The beautiful ring top fountain pens of the 1930s and ‘40s deserve to be displayed. Back in the day, women wore them around their neck on a chain or ribbon so others could enjoy their colors, patterns and materials. What these pens lack in size, they make up for in personality.

I, too, wanted to display these pens but on a more contemporary necklace (MODERN) that complimented the the vintage, lever filling fountain pen (ANALOG). I made a lot (a whole lot) of ugly (really ugly) necklaces trying to find something I liked. I finally settled somewhere between a plain chain (meh) and heavy beaded necklace (eew).

I wanted something that elevated a simple pen-on-a-chain without having the pen play second fiddle. I settled on pairing each pen with a handmade ceramic bead in a way that complimented the pen without distracting from it.

I select each bead to match a specific pan…. For a one of a kind necklace.

I hope you like them.

RESTORING A VINTAGE PEN IN 5 STEPS

Before I can restore a fountain pen, I have to buy one.

I purchase vintage pens online (eBay) and, in general, I’m looking for interesting designs and patterns at affordable prices. While some of the pens I sell are quite collectible (Esterbrook, Salz Bros. Peter Pan, etc.), I’m mostly looking for unusual, eye-catching pens that I haven’t seen before. They’re not necessarily one of a kind, but I doubt you’ll attend an event and find you’re wearing the same pen as someone else.

I love small purse/pocket pencils and fountain pens, which I define as smaller than 4 3/4 inches, but occasionally find a larger, full-size pen that I can’t resist.

Finally, I mostly buy and restore pens with a lever filling system. They’re simple and straight-forward to work on, and durable to boot.

Here is how I restore vintage pens:

1. Take the pen apart.

To restore the pen I just purchased, I start by removing the section — the part that holds the nib and feed, and that you hold when you use the pen. Most sections have been glued in with shellac. I use a small heat gun to soften the shellac, and a pair of sections pliers (aka spark plug puller) to gently twist and pull to remove the section.

The I use a variety of picks and sticks to scrape out the old rubber sac, which usually comes out in a pile of rubber chunks. You can see what a new rubber sac looks like in the photo.

Finally, I check the pressure bar inside the barrel of the pen. Sometime the pressure bar is fine and can be re-used. But sometimes it’s rusted or broken and needs to be replaced. See the photo for a broken (above) and new (below) pressure bar.

2. Clean all the pieces.

The section, with nib and feed, go into an ultrasonic cleaner to remove dried ink and other gunk.

The cap and barrel get cleaned and polished in one of two ways. For very small and/or more delicate pens, I use a three part liquid polishing system by Novus. For larger pens, and those that are really scratched and grimey, I wet sand them with nine different grades of micromesh to remove scratches/grime, and then finish with the liquid polish from Novus.

You can really appreciate how beautiful some of these pens are, once the dirt, grime and scratches have been sanded or polished out. My personal preference is to restore pens to look as new as possible. More serious collectors often prefer to leave the pen looking “aged.” Potatoes, potahtoes.

3. Put the pen back together.

Once everything is spiffed up, it’s time to reassemble the pen. In the photo, the new pressure bar already has been inserted into the barrel. The new rubber sac has been shellacked onto the sac nipple of the section, and coated with a dusting of pure talc to help ease it back into the barrel.

The sections are friction fit back into the barrel. I rarely secure them with shellac because 1) they’re already a tight fit and it’s not necessary, and 2) it makes it easier to take the pen apart for future repairs — like replacing the sac, which won’t last forever. Several or more years, but not forever.

5. Check that the pen writes.

Once the pen is re-assembled, I fill it with ink to make sure it fills properly. Then I write with it to see if the nib needs to be adjusted. Common adjustments include smoothing (it may look like a nail file, but the gray stick has three different grades of micromesh for smoothing), straightening the tines and heat setting the nib.

Heat setting involves dipping the nib/section of the pen in nearly-boiling water. After 30 seconds, the feed has softened and can be compressed against the nib to create a custom fit between the nib and feed.

5. Construct a necklace.

I created a boatload of ugly necklaces trying to find a design and style that really showed off vintage ring top pencils and fountain pens.

Then I found these great handmade ceramic beads, that (I think) both compliment and enhance the pens. I also moved away from set-length 24-inch necklaces, to adjustable necklace that give the wearer much more versatility in how they wear them.

Because of the combination of bead and pen, I can pretty much guarantee that each necklace is a one-of-a-kind.

AN AWKWARD DISCUSSION OF PRICING

When I set prices, I start with how much I paid for the pen, pencil or pen/pencil set. In the past several months, the prices of vintage pens on eBay have shot up. Unfortunately, I have to reflect these increases in my own products.

To the base price of the pencil or pen, I add in something for supplies (rubber sacs, pressure bars, beads, leather cording, etc.) and for my time restoring them. When it’s a labor of love I guess I don’t mind making less than minimum wage :) I also add a small “it’s-one-of-a-kind” premium to the pencil and fountain pen necklaces.

Finally, I do tweak the final price based on how well I think a pen will sell. Sometimes I find a cheaper pen that I know I can sell for a little more. Other times I spend much more on a pen because I really, really liked it. I usually break even (or less) on these pens just because I like working on them and offering them to others for a reasonable price.

BUYING VINTAGE PENS AND PENCILS

The pens and pencil in this store are somewhere between 60 and 90 years old. While they have been polished and restored to working condition, I can’t make them young again.

So expect some signs of use such as micro-scratches, fading, loss of gold plating and maybe some color changes in the plastic. I note any major cracks, chips or other flaws in the product descriptions.