Diamond Point Yellow Flat Top

I am not an expert on Diamond Point Pens, but I had a chance to restore what turned out to be a nice pen, and learn some interesting history during the process.

This pen came to me from a fellow collector and I purchased it locally.  As you can see, it was in fairly good condition when I got it.   You can see that it needs some general cleaning, both inside and out, as well as a new sac.

Yellow pens are very prone to cracking and this would have been a pen that I would have expected to see some cracks, especially near the cap ring, but none are present.  As I have said, I like large pens with large nibs and this is just that.

I took the pen apart and cleaned the inside of the cap, as well as the outside of both the barrel and cap.  I alternated with Pentiques cleaning compound and then their polish on the outside and was able to get rid of all if the staining and spots that so often plagues these light colored plastics.  I cleaned the section with a q tip and water, scrubbing all of the old ink out of the inside.  I cleared the feed channels with and x-acto knife and polished the nib.  Once I reassembled the nib/feed/section,  I measured and attached a size 20 sac and let it dry overnight.  I then inserted the assembly back into the barrel (the jbar and lever were clean).

The completed pen is below.  Given the length of the sac and large 20 size, this pen holds a lot of ink.  The clip and cap ring polished well and no plating was lost.

I am quite impressed with the general quality of this pen and became interested in some of the history behind the pen.  I will admit that, though I own two other Diamond Points, I knew little about them other than they were a New York City Company.

Diamond Point started near, if not before, the turn of the Century, in New York.  Initially, they made Black Hard Rubber Eyedroppers and may have had other pens as well.  They continued until WWI, when the ownership changed.  I have read that the initial owner died in the War.  After the new ownership took over, the pens took on the markings of the NEW Diamond Point.  See the clip below for this wording.  In the 1920s they made some very attractive pens, and I believe this pen dates during that time period.   Eventually Diamond Point Pens slipped in quality, and the Company continued to make pens into the 1950s.

Further details from more learned persons can be found here.

Here is the cleaned up imprint, reading ~

DIAMOND POINT

TUCOLOR

FILL        E -Z

The clip, showing the New Diamond P.P. Co., found on many of their pens of the period.

I am not certain if the nib is the original nib for this pen.  I have seen Diamond Point and Warranted Nibs on these.  If I had to guess, I would say this is a replacement.

Both the cap and barrel have jade and black inserted rings, providing a nice touch to the design of the pen.  I have seen these on other brands such as vintage Eclipse pens.

Keep an eye out for Diamond Points, especially the colorful and well-made pens of the late 1920s.  They may not be top tier, but they are close….