Please save my Vac barrel...

Hello all,

I went to a 'sportsman's antique show' over the weekend, where I found a lady who said she bought and sold precious metals. Just for a laugh I asked her if she had any pens...

Ten minutes later I left her stall with an unmolested Brown Pearl wartime Vacumatic demi, three assorted esties, a sandwich bag full of assorted ballpoints... and the sad remains of a beautiful 1943 blue diamond clip azure blue Vac. The nib, blind cap and feed were missing, the pump was totally destroyed, and the clip was bent but not broken. The barrel and cap were complete and I can see right through the barrel from the section all the way to where the pump... well, used to be.

Is there anyone out there who can remove what remains of the plastic pump so I can salvage my beautiful barrel?

Yes, photos are coming

thank you, loudkenny

Edited by loudkenny, 05 February 2013 - 10:11 PM.

Hello all,

I went to a 'sportsman's antique show' over the weekend, where I found a lady who said she bought and sold precious metals. Just for a laugh I asked her if she had any pens...

Ten minutes later I left her stall with an unmolested Brown pearl wartime Vacumatic demi, three assorted esties, a sandwich bag full of assorted ballpoints... and the sad remains of a beautiful 1943 blue diamond clip azure blue Vac. The nib, blind cap and feed were missing, the pump was totally destroyed, and the clip was bent but not broken. The barrel and cap were complete and I can see right through the barrel from the section all the way to where the pump... well, used to be.

Is there anyone out there who can remove what remains of the plastic pump so I can salvage my beautiful barrel?

Yes, photos are coming

thank you, loudkenny

It shouldn't be difficult to remove the remains of the pump since it is essentially dead. Most any of the usual suspects should be able to extract it and rebuild the pen at the same time!

Todd

I agree with Todd. I think the hardest part will be coming up with an acceptable blind cap, but good luck!
JJ

I posted two photos of this pen in the Gallery under Loudkenny's Pens. Look for Dead '43 Blue Vac.

I tried to explain to her that some pens were way more valuable as whole pens than just as 14K nibs, and she should sell the pens she finds on Ebay.
I told her even Esties had value there, and I think it might have soaked in a bit... just a little too late for this one I'm afraid.

The mail got here a half an hour ago, and I got a bubble mailer from her dated Saturday. Inside was a Parker monotone nib that doesn't say 14K on it, and this pen's blind cap. Nothing else. I didn't even ask her for the missing parts.

Now, I have the pen's cap, barrel, blind cap, section, and probably the nib.

I lucked out with the brown pearl Vac demi, it's unmolested. She said she had to talk her husband out of trashing this one, she thought it was 'just darling'. I'm thinking about sending it to Zorn's once he sends me back the 'other' wartime blue pearl Vac I sent him to restore on Thanksgiving.

ken

Edited by loudkenny, 05 February 2013 - 10:13 PM.

I posted two photos of this pen in the Gallery under Loudkenny's Pens. Look for Dead '43 Blue Vac.

I tried to explain to her that some pens were way more valuable as whole pens than just as 14K nibs, and she should sell the pens she finds on Ebay.
I told her even Esties had value there, and I think it might have soaked in a bit... just a little too late for this one I'm afraid.

The mail got here a half an hour ago, and I got a bubble mailer from her dated Saturday. Inside was a Parker monotone nib that doesn't say 14K on it, and this pen's blind cap. Nothing else. I didn't even ask her for the missing parts.

Now, I have the pen's cap, barrel, blind cap, section, and probably the nib.

I lucked out with the brown pearl Vac demi, it's unmolested. She said she had to talk her husband out of trashing this one, she thought it was 'just darling'. I'm thinking about sending it to Zorn's once he sends me back the 'other' wartime blue pearl Vac I sent him to restore on Thanksgiving.

ken

Ok, I know the excitement of finding pens in the wild. Especially if they are cheap. The azure barrel is pretty ambered. I wouldn't really call it "clear". I had hopes you had a minty looking barrel! The brown pen looks well used. I love a good "rescue" of a pen, and they are both probably worth putting right and can be put right, but the cost on the azure may equal just having found a better pen with all the pieces. Not sure what you paid, I hope it was cheap. A correct nib will be $30-50, my guess, and the new vac plunger about the same, add another $10 for the feed. Add in a pro doing the new diaphragm and installation of parts and you're at $100+ Good score on getting the blind cap, that probably made the difference in the azure being "parts" vs. fixable. If the trim on the azure is brassed to any extent, that might be a make or break for the decision to have it restored. Of course if you just hang onto it until you can find the parts cheap on your own, that would probably be the cheapest solution. Now that I've evaluated, I realize I don't even know what the question was! Anyhow, if you stopped these animals from destroying old pens for gold nibs, that in and of itself may be a huge victory for pendom, even if you lost out on a potential source for pens.

I agree with Todd. I think the hardest part will be coming up with an acceptable blind cap, but good luck!
JJ

I disagree. These plastic fillers can be a real bear, especially with the blind cap nipple snapped off. It's remarkably easy to ruin the threads or the ring in the barrel. Some have a metal cone, so if you try to drill it, the cone spins and destroys the ring in the barrel. It should be easy, but often isn't.