Sheaffer Prelude- Zero or Hero?

[david i]

Exactly how proud should I feel to have one in my collection? The pen behaves quite well to me.

Comparisons, reviews and comments welcome here!

 

Tomorrow or so, I shall post a picture of the one i just grabbed. A very nifty variant. I like 'em. Suspect in a few years demand will grow.

 

d

[david i]

I work on pens (duh!) and therefore tend to look at things from that viewpoint.....

 

I will admit that there are glitzier pens than the Prelude, but they are an excellent pen. Solidly made, clean lines, generally good nibs, tough. The same basic nib is used in the Prelude, and Agio, with different gripping sections. While I have plenty of expensive pens, for daily use, one or another of my Preludes arewill be in the rotation.

 

The "rainbow" each of us has is pretty glitzy though

 

-d

[gregamckinney]

When these were first introduced, I thought there was only a gold-trim model. However, a pen buddy in San Diego found two with chrome-trim. I suspect that these are even harder to come by than the GT version.

Very cool-looking pens.

 

Regards, greg

[PenHero]

When these were first introduced, I thought there was only a gold-trim model. However, a pen buddy in San Diego found two with chrome-trim. I suspect that these are even harder to come by than the GT version.

Very cool-looking pens.

 

Regards, greg

 

 

There are two Rainbow Prelude models. The G/T pen was available worldwide. The N/T (nickel trim) version was only available in the UK market officially. Each rainbow pen is a PVD finish consisting of a unique swirl of the same four colors. The G/T pen has a different four color set than the N/T pen. Another bit of trivia - "Rainbow" has a very different meaning in the USA and the UK. The folks in Fort Madison found that amusing. We sold lots of Rainbow Preludes to UK customers.

 

I personally think these pens will be very collectible years from now.

 

Cheers,

 

Jim Mamoulides

www.PenHero.com

Edited August 24, 2008 by PenHero

[cjabbott]

I love my Prelude! I have F, M, and B nibs for it (the F is one of the only smaller nibs that I really like!) and I enjoy all three of them!

[Rique]

I will admit that there are glitzier pens than the Prelude, but they are an excellent pen. Solidly made, clean lines, generally good nibs, tough. The same basic nib is used in the Prelude, and Agio, with different gripping sections. While I have plenty of expensive pens, for daily use, one or another of my Preludes arewill be in the rotation.

 

+1

 

I've got 5 or 6 of them, and they are all very good. One of them needed some work on the EF nib; the rest wrote well out of the box. There's however the snag someone pointed above - they don't post very well.

The comparison between Preludes and Sonnets sounds a bit unfair to me, though; last time I saw, the prices levels were very different - the Sonnet is generally much more expensive, with gold nibs.

[Silke]

I'm glad to read this, because I think I just bought a Prelude at auction lol.

Not a clue what nib it has, and not entirely sure of the color (there was little to no description) but it looked like a nice pen - and I got it for at total of £18 including postage.

I figured I can't go wrong for that price, really. It comes in the original box and has a cartridge converter with it... What more could I ask for?

 

I'll report when I got it, and inked it, and most of all... have written with it.

 

And might I mention I blame FPN for my bank balance looking semi ropey these days because... well. Gotta have some stuffs right? Ink. Need ink. And paper. Journals. Yeah those too...

 

You people are SUCH a bad influence on me!

 

Silke

[david i]

So, here is my latest Prelude, not that the finish is such a surprise at this point

 

regards

 

david

http://removed.xyz/penteech/sheafferpreluderainbow.jpg

[skundu]

I am still looking for that almost-impossible-to-find Rainbow Prelude. I managed to find one for sale in one of the shopping centres in Singapore, but it is sold for about 85 USD. I might buy that if I still cannot find a cheaper buy.

 

purpledog

 

It took several months of watching the boards closely for one before I found a Rainbow Prelude. It was offered by Pendemonium for $70, and I was happy to have gotten one. I think the odds of you finding one for less than $85 are low. I would go get that one if I was in your shoes.

 

Regards, greg

 

Here in Bangalore, this rainbow Prelude is on some sort of clearance sale at approx $40 a piece at a local retailer - just saw it today. Didn't think too much of it until I read this thread. Considering that the Prelude is a sturdy user pen (I already have a few), I may just go back and pick up one for myself!

[Titivillus]

I think the Prelude is an excellent pen. I have one:

 

http://www.richardspens.com/images/collection/zoomed/prelude_cad_yel.jpg

 

Interestingly, the design team that created the Prelude had come from Parker, where they were responsible for the Sonnet. I've labeled the Sonnet one of the most significant pens of the 20th century because it's basically bulletproof and there are bazillions of them out there -- but the Prelude is a better pen. It just hasn't managed to develop the cachet.

 

 

Is that one of the 3 sets of oranges??

[MLKirk]

Another bit of trivia - "Rainbow" has a very different meaning in the USA and the UK. The folks in Fort Madison found that amusing. We sold lots of Rainbow Preludes to UK customers.

 

Ok, I'll bite. How do they interpret the word "rainbow" in the UK that differs from USA?

Edited September 13, 2008 by MLKirk

[minemap]

My profile picture is me with me brushed, gold accented, Sheaffer Prelude. I love it! A few reviews said the medium nib was more fine than medium, but the 18k plated stainless steel nib sure has opened up after a few weeks of writing! Definitely a solid well balanced metal pen. Oh, one thing that I dislike a bit about it is that with the cap on the back it is rather unbalanced. When the cap is off, however, you can barely feel it in your hand (despite that it's solid medium-weight). Just some of my thoughts--I'd definitely give it an A for quality and price from a well known brand.

 

Aaron