Mabie Todd Swan – Medium Flex (On Ebay)

Here is a nice made in England Mabie Todd Swan #3360. The pen is made of smooth black hard rubber, which has faded to a dark brown. Some of the perks of this particular model is that the threads are actually metal, and the section screws out. This gold filled trim is in great condition with no brassing or much in the way of blemishes. The imprints are all nice and crisp. The only fault perhaps is that the lever is a bit stiff. The 14kt. “Swan” #3 nib is a beautiful writing F/M (0.5mm). It is wet and beautifully smooth. If you are looking for a nice writing vintage pen, it would be hard to do better. It does have some flex with some great rang producing swells all the way up to 1.8mm. The nib, however, is a bit on the stiff side, which is why I graded it as a “medium flex”.

SIZE:  5 1/4″ Capped

NIB: Swan #3, F/M to BBB (0.5mm-1.8mm),  MEDIUM FLEX (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: Good

Restration Work:

• Pen thoroughly cleaned & flushed
• Nib polished and tuned to write smoothly
• Nib and feed ultrasonically cleaned and adjusted for optimal flow
• Pen buffed and polished
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Waterman 52 – Super Flex (On Ebay)

This is a Waterman 52 in vest pen size (“V”) and made from black chased hard rubber. The BCHR body has browned some to a dark, grayish brown. The chasing has also worn smooth in some places (like on the cap), though it is still visible throughout the pen. Imprints are also worn a bit, though mostly readable. The nickel filled trim is in overall good condition. No pitting or plate loss. Some light and very small scuffs are present in a few places. The Waterman #2 14kt. nib on this pen is a beauty. It is a F (0.5mm) stub nib that writes soft and glassy smooth. The nib is wet, though not gushing. And it has some superb flex action ranging from F to BBB+ (2.0mm). The flex comes quite easily and has some excellent responsiveness. The stub quality of the nib works beautifully with the flex, and is a real and unique pleasure to use. These flex stubs are not  that easy to find.

SIZE:  4 1/2″ Capped

NIB: 14kt. Waterman #2, F/M to BBB (0.5mm-2.0mm), SUPER FLEX (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: Good

Restration Work:

• Pen thoroughly cleaned & flushed
• Nib polished and tuned to write smoothly
• Nib and feed ultrasonically cleaned
• Nib and feed adjusted for optimal flow
• New sac installed
• Test driven for a week to insure quality