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Howdy, gang!

This afternoon my wife and I visited Antique Village on Grand Avenue in San Marcos, California, and I spotted a few things that may be of interest to others,  but which I did not buy due to a serious lack of ready cash (I did pick up a red Sheaffer No-Nonsense with a Fine nib that matches my calligraphy set). The store is having a sale right now to reduce inventory before they move to a new location nearby, and much of the stock is 20-50% off marked prices.

The eye-catcher for me was a Parker Vacumatic pen and pencil set (loose) in emerald pearl laminate, identical in color to my 1945 Vac. It was a first-gen vac, no clue what the internal condition was, but the plunger and spring were intact, no cracks were evident, though the lighting was poor and I didn't have a loupe with me. There was an imprint but I couldn't read it. The deco-type cap band, also identical to mine, was in much better shape and I considered getting this set just for the cap. However, the pen and pencil (also in apparently good condition) were both missing their clips, tassies, and top jewels. If anyone in the area wants to spend the $31 or so for the set, you now know where it is.

Another possible gem is a Carter Ladies' Set, in its purse/pocket case. I know nothing about the set except what I could see of the ringtop ends showing in the opened case. The material looks like a pale yellow pearl celluloid; again, lighting isn't very good. The case looked immaculate. I think they had this set marked at $145 and I have no idea whether it's worth that, so you'll have to go look if you're interested.

There was a desk set base, yellowish marble, with three little bronze see/hear/speak no evil characters that didn't look like monkeys on it, a pen socket/horn whose swivel was not in the greatest of condition but might be repairable, and an engraved plate on the beveled front listing an award of some kind. I didn't see a price tag.

An ink bottle, maybe 1/3 full, that I at first thought was a Montblank "shoe" but on closer inspection has a "Gutenberg" label on its top with a pen rest groove running from side to side molded into the glass behind the label, which is behind the cap. That was marked $24.95.

That's it for pens, but there were several other mechanical pencils besides the Parker, one a square-cross-section pen with rulers engraved on its sides, and another tiny one on a retractable cord with a pin. I also spotted a couple of simple inkwells.

The woman at the counter, who had a delightful English accent, mentioned that she would be bringing in her own fountain pens to sell once the move was made in a few more weeks, so I will be checking back there from time to time.

If you go to check the place out, bring a light and magnification!