Back in January of 2011, I restored a Waterman Crusader, with an open nib. Last week, while heading home through the wilds of Iowa, I stopped at an Antique Mall and happened upon another Crusader, this time a Pen and Pencil set, with the Taperite style hidden nib.
Here is a photo of the pen, after I took it apart for restoration. You will note that it is in very good shape. The sac was in pretty good shape, though beginning to harden, and showing signs of wear. It is better to be safe and go ahead and change it out. There was absolutely no sign of any usage.
I replaced the old sac with a trimmed size 16 sac. As with other Waterman pens of the era, I decided to leave the nib/section/feed assembly alone, as any attempt to separate them for cleaning will probably invite cracking of the brittle plastic. Better to just give it a quick bath in an ultrasonic cleaner. After allowing the sac to dry overnight, I reattached the section (friction fit) to the barrel. Water testing proved that the pen was leak free and ready to write.
As you can see, the Pencil required no work – just an insertion of 0.9 mm lead. The lead is fed in through the tip, then advanced by pusing down the cap. Very nice and easy.
Below are photos of the completed pen and pencil.
The Fountain Pen measures 5 1/4 inches closed and 6 1/16 inches posted.
From my post of January of this year, Waterman Early Crusader, I discovered that this model of the Crusader, which is the Second Generation, was produced in and after 1948.
Following are photos of the pen next to an open nib model, the Crusader that I wrote about in January of 2011 and referred to in paragraph one above. This hooded nib was part of the hooded nib craze fueled in part by the Parker 51 and other models of the time.
Finally, a 1953 advertisement from my collection, showing this pen in red, as well as Pencil and Ball Point options. This model is the gray version. It was available in Black, Red, Gray, Blue, Green, and Tan. By far, the most plentiful are the Black, Gray, and Blue versions.
When people ask me what pens to start a collection with, I often point them in the direction of the Waterman pens of the late 40s and early 50s. They are still vintage collectibles, yet not too hard to find and fairly easy to restore. There are enough models and colors to occupy a collector for quite some time, and (most importantly) they are a pleasure to write with!
