I nearly missed buying this pen.
Story of a near miss
While scanning for gold and silver pens on Yahoo Auctions (Japan), I stumbled over an auction of a pen resembling very much a Parker 75, I have - see picture below.
The pen was described being a Waldmann Tuscany Silver 925.
This was the first time I saw a Waldmann fountain pen. I had heard the name before because a friend of mine is the proud owner of a Waldmann pen. However, because it was not cheap and resembled so much the Parker 75, I decided against buying it.
Nobody else bought it either over several rounds (1 week each). But because of the Yahoo automatisms, it stayed on my watch-list.
The more often I saw it, the more I got interested and finally thought some actions would be good to decide if I finally buy or not.
I contacted the customer support of Waldmann, asking if the pen is for real or not. The nib marked "Schmidt Iridium Point" resembled very much the nibs of 1 USD Chinese and Indian pens marked as "Iridium Point Germany" and I was afraid that it would be such a pen.
I was very much astonished to get a very friendly and informative mail from Waldmann confirming that the pen is original and doesn't look to be in bad condition.
However, some bluish material was crystallized around the onset of the feed section which could have been corrosion or old ink material. On Yahoo Auctions, you cannot contact the seller directly and in private. Any question is openly visible to everyone. Asking more details about a pen can draw a lot of unwanted attraction of other potential buyers. So, in this case, I decided "no risk, no fun" and made the (only) bid.
When it arrived, the feed section looked quite bad and the crystallized material could not simply be wiped away. Fortunately, 15 min in an ultrasonic cleaning bath removed nearly all of it. Apparently, this material had remained for a longer time and the tip of the feed section is a little bit corroded. But you need to look very close to see it. As I buy my pens to use them - I am not a collector - it doesn't bother me too much.
Details
Pen produced by Waldmann in Germany from ??? to 2008
925 Sterling silver, finish: Guilloche
Nib
Steel, Schmidt Iridium Point, F size
Ink System
Cartridge or Converter
Weights & Sizes
Length: 140 mm; without cap 123 mm
Nib: 18 mm * 7.5 mm (5 mm @ feed)
Full pen: ??g (not yet empty, to be updated)
Barrel: 15.4 g
Cap: 15.7 g
Feed+nib: ??g (not yet empty, to be updated)
Handling
The pen is not too slim, so it lies well in my hand and I can write with it for a long time without my hand getting tired.
Nib
If you use it, it is a little bit noisy but it is a very smooth nib, despite it being a F nib. It writes exactly the line size I like. Similar line sizes I have encountered with Sheaffer F and Pelikan F. While writing I can turn the nib to me or away from me without any change of the writing and gliding behaviour. I thought about replacing the Schmidt design for a new design by Waldmann which looks more beautiful but due to the good writing behaviour I decided finally against it.
Using Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue produces a brilliant blue on every paper I tried, somewhat wet, so caution is necessary when resting your hand on the text or when flipping to the next page of a notebook.
Conclusion
This pen is my favourite pen. I have paired it with another very good writer - the Waterman Gentleman in Gold - until I find the identical Tuscany in Gold (if anyone wants to sell, please contact me).
I congratulate Waldmann for two reasons:
* for creating such a beautiful and good writing tool
* for their very friendly customer support.
I have decided to buy another pen of them: the Waldmann Manager, a piston filler model. This time, however, I tend to want the gold nib.
Additional photos
Story of a near miss
While scanning for gold and silver pens on Yahoo Auctions (Japan), I stumbled over an auction of a pen resembling very much a Parker 75, I have - see picture below.
The pen was described being a Waldmann Tuscany Silver 925.
This was the first time I saw a Waldmann fountain pen. I had heard the name before because a friend of mine is the proud owner of a Waldmann pen. However, because it was not cheap and resembled so much the Parker 75, I decided against buying it.
 |
| Text written with the Tuscany |
The more often I saw it, the more I got interested and finally thought some actions would be good to decide if I finally buy or not.
I contacted the customer support of Waldmann, asking if the pen is for real or not. The nib marked "Schmidt Iridium Point" resembled very much the nibs of 1 USD Chinese and Indian pens marked as "Iridium Point Germany" and I was afraid that it would be such a pen.
I was very much astonished to get a very friendly and informative mail from Waldmann confirming that the pen is original and doesn't look to be in bad condition.
However, some bluish material was crystallized around the onset of the feed section which could have been corrosion or old ink material. On Yahoo Auctions, you cannot contact the seller directly and in private. Any question is openly visible to everyone. Asking more details about a pen can draw a lot of unwanted attraction of other potential buyers. So, in this case, I decided "no risk, no fun" and made the (only) bid.
 |
| This blue is Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue, I am using. |
When it arrived, the feed section looked quite bad and the crystallized material could not simply be wiped away. Fortunately, 15 min in an ultrasonic cleaning bath removed nearly all of it. Apparently, this material had remained for a longer time and the tip of the feed section is a little bit corroded. But you need to look very close to see it. As I buy my pens to use them - I am not a collector - it doesn't bother me too much.
Details
Pen produced by Waldmann in Germany from ??? to 2008
925 Sterling silver, finish: Guilloche
Nib
Steel, Schmidt Iridium Point, F size
Ink System
Cartridge or Converter
Weights & Sizes
Length: 140 mm; without cap 123 mm
Nib: 18 mm * 7.5 mm (5 mm @ feed)
Full pen: ??g (not yet empty, to be updated)
Barrel: 15.4 g
Cap: 15.7 g
Feed+nib: ??g (not yet empty, to be updated)
Handling
The pen is not too slim, so it lies well in my hand and I can write with it for a long time without my hand getting tired.
Nib
If you use it, it is a little bit noisy but it is a very smooth nib, despite it being a F nib. It writes exactly the line size I like. Similar line sizes I have encountered with Sheaffer F and Pelikan F. While writing I can turn the nib to me or away from me without any change of the writing and gliding behaviour. I thought about replacing the Schmidt design for a new design by Waldmann which looks more beautiful but due to the good writing behaviour I decided finally against it.
Using Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue produces a brilliant blue on every paper I tried, somewhat wet, so caution is necessary when resting your hand on the text or when flipping to the next page of a notebook.
Conclusion
This pen is my favourite pen. I have paired it with another very good writer - the Waterman Gentleman in Gold - until I find the identical Tuscany in Gold (if anyone wants to sell, please contact me).
I congratulate Waldmann for two reasons:
* for creating such a beautiful and good writing tool
* for their very friendly customer support.
I have decided to buy another pen of them: the Waldmann Manager, a piston filler model. This time, however, I tend to want the gold nib.
Additional photos
 |
| Waldmann Tuscany & Parker 75; Pelikan 4001 Royal Blue |
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