Monday, December 2, 2013

New to Me

It was exciting to discover a new brand of pencil this week, one that seems promising to a new collector.  It is Esterbrook, of Camden and later Cherry Hill, New Jersey.  My find is this Esterbrook repeater.


I am reliably informed that this 5" striated celluloid repeater pencil with 1.1 mm lead is related to the J-Series pens made by Esterbrook.  It falls within the "transitional" period of 1944-1947, and probably toward the end of that time.  The color is called "copper," and is nicer in person, a lot like figured cherry or maplewood. 

The imprint is the only clue to its origin, so here is it is highlighted to be more visible.


The clips of some Esterbrooks have the name on them, but not this one.  Here is a look at the washer clip and the black "jewel" end, which, interestingly enough, screws off.  The cap removes to reveal an eraser.


Here's a better view of the imprint, which says Esterbrook, Made in U.S.A., and the center band.


The tip shows some ribbing for grip, and you can see the lead gripping mechanism, too.


Now that I have been introduced, I hope I can meet more of the family.


Since then, my wish came true with this find, a slightly later Esterbrook J series double jewel pencil, whose only difference is the addition of the name in caps on the clip.





2 comments:

  1. Nice article, Martha. I've wondered about these Esties with no name on the clip, too. I'd suspect it might narrow down the production date, but the catalogs I've seen haven't been helpful.

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  2. Thank you! My reliable informant was the collector/dealer who has the Esterbrook.net website, and kindly took a look at the photos for me to offer this view of the modeland date. It's a good site for pens and pencils both.

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