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Evan Lindquist signature, Ornamental Penmanship
How to fit a Zanerian Fine Writer to an Esterbrook pen

Evan Lindquist
Sketch of Esterbrook feed measurements The rough sketch at left is not to scale, but the dimensions are very important. If you have repaired or cleaned vintage fountain pens, you will be able to figure out how to do this.

The sketch was made with the Zanerian Fine Writer mounted in the green Esterbrook pen in the photograph below. It was filled with Pelikan 4001 brown ink.
Two Esterbrook pens and adapted nibs Here are two Esterbrook pens from about 1950. The red one on the left has been fitted with a modified gold nib. To make the pen extremely flexible, the shoulders of the nib have been removed on each side and contoured backward to a location slightly behind the airhole (done with Emery #400 grit paper).

But this gold nib is not nearly as flexible as the "Zanerian Fine Writer" nibs shown with the green pen. The ZFW nibs were never intended to be used with a fountain pen -- they were always used with a staff-type penholder and would be dipped into an ink well for each stroke.

When mounted in a fountain pen, the nib is filled automatically without the necessity of dipping it.

Most Zanerian Fine Writer nibs were made for the Zaner-Bloser Company during the first half of the 20th century. These flexible nibs open very wide for ornamental penmanship, flourishing, and copperplate script. With one of these nibs, you can make a line that goes from very thin to very thick just by pressing harder to spread the points wider.

Zanerian Fine Writer mounted in a fountain pen

Before trying this, you must be willing to risk ruining the pen and the ZFW nib. This is a screwball idea which might not work for you, but if you can get it to work, you might have a very useful drawing / writing instrument. You might wonder why anybody would want to go to all this trouble.

If you have ever used a variety of ink pens for drawing or calligraphy, you know that every pen has its own unique characteristics. No two are exactly the same.

Using one of these extremely flexible nibs is yet another kind of creative experience.

There are many other types of old nibs that can be fitted to a vintage fountain pen. The process described here for the ZFW should give you an idea about how you might adapt others. One word of advice: The nib must fit perfectly on the feed, and the ZFW has a snug fit.
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The points of a new nib will get dull after being used for awhile, perhaps even within a few minutes. I use Norton Emery Polishing Paper 4/0 (under a 10X magnifying lens) to reshape the nib. When a nib gets so dull and warped that it just cannot be coaxed into working, it will have to be replaced. After some experience, you will find that some nibs (such as the ZFW) are extremely delicate, while others can take more abuse. Look carefully at yard sales and flea markets, and rummage through old desk drawers. You might find the perfect combination of vintage pens and nibs.
Recommended Links for related information
Dr. Joe Vitolo's Zanerian.com History of Zaner-Bloser Company, home of the Zanerian College of Penmanship. History of pens and penmanship, oblique penholders, pointed pen work styles and methods, Ornamental Penmanship, Copperplate, Spencerian. Biographies of masters of the pen, including GA Gaskell, DT Ames, CP Zaner, Louis Madarasz, WE Dennis, WA Baird, EA Lupfer, HW Flickinger, AN Palmer, FB Courtney, CC Canan, the Spencer family, and many others. Online tutorial manuals of penmanship, calligraphy, pen flourishing. Refereed links to reputable suppliers, pen artists, organizations.
IAMPETH International Association of Master Penmen, Engrossers, and Teachers of Handwriting. A leader in calligraphic education, and dedicated to helping novices and experts alike improve their lettering and artistic skills. Archives of the works of past masters is the richest and most comprehensive collection of American Penmanship in the world. Refereed links to reputable suppliers, pen artists, organizations.
Hans Presto's Vintage Pen Nibs A web site about Steel pen nibs and related items. BLAM design supplies new and vintage steel pen nibs (pen points for dip pens) to Scandinavian Calligraphers, Cartoonists and Collectors. The most comprehensive links to information about pen nibs, fountain pens, calligraphy, penmanship.

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