I am a great fan of the oversize vintage Sheaffer Balance pens. I like the size and shape, but have always found the nibs to be very stiff. Are there any variations of the pen that have more flexible nibs? What should I be looking for if such a variation exists.

I've never seen a Liftetime Balance nib that is softer than manifold. However, the Junior nibs sometimes tend to have a bit of flex. I don't know if very many of them could really be called flexible though.

I own a Junior Balance with a truly flexible nib that is delightful to use. There must be others.

There are balance Lifetime flex nibs that were made in the 1930s. They can sometimes be found on the earlier Balance colors - they are also pretty hard to find, and can carry a $100 price tag for the nib alone. One of my dream pens would be an OS Balance vac-filler in Ebonized Pearl with a lifetime flex nib.

I have run across some halfway-decent flex in a Feathertouch 5.

John

Yes, I have one, a (semi)flex FeatherTouch. I don't know about flexible Lifetimes though.

A few older posts on Sheaffer Balance Flex:

FLEX NIBS, All about flex nibs.... - scroll down a few posts to see Antonios example of a Sheaffer Balance Grey-pearl with red veins with a Lifetime Flex nib.

Sheaffer flex nibs - a question., Two questions, really.

sheaffer flex nibs

John

One of my oversize balance Lifetime Sheaffers (out of the 5) has a very flexible nib. It is about half an inch longer than a regular oversize balance and the section flair part just after the nib is thicker than the others I have. Not sure if it is a design feature of the pen or a characteristic of a pen with a flex nib.

I loaned the pen to Micahel Sull, a professional calligrapher who has done invitations for the Academy Awards, and he was impressed with its' flexibility.

The Lifetime nibs I have encountered (a good deal fewer than the more experienced collectors here) have all been fairly rigid- part of why I love them. As a lefty who uses these pens for notetaking and work- I need something smooth and consistent.

Yup, I owne a Marine Green OS Balance for a while that had near wet noodle flex. It was so much that I ended up selling the pen because I could not write with it.

Cheers,
Sean

I picked one up about seven years ago. I used it for a couple years, then traded it for a very nice 1950s Mont Blanc 142 with a semi-flex fine nib.

It was a 1929 oversize Balance in pearl and black. The very wet writing medium nib would flex to about a BB line with not much change in pressure. I enjoyed using it, but I was moving away from wider writing pens to more fine nibs, so traded it back to the fellow from whom I bought it at our local pen club.

This is my "holy grail" pen with a super flex oversize nib. The pen is grey-black with red vein, but the cap is hopelessly damaged (maybe run through by a truck) ... very nice writer extremely wet.

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Fantastic nib!
Definitely de-bunks the myth that Sheaffer couldn't do flex.

Great nib shots as well!

You should get that nib installed in a nice OS pen.
Is your red veined pen oversized?
It might be worth getting a new cap lip if you can find a donor cap.

Here's a flex nib that I rescued from a 'junked' Jade OS.
I fitted into a later silver pearl striated pen. It is a great writer.

Thanks for your nice words. I was thinking of switching it to a better OS. But on a second thought, I did not do anything since I can now use it as I like without worrying damaging a nice vintage sheaffer OS. It is sometimes quite ironical: we tend to lock the better looking pens but use the beaten-up ones. For example, I have a few rotation pens as follows:
a DJ Parker 51 with silver cap -- cap worn and all imprints gone;
a sheaffer PFM with III body (scratched) and a very rusty V cap;
a Waterman 0552 with flower pattern but very brassed and lost a small piece of metal at the top;
a Wahl- flat top OS with very brassed deco band and a wrong clip;
a moder duofold centenial with white-black marble pattern, but the cap has a chip-off;
a eversharp skyline all-14K model (commando?) with some dents
and this sheaffer OS with a crappy cap.

All have interesting nibs though.

I'm just back from the Philly show.
There was it was sold a very nice Snorkel with a Lifetime Triumph nib that is extremely flexible.
I think it sold for close to $400.00
It was fun to dip it and write a few lines.
Steve

Wow, considering the shape of the Triumph nib, I would like to know how they achieved flexibility on it. Since the Triumph is my all-time favorite nib style, and since I adore flex as well, that would be my holy grail pen.

I wouldn't mind seeing a flexible Lifetime nib like the one pictured above (WOW!) either.

Best,
Summer Greer

I've recently bought a little black midi sized Balance with a Fine/Extra Fine flex nib that really surprised me. The nib is much thinner than any of my other Lifetime nibs which tend to be thicker than most other brands.

Then I bought a military clip Balance that has a lovely semiflex fine Feather Touch 5 nib. They are out there but they are fairly outnumbered by the rigid nibs.

It has been my pleasure to own several (and to sell couple) high flex Balance OS Pens. They DO exist. Not at all common and command premium. I mite have a nib or two sitting around in some fairly worn OS pens. They are worth hunting. They write beautifully. Nothing spcial about the pens to identify. Just matter of hunting the one pen 100 to have the flex nib

david