Reference Pages

What do these symbols mean?

Use the information in these pages to learn more about fountain pens. To assist you in remaining current if you like to be sure you have read the most recent pages, the four most recent articles are marked with their dates of publication.

• Glossary of Pen Terms (  SHORTCUT !  click the red “taillight” in the site banner above)
• Glossary of Paper Terms for Fountain Pen Users, by B. H. Bentzman
• English/French/Japanese Pen Lexicon

• Anatomy of a Fountain Pen: illustrated explanations of how different kinds of fountain pens work
• Design Features of Certain Pens: descriptions of various interesting design features
• Nibs, Feeds, and Filling Systems: discussions of the ink delivery path
• The Pen Detective’s Guide: guidance in the art of pen identification
• Pen Model Profiles: zeroing in on specific pens and their histories
• Pens and History, by Floyd Stuart: Floyd’s personal interest in history at the fore
• Taking Care of Your Pens: how to treat your pens, and why it’s a good thing
• Pen Shows: where the pens meet the people — and the people meet each other
• Pen Doctor Articles: a series of diagnostic sessions, with prescriptions
• Miscellaneous Articles: just what it sounds like
• Repairer’s Corner: reference tables and explanations of how to perform certain repairs

• I: A Typical Lever Filler
• II: The Parker Vacumatic
• III: Sheaffer’s Snorkel
• IV: The Parker “51” (Aero-metric Version)
• V: Sheaffer’s Vacuum-Fil

• Chased Hard Rubber
• Combos
• The Crescent-Filler, Then … and Now
• Double Vision
• The Flighter
• Hooded Nibs
• Integral Nibs
• Military Clips
• One Size Fits All?
• Parker’s Date Coding Systems
• Plastic and Resin: Two Names, One Thing
• Pneumatic Pens
• Safety Pens
• Stylographic Pens
• Visible Ink Supplies
• Waterman’s Standard Numbering System
• Waterman’s Nib Color Code
• World War II and Its Effects on Pen Design

• Nibs I: The Basics
• Nibs II: Beyond the Basics with Specialty Nibs
• Nibs III: Flex vs. Italic
  

• Feeds: Revolution, Evolution, and Devolution
• Feeds: Whatever Happened to the Lucky Curve?
• Filling Systems: How They Work
• Nibs: The Parker 75
• Nibs: The Renew-Point, by Esterbrook
• Nibs: The “TRIUMPH”, by Sheaffer

The following To the Point articles first appeared in Stylus magazine. They appear here in the order of their original publication.

• Specialty Nibs, Your Key to Exciting Writing
• Steal the Steel
• Ick! What Is That Stuff?
• Flex, a Disaster in the Making
• Singing a New “Tune”
• Making Music with a Pen
• What’s the Point?
• Hitting the Sweet Spot
• Super-Size Me!
• Special Nibs for Lefties?
  
• Nib Materials
• The Flexible User
• A Case of the Creeps
• What You See Is What You Get — Or Is It?
• Better in the Days of Old
• Nibz ’n the Hood
• IPG Nibs

• 1: Who Made This Pen?
• 2: What’s This Pen Made Of?
• 3: When Was This Pen Made? [May 2012]

• “Big Box” Brands
• The Camel Pen
• The Chilton Wing-flow
• The Conklin Glider
• The Conklin Nozac
• The Dunn-Pen
• The Esterbrook Dollar Pen
• The Esterbrook Model J Family
• The Eversharp Doric
• The Eversharp Fifth Avenue
• The Eversharp Skyline
• The Eversharp Symphony
• Morrison’s Patriot
• The Parker “21”
• The Parker 45
• The Parker “51”
• The Parker 61
• The Parker 180
• The Parker Duofold
• The Parker Duofold Geometric (“Toothbrush”)
• The Parker Striped Duofold
• The Parker Vacumatic
• The Parker VP
• The Parker VS
• The Postal Reservoir Pen
• The J. G. Rider Fountain Pen
• The Security Pen
• Sheaffer’s Balance
• Sheaffer’s Craftsman
• Sheaffer’s PFM
• Sheaffer’s Snorkel
• Targa by Sheaffer
• Sheaffer’s Touchdown TM
• Sheaffer’s “TRIUMPH”
• Sheaffer’s Tuckaway
• The Wahl Bantam
• The Wahl-Eversharp Coronet
• The WASP Clipper
• Waterman’s C/F
• Waterman’s Commando
• Waterman’s Hundred Year Pen
• Waterman’s Ideal Nº 7
• Waterman’s Ideal Nº 52
• Waterman’s Patrician
• Waterman’s Taperite
• Waterman’s X-Pen

• Fountain Pens and Pigtails
• War and the Fountain Pen

• Care and Feeding: How to Pamper Your Pens
• Inks: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
• Transportation: How to Ship Pens

• Essay: Pen Shows: Why Bother?
• Shows I: Your First Pen Show
• Shows II: Preparing for a Show
• Shows III: How to Buy a Vintage Pen
• Shows IV: The Auction

• Pen Show Rules: Keep an Open Mind, by Susan Wirth

• I: Lockdown Vacumatic Dumps Ink When Filled; Weepy Parker “21”
• II: Dealing with Skyline Plastics; Father’s Day Suggestions
• III: Sacs Size and Ink Blots; Brand-New Nibs That Aren’t Smooth
• IV: New Pens That Stop Writing; Reducing Ink Flow

• V: How to use Blotting Paper; Restoring Banana-Shaped Pens
• VI: Repairing Metal Caps; Cleaning a Retractable Montblanc Bohème
• VII: Fixing a Parker 45 That Does Not Flow; Old Pens: Fill Them, or…?
• VIII: Finding cartridges for a Waterman C/F; Getting Dried Ink Out of Caps

• IX: Basic Pen Care; INK NIX Revisited; Waterman C/F Cartridge Update
• X: Changing Pelikan Nibs; Flow Problems in Recent Pelikans
• XI: Vintage Aurora Flow Trouble; Fixing a Pelikan Piston?; Nib Tines That Won’t Stay Aligned
• XII: Adjusting Flow in a Parker “51”; Leaking Targa Nibs; Finding Replacement Pen Sacs

• XIII: More on Leaking Targa Nibs; Finding Replacement Pen Sacs; Using Ultrasonic Cleaners; Still More on Waterman C/F Converters!
• XIV: Fixing Parker “51” Cap Clutches (Not!); More on Leaking Targa Nibs; Finding Replacement Nibs for Inexpensive Pens
• XV: Rattling Lever in Sheaffer Pen; Converter Interchangeability?; Pelikan Nib Skips — Easy to Fix?
• XVI: My Dip Nibs Won’t Hold Ink; Tightening a “51” Clip

• XVII: Help for a Sheaffer Touchdown; Why Does My “51” Leak?; I Want a Flex Nib, and I Want It Now!
• XVIII: Parker “51”: Who’s On First?; Front-End Disassembly and Reassembly of the “51”; Using Windex to Flush a Pen
• XIX: Lubricating a Pelikan Piston; Trim Corrosion in Cigar-Box Pen Cases; Adjusting the Flow in a Drippy Bulb Filler
• XX: Reassembling a Balky Eversharp Skyline; Ink Gets All Over the Top of my Nib; Removing a Broken-Off Converter

• XXI: Resacking with Silicone; Capless and VP: What’s the Difference?; Capless Capacity; Pens Gradually Lose Flow
• XXII: C/C Pen Leaks Between Section & Converter; Loose Nib & Feed in a Pelikan 400NN; Adjusting flow in a Parker “51”
• XXIII: Vanishing Point Dries Out; Using Other Inks in Montblanc Pens; Restoring Color in Celluloid That Was Exposed to Hot Water
• XXIV: Pelikan Nib Interchangeability; Other Nib Intrchangeability; Pencils in a Pen Pouch [April 2012]

• Birthday Pens: A Timeline
• Mint Vintage Pens: Preserve ’Em or Ink ’Em Up? by David Isaacson
• Pens in the Wild: A Hunter’s Guide
• Significant Pens of the Twentieth Century

• Fountain Pen Sac Size Guide for Repairers
• How to Replace a Pen Sac
• How to Replace a Vacumatic Diaphragm
• How to Replace an Ink-Vue Sac (Type 1)
• How to Replace an Ink-Vue Sac (Type 2) [March 2012]
• Skyline Pressure Bar Removal and Reinstallation
• Repairing the Seal in a Waterman Glass-Cartridge Pen
• Converting a Fifth Avenue or Skyline Eversharp CA to Use Modern Refills
• Converting a Cap-Actuated Retractable Eversharp CA to Use Modern Refills [June 2012]
• Restoring the Filler in a Morrison Patriot
• Repairing and Replacing a Waterman Lever Box Assembly
• Repairing the Piston in a Tibaldi Modello 60
• Drill Size Reference
• MicroMesh Swab Reference