Esterbrook Nib Lists

The number of Esterbrooks nibs I have found has become so large that I had to break the list into blocks. And I think I have still not found them all. So help me out. Send me info or links where I can discover more Esterbrook dip pen nibs.

I believe this to be an incomplete list and ask your help to identify and describe nibs and provide information to improve this list. The entries configured as a link will open a page with what information I have and a picture if one is available.

The nibs included here have been confirmed either through a physical example and/or mention in one of the documents or sources. There are mentions here and there, including the original Esterbrook Project, of numbers mentioned in online auctions or other vendor sites. Unless that number can also be confirmed through examples or mentioned in an Esterbrook catalog, advertisement or other similar source.

I am sure I am missing many nibs. Esterbrook advertising in the early 1900’s claimed to have 250 different styles of nibs. During World War I, they voluntarily reduced their offerings to a couple of dozen nibs. By the late 1930’s, their offerings were back to nearly a hundred or so. The 1930’s offerings represent the most commonly found Esterbrook nibs on the market today. Many nibs did not survive the rigors of the marketplace and never became popular enough to justify their continued manufacture. There is little record today that some of these nibs even existed.

Many of the photos are originally Phil’s. I have added a great many illustrations from the various catalogs and other sources.

The original website included examples of the writing using the various nibs. These, on the whole, were not terribly indicative of the capabilities of each nib. There are plans for possibly replacing these, at least for the nibs that I personally have. But that is a future project.

There are a lot of skips in the numbers on this list. Are there any pens out there that are not listed?

If you know of any corrections or additions to this list, please contact me and let me know.