I am looking for one or two small (No 1 size max) gold nibs, make irrelevant. I would want them to be a) in good order b)cheap and c) not "nails" Firm stubs always welcome though.
Thanks,
Cob
I am looking for one or two small (No 1 size max) gold nibs, make irrelevant. I would want them to be a) in good order b)cheap and c) not "nails" Firm stubs always welcome though.
Thanks,
Cob
Reminds me of the old joke...
"When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."
~ Benjamin Franklin
Ha ha Jon very good...
Rgds
Cob
Another take:
goodcheapfast.jpg
Jon Szanto (July 6th, 2014)
Joe S - -- Truer words were never spoken. You gets what you pays for.
Well I have come for rather too much opprobrium I feel; a joke's a joke and all that, but still...
I was not expecting to buy nibs for fifty pence a time - I had hoped that this might have been obvious.
So if I say I should like to buy one or two small (No 1 size) 14ct gold nibs at a reasonable price, that I do not care what name is on them, and that they should work, how does that sound?
Rgds,
Cob
Sorry, Cob. You've certainly made a reasonable request, it was just the wording that reminded me of that old phrase. I hope you find something - post in multiple forums, too.
"When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."
~ Benjamin Franklin
Cob (July 7th, 2014)
What is a #1 size?
Just above a #0 size?
Just what it says: many manufacturers stamped their nibs with a number which related approximately to the overall size of the nib. From what little I have learned there was no industry standard, and some makers such as Wyvern and Jewel did not number their nibs. "Warranted" nibs never seem to carry a number. The best known examples or numbering are I suppose Swan and Waterman's.
So I wrote "No 1 size" as a guide since small is not sufficiently precise - even though numbering is rather unreliable!
Rgds
Cob
My apologies too, Cob - that useful saying came up in a different context elsewhere last week, and somebody threw the Venn diagram into the conversation. No opprobrium intended, just a cheap laugh.
I don't have any spares at all at present, but thought it might be worth saying that the section boring for a Mabie Todd No.1 is 5mm / 0.200" approximately, if anyone has an unnumbered nib which might be suitable, and the means to measure it. Other No.1s will probably vary ...
Cob (July 7th, 2014)
I don't, but most serious restoration people have personal sources for such things.
My method for donor gold nibs is to snag bargain hopeless pens off the bay and steal their nibs. It is hit or miss on condition and size, but with practice you can assume 1 recovery for 4 or 5 attempts and then you can get a pretty good feel for how much of a bargain you need to hunt for. My problem is more that I keep tryig to save the entire pen instead and end up having to start over again on the nib hunt. The small ones are significantly more difficult to source but they are out there.
Cob (July 8th, 2014)
Reading this thread I absolutely agree with Jeph.
This morning I received a fairly cheap (below Jeph's normal prices) Blackbird which nib I intend to use on another Blackbird I got last week which has a Swan #1 which will be installed on a Swan that has been waiting for a nib for a while.
Cob (July 8th, 2014)
That's interesting; where you find these data?
I must buy a measuring caliper...
This relates of course to my Pitman's College pen. Its nib is so flexible, that after a bit of writing, the tines open up and have to be tweaked back again; this is tedious and so sadly the nib will have to be replaced. I have written up about the pen in the thread on FPB.
I do have a Swan No1 Calligraph nib currently in a SF1 which I might try. But I do need at least one other small nib for another pen anyway.
Rgds
Cob
Cob (July 7th, 2014)
Thanks Jar. The problem is that the pen is not a Swan - as I said originally, I don't care about the make - but the nib must be on the small side.
I'll do a bit of offering-up this evening and try to provide more information.
Thanks again,
Cob
OK, well I've removed the nib from the Pitman's pen and the Swan No1 Calligraph nib fits the section, though I had to use the ancient Swan feed (from a SF1) which is smaller than the original, but it's fine and works well - makes an interesting pen really. So No1 Swan size is good. This does not mean that the nib has to be a Swan of course - anything that size!
Cob
This is a CS #1 A
Unfortunately, it's not for sale cause I'm still using it. Like Jeph said, just cannibalize from something off eBay. Cheers.
Cob (July 8th, 2014)
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