Morrison BHR 1/40 Golf Filigree Overlay

[Jeph]

This is a 1/40 14K gold filigree overlay black hard rubber Morrison lever filler. They were a lower tier fountain pen manufacturer in New York in the first half of the 20th century. I have seen this type of Morrison floating around in varying places with this style attributed to the 1930’s. Because they are not a big name they usually do not command the premium that other similar pens would. I saw one available and decided I would take a chance on snagging it.

Visually it is a very attractive pen at arm’s length. Up close there are several issues. There is the name “Esser” engraved on the pad intended for that purpose. That is not the correct way to spell “Jeph” in German although I do like to eat. (essen = to eat) There is a small crack in the filigree at the corner of the lever opening. There is also a hairline crack in the barrel at the upper end that I could not photograph easily. The filigree has several areas of what looks like pitting. There are a couple of places on the barrel between the filigree arms where it is obvious that the filigree has been polished carelessly with a polishing wheel. There is also a strange texture to the hard rubber. I am not sure how to explain it other than to my eye it looks wrong. I scrubbed the surfaces with alcohol soaked Q-tips and a sunshine polishing cloth but no black comes off. Lots of black came off of the filigree though. The clip had been glued onto the cap. Thankfully I took the pictures before I found that out the hard way. The nib is not a Morrison nib. It is a nice 14K nib with a heart shaped breather hole, so it is probably from the correct period even if it is a replacement. (Yes, I did align the tines after taking the picture.) I have only seen the 1/20 14K overlay pens having “Morrison” nibs so it might very well be correct. It does fit properly. The sac that came with the pen looks unused and was no longer glued to the section nipple although there is adhesive residue there. I replaced it anyway. There was ink on the feed and nib so the pen has been used. The cap is slightly loose when closed but not a significant amount.

Overall I was a little disappointed that I had busted on this pen as I did not snag it with my normal near Sumgai bargain price. But, there was no corrosion on any parts of the lever mechanism and it works perfectly. The nib has some feedback but is a very smooth wet medium that easily flexes to BB. Because of all of the flaws this is not a pen that I will have any problems with taking out of the house. So that might be a blessing in disguise as it looks impressive except for under close inspection, works perfectly and writes very well. It is big enough for me to write with unposted although it posts securely and the thin filigree means it is only barely top heavy and that is due to the length more than the weight of the cap. So I have a pen that I will take out of the house that is probably worth less than any of my M200’s but looks like it belongs next to my bling Matador that rarely leaves its velvet sleeve and even then it does not leave my home writing area.

Dimensions

Length Capped    128 mm  5.04 in.  5      "
Posted Length    159 mm  6.26 in.  6  1/4 "
Unposted length  117 mm  4.60 in.  4  5/8 "
Cap Length        59 mm  2.33 in.  2  1/3 "
Barrel Max Dia  10.0 mm   .40 in.    13/32"
Section Min Dia  6.9 mm   .27 in.     9/32"
Section Length  11.0 mm   .43 in.     7/16"

Morrison Capped.jpgMorrison Posted.jpgMorrison Parts.jpgMorrison Cap.jpgMorrison Crack.jpgMorrison Esser.jpgMorrison Nib.jpg