Does Anyone Have Any Paper On Loaner Pens?

[vinniekowalski]

Hi friends! I am excited that a cherry red Sheaffer Balance is winging it's way to me and was searching for info on loaner pens. Curiously, I haven't found much info on how the loaner system worked, and was interested if anybody has ever seen any paper from Sheaffer or any of the other big 4 companies on how they handled loaner pens. Did you just get any pen they decided to make a loaner? What penalty was there if the loaner was lost or broken? Etc. Thanks in advance

[mana]

Interesting question. From what I recall, loaner (or service) pens were given out as a replacement from an authorized pen repair shop for the duration of the repair. You returned the pen once the repairs to your pen were done and that was that.

As those were handed out from manufacturer authorized pen repair shops I would assume they were stocked with a number of them in select nib widths etc. to accommodate and furnish the customer with a writing instrument and experience similar enough to the one they had with the pen being repaired. Might not be the same make or model but at least a similar experience (and free advertisement for the manufacturer of the loaner/service pen).

Also assuming, if you broke or lost the pen you would have to pay a respective fee. Haven't read of any hard and fast rules about those or seen a price list for that either.

Tried to find a bit more info but found only this thread about the same subject, scant on actual information on how the "loaner system worked" though... > https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/72381-sheaffer-made-loaner-pens-anyone-else/

[Roger W.]

Interesting question. From what I recall, loaner (or service) pens were given out as a replacement from an authorized pen repair shop for the duration of the repair. You returned the pen once the repairs to your pen were done and that was that.

 

As those were handed out from manufacturer authorized pen repair shops I would assume they were stocked with a number of them in select nib widths etc. to accommodate and furnish the customer with a writing instrument and experience similar enough to the one they had with the pen being repaired. Might not be the same make or model but at least a similar experience (and free advertisement for the manufacturer of the loaner/service pen).

 

Also assuming, if you broke or lost the pen you would have to pay a respective fee. Haven't read of any hard and fast rules about those or seen a price list for that either.

 

Tried to find a bit more info but found only this thread about the same subject, scant on actual information on how the "loaner system worked" though... > https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/72381-sheaffer-made-loaner-pens-anyone-else/

I don't think an attempt was made to loan you a pen with the same writing experience. Once Sheaffer was making lifetime nibs you probably got a stiff nib no matter what your personal pen was like.

 

Roger W.

[mana]

I could very well be wrong, as in, there is no documentation nor personal experience to back my assumptions (hence, assumptions they are). That said, that is how I would have arranged it to be, this especially in the age of "one person, one pen" (with the majority of people only having a single personal writing set available).