Sheaffer Targa

[DRP]

One idea that I've found useful for cleaning pens is to fill a small glass with cool or cold water (a two shot type shot glass found in any tourist area) is ideal for the purpose. Rinse the nib section with cool water then drop the nib section into the shot glass so that the point is down. Soak overnight.

 

In the morning, you can expect to find a pool of colored water at the bottom of the shot glass -- which is good news.

 

Repeat if necessary.

 

Your Targa should be good as new.

 

As for the cartridges, they should be available at most office supply stores. If your converter has started leaking because of dry rot, replacements are available from several sources including several members of FPN. Try Pen Hero or place a request for information in the Marketplace. There is no charge for this. I've used it to find things before. People are quite helpful.

[dandelion]

This is probably the best pen review I've ever read. I'm a newbie here, but have wrote with FPs almost since I've learned to write (in the mid-thirties now) and I really like your historical (and very poetic) description of the Madison plant. It might seem odd to parallell this "great plains american" spirit of functionality with something in Europe, but what you describe resembles very much with the mentality in the north of Sweden (almost half of the country). There (my father's relatives lives there) they don't have your great plains, but rather deep forests with lumber and mining industry in a climate with harsh, unforgiving winters, where the priority is the same as in the great plains: it must WORK and therefore be both clever and simple at the same time. No fuss. The over all priority is the function and I find a lot of beauty in that. Your review gave a great perspective, not only of the Targas, but of all of the classical Sheaffer pens. Thank you very much! All the best/Petra

 

One forum recently posed the question: if you could have one pen -- only one pen -- what would it be?

 

That started me thinking. What pen would be good enough to last me the rest of my life?

 

I reached the conclusion that a pen I've been carrying for a quarter century would be my choice. A Sheaffer Targa.

 

Any pen deserving that kind of commendation deserves a good review

Sheaffer made dozens of different models during the years it was produced: mid-1970s into the 1990s. There were brass ones, silver ones, gold ones, lacquer ones, and pens in numerous colors with a variety of finishes.

 

There were also big ones and thin ones. Most were full sized pens but the slim Targas were every bit as good as the full sized models.

 

My Sheaffer Targa is a full sized pen. It's one of the gold plated models (or "gold filled"). I'm not going to show a photo because it would reveal various dents, nicks, and wear appropriate to a pen which has undergone years of heavy use.

 

Yet, the heavy use reveals the Targa's most appealing attribute: it's durable. I use it everywhere and for everything -- almost everything, anyway. It stays in my pocket or clipped to a sweatshirt.

 

The Sheaffer Targa is an exercise in understated elegance. In a business meeting, it quietly tells all that its user is serious. It goes with me to the hardware store when I'm wearing torn jeans and an old sweatshirt. Nothing quite like signing a check with a gold fountain pen. I can't count the number of store clerks who have commented on my pen ("Can I see that? Way cool!")

 

And, durability. Did I mention durability? I keep my Sheaffer Targa with me almost all the time. One time I was up on a ladder and needed to mark some drywall board. Did I have a pencil with me? No. A Bic? No. I had my gold Sheaffer so I marked the drywall with it.

 

Is a gold fountain pen damaged by marking drywall? Maybe. Maybe not. Sheaffer's iridium point is tough. My gold Sheaffer seemed to call out, "I can mark drywall or anything else you can bring on. Try me!"

 

I'm not looking for tests but my gold Sheaffer Targa doesn't run away from a challenge, either.

 

Sheaffer Targas were made in Fort Madison, Iowa by farm people. Some of them make pens by day and go home to their farms at night. Farmers understand functionality. That's just the way it is on the great plains of America.

 

The trains go right by Sheaffer's plant in Fort Madison. Amtrak's remnants of the legendary Santa Fe Super Chief still slip by before taking the curve to cross the Mississippi River on the longest swing span bridge in the world.

 

Kathy & I rode the train recently to Chicago to have dinner at the Berghoff before it closes. Rode right by the Sheaffer plant. Just a few cars in the lot in the daylight. At night, the neon sign on the roof with the white dot above the name is dark. Building doesn't look like they put too much money into maintenance, either.

 

Before long, Sheaffer's quality will be like the superlative service aboard the Super Chief. Just a memory.

 

On the Super Chief, service was unequaled. Silver finger bowls were served after each meal and after every fruit course. Remember that. There may be a quiz at the end of this review.

 

Sheaffer Targas were hard to beat, as well. Targas had nice, smooth, gold nibs. You could write your postcards in the Super Chief's Turquoise Room with a Sheaffer Targa and feel like the world was in proper balance. I did.

 

You can still get a Sheaffer Targa while they are still out there. Some stores still have them. I just bought two from a book store that closed when the owner decided to retire. The bid places like Ebay have them, too, and for prices which are quite reasonable.

 

Think like a midwesterner. Value for the price. Then use a Sheaffer Targa every day. It's a joy.

 

A joy? Why, you ask?

 

Quality.

 

Sheaffer Targa pens are made of brass. Nibs are mostly gold. The nice, inlaid gold nibs that Sheaffer made in abundance. Lots of variety still available. Fine, medium, bold, stub, you name it. Some Sheaffer Targa probably had anything you could think of on some model or another.

 

The balance of a Sheaffer Targa is wonderful. I like mine posted. Nice balance.

 

The nibs? Delicious. I'm handling my pen as I write this. Smooth.

 

Nibs? A bit of flexibility. Not too soft; not too hard.

 

I've tried different inks with different pens and different nibs. The pen which consistently writes flawlessly with any ink is my Sheaffer Targa. Not too much ink. Not too little. Good flow. Steady.

 

The slim Targa is a remarkably light pen considering that it is made of brass. Not a lot of ink capacity, however. The slim cartridges are no longer made. Sheaffer's converter for the slim Targas holds a fair amount of ink, however.

 

The full sized Targa can either use Sheaffer's ubiquitous cartridges or almost any converter Sheaffer ever made (almost; remember that: almost, but not every). Sheaffer's converters for the Targa holds plenty of ink. Capacity isn't great compared to some of the piston-fillers that other manufacturers produce but then again, them other pens ain't got no converter, either.

 

I sort of like having a converter. If I run out of ink while traveling, I just keep a couple of cartridges with me. Pull the converter out. Stick a cartridge in.

 

The Sheaffer Targa thus represents a wonderful compromise. Perhaps other pens write with a more smooth nib or a more flexible nib. But, try marking drywall with them.

 

The Sheaffer Targa doesn't have as much ink capacity as some other pens. But, what happens if you run out of ink while you're on the road?

 

The Sheaffer Targa is a bit heavy or a bit thick for some users, but then again, there is a slim Targa to match your liking.

 

I have other pens to write Christmas cards but I wouldn't take them to work.

 

I have other pens to go with me to business meetings but I wouldn't take them with me to the hardware store.

 

The Sheaffer Targa isn't the perfect pen, but then again, what is?

 

The Sheaffer Targa is my idea for a great overall pen -- that does it all. And, does it all quite well.

 

Get one while you can. I did and I wouldn't have it any other way.

 

Okay, I mentioned a quiz. Here it is:

 

1) You've ordered a baked apple with cream as one of your breakfast selections aboard the Super Chief. Should you expect a silver finger bowl to be presented when you finish?

 

2) Your Sheaffer Targa needs ink and you've not finished writing post cards while riding the Super Chief past Sheaffer's plant. Where is the plant? What color of ink should you use? Must you use a bottle or can you use a cartridge? How can you clean your pen if you've been using a different color?

 

3) Can I still buy a Sheaffer Targa?

 

Answers:

 

1) Of course a silver finger bowl is served! Although a baked apple is a fruit, you would not expect to be presented with a finger bowl for a course ordinarily eaten with a spoon and not requiring fingers to be used. However, because your baked apple is the last course at breakfast, a finger bowl will always be offered.

 

2) Sheaffer's plant is in Fort Madison, where W. A. Sheaffer had his jewelry store. The plant faces the mighty Mississippi River, right above the Santa Fe tracks. Your ink selection? Turquoise ink, in honor of the Super Chief's private dining room, the Turquoise Room. A Sheaffer Targa can accept either bottled ink in the converter or in a cartridge. You can clean your pen in the washstand which is located in each Pullman room of the Super Chief.

 

3) Not only can you buy a Sheaffer Targa but you should! American made quality and elegance are rapidly disappearing. Get one while you can. You will not be disappointed.

 

David

 

[ku5165]

just out of curiosity, is there such a thing as a sheaffer targa with a flexible nib or a music nib?

[zellan13]

I have what I think is an "unusual" Targa. While it's a standard brushed aluminum pen much like the first fountain pen I bought a lot of years ago, on this one has the flags of America & China on a white (enamel?) background on top of the cap.

 

The friend who gave me the pen once worked for the International Trade Administration in the US Dept of Commerce. The note accompanying the pen says, these pens were "to be gifts to Chinese Dignitaries in the first exhibit Commerce did in Beijing." Bill was scheduled to work the show but changed jobs shortly before and didn't go; he kept one of the pens as a souvenir. He didn't recall the exact year, but I thnk it was about 1972 or 1973.

[Pen4Fan2]

How do I remove the Targa filling system to cleanout the dried ink. I have a Targa that will not fill. I believe the reason is, that there is dried ink that need to cleaned out. Please advise.

Thank you,

Dino

[ac12]

Dino,

Unscrew the body of the pen from the front.

Pull out the cartridge or converter. *

As said above, get a tall shot glass, place a pad of tissue on the bottom, put the section of the pen in the glass, nib down.

Fill with water, and leave to soak overnight, in the morning, change the inky water and tissue, and repeat the soaking.

Keep doing this till the water comes out clean.

 

* if he cartridge or converter cannot be removed with gentle force, do NOT pull hard. Dry ink may have cemented it in place.

In this case, soak the front of the pen, with the converter or cartridge attached. Water level to be above the threads of the pen so water can get into the gap between the pen and the cartridge or converter.

When you change the water rinse the part of the pen where the cartridge or converter goes into the pen, ink should wash out when you do this.

Repeat until the cartridge or converter can be easily removed.

[panna]

David, that was a beautiful piece of American history and culture that I've not encountered since I read a Steinbeck novel. I was wondering, how do I make sure the Targa Slim being sold on ebay or other websites is genuine?

[trauha]

just out of curiosity, is there such a thing as a sheaffer targa with a flexible nib or a music nib?

 

Yes. Here is mine. No railroading with Aurora Black. Not much pressure needed to get it wide. When going 'north east' aka moving the pen in a 1:30 p.m. direction the line becomes quite fine. Out of curiosity - does anyone else have one?

 

 

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/56901019@N05/15707509255/

 

 

Edited November 4, 2014 by trauha