A Collection Of Bexley Pens

[Rufus]

I may be in the minority, but I am not a fan. I was first introduced to Bexley by Michael Fultz (who had some skin in the game). My objection is that I find Howard's pens generally unimaginative: the plastics, too often, are common, the guts have nothing special going for them - and that's it, a tube with a nib and converter - and they are overpriced, I find. I am glad to see an on-shore pen maker succeed, but unlike some, I do NOT have a tree in the back yard that grows $20 bills! Howard has helped mentor Brain Gray, I understand, for which we all him a thank you, but Brian, too, shares Howard's plastic buys, and offers up stuff which I have seen too much of. I like Brian's willingness to try out different shapes and filling systems and designs, and feel, generally, that he offers better value. Now, if someone would arrange a marriage with Nakaya, e.g., or some of the Italians, we might have something that is truly a collectible.

Hear, hear. As I noted in my post #25 a month ago I have become quite disillusioned with Bexley's offerings over the past few years. I'd like to see Bexley succeed, after all I own 44 older Bexleys, but Howard isn't doing it for me at the moment.

[gweimer1]

I just noticed that my new BX802 has a Nemosine medium nib in it. Did Bexley ever use the Nemosine nib as an option?

[gregamckinney]

I just noticed that my new BX802 has a Nemosine medium nib in it. Did Bexley ever use the Nemosine nib as an option?

No. Not that I ever heard. Given Bexley's consistent branding, I'd be shocked if other nibs had ever been an option.

Best Regards, greg

[gweimer1]

No. Not that I ever heard. Given Bexley's consistent branding, I'd be shocked if other nibs had ever been an option.

Best Regards, greg

 

Thanks. Maybe I'll take it over to his shop and ask him. Could be someone did a swap.

[gregamckinney]

 

Thanks. Maybe I'll take it over to his shop and ask him. Could be someone did a swap.

 

Your pen is brand new from Bexley?

 

greg

[gweimer1]

 

Your pen is brand new from Bexley?

 

greg

 

I picked it up off eBay, and it's not brand new, that I can tell. It's my third. My first two I got from Howard's listings on eBay, and I only live about 10 minutes away, so I went and picked them up. He even gave me a tour of his shop, which was really cool.

[gregamckinney]

 

I picked it up off eBay, and it's not brand new, that I can tell. It's my third. My first two I got from Howard's listings on eBay, and I only live about 10 minutes away, so I went and picked them up. He even gave me a tour of his shop, which was really cool.

 

Ah, that makes sense given the interchangeability of nib units.

I bet it was cool visiting the Bexley facility. I've met Howard at shows. He's a great guy.

Best Regards, greg

[gweimer1]

I stopped by the Bexley shop today, and Howard confirmed that the nib in my pen is not from him, so it was swapped. He also knew the guy that sold it to me, who posts on the Bexley blogs.

[rpsyed]

Some beautiful pens here. The models with the Tibaldi celluloid and the Bexley Giants are especially cool. Thanks for sharing.

[stuartk]

Whatever happened to Bexley's proprietary piston-filler, which Howard was bragging about a couple of years ago? I think the last model Bexley produced with the proprietary piston-filler was the 20th Anniversary pen., All Bexley currently produces is a limited range of ho hum pens with bog standard cartridge/converter filling systems. For many years I was an ardent collector of Bexley pens, amassing a collection of 44 pens. In recent years, however, I've become increasingly disenchanted with their product line up, especially with the annual Owners Club editions. I would have thought that the OC pens would come standard with gold nibs and the proprietary piston-filler, but no, they come with steel nibs and run-of-the-mill cartridge/converter fillers. Too bad, as I had high hopes for Bexley.

 

The piston-filler evidently didn't sell well enough to make it worthwhile to order another batch of parts to make them with. It seems that you have to order a fairly large number of each part to make it worthwhile for the manufacturer to do a production run.

 

I was told that they might be brought back in the future. I was also told that people just don't buy anything but C/C fillers. As for anything more exotic than a piston-filler, forget it.

 

It would be interesting to know how well the Gate City pens sell, and the Edison models with unusual fillers.

 

As for the C/C pens being boring... they're still good pens and they're well-made. They have an excellent warranty too. Maybe they're boring for the collector, but they seem to be good pens for people who just want a pen to write with.

[Rufus]

The piston-filler evidently didn't sell well enough to make it worthwhile to order another batch of parts to make them with. It seems that you have to order a fairly large number of each part to make it worthwhile for the manufacturer to do a production run.

 

I was told that they might be brought back in the future. I was also told that people just don't buy anything but C/C fillers. As for anything more exotic than a piston-filler, forget it.

 

It would be interesting to know how well the Gate City pens sell, and the Edison models with unusual fillers.

 

As for the C/C pens being boring... they're still good pens and they're well-made. They have an excellent warranty too. Maybe they're boring for the collector, but they seem to be good pens for people who just want a pen to write with.

Thanks for the reply. It's sad that there isn't a viable market for Bexley's piston-filler. What you are saying is that most Bexley users today regard their pens as appliances, which I understand. As a collector, however, I, like most collectors, look beyond the pure functionality of the fountain pen. I have over a hundred modern and vintage fountain pens, of which some are over 100 years old, all in working order and all of which are used at some time or other. So whilst I appreciate the joy of writing with a fountain pen, I equally appreciate the craftsmanship and ingenuity that go into them. I sincerely hope that Howard brings back his piston-filler at least in the Owners Club models, which would make them truly special; I might even be tempted back into the Bexley fold.

[amk]

IIRC the Edisons with non C/C filling systems are mostly custom pens and not in the production line, which again shows most demand is for C/C.

 

I have nothing against converters, but I must admit I love my piston fillers. If I ever have a chance to get a Corona or Poseidon piston filler, I'll be sorely tempted...

[zaddick]

Back onto topic…

 

My collection has continued to grow slowly (or maybe quickly depending on how fast you may acquire pens yourself). The next pen I will feature is an orange Cable Twist pen from 1994. The pen style came in multiple colors and actually came with different numbers of grooves. The first iteration of pens had three grooves spiraling around the cap and barrel while the version 2 pens had only two grooves. I think the second design iteration followed the first one fairly quickly as they seem a lot more common in reviews and sale ads. The pens came in blue pearl, bronze and orange. There was also a version of the pen in white (limited to 50 pieces) and a few prototype colors like honey. Earlier pens are button fillers and then at some point production switched to a C/C filling system. Most of the pens I have seen use the two-tone older 14K Bexley nibs. The standard issue colors were produced in editions of 1000.

 

My particular pen is a button filler in design model 2. It has one of the earlies nibs Bexley used form 1993 to 1994. The nib is a 14K Minka nib, but the name Minka was buffed off the nib. The story I have heard is that Howard did not want to confuse people with branding, yet he did not have the opportunity/funding to get an order of custom Bexley stamped nibs in time for his pens. So he used the nibs available and just modified them. I have seen this nib on the pens from 1993, but not much on the 1994 pens. Perhaps this was a later exchange? Whatever the source, the pen is more flexible than the 14k Bexley nib as the tine are longer and thinner.

 

Below are some shots. Notice the solid ebonite feed. You can also see the buffing marks on the middle of the nib where the name was removed.

 

 

 

 

 

[zaddick]

The next pen I have the pleasure of adding to my growing collection is a Bexley Original from 1993. It was the first model produced by Bexley, a bandless button filled pen inspired by the Parker Duofold. Earliest production had 14K nibs made by Minka, with the Minka name polished away. (Same as the nib on my orange Cable Twist pen.) The majority of the production had Bexley marked 14K nibs. Feeds and sections are made of solid ebonite. Colors produced include Blue Pearl, Burgundy Pearl, Gray Pearl, Bronze, and Lime Pearl. Two different shades of Gray exist. First year production pens can be identified by a "93" on the lower barrel and by the single lead cap threads. Clips were made of solid gold.

 

My pen is a dark pearl gray with a Minka nib. I love this color of gray and have several pens in the material, as illustrated in this thread. My pen is number 30 in the series. I will have to determine the total limitation of the series, but I think it was something like 100 or 250 per color.

 

Below are some shots of the pen, including the Minka nib.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Freddy]

Very nice..and how do the Minka nibs write ie soft..semi-flexie..or flexie.

 

Love those nibs. {thumbsupthingie}

 

Howard would swap out your feed and nib for a Minka with hr feed.

Cost you nothin' to ask......

 

Bty.. last week I spotted a nos boxed original Prometheus pif #8 broad at FPHospitals' Back Room. Have two in that brown flavor but..no broad nib..hesitated..went

back to purchase..'tis gone....

 

Congratulations on your recent acquisitions.

SWEET!

 

 

Fred

[zaddick]

Hi Fred. Thanks for the kind words and extra info about the nibs. I'll post more thoughts on the writing characteristics of the Minka nibs later in the week. I need more writing time with them.

 

You will see the Prometheus show up in this thread in a week or two. I happened upon it when getting ready for bed and decided not to think about it too much as they don't come up so often. I missed one earlier in 2016 that had my preferred stub so I went for that one. No hard feeling I hope. You have some great Bexley pens I have seen in the "what pen are you using" type threads.

[Freddy]

Hi Fred. Thanks for the kind words and extra info about the nibs. I'll post more thoughts on the writing characteristics of the Minka nibs later in the week. I need more writing time with them.

 

You will see the Prometheus show up in this thread in a week or two. I happened upon it when getting ready for bed and decided not to think about it too much as they don't come up so often. I missed one earlier in 2016 that had my preferred stub so I went for that one. No hard feeling I hope. You have some great Bexley pens I have seen in the "what pen are you using" type threads.

 

 

No hard feelings..whatsoever. Good for you. Congratulations, went to a true

believer {happysmileyfacetimethingie}..

 

I look forward to your observations.

 

Fred

[zaddick]

Another recent acquisition was a bit of an impulse purchase. I saw it on the bay of evil and decided not to let it slip by. The pen was made for the Molteni Pen Company which was an on-line reseller of pens on eBay under the user name “outletline”. The user had deal with Bexley and Taccia (and I think Visconti) to produce and rebrand pens. So technically this is not a Bexley pen, but it is 100% made by Bexley and has the Bexley 18K nib.

 

What attracted me to the pen was the material. It is a sky blue resin with some sort of silver foil spread throughout the rod. I have seen this material used in a Paul Rossi custom 800N pen and it was used for the limited edition Bexley Blue Sky Martini made for Regina Martini pens in 2004. That pen is a bit nicer quality with 10K trim, cap bands and an integrated piston. (One sold recently on eBay for $475 and not to me.) In the description for that edition it was stated the silver flakes represent the silver linings in clouds in the sky. Honestly I am not sure how you can have blue skies and lots of clouds, but I suppose it sounds nice. Others have described the material as cracked ice, and that is probably a better fit. It does remind me of the glaciers in Alaska (those are the only glaciers I have seen in person) which are light blue in color.

 

Molteni used this material in a limited edition of 88 pen called the Celestial Blue. This pen seems to be a Transparente model from 2007. The grip and the barrel of the pen remind me of many Ancora pens I have seen, where it tapers off suddenly. The other examples I have seen are all labeled on the barrel with the limitation number. My pen is blank so it is possibly a prototype or an extra production run. Given this material seems to have been gone for a while I do not think it is recent production.

 

Like a few other Bexley pen I have, you can either remove the blind cap to operate the converter or unscrew the section from the barrel to use the converter or a cartridge. It is nice to have options.

 

Here are a few pictures of the pen. I tried to capture the silver flakes in the resin.

 

 

 

 

Edited January 30, 2017 by zaddick

[eharriett]

This thread interests me. I had given Bexley a pass awhile ago as just another pen maker. But I was recently directed to look for a Bexley Gemstone, and looking at that made me give Bexley a closer look and now I'm more curious at their offerings.

[Kevan]

Oh wow....I'm super jealous of that. I've been looking everywhere for one of the Bexley 18k nibs in F for my Prometheus. I know the supply of the nibs is dwindling and it seems that the only ones left are B's and M's, which are too wide for my writing normally.

 

The material on that is really attractive. Enjoy!