Swan 3253

Swan was also a Japanese brand of fountain pens. Its history has already been told on these Chronicles, but it might be worth to remember that it had been founded in 1900 by U. of Waseda alumni Nobuo Ito. Swan Mannenhitsu Seisakushô (Swan Fountain Pens Industries) got the favor of the Japanese courts to win the lawsuits of Mabie Todd & Co., owner of the brand Swan in the West, and became the biggest pen maker in Japan around 1918. The company began its decline after the Second World War when it started making ball pens and pen parts. This lasted until the 1970s, albeit some Pilot OEM pens branded as Swan were made in 1991.

The following pocket pen is one of the last models made by Swan on those 1970s:

A pocket pen by Swan. It was made in the 1970s.

It is mostly made of plastic, including the central ring coupling section and barrel together. This is a clear sign of the cheap construction of this pen. Another is the fact that the gold plated steel nib was outsourced from the company Teikoku Kinpen, as is clearly stated by the engraved JIS number 3253. The pen must be inked using Platinum cartridges, as was often the case of lesser brands after the introduction of cartridges in Japan. No modern ink converter fits in the pen.

The pen, disassembled. Note the plastic central ring. The nib slides off the feed. Contrary to the case of most pocket pens, nib and feed are friction fit in the section.

The steel nib was made by Teikoku Kinpen, whose JIS registry number was 3253.

This model is green with golden cap. It was also made in black, with black cap and golden accents.

These are its dimensions:
Length closed: 116 mm
Length open: 97 mm
Length posted: 145 mm
Diameter: 12.0 mm
Weight: 9.0 g (dry, no cartridge)
Ink deposit: 1.1 ml (Platinum cartridge)

The feed is interesting--two ink channels. It is made of plastic.

All in all, this is a mostly boring and irrelevant pen, save for the detail of being one of the latest models made by Swan Mannenhitsu Seisakushô, indeed a very important actor in the history of Japanese fountain pens.

Sailor Magna – Tomiya Original Ink (Sailor)

Bruno Taut
Nakano, March 24th, 2016
etiquetas: Swan, Platinum, Pilot