Like any other specialized item, the fountain pen has amassed a lexicon of terms that are unique. And like other jargon languages, fountain pen jargon can be cryptic or confusing. This glossary presents brief definitions for many of the most common pen terms. It is not complete (an impossible goal); but it is a work in progress, and I welcome suggestions for terms to add.
(Revised November 21, 2007)
The glossary is organized alphabetically. For numbers, look under the spelled-out form; e.g., for 14K, look under fourteen.
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A
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A. A. Waterman
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See Waterman, A. A.
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abalone
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Any of several species of large marine bivalve gastropod (of which some species have been overfished and are threatened with extinction) having an ear-shaped shell with a varicolored pearly interior. The pearly shell is sometimes used as an overlay, by itself or combined with the lighter-colored mother-of-pearl, on pen barrels and caps. Shown here is an Ancora limited-edition pen featuring a mosaic of abalone chips. See also alternating pearl, Ebonized Pearl, iridescent, mother-of-pearl.
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ABS
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Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene, a thermoplastic resin of which pens are made, a double copolymer of SAN (styrene-acrylonitrile) and BS (butadiene-styrene). The combination of the two copolymers provides excellent strength, rigidity, and toughness: a great improvement over the qualities of polystyrene, which is more brittle and prone to cracking or shrinkage. ABS and polystyrene are today the most common materials for the manufacture of inexpensive and moderately priced pens. See also polystyrene, thermoplastic, thermosetting.
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accommodation clip
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(also slip-on clip) An accessory clip, designed to slip onto the cap of a clipless pen. Here are illustrated two of the many types of slip-on clips manufactured during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The clip on the left is branded MODERN and bears patent dates of 1900 and 1909; the other clip is a version of the VV clip. See also clipless, VV clip.
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accordion
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A type of filling system. View a description and filling instructions here.
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ACCOUNT
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An imprint sometimes used to identify an accounting nib. See also accounting nib.
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accounting nib
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A very firm fine nib designed to be used for accounting (also called posting).
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acetate
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See cellulose acetate.
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acetone
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A solvent often used for fusing (solvent welding) cracks in celluloid or acrylic pen parts; it is readily available and inexpensive, but its relatively low reactivity produces weak bonds while its high volatility causes bubbles that mar the appearance of the repaired part.
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acrylic
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(also acrylic glass) Polymethyl methacrylate, a thermoplastic resin of which pens are made, the most common synthetic polymer of methyl methacrylate (C5H8O2). Acrylic was first synthesized in 1928 and was first produced commercially in 1933 by Rohm & Haas. It is extremely tough and durable, and it can be manufactured in a broad variety of colors and patterns. The first successful pen model to be made of acrylic was Waterman’s “jewel like” Hundred Year Pen. Acrylic resists the corrosive action of inks and was adopted for that reason in the design of the Parker “51” but was generally supplanted by polystyrene plastics around 1950. It is today the primary material for the manufacture of high-quality pen barrels and caps. Frequently referred to as Lucite® (DuPont) or Plexiglas® (Rohm & Haas). See also “51”, Hundred Year Pen, thermoplastic, thermosetting.
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Addipoint
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A pen model sold by Sheaffer under the WASP brand; featured a user-replaceable nib sold as a screw-in nib/section assembly complete with a sac (see illustration). The Addipoint may have been an attempt to compete with Esterbrook’s Re-New-Point, introduced in 1935. See also WASP.
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adjustable nib
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1 A nib with a mechanism for adjusting the nib’s flexibility. Wahl-Eversharp produced Doric and Coronet pens with nibs having a small slider that can be positioned in one of nine notches (1930s, illustrated below, left). With the slider moved toward the section, the nib is quite flexible. As the slider is moved notch by notch toward the tip of the nib, the nib becomes progressively firmer. With the slider all the way out, the nib is a rigid (manifold) nib. Eversharp called this nib the Adjustable Point (also Self-Fitting Point). ¶ LUS of Italy produced a model called the Giubileo, with an adjusting knob at the back end of the barrel; turning the knob adjusts the nib by sliding the entire mechanism of the pen within the outer barrel (1950s). See also nib. 2 A nib arranged so that it can be rotated in a section that is ergonomically shaped instead of being round, in order to accommodate the way the user holds the pen. The best known pen with such a design is the Parker 75, whose section is roughly triangular (below, right).
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advertising blotter
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 A small sheet of blotter paper, printed with advertising and given away for promotional purposes. In the “olden days,” advertising blotters frequently bore pin-up art (sometimes risqué) and were used by businesses of all kinds; today, these blotters are made primarily for pen repairers and collectors. Illustrated here are a vintage advertising blotter used by the Smith Fence Company of Buffalo, New York (below), and a modern one that I designed for my own business (right). See also blotter, desk blotter, rocker blotter.
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Aero-metric
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Parker’s name (colloquially “aerometric”) for the system (U. S. Patent Nº 2,612,867) by which its Foto-Fill squeeze-type filling system (introduced in 1948 and illustrated here by a Parker “51”) operated. The basis of the Aero-metric (“air-measuring”) system is a breather tube that is essentially the full length of the squeeze-filling sac, has a very carefully calibrated inside diameter that is smaller than in other pens’ breather tubes, and has a very small hole (also calibrated) in its side near the feed. Whatever differs from this, to the extent of the difference, fails to meet the specifications of Parker's patent for the Aero-metric system and is merely a squeeze-filling pen, not an Aero-metric one. Parker later dropped the Foto-Fill name, using Aero-metric to denominate the filler itself. View a description and filling instructions here. See a cross-section of the anatomy of an Aero-metric pen here.
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All-American Pen, The
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A Conklin sub-brand (1929-1930s). Flat-topped at first, the All-American soon acquired a streamlined look along with the Endura Symetrik and the Endura Nozac. Produced with lever, vacuum plunger, and twist-actuated bulb filling systems (twist-bulb shown here), the All-American was an excellent and reliable pen; and it also appeared as a combo. See also combo.
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alternating pearl
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Term for a pattern created by alternating mother-of-pearl with other shells such as abalone or paua in decorations such as pen overlays. During the 19th century several manufacturers produced remarkably beautiful pens with alternating-pearl overlays. Danitrio is one of the few modern makers creating pens in this style; below is shown a Brillante pen with an alternating pattern of mother-of-perl and green abalone. See also abalone, mother-of-pearl.
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ambering
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Discoloration of clear celluloid caused by slow oxidation. The color of ambered celluloid can range from very slight to moderate (as in the transparent section of the Inkograph stylographic pen below) to severe; severely ambered parts can be as deep brown as strong tea. See also celluloid, discoloration.
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aniline dye
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A dye made from aniline, an oily poisonous liquid (phenylamine aminobenzene, C6H7N). The first writing inks based on aniline dyes appeared in the early 1860s; and with the exception of a very few blue-black inks based on iron gallotannate, all modern fountain pen inks use aniline dyes for their coloring. See also ink, iron gall ink.
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Arabic italic
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 (also Arabic/Hebrew italic or Hebrew italic) A nib shape (illustrated to the right) that is designed to create broad strokes in a generally sidewise direction (relative to the nib itself) and very thin strokes in a generally up-and-down direction. This stroke configuration, orthogonal to that produced by the usual italic nib, is useful for writing Hebrew and Arabic, many styles of which feature broad horizontal strokes and narrow vertical ones. This nib shape also works well for some Indic scripts and for calligraphy in East Asian pictographic writing styles. Illustrated below is the first sentence of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights,” in the four types of scripts listed here. [Historical note] The origin of this nib style is not known. The only such nib I have seen, other than those that I produce, was on a pen owned by Susan Wirth, a Sheaffer Imperial from the 1960s. See also italic, nib.
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Arabic:
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Hebrew:
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Indic (Oriya):
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Japanese (Kanji):
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Arrow clip
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A clip design used by Parker from 1932 to 1938 and, with variations, from 1948 onward. The original Arrow clip, created by Joseph Platt, is a classic of Art Deco design. Read an article that includes a discussion on the Arrow clip, with illustrations, here. See also Art Deco, Split Arrow clip.
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Art Deco
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(also Deco or deco) Shortening of the French phrase les arts decoratifs. A design school that came to the fore in about 1925, in France; marked by stylized forms and geometric designs adapted to mass production. Some of the most desirable pens of the Golden Age, such as the Parker Vacumatic (especially its Joseph Platt-designed clip) and the Wahl-Eversharp Doric, are Art Deco designs. Art Deco waned in popularity through the late 1930s as modernistic streamlining came into vogue. See also faceted, fluted.
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artists’ ink
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See India ink.
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artist’s nib
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A flexible nib with a very fine point, usually XXXF (needlepoint). This type of nib allows an artist great latitude in the types of strokes he or she may use in drawing with pen and ink. Pen manufacturers noted for their artist’s nibs included L. E. Waterman. See also flexible.
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aspergillum
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(also aspergill, holy water sprinkler) An implement for sprinkling holy water. Sometimes made to resemble a fountain pen for portability when needed for rites or rituals conducted elsewhere than on church grounds. Where the nib and feed would be, the section is closed over and perforated with several small holes to allow droplets of water to escape when the device is shaken. An aspergillum bears the symbol of a cross, which can be the only external means of identification if the aspergillum is part of a set with a pen.
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Astralite
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Waterman’s name for its stainless steel caps, beginning in the 1940s. See also Lustraloy.
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autograph
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1 A person’s handwritten signature. 2 When capitalized and used in reference to writing instruments, Autograph indicates a pen or pencil with special provision (such as a solid gold cap band) for the engraving of a signature as shown here on a Sheaffer’s Oversize Balance originally owned by Elton Magnuson. See also indicia.
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Aztec
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The common name for three rare and highly desirable overlay eyedropper pen models produced by Parker (models 58, 59, and 60); the gold-filled or sterling overlay is worked with Amerindian relief designs such as the triskelion. See also triskelion.
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The information in this glossary is as accurate as possible, but you should not take it as absolutely authoritative.
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