Part For Jade Green Desk Pen

[karenjn]

Thanks, Roger. I looked at the Sheaffer's catalogs and tried to find a base that would be consistent with the time period of the jade/black pen, so I'm glad you approve! I don't have a lot of desk sets. My main weakness is the Lady Sheaffer's, ring top and clipless, and I do have two types of the Lenox china bases that have ladies desk pens in them.

 

The red taper is very, very cool! I haven't seen one of those before, but looking at the way it was set up in the two-pen desk set, it makes sense. LOVE the 1924 set with the red socket.

[3rdlakerobert]

Robert;

 

At the inception of desk bases in late 1924 until late 1927 would be the date range. Any early double base exhibiting a red ringed socket would be correct. My pen stuck in a #10 is not really correct. I do have a #19 on a desk lamp (this is the double for a #10) has a red rimmed socket.

 

I was just looking in the Sheaffer Sport Trophy Desk Sets catalog (PCA Library). Many of the dual-socket sets are shown with mixed sockets: one red, one black. Some pens shown in red-rimmed sockets have red tapers, however mostly they are black. Maybe the company was using color to differentiate between the sockets in a dual-socket set for some reason???

 

Anyway, now I'm thinking red-rimmed sockets may be more common than red-taper pens. I need to find a red-rimmed socket.

[Roger W.]

Robert;

 

Let me add to the confusion. They got more subtle through the years and went to two red diamonds on the inside lip of the socket opposite one another. You would also think that the second socket might be for a pencil. I went many years before I found my first desk pencil. So the double is sometimes meant for a red pen but sometimes just two pens.

 

Roger W.

[3rdlakerobert]

Looking further, I note that Sheaffer catalogs before 1928 often show a bottle of red ink next to the red-rimmed socket and black ink next to the other. Maybe they determined a lot of people use red ink (though the market had yet to crash).

[Lazard 20]

 

Maybe the company was using color to differentiate between the sockets in a dual-socket set for some reason???

 

 

The reason is easier and it isn´t for pencils preciselly: this desk set(*) was designed for millions of bookkeepers at that time from the standard accounting practice of using red ink to denote negative values, especially a net loss.

 

Regardless of the color of your fountain pen (both could be same color: black, e.g.) one of the pens should be filled with blue, black or similar color ink for dates, concepts and creditor sums and you must taking the fountain pen filled with red ink for debtor sums, outstanding notes and, specially in those resulting balances debtors. A simple minus sign couldn´t be perceived, on contrary color red underlines more strongly.

 

The color of the socket or taper was to distinguish what fountain pen which you must take on the desk set every moment. It's enough look with the eyes of an accountant, until 4 or 5 decades ago, and you'll see extreme design utility of these sockets and tapers differentiated.

 

(*) There was with the socket black/red but also with simple socket bands of tapers those same colors.

 

http://s15.postimg.org/pxomp82bf/Sheaffer_socket_Lazard_black_red.jpg

http://s18.postimg.org/co1kl2109/Sheaffer_socket_Lazard_book_black_red.jpg

Edited April 13, 2016 by Lazard 20

[3rdlakerobert]

Lazard,

 

So from their introduction in 1924 until maybe 1928 or 9, Sheaffer saw their desk set customer as a businessman. Their adverts all mention the red-trimmed sockets. Sometime in this period they also made a red-taper desk pen. They did make a fancy jade taper pen too, for the less business-oriented customer.

 

In about 1928 they introduced desk-lamp pen sets and sets with bases of fancy material like marble. In 1930 they expanded the desk set line significantly with still more choices in fancy bases and more lamps. They print a catalog dedicated just to desk sets. Now the red-trimmed sockets are gone. The marketing is aiming for the average person.

 

By 1936 they have added clocks and perpetual calendars, and after the war they bring out the Trophy desk sets with bronze cast hunting and sporting figures: dogs, sailboats, waterfowl, etc. This must have been a successful line, because it was greatly expanded in short order.

 

Edit to add:

 

Rereading my own Post 22 I see I referred to the 1925-1930 Sports Trophy Desk Set catalog, which I seem to have ignored in this review of the catalogs. The fancy sets were in fact available almost from the beginning. The regular catalogs (reviewed above) seem to omit the fancy desk sets; or perhaps the regular catalogs of the 1930s, the Depression years, and the early 40s, the war years, omit the fancy sets because of changes in marketing goals.

Edited April 13, 2016 by Robert111

[Lazard 20]

 

The reason is easier and it isn´t for pencils preciselly: this desk set(*) was designed for millions of bookkeepers at that time from the standard accounting practice of using red ink to denote negative values, especially a net loss.

 

Regardless of the color of your fountain pen (both could be same color: black, e.g.) one of the pens should be filled with blue, black or similar color ink for dates, concepts and creditor sums and you must taking the fountain pen filled with red ink for debtor sums, outstanding notes and, specially in those resulting balances debtors. A simple minus sign couldn´t be perceived, on contrary color red underlines more strongly.

 

The color of the socket or taper was to distinguish what fountain pen which you must take on the desk set every moment. It's enough look with the eyes of an accountant, until 4 or 5 decades ago, and you'll see extreme design utility of these sockets and tapers differentiated.

 

 

An original and intelligent antecedent from c. 1910; Two in one, one RBHR, other BHR.

 

 

During the 20s.

 

Edited October 4, 2016 by Lazard 20