Levenger Seas Tasman--Fair Value?

[FloridaMike]

So I saw one of the elusive Levenger Seas Tasman pens on "that auction site" over the weekend. I knew it would go for a premium, since it's much more rare than it's brethren, and this one ended up going for $500+. Too much? Just right? A steal?

 

What say you, FPN?

[Bennett]

Yes I saw that unbelievable auction result as well. In my view, quite overpriced. These pens come up on eBay quite frequently and on average go for about $110. While the turquoise color does not come up that often, I can't imagine paying five times that going rate just to get that version. The Sheaffer Levenger Sea pens are good, but not that good. I also see this Sheaffer pen at various pen show tables going for about $100 to $150. On the other hand, I understand that someone might get a little over excited about getting that one pen to complete a collection. Curious if anyone else on FPN might share a story about an auction frenzy that resulted in a purchase way beyond the current value of the pen. My guess is that every true fountain pen fan can be tempted to overindulge given an offer to obtain a pen that has been the object of long quest.

[FloridaMike]

Yes I saw that unbelievable auction result as well. In my view, quite overpriced. These pens come up on eBay quite frequently and on average go for about $110. While the turquoise color does not come up that often, I can't imagine paying five times that going rate just to get that version. The Sheaffer Levenger Sea pens are good, but not that good. I also see this Sheaffer pen at various pen show tables going for about $100 to $150. On the other hand, I understand that someone might get a little over excited about getting that one pen to complete a collection. Curious if anyone else on FPN might share a story about an auction frenzy that resulted in a purchase way beyond the current value of the pen. My guess is that every true fountain pen fan can be tempted to overindulge given an offer to obtain a pen that has been the object of long quest.

 

 

I have seen also that the other colors in the series go for an about $125-ish, and come up frequently. This particular color is so much more rare—Dennis Bowden once called it the "Yeti" before he found one—that made me wonder if the scarcity of the color and the possibility of completing a set was worth a 500% premium over the others.

[Procyon]

Yes I saw that unbelievable auction result as well. In my view, quite overpriced. These pens come up on eBay quite frequently and on average go for about $110. While the turquoise color does not come up that often, I can't imagine paying five times that going rate just to get that version. The Sheaffer Levenger Sea pens are good, but not that good. I also see this Sheaffer pen at various pen show tables going for about $100 to $150. On the other hand, I understand that someone might get a little over excited about getting that one pen to complete a collection. Curious if anyone else on FPN might share a story about an auction frenzy that resulted in a purchase way beyond the current value of the pen. My guess is that every true fountain pen fan can be tempted to overindulge given an offer to obtain a pen that has been the object of long quest.

 

 

I can guarantee you will not see this pen for sale at shows for $150. All the other colors, yes. This color is very rare. I have had my saved searches on eBay set for it for over a year, and this is the first one I have seen on the Bay. I have all the other "Seas" colors, and this would complete the collection.

 

By the way, I finished second in the auction. I thought it might take as much as $500 to win it, so I bid $512 as a maximum bid. Because of the way the automatic bidding works, you can tell the winner's max bid was only 56 cents more than mine. I was hoping to get it for less, but would have been happy to get it for my bid.

Edited November 16, 2011 by Procyon

[FloridaMike]

Yes I saw that unbelievable auction result as well. In my view, quite overpriced. These pens come up on eBay quite frequently and on average go for about $110. While the turquoise color does not come up that often, I can't imagine paying five times that going rate just to get that version. The Sheaffer Levenger Sea pens are good, but not that good. I also see this Sheaffer pen at various pen show tables going for about $100 to $150. On the other hand, I understand that someone might get a little over excited about getting that one pen to complete a collection. Curious if anyone else on FPN might share a story about an auction frenzy that resulted in a purchase way beyond the current value of the pen. My guess is that every true fountain pen fan can be tempted to overindulge given an offer to obtain a pen that has been the object of long quest.

 

 

I can guarantee you will not see this pen for sale at shows for $150. All the other colors, yes. This color is very rare. I have had my saved searches on eBay set for it for over a year, and this is the first one I have seen on the Bay. I have all the other "Seas" colors, and this would complete the collection.

 

By the way, I finished second in the auction. I thought it might take as much as $500 to win it, so I bid $512 as a maximum bid. Because of the way the automatic bidding works, you can tell the winner's max bid was only 56 cents more than mine. I was hoping to get it for less, but would have been happy to get it for my bid.

 

 

Ah, terrible luck. Sorry to hear you missed out—and only by a little.

[Bennett]

Procyon:

 

So sorry to hear that you lost out on the bid for the turquoise version of the Seas pen. But here are a few thoughts and suggestions to give you hope in your search:

 

If the turquoise version has become rare, in my view, it is a recent phenomenon. How do I know? I purchased a used turquoise Seas set (fountain and roller ball) on eBay in 2009 for $72. A year later at the 2010 DC Supershow, I remember a gentleman who had a huge collection of Sheaffer New Old Stock, and I recall he had several trays worth of Sea pens, including a number of the Turquoise version (selling for about $150). If someone reading this post knows the vendor, please contact Procyon with that information so that he might track him down.

 

You may have already done this but the other tip I have is to expand your eBay searches. Sometimes the Sea pens will come up for auction on eBay without any reference to "Levenger" in the subject title. That's how I was able to find the ones I purchased.

 

Finally, I bet you that given the winning bid result on the eBay auction that just occurred, it won't be long before other turquoise owners out there decide to sell their pens in the hope of landing a similar big figure. So, be patient, I suspect that your search will soon come to an end. All the best to you.

[DrPJM1]

Procyon:

I am still waiting for a pen I saw 3 years ago with my very own initials, but I just bought a pen I had seen 5 years ago and didn't. There is hope!

[OcalaFlGuy]

Procyon:

 

If the turquoise version has become rare, in my view, it is a recent phenomenon. How do I know? I purchased a used turquoise Seas set (fountain and roller ball) on eBay in 2009 for $72. A year later at the 2010 DC Supershow, I remember a gentleman who had a huge collection of Sheaffer New Old Stock, and I recall he had several trays worth of Sea pens, including a number of the Turquoise version (selling for about $150). If someone reading this post knows the vendor, please contact Procyon with that information so that he might track him down.

 

 

I saw the same vendor at Atlanta in '10 and 11 and Miami in '10. I would suspect if you contact the show organizers they can tell you how to contact them. They can't be mistaken for any other vendor, no one else had that much modern NOS Sheaffer stuff at the shows I saw them at.

 

I was looking at buying two of the dark Blue Meds one for me with a factory stub and the other for a FPNer friend but they wouldn't dicker on the prices. Plus, I'd just had Mike Masuyama CI my Baby Ocean Blue M600 and combined with the set in stone price on the Med, the two were just too close to each other. I don't specifically recall the Turquose one but they sure may have had it, they had all the other Med colors with most all the usually available nibs they would swap out on them.

 

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[FloridaMike]

A year later at the 2010 DC Supershow, I remember a gentleman who had a huge collection of Sheaffer New Old Stock, and I recall he had several trays worth of Sea pens, including a number of the Turquoise version (selling for about $150). If someone reading this post knows the vendor, please contact Procyon with that information so that he might track him down.

 

Also, me, please.

 

Thanks for the info.

[Procyon]

Procyon:

 

So sorry to hear that you lost out on the bid for the turquoise version of the Seas pen. But here are a few thoughts and suggestions to give you hope in your search:

 

If the turquoise version has become rare, in my view, it is a recent phenomenon. How do I know? I purchased a used turquoise Seas set (fountain and roller ball) on eBay in 2009 for $72. A year later at the 2010 DC Supershow, I remember a gentleman who had a huge collection of Sheaffer New Old Stock, and I recall he had several trays worth of Sea pens, including a number of the Turquoise version (selling for about $150). If someone reading this post knows the vendor, please contact Procyon with that information so that he might track him down.

 

You may have already done this but the other tip I have is to expand your eBay searches. Sometimes the Sea pens will come up for auction on eBay without any reference to "Levenger" in the subject title. That's how I was able to find the ones I purchased.

 

Finally, I bet you that given the winning bid result on the eBay auction that just occurred, it won't be long before other turquoise owners out there decide to sell their pens in the hope of landing a similar big figure. So, be patient, I suspect that your search will soon come to an end. All the best to you.

 

 

Really appreciate your info. My search on eBay is very general and I only have "Levenger" included as an option, so I am pretty sure I haven't missed any. I actually did purchase a Tasman ballpoint recently on eBay, but that is really not what I am interested in (it was cheap). I really only care about the fountain pen, and the recent auction is the only one I have seen.

 

I kick myself for not buying this pen when it was originally offered for sale by Levenger. I received their catalogs at the time, and bought all the previous "Seas" pens. That was the time that I decided I was more interested in vintage pens - so I never got around to buying the Tasman. Later on, I realized how much I liked these pens, and wished that I had bought it. I always keep one of the "Seas" pens inked in my rotation - even though I have a large collection of vintage Waterman's, Parker's, Wahl-Eversharps's, Sheaffer's, and Conklin's.

 

You are probably right about the recent auction results bringing out more Tasman's for sale. I really thought, when I first saw the auction, that I would probably be able to get it for $300 or so. As the auction proceeded, it became clear that that was not a possibility. Anyway, I will bide my time, and investigate some of the options mentioned by you and other posters here.

 

Thanks very much to all of you for your information!

[Doug1426]

I got very interested in the Sheaffer Connaisseur lines a few years ago thanks to Dennis Bowden. I found a NOS Tasman FP and paid what I thought was a premium price at the time of $185. I still think that the $200 range is about the right price for that pen. Regardless, I consider that I was pretty fortunate, and it was purely by luck.

 

FWIW I saw another recent auction where a somewhat elusive,but far from rare Pelikan City Series Athens FP sold for something north of $500. The Athens FP doesn't turn up for sale that often, but I think its "rarity" in the Pelikan City series is about on par with the Tasman in the Connaisseur series. A decent market price for the Athens would be in the $300 range.

 

If someone does turn up the name of the vendor being discussed previously, I would also appreciate the info, as I am looking for a few of the other non-Seas FPs.

[OcalaFlGuy]

It must be alot harder to Google the Atlanta and Miami pen shows and hit the "contact the organizer" tab than I thought it'd be...

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

[FloridaMike]

It must be alot harder to Google the Atlanta and Miami pen shows and hit the "contact the organizer" tab than I thought it'd be...

 

Bruce in Ocala, Fl

 

 

Unfortunately, the organizers of the Atlanta Pen Show have no idea who that dealer is. (And, their web site doesn't list them. Terrible.)

[FloridaMike]

As an update, another of these came up on eBay (described as "blue/green" with a terribly dark picture).

 

I won the auction and it just arrived today—in gorgeous condition.

 

Best part is, due to the description and the photo, the winning bid for this one was far less than the other one in thread.

 

I can';t get a good picture now, but I'll post later. I'm still over the moon on this one.

[Doug1426]

As an update, another of these came up on eBay (described as "blue/green" with a terribly dark picture).

 

I won the auction and it just arrived today—in gorgeous condition.

 

Best part is, due to the description and the photo, the winning bid for this one was far less than the other one in thread.

 

I can';t get a good picture now, but I'll post later. I'm still over the moon on this one.

 

 

Congratulations, you got a great deal. I was following that auction out of curiosity. Besides, my dog would not allow me to bid when she saw where the proceeds were going.

[Barry Gabay]

Believe the dealer in question is Jim Rause, formerly of Bertram's Inkwell, and presently or formerly a Sheaffer rep. Jim is a real gentleman with fair prices. I remember those trays and trays of Seas Pens, including the turquoise ones, at several shows. Don't believe Jim has many Seas Pens of any color left. Don't known how to reach him, but he may be a member of FPN.

[FloridaMike]

Believe the dealer in question is Jim Rause, formerly of Bertram's Inkwell, and presently or formerly a Sheaffer rep. Jim is a real gentleman with fair prices. I remember those trays and trays of Seas Pens, including the turquoise ones, at several shows. Don't believe Jim has many Seas Pens of any color left. Don't known how to reach him, but he may be a member of FPN.

 

This seller was not Jim Rause. But he shipped fast, shipped securely, and sent me a pen that was in better condition than he promised. (Really, it's near-mint, although technically "used.")

[OcalaFlGuy]

Believe the dealer in question is Jim Rause, formerly of Bertram's Inkwell, and presently or formerly a Sheaffer rep. Jim is a real gentleman with fair prices. I remember those trays and trays of Seas Pens, including the turquoise ones, at several shows. Don't believe Jim has many Seas Pens of any color left. Don't known how to reach him, but he may be a member of FPN.

 

It was my impression also that he had a solid connection with Sheaffer somehow. He has/had an incredible amount of NOS pens And Sheaffer banners and other corporate marketing schwag.

 

I would mostly agree with the fair prices review but my experience has been that his prices are Firm. Even at the magic 2 hour before the end of the show time.

 

I saw his Sea pens at 3 shows in 2 years. At Atlanta almost 3 years ago is when he had all the colors and even had some factory Stub nibs to put in them. When I saw him in Atlanta last year, his Sea supply was almost gone. I came very close to getting the dark Blue on with a Stub but as I'd just had my nearly the same Pel Baby Ocean Blue ground to the ultimate sublimness by Mike Masuyama, I was hesitant to spend the money on such a similar looking pen. Looking back, that was probably a mistake. I should have gotten one of those Stubs in another color Sea pen. Oh well, that's a pen buying error I can live with.

 

Bruce in Ocala, FL

[sumgaikid]

Just started collecting the Connaisseur/Seas fountain pens and have

only seen one of the teal Tasman fountain pens on fleabay in the last

few months(January?). That one went for just over $250,and it had the

previous owner's name imprinted into the cap.

 

 

John

[queenofpens]

Curious if anyone else on FPN might share a story about an auction frenzy that resulted in a purchase way beyond the current value of the pen. My guess is that every true fountain pen fan can be tempted to overindulge given an offer to obtain a pen that has been the object of long quest.

 

Wow, I wanted others of the Seas at the time - except maybe the yellow - but determined I could only afford the blue one which was close to the first, if not the first. I still have it, and have not used it in a while. I remember I liked it and the way it wrote, but I still think there are other pens I want more than to collect the whole series of these now.

 

As for the request for a story about an overindulgence when an auction got out of hand, a few months ago I started with the minimum bid on a vintage Pelikan student pen (NOS) just because I was bidding on another one from the same seller that I initially liked better and the overseas postage would cover buying two at the same time.

 

In the final days of the auction, I looked closer at the second pen and saw that what had first looked like random swirls of strange colors (sort of Pucci like design) actually had music symbols embedded in the very jazzy design.

 

I am a lifelong amateur pianist, and started as a jazz pianist, so I became convinced that pen belonged in my collection. And someone else was bidding on it.

 

I had lost other pens I liked on the final day and the other bidder kept overbidding me. I finally got it in the last minute for $50, much more than I had planned to spend on a student pen of that vintage.

 

I don't know why the other bidder wanted it so badly - maybe he or she was also a musician.

 

Sometimes it's personal and an object is more valuable to a particular bidder for emotional reasons.

Edited May 15, 2013 by queenofpens