It's a "Yippie" again
- Thread starter jskeen
- Start date
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Parson
Member
That's beautiful, and your photography looks fine to me!
Mark
Member
Looks like it might be Golden Bronze. You do nice work. Nicely Done..
boxerman
Member
Very nice pen.
Craftdiggity
Member
Very nice looking pen.
jskeen
Member
I appreciate all the "if you can't say something nice" folks 
I know this one is not quite up to my usual standards, but it's a first try to go completely "kitless". No Chinese political prisoners were harmed in the making of this one. Done completely on my jet mini with a scroll chuck and hand tools.
Not that I have suddenly learned to chase threads freehand by any means. This one started out life as a Shaeffer valiant thin model back in the 50's the best I could determine. Now before some people around here start yelling "sacrilege!" Let me say, it was in pretty sorry shape. I got it out of the bargain bin at an "anteek maul" down on Galveston island on vacation for a few bucks, cause I could see that the nib said 14k under 50 years worth of gunk. I figured if I could smooth out the big dent in the side just above the vent hole, it would be worth what I gave for it. The vac fill housing was bent, the gold band on the cap was corroded through and the barrel was cracked where the blind cap had been overtightened. And then of course there was the ugly safety award info engraved in it (and filled in green!) from when it was new. No great loss to the collecting world.
So, I figured "why not make my own kit and just use the threads that are already here?"
Pics of what I started with, the "southern engineered" replacement vac fill system, that cool "Visualation chamber" section and the cleaned and straightened nib and finally a size comparison below a Jr. Gent (top) and a baron (middle).
I know this one is not quite up to my usual standards, but it's a first try to go completely "kitless". No Chinese political prisoners were harmed in the making of this one. Done completely on my jet mini with a scroll chuck and hand tools. Not that I have suddenly learned to chase threads freehand by any means. This one started out life as a Shaeffer valiant thin model back in the 50's the best I could determine. Now before some people around here start yelling "sacrilege!" Let me say, it was in pretty sorry shape. I got it out of the bargain bin at an "anteek maul" down on Galveston island on vacation for a few bucks, cause I could see that the nib said 14k under 50 years worth of gunk. I figured if I could smooth out the big dent in the side just above the vent hole, it would be worth what I gave for it. The vac fill housing was bent, the gold band on the cap was corroded through and the barrel was cracked where the blind cap had been overtightened. And then of course there was the ugly safety award info engraved in it (and filled in green!) from when it was new. No great loss to the collecting world.
So, I figured "why not make my own kit and just use the threads that are already here?"
Pics of what I started with, the "southern engineered" replacement vac fill system, that cool "Visualation chamber" section and the cleaned and straightened nib and finally a size comparison below a Jr. Gent (top) and a baron (middle).
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Jgrden
Member
A great story. You brought back to life a pen that was doomed to darkness. Now it has light and function.