made in Settimo, near Turin. They were good writers, but did not last long (not even a full school year, by personal experience). You can read about the Settimo pens in my article here: http://www.newpentrace.net/The%20pens%20of%20Settimo.html

[fabri00]

+1

 

I remember some of those pens at school in the early '70, and my teacher at that time was asking us tu buy only Pelikan, F point.

 

I still have 2 of those pelikan ......

[sweilem]

I have one but the one i have is black , the nib came with it says "Warranted , WING-FLOW USA 4"

i believe it must have been a small company that manufactured such pens, the cartridge and the nib come as one piece, though i have managed to take the nib part off and clean the cartridge and bring it as new, here is a picture of it, i have changed the nib with a Signature no. 4 , its great pen indeed

http://www.secedu.net/stylebid.com/images/fpn/DSCN1612.JPG

http://www.secedu.net/stylebid.com/images/fpn/DSCN1613.JPG

http://www.secedu.net/stylebid.com/images/fpn/DSCN1614.JPG

http://www.secedu.net/stylebid.com/images/fpn/DSCN1615.JPG

http://www.secedu.net/stylebid.com/images/fpn/DSCN1616.JPG

[virgilio]

I have forty of these, and wish I had forty more. Best pen in the world in my opinion, BY FAR, altho you have to take a razor blade to the nibs to get the ink flow generous enough for my taste. And the plastic threads tend to crack with age. Still the greatest-writing, most reliable pen ever made. When the threads crack I just replace them with a cheap (but better made) Chinese Hero 616 barrel... same maximum diameter of exactly 1 cm.

 

The nibs are super-easy to pull, and super-easy to put back. The feeds are generous and simply perfect... they write first time, every time, think of a Sheaffer school pen on steroids...

 

Beautiful metal caps, piston fillers that rarely clog, and a super-comfortable barrel and feed for the fingers. Pretty colors, elegant design all round. Puts $200 pens to shame...Viva Italia!

[virgilio]

Maybe I should explain that the Universal Scolastica comes in at least three versions that I know of. The first has an open butterfly sort of nib, with metal cap and plastic body. The second is later, with a plastic cap. The third has a hooded nib, a thicker barrel of tougher plastic and a metal cap, but is of somewhat inferior writign quality (tho still better than most pens). All are piston fillers, and very light, so they don't tire your fingers. They were made by Universal near Turin, as has been stated. no connexion with the Universal Fountain pen company in America. I believe the Italian Universal is, or used to be, the biggest fabricator of writing instruments in the world.

 

Somebody should buy up the patents on these. They are true jewels of the penmakers art.

[virgilio]

The Universal Scolastica weighs 10g. The cap reads Made in Italy 111. The clip is steel, and tends to rust. Some of the pistons stick. But overall a very well-made pen. It was sold in boxes of 12. I got my three dozen off of ebay. With a few slight design changes (tougher plastic, wider nib slit to make it a wetter writer), this would be the World's Best Pen, and could be made and sold in China at least for a dollar...