What's Up At Christof's

[Moondust]

Whoopee, I love those pens and the rhino even more.

 

If you can you could put a drawing in each post -

please....please...please....please...please....please...please....please...please....please...please

[tenney]

Wonderful information and pictures. Thank you.

 

Now, why can't *I* find a tin of pens like that :-)

[markiv]

That is a very nice Soennecken and I like your tools too. What prompted you to do the rhino? Nice nonetheless.

With such nice specimen you might as well start collecting them. Their nibs are some of the best I have used.

[fair isle]

Wow, hidden pen treasure! I'm glad that a person with such great restoration, photo, and drawing skills was the finder! Can't wait to see which one is next

[christof]

What prompted you to do the rhino?

 

The "Rhinocerus" by Albrecht Dürer is one of my favourite works of graphic art. Dürer made this wood cut in 1515! He never has seen a Rhino in person. He did his masterpiece following some sketches and descriptions of persons who have seen this animal in Lisboa in 1513.

Taking into account that is is cut into wood, this is a quite detailled picture. I did draw this wonderful animal several times and I still like to sketch it from memory.

 

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7091/7175582343_49d9ce7715_c.jpg

Edited June 12, 2012 by christof

[dcpritch]

Imagine it - almost 500 years old! And drawn from a description without ever having seen the species in real life. Remarkable. Thanks Christof for showing both the original wood cut and your own drawing.

 

Oh, and thanks also for the continued pen saga. One of my favorite threads to gaze at.

 

DAVID

[ethernautrix]

Wow, Christof! Amazing drawing. This is one of my favorite threads. <3

[OcalaFlGuy]

It's probably for the better that I not find a box like that in the wild.

 

I'd probably stroke right out and collapse if I did.

 

(And the new price for the box would be 10x what it first was.)

 

Congratulations Christof!

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[christof]

Yesterday, I found another sketch of the Rhino. This one is a bit older, about one year old. Unfortunately I didn’t kept all the different variants I did. And sometimes the kids worked on them later or they just disapeard in the waste paper basket.

This one has been drawn with my Parker Duofold Special which is always filled with true black indian ink. The pen is fitted with a silicone sac and can easily be disassembled for cleaning. About every second or third month, I take this pen apart and do clean the section, nib and feeder in the ultrasonic machine.

I love indian ink and the cool thing about indian ink is the saturation (there is no blacker black than this) and that it’s water proof. After he ink is dryed, the picture can be colorated with water color. This Rhino has been colorated with vintage Pelikan brilliant green ink. I have a gallon of this in a vintage bottle. Like the color.

I still am working on some pens of this huge lot I found recently . And, I am waiting for same replacement parts for a truly great pen, so don’t miss what’s next…

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7101/7189330859_8330b60d76_c.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7088/7189330959_d69058f349_c.jpg

[reprieve]

I love the rhino sketches. Beautiful. Oh, and the pens are nice, too.

[Moondust]

Beautiful drawing, thanks!

[christof]

9. Finally!!!

 

Another pen of the huge lot has been finished. And what a pen! It’s a correct first generation Canadian Parker Vacumatic Oversize in Silver Pearl.

This are the special (Canadian) features :

- Correct Black section

- Reg. Nr. On clip and barrel

- Barrel imprint : IMPORTE DU CANADA, I8

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5275/7394283790_b3c06bbfc1_c.jpg

When I disassembled the pen, I discovered that:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7088/7394282648_88a42e23c6_c.jpg

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7229/7394282920_5806a5d8da_c.jpg

The filling unit was badly corroded and broken in two parts. Not an easy task but I remembered to my friend and FPN member Tom Heath. Tom is a very experienced pen person and has a huge stock of pens and parts. So far, he did never disapointed me. So he did last week when he sent me this NOS Oversize filling unit (yeah ! a true NOS part from the 1930’s – how cool is that ?!?).

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7216/7394283152_231e4ef468_c.jpg

…there was even the original diaphragm on it. (Of course I installed a new one…)

After filling this pen, I was finding myself with an empty bottle in my hand. The capacity is just huge!

But the really amazing thing about this pen is the nib. It’s a huge correct platin plated arrow nib …with lots of flex. I never have seen a Parker nib with such a flexible nib !

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7085/7394281772_c999dd609b_c.jpg

Hope you like this photostory. I am not sure about what people do like more, my pen pictures, photostorys or sketches? Let’s hope that this thread never runs dry of ideas….

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5347/7394282324_3aeea330ca_c.jpg

 

[ethernautrix]

All of it, christof! Love the photography, really love the sketches!

 

I always check this thread for updates.

[Soot]

If you keep on finding tins like that you found, I don't think those ideas will run dry... :roflmho:

Byw, I like the story more than the pen.

[markiv]

Truly a mother-lode of a find that tin of yours! It just keeps getting better...

Maybe a new contender in your top 10 list?

[Tom Heath]

That Rhino almost looks alive

 

Love Pen and pencil drawings,

 

Great thread

 

Thanks for sharing Chris

Tom Heath

[el.Fakir]

9. Finally!!!

 

Hope you like this photostory. I am not sure about what people do like more, my pen pictures, photostorys or sketches? Let’s hope that this thread never runs dry of ideas….

 

Your pen pictures, photostories and sketches...I like them all, Christof. I do, too, hope that you keep posting in this thread. This is one of my favourite threads here on FPN.

[dannyboy]

I love all your posts--the sketches, stories, photos! Please keep them coming--I know there's more to that tin than you can exhaust. It's also fascinating to me the process of your repairs on these discovered pens. I believe you have a barrel of endless possibilities here!!!!!!!!

[christof]

Truly a mother-lode of a find that tin of yours! It just keeps getting better...

Maybe a new contender in your top 10 list?

 

Probably yes. But I think I'll keep the selection for the moment. Perhaps there's coming more...

 

If you keep on finding tins like that you found, I don't think those ideas will run dry... :roflmho:

Byw, I like the story more than the pen.

 

I think it's probably a good thing that you like different pens than I do. It would be quite difficult to compete with you...

Edited June 19, 2012 by christof

[christof]

No sketch, no drawing today. Sorry folks. But here comes:

 

10.“ The Swiss connection II“

I already wrote about Soennecken, that exclusively made fountain pens for the Swiss market.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5119/7439732554_a1a9f2ffe3_c.jpg

So did Waterman’s also. In the 1950’s, lever fillers weren’t very popular any more in Europe. Most manufacturers made piston fillers. This was probably the reason why Waterman’s decided to make their own piston fillers. But why they were sold only in Switzerland is a mystery to me. Perhaps Switzerland was inviting to import fountain pens because of the lack of Swiss manufacturers? Perhaps Switzerland was sort of a test market and if successfully, reaching the whole European market was the goal? But perhaps the project was to expensive and failed? Who knows nowadays…?

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7106/7439667112_303797605e_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8168/7439666416_cdeaae2f1b_c.jpg

 

Fact is that these pens do exist and were made in (at least) three colors ! Black, Burgundy and Gray and I would not wonder about if I’d find a Blue one, one day. I have seen Black and Burgundy ones before but I never have seen a Gray one. This seems to be quite rare.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5071/7439732052_b9e25d45dd_c.jpg

The pens are quite well designed. It’s possible to unscrew the section and this way the piston can be dismantled also. The design is not what I’d call « trend-setting ». But hey, this pens were made for the rather conservative Swiss people.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7246/7439670350_0072a43616_c.jpg

Nonetheless the pens are relieable and solid. The best thing, as usual for Waterman’s, are the nibs. These are super smooth and flexible too. Of course, they are U.S. made. Remarkably, all three pens have a broad stubbish nib tip.

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5280/7439669544_105aea3080_c.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8157/7439665388_56a926405e_c.jpg