Parker Vacumatic + other pens/pencils found in the wild.

Had a good week of finding old pens/pencils in the wild. Got a great deal on the lot, too. I paid $48 for the lot of 4 items:
A Parker Vacumatic single blue-diamond from 1942-1948 (date imprint is worn off). Striated amber design.

A Parker Vacumatic pencil from the 4th quarter of 1935 (just like my Challenger pen), in excellent condition. It is out of lead, but the twist-mechanism is working perfectly. I have some lead on the way from George at My Supply Room, thanks George.

A Sheaffer's Special Snorkel fountain pen, in good condition, but needs restoration. Just has some minor scratches from being in a desk, most likely. The end of the cap also has a small scuff, perhaps from being dropped. Not very noticeable, luckily. Snorkel retracts properly, but does not suck up water.

An Esterbrook Dollar Pen from around the early 40s, in excellent condition. Needs restoration because the lever will not move. Has a 1555 Gregg fine nib.

-Derek (ThirdeYe)


I apologize for the quality of the last 3 pictures. I took them with my cell phone, and didn't expect them to turn out that washed out. They look better in person, I assure you. :)

January 10th, 2011 acquisitions to my collection

Here are some things that I bought yesterday while bumming around. I found the pack of Paper Mate American Classic pencils at a thrift store. A few of the pencils were missing, but 7 were intact and unused. I paid 50 cents for those, a very good deal in my opinion. 50% off the MSRP. I don't believe they make those pencils anymore, as they have been replaced with the Mirados last time I was at Walgreens. I bought the Waterman Black cartridges with an Office Depot rewards card I had, and I believe they're universal (can anyone confirm this?). The four items up top are items I found on clearance at a book store that specializes in selling books that are new, but out of print or leftovers from other stores. From left to right, a pack of Pentech erasers, two Paper Mate Mega-Lead pencils (I already have two in 0.5mm, so these will go great with my collection) One of which includes a spare eraser. They're similar to the Pentel Twist-Erase pencils in that they twist to reveal more eraser. They also come with 12 sticks of lead pre-loaded into the barrel. Wish I had those in college. I went through Bic-Matics like crazy. And lastly, I found a pink Parker Jotter in the bottom of the clearance box. Pink is not my color, but for only a dollar, I couldn't resist. I already have two Jotters, a ballpoint from 1986 and a red Jotter FP.

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If you're interested in purchasing any of these items, here are the Amazon links:
Waterman Black Cartridges: Waterman Fountain Pen Cartridges Black-8/Cd
Pink Jotter: Parker Jotter Pink Ribbon Retractable Pen, 1 Blue Ink Pen (1736845)
American Classic pencils: American® Classic Pencils, Pre Sharpened,#2
Paper Mate Mega Lead 0.7: Paper Mate Mega Lead 0.7mm Mechanical Pencil Starter Set (1739310)
Pentech Eraser Set: Pentech Eraser Set 7ct (27527)

-Derek (ThirdeYe)

Noodler's Green Marine Fountain Pen Ink Review

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Somewhat bulletproof, still legible but with no green left, and grayish black left behind.

On Amazon: Green Marine - Noodlers Fountain Pen Ink

-Derek (ThirdeYe)

Sheaffer Skrip Green Fountain Pen Ink Review

I haven't seen many reviews of Skrip Green so I thought I would take it upon myself to provide one. I used two types of paper, standard 20lb. copy paper and Rhodia ruled paper.

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Note: For the water test, I ran it under a faucet for about 30 seconds.

Amazon sells this ink for a little less than what I paid: Sheaffer Skrip 2oz Bottle Green Ink

-Derek (ThirdeYe)

Parker Frontier Fountain Pen Review

Here is a review of my newly acquired Parker Frontier fountain pen with an Extra Fine nib. One thing I'd like to add that I didn't include in my review is that it looks and feels a lot like a lower end version of the discontinued Parker Insignia from the late 90s. It has a somewhat similar size/shape/cap/clip, etc. That's what it reminds me of, at least. :)

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Comments and questions welcome!

While my Frontier is from 1996, they still make the frontier and if you're interested in it, here is a link to it on Amazon: Parker Frontier Stainless Steel Chrome Trim Fountain Pen Medium Point

-Derek (ThirdeYe)