Pen Show Adventures: Dipping Back into Vintage, or Pursuing Vintage-Style Modern Pens?

March 25, 2023

Up front, I will admit that I’m neither a vintage collector nor even a vintage pen enthusiast, and my knowledge of most brands and specific models pale in comparison to others in this community. So take whatever I say regarding vintage pens and the vintage market with a (very) large grain of salt. That said, I attended both the Baltimore and Arkansas pen shows - and particularly Arkansas - looking to pick up a few vintage pens for my collection, mainly to replace certain models I wish I hadn’t let go during “catch and release” phases over the years.

Smaller shows like the Arkansas Pen Show make excellent opportunities to shop for vintage pens. Larger shows like D.C. can feel overwhelming, and because the shows are both crowded and geared towards higher-end collectors and sales between dealers, they can be difficult for the newbie or the casual buyer to navigate. Pens also tend to be more expensive because they are either more pristine collectors pieces, or outright overpriced. (I also advise people to adopt a “buyer beware” attitude at these larger shows. In my early days of collecting, I had more than one experience at D.C. where I purchased a vintage pen that later turned out to be “not as advertised,” to put it politely. More on this later, as I plan to update my vintage pen resources.)

My two vintage Parker 51 fountain pens, one of which includes a stub nib.

Vintage Pens Parker 51 Aurora 88 — I enjoy interesting vintage pens that I can still use on a daily basis, including both the Parker 51 and the Aurora 88.

Smaller shows - particularly shows run by a local pen club - are friendlier, with many of the “dealers” being club participants and collectors selling for “show money”, to rotate pens out of their own collection, and/or to help grow the hobby. Many are happy to talk with new enthusiasts, and will give you honest appraisals of pens, flaws and all. If you have to deal with the same show attendees and club members year after year, reputation matters. At the Arkansas Pen Show, I purchased two Parker 51s from Danny Fudge (aka “The Write Pen”), both of which are excellent “user grade” pens, expertly restored, with character. One had a broader nib that I had Matthew Chen shape to a semi-Naginata, and the other sports a hammered gold fill finish (“possibly by Ariel Kulloch”) with an excellent stub nib. The first pen cost me $100, and the second $175, which I consider to be very fair pricing for functional vintage pens restored by a reputable dealer.

The Tibaldi Bononia Vintage in Pomegranate (top) and Honeycomb (bottom). These are piston fillers with 18k gold nibs. The top is an oblique medium and the bottom a 1.1mm stub. Not sure if these two are going back to Vanness….

If You Don’t Want to Fiddle with Actual Vintage pens, the Current Market Has a TON of Vintage-Style Options

While vintage pens like the Parker 51 are fairly durable, easy to repair, and timeless, other models don’t translate as well to the experience sought by many modern users. For example, I’ve always admired the oversized Sheaffer Balance fountain pens, and have even owned a few over the years, but found the material prone to cracking and I’m not a huge fan of lever-fillers. Fortunately, these days you have a wide range of modern options in a similar “vintage” style, and I spent many hours next to the Vanness Pens table eyeing (1) the Tibaldi Bononia Limited Editions; (2) the modern Conway Stewart lineup in their classic materials; and (3) both the modern Onoto Magna and Scholar fountain pens, which have garnered rave reviews and which I’m in the process of reviewing. If you appreciate vintage design, but perhaps not the “adventurous” nature of writing with an actual vintage pen, you have plenty of options!

From left, the Tibaldi Bononia in Pomegranate, the Onoto Scholar in Mandarin, and the Tibaldi Bononia in Honeycomb

Lately, this trend has even started to extend beyond fountain pens. I wrote the entire first draft of this review on a series of airplane flights and in the back row at a work conference using an Anterique “Mach Ball” click pen. I love the aesthetics of vintage Bic Clic-style ballpoints, but generally can’t stand the refill. Anterique uses a .5mm low-viscosity hybrid gel-ballpoint ink refill that even fits some actual vintage ballpoints.

Stay tuned, because Anterique is doing some really fun stuff, and I just received a big box in the mail….

If you’re not a purist, you can sometimes find the best of both worlds: vintage-style design without the unpredictability of finicky filling systems or refills. As a user of fountain pens and other writing instruments, as opposed to a collector, I’m equally drawn to both vintage writing instruments and quality modern alternatives. It certainly offers a wider range of options to enjoy everyday writing!

This post does not contain paid third-party affiliate links or advertising. Vanness Pens did loan me certain of the pens pictured in this review. I am not being compensated for content, and The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program.

Pen Shows After Dark Prizes — Cary and Shawn draw the door prizes at the Saturday night event.

2023 Arkansas Pen Show: I Like the Smaller Shows (or Shows That Feel Small)

March 22, 2023

Each pen show has its own vibe, driven mainly by the attitude of the organizers and the care they take in putting the show together. For example, the San Francisco Pen Show is a very large event that still manages to feel friendly and personable, solely due to the effort of the group running the show. That said, you can only make a massive hotel ballroom so user-friendly to navigate, and with hundreds of people cycling through every day, you might not have a real opportunity to interact with vendors, as they’ll mostly be swamped. The smaller shows, on the other hand, are something else entirely.

The Arkansas Pen Show, held in Little Rock, is run by the Arkansas Pen Club, currently led by penmaker Shawn Newton of Newton Pens. This was my second visit to Little Rock, with the first back in 2019. The show itself fills a single ballroom, with a 1/3 devoted to modern stationery; 1/3 to vintage dealers; and 1/3 to custom penmakers. If you’re looking to visit your first pen show, or you don’t like overly crowded events that can be overwhelming, smaller shows like this one offer a great opportunity to browse leisurely and have casual conversations with vendors and other collectors.

Vanness brought their collaboration with The Good Blue Pen Company - a “Titanium Blue” Cerakote finish that I couldn’t resist taking home with me.

While traffic on Friday and Saturday was brisk, and vendors were making sales, it was nothing like D.C. or San Francisco, where you won’t be able to peel yourself out from behind the table until Sunday. Each day had quiet lulls, where you could chat with your table neighbors or customers, and browse the show yourself. This year, independent makers included Shawn Newton, Hinze Pens, Troy Breeding (Country Made Pens), Jason Neil Penworks, Darail Pens, Only Made Once, and Magnolia Pens. Modern pen and stationery retailers (in addition to yours truly) included Vanness Pens, Art Outfitters, Jimmy Dolive, Kenro Industries (Cary Yeager), and Papier Plume. Matthew Chen was there to grind nibs! Nik Pang and Michael Sull were both on-site, and Danny Fudge (“The Write Pen”) was doing pen repair. There were also a handful of vintage dealers - mostly members of the Arkansas pen club - all of whom were extremely friendly, highly knowledgeable, and had their pens clearly (and accessibly) priced. I haven’t spent time shopping vintage in a while, and I found some gems that I plan to ink up and show off soon.

After hours events included the traditional Pen Shows After Dark on Saturday night, which was, as always, a lot of fun with at least a dozen door prizes. The only downside was the location. While the hotel was fine (clean, inexpensive, good food for lunch, etc.), the lack of staffing put a damper on hangouts in the bar, which was closed by 9:30 or so on Friday and drastically understaffed on Saturday. That said, most people went home relatively early, as the smaller, club-driven shows tend to draw a more local crowd even if there were a surprising number of people who traveled in for the event.

My Arkansas Pen Show finds, clockwise from to left: Parker 51 in Navy; Parker 51 with hammered gold fill, The Good Blue Vanness Pens Special Edition; a Tucker from Jason Neil Penworks, and a piston filler from Shawn Newton.

2023 Arkansas Pen Show Haul

After not buying a single pen at the Baltimore Pen Show, I went pretty crazy in Little Rock. I scored one of the Vanness/The Good Blue exclusives in the “Titanium Blue” Cerakote finish, a “Tucker” model by Jason Neil Penworks, a Shawn Newton piston filler in a Conway Stewart acrylic whose name escapes me, and two Parker 51s from The Write Pen, including one with a customized “hammered gold” finish that might have been done by Ariel Kulloch (all I know is that it has an exceptionally good .9mm stub nib on it). I had Matthew Chen grind the other 51 to a semi-Naginata.

A close-up of the stub nib on my Parker 51 pen.

I also took home some additional pens for review, which I won’t announce quite yet, but let’s just say you’ll all be seeing some content related to Onoto, Tibaldi, and Newton Pens in the coming weeks and months.

I tend to be fairly selective about what I bring to shows. I don’t want to end up selling the same goods as multiple vendors, as it leads to unhealthy competition among vendors and a repetitive experience for show attendees. Here I was the only one selling Nahvalur and Opus 88 pens on site at the show.

Reflections on Selling as a Vendor at Shows

I love having a table at pen shows, and I have an infinite amount of appreciation and respect for those who are able to do the entire circuit in a single year. Given my current work situation, I can’t do that as it’s simply too exhausting to coordinate the travel, not to mention the work itself. But I do intend to continue to do a handful of shows as a vendor, team up with Vanness for other shows where I won’t attend independently, and visit as an attendee. I especially enjoyed bringing product lines such as Lochby and Hightide, which don’t get nearly as much exposure as they should at shows. By far, our number one seller from the weekend was the Lochby Venture Pouch, which I suspected would be a hit at this particular show.

Many thanks to the team at the Arkansas Pen Club for hosting a great event, and I’ll definitely plan to be back in the future!

The Gentleman Stationer is supported entirely by purchases from the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. This post does not contain third-party affiliate links or paid advertising.

New Arrivals: Mark'Style Days Metal Ballpoint and More Mark's x Anterique Pens

March 21, 2023

Mark’style Tokyo is a curated line of product collaborations from Mark’s, a Japanese brand that takes its own unique design riffs on classic stationery items. The Mark’style “Days” series is perhaps the most popular, and we’ve carried their hexagonal woodcase “Tous les Jours” needle-tip ballpoints for a couple of years now. Last month, we added the Mark’s x Anterique Mach Ballpoint, which features an excellent low-viscosity refill with a new level of performance in a vintage-style click pen.

For those who love a hexagonal barrel but find standard ballpoints or gel pens too narrow, the Mark’style Metal (aluminum) Gel Pen offers a bit more of a grip.

We’re continuing to build out our selection of Mark’style pens! This week, we received a shipment of the “Days” Metal Gel Pens, a more substantial - yet still lightweight - hexagonal ballpoint that includes the .5mm Ohto needle-tip gel refill, an excellent Parker-style refill that’s a quick drying, smooth writer. Available in six different colors, these pens are currently priced at $23.50 and available for purchase in the Curated Shop. (You won’t be surprised to learn that I couldn’t resist adding a yellow version to my own collection.) Additionally, we added a few additional colors of the Mark’s x Anterique ballpoints, including two “transparent demonstrators.” Happy shopping!

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized retailer of all products sold, including the Mark’style pens featured here.

2023 Arkansas Pen Show Recap, Day One

March 18, 2023

Friday from the 2023 Arkansas Pen Show is in the books! Given the relatively small size of the show, I was expecting (much) less activity on Friday, but the show ended up being quite lively at times. Towards the end of the day became particularly busy as people left work early. I spent the day between Vanness Pens and Jason Neil Penworks, across the aisle from Kenro and Jimmy Dolive, and just down the aisle from Matthew Chen! After hours, we visited the new Vanness Pens location and then headed to dinner. Some photos from the day’s adventures below. Enjoy!

Vanness Pens brought pens from The Good Blue Company, including their limited edition blue Cerakote collaboration (center). One of these came home with me.

My first day one acquisition. I couldn’t resist picking up this limited edition Montegrappa 007 Spymaster Duo set! It’s been a rough week so I figured I needed to treat myself.

JUST KIDDING. (If you hadn’t figure that out already.) Though it’s really cool (especially the refillable bullet ink cartridges), this thing is huge and heavy.

It’s an ink cartridge. Just don’t try to take it through airport security.

The 60th Anniversary Nib on the Spymaster Duo.

I always try to bring something different to each show. I was happy to send several people home with brand new Hightide Sandglasses! Interestingly, people are always asking me how I use these, and while I use mine primarily as work timers, I had a few people purchase the smaller 3-minute glasses to use with board games.

Newton Pens Hale Fountain Pens — Shawn Newton of Newton Pens had an absolutely gorgeous array of pens available, including these Hale models.

Saturday will likely be even busier, so I’m off to set up the table and prep for a workshop I’m giving this morning. Stay tuned for additional photos and more fulsome reflections on the show.

The Gentleman Stationer is supported by purchases through the T.G.S. Curated Shop and pledges via the T.G.S. Patreon Program. Even though we’re attending the show, you can visit us online and all items featured at our show table are available for purchase in our shop. Many thanks for your support!

Friday Drops: Pen Show Weekend, Part II at the Arkansas Pen Show!

March 17, 2023

If you’re at the Arkansas Pen Show, come see me in Little Rock! My table here will look somewhat different than my table in Baltimore, as I was able to drive and bring heavier items that were too hard to bring on an airplane. Keep an eye on my Instagram, as I plan to do a table tour and a show walkthrough later today.

Tomorrow I’m on the schedule for an official seminar! Pens, Inks, and Paper for everyday writing. I plan to talk a lot about notebook systems!

There should be no delay in shipping online orders due to the close proximity of this show to our home, so if you see something you like online, we will get it out to you in the typical 1-2 business days. All Midori notebooks recently restocked, including the 70th Anniversary Midori MD Light sets!

The Gentleman Stationer is an authorized retailer of all brands sold.

Hightide Sandglasses! I brought a selection of our best-selling hourglasses, so that you all can see them in person. These desk accessories come in 30, 15, 5, and 3-minute intervals.
T.G.S. x Penwell Limited Edition. We’re getting low on our special edition Penwells once again. This will likely be the last run of this particular product before it’s retired and we move on to other new creations (including one that I plan to work on this weekend).
Write Notepads Spiral Notebooks. We will have Dot Grid, Weekly Planner, and Landscape-style Notebooks available for purchase, in most of the colors.
Write Notepads Paper Journals. These softcover A5-ish notebooks feature excellent fountain pen friendly paper and will fit A5 covers like the Lochby Field Journal.
Midori 70th Anniversary MD Light A5 Sets. We recently received a fresh shipment of the Midori 70th Anniversay MD Light Notebooks, which are sold in sets of seven, each with a different color grid ruling.
Midori Soft Color A5 Notebooks. Something I picked up in my travels to New York City for the National Stationery Show last month, these dot grid color paper notebooks are fountain pen friendly and add a splash of color to your writing.
Lochby Field Journals. We sold out of Field Journals in Baltimore, and I plan to have these and other great Lochby products such as the Quattro Pen Case, Tool Roll, and Pocket Journal at the table.
Nahvalur Fountain Pens. We have Nahvalur fountain pens, including the Original Plus Vacuum-filler demonstrators, as well as the ebonite Nautilus fountain pens.
Anderillium Ink. We will have at least a couple bottles of most colors of Anderillium Inks available at the show, along with sample sets and color swatches so that you can inspect in person.
Washi Tape and Pins. Yes, I brought it ALL with me this weekend, so you all can peruse the full selection.