1948 Persian Blue Sheaffer Triumph Statesman - Vacuum-Fil - medium-fine nib

In 1948 Sheaffer stopped using the striped Radite (celluloid by DuPont) they introduced in 1936 and switched to Radite II (Forticel by Celanese). The celluloid pens were made by bending a sheet of warmed material around a cylindrical mandrel. Forticel allowed Sheaffer to begin using injection molding. One price of the switch to injection molded plastic was loss of the iconic Sheaffer longitudinal stripes. This was offset by the availability of some brighter colors. In my opinion the best color of all the non-striped Sheaffers is Persian Blue. This color was only available from 1948 - 1951. In 1952 Sheaffer introduced the Snorkel in yet a different injection molded plastic by Union Carbide and Persian Blue was no longer an option. This pen is NOS - New Old Stock. It came to me with the remnants of the original model name stickers still intact. They were clear plastic stickers wrapped around the barrel just below the cap. Someone had covered them with cellophane tape in an attempt to pre