Conway Stewart 286

[MarcoA64]

Good evening everybody, I have a question regarding this pen. I've read that this pen 'mounts' a N.5 nib but all the pens I've seen on various websites have nibs without any number, apart from a very little number. They are all CS nibs but nothing is impressed on them. So which is it? Would it be difficult to find a spare N.5 nib to replace a no number one?
Marco

[An old bloke]

Good evening everybody, I have a question regarding this pen. I've read that this pen 'mounts' a N.5 nib but all the pens I've seen on various websites have nibs without any number, apart from a very little number. They are all CS nibs but nothing is impressed on them. So which is it? Would it be difficult to find a spare N.5 nib to replace a no number one?
Marco

First a caveat. While I love and own a good number of vintage and current Conway Stewart pens, I am NOT a 'nib geek' or expert on nibs.

That said, I believe I have never seen a CS vintage or current nib with a number on it. What I have seen, is a letter designation for fine, medium, broad, etc. My impression (a guess if you will) is that nib numbers are a somewhat recent invention that allows those of us who are 'nib geeks' and those who like to change nibs a means of identifying like size nibs.

Surely, someone who is far more knowledgeable than I am will provide a better answer.

[junglejim]

I'm sure when eachan sees this he'll comment, since he and Deb repair and sell Conway Stewarts and Swans.

[eachan]

I've discussed this with Marco already so he knows what I have to say. In response to An Old Bloke and Marco I would say that most Conway Stewart nibs bear a number. To Marco, I would reiterate that the 286 was issued with a No 5 nib. Many may have been replaced with other nibs since then and indeed I have no knowledge of what may have happened in the Conway Stewart factory when they ran short of a particular nib. Did they hold up production or did they use a similar-sized one? Without a time machine we will never know.

By the way we only restore Mabie Todd pens now.

[An old bloke]

I've discussed this with Marco already so he knows what I have to say. In response to An Old Bloke and Marco I would say that most Conway Stewart nibs bear a number. To Marco, I would reiterate that the 286 was issued with a No 5 nib. Many may have been replaced with other nibs since then and indeed I have no knowledge of what may have happened in the Conway Stewart factory when they ran short of a particular nib. Did they hold up production or did they use a similar-sized one? Without a time machine we will never know.

By the way we only restore Mabie Todd pens now.

Ta Mate.
As I said, I'm no expert by any road.

[eachan]

For the sake of clarity I could say a little more on this subject. Numbers on nibs are not a recent introduction, at least on some British pens. Since the 1920s all Swan nibs were stamped with a number which indicated their size. Conway Stewart nibs were mostly stamped with a number which relates to size but may indicate something else. For instance the Conway Stewart 388 was fitted with a CS 5N nib, the "N", in this case, indicating that the nib was a different shape from the standard CS 5 and slightly wrapped around the feed.

I suspect that the idea that Conway Stewarts don't bear a number comes from the fact that the number is stamped towards the tail of the nib and is usually covered by the feed. Conway Stewart issued a huge range of models and a study of them has to deal with much complexity. To anyone interested in the brand I recommend Stephen Hull's Fountain Pens For the Million: The history of Conway Stewart 1905 - 2005.

[An old bloke]

Thanks again.

[MarcoA64]

I bought a black 286 from ebay. A few of the 286s I've looked at had no number on the nib. This one was in good cnoditions, had to replace the sac and a bit of polish using my hands and that's all it needed. I'm not into nib numbering, who cares, but my curiosity was aimed at understanding if this was an orignal 286 or not. I'll keep an eye on spare 286 n.5 nibs that might pop up on the usual websites and, maybe if it is worthwhile, get it replaced just to have something in line with the period. On the barrel I have engraved The Conway Stewart and below it No. 286 there also is a MADE IN ENGLAND going around the barrel. Nice pen!!
Thank you Eachan for your support and explanations, always apreciated
Marco

[Chip]

I've got a 388 and the nib is as described in eachan's post.