Wahl Oxford

I picked this pen up at the last minute, just as everyone was packing up at the DC Supershow late Sunday afternoon. Was finally able to resac it after my repair supplies came Monday.

Here’s the pen, disassembled. The masking tape is me being kiasu. A strip holds the lever in place (like Waterman’s pens of that period there’s no J-bar so the lever can flop around), and another prevents damage to the section rim.

I installed a size 18 silicone sac before reassembling the pen. Silicone doesn’t release gases over time and so won’t discolor the celluloid.

After a little wipe –

Although the Wahl Oxford was near the lowest tier of Wahl’s lineup, it’s still a quality pen. Although the gold wash on the furniture is all too easily removed, the Oxford used the same celluloid material that more expensive Decobands, Dorics and Equipoises were turned from. This one with its luminescent gold and green marbling, was called “Brazilian green”.

Early Oxfords sported 14K nibs that tended to be simply stamped “Warranted” with a number (“3” seems to be the most common), but these had some flex. Mine is a very enjoyable example, soft and springy, especially as it lays down a wet broad line 🙂

I like these shape, feel and celluloids of these pens better than later Wahl Oxfords. The latter were completely different pens despite bearing the same name.

More attractive early Wahl Oxford pens, from one of my fave pen repair blogs.

And if you’re on FPN, Syd Saperstein (Wahlnut) has a writeup on the Wahl Oxford’s production history.