The Moore Pen Company based in downtown Boston, manufactured quality fountain pens until the mid 1950s. The company began in 1899 as the ‘American Fountain Pen Company’ who’s claim to fame was a black hard rubber pen called the, "Moore's Non-Leakable Safety Fountain Pen." 
 
Here’s how they started ….. The idea for this Moore-branded pen originally came from a local musician, Morris W. Moore, who really didn’t have the stomach for commercial business.  Thus William Cushman, an optical salesman, stepped in and, in conjunction with a Boston stationer, Walter Cushing, they labored to create the American Fountain Pen Company, and subsequently developed Moore’s idea. They made this pen for nearly 30 years.
 
In 1917, the company eventually changed their name to ‘The Moore Pen Company’.  In 1918, they began to make high-quality chased hard rubber lever fill fountain pens as well as the flattop Moore Life Maniflex.  This line extension grew to eventually include the ornately decorated “Tuscan” model, which was very popular.  The first Moore plastic pens then appeared in 1927.  As times changed, Moore bravely tried to compete with the bigger, more widely known pen manufacturers.  However, Moore pens, although well made and popular in the Northeast, were rarely original in their design.  Only with the Fingertip Model (1946-1951) did Moore make a leap into truly creative pen design.  Unfortunately, this terrific-looking pen had mechanical issues, and never reached a mass market, and the last years of the Moore Company were spent making mediocre aerometric fillers (the "Moore Specialist"). Sadly, the company gave up pen manufacturing in 1956.
 
The good news is that you can find plenty of vintage Moore fountain pens for sale on eBay and other online stores. I have a few myself!

Where do you buy your pens? Online, at pen shows, estate sales, or do you patronize a brick-and-mortar pen shop? Perhaps you use a combination of all of these?
 
I have a couple of favorite stores that I patronize when I am in Boston, Washington and New York. I also do purchase both modern and vintage pens online.  I love the real shops, and I always learn something from the wonderful staff that I talk to there. It’s also fun to interact with other pen aficionados who shop in the same places. But – is this necessary?
 
Many pen shops around the U.S. have closed in the past 5-7 years. Perhaps some have simply lost their lease like Art Brown in NYC, or made poor business decisions. But is there a cultural trend going on here? Are these shops doomed due to succumb to online alternatives?
 
Let’s hope not. Thoughts?
 

I tend to scour antique shops for unwanted fountain pens, and frequently run across fountain pen desk sets. When I was a kid, I received one from my family for a graduation present, and although I have always kept it on a desk or a table around the house, I never thought about it much.
 
Now, I think that they are quite handsome. I feel bad when I see lonely ones just sitting on antique shop shelves. Why do so many nice antique desk sets end up being ditched in shops, yard sales, estate auctions, etc.?
 
You can also find many brand new desk sets – fine ones still being made by Cross, Parker, Mont Blanc, etc. There are also quite a few handmade ones from custom fabricators and artists. I’ve seen some beautiful acrylic and wooden desk sets for sale online.
 
Do you collect fountain pen desk sets? If so, which ones are you favorite?

I have been hearing a lot lately about “nib creep”.  What is nib creep, you ask? Well, since many ink brands are less viscous (i.e. they flow very easily), they can move easily via capillary action through a defect in a pen nib around the slit. If your nib has a nick, a scratch, a burr, etc., it may give the ink a capillary path to ‘creep’ out of the defect and flow onto the top surface of the nib. This is "nib creep."
 
Do you experience nib creep form time to time? If so do you…
 

1. Wipe off the ink with a paper towel and ostensibly ignore it?
2. Switch to a different brand of ink that is more viscous?
3. Have the nib repaired?
4. Give up fountain pens?

 
Seriously…… let us know your thoughts…..