NOS Vintage 1960s Kaweco Germany 817 Black Resin 1.18mm Lead Mechanical Pencil Repeater in Box with Papers Item ID: KAW-053

KAWECO 817 Mechanical Pencil

Manufacturer/Model: Kaweco 817 Pencil/Germany
Year of production: Late 1960s
Filling system: Push upper body 1.18mm leads - several lead sticks included
Material: High shine black resin, gold plated trimmings
Length (pen closed): 128mm

Condition and information:
There were times when Montblanc, Pelikan or other European pen makers, would look at a Kaweco pen first before making their own. Kaweco at the end of the 19th century and up to the 70’s, was one of the biggest pen manufacturers in Europe, everyone had a Kaweco pen, they stood out from the competition as they made the highest quality and best designed pens at the time. The company was founded in 1883 by two friends Luce Koch and Enßlen Weber in Heidelberger Germany, as Koch Weber & CO, thus KA WE CO. They had a great start and up to 1929 they had several thousand employees, with revenue at over a million DM. However, in 1929, the same year Pelikan patented their piston filler, Kaweco filed for bankruptcy. A considerably smaller fountain pen company known as Aurumia, bought the Kaweco factory, and decided to use the same name, Kaweco, as it was well known and admired by the people. Thus Kaweco thrived once again. By the end of the 1940s Kaweco had at least one major retail store in all bigger cities, from London to Istanbul, and this was not the case with any other manufacturer in Europe.

This 817 model is made out of black resin, a special way of making plastic that gives the pen a unique shine. This is possibly the best material to make pens and pencils from, as it does not scratch easily and always shines. All trimmings are gold plated. Very reliable and high build quality. The leads reservoir is accessed simply by pulling off the entire upper body together with the clip as one unit. The reservoir is quite large and can hold 10+ lead sticks.

The pencil is in mint NOS condition with no signs of use and comes in its original box with Kaweco leaflet. Tough mechanical components, as they are made  out of solid brass and steel. Relatively heavy pencil, well balanced with perfect grip and ease of use. Even today this is still hard to match pencil both in style and endurance.