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Aurora 88P
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Manufacturer/Model: Aurora 88P / Italy
Year of production: Late 1950s to Mid 1960s (Production for this model run from 1958 till 1964) Filling system: Piston filler with fixed turning knob (original leather cork replaced with x1 rubber O-ring) Nib: Solid 14K 585 gold, M Medium, semi-flex wet nib Material: All body celluloid, cap metal gold filled, ebonite feed and celluloid grip (front) section Length (pen closed): Long at 136mm, posted at 146 Condition and information: Offered here is the third model in the Aurora 88 series, the 88P, the successor of the 88K, which was the successor of the original 88 launched in 1946.
Aurora is one of Italy's best pen manufacturers, and here is one of their most famous models, the original 88P model, produced in the late 1950s till 1963 and was the last in the widely successful 88 piston line. This pen is the successor of the second Aurora 88, i.e. the 88K and its nearly identical in the body and piston, with only minute differences. Most if not all of the parts of the body, piston, section, feed and nib are interchangeable between these to pens. The only visible design change is the top of the cap finish, where the 88K tapers to a black finial crown, and the 88P tapers to a flat slope.
Since we were fortunate to have both models in mint condition in the shop at the same time, we took photos of both pens next to each other for comparison. The last few photos in this listing show this pen, the 88P and its earlier iteration, the Aurora 88K, head-to-head. Besides the obvious redesign in the cap, the only visible difference is the slightly longer ink window on the Aurora 88P and the nib marking of "M" on the section of the 88P, where as the 88K has no nib marking on the section.
The original listing for the Aurora 88K can be found here:
https://www.protopens.com/stunning-mint-in-box-1950s-aurora-88k-italy-14k-gold-ef-nib-black-amber-celluloid-piston-filling-fountain-pen.html
The Aurora 88 (1946-1953) and its successors, the 88K (1953-1958) and the 88P (1958-1964) were also referred to as "The Italian Parker 51" due to the form factor resemblance inspired by the "modern jet era".
Despite it being compared to the Parker 51 pen, this pen simply surpasses the 51 in almost all things. The pen is simply astonishing in many ways, and it inspired decades of pen designs and form factors. Some argue this is the pen with the purest and most elegant form factor, fits in the hand perfectly, with a perfect feel, weight, handling and grip. The pen is elegant, stylish, with gorgeous colors, translucent cellulose body with amber ink window, gold filled cap, and hidden beautifully crafted wing nib, threadless turning knob, and such a delicate and precisely crafted piston filling mechanism that goes into the realm of watchmaking craft.
For the first time ever, we have the pen nearly fully disassembled so we and our community can have a closer look at how this marvel of a pen was made.
- The barrel is thick celluloid, much thicker than the standard barrel thickness of most pens at the time.
- Another piston shaft is friction inserted from the back of the pen which serves as the shaft for the piston rod.
- The inside of the inner piston shaft is a hexagonal form, so the piston rod which is also hexagonal can slide into it.
- The metal spiral is inserted into this shaft, and on it fixed with a metal pin is a hexagonal nut.
- On the tip of the spiral, a fine screw hole is drilled which holds the turning knob which has a hexagonal opening on the inside.
- This system ensures that no thread is needed to attach the turning knob on the spiral, so the turning knob can freely and frictionlessly turn in either direction, the rotation in either direction is stopped simply by the piston rod reaching the bottom or top of the shaft it is in.
- The screw that connects the turning knob with the spiral is inserted over a small spring from the top of the turning knob. This spring gives the turning knob a soft-smooth feel both while rotating but also in the long axis as it makes the turning knob always feel "under tension". If the spring is not there, the turning knob will wobble in all directions ever so slightly.
- The hole where the screw enters the turning kob is filled with a small cap tassy/finial also made out of celluloid.
- Once the entire piston is assembled from the top of the pen, the piston rod is inserted from the front of the pen and closed off with the ebonite hard rubber section.
- The ebonite feed is press-fit into the section, and it serves as a reservoir and temperature equalization area for the ink. Even though the feed can be removed, we opted out from removing it to avoid any potential damage to this intricate part.
- Another unique feature of this pen is a breathing hole on the barrel, located behind the ink chamber—that is, above the piston cork when it's fully retracted. This is because the piston needs to "breathe" behind the ink chamber, as the mechanism is so precise; all parts fit neatly and the turning knob lacks threading, which always remains flush with the body. These combined features can, under certain circumstances, create a vacuum or negative pressure behind the piston cork. Hence that breathing hole always keeps the chamber behind the piston open. This breathing hole also makes it convenient to clean the pen if necessary. For example, if the entire pen is submerged under water and the piston is moved up and down while submerged, it will flush and clean any ink residue behind the cork line. Even though this procedure can be done on standard thread mounted turning knob pistons, in those systems, water must pass up, around and under the turning knob thread, which makes rinsing the pen behind the cork line much more difficult. This breathing hole can also be used to lubricate the piston rod, but that would be necessary only in extreme scenarios. Hence this Aurora mid-barrel breathing hole can be very convenient and handy feature.
The pen is simply a work of art, both in design and engineering, a joy to work on and use. The design and form factor of the pen are such that the entire shape of the pen flows out of, or "grows out of" the tip of the nib. The curvature of the nib continues to flow into the grip section, and from the section to the body, and it gently tapers out into the turning knob or the cap if its posted. It gives a feeling that the entire instrument is made to focus on that tip of the nib point, that moment in time when the nib touches the paper, and everything above that point has "grown out" organically into the user's hand. It simply feels natural. This is why some pens just feel right, sometimes we cannot put our finger on why we have that sense, but in this case, the designer (Mr. Marcello Nizzoli) just speaks to us so elegantly and beautifully, we just need to tune our senses, "listen" and enjoy.
The pen offered here is in absolute mint condition, with minimal sighs of use. It comes in its original Aurora 88P box. We have only inspected, cleaned and lubricated the pen, there was a small amount of ink residue in it, so it has obviously been used, but only lightly due to its pristine condition, and kept in the box most of its life.
Even though the original cork was in a working order, these tend to decay over time, so we replaced it with a robust and safe O-ring. We opted using only one O-ring, as compared to the 88K, the original piston cork was just a notch shorter, and one O-ring seemed a better option. The original cork is a feat of engineering as well, it is basically a sandwich of 4 what looks and feels as a leather (some say they are rubber) O-rings, coupled with 2 felt like material O-rings in between, as well as 1 very thin plastic O-ring.
The nib is very smooth rated M size, but in todays size we would easily rate it as F or fine, and with decent flex, it will write B or even larger lines if pressed gently. It is a wet pen due to its feed and section design and it will write without skipping and on most papers. The grip is close to perfect, fits nicely in the hand and grip is perfect non-slippery. With the cap posted the feel is even better with its full balance on the back due to the weight of the cap, simply a joy to hold and write with. Easy to deploy, with a slip on/off cap always resting and gliding over the section steel ring. The piston takes an enormous amount of ink, great for taking the pen on a trip without an ink bottle.
The section is marked AURORA 88P - Made in Italy - M (nib size) - 3279359 (serial number)
The pen is in absolute mint condition, only some minor scuffs from storage and probably minor use, but no scratches, no cracks, no dings, no gold wear off, very nice and crisp engravings.
We have lubricated the entire pen, including the joints, so it will be easy to open the front section for easy cleaning of the nib section and piston, but we don't recommend it, as this pen will not need service for decades as long as it's properly used.
One of the most beautiful and great fountain pens of Italy, the original Aurora 88P ready to be used and enjoyed.
Helpful and informative links for the Aurora 88 family:
1. https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/111001-the-aurora-88-dynasty/
2. https://matspens.wordpress.com/2020/11/02/vintage-aurora-88-family-ultra-review/
3. https://fpgeeks.com/forum/showthread.php/37781-Aurora-88-88K-88P
4. https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/321040-aurora-88-serial-number-and-year-estimation/ (Dating Aurora 88 pens based on the serial number)
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This item is covered by our 1 Year Full International Warranty at no additional cost. The terms of our Warranty are very simple, meant to give you a secure and trouble-free buying experience.
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