======================================================================== Nib Noise * Volume 13 Number 7 * October 2014 ======================================================================== Welcome to Nib Noise. We hope you'll enjoy reading this month's issue. PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS NEWSLETTER! For comments or questions, send email to: richard@richardspens.com To subscribe or unsubscribe, please DO NOT use the links in the footer of this email. Instead, visit the Free Email Newsletter page on our site: http://www.richardspens.com/?info=nibnoise ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Can You Believe Halloween Is Only a Month Away? *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Last month we announced in Nib Noise that we're going to be slowing down our business. Here's more information, and some reminders. * We are gradually closing down our retail sales of pens and accessories. As our current stocks sell out, we will not be restocking these items. Most of the accessories we no longer carry can be found at IndyPenDance: http://www.indypendance.com/ * Even after our pen and accessory sales are gone, there will still be the Pen Show Tray and Barbara's Attic Tray! I got into pens because they're cool, and I'm not even close to wanting to give up the fun of restoring them and watching the monthly scramble. * Also after our pen and accessory sales are gone, we will still have nibs for an indefinite time, and we'll keep the NIBARAMA page running for as long as we're still having fun doing it. * I will be writing more. I'm looking forward to having the time to finish my restoration book as well as several other writing projects. I will continue to add to the reference section that will eventually become the site's primary raison d'être. * We will still attend -- and work at -- several pen shows every year. Our next show will be the Ohio Pen Show, next month. (More later.) * I will continue to train people who can carry on the nibsmithing and restoration skills I've learned. * The Gate City Pen Company already has a new home. Find out all about it here: http://www.gatecitypen.com/ * We will be able to accept some orders for special pens or nibs. For example, Bexley's 2015 Owners Club pens are coming down the pike, and we will be happy to order yours for you. Special orders will need to be prepaid, and we can help you make your payments. * We will also be able to accept some orders for nib repair or customizing. (This will be on an as-can basis, it's not a guarantee that every request will be accepted.) We are not yet there, however, so please don't bombard us yet. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Our Schedule for October *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ We'll be taking a week-long trip to the Midwest to visit family this month. We will close our store while we're gone, beginning on Tuesday, October 7. We'll reopen the store when we return, on Wednesday, October 15, and we'll be shiping the following Saturday. Our shipping schedule for October looks like this: Wednesday, October 1 Saturday, October 4 Saturday, October 18 Wednesday, October 22 Saturday, October 25 Wednesday, October 29 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** The Flexie Shop *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ We've closed the flexie shop until we return from our Midwest trip. This means that between how and then you can't order a flexible nib from our site. This will give us a chance to get our inventory in order and clear out some lingering purchase backlog. We apologize for any inconvenience. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** The Ohio Show Is Next Month *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The 17th Annual Ohio Pen Show is coming early next month (November 7-9). Barbara and I will be on hand for all the festivities -- where will YOU be? With Weekenders' events cranking up on Thursday (30 tables) and running all day Friday (160 tables), and two full public days on the weekend, this year's show will be the ideal way to make up your Holiday wish list. As always, there will be exciting new products and more vintage pens than you can take in, as well as some fabulous auction action for those who stay all weekend. The Ohio show is one of the grandest of the grand old vintage festivals, and it's really not to be missed. In case you haven't already made your reservation, Terry and his minions will be happy to sell you a Weekend Pass when you walk in the door on Thursday, so you needn't miss out on the variety of evening events. For much more information, visit the show's Web site: http://www.ohiopenshow.com/ If this will be your first-ever pen show, be sure to read my pen show virgin's guide: http://www.richardspens.com/?shows=firstshow We'll have a selection of pens from the companies we represent: Bexley, Edison, Gate City, Namiki/Pilot, Onoto, and Pelikan. Most of the pens we have at shows are offered at DISCOUNTED SHOW PRICES, with their nibs checked and smoothed -- and you save shipping costs, too. Talk about INSTANT GRATIFICATION! As always, I'll be regrinding and tweaking nibs while you wait. We use a list, like your favorite restaurant, so you can enjoy the rest of the show while you await your turn. (But we don't have those buzzy hockey puck things...) Bring a pen, and share a little time with friends at our table while I jazz up your writing experience. PLEASE READ OUR "TABLE TALK" FAQ TO LEARN HOW WE OPERATE AT A SHOW: http://www.richardspens.com/?info=shows If you have pens that need repairs other than nib work, you can hand them to any of the several repairers who will be working at the show. We recommend Mike and Linda Kennedy of IndyPenDance or Ron Zorn of Main Street Pens. We look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. We hope to see you there. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Hands-On Nib Workshop in Ohio *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ I'll be conducting my hands-on nib smoothing workshop at the Ohio show. For more information about the workshop, please visit the registration page: http://www.richardspens.com/?page=workshop Our site will automatically open registration promptly at 9 a.m. on Saturday, October 25. There's a $20.00 registration fee to cover the materials you'll be using, and you should bring a good 10x hand loupe. Unlighted loupes work better than lighted ones for this job. If you're not able to register, come anyway; we welcome those who can only audit the class, and there will be copies of the handouts for all. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Speaking of the Monthly Pen Show Tray... *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Our Facebook followers got a chance to preview the tray this weekend, so they know what's coming. If you didn't see it, you'd better be PROMPT at 10 p.m. Eastern time tonight. http://www.richardspens.com/?pens=tray ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** New Tray in Barbara's Attic! *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The response to Barbara's Attic tray was so great (again!) last month that she's put up a whole new tray. This month she's picked a passel of bargain-basement restoration candidates, with a few goodies through in to keep you on your toes. Check out her selections! http://www.richardspens.com/?acc=attic ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Broad Strokes *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Got a match? Things have been seriously out of control this month, and I haven't had time to put up a Broad Strokes article. But it will go up in the next couple of days, and it will be about matchstick fillers. http://www.richardspens.com/?fillers=matchstick ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Pens That Write Right! *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Unless otherwise requested at the time of sale, I personally tune each new pen or nib at no extra charge before shipment. I fill the pen with Waterman Blue-Black ink and write with it on paper of better than average quality, adjusting as necessary to bring it up to the RichardsPens.com "factory" standard for smoothness and flow. If you order a new pen with a customized nib, I will modify the nib (for an extra charge) and ship the pen immediately instead of putting it into my regular queue. Remember, we are authorized retailers for Bexley, Edison, Gate City Pen, Namiki and Pilot, Onoto, and Pelikan. We don't always have a complete line up on the site, but we can get anything our manufacturers offer -- if you don't see it, just ask! ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *** Follow Us on the Internet with RSS, Facebook, and Twitter *** ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Follow us on the Internet by subscribing to our RSS feed. Click the orange RSS button at the top of our site -- or plug the following URI into your browser or RSS reader: http://www.richardspens.com/richardspens.rss We'd like to be liked on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/NashuaPenSpa And you're invited to follow us on Twitter: @RichardsPens ======================================================================== If you received this newsletter from Richard Binder, you are a Nib Noise subscriber. If it came from someone else, I invite you to subscribe. To subscribe or unsubscribe, please DO NOT use the links in the footer of this email. Instead, visit the Free Email Newsletter page on our site: http://www.richardspens.com/?info=nibnoise Note: We will never sell your name or email address. Your privacy is as important to us as it is to you.