Stratford Stud Filler Fountain Pen c. 1940

by Jim Mamoulides, November 17, 2023

Stratford stud filler green fountain pen c. 1940

The Precursor to the Stratford 77?

At first glance this Stratford fountain pen looks like a c. 1940-1943 Stratford 77 with different trim and nib stamping. Both pens use the same celluloid, have a similar shape, an ink view section, and use what looks like the same metal threaded button filler mechanism. Are these the same pen with different decorative parts? A side by side inspection shows that they are very similar in appearance, but different enough to be separate models.

The pens don't share clip, cap band and cap top decoration, but that is only a variation in trim. The 77 has a round 77 logo inlay above the clip, has no cap top band, and its nib is stamped 77. Stratford wanted 77 called out visually on the pen. Both pens have Stratford logo stamped clips but differ in shape. The cap, barrel, end cap and section of the 77 are all longer than on this earlier pen, with the overall length of the 77 at bout 5 inches long capped where this one is shorter at 4 7/8 inches.

I came up very light on information when researching this pen. I could only find two advertisements from 1940 that showed the pen exactly as made. Stratford usually put a name on their pen models and dealers usually referred to them as such in advertisements, but neither mentions the model name.

Advertisement in the Palladium Item, September 5, 1940

The earliest advertisement I could find of this model appears in the Times Leader on May 8, 1940 along with other Stratford models all at a special deal of 25 cents per pen. Then in early September 1940, on the 5th and 6th, I found seven advertisements with the same copy and illustrations offering the pen for 49 cents. This push to sell them appears to be one shot as advertisements going forward focus on the 77. There is some overlap between this pen and the 77, with the earliest 77 ad appearing as early as August 23, 1940. Given the design and timing, it appears to me that this unnamed Stratford fountain pen precedes and was replaced by the 77, and probably was only made for one year, 1940.

Stratford stud filler, left and Stratford 77, right, both green

Is it possible Stratford noticed the early Parker 51s and decided to rework and rename this pen as the 77 in order to be trendy? The Stratford Pen Corporation, previously known as Salz Brothers was located at the Salz Building at 44 West 28th Street in New York City. Salz Brothers was founded in 1905, so the number 77 would not relate to the company's anniversary. There is no way of knowing the reason, but in researching other Stratford offerings it appears the company paid attention to the market and made value priced pens inspired by the top companies, so it’s possible.

Identification Guide and Features

This unnamed Stratford fountain pen is similar enough to the 77 that it probably was made of the same striped celluloid, which was gray, brown, green and solid black, though I only have green pens and a brown end cap as examples. That’s two of the four 77 colors, so I don’t think it’s a stretch to say it also came in gray and solid black. As mentioned in the article on the 77, the striped celluloid is similar to the 1st generation Conklin Nozac Penline.

• Striped celluloid cap and barrel in green and brown, and probably also striped gray and solid black
• Gold plated three raised band cap top trim ring
• Gold plated clip stamped with the Stratford logo at the top
• Gold plated cap band with fletching or arrow feathers design
• Threaded cap
• Gold plated stainless steel nib, stamped Iridium over TIPPED over MADE IN over U.S.A.
• Nib grades unknown, fine and medium observed
• Ink view section
• Button filler, which Stratford called “stud filler”
• About 4 7/8 inches long capped
• Advertised price for the pen was 49 cents

Performance

I’ve only seen two of these pens and I have both of them. One is effectively in unused, unsold condition, which does not mean mint as it shows some plating loss and shop wear that is not unusual on older, low tier pens. The second, which became my tester, shows heavy plating loss and typical use wear, but was in decent shape for a dip test. I did not bother to replace the hardened ink sac as it’s so similar to the 77 that I know how that will work and wanted to focus on hand feel and writing quality.

Stratford stud filler green fountain pen c. 1940 with brown end cap

The nib is a typical iridium tipped stainless steel nib from the early 1940s. My dip test showed it was not butter smooth, but more pencil like in feel on paper. The nib was aligned and wrote evenly, though not wet. It’s also quite firm. I found since the pen is a bit short that it wrote better with the cap posted on the end of the barrel and the good news is the cap stays put.

Since it’s a button filler, it would fill by removing the blind cap from the end of the barrel, inserting the nib in ink and pressing the button to compress the ink sac and fill the pen.

As with many inexpensive pens from the 1940s, the trim and the nib are lightly gold plated and will frequently show plating loss. Definitely better not to polish these pens or the plating will quickly rub off.

Compared to the Stratford 77, this pen is smaller and a little plainer, except for the feathered cap band. Next to the 77 it seems like a generic Stratford, where the 77 seems more like a fully thought through design.

As to collectability, I think this pen would primarily appeal to someone who is collecting Stratford and Salz pens, or is specifically interested in the 77 and this probable precursor pen. They won’t cost much to collect, but they appear to be very uncommon. I’ve only seen the two shown here.

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References

Advertisement, Journal and Courier, September 6, 1940, page 8

Advertisement, Palladium Item, September 5, 1940, Second Section page 1

Advertisement, The Bedford Daily Times, September 5, 1940, page 5

Advertisement, The Evening Republican, September 5, 1940, page 5

Advertisement, The Hammond Times, September 5, 1940, page 40

Advertisement, The Indianapolis News, September 6, 1940, page 22

Advertisement, The Star Press, September 6, 1940, page 13

Advertisement, The Times Leader, May 8, 1940, page 5

"Stratford 77 c. 1940-1943" by Jim Mamoulides, June 6, 2019, © Copyright 2019 Jim Mamouides / PenHero.com LLC