Carmine Sheaffer Balance Craftsman fountain pen & pencil

Everyone loves a Carmine Sheaffer Balance. Sheaffer offered Balance pens in Carmine for only ~2 years. Carmine pens appear in the 1940 and 1941 Sheaffer catalogs. The Balance was replaced with the new Triumph line introduced in 1942. The red Balance pens are not rare but they are certainly less common than black and golden brown. This pen has the added distinction of a Gregg shorthand mark on the barrel. Gregg was the most prevalent form of shorthand in the United States. It is characterized by elliptical symbols of uniform line width - much like cursive. As such, the Gregg specification for a proper shorthand nib called for a firm, round, fine point. It is unclear to me whether Sheaffer paid to put such a symbol on their pens. Though it is certain the Sheaffer marketing department saw some potential for profit in the offering. The nib does, indeed, write a lovely, smooth, wet fine line. It's a nib that behaves reliably and predictably. A workhorse nib. Exactly what you'd demand if you