Wahl Oxford Lever Filler - Worth restoring?

My son-in-law to-be found a Wahl Oxford Lever Filler with a number 2, 14K nib at an estate sale yesterday. It's in pretty rough shape: quite a bit of brassing or dirt on the clip and cap ring, the clip is bent, the nib is blue from old ink and possibly slightly bent, and I didn't even try to lift the lever for fear of bending it. It looks like a grey marble body, and it doesn't appear to have any cracks or damage. It has black, conical, non-removable jewels on both ends, and a single band on the cap. The side of the pen says Wahl Oxford, Made in USA by the makers of Eversharp, and there are a couple of scrapes/scratches just under the imprint. I'm just wondering if it's worth restoring, and if you all have any suggestions for a restorer? Thanks in advance.

I would say that it is probably worth restoring. The nice thing about lever fillers is that they are (usually) pretty straightforward to repair. The bent clip would concern me the most. We need pictures to be sure. And go ahead and try to lift the lever. Expect the hear the *crunch* of crushing a petrified sac. But sometimes they will surprise you.

Probably worth restoring - to get it just to write would probably be relatively simple, and then to get it to a more perfect cosmetic condition a bit more work after that, but it sounds more in need of a spa treatment than an emergency room, and Wahls are good pens, as far as I know. If the nib is a little bent it is probably worth straightening, too.

FWIW, I have one and it's a lovely pen--the nib was somewhat bent when I received it, and Danny Fudge restored everything nicely. Here's the result. It writes beautifully all the time.

I have a wet-writing Wahl Oxford with a super-flexy nib that I like. I don't think they're all like that but I like mine. Any chance you'd want to take a stab at restoring it yourself? They're a pressure fit pen so it's not very complicated and you have all of FPGeeks to advise you on it. :)

Assuming that I did try to restore it myself, can the pen be cleaned in an ultrasonic cleaner? I've been looking for an excuse to buy a small one.

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Originally Posted by mtnbiker62

Assuming that I did try to restore it myself, can the pen be cleaned in an ultrasonic cleaner? I've been looking for an excuse to buy a small one.

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I personally put pens like this in my ultrasonic cleaner. Disclaimer: I'm not an expert.

So based on some advice I received, I went ahead and pulled the section. The sac was, of course, hard as Chinese arithmetic, and cracked, and it broke off at the top of the section. I knew that would be no good, though, so no surprise there. Here are some pictures of the pen now.

Bent clip:
Attachment 13259

Bent nib:
Attachment 13260

It all came apart fairly easily, and I can't see any damage. The lever isn't locking back into place, but maybe it needs a sac in there to do it? Any suggestions on where to buy a sac and installation instructions? One other question: does the nib and feed come out of the section?

http://fountainpensacs.com/

The nib and feed do not need to come out of the section!

OK, now it is time to stop and decide what you envision as your FP future. I asure you that you can fix this pen yourself with a little patience and a few tools. If you do so, however, one thing will lead to another and you will have 4x more money in tools and parts than the pen is worth. And that is just the start. I (usually) enjoy fixing my own pens but that is not for everybody. Some people enjoy it and some people hate it. I will say that I started adding up the cost of just my tools and parts and stopped in horror before I had gone very far. Then I threw away all of the receipts so that I could not change my mind. If you want to go that route, there is a lot of great information here and several other places to get going. I find that I get satisfaction from a pen that I have rescued from the scap pile. I also get satisfaction from opening a package and finding a pen ready to use.

The clip is going to be harder to straighten than the nib. But, if you are not trying so sell it, it is really not that big of a deal. But it WILL always bother you.

The nib is not actually bent badly. True it (probably) should not be that far down, but it looks to be even. Before you do anything you should try it first. You don't need a sac or a repaired pen for that. You can still dip the nib and see how it writes. If it writes well I would leave it alone.

Many people swear by their ultrasonic cleaners, including several that repair pens for a living. I do not have one nor will I purchase one for pens. That is just my personal preference.

There is usually just a single tiny ring of metal that holds the lever assembly in place, fit into a groove on the ID of the barrel. That holds it generally in place and it rests on the sac. Most of them do tend to flop around without a sac installed. I would not be too concerned, although those rings do tend to rot.

Note that I have never worked on any Wahl pens.

Thanks for the advice, everyone. I definitely do NOT want to get into vintage fountain pens; I've looked down that rabbit hole, and there's nothing but crazy down there! :crazy: This one was a gift from my son-in-law to be, who is trying very hard to win me over! :) I just thought that it would be a nice gesture to get this one writing again, one that might make him feel more comfortable and part of the family. I'll work on cleaning it up, and see if I can get it writing again, then no more vintage pens for me. I promise! (did that sound like famous last words to you?)

They are famous last words. I started out with the intention of fixing my own so things are OK with me.
I suggest you contact Danny Fudge as Carole suggested.
He does good work, his prices are more than reasonable and his turnaround is very short compared to many others.
Even with all the tools and practice that I have, I still sent him one of my pens to do and was very pleased with the result.

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Originally Posted by Jeph

They are famous last words. I started out with the intention of fixing my own so things are OK with me.

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LOL you are not the only one. I have never had a toolbox and now I have a large toolbox full of stuff. In fact it is so full that I have the pen sacs and other consumables in an art materials box. My biggest worry is if this is just few months down the line there is only one way forward... :blink:

I got a call from Danny Fudge last night, and the pen is being mailed back today. I'm very excited to see the results of his efforts!

You will be very pleased I think. We want pictures!