Leipzig und Pardubitz, pen maker, ad is from 1940

Most commonly refers to the company name often found on the barrel of a pen. But imprints are also found on clips, nibs, the back of caps and other locations. Condition of imprints is an important consideration in assessing a pen's value.

Same as ink feed, or feeder.

Pill shaped piece of dry ink that was mixed with water inside or outside of a pen to make ink. Mostly associated with World War One soldiers who used them to make ink on the battlefield.

A clear section of a pen barrel which allows you to view how much ink remains inside.

An insert at the top of a cap into which the nib fits snugly when the pen is closed to prevent ink from leaking. Inner caps also hold clip assemplies in place and usually must be removed to remove the clip. This is done with a special tool known as an inner cap puller. The inner cap serves 2 purposes. It keeps the nib from being crushed against the inside of the cap by stopping the barrel from turning in too far. It also is supposed to stop ink leakage by creating a sealed pocket against the pen section. Many caps are discolored where the section and inner cap meet because this seal didn't work properly.

A pen made for a short time in the late '20s by the Carter Ink Co. The pen was not successful even though it was of high quality, and Carter returned exclusively to the ink business.

a hard metal of the platinum family used to tip pens because of its combination of qualities such as taking a high polish and withstanding wear.