Got A Handfull Of 1950S~60S Pilot Tab Fillers

[KBeezie]

Acquired Eight Pilot Supers in need of restoration, with my eye on the one that has a "Coarse" nib that I just finished restoring tonight. (The only Pilot Super I own is this 1964 Pilot Super 250 here with a 1968 "Falcon" nib)

Also have three Montblanc (320, and two 221) that I'm evaluating cleaning/repairing and will have to decide if I want to offer something to trade for them (if not, they'll at least be sent back clean and ready to use to him).

The three oldest ones are from 1958 (January, July, and August), a couple from 1966, and one from 1962. The rest are within that range depending on nib. One of the two 50G has an incorrect nib in it, which may be why the section is cracked on that one, shown next to another 50G with what appears to be the correct nib size. Also seeing that the pens are from 1950s, the large 1975 nib is definitely not a match.

Not counting the MBs on the left two slots.

• Pilot E-200, May 10th 1966 date code, 14K "Coarse" nib dated May 1966, barrel scuffed to hell and had an old petrified (white...) sac inside
• Pilot 50 G, no date code on body, section cracked, and nib seems mismatched dated from 1975, feed seems warped as if chemically melted with glue
• Unknown model, no date code on body, Nib date January 1958, Nib is a semiflex 14K, has lost the little 'felt' that sits between the nib and feed area, curious if it'll work without it, since it's just an air pocket there otherwise.
• Pilot 50 G, no date code on body, haven't rinsed or disassembled yet
• Unknown model, similar style to last unknown, no date code on body, Nib date July 1958, of all the ones here it has the largest barrel thickness, nib size, and sac protector size combination, 14K semi-flex nib
• Brown Pilot Super 100B, no date code on body, Nib dates August 1958
• Pilot Super L-100V, January 17th 1966, Nib dates January 1966, The clear feed is unlike all the others
• Pilot Super 200, November 2nd 1962, Nib date October 1962, 14K "Script" nib

The main E-200 I was looking at has a nice juicy wet Coarse nib.

 

 

The pens also look interesting in infrared

Edited June 2, 2020 by KBeezie

[Tasmith]

Very nice!

[kpong11]

With infrared, it became demonstrator version

[KBeezie]

Seems the one Super 50G pen (without the cracked section) is actually a gold-plated steel nib. Once I got the nib out the tail was severely pitted with the edges corroded off sharp. Got it sanded a little and cleaned so that most of the forward section is good.
Date code on that nib is January 1960.

The tail of the feed seems to be coated in an almost oily black ink/substance that wouldn't come off with ammonia/water in an ultrasonic (I only did that for the feed), so trying again with some clear dish soap and some wiping. Wondering if they used some kind of ill advised ink in the pen which lead to the corrosion). So getting that cleaned as well.

Should be a fairly simple one to restore, uses the same style collar as the newer ones, except the inside of the section has a step down that stops it from going up too far, and the nib/feed both are pushed in from the front (the newer models mostly has the feed pushed out the back). Has an old aero style squeeze filler that wraps around once the sac been attached to the collar.

So far the E-200 (with the Coarse) nib from 1966 is doing well.

The Super 200 without a sac protector has the nib swapped from the older 1958 pen with the same nib size which seems to be a semiflex, as the one original to the pen is a 'script' nib with the slit cut off center to the breather hole. Without a sac protector I decided to attach a Silicone #18 sac directly as it will fit the barrel with some margin and treat it like a bulb filler, the collar alone has pretty good firmness around the tail of the feed and doing a water test to it.

Haven't really messed with the other ones yet other than disassembling them and cleaning them of old sac material.

[rudyhou]

 

Acquired Eight Pilot Supers in need of restoration, with my eye on the one that has a "Coarse" nib that I just finished restoring tonight. (The only Pilot Super I own is this 1964 Pilot Super 250 here with a 1968 "Falcon" nib)

Also have three Montblanc (320, and two 221) that I'm evaluating cleaning/repairing and will have to decide if I want to offer something to trade for them (if not, they'll at least be sent back clean and ready to use to him).

The three oldest ones are from 1958 (January, July, and August), a couple from 1966, and one from 1962. The rest are within that range depending on nib. One of the two 50G has an incorrect nib in it, which may be why the section is cracked on that one, shown next to another 50G with what appears to be the correct nib size. Also seeing that the pens are from 1950s, the large 1975 nib is definitely not a match.

Not counting the MBs on the left two slots.

• Pilot E-200, May 10th 1966 date code, 14K "Coarse" nib dated May 1966, barrel scuffed to hell and had an old petrified (white...) sac inside
• Pilot 50 G, no date code on body, section cracked, and nib seems mismatched dated from 1975, feed seems warped as if chemically melted with glue
• Unknown model, no date code on body, Nib date January 1958, Nib is a semiflex 14K, has lost the little 'felt' that sits between the nib and feed area, curious if it'll work without it, since it's just an air pocket there otherwise.
• Pilot 50 G, no date code on body, haven't rinsed or disassembled yet
• Unknown model, similar style to last unknown, no date code on body, Nib date July 1958, of all the ones here it has the largest barrel thickness, nib size, and sac protector size combination, 14K semi-flex nib
• Brown Pilot Super 100B, no date code on body, Nib dates August 1958
• Pilot Super L-100V, January 17th 1966, Nib dates January 1966, The clear feed is unlike all the others
• Pilot Super 200, November 2nd 1962, Nib date October 1962, 14K "Script" nib

The main E-200 I was looking at has a nice juicy wet Coarse nib.

 

 

The pens also look interesting in infrared

 

 

i'm liking that vintage demonstrator.

[inkstainedruth]

Okay, I'll bite. What is a tab filler?

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[KBeezie]

Okay, I'll bite. What is a tab filler?

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

It's a sort of a switch filler. You turn the little tab on the end, it compresses the pressure bar inside the sac protector, flip it back and it's expanded. I usually call them "quarter turn" fillers as the tab only moves a quarter turn.

[KBeezie]

A follow up, five got fixed up (4 of which shown above, the fifth sent off to a new owner), 1 has a bad tipping on the nib, 1 has a cracked section, and 1 has a new sac with a 'script' nib but is untested (and does not have a sac protector).

The one not shown was a Pilot Super 50G with a Steel Soft Fine nib (pretty flexy for a soft nib) with a aerometric style squeeze sac protector (sort of like the Parker 21). Went to a new owner in trade for a Esterbrook Dollar pen in Red with a 3xxx series nib.

The one shown on top, an E-200 with a 14K Coarse nib is the best result of the bunch so far, starts right up, consistently flowing, no parts needing to be replaced despite the aged 'sponge/felt' that sits between the nib and feed. Quarter turn filler working well and does a consistent thick double broad at all the normal angles. Flip it around and it's a italic-ish Fine~medium.

The Brown 100B that I was hoping would work right off the bat, with a softish nib seems to be having some flow issues. The sponge material was stained heavy red and might need to be replaced. As I'm not 100% sure what the material is, I been experimenting with cutting up a cheap foam brush and shaving it to shape hoping that the material is loose enough for capillary action, but not too tight like modern felt might be.

The smaller black one which I assume is a Super 100 (because the bigger one is an old style Super 200, despite lack of markings) is one I experimented with replacing the spongey stuff with a foam brush material as it was missing it completely. Has probably the only real 'flex' nib out of the bunch with very long tines and very easy flex. I just wish it was wetter/consistent at a feather light touch and that may have more to do with nib positioning than what I'm using to carry the ink from the feed to the nib.

Then there's the old style Super 200, once the ink has saturated a bit it does pretty nicely with a springy EF 14K nib, the cap isn't the best sealed one, and is more of a clutch-style than the later friction fit caps early-to-late 60s (similar to the Parker 45, versus the clutch style on a Parker 21).

The reason the dates are crossed on the old-style 200, is because the "Super 200" I have that looks nearly identical to the first one, had a script nib on it, and I attempted to use the older flexy nib from the 1958 model, but then I swapped the nib back to the original pen when that didn't work too well.

The older one shown doesn't have a date code or imprint on the body but the nib is marked for 1958, where as the "Super 200" that looks like the top one is dated for 1962. Can tell it's sort of a transitional because the body is very similar to the older style Supers with a clutch ring and very large step-down, but the cap is of the newer style (but won't correctly attach to a newer body, only the clutch style).

And just for showing off, a Platinum Izumo at the bottom, sporting a 18K Coarse nib.

[inkstainedruth]

Do you remove the barrel to turn the tab? I'm just trying to wrap my brain around the concept because it's a fill system I'm not familiar with (it's been a long day with a lot going on, some good, some bad and some just really really annoying. Also sweating out the weather in order to get the last load of laundry done....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[KBeezie]

Do you remove the barrel to turn the tab? I'm just trying to wrap my brain around the concept because it's a fill system I'm not familiar with (it's been a long day with a lot going on, some good, some bad and some just really really annoying. Also sweating out the weather in order to get the last load of laundry done....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

Yes the barrel removes similar to how you have to for an aerometric.

 

http://imgur.com/a/cFv3rwW

[Keyless Works]

Congrats. What a great haul!

 

I used to have a Pilot Super 500 with the tab filler. I was never a fan of the tab filler but vintage Pilot pens are wonderful. I have a 1970s Pilot Super with the large cap ring like your Super 100 and 200 have all the time but I use them with standard pilot cartridge and converters.

 

[inkstainedruth]

Yes the barrel removes similar to how you have to for an aerometric.

 

http://imgur.com/a/cFv3rwW

 

Okay thanks. The photo you posted makes it clearer.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[KBeezie]

Congrats. What a great haul!

 

I used to have a Pilot Super 500 with the tab filler. I was never a fan of the tab filler but vintage Pilot pens are wonderful. I have a 1970s Pilot Super with the large cap ring like your Super 100 and 200 have all the time but I use them with standard pilot cartridge and converters.

 

 

 

You mean the Pilot Elites which are different pens? (Not aware of any of the Super line surviving past the 60s, let alone being fitted for today's Pilot c/c system).

 

Like these I had :

 

http://static.karlblessing.com/pens/pilotelitemini/compare_posted.jpg

[Keyless Works]

On the back of the cap it says "Super 22K AGM" and then right below that in the plastic body it says "NR 08". It works with all my Pilot converters and with their cartridges.