Sheaffer VFM Matte Black Ballpoint Pen with Chrome Trim

My first fountain pen was a Schaffer fountain pen!I haven’t seen it in years, maybe packed away.So, I wanted another Schaffer fountain pen!I’m pleased with its performance and appearance!

I am an amateur fountain pen enthusiast. I have a few pen, ranging in price from a few dollars to about $200. About ten years ago i purchased a Sheaffer, but it had a medium nib and I have since discovered that I prefer fine. I thought I would give this pen a try since I like the other Sheaffer and it is Lee's than $20.This pen exceeded my expectations. This pen writes better than some of my more expensive ones! The ink flows incredibly. This pen is also about the thickness of a ballpoint pen so it does not tire my hand as some larger and heavier pens do. And to top it off, the blue color of the pen is nice and bright; brighter than in the picture. I like it so much I'm considering buying another as backup.

Sheaffer VFM Chrome Ballpoint Pen - The pen writes smoothly. I took a star off b/c there's a small rattle when the pen is in the writing "position" and IMO the spring seems a tad short/weak (especially in comparison to other cheaper pens. e.g. Pilot G2, Uni-ball Signo). Thus, you practically have to push the "clicker" entirely down the shaft to deploy the cartridge. Also, the pen is surprisingly light. It's no heavier than any of the aforementioned pens. For the price, it's OK and not worth the hassle of returning. Sidenote, the pen didn't come from the vendor listed. Had I known it was coming from where it did, I would have placed an additional order, LOL.

When using a fountain pen I expect the top to slide securely onto the non-working end of the pen. This extends the pen's length and makes in more comfortable in the hand. It also keeps the top handy for when you are done writing and want to replace the top on the working end of the pen. For this pen, the top won't slide on the non-working end of the pen far enough to become secure. It will wobble around and fall off. Also, I bought a "like new" pen from Amazon Warehouse. The previous purchaser obviously put the cartridge in the wrong way and jammed it. And rather taking responsibility for themselves, they returned the problem to Amazon. The cartridge was still jammed in the pen when I received it. Obviously Amazon did not inspect the returned pen carefully before shipping it to me. I managed to get the jammed cartridge out, but I would be hesitant to purchase "like new" items from Amazon Warehouse in the future. However, this bad experience with Amazon Warehouse is not counted against the rating of the pen.

Well worth the money. Writes beautifully.

Writes smoothly, nice matte black finish. I usually write with an extra fine nib but the fine nib on this Sheaffer is quite pleasant. Better than I expected.

I bought this pen because I wanted to help my niece with her “save the date” wedding invitations plus she said I have very good penmanship. I wanted that calligraphy look and the fountain pen was just the right pen. The pen was not heavy. I did not have to grip the pen and the ink did not smear. My hand did not hurt after writing 200 envelopes.

I ordered this because I had this kind of pen in the past however they changed the type of ink cartridge they use. The new cartridges are smaller and can be put in only one way. There was no instructions with it as to how to move the metal part of the nib to get the right amount of ink coming out. Also the main part of the pen is too short, you have to put the cap on the end to get enough length to use it easily. I would not recommend this for people with size 7 hands or bigger.