How to Fix a Leaking Sheaffer Inlaid Nib

1976 Sheaffer Targa 1001xg 14k Gold Nib SOLD $100 US + shipping

THIS PEN HAS BEEN SOLD

Hello and welcome to “Inkquiring Minds”! My name is Doug, and I’m back with another pen Resurrection Sunday video today. I thought I’d try something new and repair a Sheaffer inlaid gold nib.

Today, we’re going to look at a Sheaffer Targa. This is a 1001 XG, and these were made by Sheaffer between 1976 and 1988. I found this information on the wonderful website called SheafferTarga.com, which I’ll link in the description.

Janet had a note about the Sheaffer. She said "I’ve included a couple of other items: a Sheaffer Targa 1001 XG that leaks along the inlaid nib. I know I hold my pens too far down towards the nib"

Many people complain about this issue with this style of pen, as the nib sometimes leaks around these edges of the inlay. If you put your fingers too close to the end, this is a Sheaffer cartridge converter pen. It comes with the converter squeeze converter and you can use Sheaffer modern cartridges with this pen. However, what I wanted to do with this is something I’ve never done before: try to find a way to keep that inlaid nib from leaking.

I did some digging and found a fantastic resource on Steph’s Grand Mia Pens website for fixing a leaking Sheaffer PFM. There is an awesome video he made where he shows you how to seal the nib on a Sheaffer PFM. My PFM is the same type of inlaid nib from Sheaffer. Unfortunately, these nibs tend to leak around the gold nib, which can be a bit tricky to fix. But Steph’s video is a lifesaver! It shows you how to take apart the PFM and seal the nib using Captain Tolly’s Creeping Crack Cure.

So, that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to try to take this pen apart by disassembling the nib, getting the feed out, and then going at those seams with some Captain Tolly’s to see if I can seal the nib from leaking. I determined that it was leaking by putting a tissue over the inlay with the pen full of ink, and I figured out that this nib was leaking right there, on those points of the diamond shape. It’s not leaking along the sides at all, but some do, and I’ll probably seal these edges as well. Let’s get to it right now!

So, what are my thoughts on the Resurrection pen? I’m thrilled with my success in sealing this Schaffer inlaid nib. These are arguably the most beautiful nibs ever created. Here’s the Schaer that started it all: the first pen with a Schaer inlaid nib. This is a 1959 or 1960 Schaer PFM pen for men. It was followed by the Schaer Imperial, and there were other variants of the Sheaffer inlaid nib, including one nicknamed the "Dolphin". I have one here: a steel nib on a desk pen nicknamed the dolphin because it has this bulbous nose, sometimes called the Porpoise. It wants to roll away and put it over here.

Here’s another Sheaffer Targa from the 1970s: this one in a brown ronce laque that belonged to my friend Ron’s father, Dennis. Whether the Sheaffer inlaid nib is the most beautiful is a matter of personal taste, but there are other contenders. This is a Pilot E95s with a 14-karat gold semi-inlaid nib, and this is a Waterman Karen with a 14-karat gold inlaid nib. I’m fortunate to have one of the most beautifully designed pens ever: the Waterman Edson. This one is on loan from my pen friend Murray, and you’ll be seeing this beautiful nib and pen in a "Murray’s Moment" coming up.

I got a beautiful shot of these gorgeous nibs. Aren’t they beautiful? Of course, like the Edson, the Sheaffer Imperial nib had its issues, as does the Ken with leakage around those edges of the inlaid nibs. The Pilot E95s as well: if you hold your pen up near the nib, you’ll get nib creep and get ink on your fingers. But the Sheaffer inlaid nib has had leak issues since its inception, and they’re not easy to disassemble or repair. So, my warning is: don’t try this at home. I did this repair because Janet gave the pen to the channel, and I was keen to learn how to do it. I couldn’t have done it without Steph’s wonderful video on repairing the same issue with the Sheaffer PFM inlaid nib. There was also an excellent article by Fountain Pen Network member Flounder in his blog called Flounder's Thots. I’ll link the article and video in the description below.

This nib required some effort to align properly. I did it gently because this nib is not replaceable, short of getting an entirely new nib unit. The front section is now writing beautifully, and there are no signs of leaking on the top.

I decided to ink this up with some Sheaffer Script Peacock Blue. This ink hasn’t been available for a long time, but I recently picked it up at an IQ store. You can see when it was sold in the Bala Drugstore in Edmonton for $69. This bottle number is 112, Washable Peacock Blue. This is the ink that got me into being enamored with fountain pens back when I was in grade seven or eight. I had a Schaer Student pen, and these had this ink in cartridges. The ink bottle itself has a cool feature: you’re told to tighten the cap, turn the ink bottle upside down, then open it. There’s a little glass reservoir so you can always get the last bits of ink.

I wish some ink companies would copy this feature. It has a nice wide opening for any pen you care to put in there. This ink reserve well is wonderful, as is this ink. The closest match I can find to this Peacock Blue from the 1970s is Lamy Turquoise. It’s close, but not a direct match.

Janet asked that I use the sale of these pens that she donated to support the channel. Since I already have a marvelous Sheaffer Targa right here, I’m selling this one for $100 US plus shipping. If you’re interested in purchasing it, send me an email at inkquiringminds@gmail.com with your name and address. I’ll get you a shipping quote as well as instructions on how to pay my PayPal.

Thanks ever so much to Janet Trot for sending me these wonderful pens in support of my channel. This one was a challenge, and I’m really glad I was able to take it on.

And that just leaves it for me to say thank you for watching!

And that's all she wrote!