Old Sheaffer Lifetime - Repair Worthwhile?

[JordanN]

My father recently gifted me with an ancient Sheaffer Lifetime fountain pen. As you can see from the photos, the sack became brittle and burst.

 

I would like to know whether it is worth trying to replace the sack and make the pen usable again, or whether I should put it back together and leave it in the past where it belongs.

 

(With apologies for the huge image. I attempted to resize the image, but the forum broke my BBCode.)

 

 

Detailed images:

The three pieces in close to their correct color

The sad pieces and sack remains

Nib detail in grayscale

Inside of body showing lever.

Nib section held in hand showing where sack attached.

Edited May 30, 2016 by JordanN

[Wandering Man]

Yes. Vintage pens are almost always worth the cost of repair, IMHO.

 

Your father's pen? May depend on the relationship you have/had with him.

[pen2paper]

.."..worth trying to replace the sack and make the pen usable again.."

 

Absolutely.

 

It's possible to re-sac yourself, though as a gift from your father, were it me, I'd have Ron Zorn or another well-known Sheaffer repair person do the honors.

[AD64]

I would indeed suggesting repairing it. Wonder if Shaeffer would work on it? Does "lifetime" imply a lifetime of service?

[JordanN]

.."..worth trying to replace the sack and make the pen usable again.."

 

Absolutely.

 

It's possible to re-sac yourself, though as a gift from your father, were it me, I'd have Ron Zorn or another well-known Sheaffer repair person do the honors.

Maybe I should repair it and give it back to him? I got him started on fountain pens a couple of years ago, and someone stole his prized Lamy Safari about a week ago.

 

I believe this Sheaffer pen had been placed in a desk drawer years ago and forgotten. I think he might have been given this by his father, but I don't recall.

Edited May 30, 2016 by JordanN

[AD64]

Maybe I should repair it and give it back to him? I got him started on fountain pens a couple of years ago, and someone stole his prized Lamy Safari about a week ago.

 

I believe this Sheaffer pen had been placed in a desk drawer years ago and forgotten. I think he might have been given this by his father, but I don't recall.

 

Repairing it and returning it to your father sounds like a wonderful thing to do.

[pen2paper]

Maybe I should repair it and give it back to him? I got him started on fountain pens a couple of years ago, and someone stole his prized Lamy Safari about a week ago.

 

I believe this Sheaffer pen had been placed in a desk drawer years ago and forgotten. I think he might have been given this by his father, but I don't recall.

This is a touching thought : )

...have it restored to fine writing again, plus it's a special father son connection : )

There are several excellent at restoring old pens. Ron is one of these trained in Sheaffer repair.

[Parker51]

Do not send it to Sheaffer. Will they honor a lifetime warranty, yes, to the original owner, but that will not get your pen repaired in all likelihood as they don't have the ability to repair most pens and so you might end up with a replacement. While that did not happen with a vintage pen with me, it did happen with a modern one my wife bought me, and I have regretted it ever since as the replacement pen while of equal cost to the one I sent in, it was not the one my wife bought me. They said they didn't have the parts as it was no longer a current product and it was about six years old.

[Romagno]

Is the nib tipping intact?

 

If so, this is a very simple and inexpensive repair.

 

I have a similar pen, in green Jadeite, which is in my rotation.

 

A very nice pen. Sheaffer nibs are usually wonderfully smooth.

[pen lady]

Yes, it's worth fixing. Now, if you don't know what "tipping material" is, here's the 101 lesson. Your nib is made of 14 kt. gold which is too soft to use for writing for any length of time. At the tip of the nib you'll notice the metal is silverish, this is a long wearing metal - iridium. You'll need to make sure that the iridium is present on both tines (forks) of the nib, A magnifying glass is helpful but not essential. If the nib is damaged, it will usually be cheaper to find a replacement than to have it re-tipped. Sheaffer made wonderful smooth nibs, Romagno's correct, it will most likely be pretty firm though.

 

Once you get this pen back from whichever pro you send it too, you won't believe how good it looks. Go for it!