PenHero 365: Waterman Stalwart Blue Pearl

by Jim Mamoulides, January 12, 2010

Waterman Skywriter
Waterman Stalwart Blue Pearlfountain pen cap and nib detail

There is an antique store in Maine that I drop by every summer and they always seem to have a few interesting Waterman pens for sale. I guess that part of Maine had a good Waterman sales rep, as I've managed to find quite a few nice examples, especially from the 1940s, so the stores there must have stocked these pens.

Waterman Skywriter
Waterman Stalwart Blue Pearl fountain pen open

On one of my trips, I found two open nib Waterman pens from the late 1940s with marbled plastic cap and barrel, gold trim and a thin cap band. One was this full size pen in blue marble, and one was a smaller, ladies size pen in red marble. As they were both in nice condition, I bought them.

Waterman Skywriter
Waterman Stalwart Blue Pearl fountain pen open

I am not as familiar with Waterman models as other brands, so when I got home, I started some research in order to figure out what model pen they were. I have lots of Waterman advertisements from the late 1940s, both actual print copies and scans, and this particular pen only shows up in two. There is a 1947 Saturday Evening Post advertisement that announces the new Crusader and new Stalwart as value priced pens, with the Stalwart priced at $3.50, so this is a pretty good indication that the pen probably first appeared then. I have another 1948 advertisement, the 1947 catalog, and a Waterman dealer brochure from 1949 that also show the Stalwart, taking up the lowest price point in each at $3.50. The Stalwart was obviously positioned as the value priced model below the new Waterman Taperite pens, which were designed to compete with the market leading Parker 51. The smaller, ladies pen was called the Starlet.

Waterman Skywriter
Composite showing Waterman Stalwart Blue Pearl fountain pen closed and open

This Waterman Stalwart is in the Blue Pearl finish and is a light weight slightly smaller than standard size pen, weighing 0.5 ounce and being 5 1/4 inches long with the cap on and 5 1/2 inches with the cap posted on the end of the barrel. It's a simple lever fill pen, so it fills easily, dunking the nib in ink and flipping the lever. The Waterman boxed lever fill unit holds the lever securely in place when not in use.

The Stalwart is a basic marbled plastic cap and barrel pen that uses the key design elements of 1940s Waterman pens, including the stepped clip, the boxed lever, and the "Ideal" stamped nib. Although low cost, the Stalwart is a nice enough pen with good fit and finish. The14 karat gold medium nib was a value point in the 1940s, and writes a nice, wet line with some flexibility. One reason I find myself attracted to the lower end pens from the 1930s and 1940s is they are often made from more interesting plastics than the more formal top of the line pens, and the blue marble of this Stalwart is quite eye catching. A nice, basic pen.


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