Within the fantastic expanse of authentically historic, highly customized, and brand spanking new fountain writers set out for The Ohio Pen Show, mechanical pencils appeared a niche within a niche. [1,2]
That’s not to say such pieces were particularly elusive. Some exhibitors even had them highlighted in stand-alone trays; others readily pointed out their offerings when asked.
But the setup by Jonathan Veley was different. In fact, extremely so.
One end efficiently catered to practical writing interests. Half-a-dozen devices (probably more) were in immediate view. All roughly the same style, weight, and composition, and from the same time period — perhaps a century old. Silver in color, respectfully cared for, but certainly well-used, even tarnished.
Closer examination revealed the different purposes each was offered up to serve. Neatly printed and affixed custom labels identifed a different pencil lead within. Here, visitors were invited to experience various “grades of hardness.” [3,4]
Within its own realm, the impression here was that lead is to mechanical pencils what the consideration of ink is to fountain pens. To a degree. [5-8]
More centrally situated in this table-top display, Mr Veley himself sat, behind a crowded number of binders, each open to reveal rows and rows of mechanical pencils. Little more than an opening inquiry found that this was little more than a taste of what he had to offer.
A good many people attracted to shows such as this come with particular acquisitions in mind. Sometimes these agendas are quite exacting, to model numbers and sequence in production. Often times, more general — something associated with a certain year that held special, personal meaning.
Given the greater Detroit area home base for Saline Journal, with automobiles and history frequently in focus for content, would there be anything here from, say, the same time that John and Horace Dodge had produced their first motorcar model under the “Dodge Brothers” name? [9]
That would have been in the mid-1910s, and 1914 to 1916 to be exact.
Jonathan Veley hesitated at the inquiry only long enough to visualize where he’d set the relevant storage container here on site upon arrival. He then pulled it, opened its lid to reveal a fascinating array of what had represented makers’ varying interpretations mechanical pencil state-of-the-art, contemporanous to the Model 30-35. [10]
For those whose familiarity extends no further than the local office supply store, who’d be surprised to see exotic 0.9mm pieces stretch the limits of familiar 0.5mm and 0.7mm selections, this was a realm where such standards had not yet been imagined. [11]
Is that to suggest, then, that one purchases a decades- or century-old mechanical pencil just for “show” — given the lack of ongoing options for refills?
Not at all. [12]
Because Jonathan Veley is not just a historian and collector of these precision-writers; he is also the owner of a company that holds vast and various supplies of lead to keep them actively writing well into the foreseeable future. [13]
At this point cliché might have come to mind: Jonathan Veley could have written the book on mechanical pencils! But in this case, that is almost exactly what he did. As the author of numerous books, plural, he is a foremost authority on mechanical pencils. Two of his texts were offered for sale at The Ohio Pen Show; the rest, he believed, remain available through Amazon. [14,15]
Volume 7 of The Leadhead’s Pencil Blog (in hard cover) was published this month. Note that this is the seventh volume, not edition. “You’ll need to get the other six books if you want to have everything there is,” he told Saline Journal. “This is all new, written during the lockdown.” [16-18]
See Part 3 for conclusion of mechanical pencil coverage from The Ohio Pen Show, tomorrow on Saline Journal. [19]
References
- The Ohio Pen Show (home page).
- “Guide to Mechanical Pencils” Cult Pens.
- “What grade of hardness should I pick?” Legendary Lead Company.
- “Graphite Pencil Degrees of Hardness Explained” (April 20, 2021) Faber-Castell.
- “Fountain Pen Ink: How to Find the Perfect One for You” Christine Song (January 10, 2019) ink+volt.
- “How I Got Into Inks” sbrebrown (July 24, 2013) YouTube.
- “What Are the Best Inks for Flex Pens? – Q&A Slices” The Goulet Pen Company (October 11, 2021) YouTube.
- “Top 6 Fountain Pen Inks for Ordinary Paper” JetPens (December 18, 2018) YouTube.
- “Remembering the Famous Dodge Brothers, a Brief History” Robert Tate (March 13, 2019) Motor Cities.
- “1915 Dodge Brothers Model 30-35” Daniel Vaughan (January 2011) Conceptcarz.
- “Ultimate Guide to Mechanical Pencil Lead Sizes” Peter Warrior (September 22, 2021) Pen Vibe.
- “What size lead do you need?” Legendary Lead Company.
- Legendary Lead Company (home).
- “Books by Jonathan Veley” Legendary Lead Company.
- The Leadhead’s Pencil Blog (home page).
- “A Timeline of COVID-19 Developments in 2020” (January 1, 2021) American Journal of Managed Care.
- “Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)” CDC: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- “Novel Coronavirus Reports” CDC.
- “Ohio Pen Show 2021, Part 3: Search for definitive mechanical pencil history is a hands-on, sometimes controversial pursuit” Dell Deaton (November 17, 2021) Saline Journal.
