Here we have yet another of my amazingly cheap pens. This one had
the various charms of being very small, visually interesting, broken,
and free. It's that last one that saved it from serious abuse--
it was part of a lot with some other pens that were actually worth
something.
The only history of this pen I can share prior to its coming to me is
speculative. Given the way the clip is trying to pretend to be a
Parker of a specific era (you can't really see the extremely imitative
black jewel in the picture, but it's very like that on this Duofold and the Vacumatic),
I think it comes from the 1940s... except for the point, which is
stamped "Orbit Special Pen", which militates for a post-Sputnik date of
manufacture. I could allow that the point was glommed from a
different pen, of course-- it wouldn't help with the identification,
but it would calm the mind about the date. The "Empire Made" line
in the impression gives one the idea that it was made before the late
1940s, when England began to dismantle its empire, and that it was
almost certainly not made in England but hoped to be sold there.
"Emu" may well be a giveaway as to the land of origin, or it may
simply stand for "Empire Made (something beginning with U)".
The point on this pen represents one of my first efforts at reshaping.
The broken component referred to in the first paragraph was the
point, which was missing a tine. Given the humble nature of the
pen, I thought a little experimentation wouldn't go astray, and
certainly wouldn't cost me anything; after one night of applying
various abrasives, I had the other tine off and a reasonably functional
tiny italic pen. I also had a better sense of my own
limitations-- this is not an exercise I would attempt with a decent,
properly-tipped point.
Specifications: 1mm italic steel point (previously a folded-nib fine or medium). Lever fill. 10.9cm long capped, 12.8cm posted.
Condition:
Pocket wear on body, and a bit of a gash in the cap from a sharp
underside on the clip-- I image this little devil would eat a pocket in
no time. Surprising lack of brassing on clip, lever has a spot of
it at the lifting end. Point shows signs of some long-lost
plating. Cap band lost. A couple of tooth-marks on the
section, and several on the feed (which is very strange indeed).
Repairs:
Point reconfiguration, and I should admit that the 1mm thing is not a
sign of my own precision work-- pure coincidence. Replaced the
sac. Smoothed the clip somewhat.
Location: My collection.
For sale?: I'm not suggesting it as an item for sale, but if you want to make an offer I'll likely say yes. Contact me at
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