My Edison Family

[tiffanyhenschel]

Some of these pens have individual reviews over at FPN. I'd like to say that I will take time to review them all individually, but since that's probably not going to happen, I wanted to at least talk about them as a group. This is my current family of Edison pens. I've had three others in the past that I sold for various reasons, but none were because of quality issues. It was merely for quirks of personal preference.

First, a group shot in their cigar box: Herald in Ivory Celluloid, Morgan in Light Tortoise Celluloid (filled with ink as an eye dropper,) Nouveau Premiere in Cherry Cordial Ebonite, Pearl Bulb Filler, Double Ended Pearl in Antique Marble Acrylic, Nouveau Encore in Orange Crush Flake and Black Ebonite, Huron Desk Pen in Ivory Celluloid

.

Yes, you see two pens made of ivory celluloid and black ebonite. I like the simple elegance of the combination. You also see two red and black swirl ebonite pens. That is a material with understated beauty. It doesn't shout, "Look at me!" from across the room but quietly whispers, "Take note of me. I am special."

Longest to shortest unposted:



That Huron Desk Pen looks long, but it is extremely comfortable for long writing sessions.

After a long and circuitous route trying out different nibs over the years, everything from vintage flex to factory stub to custom stub, my favorite daily nib has become a Jowo 18k xf or fine. It is a sacrilege, I know, but I prefer them even over Nakayas.

Longest to shortest posted:



Notice that when posted, the Encore is as long as the others even though it is clearly the smallest pen. Another note: it fits easily in a Midori pen loop.

You may see a slight nick in the threads of the Herald. Last summer that pen suffered the peril of being mauled by a puppy when I was distracted and let the barrel roll onto the floor. After putting the pen out of sight for a few weeks, I finally sent it to Brian to see what he could do. Our options were limited because he didn't have any more of that material available, so making a new barrel was out of the question. He did a great job of rescuing my Herald from my carelessness.

Longest and shortest: Huron Desk Pen and Encore Nouveau



Fattest and skinniest: Double Ended Pearl and Encore Nouveau



I flip flopped twice about the trim color on the Encore Nouveau. Brian sent me a photo before he did the final assembly, and we both decided the gold trim looked better than the rhodium in this picture. I'm including the picture because it shows the barrel unclouded with ink. I use most of my pens as eye droppers. I love them that way, but there is a trade off in barrel translucency.



My favorite material is celluloid, followed by ebonite. I dislike acrylic pens because to me they don't have the "life" that celluloid and ebonite have. I had Brian make the Encore with an ebonite section, cap, and blind cap. That has made a difference how the pen feels in my hand as I write because those are the pen parts that have the most contact with my hand. This is a good compromise for me, and I will order more pens this way in the future.

I have had many different pens over the years, some three times the cost of an Edison pen, but there are few I like as much and none I like better. Besides the artistry of the pens, the customer service exceeds expectations. I changed my mind about several things on this latest pen, and Brian never let a hint of annoyance creep into the conversation despite what he may have felt privately. (I know I would have been annoyed at me!)

One last note: everywhere I say Brian, I really mean everyone at the Edison Pen Company. I know they all work hard and put as much effort and care into the pens as Brian does.

I know that there are a lot of us that have Edisons. If you have one Edison, two dozen, or anything in between, please share yours with us!