Mystery pencil

 

For collectors of pens and pencils, there's always something new. In this case, that something is a bit of a mystery. Vulcanite and Goodyear's patent are all clear enough, but what on Earth is a "percussion pencil"?!

The leads seem conventional enough (no, they don't explode). Any suggestions?

A very unusual Waterman lever-filler

 

Early Waterman lever-fillers have long been an interest of mine. The pen shown above is one of the rarest, though at first glance it seems normal enough. If you can't guess what makes it special, take a look at the end of the barrel.

Yes, it predates Waterman's adoption of the 5X numbering for lever-fillers -- and the pressure bar is the early two-piece sprung version, with the J-spring toggled into the bar. But it's not a PSF: it's an SF.