Waterman FP

[woody0207]

A potential customer was looking at a few pens I had made and noticed a Baron FP in the collection. He indicated he really likes his Waterman FP, medium nib and would like to have a wooden FP turned with a Waterman nib.

I'm game to give this a try but I don't know where to start.

Some questions that come to mind:

1) Is turning a FP utilizing a Waterman nib something that anyone has experience with?
2) If yes, where did you get the nib?
3) Are there any standard pen kits (e.g. Ligero, Baron, etc) that will work with the above nib without customization?

Any tips or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[Firefyter-emt]

It would depend on what you have to work with. You would have to first get your hands on a Waterman pen!

The downside is that to work with a Waterman nib, I think you would need to taylor the pen around a Churchill style nib. You would most likly need to custom make a section that will hold the nib and feeder from the Waterman. The good news is that to just make the new section, all you need is a M10-1 die to cut the threads in the new section. You can still use the original cap and thread coupler.

The Waterman feeder should use the same "Standard International" refills so out converters will work with the feeder.

Personaly, I would try to steer him to one of the solid gold nibs as being "better" than the Waterman. In the end, it would cost less!

 

[Narwhale]

woody0207,
I started out in FP with several Waterman pens about 18 years ago. I thought they were great, and a new standard for me. In hindsight, I relaize I just didn't know much nor was exposed to anything new or different.
Both of my Waterman foutain pens self-destructed sitting in a desk drawer over the last 15 years. They didn't stay together at all.
With that said, I haven't done anything with the pen parts because they don't fit any normal sizes that pen kits come in. It would have to be a completely new kitless pen utilizing a Waterman nib. Waterman nibs are expensive.
One of the FPs was the size of an American style, and the other, seemed big at the time, was between a grande and Baron. The pens were both ego massaging play toys. Spent about $160 in the mid '80s on those two pens, and all that remains now is broken parts in a plastic bag.
If it were me, guess I would tell him I don't make Watermans. I make better pens then Waterman does and that will last much longer and write good. My standard nib is steel, but for $x more, will use a gold nib that is a significantly smoother, better feeling writing nib.
Would probably tell him to try one for 2 weeks and let him decide. I firmly believe my pens are much better writers and users than most of the watermans. (This is assuming I knew him and would not include the upgrade nib unless he put cash up front.)
Rich S.

 

[holmqer]

The bottom line is unless you get really lucky, the threads on the Waterman section will not match any kit, nor will the nib and feed fit into any kit section. As a result, this will be a very labor intensive exercise for a one off, you need to take that into account to see if the customer is sufficiently interested to fund all this labor.

I am a bit curious now and will try to remember to check the threads and nibs on my Expert II and Phileas.

If the customer really likes Waterman nibs or is a Waterman collector and wants to add some Waterman / Handcraft pens to his collection, you should discuss which nib he wants used and then you need to learn what the thread pitch is on the section. If he has a FP that he wants re-bodied then just break out the thread gauge and check it out. You also need to check and see if it has multi-start threads. If multi-start you are talking a high level of cost. You should also get a caliper to measure the nib width as it enters the section and at its widest point. You

One option could be to take a pen kit with a fairly wide tube and replace the coupler with one that has outside threads that match the threads on the kit cap and inside threads that match the Waterman section.

Another option is to pull the nib and feed out of a Waterman, and see if you can either make a section to mate it with an existing kit, or make a bushing that will adapt it to the section of an existing kit.

In either case, I would suspect that you will need to go with a kit that uses a large nib like a Gentleman or Statesman.

Some fairly inexpensive Waterman FPs have decent nibs like the Phileas which can be had for $45.

Personally, if I was going to use a mainstream commercial FP nib in a crafted body, I would go with the Lamy Safari nibs. I have seen complete nib/feed/sections selling for the $20 range, and the Lamy Safari XF nib is a wonderful writer, they just have rather drab looking bodies. Someone here on the site does that.

http://www.penturners.org/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=29100