To open or not to open?

[distracted_mom]

I'll preface this with the fact that I am sitting here chuckling because I am writing to all of you about a $1 pen.

A couple of years ago in an estate sale, I bought a dozen or so pens. Several were broken and had to be thrown away. There were two Sheaffer student pens from the 50's that were fine after a little cold water soak. I was able to get the Parker VS (1947) up and running with a little help. For $14, I felt pretty good about life.

Last week, I decided I wanted to try to get that last pen going. It's a Wearever and all I wanted to know was if it would write, and of course, there's no converter and it won't take any normal cartridges. I found an auction on eBay and ended up with a pen and 12 cartridges still in the blister pack.

IMG_3818 by Shannon Killion, on Flickr

Is there any reason at all for me not to open this up? It's not going to be worth a fortune in a few years is it?

Thanks for humoring me!

[Sailor Kenshin]

I have a Wearever Pennant; been refilling the cart for a while. You could always do that. As to the future value of your New On Card Wearever, I'm not sure.

If you really don't want to open it, I have a spare cart.

Broken...thrown out...words to make me weep.

[Armstrong]

That is a question that goes back to your philosophy for collecting. It is something I would advise any beginning collector to set their philosophy on early and then proceed. Me, I'm an old hillbilly, and have been collecting pocket knives since I was 8 years old or so. To me, if I couldn't use it, carry it, enjoy it, why have it? Like pens, knives are worth much more in pristine condition. So for me it is from the using of whatever collectible it is that brings enjoyment.

For others it is more of an investment. In that case using a NOS pen would not be their choice. Their choice would be to maximize the value with an eye toward a later sale of the same item. I am sure there are some who walk both paths depending on the value of the object.

So, are you in it for the enjoyment. Or are you in it for the money?

[Silverbreeze]

I'll preface this with the fact that I am sitting here chuckling because I am writing to all of you about a $1 pen.

A couple of years ago in an estate sale, I bought a dozen or so pens. Several were broken and had to be thrown away. There were two Sheaffer student pens from the 50's that were fine after a little cold water soak. I was able to get the Parker VS (1947) up and running with a little help. For $14, I felt pretty good about life.

Last week, I decided I wanted to try to get that last pen going. It's a Wearever and all I wanted to know was if it would write, and of course, there's no converter and it won't take any normal cartridges. I found an auction on eBay and ended up with a pen and 12 cartridges still in the blister pack.

IMG_3818 by Shannon Killion, on Flickr

Is there any reason at all for me not to open this up? It's not going to be worth a fortune in a few years is it?

Thanks for humoring me!

If you are actually curious google the price of the pen when it was made, adjust for inflation if you didn't pay more then a small Starbucks coffee in Extra there is more value in those unused carts then in the pen

[Orpilorp]

Q: "It's not going to be worth a fortune in a few years is it?"

A: It's a third tier Wearever cartridge pen so it will never be worth much. As a case in point, consider the relatively low prices of fully restored third tier pens from the 1930s with their awesome celluloids.

I'd recommend leaving it sealed and trading it for a bottle of ink.

[distracted_mom]

So, are you in it for the enjoyment. Or are you in it for the money?

I think you make the perfect point there. Definitely for the enjoyment.

[distracted_mom]

I'll preface this with the fact that I am sitting here chuckling because I am writing to all of you about a $1 pen.

A couple of years ago in an estate sale, I bought a dozen or so pens. Several were broken and had to be thrown away. There were two Sheaffer student pens from the 50's that were fine after a little cold water soak. I was able to get the Parker VS (1947) up and running with a little help. For $14, I felt pretty good about life.

Last week, I decided I wanted to try to get that last pen going. It's a Wearever and all I wanted to know was if it would write, and of course, there's no converter and it won't take any normal cartridges. I found an auction on eBay and ended up with a pen and 12 cartridges still in the blister pack.

IMG_3818 by Shannon Killion, on Flickr

Is there any reason at all for me not to open this up? It's not going to be worth a fortune in a few years is it?

Thanks for humoring me!

If you are actually curious google the price of the pen when it was made, adjust for inflation if you didn't pay more then a small Starbucks coffee in Extra there is more value in those unused carts then in the pen

The whole reason I bought it was for the cartridges...

[Silverbreeze]

I am aware of that :-)

[Kaputnik]

If it were mine, I'd open it, but of course it is an irrevocable decision. I understand that some collectors like to keep things in unopened original packaging when they have the chance, I'm just not one of them. And it will probably be a long time before it's worth a large amount even to that type of collector, but it will be worth more as it is if you do want to sell it.

I have a Wearever that looks like the same model, only red. I'd bought an eBay lot of pens to get a couple of Parkers that were in it, but the Wearever, which had an empty cartridge in it, turned out to be a surprisingly nice writer when I syringe filled the cartridge. Even so, I'm not really interested in writing with it that much, but those proprietary Wearever cartridges might be worth something to someone who wanted to use one of their cartridge pens. You can refill them quite a few times, but eventually they will probably wear out.

[stub]

open it. ink it. use it.

[Chrissy]

If I bought it for the cartridges, I would open it and use them like I had planned to do. No way is it going to be worth keeping for years. For a start, the cartridges will dry out.

[Ted A]

I would use them. That's what is fun for me. And I'm not sure I would have the energy to maximize any gain on them

[Mags]

I would definitely open and use the pen and cartridges. Absolutely, I am of the use it school of pen purchases.