MINT: The nib has never been inked or dipped.

NEAR MINT: The nib has been inked, and may shows signs of its having been done so. However, the nib should clean up and look just as nice as it did the day the pen was purchased.
EXCELLENT: The nib may show some signs of mild wear, such as older appearance or appear darkened due to ink staining. Typically such a nib can be cleaned and look almost near mint. The nib is undamaged in any way and should still have its iridium tip intact.

FINE: A nib with a slight flaw or signs of a little more wear, such as missing some gold overlay or a light uplift at end of nib. Such flaws do not affect the functioning of the nib and the flaw should be clearly indicated. Such a pen may have a slight bend or ripple, but writing is non-affected.
VERY GOOD: A nib that shows more wear such as observable signs of adjustment or straightening . Such a nib may evidence a more noticeable bend or ripple that may affect its writing in a small way. However, the nib remains usable.
GOOD: A nib that shows signs of moderate wear. Such a nib remains usable, but the user will probably want to replace it soon if they can. Such a nib may need re-tipped, for example, but still has a little left. Such a pen may be a severe scratchy writer, a “paper shredder.” But, again, remains usable.
USERGRADE: Such a nib shows a fairly severe flaw such as a crack, missing iridium completely, the tines are noticeably bent and will impact writing in some observable way. The user will want to have the nib replaced if they can, although the pen still writes, but just barely. If nibs were parts when the grading got this low, this would be a parts nib.

NEW OLD STOCK: An older, vintage pen that has never been inked. Such a pen, while vintage, should be in Mint condition. A fully functioning pen.

MINT: The pen has never been filled with ink and the nib has never been dipped in ink. Such a pen should, in most cases, still be in its original case/box. Some pen manufacturers have the pen enclosed in a cellophane wrapped, such a wrapper, in most cases will not have been opened. The pen is exactly as it was when it was originally purchased. Fully functioning.
NEAR MINT: The pen has been inked, either filled, or the nib dipped. However, other than this, the pen should look as it did when brand new. The imprints should be sharp and crisp, chalk outlined if it originally had such, and the trim should show no signs of brassing. This should be a fully functioning pen with intact threads.
EXCELLENT: The pen might show some minimal wear, such as trace, high-point brassing on the clip ball or cap-bands. The signs of wear or use should be noted. The pen should have clear, crisp, imprints, although the chalking may be rubbed away in several places. The imprints may not be as strong as a Mint pen, but they are still clearly observable. Threads should still be intact and the pen should be functioning. A celluloid pen that has yellowed a bit might be described as ‘Excellent.’
EXTRA FINE: A pen that is still Excellent with the exception of a flaw that is more observable, such as a weaker imprint or more brassing than would be observable on an Excellent grade pen. The exact flaw should be noted.
FINE: A pen that, while still quite nice has signs of greater wear. Such wear should not impact the actual functioning of the pen. Typically this represents some deeper cosmetic flaw such as deeper signs of brassing or of greater foxing to the overlays. The imprint might be very weak, and the material the pen is made from show scratching, teeth-marks, a small gouge, or other signs of wear that would be greater than observable in any of the other grades above. Again, the flaws should be clearly noted.
VERY GOOD: A pen that shows more wear than fine, cosmetic flaws are deeper. Such as the absence of an imprint, heavier brassing; while the material the pen is made from may show some stress lines, it should not be cracked. 
GOOD: A pen that is still usable but is quite worn and more flawed. Such a pen may have hairline cracks and heavy brassing to the trim that is more extensive. Again, the flaws should be clearly noted in the description of the pen.
USERGRADE: A Usergrade pen has a very observable, evident, flaw that detracts from the value of the pen in a significant fashion. The barrel may be a bit bloated or there may be cracks which do not impede the functioning of the pen, but are greatly observable. The pen should still be usable, but becasue of the flaw may be less presentable.

FAIR: A pen that evidences numerous flaws and may be better off as a pen used for parts. However, such a pen could still be cleaned up a bit and made at least Usergrade if the owner wished to take the time to do so.

POOR: A pen that is pretty much hopeless, but still has the redeeming quality that its parts can be used to improve the quality of other pens. Such pens may be useful to someone who works on pens as a parts pen.

Barrel: This is the body of the fountain pen where the user grasps to hold it or write with it. The barrel can be made of various materials, and sometimes is where the manufacturer chooses to place their imprint. The barrel can be in all shapes and sizes, but is typically round and holds the filling mechanism for the pen such as the sac. The section of the pen will fit into the barrel and sometimes, as in the case of a button filler, will have a barrel cap (“blind cap”) at its end that, when unscrewed, reveals the filling mechanism of the pen. The inside of the Barrel is referred to as the “Chamber” in which the ink sac/bladder or ink is stored.

BRASSING: This is when the plating of the pen, typically gold or some other plate metal has worn off the pen. Typically brassing will occur on the cap-bands, clip, or clip ball.  When the overlay metal is worn off it can reveal the base metal that it had once covered. Sometimes brassing can be improved through polishing and in some cases, the parts can be re-plated. Sometimes the brassing is hardly noticeable, and will, in this case, be referred to as “high-point” brassing, which means the overlay has worn just a bit, but still covers the base metal enough that unless you were really looking for it, you would not observe it. Foxing can also occur, which is where there may be patches of brassing to one degree or another that does not amount to pitting or bubbling of the overlay metal. Foxing is a discoloration of the metal characterized by dull rusty spots or patches where the metal is observably darker.

breather hole: This is the small hole, typically in the shape of a heart, keyhole, or circle, that is drilled or stamped into the point at the base of the split of the tines on the nib. The purpose of the breather hole was to assist in the smooth flow of ink to the nib, however, many modern pens do not have a breather hold at all. In addition, you can sometimes date a nib by the distance of the breather hole from the tip of the nib. Older nibs tended to have the hole farther away from the tip while more modern ones had it closer to the tip of the nib.

broad point: The point of the nib is large and rounded which will result in a wetter and wider line. Such points, while good for signatures and large writing will not suit well for the more run of the mill tasks such as writing letters and note-taking.

button filler: Parker originally developed the button filler, I believe. At the end of the barrel is a button that is hidden under a cap. When the button is pressed a bar within the pen will collapse the bladder or sac allowing the pen to be filled with ink. Several companies used button fillers on their pens.

bulb filler: This is an interesting pen. Typically a bulb filler will have a sac extending from the end of the barrel that is hidden by the barrel cap. Compressing the sac repeatedly will result in ink being drawn into the barrel of the pen. The Strafford Pato is a perfect example of such a pen.

CAP BAND: Caps can have multiple bands or just one that encircles the end of the cap. Typically the band will be of some metal or metal overlay and serves two purposes. 1.) Cap bands tend to be decorative, such as with a Montblanc where the name of the pen is frequently etched in the larger middle cap-band. 2.) By the cap band encircling the cap it holds things in place and prevents the cracking of the cap when placed on the pen.

cartridge: Most modern pens are cartridge fillers, that is, they are inked by inserting a (usually plastic) vial of ink into the section of the pen. Such cartridges can be added to a landfill by way of the nearest garbage receptacle when emptied. Typically, any pen that is a cartridge filler can also use a “Converter.” A converter serves the same purpose of a cartridge in that it is pushed (or, as in the case of a Montblanc, screwed) into the section of the pen. The use of the converter allows the user to refill the pen without the disadvantage of being unkind to mother earth by leaving little empty plastic tubes all over the place.

CLIP: This is an extension from the cap that allows the pen to be secured to ones pocket. Clips are usually made from some overlaid metal, but can also be plastic..

casein: Milkstone. A natural dairy resin that was used in pens before celluloid was perfected that allowed for transparency of the barrel of a pen. Casein is also referred to as “Galalith.”

celluloid: This is a natural resin that was made from plant fibers and was commonly used in the making of pens prior to World War II. Celluloid tends to be both a strong and resilient material, but has the downside that  it cannot be “injection molded” and can be highly flammable. Variations on the Celluloid making process resulted in Celluloid like products such as Dupont’s Radite. Other forms of Celluloid include “Permanite,“ “Pyralin,” and “Pyroxalin.” A host of other products were also made from Celluloid, most notably, photographic film.

combination pen (or combo, Fountain Pen/Pencil): A fountain pen that is also a pencil, most often one end is the fountain pen, and the end holds a mechanical pencil. While these are very interesting pens, indeed, they tend to have fairly low ink supplies as room has to be kept in the pen for the leads. There were some combination pens that allowed for the lead to be screwed out from under the nib area of the pen, a very interesting combo indeed!

converter: Essentially this is a reusable ink cartridge that either pushes or screws into the section of the pen and serves ink to the feed. Most modern pens are equipped with a converter. The use of a converter also allows for the filling of the pen from an inkwell. Not only are converters more eco-friendly than cartridges, but you get the added benefit of a broader array of colors and the use of a converter tends to be a little more economical than purchasing cartridges continuously.

crescent filler: A very interesting sac/bladder filled pen pioneered by Conklin and loved (or so the advertising said) by Mark Twain “because it doesn’t roll off the desk.” Such a pent has a “crescent” or or rounded disk that protrudes from the side of the pens barrel. By unlocking the pen, usually accomplished by turning a rounded covering that prevents the accidental compressing of the disc, the pen can be filled by dipping the nib and part of the section in the inkwell and compressing the crescent. Pressing on the crescent deflates the sac, and when it is released, ink fills the emptied vacuum. These pens were also called “Self-Fillers.” They were actually an advancement on inserting a coin into a gap in the barrel to depress the sac and thusly fill the pen. These are beautiful and odd looking pens.

diaphragm: Parker used this term to define an "inverted" rubber sac used in their vacumatic pens. While such a sac sealed the pen barrel creating the “vacuum” during filling it did not hold the ink, at least not quite in the way a typical sac held it.

dip pen: Comparable to a Quill pen. Precursors to the Fountain Pen. These earlier pens did not hold ink in their barrel, but had to be repeatedly dipped in an ink well in order to write with them. Interestingly, older Quill pens sometimes were stuffed with a small bit of cotton under the Quill nib that created sort of a feed, allowing the pen to write more than it would have been able to write if merely dipped without it. Dip pens are still used by calligraphers and I recall using them in art classes when I was a child.

eydropper pen: The earliest fountain pens in which the barrel of the pen was filled with an eyedropper with ink. Such pens tended to leak a bit, luckily, Waterman came up with the nifty “Safety Pen” idea!

FILLING MECHANISM: There are numerous and sundried varieties of filling mechanisms.  Essentially, the filling mechanism is how the pen is filled with ink, either through a bladder made from rubber (sac) or directly into the barrel of the pen. Most filling mechanisms work through the process of compressing a sac that creates a vacuum through expelling air from the chamber for ink to be pulled back up into the pen.

fine point: The fine point nib will be smaller and will write with a very thin line. Fine points that are flexible allow for fairly graceful writing..

flexible point: Such a nib will be able to give and bend easily during writing as a result of the amount of pressure given it. The more flexible a point is, the more flourish that it will add to your writing. While such flexible pens were favored in the earlier part of the 1900s, with the advent of carbon copy paper, stiffer nibs came into demand so that the point would leave a crisper imprint through the carbon copy paper. 

fountain pen: What this site is about! A pen that holds ink in some fashion within a chamber held inside its barrel. Such a pen will feed this ink to the nib of the pen allowing for writing. The earlier fountain pens were “Eye-Droppers,” then came “Safety Pens,” and then all sorts of filler pens, leading right up to the ballpoint you use today... yep, even that is, technically, a fountain pen (but we shant say nary a word more about those monstrosities!)

gold-filled: A process whereby gold is laid over a baser metal (typically brass). Another word for “gilding.”

gold-plated: This typically refers to a process best known as “electroplating.” The gold is laid over the base metal in thinner strips than through the process of gilding or “filling.”

hard rubber: Hard rubber was typically used in the earliest fountain pens. It was made from a natural resin. It tends to be a plastic like material but can fade with age. However, most hard rubber pens can be re-darkened. Depending upon the process used to create the rubber, it was sometimes called “Vulcanite” or “Ebonite.”

hooded nib: A nib that is mostly covered by plastic or rubber. Parker originally produced the hooded nib, but it was later copied by other manufacturers.

Ink SAC: Also called the “Bladder.” Ink sacs are a cylindrical ink reservoir inside the barrel (located in the chamber) which are made of latex or rubber. Depending on the filler system, a metal pressure bar presses against this sac in one fashion or another to create a vacuum then when released fills the sac with ink. Earlier sacs were actually made from bladders or intestines of animals (typically pigs) so i guess that is why it is referred to as a “bladder,” or maybe its just because the operation is essentially the same...

italic Nib: A nib that is ground off perpendicularly that allows for calligraphic writing. The tip of an italic nib is not narrowed to a point or rounded. Instead, it is cut straight across and will be thinned from top to bottom. Such nibs allow for a very graceful writing style reminiscent of what one might picture when considering the writing of yore.

jewel: This is a decorative addition to the end of a cap or barrel that takes on the resemblance of a “jewel.” Sometimes you will hear of a “double jeweled” pen, such as a Parker Vacumatic, that refers to this decorative area being both on the end of the cap as well as the barrel. A “Single Jeweled” pen typically has only one jewel either on the cap or the end of the barrel.

lever filler: This type of fountain pen will have a bladder or a sac inside the barrels chamber that when a lever on the side of the pen is lifted downward will compress a pressure bar inside the barrel against the ink sac or bladder of the pen. By moving the lever upwards again ink is sucked up into the bladder by the created vacuum. Such fillers were very typical of a fountain pens filling system.

Lucky Curve: This was the name Parker used as a Trademark for their early feed systems that were curved in the shape reminiscent of a “J.”  The feed extended into the barrel of the pen and thusly prevented the problem of leaking and dripping that plagued earlier fountain pens because the shape of the feed served to “drain” ink away from the point of the pen when it was not being used.

manifold Nib: A nib whose point is quite rigid allowing for carbon copies to be made through its use. Such pens came into vogue in the early 30s.

medium Nib: A nib whose point will be between a fine point and a broad point. This is the most common nib used, and it can be very flexible, semi-flexible, or stiff, and all variations in between.

oblique Nib: An oblique nib will have a chiseled point ground at a small angle. Typically, such nibs are  used for graceful italic writing or by people who are left-handed. I believe an “OBB” nib is an “Oblique Bold” point.

overlay: This is a decorative covering that will typically be of solid or filigreed precious metals that is fitted to the barrel and cap of a pen. Such pens were favored in the earlier part of the 20th century. Often the overlay covered a hard rubber pen and are highly valued by collectors.

piston filler: A filler system pioneered by Pelikan that has a piston on the end of the barrel that when screwed to the right and then left fills and empties the pen through pulling up and down a cork or silicon filler inside the chamber of the pen.

pressure bar: This is the strip of  metal located inside a lever-fill pen that compresses the sac when the lever is lifted.

ring-top: This is a pen that has a small ring on the top of the cap. Such pens are usually smaller than a typical fountain pen. These pens were frequently favored by women who would attach the pens to a chain or ribbon for wearing around the neck or wrist. Ring-top's do not have a clip as the ring at the top of the cap was used to secure the pen to ones person instead.

SECTION: This is the “gripping” part of the pen located at the end where the nib fits into. The pen is usually held at this part of the pen, although I find that I usually grip my pens right above the section. In modern pens, it is usually the section that one holds when when unscrews the barrel of the pen to insert a converter or cartridge. The nib and feed are inserted into the section of the fountain pen on one end and the converter into the other. In earlier fountain pens, the bladder covers the other end of the section inside the chamber of the pen.

self filling pen: This is a term used by many early manufacturers of fountain pens to denote a fountain pen that could be filled without using an eyedropper or other device (such as blowing ink into the pen!). Crescent fillers, lever fillers, pistons... you name it... all these could be referred to as “self fillers.”

snorkel filler: Sheaffer invented this tremendously complicated filling system that was based on the ir “Touchdown Filler.” This pen has a tubular metal extension called a "snorkel" that extends from the feed , and outward, under the nib, and is used to draw ink into the pen without requiring the nib to be submerged into the inkwell. Sheaffer wanted to offer a pen that would not need its section and nib wiped with a cloth after filling. Personally, I think these pens are too odd for my tastes and take all the fun out of using a Fountain Pen. What the hell were they thinking?!!! Such pens fit into the same category I put steel nibs in... they are from the devil and their users should be stoned to keep the demons at bay!

touchdown filler: Briefly touched on above, this is a Sheaffer filling system where the sac is collapsed when the user pushes down on the filler.

threaded cap: The cap of the pen is held into place by screwing it onto the pen. The threads enable the screwing to occur and secure the cap to the barrel of the pen.

TINES: This is the two extending halves on each side of the nib that are flexible and allow for writing. The nib is slit down the middle forming these two halves, or Tines. The tines on better pens are in perfect alignment, and their tips are typically coated with a ball of iridium or rhodium to allow for smooth writing.

vacumatic: A filling system used by Parker in which successive taps on a plunger draw in ink through the breather tube located inside the barrel of the pen. Therefore, the barrel of the pen became the reservoir, and Parker claimed it held more ink than any other pen. A nice looking pen.

VINTAGE: I use this term for any pen made prior to 1960. I’m young, so anything made before I was born is damn well vintage to me. However, to be fair, some collectors will only use the term to indicate a pen made in the 50s or prior, while others use the term to denote a pen made before 1990. Gosh, those collectors must really be young... the world keeps turning I guess...

Sometimes the grading of the pen will be followed by a + or - sign. This suggests a gradation within the tier of  grading the pen falls in. For example, an ink sac is very easily replaced in a pen. A pen may have all the signs of an excellent pen, but for that. Or, the pen may have an overall grade of Excellent with the exception of some other issue, nib shows signs of inking, or weak imprint but fantastic color, for example. Or the pen is in such excellent condition, it would be almost mint if not for “X.” Whatever “X” is, should be clearly documented.

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