Your 2024 in pens and intentions for 2025.

[Driften]

2023 was a low buying year and I made up for it in 2024. I think for 2025 I'm going to go back to enjoying the pens I have and buy less again.

[welch]

I bought a fine-nibbed Parker 51 aerometric in Forrest Green. I don't need any more fountain pens. Of course, I will buy more ink as I use it. 

[inkstainedruth]

Nice find!  Apparently Forest Green is one of the "rarer" colors (well at least that was what people told me when I found one at an estate sale a few years ago).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[chromantic]

Let's see, last year I bought 5 Pelikans, an Epoch in Emerald Green (NOS 35th Anniversary Edition), a 2nd green-striped M300, the Glauco Cambon, an M600 Vibrant Orange and the M400 Brown Tortoise (circa 1954-ish) and 4 Optimas, Cappuccino Tortoise, Luce Gallo, Blue/Rhodium and Cracked Ice. Oh, and a 2nd 34-slot pen case. I also inherited a Waterman Expert(?) and MP 142(?) from my dad.

 

The only ones that got inked were the two from my dad, though I did ink an M200 blue-marbled that I'd had forever but never used with Golden Beryl. I have the M400 Tortoise sitting on my desk and keep thinking I should ink it up to just try it out. I had bought a bottle of Lamy Topaz and I think might go well with it. I would also like to try the Cambon with the MB Gustav Klimt I snagged.

 

The reason I didn't ink any of the others is that I retired so my pen use went to 3 days a week done to almost nothing and, after the last two Optimas (August, last year), I realized there wasn't much point in buying more pens if I wasn't going to use them so I have only done some cursory searches now and then. While thinking about this post, I did check a couple of places just out of curiosity and ended up ordering an M600 Red and While 2023 SE. Hopefully, that will be it for the year though I'll check Valetina's newsletter when they come in. I missed out on a Burgundy 140 because I didn't look at recent one right away.

 

ETA: This is why I hadn't been around much since last fall but I have to remember this hobby is about more than just buying pens.

[PAKMAN]

My 2024 acquisitions are as follows:

Parker Duofold 1999 Custom Pens CP5 Sterling 18k nib LE 72/1888 Guilloche

Grifos Gaudi tribute Fibonacci Sequence pattern Guilloche Sterling Silver F #6 Bock steel nib 

Montblanc 220 (modern 70’s) flat black markalon 14k flexible fine nib 

Parker Duofold Sr - (28) Mandarin Yellow flat top med 14k gold nib 

Stylochap French gray lizard 30’s celluloid 18c fine nib 

Asvine V200 vac fil fine nib 

Pelikan M1000 Fine nib 18k, Renaissance Brown SE

Parker Vacumatic Silver Pearl double jewel Major 1941 speed line filler

Parker Vacumatic Silver Pearl double jewel Standard 1935 lockdown filler

Parker Vacumatic Golden Pearl single jewel Major 1940’s plastic filler with Pencil

Pelikan M200 Petrol medium nib

 

As for 2025, probably spend less money but still plan on going to 3 pen shows and have already ordered one new pen. 

[Sailor Kenshin]

It's all gone up in smoke already.  Bought a new glass dip pen with inks, and another Pilot Parallel.  For more glittery inks.

 

@Bo Bo Olson, you always have awesome 'stuff.'  You should open a museum.

 

 

[Bo Bo Olson]

1 hour ago, Sailor Kenshin said:

@Bo Bo Olson, you always have awesome 'stuff.'

Thank you........Sharp-eyed wife.

 

Having just thrown out eight books (mid-late 1970-early 80's Consumer Reports books, to spice in what they had way back when...when I couldn't afford any of it anyway.) for a book I massively first drafted, (too many people in it) but am never going to write, means, I have space for one more middle-sized inkwell.

 

A complicated knife sharpener I never use would be space for a medium-large one. I ended up using my old, easy to use Arkansas stones anyway.

I am reaching the end of my space.

 

This one took the last then free space in my library...until I tossed those books. Auction house picture. I use them often, being a lousy photographer and not needing a Handie (cell-phone).

I got it for opening bid.

 

 

Ink wells were so affordable 10 years ago. 5 years ago, the rich started looking for places to hid their money....and affordable inkwells became a luck item.

 

With Auction houses, much of the time I can get pens for less thatn Ebay prices....not always now. That !@#@$%%%&&& Telephone and computer bidding has ruined a good thing.

Bids from Japan, Poland, Romania, France, Spain, and even GB, can make a man shrink. The wallet no longer hurts to sit on.

[Anne-Sophie]

On 12/31/2024 at 4:09 PM, Bo Bo Olson said:

I was told I ran out of space,,,or my pictures were too big.

I had not come close to realizing what a busy year I had had.

 

 

Sorry but sometimes it just won't post right side up.

My wife went to an estate sale and asked for inwells. The Parker inkwell with Pennmann Ruby (more a burgandy) ink and a 200 Pelikan for €5.00

 

 

This one sat at a tombstone, stone mason's for many months, but was inexpensive.  The small lifter was needed. An other marble inkwell was trimmed up and a marble foot for a Art Decco marble clock was also done. If you look hard one can see the lifter is just a bit different.

I'm pretty sure this beer mug was early this year..The top is intereting, the cops had to make sure last call  was finished. This is pinched glass.

That by far is the most, and best detailed of my  70 or so pewter topped beer mugs.

 

 

I believe all the inkwell in that picture, plus the last one. from the previous picture, are new to me.

 

Exquisite finds, as usual.

 

[Bo Bo Olson]

Thank you, it wasn't one I was going after, but I was able to get it cheap. The ones I were chasing went for over €200 or 250, with me willing to go 50-75.

And there were a couple I didn't chase at that live auction.

As mentioned above, two spaces, as soon as I move the sharpener into the flea market stuff.

 

Well, looking real hard, I can two more spaces. If I move a 1930's bolo bladed Spanish Bayonet and the black powder flint lock pistol off the bookshelf onto the wall...what little remains, that would give me space for one. I kept that bayonet because I have a 1851 Swedish Artillery brush chopping sword that is also bolo. My nimble machete is better for brush cutting, but if one has to go to war, the heavier blade of the Swedish bolo sword...would beat most of the rest of the world's NCO swords of Artillery or normal NCO swords of the time.

 

My collection of swords is small. Not counting that Swedish sword, I have six in the hall, hanging two to a door, over the doors, and six in a knee-high pottery umbrella stand in the free corner of my library.

Auction house pictures. I take horrible pictures.

My 1900 Dutch cutless...the European sword that killed more than rapiers or small swords. There are Asian sword types that killed more. Small swords came in, because the long 4-5 foot long rapier kept banging into folks at the party, so one got in a lot of duels because of clumsiness.

This one is from the Grand Duchy of Baden-Baden...the Duke's regiment, back from the leftover parts of the Germanies...many small disunified states before Bismark's War, that he suckered France into.

 

 

This small sword (which didn't bang into people) is I guess 1850 and later, from perhaps Portugal, in the Court there was small and poor, or a hick region of Spain. Only a noble would carry a short sword, only a poor one would have such a simple one....but one needed it just in case one had to defend one's honor. And the cork is necessary, it's still deadly sharp. It's a left-handed sword. The guard flops down to that side.