Is a Sheaffer White Dot replaceable?

[Chrissy]

I have a quite nice looking Sheaffer pen with about half a white dot left in it's clip where the original white dot is broken.

Is this a part that might be available anywhere and, if it is, how easy is it to get the old one out and replace it with another one. Do they just slot in or glue in somehow? Has anyone ever had to replace one?

I was wondering if the only way to get a replacement white dot is to buy a broken pen for parts, but then remembered I might have once seen white dots for sale on ebay. Perhaps I dreamed it.

If anyone has a spare white dot please let me know. :)

[Paul-H]

Hi

It depends how desperate you are

There is this seller in America selling them on eBay but shipping to the UK is expensive especially if duty and handling gets added if they put the full price on the desperation, remember duty price is based on item cost plus shipping cost, do most items from America attract duty these days (or is it just me :) )

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F37 0652049039

You could make your own replacement by using s bit of round plastic rod sold in different diameters in model shops etc, just cut a bit off and slightly dome one end and glue into place.

One other option, I have done this do know it works is to drop a blob of thick white paint into the hole and let it fully set, it looks as good as new once fully hardened.

You could also just look for a replacement cap, if it's for one of the more common sheaffers there are often caps on eBay.

Paul

[Chrissy]

Thanks for the information. :) There's no chance of me buying one from US ebay for sending to the UK, as it would be much too expensive, but it's something I might consider when I visit the US if I can't fix it before then.

The whole pen cost significantly less than the total for that one white dot plus Global shipping. :)

I don't have a hole, just about half of a white dot left in there.

[Paul-H]

I know we're you are coming from with buying from America, I have had 6 parcels in the last few weeks and every single one attracted duty charges, which almost doubled the cost of each order, that was why I said "if you are desperate" ;) plus some American sellers do seem to have a bizaar idea of the value of small parts, often asking more than a whole pen can be bought for, although to be honest that can be said about some UK pen strippers as well.

Paul

[Chrissy]

I don't think HMRC add on any shipping if the actual item value on the parcel is less than £15. They don't need to work out any tax for a lower value item than £15. They definitely don't add any shipping onto a gift worth less than £36. They advised me of that. Let's face it, almost nothing is going to be worth less than a total of £15 inclusive of shipping if it's shipped from the US.

[Chrissy]

Interestingly I found that Memphis pen shop (the seller of the white dots) also sells complete Sheaffer caps including a white dot. These only cost $10 (compared with the white dot price of $18.50) and shipping is the same $4.50 whether you buy a white dot or a cap.
I'm currently looking for the cheapest Sheaffer pen on ebay UK that has an intact white dot. Whether it will be easy to get out or not remains to be seen.

[Paul-H]

're the duty, don't forget when working out the value they include the postage cost as well, so it's easy to go over £15, and although the Vat on £15 Is not much the £8 handling fee soon bumps the price up.

Paul

[Chrissy]

're the duty, don't forget when working out the value they include the postage cost as well, so it's easy to go over £15, and although the Vat on £15 Is not much the £8 handling fee soon bumps the price up.

Paul
They assess value added tax (not often duty) on items of merchandise valued at more than £15 and gifts valued at more than £36. I know for certain that unless a gift is valued at more than £36 it's not even looked at, i.e. they don't add on postage to the value unless it is over £36, and they therefore need to do a tax calculation. I always assumed it was the same for merchandise, but I have never asked that question. Certainly I've received merchandise items valued at less than £15 even though they would have been valued at more than £15 if postage had been added.

As soon as they need to assess tax on an item valued at more than £15 or £36 then yes, they add on the cost of the postage before they work out the amount to pay.

For Royal Mail items the fee is £8, and for Parcelforce it used to be £13 many years ago.

This is one of the problems with ebayers who use "free delivery." Everyone knows that postage is included in the price, but has to be excluded as far as the declared item value is concerned.

[Voiren]

Yup - you get charged VAT on price+postage cost once the price goes over £15. Duty starts at £135 (inc shipping cost).

[Chrissy]

Yup - you get charged VAT on price+postage cost once the price goes over £15. Duty starts at £135 (inc shipping cost).
Thanks. That's what I always thought it was.

[Chrissy]

Anyway, I decided to have a go at repairing my white dot. I had a bit of the original one left, and am building it up to be a full one using adhesive, silica and powder pigments. I'll see how it looks when it's finished. :)

[Deb]

That sounds interesting. Save the recipe. I might need it one of these days.

[Paul-H]

Chrissy, also have a look at the round plastic rod option I mentioned, a 1 foot long length of the correct diameter is about £3 and you could get hundreds of dots from it.

Plastruct is one of the common brand names to lookout for, your local model shop will probably have loads.

're my comments on duty, obviously just a miss use of words from me VAT or Duty it's all the same when it means you owe money before you get your parcel, and get the ransom demand card in the post.

Also the mention of gift, I have yet to find an American seller who will mark the parcel as a gift, or before you ask, Mark the parcel below actual value, although that last part is understandable from an insurance point of view, you can't post an item and claim it's worth $10 then try to claim $100 when it goes missing in the post.

I buy from all over the world and 99% of the time I don't get any charges, unless it's from America then it's 99% of the time I do get charged.

Anyone else notice this or is it just me :(

Paul

[Chrissy]

're my comments on duty, obviously just a miss use of words from me VAT or Duty it's all the same when it means you owe money before you get your parcel, and get the ransom demand card in the post.

Also the mention of gift, I have yet to find an American seller who will mark the parcel as a gift, or before you ask, Mark the parcel below actual value, although that last part is understandable from an insurance point of view, you can't post an item and claim it's worth $10 then try to claim $100 when it goes missing in the post.

I buy from all over the world and 99% of the time I don't get any charges, unless it's from America then it's 99% of the time I do get charged.

Anyone else notice this or is it just me :(

Paul
In the past I've noticed the same as you. Almost everything from China, Japan or India came through without charges, but everything from the USA was charged for. HMRC are, and always have been, very attentive to any goods coming in from the USA.
I know of one great US ebay seller (also a seller in Classifieds on the other place) who, in the past, has sent me a reasonably priced pen by USPS 1st class International mail and was happy to declare it as a Gift. If you PM me I will tell you his name.
Nowadays, I don't bother looking outside of Europe (that may change!!??) unless I'm going to visit the US and can buy things to be mailed there.

[Chrissy]

That sounds interesting. Save the recipe. I might need it one of these days.
The recipe is a fairly standard restoration version. I use Araldite 2020 (yes, stupidly expensive) mixed with fumed silica for a transparent mix. Then add powder pigments to colour match. For a Sheaffer button I used zinc white, yellow ochre and black to make the creamy white.

[whych]

Have you asked Sheaffer if they will honour their 'lifetime' guaranty on the pen.
I had a 400 series section come apart and they replaced it a few years ago. Tell them you have had the pen from new.

[Chrissy]

Thanks for the tip. :) I had never thought of asking Sheaffer to be honest. Maybe that could have been worth a try. :)

[Voiren]

In the past I've noticed the same as you. Almost everything from China, Japan or India came through without charges, but everything from the USA was charged for. HMRC are, and always have been, very attentive to any goods coming in from the USA.
I know of one great US ebay seller (also a seller in Classifieds on the other place) who, in the past, has sent me a reasonably priced pen by USPS 1st class International mail and was happy to declare it as a Gift. If you PM me I will tell you his name.
Nowadays, I don't bother looking outside of Europe (that may change!!??) unless I'm going to visit the US and can buy things to be mailed there.

Japan I've found to be 50-50: get charged fairly frequently but not every time. With the USA, yes, it is very rare not to be charged. And with China it is rare to be charged, even if the correct value is listed which it usually isn't!

[Paul-H]

Only once been charged for goods from China, and that was when the seller used UPS and they asked for the payment as soon as the shipment was booked, before it had even left China.

Paul

[Chrissy]

In case anyone is interested, I finished adding material to make the new dot. Before and after pictures below. The colour of the replacement bit looks a much better match when you look at the pen rather than a picture, but I might give it another polish..

4643746444

[Paul-H]

That came out quite well for a first attempt didn't it., not quite round but workable.

Another option I just thought of is find a hole punch used for Leather of the correct size , say 2 or 3mm and punch a disk out of white plastic sheet of the correct thickness and glue that in place.

PS I don't have a thing for plastic sheet and rod, :rolleyes: I just have loads of it from my other hobbies and like to find extra uses

Paul

[Chrissy]

If I could find a small enough hole punch I might be able to adjust the size perfectly, but as it was I didn't wish to damage the gold plating on the edges of the clip.

[Paul-H]

I got a set of small hole punches from a Chinese seller on eBay, 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4 & 5 mm plus a standard set that goes from 3 to 12 mm, they are also useful for making piston washers and seals, using the larger ones to cut the washers OD then a small one for the center hole.

These are the small ones https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F 291521108654

The larger set are available from loads of sellers

Paul

[Deb]

Great work Chrissie! I think that's quite acceptable.

[Chrissy]

Great work Chrissie! I think that's quite acceptable.
Thanks Deb :) Well one thing is for sure: It's better than it was. :) Also, at least it won't drop out altogether. It moved around all over the place before I fixed it. Now there isn't much that would get it out.
I tried a bit more of an edge trim and another polish and you have to get the loupe out to see it's not normal.

[Deb]

I think that even a very knowledgeable Sheaffer enthusiast would pass over that without a second glance, just accepting it as the original white dot.