1948 Black Sheaffer Tuckaway Statesman - fine point Golden Spade

This is the original Pocket 6 fountain pen. It was made in 1948.

My friend Paul dubbed this nib The Golden Spade. It is the same size as the nib from the Sheaffer Balance Premier (OverSize). Sheaffer ceased making the Balance Premier around 1942 when they switch their main line from Balance to Triumph. They made only a few pen models with small, standard, open nibs in the Triumph era. In 1948 they offered the Statesman with this big, beautiful Golden Spade nib. The Statesman was available in both a standard size pen and a Tuckaway. They were offered in 1948, the last year of the Sheaffer Vacuum-Filler and also in 1949, the first year of the Touchdown.

The nib writes a firm, wet, fine line. For a small pen it holds a surprising amount of ink. More than any modern cartridge or converter. The cap posts comfortably on the end of the barrel to make this pen easy to use for even those of us with large hands.

Length
Capped - 114 mm (4.5”)
Uncapped - 97 mm (3.8”)
Posted - 131 mm (5.15”)
Diameter
Cap - 12.5 mm (0.5”)
Barrel - 11.4 mm (0.45”)

Filler
Vacuum-Fil

Nib
Fine