edding

edding has become synonymous with permanent markers of all kinds over the decades, even for markers of other companies. edding was founded in Hamburg in 1960. The edding No.1was the first permanent marker on the German market.

Catalog October 1990, p. 1 and 2 | Katalog Oktober 1990, S. 1 und 2

In 1967 the range was already about five markers (edding No.1, edding No.2, edding 3000, edding 500 and edding 800). In 1978 the widest marker, the edding 850 was introduced. In the same year, the edding 800, until then the widest marker (therefore labeled “extrabroad” or “superbroad”) and available in the four colors black, red, blue and green started with additional six colors: yellow, orange, brown, purple, pink and pale blue.

I bought my first edding around 1989. Back then, the harmful benzene derivatives toluene and xylene were uses as a solvent for the ink. Accordingly, the markers had a characteristic smell when used. The writing tips were mostly still made of felt at that time and were therefore softer, which was good for rough and uneven surfaces. The bodies of the markers were then still made of aluminum. In the early 1990´s the company changed to plastic barrels. The solvents toluene and xylene were replaced by less penetrating odor substances. Unfortunately, the “new” low-odor Ink has not quite reconciled with the “old”. The whole must have somehow reacted with each other, and in any case the mixture of old and new refill-ink has etched through some of my old markers. Years later, I read a warning of a Japanese manufacturer to refrain from mixing ink that is alcohol-based with ink containing organic solvents such as toluene and xylene to avoid chemical reactions…

The plastic versions of the 1990s were not so incredibly stable; I remember that often the whole upper part of the marker has gone off when I tried to open the cap. Meanwhile, most of the markers from the edding brand are again made of aluminum, but considering the unique vintage design and processing, I still prefer the old ones against the new markers. Anyway, edding is today one of the highest quality producer of permanent markers, paint markers and other writing products.

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edding ist heute zu einem Synonym für Permanent Marker aller Art geworden, selbst, wenn diese gar nicht aus dem Hause edding stammen. Das Unternehmen wurde 1960 in Hamburg gegründet. Im gleichen Jahr kam der edding No.1 und damit der erste Permanent Marker Deutschlands auf den Markt. 1967 war das Sortiment bereits auf fünf Marker (edding No.1, edding No.2, edding 3000, edding 500 und edding 800) angewachsen. 1978 kam dann der breiteste Marker, der edding 850, auf den Markt. Im gleichen Jahr wurde der edding 800, der zuvor nur in den vier Farben schwarz, rot, blau und grün erhältlich war in sechs weiteren Farben angeboten: gelb, orange, braun, violett, rosa und hellblau. Die letzten drei Farben wurden mittlerweile eingestellt.

Die ersten edding-Marker habe ich so um 1989 gekauft. Damals wurden noch die gesundheitsschädlichen aromatischen Kohlenwasserstoffe Toluol und Xylol als Lösungsmittel für die Tinte verwendet. Dementsprechend haben die Stifte dann beim Gebrauch auch gerochen. Die Schreibspitzen bestanden damals außerdem noch überwiegend aus Filz und waren dementsprechend weicher, was vor allem für raue und unebene Oberflächen von Vorteil war. Der Korpus der Marker bestand damals noch aus Aluminium. Anfang der 1990er Jahre fand dann eine Umstellung auf Kunststoff statt. Gleichzeitig wurden die Lösungsmittel durch weniger penetrant riechende ersetzt. Leider hat sich die „neue“ geruchsarme Nachfülltinte nicht so ganz mit der „alten“ vertragen. Das ganze muss irgendwie miteinander reagiert haben, auf jeden Fall hat sich das Gemisch aus alter und neuer Nachfülltinte durch einige meiner alten Marker durchgeätzt. Jahre später habe ich tatsächlich mal einen Warnhinweis eines japanischen Markerherstellers gefunden der davor gewarnt hat, Tinte auf Alkoholbasis mit Tinte, die organische Lösungsmittel wie Toluol und Xylol enthält, zu vermischen…

Die Kunststoffvarianten der 1990er Jahre waren nicht so wahnsinnig stabil, ich erinnere mich, dass da oft gleich der ganze obere Teil des Markers mit abgegangen ist, wenn ich den Deckel aufmachen wollte. Mittlerweile werden die meisten Marker der Marke edding wieder aus Aluminium hergestellt, vom Design und der Verarbeitung ziehe ich dennoch die alten Marker den neuen vor. In jedem Fall gehören edding-Produkte zu den qualitativ hochwertigsten weltweit.

The edding No.1

The old edding No.1 had a rather unusual, but very stylish shape, compared with most of today’s markers. It was then available in 10 colors. However, the color range shrunk down to the four main colors black, red, blue and green. Around 1990 the unique design of the old edding No.1 was discontinued. The design of the modern day edding No.1 is now similar to the other markers of the edding brand.

The vintage edding No.1 had – like (almost) all permanent markers of the previous generation – a relatively soft felt nib with a width of approximately 2x5mm. That felt nib fitted in my opinion a lot better to most surfaces than the synthetic nibs of the current generation of markers.

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Der „alte“ edding No.1 hatte eine eher untypische, dafür aber sehr stylische Form, verglichen mit den meisten heutigen Markern. Der edding No.1 war früher in 10 Farben erhältlich, heute wird er nur noch in den vier Grundfarben schwarz, rot, blau und grün angeboten. Das Design des edding No.1 wurde mittlerweile den übrigen Permanent Markern der Marke edding angepasst. Schade eigentlich.

Das alte Modell des edding No.1 hatte – wie (fast) alle Permanent Marker der früheren Generation – eine relativ weiche ca. 2x5mm breite Filzspitze, die um einiges besser für viele Oberflächen geeignet war, als die Kunststoffschreibspitzen der heutigen Generation von Markern.

The semi-old generation of edding No.1 permanent markers

The original since 1960: semi-old and new edding No.1 marker

Vintage purple edding No.1

edding No.2

While many people (in Germany) are familiar with the edding No.1 probably very few people today know that there was once an edding No.2. The edding No.2 was offered in the four basic colors black, red, blue and green until the early 1990s. It had a similar shape like the edding No.1, but a little bit taller. The edding No.2 was also one of the early permanent markers in Germany and was introduced in the 1960s. The edding No.2 had a round writing nib, similar to the edding 3000.

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Während vielen der edding No.1 ein Begriff sein mag, werden sich wahrscheinlich die wenigsten Leute heutzutage noch den edding No.2 erinnern, der bis Anfang der 1990er Jahre in den vier Grundfarben schwarz, rot, blau und grün erhältlich war. Der edding No.2 hatte eine ähnliche Form wie der edding No.1, er war lediglich etwas länger. Der edding No.2 gehört ebenfalls zu den ersten Permanent Markern in Deutschland; er wurde bereits in den 1960er Jahren eingeführt. Die Schreibspitze des edding No.2 war ähnlich der Schreibspitze des edding 3000.

Vintage edding No.2 permanent markers

edding No.2 permanent marker

edding 3000

The edding 3000 is, like the edding n0. 1, edding no. 2, the edding 500 and the edding 800, one of the pioneers among the permanent markers in Germany. When it was introduced, the marker was called “Schnellschreiber” what means “fast writer”. The marker has a round tip which is approximately 1,5 – 3 mm wide. It´s a good outline marker and it comes in twenty colors. The quality of these reffilable markers is outstanding. Also replacement nibs are available. Unfortunately, the new non-toxic refill ink doesn´t fit with the old one, so some of my old markers are etched…

edding 3000 permanent markers. The first is a late 1970´s example, the one in the back the contemporary version.

edding 3300

The edding 3300 is the chisel nib version of the edding 3000. Same design. It was put on the market somewhat later, don´t know when exactly…

edding 3300 permanent markers, mid-1980´s – 2012

edding 500

The shape of the vintage edding 500 looks like the small version of the Pilot Super Color Marker Wide&Broad. Both barrel and cap have a remarkable similarity to the Pilot. Good quality markers. The vintage version had a 7mm wide felt nib, the contemporary ones have a synthetic nib. The green one in the picture below dates back from the 1970s, the two black ones from the early and late 1980´s, the red one is from the early 1990 and the black ones from the mid-1990´s and the late 1990s. The green one I found together with a very old edding 800 in a small stamp shop in the early 90s (which had too a lot of long forgotten vintage markers in stock).

edding 500 permanent markers, vintage and up to date. The left one is from the late 1970s, the next one (the black) from the early 1980s, than the mid-80s till 2000.

Felt nib of a vintage edding 500 permanent marker

Synthetic nib of the early 1990s plastic version

edding 800

The edding 800 permanent marker is the second-widest permanent marker of the edding brand. The edding 800 was put on the market in the mid-60s, and was labeled then “edding 800 Schnellschreiber” (which means something like “quick-writer”), like the other marker of this early era of marker history in Germany. Most edding markers have changed her appearance over the years/decades. The examples shown here are edding 800 permanent markers from the 1970s to 2010. I don´t have one of the “Schnellschreiber”-labeled ones. Once I spotted one of these very old markers on a photography. If anyone knows where to get one of these early day edding 800 markers please let me now…

The oldest edding 800 permanent markers I have dates back from the mid-1970s and are labeled in German and English. Some of them I bought it at a stamp shop in 1991, there were still some very old marker, and in retrospect I sometimes regret not to have bought even more. However, I wasn´t interested how old the markers were back then…Years later, I discovered more of these markers in a stationery shop sellout. They were originally wrapped in plastic and somehow outlasted the decades. The light blue edding 800 probably dates back from the early 1980s and has been labeled in three languages (German, English and French). In the mid-80s/late 80s they were labeled Spanish too with the note “ensure adequate ventilation in places of use”. From the 1990s the markers were odorless and the pins are made entirely of synthetic and the tube was plastic. The 2010 version of the edding 800 is made of aluminum again and has a better design than the 1990s version. However, my favorites still remain the old markers, particularly the examples from the 1970s. The design has much more style thanthe modern markers.

The nib of the edding 800 is about 4-12mm wide and even the synthetic nibs are smooth (unlike the syntethic nibs of other edding markers). The marker comes in 10 colors. It´s refillable. A good quality permanent marker.

edding 800 permanent markers from the 1970s and today, front side

edding 800 permanent markers from the 1970s and today, back side

edding 850

The edding 850 permanent marker is the widest marker that is produced in Germany. The marker was first introduced on the market in 1978. The width of the writing nib varies a little bit depending on the model of the marker. The old ones, which were sold until the early nineties, have a soft felt nib which is approximately 18mm wide. The edding 850 markers were then made of a metal tube and the ink contained the solvents toluol and xylene. Nice smell but toxic. Since end of the 1980s, as it was with all toluol/xylene containing markers and inks, there was a note on the markers, that one should ensure good ventilation during usage. In the early nineties the edding company discontinued the use of these toxic solvents and the markers were made of plastic. The writing nib was replaced by an 18mm wide synthetic nib. The up-to-date version is again made of a metal barrel; the nib is only 16mm wide. However, according to the labeling the edding 850 was still 18mm wide (The old ones were described as 20mm wide by the edding company).

As for the design and labeling the edding 850 underwent the same changes like the other markers of the edding brand. Below are five edding 850 markers from four decades. Because the edding 850 marker is the boldest permanent marker, it was until the 1990 labeled “extrabreit”/superbroad”. This labeling was discontinued and today the edding 850 is just a wide permanent marker without any special labeling respective the width of the marker.

edding 850 extrabreit; 1978. Labeled bilingual in German and English.

edding 850 permanent marker; 1992.

edding 850 permanent marker; 2012

The material and shape of the nibs changes during the years. On the right is a felt nib from the 1980´s, the other ones are synthetic. The width of the nib was reduced from 18mm to 15mm.

edding 750 | edding 751 | edding 780 | edding 4400 | edding 8700

The majority of these edding paint markers is from the early 1990s. Back in the days we used to draw small paint marker pieces on tables, and the paint markers were also nice on the old-style dark-red artificial leather seats in the subway…

Several old and new edding paint markers…

The edding 4400 markers were the first water-based paint markers I had. Unlike the other edding paint markers, they could be easily unscrewed so I made my first experiences with dripping tags with these ones…

edding 4400 metallic opaque marker

The edding 8700 was launched in 1993. It was then (and still is) the largest paint marker on the Germam market. The markers come in silver, gold and white. It´s unfortunatly impossible to unscrew them and I broke several of these when I tried to open it with pipe tongs to refill the empty marker.

The nip is soft and approximatly 17 mm wide. It´s similar to the Pilot Super Color Silver paint marker.

edding 8400 silver paint marker

edding 8700 Jumbo Paintmarker with cap open

edding 8090

The edding 8090 Kreidemarker (chalk marker) was distributed in the middle/late 1990s. It was available in white only. The marker has the same shape like the edding 4090. Don´t have more information about this marker, but it was discontinued after a few years.

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