Vintage Pens with Nib Size: XF

Among the standard colors of the Parker Vacumatic, burgundy is the most difficult to find. Our vintage pen set is a little unique, as the pen marked 1938 sports a lock-down filler that doesn't lock down. We think is is a marriage of parts by some old repair many years ago. It works well now with a new diaphragm. It is difficult to see in the photo, but the barrel clarity is nice and not badly ambered. Just a little ambered. No cracks. The cap has a black jewel and the tail's blind cap has a burgundy jewel. The two-toned 14k gold nib is still two-toned. It writes a dry, extra-fine line that needs some breaking in if you were planning to write with it. The matching pencel works well and has a 1940 date. It is pre-loaded with a 1.1mm lead, a hardened eraser but no spare leads. It, too, shows a little wear from use.

Sheaffer nibs are among of our favorite nibs ever made. This Sheaffer Lifetime Ringtop has a delightfully smooth 14k gold nib. You will write an extra-fine to fine line with great flow. We restored this pen with a new ink sac. There are no cracks, but it has a little brassing on the trim. The lovely jade green has some discoloration, but it looks pretty good over all. A great vintage pen for looks and use. 12cm capped.

Looking to stay competitive during the Great Depression, Parker created a more affordable line of pens under the brand Parkette. We aren't sure of the model name of this truly handsome pen, but it has a nice clear Parkette imprint. We restored this vintage pen with a new ink sac. It also is one of the few Parker-made pens to have a lever filler. An elegance pervades on this red-and-marble design with gold-plated trim. The clip sports a lot of brassing but the rings are mostly okay. You will write a fairly scratchy extra-fine line with a fair amount of flex with its 14k gold nib. Click the headline for close-ups. No cracks but a little wear from use. 12.2cm capped.

We're gonna make someone mad by declaring Sheaffer Targa's vintage, once again. We waffle on this debate all the time, with the design being nearly 50 years old. Either way, this is a beautiful pen. We aren't sure if this is the 1970s "Gold Checked" model or the 1990s "Geometric" model. Each was given the same model number of 1007. Each was basically the same pen. Our vintage pen is in good working order with an original Sheaffer aerometric-style converter that works. We flushed the pen and gave the nib a sonic cleaning, but a little hint of black ink refuses to leave the converter entirely. Its nib writes a very nice extra-fine to fine line that seems a little dry to us. There is a hint of feedback, but we don't find it too distracting. Click the headline for close-ups. The pen looks good with only a few little traces of wear from us. The black section/grip shows more wear than the gold-plated cap and barrel. 13.5cm capped.

As Esterbrook switched from Dollar Pens to the J-model line, they ran out of Dollar Pen caps to match with the Dollar Pen barrels. For a brief while, they married the new supply of J-pen caps to the Dollar barrels. This is one of those pens known as an Esterbrook Transition pen. It is SJ sized in the world of J-series pens, the shorter, skinnier model. We restored this vintage pen with a new ink sac. You'll find a little wear and a couple bite marks on the pen. No cracks. Some people actually like scratchy nibs, and they will love this scratchy extra-fine 2556 nib. If you aren't a fan of scratchy nibs, the beauty of these pens is that the nibs unscrew easily for replacement with smoother tips. 11.6cm capped.

Esterbrook fanatics, click the headline for close-ups and pay special attention to the nib! YES! It is a rare "sunburst" 3550 nib! These are highly sought-after nibs. Plus, it comes in a very nice junior-sized minty green Esterbrook Dollar Pen! The vintage pen looks great with only light wear. We restored it with a new ink sac. You will write a firm, extra-fine to fine line with its osmiridium nib. A nice, shiny addition for your desk. 12cm capped.

Esterbrook really began its rise as a powerhouse pen company in the 1930s and '40s with the famous Esterbrook Dollar Pen. Much more affordable during those lean years than Parker and Sheaffer, Esterbrook offered a good all-purpose pen with the incredible feature of interchangeable nibs! Just screw a new one in for a whole new look to your writing. Esterbrook was previously more famous for its nibs, and this pen offered close to 3 dozen different writing tips! Ours comes with the steel 1554 GREGG nib, which was made for practitioners of the Gregg shorthand method! Thus, we think this restored vintage pen once belonged to a secretary or stenographer. You can see a scuff to the right of the clip in the photo. Otherwise this pen has no cracks and only light wear. You'll write a firm, extra-extra fine line, which can get a little scratchy with too much pressure. 12.1cm capped.

Might this vintage pen be doubly hard to find? Not only is it an Esterbrook J-model Demonstrator, it was made in England! Fully restored with a new ink sac, we aren't sure how many people would actually want to write with this museum-quality pen in their collection. No cracks or scratches. Minimal, if any, wear. Looks just about brand new to us. The ruby-red finish really shines. It comes with a somewhat scratchy 2668 steel nib. However, like all J-model Esterbrooks, you can unscrew the nib and swap it out. Click the headline for close-ups. 12.7cm capped.