Profile: Sheaffer’s PFM

In My Collection

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	This 1959 PFM advertisement appeared on the back cover of National Geographic Magazine and features the Inlaid Nib and Sheaffer’s famous sprung clip.

The Pen For Men: When Sheaffer introduced its bold new PFM with great fanfare in 1959, little did the company know that it had just created the pen that might be regarded as the “last hurrah” of the Fountain Pen Era, the time when the fountain pen ruled as the standard writing instrument. The ballpoint pen, invented in the 1930s and introduced in the United States in 1945, was rapidly asserting the dominance that inevitably arises from increased convenience. (Revised March 2, 2008)

The PFM relied on the best of Sheaffer’s technology. It used the complicated but elegant and amazingly reliable Snorkel filling system, which had proven itself since 1952. And it introduced Sheaffer’s next step after the Triumph nib, the attractive streamlined Inlaid Nib™, which has never since been out of production and today flaunts its beauty and function on pens such as the Valor (introduced February 2006).

In retrospect, the PFM is regarded as one of the great classics; but it was not well received. By the end of 1963 the range of models had been reduced to only two (III and V), and Sheaffer withdrew the pen entirely in 1968. The PFM’s bold design spawned a series of similar pens, shaped like it but narrower in cross section, called the Imperial. Some Imperials are Touchdown fillers, and others use the nominally more convenient cartridge/converter system. The Imperial models were discontinued in the 1970s, only to reappear in 1995 as the Triumph Imperial series. Sheaffer also recognized the growing resurgence of demand for more expensive fountain pens, and in 1995 issued the Legacy, a modern pen that looked virtually identical to a PFM. In 2001 the slightly revised Legacy II succeeded the Legacy, and in 2003 the Legacy Heritage series replaced the Legacy II.

This illustration shows a burgundy PFM I, a black PFM II, and a black PFM III. The PFM I is the only PFM that does not bear Sheaffer’s trademark White Dot.

The PFM appeared in a variety of models; there were at least six (possibly nine) variations, offering an exciting choice of refined and elegant materials; even the PFM II, with its monochrome white-metal nib and cap, has a rich look — especially in black. All of the PFMs are essentially the same size, about 5³/8" long capped and 5⁵/8" posted.

This illustration shows a green PFM IV and a blue PFM V. These two models feature a gold-plated tassie at the end of the blind cap.

Notes:

1. The PFM VI and VII are not known to have appeared in Sheaffer’s catalogs, but they are listed in Fountain Pens and Pencils, The Golden age of Writing Instruments, by George Fischler and Stuart Schneider. No specimens of these models are known to exist.

2. The PFM VIII (Masterpiece) is not known to have appeared in Sheaffer’s catalogs, but it is listed in Fountain Pens and Pencils, The Golden age of Writing Instruments, by George Fischler and Stuart Schneider. A PFM with a 9K gold barleycorn-pattern overlay bearing European hallmarks (overlaid in the same manner as a Snorkel Masterpiece) appeared at an auction conducted by Cooper Owen of London, England, on June 27, 2003. This information comes from Gordon Brown, whose bid for the pen was far short of the £3600 selling price, and from David Isaacson.

A “Refined” Color Palette

When the PFM was introduced, both the technological limitations of the injection molding process and the fashion of the era dictated up-to-date solid colors. The age of pearl-like and striated plastic pens was over with a vengeance. Moreover, colors suitable for such a decidedly masculine pen must be strong and businesslike to complement the “power suit” that had become such a prominent fixture in corporate boardrooms. Thus, the PFM appeared in a choice of five very restrained colors; there would be no pink or pastel blue PFMs! The gray color was even shorter lived; it was not listed among the original colors, and it appears to have been available for only one year.

The Colors of the PFM
Color	Name
	Black
	Blue
	Green
	Burgundy
	Gray

I am very grateful to Michael Richter, who contributed his expertise in verifying the accuracy of my coloring.

The information in this article is as accurate as possible, but you should not take it as absolutely authoritative.

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