Tell Me About The Vacumatic...

[mongrelnomad]

Hello everyone in a forum I often lurk within but rarely visit.

 

I, like most of the pen world, consider the vacumatic to be one of the most beautiful and iconic fountain pens ever made. I own a few, but not being an expert, have stuck to the bottom rung of the ladder. That has led to many disappointments: ill fitting frankenpens, bent and unsalvageable nibs, damaged celluloid etc etc. I would, however, like to buy a vacumatic to use, and once and for all, choose a quality pen that conforms to my own preferences, as well as to a historical authenticity, unravaged by the years.

 

So, a few questions (I hope you don't mind):

 

1. What is the difference between the Oversize and the Maxima and the Senior Maxima (I like large pens)?

 

2. How do the above compare to modern pens in size, both of the pen and the nib?

 

3. What are the differences in the years (colours, materials, filler systems, trims etc)? Are there any functional or practical differences or is it a matter of aesthetics?

 

4. What should I watch out for?

 

5. What is refurbishable and repairable? What isn't (eg. the barrel transparency)?

 

6. What should I expect to pay? What are the variables that will really affect value?

 

7. Are they usable every day? Any tips on this front?

 

Sorry for the inundation. Any answers to the above, plus any further advice greatly appreciated. The London pen show is coming up and I'd like to do my homework before I set off on my quest!

 

Thanks in advance for any help...

Edited September 20, 2015 by mongrelnomad

[da vinci]

Mongrelnomad, thank you for making this post, it is a subject that has been "troubling me" too.

 

I dont yet own a vac, but everytime I see one of the Azure blue ones I find it hard to resist. There seems to be HUGE permutations in terms of model and specification and price.

 

I have not done much research, the answers to your questions will be helpful in ascertaining whether one of these is for me or not. Particularly understanding what drives price beyond (I guess) size and obvious good condition (no chips, cracks, splits, franken parts and being in working order).

 

Not sure how colour impacts price?

[ANM]

http://parkerpens.net/vacumatic.html

http://www.richardspens.com/?page=ref/profiles/vac.htm

 

These two sites can provide answers to most of your questions. As to price, I suppose you can get a gist of what they are getting by watching completed auctions on line.

[Brian-McQueen]

1. The Oversize has a lockdown filler, short blind cap, three cap bands, and a less streamlined shape. The Maxima and Senior Maxima are (essentially, don't worry about it) two names for the same pen. They have a longer blind cap, a chevron cap band, and a more streamlined shape. They are approximately the same size. The first pen in this picture is an Oversize. The middle pen is a Maxima. The one on the right is a strange monster-child of the two we call the Overmax (very, very difficult to find)

 

 

 

 

2. I don't know how they compare to modern pens, as I don't own many, but they are approximately 135mm long. The section is 9.5mm in diameter at the thinnest point, and 11.5mm at the thickest point. The nib is ~22mm long and 7.7mm wide at the shoulders.

 

3. Very complicated question. See ANM's links on this one.

 

4. Look for fluorescence, delamination, or other degredations of the plastic. Watch out for stained celluloid. Watch out for silver pens which have darkened to brown.

 

5. All the standard things you would think are or aren't fixable. Missing parts can be found, nibs can be straightened, filling systems repaired, etc. Barrel transparency can't be fixed. It is easy to tell the difference sometimes between a Vac that has poor transparency and one that is simply caked with ink on the inside. If the transparent portions are dark orange or red, that is bad transparency. If the transparent portions are very clear in some spots and dark in other spots, it's probably just dried ink. Cracks, of course, can be fixed with some success. Cap cracks are much easier than barrel cracks.

 

6. Size affects price. Condition affects price. Rare models are pricier. Maximas/Oversize pens are going to be among the more expensive ones you can find easily. Expect to pay $150-$250+ for a Maxima on eBay from lesser-known sellers, and $300+ for well-known sellers. Expect to pay even more for red or blue.

 

7. I carry them all the time. I say they're very usable as long as they're well-restored.

 

Be careful of sellers calling other-sized pens "Maxima" or "Oversize." If you're handling the pen in person, count the number of feathers on each side of the arrow on the nib. A Maxima or Oversize pen will have 9 or 10 feathers on each side. Other sizes will have 7 or 8. Hopefully this picture is clear enough. The two nibs on the left are Major nibs. The nib on far right is a Maxima nib.

 

 

 

 

Edited to say: Note how the chevron cap band of the Maxima in the first picture is wider than the chevron cap band of the Maxima in the second picture. In 1942 (in the US), they removed the bottom jewel and started making single-jewel Maximas, which have the narrow chevron band. In Canada, they kept the wide band with the single-jewel Maximas. Vacs have a LOT of exceptions to the rules and get confusing very quickly.

Edited September 21, 2015 by BrianMcQueen

[mitto]

What a mountain of information ! Thank you, BrianMcQueen.

[da vinci]

Brian, thank you for that wonderfully informative post - it is really appreciated.

 

Little details like counting the number of feathers on the nib are so vital in ensuring an expensive mistake is not innocently made.

[mongrelnomad]

Thank you so much Brian for the incredibly detailed information. You hit the nail on the head: for a layman, there are so many different rules for dating and identifying, which then have to be broken at the drop of a hat. The Vacumatic landscape seems to be one of infinite mines...

[richardandtracy]

Thank you greatly. I am now starting to get a handle on how much I don't know & need to before getting my first vac.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.