Sheaffer Fountain Pen Identification Help for a new guy

[Farmall-130]

Ladies & Gentlemen,

I was going through some of my Dad's things and came across his Shaeffer Fountain Pen & Pencil set from WWII. Dad was a tail gunner on a B-17. I've tried to identify the fountain pen & believe it is a "Balance" Lifetime pen with military clip. (see pics attached) The barrel maximum outside diameter is 0.457" & the cap's maximum outside diameter is 0.520".

Questions:

1. What is the correct identification of this pen?

2. What is the pen's body made from, celluloid?

3. It's a lever fill type & the pressure bar was completely rusted; I removed it in pieces. (The lever is in good condition) What is the correct replacement pressure bar?

4. It needs a new sac. The section's outside diameter is 0.283" & the barrel's inside diameter is 0.338". What is the correct sac for this pen?

5. I've cleaned it with water only, as I've read that soaps, chemicals, abrasives, etc. can cause more harm than good. Need your advice on cleaning & preservation.

 

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

[stacyhills]

1941 Golden Brown Sheaffer Balance Valiant. This is the military clip version of the Balance Statesman. It is made of celluloid.

A new pressure bar & sac can be had from various retailers like PenTooling.com or IndyPenDance.com. Though I recommend you send it away for restoration by someone like Ron Zorn (MainStreetPens.com). Such an heirloom deserves the attention of a master restorer.

[inkstainedruth]

Another vote here for sending the pen out to Ron Zorn.  He fixed the vintage Balance Oversize (and sold me a replacement cap for it) that had belonged to my husband's grandfather and which had (at some point) had the cap from my mother-in-law's Eversharp Skyline jammed onto it -- someone at the Commonwealth Pen Show that year was able to get the Skyline cap off the pen with section pliers).

Ruth Morrisson inkstainedruth

[Farmall-130]

Stacy and Ruth,

Thank you for your quick replies. 1941 pen makes perfect sense as that's when Dad enlisted. He was always very fond of his fountain pens. The pen is marked 10.00 on the last line of the Shaeffer markings. Is it correct that 10.00 reflects the sales price?

I appreciate your comments about sending the pen out for rebuild. I disassembled this pen and another that belonged to my Grandfather, a Diamond Metal pen from 1920. My desires are to put new sacs in these pens & the pressure bar in the Shaeffer. I have confidence in my abilities to perform these two tasks.

Thank you for the replies; you've been most helpful.

Have a Merry Christmas for you & your families.

[Roger W.]

Yes, $10 is the price.  Like your name, I have a few Farmalls- we mow with a '47 A.

[RRRchen]

This pen is very beautiful, you can use toothpaste + soft cloth to clean the surface oxidation, including the black oxidation on the pen holder, soak the nib with water and rinse it off.

[Farmall-130]

Roger W - thank you for the reply with regards to the price. The matching mechanical pencil has 4.00, so I assume $4.00. This means my Dad or someone spent a total of $14.00 on a fountain pen & pencil set. A inflation calculator computes 1941, $14.00 = 2020, $247.99. Our family is usually frugal with a dollar, so Dad or someone really spent money out of the ordinary.

(My lawnmower is a 1947A w/Woods belly mower. 1957 Farmall-130 is in final paint, hope to finish by Spring. To keep peace in the neighborhood, I have a 1959 John Deere 430.)

 

RRRchen - I also thank you for the reply. Pictures on the Internet, of the pens with military clips, show the clip & ring around the cap as shiny gold color. Was this metal brass? The mechanical pencil has the same patina color of this "hardware".

 

Dad's name is printed on both the pen and pencil. Who put the printing on the pen & pencil? Was it done by Shaeffer or the Shaeffer pen dealer?