I'm thinking of buying one of these locally. I can't find much information about them on the web. Can anyone tell me about this pen or direct me to an article on the web?

My favourite pen!

These pens were the top of the line Sheaffers in the 80's. There are two types: the Connaisseur and the Grand(e) Connaisseur. The former were all plastic bodied while the Grands were brass bodied. Other differences were that some were made in the USA while others were UK-made. I know there were differences in the size of nib, but I'm not sure if it was due to country of origin. All nibs were 18ct but the Grands have a two-tone nib.

There were 5 Connaisseurs: Black, Herringbone Black, Burgundy, Blue and Green and 4 Grand Connaisseurs: Black Laque, Tortoiseshell Laque, 23k Gold Electroplate and Sterling Silver.

I have the Herringbone Black, the Blue and the Green and the Black Laque Grand. All are superb!

If you want to talk to an expert who may be able to track down what you're looking for, contact Dennis @ Parkville Pen

Awesome, thanks for the detailed reply. Is there a size difference between the Grand Connaisseur and the Connaisseur, or is it just a material difference?

Pretty sure there's no size difference other than the nibs.

The Sheaffer Connaisseur (note the French spelling) is my favorite "neo-vintage" pen. They were first introduced in 1985 and I bought my first one around 1987 or 88.

Offered only in black as the standard Connaisseur until 1989, when the Burgundy and Cobalt colors were added to the standard line and the Black Laque and Tortoiseshell Laque Grand Connaissuers were added. I have Tortoiseshell Laque pens made in both the US and in the UK.

The Herringbone standard Connaisseur was added in 1991 and the Ivy Green in 1992. Sterling Silver and 23K Gold Plated Grand Connaisseurs were added in 1991 at list prices of $450 and $550, respectively.

The hardest to find standard Connaisseur is the Herringbone due to its limited production during 1991-1992.

The Grand Connaisseurs have a larger nib in the earlier production pens, but in the later production Grand Connaisseurs, the nib is the same size as the standard Connaisseur nib, just being two-tone instead of monotone. The earler sections, both in the standard and Grand models, had metal threaded sleeves for screwing into the barrel. Later models had plastic.

The Connaisseur line was discontinued in 1996. At that time, the list price on a standard Connaisseur was $210 and the Grand Connaissuer prices were $410 for the Black laque, $500 for the 23K Gold Plated and $600 for the Sterling Silver.




Camera ready Connaisseur art with a black Connaisseur and two of the Grand models.

Please let me know if you have more questions.

Dennis B

Wow, thank you for all the information Dennis. It's nice when someone can tell me more than Google can yield in an hour =]. For what seems to be a modern classic, it's strange to me that so little information is out there on the web. I spent my disposable money on a Sheaffer PFM IV, but before long would like to pick up a Connaisseur or Grand Connaisseur. Are any of the non-silver/gold finishes less prone to show fingerprints, or are they all gloss?

The Sterling Silver and Gold Plated Grande Connaisseurs are ribbed (or fluted) and so are less likely to show fingerprints than smooth finish pens. The Gold Plated Connaisseur appears with some frequency on eBay, but the Sterling is much harder to find and will cost at least twice as much as a Gold Plated. I paid $500 for my Sterling.

I occasionally have a Connaisseur for sale and feel free to contact me by email at dennis@parkvillepen.com.

Great pens and the nibs are much, much better than those on the later Balance II pens. I don't know why there is not more interest in these and there only seem to be a few of us who collect them.



Dennis B

I don't think the collector world has taken note yet of the 1990s Sheaffer pens. The Connaisseur and Crest are fairly unsung. This may be because they are overshadowed by the Targa, and possibly they haven't yet cycled into the estate market yet (morbid, I know).

The sterling model is really attractive, but I couldn't spend that much. Eventually I'd be interested in buying an early black Grand Connaisseur with the larger variety of nib. I wish I had bid on this auction: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1

If that was a Black Grand, that was a very good price. The thing to watch out for is sellers saying the pen is a Grand when it is not and for exchanged nibs. Anything sent to Sheaffer recently (within the last year anyway) would have come back with a Balance II nib and section. They are interchangeable. I know this for a fact because it happened to me.

There was recently a Black Laque Grande on the Green Board at Pentrace. Barry Gabay was the seller and he's a good guy - one of the Connaisseur collectors I mentioned.

Jim is probably right - just not enough time has passed for the Connaisseurs to be noticed by collectors.

Dennis B

Until very recently, the Connaisseur was my all-time favourite modern pen. I bought mine in 1986, and have used it on at least a weekly basis ever since, which may tell you something about its reliability. Mine is the bog-standard basic black model, with an M nib. It's a great pen, with a perfect nib - nice, even flow, smooth feel on paper, strong shading. And it seems to work well with just about every ink I've used. For years it was Sheaffer Blue or Turquoise, but now it's filled with Noodler's Ottoman Azure which has a totally different character, yet still writes wonderfully.

I also have found it's a nicer nib than on the Balance II (though as it has the same thread, you can switch them around).

Richard

I remember seeing that. He had both black and tortoise mint, never dipped GCs for what seemed like a good price. I think what I'm after is a user-grade GC for less money. I don't have the money to be a collector, but it sounds like a really nice pen to use.

Richard,

Sorry to be nosey.... What modern pen displaced the Connaisseur as your all-time favorite?

Thanks!

amin, I'll be selling my user grade black Grand pretty soon. Keep an eye on the Market Place forum here at FPN ...

Fred, since I discovered FPN and started buying pens at an obsessive rate it tends to change quite frequently. I very much like my Pelikan Berlin with OBB nib (basically an M600 though) and just now I can't keep my hands off my Visconti Van Gogh, which has a wonderful springy fine nib that suits my handwriting perfectly.

But the Connaisseur still gets a lot of use and sometimes, you know, I still think it's the nicest of the lot.

Can you tell me where the sterling silver mark is on the ribbed Grand Conaissuer is located?

My take is that it is because they are not very attractive.