Pen materials

[fountainpagan]

Does anyone know about early plastic materials? I know bakelite and celluloid has become widely used names for all kinds of cellulose, phenol plastic based materials. I know melamin is an early one we still have in our daily surroundings. From someone who collects old plastic jewlery, I have heard the names, bakelite, lucite, bexit(e). I like those early black eyedrop fillers, I'm not sure what they are made of. There are intersting materials in new low priced pens too, but I don't know how cow-horn behaves over time. I think it's one of the better materials, since spectacle frames can be made of the. I think some amber, horn and tortoise imitations are cellulose acetate, it can have a translucent quality.

At the beginning of the thread, there is a list of materials. Horn, and early plastics, casein, or galallith as is more commonly called, is mentioned.

Regarding black eyedroppers, you can find them (but seldom) in bakelite, it is a fragile material to work with, hence the production not lasting long. Moreover, easily breakable. Many of the black eyedroppers, as you say, are mostly hard rubber made.