Noob Question: What did I buy?

**olympusandy** · November 13th, 2018, 06:19 AM

I bought a Stephens fountain pen from Yesteryear's Fountain Pens (very happy with the seller, super packaging too). It is only marked "Stephens", no "Made in England" or model number. It's a rather fine celluloid button filler with a 14ct nib (maybe not original?). I haven't seen any like it (I've trawled through Curzon, Lang, Waterman pics for ideas). It doesn't seem to be a 56,76,106,21,270 or a Royal.

So, dear fellow pen lovers, what is it?

(images courtesy of the seller)

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**Kaputnik** · November 13th, 2018, 06:40 AM

I had never heard of Stephens pens before, but having recently got a good price on Fountain Pens of the World, by Andreas Lambrou, looked the brand up there, where there is a brief mention. From your citing individual model numbers, I gather that you would already know some of this. But one interesting thing was the unconfirmed speculation that some of their nicer models were made by Conway Stewart. Perhaps look for Conway Stewart models with similarities. And maybe someone will have a more helpful answer later. The five Stephens pens pictured in Lambrou's book are indeed different, with flattened ends for barrels and caps and different celluloid patterns.

**Deb** · November 13th, 2018, 07:58 AM

That looks like a later example, quite possibly made by Jif Waterman. It's pretty well impossible to assign a model number to late Stephens pens. Nice pen, though, made from pretty material.

I'm unaware of any evidence of a link between Stephens and Conway Stewart.

**olympusandy** · November 13th, 2018, 09:34 AM

I'm thinking based on shape, a Waterman 501 /W2 type, except this is a button filler and the Waterman pens seem to all be lever fillers.

Seem reasonable guess?

Thank you so much for the replies

Edit: the tapering of the barrel before the thread seems unique, as does the clip attachment method, which is unlike many Waterman pens. The holes in the cap seem Waterman like though.

**Deb** · November 13th, 2018, 09:43 AM

I can't see any resemblance between that pen and British Watermans like the 501 or W2. JIF was doing rather different things and, when making a third party pen, they may not have stuck to a resemblance with their own output.

**Chrissy** · November 13th, 2018, 10:19 AM

It looks like an excellent condition pen, so whoever restored it to that standard did a great job.

**olympusandy** · November 13th, 2018, 12:57 PM

The seller did the restoration, including new ink bladder. It's first rate, looks like new and writes very well.

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**KBeezie** · November 13th, 2018, 10:18 PM

I really like the look of it, reminds me of the general rounded shape of a Mabie Todd Swan 3220 I once had.

**fountainpagan** · November 14th, 2018, 02:20 AM

Very nice pen. However, I think it is a galalith made pen rather than celluloïde.

**olympusandy** · November 14th, 2018, 01:59 PM

I have just seen a French Frazar pen made in the 1940s. The tapering of the barrel to be narrower than the cap thread, button filler type, cap band, method of clip attachment to the cap all tally. Maybe Stephens also used Frazar. The ebay listing is here for comparison :
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?m...2F143005765238

Do you think I'm on the right track?

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