Turner & Harrison #225 Silver-Plated Pen (Vintage)

Firm and fairly broad, with a very smooth touch, Turner & Harrison's #225 Silver-Alloy Pen is a great choice for hassle-free writing or drawing with dip pens. Although this pen was made 90 years ago, it handles better than many modern writing instruments, rarely catching on the upstroke and offering slight line variation.

Long and wide, the #225 just barely fits into our standard holders. Penmakers of the early and mid-20th century competed to make nibs larger and larger, because larger nibs hold more ink per dip. The tapered shape of the #225 is a result of that competition. Manufacturers wanted to make bigger pens without risking incompatibility with existing holders, and tapered nibs were a popular solution that suited most existing holders.

The silver plating process used for these pens involved several different metals—the base steel pen was first plated with copper and then plated "with a heavy coating of Silver Alloy," as the 1917 Turner & Harrison catalog puts it. The result is an unusually shiny and smooth pen, with a superior feel and longer life than similar pens in steel.

The #225 pens in our stock were made approximately 90 years ago. Like all of our vintage nibs, it is in new condition, individually inspected and packaged here in our St. Louis offices.

As with any dip pen, you will need to remove the protective coating so that ink will stick to the nib consistently. To remove the coating, simply dip your new pen in ink a couple of times and wipe it off. Repeat until the ink coats the nib completely and doesn't bead up. This process takes about 15 seconds and only needs to be done once, before you use the pen for the first time.

Sold individually. Made in the United States.