Swap And Rotate Prelude And Signature Nibs?

[iannl]

Hi everyone,

 

Can anyone tell me if I can remove and rotate a Prelude nib? Stephen Brown demonstrated that, with care, a nib and feed can be removed for cleaning, but he replaced it in the same orientation.

 

Are the nib and feed keyed in the housing? In which case, I cannot rotate the nib to suit my grip. Alternatively, could I fit an oblique italic, if the nib and feed are not keyed?

 

Next, is the 14K gold nib on a Signature pen identical to the Prelude? In which case, could I fit a gold nib into the Prelude, with the sculpted grip?

 

Finally, does a Prelude grip section fit properly into a Signature barrel and cap, so that the snap cap fits properly?

 

Many thanks for your help everyone, IannL

[Ron Z]

The Prelude nibs and feeds aren't keyed, so you have to pay attention to the orientation relative to the flats on the section when you put it them in. Sheaffer used the same feed in several pens, so you would think that you could swap nibs between pens. But the steel nibs of the Prelude are steel and are thicker than the gold nibs, so the ID of the section is a bit bigger. If you try to put a gold nib in place of a steel one in the same section, the nib may be too loose. Not to say that it will, but that has been the case with other modern Sheaffers in which I've tried it.

[iannl]

Many thanks Ron,

 

For a prompt and informative reply: much appreciated. Based on that, I will buy a Prelude, for its sculpted section; but not a Signature, which has a round section.

 

Some of my favourite pens have sculpted sections, which help me to orientate the nib precisely. One of the best is a Parker 75, for which I have several Type 1 nibs ground at unusual angles. For instance, an asymmetric architect, or an extreme oblique italic. These nibs require to be rotated in the section, for the correct orientation to the paper.

 

I was looking for a more modern pen with similar capabilities. The Prelude would appear to be suitable, so I will experiment with it. Of course, the variety of modern nibs is far fewer than for the Parker 75, but c'est la vie!

 

Many thanks for your help.

 

Best regards, IanL