Which of these pens is probably most durable today

[Skyp]

One sees these at pen shows and on the net all the time.

 

Parker Vacuumatic

Sheaffer Vacu-fil

Sheaffer snorkle

Sheaffer touchdown

 

Which of these, assuming they're all restored, would cause the least amount of heart ache, inky fingers and endless shipments back to a repair person... and which one would you avoid because, like the title character in the movie Hud "you just ain't no good."

 

cheers

skyp

[Maja]

I think the Sheaffer Vacu-fill would be the hardest to fix if the filling mechanism needed repairing again, due to the scarcity of spare parts.....I am interesting to hear what others have to say about which of the four would stay "fixed" the longest (ie. which one's sac or seals ---in the case of the Sheaffer Vacu-fill--- would last the longest)....

Edited November 23, 2004 by Maja

[Skyp]

I say this because I've seen the popularity of the parker vacs and have a few and with one exception they seem reliable. My sheaffer vacufil (is that the right name? Uses a plunger) has seeping problems and I've been told "well that's a problem with those". The other two, the snorkle and the touchdown, I'm THINKING of but wonder if it's just going to be a whole boatload of trouble owning one.

skyp

Edited November 23, 2004 by Skyp

[Keith with a capital K]

*He raises his head and perks up at the mention of Vacs and Snorkels*

 

Skyp -

 

All the pens you mentioned will be extremely reliable users if they have been properly restored and there are few pens tougher than a Sheaffer Vacuum Fill although getting them repaired properly is more problematic. A properly restored Sheaffer Vac is a wonderful thing.

 

You can sometimes find MIB Snorkels and Touchdowns that still function after nearly 50 years of non use so we can assume that a properly restored Snorkel or Touchdown could very well give you a lifetime of service with very little need for further servicing. Among the pens listed, I find Snorkels and Touchdowns to be the easiest to service.

 

The lifespan of a Vacumatic's diaphragm is a little less than that of a Snorkel or Touchdown as it experiences more motion and filling stresses but even a (properly) restored Vacumatic should give you a few decades of good service.

 

I think the winner here is probably the Touchdown or the Snorkel as they are made of extremely durable and high quality materials and like a Timex, they can take a licking and keep on ticking day in and day out.