Waterman Taperite Crusader

By geoff Published August 21, 2022 Canada, Lever Filler, Vintage, Waterman

Like many other manufacturers, Waterman introduced a new model, the Taperite, in 1945 as a response to the popularity of the hooded nib of the Parker 51. There were various versions of the Taperite throughout its production which ran into the 1950s. This particular one, with a striped gold-coloured aluminium cap was made in the Waterman factory in St. Laurent, Québec, a suburb of Montréal on the South Shore. (The building is still there today on Rue Waterman. Although it’s been converted into a condominium, the Waterman logo is still above the front door.)

This Taperite model is typically found in rough shape these days. The aluminium cap is easily scratched, and the plastic can be quite brittle. As can be seen in the photo above, the barrel end of this pen was cracked off long ago, and the photo at the top shows some deep scratches in the grip/section. Another typical problem with the Taperite is that the springs in the cap that grab the clutch ring on the barrel weaken over time. This one behaves pretty well, so I didn’t bother trying to increase their grip.

For a good short history of the Taperite series, see Richard Binder’s webpage.

Total weight: 15.1 g
Body weight: 9.7 (including converter)
Total length (not posted): 129.5 mm (but it used to be longer…)
Total length(with cap): 120.8 mm (but it used to be longer…)
Barrel max diameter: 11.6 mm
Cap max diameter: 12.7 mm

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