The School is a modern effort by Sheaffer to get back to the market that was previous served by the venerable Cartridge--
school kids. I don't know how much of a success it was, but I
don't seem to find it in the current lineup. I think the
packaging was a point against it; the font I used on the title above is
reminiscent of the blister-pack this came in, but is in fewer colours.
It was the sort of thing that advertising executives think will
appeal to kids because it's rowdy and non-linear-- and I think most
kids today are put off by that sort of thing. I do approve of the
overtly retro styling of the thing, combining the current needs of a
school pen (the ink window and ergonomical cut-outs in the section, as
in the Lamy Safari line) with the general shape of
the heyday pens of the marque like this one. The flat-faced
ball-clip is almost a direct copy of that on late 1930s Balances (link
forthcoming).
This pen also has one of the less charming aspects of the old
Cartridge: marginal quality control. This one, claiming to
be a fine point, puts down a medium line by dint of madly throwing ink
at the paper. It's actually less a line than an extended bubble
of ink, and on most paper, this makes for very difficult-to-read
writing which is not something most kids in grade school need any
assistance with. I wish it was a better pen, based both on
sentiment for my own childhood Sheaffers and the hope of a return of
ubiquity of fountain pens to the North American scene. I'm sure
that there are some out there that write brilliantly, like most of my
old Cartridges, but I can't really recommend seeking one out.
Update: After a certain
amount of wrestling, I have convinced the point that it is meant to
write a fine line, in at least the modern North American pen's
understanding of that width. For fun, I have applied a little
silicone grease to the section threads and used the pen as an
eyedropper-filler; it worked rather well, and that ink-window is
fluid-tight.
Specifications:
Fine (supposedly) steel point. Cartridge fill.
Condition: Near-mint, for
all that's worth. I bought it new, ran a single cartridge through
it (very, very quickly), and put it aside... until the adjustments
mentioned in the update. It's still not a great pen, so it's
unlikely to see a lot of use, but if I'm going somewhere that I might
lose a pen and won't be able to refill one, this eyedropper trick makes
it the first choice.
Repairs: Point manipulated to address the gushing ink problem.
Location: My collection.
For sale?: I won't take advantage of people that way.
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