1920s to 1945

Pre-war and wartime fountain pens

The years when fountain pens became everyday tools. Celluloid took over from hard rubber in the mid 1920s, which brought the bright colors and pearly stripes collectors chase, like Parker's Permanite Duofolds and Sheaffer's Radite pens. Button and lever fillers were the norm until Parker's Vacumatic (1933) and Pelikan's piston filler (1929) changed how pens held ink. Pens this old almost always need restoring. Expect a new sac or diaphragm, and check the celluloid for cracks, shrinkage and discoloration.

6 pens we cover.