Restoring an Official Gregg Shorthand Fountain Pen

Pen History

Gregg is a name far more closely associated with shorthand than with fountain pens, which is exactly what makes these pens interesting. The Gregg Publishing Company did not manufacture pens itself. Instead, Gregg-branded pens were produced through relationships with established American pen manufacturers including Sheaffer, Esterbrook and Eversharp. 

This particular style is generally associated with the late 1930s. A nearly identical black, five-inch flat-top appears as the Official Gregg Pen in the March and June 1938 issues of The Gregg Writer, where it was advertised for $4.25. Its plain black body and gold-colored trim are conventional for the period, but the details make it unmistakably a Gregg: a Gregg-marked nib and, especially, the small red, white and blue enamel emblem inset into the cap top. 

Who actually manufactured this example is less certain. The pen carries no maker's imprint, but its barrel and cap proportions, lever placement, clip design and feed have all been noted as strongly resembling contemporary Sheaffer and WASP production. Other specialist references similarly classify surviving examples of this style as Sheaffer-made Gregg pens. 

And really, the cap emblem is what gives the pen its personality. Without it, this would be a rather restrained black lever filler. That tiny splash of red, white and blue turns it into something tied to a very particular period of American writing, education and office work.

Restoration Story

Some restorations produce a mystery. This one really didn't.

The Gregg arrived as a fundamentally sound, straightforward lever-filling pen. There was no hidden mechanical problem waiting inside and no major cosmetic repair to solve. I cleaned the pen, polished the black exterior, installed a fresh ink sac, and cleaned and re-seated the pressure bar. Once reassembled, the filling system was back in service.

What kept catching my attention instead was the little enamel Gregg badge on the cap top.

It is a surprisingly colorful detail on an otherwise very restrained pen. The badge still carries its red, white and blue enamel, along with the scratches and wear it has accumulated over the decades. I didn't try to make that history disappear. Polishing the surrounding black plastic simply gave the emblem a cleaner stage.

That ended up being the satisfying part of this restoration. Mechanically, the Gregg needed very little drama—just ordinary maintenance to put it back into service. Visually, though, the finished gloss makes that odd little badge stand out exactly as it should. The pen is still a simple black lever filler. It just happens to have a much better story sitting on top of its cap.