4 replies to this topic

[david i]

I don't aggressively pursue Esterbrook pens, though I have a few nice ones in my personal collection and have a couple hundred pens and nibs (lots of 9-series) lying about, the result of their presence in several collection purchases the last three years.

At the Boston Pen Show this year, I purchased a substantial personal collection of about 125 vintage pens. Included was a case of Esterbrooks, maybe 30 pens.

Figure I'm sitting around at the Nashua, New Hampshire "Bed and Breakfast" after the show ended, trading pens about with both Richard Binder and Susan Wirth, discussing- go figure- nibs and writing, when I came across one Estie in the case of thirty that had to stay with me a bit, even as Binder conned me out of the other 30, spouting something about "having to have sound basic fountain pens for the website", and "planning t make them write right"... really, i couldn't follow.

But this one...

An Estie 9788 nib, it demonstrated controlled high flex. Magnificent point. And I'm not even so much into flex, though I appreciate the rarity of a high flex in a series not known for it. I've never seen an Estie nib like it, in terms of that flex. Too, it has a breather hole of shape not common to Esties. I'm guessing the teardrop-ish (feel free to chime in with better descriptor) breather hole indicates an early pen?

Anyway, check this thing. The last picture is not with "undue" pressure.

regards

-d

[Teej47]

Wow. Really.

My favorite of my currently small collection of Esties has a 2788... so a 9788 is high on my wish list. I never imagined one might exist like that though. Sweet!

What does the feed look like? I know that may also be an indicator of 'earliness' (or not).

Tim
(trying not to drool)

[vance]

Wow. Really.

My favorite of my currently small collection of Esties has a 2788... so a 9788 is high on my wish list. I never imagined one might exist like that though. Sweet!

What does the feed look like? I know that may also be an indicator of 'earliness' (or not).

Tim
(trying not to drool)

I have a 9788--forget where I got it--but I confess it doesn't float my boat the way the 9128 does, mainly because the fundamental line width of the former is greater, thereby offering less contrast when it opens wide. In either case, though, I find the Esterbrook flexible nibs not as satisfactory from the standpoint of shading normal writing as some of the German and Japanese wartime steel nibs: the Esties seem to require more effort to flex out. I've got a post-war MB 342 and a wartime Pilot shiro (which means "white", referring to the steel nib) that flex at least as well as most flexible gold nibs, though not as well as, say, a noodle Waterman or Moore.

As to the breather hole--might that be to increase the air flow so the feed can keep up with the flex?

Vance

[david i]

Hi Vance,

Recognizing the risk of both hyperbole from (esterbrook) inexperience, I note that this thing I find way flexier than the 9128's with which I've played. At least I think so.

Feels Waterman-ish to say the least. Maybe at our next shared pen show I will bring for show-n-test.

regards

d

[vance]

Hi Vance,

Recognizing the risk of both hyperbole from (esterbrook) inexperience, I note that this thing I find way flexier than the 9128's with which I've played. At least I think so.

Feels Waterman-ish to say the least. Maybe at our next shared pen show I will bring for show-n-test.

regards

d

I know nothing about how these nibs were made. Waterman nibs, we sort of know, were at least finished by hand and therefore vary from one to the next. Could be true of the Esties as well (especially the "premium" 9xxx series), steel though they be.