I have this group of Sheaffer pens I've bought over the years, and really am not certain if they are Sheaffer Varga's or something else.

Can anyone help me give them a sur-name?

Many thanks.

Zoe

Look like regular and slim Targas. Opps maybe not on the bottom one, the nib is different. Nice Pens!

Thanks. I am thinking of selling these but don't know their value, and wasn't certain they were Vargas. I'll have to photograph that odd one so the nib is more prominent.

#4 is a Sheaffer Fashion, or a TRZ. Not a high end, like the other ones.
Targas are rather sought for, and prices range from the $50s to the low $100, depending on how well the pen is preserved.

Many thanks, julikko. I don't think it is a TRZ, but will post another photo to make certain. Someone here had one of those to sell and I think I looked at it to see if it was familiar.

I never heard of the Fashion, thanks for that lead.

These pens are in good condition. I have just so many hands, and these have been sitting idle.

I have a TRZ in my hand but can't provide a photo as I haven't a camera where I am. Mine is matte grey, and it matches the style right down to the nib and the gold, except there is no writing around the base of the cap, and as I can't see the clip there's no way to tell if it matches. The only place it says Sheaffer is very lightly around the base of the matching pencil, where 'SHEAFFER USA' is printed. If it was ever on the grey FP, it's worn off. The nib is clean of writing.

My TRZ has a "bent clip" style. The bend occurs about 1/3 down the clip. Can you post a photo of the clip? Also, a TRZ is very slender..

Perhaps what you have is a Fashion II pen, but mine don't have writing around the bottom of their cap either. The nibs say SHEAFFER up the nib, and their clips are straight (without writing). They're slender but not skinny (really technical terms, I know... sorry).

Of course, someone here who is an expert in Sheaffers will come along in five minutes to tell you exactly what it is. That's what's so great about this place. Someone knows everything.

Hi there,

I think all the Targas are the full-size version. Sooner or later Bill S. will look in to correct me, but I'll take a stab at model IDs. Top to bottom:

1001: Brushed chrome, chrome trim, steel nib. (Possibly a 1001x, which has a gold-plated clip instead of a chrome clip - I can't tell from the photo.)

1001xg: Brushed chrome, gold-plated trim, gold nib.

1003: Matte black, gold-plated trim, gold nib.

I do believe Julikko is right; I think the bottom pen is a TRZ. I don't think the gold-plated Fashion I had that black top "jewel" (but I may be misremembering). A look at the clip would be helpful.

The Targas are certainly desirable pens - the gold-nibbed models more than the steel-nibbed models, of course. The TRZ is a sort of stepchild, but it's a fine pen in its own right (and they're usually really good writers).

Always nice to see a Sheaffer family portrait!

Cheers,

Jon

I've been out of town for a week or so and didn't get to this thread immediately. (Just got home at 5:00 this evening.) So here I am looking in but not to correct you. There's nothing to correct, you're spot on. I agree that a look at the clips on the top and bottom pens should really nail down the IDs on those two.

I got lost in some snafu on line and couldn't get back online here.

I found two more Shaeffers in my goose gaggle and will shoot some more photographs to see if they can all be identified with the caps visible and prominent and post them this weekend.

Many thanks all,

Zoe

Whats a "Varga"?

Here's is a photo of the 3 larger Shaeffers:



And here are the two smaller, slimmer Shaeffers (I found the silver one yesterday). These are marked on their cap: Shaeffer and the material.



And, last but not least, here is an older Shaeffer (piston-filler) that I also don't have a name for or its pedigree.



Many thanks to all.

Zoe,
The center pen in the top photo in your newest post is definitely a Targa model 1001 as Jon (Univer) had previously guessed. (A 1001X would have had a gold clip, not a chrome clip.)

The two slimmer pens are positively TRZ models, the clip shape on those is most distinctive.

We need another clue or two on the last one. When you unscrew the "blind cap" (the cap at the end opposite the nib) and pull it out, is it attached to a thin rod, or a thick tube? If it's a thin rod then you have a vacuum filler. A thick tube indicates either a Touchdown or a Snorkel filler. With the cap and tube still extended, look under the nib. If there is a little tube that extended out under the nib as the blind cap was turned to loosen it, the pen is a Snorkel. If not, it's either a Touchdown or, possibly, a broken Snorkel that doesn't Snork.

It looks too thick for a snorkel.... it is most likely a 1949 "Fat" Touchdown. Plus the writing on the nib isn't consistent with how the Snorkel nibs are. It might even be an earlier vac-fil.

Many thanks again for some clarifications.

The fat boy, although I believe he will resent this name, is not snorkeling.

I came home very late from a Tony Bennett concert (my first here) and looked carefully. I can post another photograph.

I pulled out what I referred to as the "piston" and it comes out smoothly and has a metal pin (or narrow rod) behind the barrel's back cap (where the piston is).

Zoe

Well then it is in fact a Vac-Fil. I wasn't sure, but Touchdowns and Snorkels had Sheaffer's written on the nib straight and horizontal. The Vac-Fil I believe have Sheaffer's Written on a arc, like your nib.

Does the Vac-Fill have another name?

And I now see my error in title, Varga vs. Targa.

Take a look here at Richards Website.

http://www.richardspens.com/ref_info/anatomy-vacfil.htm

Yes, indeed, this is exactly how this pen fills and it does have a transparent section that is not easy to see because of its colour--otherwise, Richard's description appears to be dead on for this pen. Fat, vacu-filled and all.

Many thanks, grimakis. I apprecate the information very much.

Keep in mind, these pens often show up in non working order, and must be restored by a competent repair person.

I recommend:

Ron Zorn @ http://www.mainstreetpens.com

OR

Richard Binder @ http://www.richardspens.com

Both are authorized Vintage Sheaffer Repair Centers, and I can recommend them for their fine work and top notch service.

Again thanks for recommendations. The pen has been with me, and didn't show up except in my pen drawer.

It is unlikely I will modify or repair this pen. If anything it may need to be sold. I have too many pens, and my children recently informed me they are "not" fountain pen people.

Just a quick "heads up" to the Sheaffer folks here that I am going to put the 3 Targas and the TRZs up for sale here on the market place or on the 'bay this month. I wanted to give you 1st dibs if anyone is interested in making an offer.

Thanks.

Zoe

FYI - All the Sheaffer pens were sold on the market place. I only have two Sheaffer ballpoints left (I forgot about them.): D

Zoe