Waterman 52 1/2V Red Ripple – Super Flex  (On Ebay)

Pretty little Waterman 52 1/2V ring top in Red Ripple hard rubber. The red ripple has some minor fading. Really very minor fading. The imprints are all excellent. The gold filled trim is also in very good condition. The one defect is that there is a small crack at the threads on barrel. It’s very difficult to see unless you are looking for it. I missed it the first time looking over the pen. The section still fits snug and the crack appears to be quite stable. I have bonded the section to the barrel with an agent that will loosen up nicely with some heat. That bond just gives it an additional strength while also allowing access to the sac if one should do so in the future. The 14kt. Waterman #2 is a very smooth writing XF (o.3mm). Hard to believe it’s so fine as smooth as it is. I’ve graded the nib a super flex mainly because of it’s responsiveness. Really 1.6mm is when it is at its absolute wettest (like right after filling), but as responsive as this nib is you don’t even need to flex past 0.9mm to do some nice work.

SIZE:  4 1/4″ Capped

NIB: Waterman #2, XF to BB (0.3mm-1.6mm)  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 and adjusted for optimal flow
• New sac installed
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Sheaffer Balance  (On Ebay)

Here is a Standard size (1000) Sheaffer Lifetime Balance with a Triumph nib. The pen is in very good condition. There is some very  light scratching throughout, but nothing very serious and is only noticeable upon close inspection. The gold filled trim looks good with no brassing and only minor scratching. Imprints are good and crisp. The 14kt. Triumph nib is an ultra smooth writing XF (0.3mm) that is about a 4/10 on the wetness scale (highly subjective of course). You would be hard pressed to find a smoother XF. It’s just superb. Overall, a very nice pen.

SIZE:  5 1/8″ Capped

NIB: Sheaffer Triumph Lifetime 14kt. XF (0.3mm)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: Excellent

Restration Work:

• Pen (barrel, section, nib, feed, & cap) thoroughly cleaned & flushed
• Buffed out scratches and polished pen body
• Nib polished and adjusted for smoothness
• Trim cleaned and polished
• New Sac
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Waterman 52 Red Ripple – SUPER FLEX (On Ebay)

This is a Waterman 52 Red Ripple in gold trim. The hard rubber is a little faded. There a few small scuffs and brassing marks on the gold filled lever as well as some brassing on the top edge of the band. The clip looks sharp and clean. Side imprint is worn but readable, but the “52” on the end is worn mostly away. The 14kt. Waterman #2 nib is a lovely, smooth writing XF (0.3mm). It’s a really nice writer and drier than most vintage Waterman’s, which is nice for writing on cheaper paper. It flexes quite easily up to 1.6mm. It is pretty snappy and has plenty of ink to keep up. Haven’t had it railroad on me yet.

SIZE:  5 1/4″ Capped

NIB: Waterman #2, XF to BBB (0.3mm-1.6mm),  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

Waterman 5116 – SUPER FLEX (On Ebay)

Here is what I believe is a beautiful Waterman 5116 in a black. This pen is just over 5″ and is a bit thicker than a 52 (12mm at the barrel vs. the 11mm of a 52), so it is a good sized pen. Typically, the 5116 had a InkVue lever. This does has a normal side lever, but it does have the inkvue window. There is some very light scratching on the body, but nothing very noticeable. The gold filled trim is in excellent condition with little to no brassing. This pen has the classy “ideal” globe on the clip as is typical for 5116s. The 14kt. Waterman #5 made in the USA nib is a lovely writer. A smooth, elegant and glassy F (0.4mm) that is about a 6 of 10 in wetness. A little pressure will make it wetter. It flexes very nicely up to 1.7mm. It has good responsiveness and does pretty well with small, detail flexing. I would call this a lower tier Super flex, but overall this is an outstanding pen.

SIZE:  5 1/16″ Capped

NIB: Waterman #5, F to BB (0.4mm-1.7mm),  SUPER FLEX (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: Excellent

Restration Work:

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

Waterman 12 Eye Dropper – SUPER FLEX  (On Ebay)

Here is a Waterman 12 Eyedropper in BCHR. The pen is in pretty good shape. The cap does appear to have been shortened. Most likely there was a crack on the lip and so the lip was simply removed. The BCHR is still very dark with just a little fading. The barrel looks like a grayish black. The cap is still quite dark. Chasing is still good, and the imprints are still quite crisp. There are two beautiful gold filled bands with a floral pattern etched into them as well as inscriptions. The lower band reads “Apr. 5, ’16” and the upper band reads, “C.F.H.” The pen was made in N.Y, but the nib is from Canada. The switch out could have been down at the time of original purchase, or it could have happened later. Not sure. Still it is a 14kt. Waterman #2. It writes as a rather wet but smooth and lovely F with a bit of a stubbish feel. It flexes quite easily up to 1.7mm. It isn’t as snappy as some super flex nibs, but it is quite smooth and wet. A great hundred year old pen.

SIZE:  5 1/8″ Capped

NIB: Waterman #2, F to BB (0.4mm-1.7mm),  SUPER FLEX (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Eye-Dropper

CONDITION: Good

Restration Work:

• Pen (barrel, section, nib, feed, & cap) thoroughly cleaned & flushed
• Nib polished and tuned to write smoothly
• Bands cleaned and polished
• Inside of barrel thoroughly cleaned.
• Nib and feed ultrasonically cleaned and adjusted for optimal flow
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Wahl-Eversharp Skyline – Super Flex – (On Ebay)

Here is a standard size Skyline in burgundy. This pen is in pretty good condition. There is light scratching throughout the body. The gold trim is in good condition except for the lever that has some plate loss on the crown of the lever where the posted cap has rubbed it over it’s life span. The 14kt. gold Eversharp nib is lovely. It’s superb writer. Smooth and wet, but not overly wet. The flex has decent range going from a F (0.4mm) to BB (1.6mm). The flex comes quite easy and it is very wet. No railroading here. But that does mean that it won’t be quite as responsive. Still a great writer with some nice, smooth flex.

SIZE:  5 1/4″ Capped

NIB: Eversharp 14kt., F to BB (0.4mm-1.6mm) SUPER FLEX (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: Good

Restoration Work:

• Nib and feed ultrasonically cleaned
• Nib and feed adjusted for optimal flow
• New sac installed
• Pen thoroughly cleaned & flushed
• Body buffed for scratches
• Body and trim cleaned and polished
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Waterman 52V Red Ripple – SUPER FLEX (On Ebay)

This Waterman 52V in Red Ripple is in pretty except for one flaw. On one side of barrel between the lever and imprint there is what appears to be a burn mark. It is just a small dent burned into the hard rubber. It blends in very well with the pen. I missed until I did my usual close examination of the pen. The rippled hard rubber is only slightly faded throughout the pen. The imprints are a little warn, but visible. The gold filled trim looks pretty good. There are some nicks and wear on the lever, but no brassing that I could see. Band and ring top both have some light scratching but no brassing. The 14kt. Waterman #2 is a nice XF with a nice sweet spot. It flexes nicely up to 1.7mm. I would say that it is on the stiffer side of super flex. But it is quite wet and the feed has no troubles keeping up.

SIZE:  4 3/8″ Capped (Not including Ring Top)

NIB: Waterman #2, XF to BB (0.3mm-1.7mm),  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 adjusted for optimal flow
• Trim cleaned and polished
• New sac installed
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Aikin Lambert Eyedropper – Wet Noodle  (On Ebay)

Aikin Lambert was a quality pen maker that was eventually bought out by Waterman. This pen, however, would far predate that buyout. This is an early 1900s eyedropper in BCHR. The pen is in fair condition with a couple of exceptions. The BCHR is still pretty black, though the cap is faded more to a darker brown. The chasing and imprints are still very crisp. The cap fits snuggly on the pen, but it is not original to the pen. Still it fits as well as the original and stays snug on the section. Also the gold filled repousse band on the back end of the barrel is split though it feels firmly secured to the barrel. There is little to no brassing on either band. This pen is equipped with a fairly rare Aikin Lambert holeless nib with the air hole located in the feed. This nib is a soft, paint brush wet noodle. It takes almost no pressure to get the nib to flex. It is wet, but for how wet and soft it is it still is pretty responsive. A great chance to get a very affordable wet noodle.

SIZE:  5 3/8″ Capped

NIB: Aikin Lambert 14kt., XF-BB (0.3mm-1.6mm)  WET NOODLE (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: Good

Restration Work:

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

Conklin Crescent 2NL – Wet Noodle – (On Ebay)

Here is the classic Conklin Crescent pen. No pen collection would be complete without this iconic pen. This pen is in great condition. It has browned to a dark, blackish brown. But the imprints and chasing as still very crisp. Chasing almost feels like new. There is some light scratching on the gold filled trim in places, but there is no brassing. The ring holding up the crescent is in perfect shaped. The 14kt. Conklin Toledo #2 is a very wet, smooth writing “F”. It really is a Fine stub (0.5mm) with some descent line variation and will give nice character to any hand writing. There is a slight wrinkle in the right tine, but it does not affect the performance of the pen. The flex on this pen is great. It’s what I would grade as a wet noodle. It’s not quite a paintbrush noodle, but it is very easy requiring very, very little pressure to flex. It goes from 0.5mm to 1.8mm with ease, and is pretty responsive for how wet the nib is. A really fun and classic pen.

SIZE:  5 1/2″ Capped

NIB: Conklin Toledo #2, F Stub to BBB (0.5mm-1.8mm) WET NOODLE (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Crescent Filler

CONDITION: Excellent

Restoration Work:

• Nib and feed ultrasonically cleaned
• Nib and feed tuned to write smoothly with optimal flow
• Gold trim cleaned and polished
• New Ink sac installed
• Test driven for a week to insure quality

Waterman 52 1/2V  – Good Flex  (On Ebay)

This a BCHR Waterman 52 1/2 V in nice condition. The hard rubber has faded some to a dark brown, but the chasing and imprints are still very crisp. The nickel plated trim still looks with just a little bit of wear on the lever. Ring top is still in place. Overall, it’s in excellent shape for a pen of this age. The 14kt. Waterman #2 is a smooth writing XF (0.3mm) that is not too wet or too dry. It has some decent flex. I almost called this a super flex, but it just doesn’t quite have the range and responsiveness of a super flex. So good flex it is. The nib is beautiful with light wear, plenty of tipping, and has a soft, smooth feel when writing.

SIZE:  4 1/4″ Capped

NIB: Waterman #2, XF to BB (0.3mm-1.5mm)  GOOD FLEX (See “Grading Flex Nibs” for How I Grade)

FILLING: Lever

CONDITION: EXCELLENT

Restration Work:

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