That's All Folks!

Joe's pick - the Ballpoint Pen! Well, I did not hear from anyone else about their invention for the Top Fifty! Last call from Pete (y'all remember him), Tony, Jeff W., and Joani.

Think about how much convenience has been added to our lives because of the ballpoint pen. I remember having to use ink and nib when practicing penmanship in grammar school. We had to dip the nib into the inkwell and write. We had to then blot our words. Can't tell you how many white shirts had to be thrown out after an afternoon of Palmer Method!

Another year of blogging with some of my favorite images and you comes to an end. You were the reason for my efforts. There were weeks when I did not feel like digging up the image or the other parts of the weekly blog BUT I had an audience that was expecting me to come through - so I did. Thank you for playing along.

Where do I go from here? I wish I knew. Do I have images? You betcha? What about a theme? Probably. Cartoons, you were thinking - plenty of them.

Just not sure if I am up for another run at this though. 

Watch your mailbox. . .


One of the Greatest Inventions of All Time!
The Ballpoint Pen!

The first patent for a ballpoint pen was issued on 30 October 1888, to John J. Loud who was attempting to make a writing instrument that would be able to write "on rough surfaces-such as wood, coarse wrapping-paper, and other articles” which then-common fountain pens could not. Loud's pen had a small rotating steel ball, held in place by a socket. Although it could be used to mark rough surfaces such as leather, as Loud intended, it proved to be too coarse for letter-writing. With no commercial viability, its potential went unexploited and the patent eventually lapsed.

The manufacture of economical, reliable ballpoint pens as we know them arose from experimentation, modern chemistry, and precision manufacturing capabilities of the early 20th century. Patents filed worldwide during early development are testaments to failed attempts at making the pens commercially viable and widely available. Early ballpoints did not deliver the ink evenly; overflow and clogging were among the obstacles inventors faced toward developing reliable ballpoint pens. If the ball socket was too tight, or the ink too thick, it would not reach the paper. If the socket was too loose, or the ink too thin, the pen would leak or the ink would smear. Laszio Biro, a Hungarian newspaper editor frustrated by the amount of time that he wasted filling up fountain pens and cleaning up smudged pages, noticed that inks used in newspaper printing dried quickly, leaving the paper dry and smudge free. He decided to create a pen using the same type of ink. Bíró enlisted the help of his brother György, a chemist, to develop viscous ink formulae for new ballpoint designs.

Bíró's innovation successfully coupled ink-viscosity with a ball-socket mechanism which acted compatibly to prevent ink from drying inside the reservoir while allowing controlled flow. 

Bíró filed a British patent on 15 June 1938

Done!

Murphy's Laws

Corry's Law. . .

Paper is always strongest 

at the perforations.

Leaving You with a Laugh, I Hope. . .

"No Regrets here!"

Thank you for your support. . .