METAL DETECTOR

Here’s a power grouping of vintage metal markers that I got off of ebay. Not often that I get to see these older specimens just out and about, so when I saw them up for bid, I had to pop. All amazing specimens that wow with bold, clean design and sturdy quality construction. 

MARKTEX TEXPEN

A vintage piece that seems to be the precursor to a Dalo Texpen. Rubber pump on the back to get the ink inside flowing. Super sturdy metal construction features nice red and white design and labeling on black body. Nice thick clip on the side. Metal ball tip. Nice weight to it. Dried out. 

MAGIC MARKER

Alakazam ! I wish I had more vintage Magic Marker brand in my collection. Great mix of construction, font, and color on this. Bold orange on white body, which has yellowed due to age giving it a nice look. Quirky wordmark. Solid consturction. Hmm. This one says it comes from the Magic Marker Corporation in Glendale NY. All other Magic Markers I have came from the UK. The container was made and printed in Canada. The mystery continues. Don’t know why I haven’t come across more of these things around my travels. Really nice transition from barrel to chisel tip. A nice aged haze to the odor. Still works perfectly. Makes consistently even, clean lines. A great addition to the collection.

BLAISDELL LIQUID TIP

“The Gentleman’s Marker”. My words, not theirs. This is a really sleek, well designed subtle black marker. It looks like the end with the pen clip is the cap, but that is a fixed design detail that doesn’t come off. The cap is on the other side, form fitting to the chisel tip nice and snug. Clean gold and black labelling. “Liquid Tip” wordmark in nice script font. Says “large” on the side. Does that mean this thing comes in “small” and “extra large” ? Challenge accepted. Sturdy chisel tip. DOA but still has a pungent stank. A unique/throwback classic ! 

IDEAL MARK 

This is a true classic from one of the most respected and historied marker making companies. Based in Belleville, Illinois, IDEAL MARK is manufactured and distributed by Diagraph MSP. The modern version retains many of the same characteristics as this early model. It’s a very distinct, well-constructed silhouette. Super sturdy metal barrel, gloss orange paint with black Stencil-style wordmark and labeling. Lovely barrel-to-tip metal transition. Great sturdy pointed felt tip. Has a nice shoe-polish-ey odor. These have stood the test of time rather well. Easily one of my TOP 10 favorites in the collection, which numbers about 700 different black markers right now. Would love to have these be my everyday markers, but I find them a bit too precious to use. Over the moon to have these added to the collection. 

JIFFY POP

Acklands Grainger pick-ups from earlier today.

JIFFY ECO-MARKER JK-100 - This is the king size version of the Jiffy Eco-Marker range of products. It is pretty much an Artline with different labelling, as Artline and Jiffy are produced in the same factory. I really like the bird logo on the label, as well as the green blue color combo going on. 12mm and 7.5 mm chisel tip. Makes nice thick lines. Solid metal construction. An all around great marker.

DYKEM BRITE MARK H20 - Industrial Grade water-based valve action paint marker. Solid plastic construction with stick on labelling. Nice little drop/ripple graphic, it’s a hint of Zen on an otherwise utilitarian product. Hard fiber nib, good ink flow. Way better than them Sharpie water based paint markers. BLACK NOIR NEGRO SCHWARZ. I didn’t know the German word for black. Now I do. Thanks for teaching me something new Dykem. That’s some high quality H20. Shout out to Adam Sandler.

DYKEM TEXPEN - Heavy Duty Industrial paint marker. This has a ball metal tip, heavy metal construction throughout. Doesn’t make the cleanest controlled angular marks. More of a scrawler for sure. Nice red, white and blue color scheme, with a rivet motif border at bottom and top. There is a rubber push bulb at the top to pressurize and get the ink a-flowing. I’m glad I never had access to these when I was younger. Would make a great cartridge for a DIY pipe bomb.

MARKAL PRO-WASH W - A sturdy water removable paint marker. A nice paint marker with fiber bullet tip, sturdy plastic construction, but again, this thing contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer. What’s up Markal ? Isn’t there something you can use that doesn’t cause cancer ? Maybe your R&D department at LA-CO should put it on their to-do list for 2010. The marks may be removed by water, but you shouldn’t have to use chemo to get rid of other effects.

MARKAL PRO-WASH D - A sturdy detergent removable paint marker. Same as above, but removable with detergent mixture. Well, not same as above. Apparently doesn’t contain Mysterious Chemical X that causes cancer. Yeah, totally doesn’t make sense. One would think that something heavy duty that you need detergent to remove would contain the Chemical X, not the water removable one. Too bad. Their website is so intuitive and product finder useful, it’s a shame about Chemical X. Maybe they are the only company up front with it though, and every marker contains Chemical X. Something to ponder when i’m sniffing them and getting dizzy.