The Leadhead's Pencil Blog: The Sheaffer-Spotter's Bible

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Trying to remember whether I have a particular post-War Sheaffer when I see one in the wild is like trying to count cards in Vegas.

I’ve collected Sheaffers on a “catch and release” basis for so many years – whenever a group of pencils or a collection has come my way, I’d compare any Sheaffers that were along for the ride to what I already had, keep the different ones and take the duplicates to pen shows for sale. When I was fishing with hand grenades, I didn’t really have anything in the examples I was keeping, because in my mind the money I was spending was on something else in the lot.

Now that the collection has filled out, it’s rare for a Sheaffer that comes my way at random stays caught, and I’ve shifted to targeted hunting to fill in those last few blanks. Targeted hunting is more expensive, since I’m chasing individual pencils, and there have been a few missteps. After about the third time I paid real money for a specific Sheaffer, only to find it was a duplicate, I thought it was time to really get my act together.

This post has been a work in progress for several months, backdated and titled “Maybe I Won’t Buy Duplicates Now.” After input from many of those who specialize in Sheaffers, I’ve refined it into a useful guide to what these different variations were called . . . plus, it’s saved me a lot of money.

STRIATED CELLULOID MODELS (1946-1947)

FULL-SIZED MODELS

Valiant (1946)

Valiant (1947)

Statesman (1947)

Statesman (1946)

Craftsman/Admiral/Sovereign (gold filled trim)

Cadet (chrome trim)

Sentinel (note: the Crest model, with an all gold-filled cap, isn’t shown here)

FULL SIZED MODELS WITH EXPOSED ERASERS

Cadet Utility (bead band)

Sovereign Utility/Admiral Utility/Craftsman Utility (bead band, gold filled trim - not shown)

Statesman Utility (wide band)

SHORT MODEL, STANDARD NOZZLE

These are really hard to come by, and I’ve only turned up one, shown here alongside a regular Craftsman for comparison.

Diana (with gold filled trim, as shown) or Minerva (with chrome trim)

TUCKAWAYS

Tuckaway (first year)

Triumph Tuckaway

Triumph Tuckaway, with clip – these are real oddballs, particularly the one with chrome plated “reverse” trim.

Autograph (14k trim, no ribs on band) and Valiant Tuckaway (1946)

Valiant Tuckaway (1947)

Lady Sheaffer (1947)

Tuckaway II (1946) or Tuckaway (1947)

Lady (Milady) Tuckaway

Crest Tuckaway and Sentinel Tuckaway

INJECTION MOLDING BEGINS IN 1948

FULL SIZE MODELS

Sentinel De Luxe

Crest De Luxe

Valiant

Statesman (later Saratoga)

Admiral

Craftsman

Cadet

TUCKAWAY MODELS

Crest De Luxe (gold filled cap) and Sentinel De Luxe (stainless/gold fill)

Valiant Tuckaway (1948)

Tuckaway - just plain ol' Tuckaway

THIN MODELS

The first Sheaffer thin model pencil is illustrated in the 1949 catalog. The only model shown was all gold filled, and is shown accompanied by Sheaffer’s new Stratowriter ballpoint pens – unfortunately, I don’t have one to show you.

The 1951 catalog lists Sheaffer “TM” thin model sets, but the "thin" reference must have been only to the pens, since the pencils appear shown appear identical to those shown above. The PCA library doesn’t include a 1952 catalog, but in the 1953 catalog, thin model pencils are illustrated in colors.