Printable View
Hello!
I am an absolute newbie, but was gifted an old fountain pen. I've done a little bit of research, and it looks to be relatively rare. It's a Mabie Todd Swan Safety Inksight. If anyone knows anything about the pen, I would really love to hear about it. I was also curious about whether or not it should be cleaned, used, left alone, etc. I would love to use it, but I'm a bit nervous.
Looking forward to starting a new hobby!
-Keith
Hello and welcome to FPGeeks. :) :welcome:
Hopefully someone who knows about Swan Mabie Todd pens will come along to assist. :)
Welcome! That looks like a really cool pen. I don't know a thing about Mabie Todd pens, though. I had no idea they made pens with ink windows.
Before you do anything learn about the issues of hard rubber pens and discoloration and learn about what is safe to use for cleaning.
Welcome to FPG. I can't say I know a lot about this pen which is an absolute rarity. I believe it to be a development of the Swan Safety Cap and therefore an eyedropper filler, a little over a century old. The structure over the nib is sometimes called an overfeed but may actually be intended to prevent the nib from drying out. The introduction of the clear inserts to allow viewing of the ink level is a neat piece of engineering and an early example of this feature. I see no reason why you shouldn't carefully clean the pen up and use it. The pen will have value as a collector's item.
A post to the Mabie Todd Special Interest Group in FPN may give you a more knowledgeable response.
Welcome:)
Welcome. Keep up posted.
If it came into my hands, I would leave it alone until I could have a specialist carefully restore it. There are Mabie-Todd collectors who will want your pen in as original condition as possible, and it is too rare and unusual for learning restoration techniques.Quote:
Originally Posted by krasmussen710
Welcome!
It's a simple eyedropper. I see no reason why the OP should not clean and use it if that is his/her wish. That doesn't mean totally disassembling it.Quote:
Originally Posted by FredRydrIf it came into my hands, I would leave it alone until I could have a specialist carefully restore it. There are Mabie-Todd collectors who will want your pen in as original condition as possible, and it is too rare and unusual for learning restoration techniques.Quote:
Originally Posted by krasmussen710
A really nice example of an early Swan. As Deb writes, nothing remotely complicated - it's just an eyedropper pen.
I'll bet that the nib is delightful, Mabie Todd is the absolute top as far as I am concerned.
Cob
Thanks for the nice welcome, everyone! I appreciate all the advice and compliments as well. I'll try to do a bit more research on it as recommended above too. Have a wonderful week! - Keith
Hello and greetings from your snowy neighbor in the north!
Oh!Quote:
Originally Posted by Deb
The things that are really good about it are the nib, as Cob says, the overfeed and those windows. I've been a Swan enthusiast for longer than I care to admit and I've only seen a pen rather like that once before.
Hi Keith, interesting pen !
:welcome: