Call Me Mabie

So...Sunday was rough.  A crushing Patriots defeat left me with a few options.  I could go crazy or I could go downstairs, pull out a few pens and get some work done.  I opted for the pens. (Crazy right?)

I was rummaging through the archives and came across a Mabie Todd Eternal 44 that I had forgotten about.  I wrote about it back in 2008 and one of the comments from Mr. Munson was to "restore this, it's a beauty." So that's exactly what I did. 

The usuals were needed; a good breakdown (I am talking about the pen, my emotions were already shot) ultrasonic bath, scraping and probing (again...the pen,) new sac, polish, polish, polish and I was really happy with the results. Its near perfect and if I were shipping this one out, I would have spent a little more time on it,  but in the end this one is for me and I wanted to see how much it would come back while still catching some of the 4:00 Eastern games. 

There's what I was looking for: "ETERNAL" hanging out near the end, gleaming. There's huge sense of accomplishment in restoring these pens.  I am glad I took the time to notice the details and what needed repaired.  Eternal apparently stood for the Lifetime guarantee.  Right below here on the end is 44 over the E.T.N. initials.

I reassembled everything,  threw in some ink and good news...no leeks!  Happy day. Of course I used this for two days straight before the review, so it could use a little wiping down but you get the idea.  (You foodies got the joke right?)  Leeks?  Not funny if you have to explain it.

I am guessing this was built somewhere around 1927, but I am not exactly sure.  There's a ton of history out there on the Mabie & Todd company,  but I struggled to pinpoint the true date of this pen.

Here's a better shot of how the shiny bits shined up.  I like the Swans with the logo on the clip- but the Patent info is fun also.  They made this pen in some funky colors and I will be on the lookout for those now. Shiny!

 So thank you Mr. Mabie, Mr Todd, Mr Munson and Mr. Tom Brady for allowing this pen to get restored and back into the rotation. I would also like to thank whoever owned this pen before me and decided not to chew on it. You have saved me a ton of work by not doing that.  I have seen prices all over the place for these.  Some people are selling the nibs for $60, but I am keeping this one.

The nib is a #4 and BROAD!  Tasty, wet and fun to write with. To be honest...broad nibs are not exactly my cup of tea.  I like to write tall and skinny and these just do not allow for and I feel like my handwriting suffers.  EF is usually best for me but in this case it is a welcomed change.

I am not positive why I went with brown ink- other than it was handy and it feels a little like Fall. I know soon I will switch over to some black ink,  but not until I go through this filling.  Next Sunday might mean another restore depending on the games outcome but restoring this pen was the bright spot in my Sunday afternoon.. But I am still hoping for a win next week.

Call me Mabie...(funny right?)
Seth

Zebra Trio

I have reviewed a few Zebra's here at Good Pens in the past. Here's the list and some have even made my top tens.  So, I was pretty stoked when Shoplet.com sent over a pile of the little fellas for review.  I was pretty familiar with this line of office supplies and Zebras and I knew they had a gel version (G 301) but had never written with one.  I like this line of pens,  they look good in combination. Sort of how matching pens and pencils should look.  

I see a lot of pen and pencil sets on eBay and on the pen forums from back in the day and I wish they would not have gone away. In fairness...these are not sold as a set-but if you get creative on your shopping and you can have a nice ballpoint or gel /.5 mechanical "set" that looks nice.  These Zebras are a little bit lighter than I remember mainly because they are not solid metal.  There's enough plastic on the front and the back to lighten the load.

So here they are:  being watched over by Marty.  It's pretty clear, Gel is Gel, BP is ballpoint and 0.5 is the pencil.  What I did not know until I looked in the product guide that they also make a Fountain Pen. What?  Why didn't I know this? (The search has commenced.)

Here's the business end of all three.  I have bigger hands- so writing with these for a long time is a little strenuous.  More-so with the ballpoint than with the gel.  The plastic isn't rubbery at all,  it's a harder plastic that doesn't give a ton of grip but still works because of the knurling.

 Ooh,  Gel, thank you...nicely done.  The ink is thick and puts itself on the paper nicely.  It's pretty close to a true .5 even on bad paper.  Black and consistent= Exactly like I like my coffee. Just my opinion,  but I prefer the gel over the bp for my writing.

 Again,  the ballpoint is a little odd for me, because except for reviews or in extreme emergencies,  I rarely write with a normal ballpoint. Clicking the picture makes this larger and you get a better feel for the way the rubber meets the road.

The other thing I noticed about these pens (and pencils) is that they are really clicky. If I were in a conference room and someone was consistently clicking this thing unconsciously I might have to jump across the table and silence them, but in reality that means a solid working mechanism,  so I won't argue.  So, thanks Shoplet.  They are also kicking off a contest that is fun here.

I will get the winner of the August contest out and change the rules a little for September.  The Tumblr is getting some good stuff on it and there's always Facebook if you like that sort of thing.

Seth

Getting the Tumblr back up to speed

All things pen and ink related:  http://goodpens.tumblr.com/

My Ideal Pen Cup

Click for a better image.   If this were any larger it would just be a 5 gallon bucket.  Odd question...can anyone name that square gray one in the lower right side by the red Sarasa?

Seth

Pens In the Name of Charity

To be blunt... I am running the Philadelphia marathon for a great cause and am asking for audience participation.  The cause is Alex's Lemonade Stand.  If you don't know about the foundation.  Here's a link.  Rather than going door to door to each of you shaking a can and asking for spare change, I thought I would do a few giveaways with all proceeds going to Alex's!  Two birds..one stone.  YOU love paper pens and art stuff.. and I want to raise money to help the cause.

It's simple: donate anything, send along a nice comment or share this link out to social media and I will get you in the running for the giveaways.. What's the first giveaway?  Well August is this:

August Prize Pack!

At the end of the month I will ship prizepack #1: The bottle of Eclat De Saphire, the Moleskine and the Sweet Old Sheaffer School fountain pen (that has a really cool see through blue barrel) to a randomly picked winner.  This isn't a silent, highest bidder auction...anything will get you in the running even sharing out this link on facebook or social media...just let me know what you have done.    If you don't win this month, just wait...  I have some AMAZING sponsors dropping off some incredible prize packs. (Think handmade, wooden and spectacular.) entering now will get you in the running for every month through November!  No need to re-donate unless you want to.  

You can donate on my page here: http://www.alexslemonade.org/mypage/85649 and then just shoot me an email to goodpensblog@gmail.com letting me know who you are and I will follow up if you are (again) randomly picked.  Simple right?  Any amount is good,  dollars are helpful. If you don't win this month, stay tuned.

Here's an idea! If you can just spare $4.00, that's only a dollar a month for a chance at 4 great prize packs. (and they will be great!) or again,  just leave me a friendly comment...no pressure.

I will continue to do reviews and post updates along the way. Thanks again, your generosity and your comments are appreciated! I also have a few kinda crazy ideas that I will roll out also to make this fun.

Seth-

Travel Bag... Nicely Packed

If I do say so myself.

A few weeks on the road coming up and I am pretty happy with my set up...Thinkpad, Journal (to do list), iPad, Pleasure Book (Racing Weight) , Rhodia (Journal Swap,)  and my sweet new Amazon Basics Electronics case (more on in other post) and some misc paperwork to go through on my first of many flights...All snuggled up in my Custom Timbuk2 that I trust with all the goodies!  

The other good news...I only packed one pair of running shoes this trip. Progress is an amazing thing.

Also in the bag hidden from view, 3 Fountains (Pilot, Parker and a Kaweco Sport) 4 Sarasa's and 2 Mechanical pencils. I just got word of a fresh shipment of pens for testing.  Stay tuned!

Seth

Best eBay auction Ever!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/15-pen-collection-mount-blan-parker-sheffer-etc-Fauntain-and-else-/280934346788?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4168fdf024#ht_500wt_949

"collected over 40 years the two mountblan are of the second and third generations of the brand.
each worth thousands."


The Mountblans are nice,  but I am really interested in the white HSB pen on the right. It might be worth the 2 thousand by itself.

Seth