A Review of an Exotic Norwegian Fountain Pen

**Waski_the_Squirrel** · December 21st, 2016, 07:03 PM

One of my favorite things to do as a fountain pen reviewer is turning out to be finding an exotic old fountain pen from a lesser known brand. So, in part thanks to my earlier review of the Centropen 100820, I was contacted by a Norwegian gentleman who was interested in trading a Norwegian pen for an American pen. The pen he offered was a plain looking Pan 52, made some time in the very late 1940s to early 1950s.

The color on these photos doesn't show it well, but the pen is a very dark brown. Honestly, the pen doesn't look like much. From these closeups of the nib and finial, you can see it is not very decorated.

The pen does not have much for branding. There is just a simple Pan 52 engraved on the side of the pen which is really difficult to photograph.

The pen itself is a button filler. It's my first button filler, but I have seen pictures. I thought there was something wrong because the button was so short compared to photos of others I've seen. But, it filled the pen with just a few pumps.

Of course, the main point of interest in a pen like this is that it has an ebonite feed and a spectacularly flexible 14K gold nib. It may not be my most flexible, but it is perfect for everyday writing.

The pen writes smoothly and provides just enough fun to keep me coming back for more. It is well weighted and feels good in my hand. Frankly, my only complaint is that the grip section should be a little longer. This is an incredible pen. Here is the writing sample from my review with an attempt at drawing a button filler.

This pen brand is a piece of Norwegian history. The factory was built in 1946 in Siggerud near Langen by farmer and entrepreneur Arne Karlsrud. He also ran a grocery store, cafe, and several "small industries in modern buildings at Langen." By 1950, the plan was to make 10,000 pens in 2 months. These were to be quality pens that would compete with imports. Here is a vintage display case. Link below it takes you to the licensing. Also, here is a vintage advertisement. Watching the pens hit a dart board makes me cringe a bit.

https://digitaltmuseum.no/021015457108/eberh-oppi-50-ar

Vintage Video Advertisement
http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_video_5678
http://urn.nb.no/URN:NBN:no-nb_video_5678

Sadly, the factory closed in the 1990s, and the factory is in really tough shape. It was close to being torn down. However, it was purchased in 2013 by Lars Aas who plans to build 3 apartments and a staircase carpentry workshop.

Below is my "bibliography" followed by my YouTube review.

[1] Button Fillers http://www.richardspens.com/?page=re...rs/fillers.htm

[2] Vintage advertisement for Pan Pens http://www.nb.no/nbsok/nb/51482b3d57...igital?lang=no

[3] Article on the origins of the Pan Pen factory http://www.oblad.no/ski/nyheter/nyhe...2610-1.7177016

[4] Pan Display case and license for photo use https://digitaltmuseum.no/021015457108/eberh-oppi-50-ar

[5] 2012 article on the state of the Pan factory building http://www.oblad.no/ski/nyheter/nyhe...2610-1.7176996

[6] 2013 article about street art on the old Pan Factory building http://www.oblad.no/nyheter/ski/nyhe...2610-1.7907932

[7] 2016 Update on the Pan factory https://niume.com/pages/post/?postID=45517

[8] 2016 Update on plans for the Pan factory https://niume.com/post/46104

**Hawk** · December 21st, 2016, 08:00 PM

Great post and a neat pen. The Norwegian and I don't get along even though I am second generation Swede. The factory seems like a ambitious project since there wasn't much left after the burn.

**Waski_the_Squirrel** · December 21st, 2016, 09:25 PM

Originally Posted by Hawk

Great post and a neat pen. The Norwegian and I don't get along even though I am second generation Swede. The factory seems like a ambitious project since there wasn't much left after the burn.

Luckily, this pen is pretty awesome, and doesn't worry about ethnicity. It wrote for me, and I have absolutely no Scandanavian heritage.