I visited my parents recently, and had a bit of a pen-fest.
First off, my dad gave me his old Sheaffer pen. Some might see this as worn out and beaten up, but to me it is gorgeous wear and patination, and I love it. There is a matching rollerball, which he also gave to me.
I’ve always loved the design of the inlaid nib Sheaffer pens, so this was really big deal for me to own one.
He thinks he first started using it in the late 1950’s, but I think he is mistaken. Looking online, this is without a doubt a “Targa by Sheaffer” which was first introduced in 1976. After some research on sheaffertarga.com I have narrowed it down to the Matte Black GT 1st Edition Classic (model number 1003) which was produced from 1980-1988. I believe it to be a 1st Edition as the cap end is the same colour as the cap and body, whereas the 2nd Edition has a gold cap end.
But regardless of its age and provenance, it is a lovely pen and I love it to bits. The wear and patina make it very special, and the brass showing through lends it a slightly Steampunk vibe.
Having inked it up, it writes absolutely beautifully. It’s a cartridge pen with converter, so I filled it with Parker Quink Permanent Black bottled ink.
He also gave me another Sheaffer, but doesn’t know where it came from or whose it was. Having done my research online, I have narrowed it down to being a Sheaffer Connaisseur Black 2nd Edition (model number 810), being the 2nd Edition because it has Sheaffer stamped on the cap band rather than the clip. This pen was produced from 1989 to 1996, and has an 18k gold oblique nib. It writes well, although runs a little wet.
Next is a nondescript green Parker 45 which was my grandmother’s, and whose only notable feature is the fact that the system has been worn into an odd shape presumably from years of writing. My mum said I could have it.
What I couldn’t have was my grandmother’s other pen which is a Parker 51 in deep blue, missing its clip and cap end, and whose nib is bent right over to the left like a banana through years of use. It writes really beautifully, and my mum writes with it regularly which is why I can’t have it. 🙂
Another pen they gave (back to) me was an old Osmiroid which I had as a kid and which I had forgotten that I had even owned. It’s pretty unremarkable.
There was also a very cheap Parker which had corporate branding on it which was obviously a freebie, and a couple of nondescript unnamed fountain pens that were similarly freebies, and I left those.
Finally, my dad also let me have a look at (and take a picture of) his Mont Blanc pen set. What immediately struck me about it is how heavily its design has influenced the Jinhao X450, and to some extent the X750.
Naturally I can’t have his Mont Blanc just yet as he still uses it. But I am sure that one day it will be added to my collection (although obviously I hope that day is a long way off).
So there we go – a nice little collection.
I think I might have to buy a pen case at this rate. 🙂