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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 March 17, 2008)

The glossary is organized alphabetically. For numbers, look under the spelled-out form; e.g., for 14K, look under fourteen.

If there is a magnifying-glass symbol () next to an image, click the magnifying glass to view a zoomed version for more detail.

F
faceted	Having a number of flat sides, as opposed to a continuous round contour. The Omas Arte Italiana series and the Wahl-Eversharp Doric (shown here, upper) are Art Deco-style faceted pens from the Golden Age; modern faceted pens include the Filcao Tukano (lower) and the Retro 1951 Double Eight. Contrast with fluted. See also Art Deco.
Falcon	1  A dip nib shaped generally as illustrated to the right by an Esterbrook Nº 442 Jackson stub, with a broadened neck having a stamped horseshoe-shaped depression for increased body rigidity. Esterbrook used the Falcon name explicitly, assigning it to the Nº 048 Falcon and Nº 182 Lady Falcon, both fine flexible nibs — and again, beginning in the 1930s, to the Nº 2442 Renew-Point nib, a fine relief stub. See also Relief.  2  A pen model (illustrated below by the Flighter version), produced 1977-1983 by Parker, whose principal feature was an integral nib. Parker advertised the Falcon (Model 50) as being the second pen to have an integral nib, the first being the quill. This claim conveniently overlooked Parker’s unsuccessful T-1 of 1970-71. See also integral nib.  3  A modern pen model, produced by Pilot of Japan (and sold in the U.S.A. under Pilot’s Namiki brand), whose principal feature is a “flexible” (actually semiflexible) nib.
FDW	Frank D. Waterman, nephew of Lewis E. Waterman. In 1901, on the death of Lewis, Frank took over the L. E. Waterman company and expanded it overseas. Some of Waterman’s pens bear his initials as part of their imprints.
feathering	Spreading of ink along the surface of the paper by capillary action between the fibers of the paper. Pens adjusted to write extremely wet are more prone than dry writers to produce feathering; other causes can be paper with long, loosely packed fibers, ink with an excessive amount of surfactant, or a nib that is so sharp it catches and tears the paper fibers. Compare with bleeding, which is essentially feathering in the third dimension. See also capillary action.
Feathertouch™	Sheaffer’s trademarked name for the duo-point nibs that it began using for non-Lifetime pens in about 1931 (illustrated to the right). Feathertouch nibs were generally two-tone in appearance, with the slit walls and upper surface of the tines attractively platinum plated. The slit-wall plating was a patented feature claimed to improve ink flow. These nibs were essentially the same as those in Lifetime pens except for the imprint and, on some lower-priced pen models, the absence of platinum plating. See also duo-point.
feed	(also feeder, feed bar, ink feed, underfeed) A usually cylindrical part against which the nib is placed, which carries (“feeds”) ink from the reservoir to the nib and delivers it in a controlled flow by means of capillary action. Feeds frequently have slots, combs, or other design elements providing increased surface area that capillary action can draw ink onto or release it from, as a means of controlling the evenness of flow (buffering). Early feeds were made of hard rubber; beginning in the late 1940s, inexpensive feeds have been made of plastic, while high-quality feeds are still made of hard rubber. Illustrated here is a feed from a 1900-era Conklin’s Crescent-Filler pen. See also capillary action, collector, overfeed, over-under feed.
ferrogallic ink	See iron gall ink.
ferrule	1  The metal tube at the nib end of a dip-pen holder, into which the pen point (nib) fits.  2  A threaded metal sleeve attached to the section of a fountain pen, onto which the barrel screws. May or may not include a visible trim ring.
1500	See Sheaffer numbers.
Fifth Avenue	A pen model introduced by Eversharp in 1943, intended to compete with the Parker “51” but poorly thought out and, initially, a poor writer. The cap of the Fifth Avenue was vermeil; a sister model called the Sixty Four (shown below) had a cap of solid gold. Eversharp improved the pen’s writing qualities, but the public’s impression was already sour, and the model was withdrawn after about two years. Read a profile of the Fifth Avenue here.
“51”	1  A pen model introduced by Parker in 1941; remained in production until the early 1970s. The first pen to use a hooded nib. Arguably the best fountain pen ever designed, the “51” is reliable, remarkably durable, and attractive in a modern, minimalist way. Shown here is a Vacumatic-filling “51” made in 1946. Read a profile of the “51” here.  2  Parker’s name for a proprietary superfast-drying fountain-pen ink developed in the 1930s but not introduced until 1941. “51” ink dried so rapidly that a finger dragged along the paper ½" (1.3 cm) behind the pen would not smear the freshly drawn line. This incredible drying speed resulted from a formulation containing approximately 30% isopropyl alcohol for rapid flash-off of the solvent and strongly alkaline metallic dyes to penetrate the paper chemically. This formula yielded a solution with a pH higher than 12; the ink was terribly damaging, dissolving celluloid pen bodies and corroding metals commonly used in pens (including stainless steel). Before it could market such an ink, Parker was compelled to develop a pen that could withstand the ink’s destructive action, and that pen was the “51”. See also Superchrome.
52	A group of pen models produced by L. E. Waterman, probably the best known of Waterman’s vintage pens. The 52 came into existence in 1917 as a result of Waterman’s restructuring of its Standard Numbering System; before the restructuring, the 52 had been designated 12PSF. The number 52, as defined by the Standard Numbering System, indicates a lever-filling pen fitted with a Nº 2 nib, and various prefixes and suffixes further specify variants that may be shorter, thinner, or fitted with various styles of decorative bands or an overlay. Shown below are an Ideal Nº 52, the archetype of the series (upper) and an Ideal Nº 0552½V LEC, a ladies’ pen with a gold-filled overlay in the Gothic pattern (lower). Read a profile of the 52 here, and a description of the Standard Numbering System here.
filigree	1  Intricate ornamental work made from gold, silver, or other fine twisted wire as illustrated below (upper, a Hero 3000 pen and an enlarged image of the filigree work).  2  (as customarily applied to pens) A solid metal overlay made from a tube or sheet with shaped cutouts and incised engraving as illustrated by the Waterman’s Ideal Nº 412 shown below (lower). This type of decoration is correctly called cutwork.
filler	1  (also filling system or filling mechanism) The mechanism that draws ink into the pen’s ink reservoir. See diagrams of many filling systems here.  2  Early manufacturers’ term for the eyedropper supplied with an eyedropper-filling pen. See also eyedropper.
filler unit	(also filler pump or just pump) The filling mechanism in a Parker Vacumatic pen or vacumatic-filling “51”; comprises a spring-loaded plunger, a rubber diaphragm, and the two collars that secure them into the pen. Produced in three versions referred to as Lockdown, Speedline, and “plastic.” Illustrated in cutaway to the right is a third-generation filler, from a pen made after the U.S.A. entered World War II. See also Vacumatic.
Fineline	A line of Sheaffer ecomony-model pens with an interchangeable nib system, introduced in 1948 and produced into the 1950s. (Sheaffer had earlier introduced the Fineline name for its line of mechanical pencils.) The illustration here shows a Fineline section and screw-out nib unit. Later Fineline production lacked the extended rim on the screw-in sleeve. Although similar in appearance to Esterbrook’s Renew-Point nibs, Fineline nibs are not interchangeable with them. See also Personal Point, Renew-Point.
Finger tip	(Also Fingertip; but the pen’s distinctive logo shows two words) A pen model introduced by Moore in 1946, intended to compete with the Parker “51”. The Finger tip’s novel nib, inlaid into a conical brushed metal gripping section, wrote very poorly when mated with the pen’s unorthodox gold-channel feed. Moore fixed the writing issues, but the pen continued to do poorly and was withdrawn in 1951.
first tier	Term applied to a high-quality pen from one of the top manufacturers. Also applied to a manufacturer of such pens. Among U.S. manufacturers of early pens, the first tier included Conklin, Parker, Sheaffer, Wahl Eversharp, and L. E. Waterman. See also Big Four, Conklin, Parker, second tier, Sheaffer, third tier, Wahl-Eversharp, Waterman, L.E..
fissure	1  The more correct name for one of the narrow capillary channels in a feed. See also channel.  2  One of a network of tiny cracks in the surface of a pen that has undergone, or is undergoing, deterioriation due to chemical action (caused usually by aging). See also crazing.
500	See Sheaffer numbers.
585	A designation indicating an alloy that contains 585 parts of gold, by weight, per 1000 parts of the total metal content. The same as 14K.
Flat-Top	(also flat-top or flattop) A term describing a pen that is generally cylindrical in shape (not tapered or barrel-shaped) with flat ends. The classic Flat-Top shape is exemplified by Sheaffer’s pens of the 1913-1928 period, as illustrated here by a 1920s Senior Lifetime pen in black Radite.
fleabite	(also flea bite) A small nick in a pen’s surface, such as might be made accidentally by the tip of a knife.
flex	(also flexibility) The springlike tempering and shaping that render a flexible nib capable of repeatedly bending under pressure and returning to its original shape when released. See also flexible.
flexible	(also flex, as in “flex nib”) An adjective describing a nib that is made of a springy alloy and is tempered and shaped especially so that its tines flex during use, spreading apart under increased pressure to yield line variation that is unique to the individual user’s handwriting. Illustrated to the right is the nib of an eyedropper-filling Waterman’s Ideal Nº 12 made in about 1910. This pen has an extremely flexible nib with an XXXF tip (usually referred to as an artist’s nib). Unlike an italic nib, a flex nib cannot produce broad strokes in both upward and downward directions; it can make broad strokes only when the writer makes what are called “pull” strokes, i.e., strokes in the direction toward which the pen is leaning. Exerting pressure on a “push” stroke forces the nib to dig into the paper, and the usual result is that the nib then “pings” loose, spattering ink in all directions and not infrequently popping the tipping material from one or both tines. The Waterman’s nib illustrated here is capable of greater spread, but pushing a nib to its limits can damage it. See also artist’s nib, sprung. Read an article about the potential for springing nibs here.
Flighter	A style of pen introduced by Parker in 1949, with cap and matching barrel of brushed stainless steel to resemble an airplane. The original “51” Flighter, shown here, included features designed to make the pen more reliable at high altitude. The name “Flighter” applies properly only to Parker pens; but it is the appearance that collectors today identify with the term, and many collectors refer to any brushed stainless steel pen as a Flighter. Read a discussion of Flighters here. [Historical note] In 1959, on the coattails of the Douglas DC-8 passenger jet’s début two years earlier, Parker introduced a Flighter version of the 61, calling it the Jet Flighter.
Flip-Fill	Eversharp’s name for an improved version (1951) of its “unitized” lever filler (illustrated below).
flow	The movement of ink from a pen’s reservoir to the nib and thence to the paper. Ideally, a pen’s flow is uniform and neither too heavy (wet) or too light (dry). Reliable flow control is the essence of a good feed system. Read an article on feed development here. See also dry writer, feed, wet writer.
fluted	Having a number of inwardly-curved sides, like an ancient Greek column, as opposed to a continuous round contour. The Parker Parkette Deluxe, an Art Deco pen from the mid-1930s (shown here), is probably the best known fluted pen. Contrast with faceted. See also Art Deco.
folded-under nib	See rolled-under nib.
formal	See crisp.
45	A pen model introduced by Parker in 1960, priced at $5.00; remained in production until 2006. The 45 has a user-interchangeable nib unit and was Parker’s first cartridge-filling pen. (The basic engineering that produced the 45 was in process at Eversharp when Parker bought the latter company in 1957.) The 45 is distinguished by having appeared in more colors and finishes than any other Parker model. Shown below is a 45 from the mid-1960s. Read a profile of the 45 here.
Foto-Fill	Parker’s original name for its Aero-metric filling system. See also Aero-metric.
fountain pen	A pen with a nib and an ink reservoir, arranged so that the reservoir supplies ink to the nib automatically as needed to permit continuous writing. The ink flow is controlled by capillary action and a metered inflow of air. See also capillary action, dip pen, stylographic pen.
14K	(also 14C) A designation indicating an alloy that contains 14 parts of gold, by weight, per 24 parts of the total metal content. The same as 585. See also karat.
FPOTW	Collectors’ nickname for FOUNTAIN PENS OF THE WORLD, by Andreas Lambrou. FPOTW is the one indispensable reference book for every fountain pen collector; the wealth of information it contains is staggering, and the huge variety of pens illustrated is unlikely ever to be equaled or surpassed.
Frankenpen	Colloquial term for a pen that has been assembled from parts of several pens, not all of which are appropriate; e.g., an Esterbrook J with a Sheaffer cap.
frosted	Term describing a matte finish that has something of the appearance of frost on a polished metal surface; most commonly associated with the finish used by Parker on most of its stainless steel (Lustraloy) “51” and 61 caps. Shown below is a Navy Gray “51” with a frosted cap that has been cleaned to show the finish to best advantage. The polished cap band gives an idea of what this cap would look like were it entirely polished. See also Lustraloy.
fungicide	(also biocide) A chemical agent that destroys fungi, used in inks to prevent the growth of mold. Many fungicides are also toxic to other forms of life, and for this reason modern inks contain agents that are often less effective than those used in inks made before about 1990. See also ink, phenol.
furniture	(also trim) The exterior metal parts of a pen, including the lever, cap band, tassie(s), clip, etc.

The information in this glossary is as accurate as possible, but you should not take it as absolutely authoritative.

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