Waterman 0552 Smooth Overlay

I cant seem to find anything on my Waterman. It's a 0552 in uncommon smooth gold overlay, but im always seeing the 1/2 models, never the 0552 with smooth overlay. The pen i have is personalized, but what is a fair estimate? I was thinking $450, is this a little too high/optimistic?

I cant seem to find anything on my Waterman. It's a 0552 in uncommon smooth gold overlay, but im always seeing the 1/2 models, never the 0552 with smooth overlay. The pen i have is personalized, but what is a fair estimate? I was thinking $450, is this a little too high/optimistic?

Offhand, seems high. Silver overlays tend to do better than gold-filled. This has been personalized. Condition will be key. I'd think a gem could get to that point retail. A non-gem non-retail... probably not. Others' views are invited.

regards

david

I'm wondering: is it fair to ask for opinions on value without even the slightest mention of condition or - even better - photographic documentation of said object?

I would concur. Bandying about prices without any linkage to condition serves only to muddy the value waters.

Well, I suspect at $87, you have plenty of wiggle room. The clip is intact?

-d

Well, I suspect at $87, you have plenty of wiggle room. The clip is intact?

-d

This is clipless...

Well, I suspect at $87, you have plenty of wiggle room. The clip is intact?

-d

Don't forget the shipping charges.

How is the nib?

T

Well, I suspect at $87, you have plenty of wiggle room. The clip is intact?

-d

Don't forget the shipping charges.

How is the nib?

T

The nib is flexy, just a number 2 nib. What do you feel the value is, isn't the 0552 with smooth overlay pretty hard to come by...

The nib is flexy, just a number 2 nib. What do you feel the value is, isn't the 0552 with smooth overlay pretty hard to come by...

There are no holes in cap for clip, so we know its clipless, not just missing the clip (another kind of "clipless")?

Verbiage gets fuzzy with these pens. Any old pen from 1920 or so is not easy to come by, so being pretty hard to come by is a bit non-specific. I am amenable to input by those who play with overlay Watermans more than I do, but my view is that this is not a disproportionately rare pen. It lacks the cachet and rarity (those not being quite synonymous) of an Oriental overlay or the simple appeal of hand-engraved-vine. There is no doubt that smooth finishes show dings readily, so finding clean specimens has added challenge.

I suspect that the high end on retail from a trusted dealer who offers year warranty and who offers restored pen and after-sale service, who knows models and grading with great skill, for most pattern 0552 pens will range $400-600 for quite nice examples. I've seen collector trades at pen shows for decent examples outside the retail venue occur in the $250-350 range. Assuming your pen is proper and correct for all parts, assuming it survives restoration, assuming it never had a clip, assuming it is really is fairly clean (I'm not sure your grading skills are quite on level of long time retailers), I'd imagine you could sell it depending on venue between $150-300. No doubt anomalies occur and non-dealers can see a bidding frenzy on ebay with prices trumping "usual retail", but my gross assessment is as I've outlined. If pen is dinged up, has thread issues, has holes for a missing clip and so forth... price would drop.

regards

david

The nib is flexy, just a number 2 nib. What do you feel the value is, isn't the 0552 with smooth overlay pretty hard to come by...

There are no holes in cap for clip, so we know its clipless, not just missing the clip (another kind of "clipless")?

Verbiage gets fuzzy with these pens. Any old pen from 1920 or so is not easy to come by, so being pretty hard to come by is a bit non-specific. I am amenable to input by those who play with overlay Watermans more than I do, but my view is that this is not a disproportionately rare pen. It lacks the cachet and rarity (those not being quite synonymous) of an Oriental overlay or the simple appeal of hand-engraved-vine. There is no doubt that smooth finishes show dings readily, so finding clean specimens has added challenge.

I suspect that the high end on retail from a trusted dealer who offers year warranty and who offers restored pen and after-sale service, who knows models and grading with great skill, for most pattern 0552 pens will range $400-600 for quite nice examples. I've seen collector trades at pen shows for decent examples outside the retail venue occur in the $250-350 range. Assuming your pen is proper and correct for all parts, assuming it survives restoration, assuming it never had a clip, assuming it is really is fairly clean (I'm not sure your grading skills are quite on level of long time retailers), I'd imagine you could sell it depending on venue between $150-300. No doubt anomalies occur and non-dealers can see a bidding frenzy on ebay with prices trumping "usual retail", but my gross assessment is as I've outlined. If pen is dinged up, has thread issues, has holes for a missing clip and so forth... price would drop.

regards

david

David,

Screw up on my part. The pen does have a clip, and i didn't even look at the pen when i stated that, i was thinking of another gold Waterman i have. But this particular pen does have a clip, and has 0 dents. And its perfect, no braising,etc.

Well, I suspect at $87, you have plenty of wiggle room. The clip is intact?

-d

Don't forget the shipping charges.

How is the nib?

T

The nib is flexy, just a number 2 nib. What do you feel the value is, isn't the 0552 with smooth overlay pretty hard to come by...

If I were buying this pen sight unseen (think eBay) from an unestablished seller my maximum bid would be $95 +/- 15 depending on other deals in progress. I also asked for a picture of the nib.

Edited by FarmBoy, 16 August 2012 - 04:22 AM.

Well, I suspect at $87, you have plenty of wiggle room. The clip is intact?

-d

Don't forget the shipping charges.

How is the nib?

T

The nib is flexy, just a number 2 nib. What do you feel the value is, isn't the 0552 with smooth overlay pretty hard to come by...

If I were buying this pen sight unseen (think eBay) from an unestablished seller my maximum bid would be $95 +/- 15 depending on other deals in progress. I also asked for a picture of the nib.

Understandable, i could easily put $25 into a repair, so the pen would definitely go much more.

Understandable, i could easily put $25 into a repair, so the pen would definitely go much more.

I do advise some caution regarding... absolutes.

Some nicely patterned 0552 have traded in the $100-200 range of late on ebay. Raw. LImited information. Uncertain condition. But... pretty patterns in the metal.

d