Early Pilot Nibs. V. Size 3

Size 3 units, as seen on size 2 nibs, have different dimensions depending on whether they were made before or after the Second World War. But there might be some other reasons as well.

First, two steel nibs about 10 years apart:

Non dated steel (shiro) nib. Probably from the very late 1930s or early 1940s. The engraving reads "BEST / INTHEWORLD / PILOT / -(3)-".

Steel nib made in 1950. The engraving now includes a reference to the place of production: "STANDARD / PILOT / -(3)- / MADE IN / JAPAN".

Manufacturing date	Undated .(Ca. 1940).	.April 1950.
Length (mm)	28.5	28.0
Width (mm)	6.8	7.3
Feed diameter (mm)	5.5	5.4
Weight (g)	0.4-0.5	0.2-0.3
Material	Steel	Steel

Pilot RT from ca. 1940. The original price was JPY 4.55.

The second nib correspond to this Pilot that implements the A-shiki filling system. This pen also preserves the original price: JPY 150.

The first nib is not dated, but the pen is clearly an R model from the late 1930s. It still carries the sticker—its price, JPY 4.55. The second pen is an R model, with an A-shiki filling system. It still preserves the original price sticker: JPY 150. Ten years, a war in between, and a price difference of a factor of over 300.

The following pen is more clearly a post-war unit. It is a 53R model whose nib was made in January of 1953. The embargo over the use of gold had been levied in 1952.

Post-war (January of 1953) size 3 nib made of 14 K gold. Note the thinner diameter of the feed in the area usually under the section. The engraving, "WARRANTED/ "PILOT" / 14 K / -(3)- / MADE IN / JAPAN".

Manufacturing date	.Jan 1953.
Length (mm)	24.4
Width (mm)	6.0
Feed diameter (mm)	5.3
Weight (g)	0.3
Material	14 K Au

Pilot 53R.

The feed of this pen also shows a thinner diameter in the area attached to the section, as was the case of nibs of sizes 2 and smaller.

The last example of size 3 nib belongs to a pen exhibited at the Pen Station, the pen museum of Pilot in Tokyo. It corresponds to a maki-e pen from 1926. May it serve to illustrate the differences on the engraving. Needless to say, I cannot measure the actual dimensions of this nib.

Pilot nib from a maki-e pen from January of 1926, exhibited at the Pen Station, the Pilot museum in Tokyo. The engraving, much simpler, reads "WARRANTED / 14 K / "PILOT" / 3".

Pilot Justus 1989 – Pilot Blue

Bruno Taut
Nakano, September 18th, 2015
etiquetas: Pilot, plumín