Marsilius
March 19th, 2017, 09:44 PM
Recently I bought two modern Conklin pens from the Heritage Collection: a Durograph and a Word Gauge. Hardly the fanciest pens to collect, but they are good user pens. They have smooth, wet Medium nibs, that definitely seem more like fine stubs than regular Medium nibs. I especially like the Word Gauge because it reminds me of the old rounded fridge, toaster, and other plastic, chrome, and formica kitchen furniture from my childhood.
Yesterday I bought a Conklin Glider from the older generation of modern Conklin pens, before the nibs had a crescent vent hole. I read that the Medium on these was more like a Fine, and that rings true. The pen I purchased seems to have a design that the Conklin catalog actually shows with the Mark Twain Signature model of the time, with a color called Ocean Blue.
http://www.conklinpens.com/conklin_old/product/signature.html
It does not look like the Sapphire Blue listed (and the Sapphire Swirl is not shown):
http://www.conklinpens.com/conklin_old/product/glider.html
The two newer pens seem to have better converters and the threads have better tolerance on the cap threads. But my big take away on the Glider is that the older Medium Bock (I think) nib is a nice smooth F/M, and makes me want to try some more of those, which can be found on eBay. The Glider is also longer than the newer models and fits well in the hand. I think it also has a silver or silver plated ring on the cap.
People have rightfully questioned some aspects of the quality of all of these pens, but I confess to liking them. I’ve post here some pictures with my horrible handwriting with each pen for a comparison (sorry if the photos are giant!).
Final note: It is really easy to spring the clip on the Word Gauge and Glider. For that reason, I don’t clip them in my shirt pocket.
Durograph
31118
Word Gauge
31117
Glider
31119
Yesterday I bought a Conklin Glider from the older generation of modern Conklin pens, before the nibs had a crescent vent hole. I read that the Medium on these was more like a Fine, and that rings true. The pen I purchased seems to have a design that the Conklin catalog actually shows with the Mark Twain Signature model of the time, with a color called Ocean Blue.
http://www.conklinpens.com/conklin_old/product/signature.html
It does not look like the Sapphire Blue listed (and the Sapphire Swirl is not shown):
http://www.conklinpens.com/conklin_old/product/glider.html
The two newer pens seem to have better converters and the threads have better tolerance on the cap threads. But my big take away on the Glider is that the older Medium Bock (I think) nib is a nice smooth F/M, and makes me want to try some more of those, which can be found on eBay. The Glider is also longer than the newer models and fits well in the hand. I think it also has a silver or silver plated ring on the cap.
People have rightfully questioned some aspects of the quality of all of these pens, but I confess to liking them. I’ve post here some pictures with my horrible handwriting with each pen for a comparison (sorry if the photos are giant!).
Final note: It is really easy to spring the clip on the Word Gauge and Glider. For that reason, I don’t clip them in my shirt pocket.
Durograph
31118
Word Gauge
31117
Glider
31119