Description Mabie Todd Swan 0160 leverless pen. Swan pens first used a leverless system in 1932, I believe this pento bean early version as it has a flat top and a Swan ‘medallion’ set into the cap. The pen is finished in black with Gold filled trim. It is in excellent condition throughout with a good surface and Gold filling. The filler button and cap stud are hard rubber and show an even brown patina. The barrel imprints are clear and sharp. The Mabie Todd Swan 14Ct. Gold No. 2 nib writes with a most pleasing amount of flex, someone with a decent hand would obtain great results, I’m sure. The filling system is really very good, it fills by turning the cap anticlockwise and then tightening it again, just once is enough to fill the pen. It is so convenient that I find it hard to see why it had a relatively short life. I can only think that the ink sac perhaps didn’t take kindly to being squashed in this way over a long period. On the other hand replacing the sac is a piece of cake! This is a top quality, and quite uncommon vintage pen. I don’t see it being ideally suited to being carted around as a daily user, these flexible nibs are special not particularly robust and very difficult to replace. As a pen to be used for writing letters, diaries, cards, and addresses it would be difficult to beat. and it could always be placed on the desk simply for looking at!
