Maker: Sheaffer. This page refers to the Triumph era version. The name has also been applied to pens in the Thin Model and Imperial lines.
This is the initial model of the Triumph pen, from which the whole line draws its (entirely unofficial) name. In its advertising connected to the release, Sheaffer was so proud of it they only ever wrote it “TRIUMPH”, but happily neither the capitalization nor the quotation marks remain obligatory ( I apply it to the title line above only because it makes it easier for me when doing intra-site links to tell from the overarching page for the line).
Looking at this pen in conjunction with the slightly later Valiant and an upper-echelon Balance, its place as an evolutionary transition becomes evident; when capped, the general shapes are more in keeping with the preceding models, while under the hood there’s the definitive point but in a rather different mounting than the fully developed representatives of the line sported.
One particularly notices the smooth section and the relatively high threaded band. That section mirrors the traditional sort found in the Balances in size, texture and colour, and if not an unconsciously-included element of the new design was probably meant to give the prospective user some sense of continuity from the previous shape. In lever-filled versions, the ink window occurs below the threads. Like the Balances, the vacuum versions of these pens used the entire interior of the barrel as a reservoir, so the ink windows in those are alternate panels in the striations. When the post-war changes came onto the line, this feature would be lost in favour of an interior reservoir capsule and a section less easily distinguished from the lever variants.
The main performance difference between the Triumph and the Balance pens lies in the reduced likelihood of excess ink charging out of the pen; the FLO-RITE feed has more convolutions to it. The annular point is perhaps slightly stiffer than the open types, but Sheaffer still offered flexible variants of all points throughout the 1940s so this difference is minor in practice. This pen may also be slightly easier to write with while posted than either the Balances or the later Triumph-style pens, although I would still give it a miss– while that broad band makes the sort of damage to the cap one gets from posting Balances less of an issue, the metal interior fittings are as likely to make a mess of the pen’s tail as is the case with the post-war models.
| The budding home repairman should be aware that the different colour of the forward part of the section does not relate to the correct place to open the pen for servicing. The budding home repairman should also remember that the opening of the vacuum version of this pen is just as complicated as the later models, and is probably best not pursued by the inexperienced. |
Production Run: 1942 – c.1945.
Cost When New: $12.50 (for modern value, try this calculator).
Size: 13.0 cm long capped, 16.0 cm posted, 11.2 cm uncapped.
Point: 14k gold Triumph with platinum mask (which in this case is properly “14K Feathertouch Sheath-Point”).
Body: Celluloid.
Filler: Vacuum, capacity approx. 1.8 ml. There was also a lever version, in accord with the standing policy of offering both types, but I’ve not had one in hand to test; capacity should be about 1 ml.
Sheaffer “TRIUMPH” in gold pearl striated, vacuum filled version. The clip, while the same shape as the high-end Balances’, is rather shorter to avoid the band.
If you are relying on the preceding information to win a bet or impress a teacher, you should read the site’s scholarly caveat. Remember, this is the internet, and it’s full of bad information.