Parker 45 - Disassembly In Easy Steps

[neocaligatio]

Parker 45 (and New Slimfold) - Disassembly in easy steps

 

I recently bought a few Parker 45s that were in need of cleaning up. After a some searching I couldn't find a beginners guide to the disassembly and reassembly of these pens, so with a bit of trial and error, I made my own. The details below are not based on years of experience so if anything seems incorrect or just plain wrong then please feel free to correct or ignore it!

 

The pen:

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4944794192_232c7ef4f0_z.jpg

 

Bought at an antiques market for £2.50 with a 14ct 'B' nib (not the medium pictured) and no converter

 

 

Step one - remove the cap:

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4944209875_82ea0092bc_z.jpg

 

If the hood, section and nib of your pen does not look like these, then it's not a Parker 45 - stop what you're doing and find the correct instructions for your pen! (Please note that the cap may snap fit or be threaded on 45s)

 

 

Step two - unscrew the section from the barrel:

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4121/4944210047_1876c694d2_z.jpg

 

If you have a converter or cartridge in the pen, remove it. At this point I should probably recommend that you have a sheet of paper or kitchen tissue to be working on.... or at least that you flushed the pen out first.

 

 

Step three - remove the nib assembly:

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4116/4944794654_39e5279a83_z.jpg

 

Holding the hood, NOT the nib itself, gently unscrew the nib assembly. If the nib is stuck, try soaking the whole section in warm water for a few minutes, this has always worked for me.

 

 

Step four - remove the nib and feed from the hood:

 

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4143/4944210329_e52b8a36e9_z.jpg

 

Hold the feed carefully in the middle and apply gentle pressure on the hood (pushing away from the point of the nib). The hood should click out of place allowing you to remove the nib and the feeder. This allows cleaning and easy access to blocked feeders.

 

 

 

Re-assembly is simply the reverse. When re-assembling the nib parts, remember to place the nib carefully back in it's seat on the feeder, then slide the hood over from the rear. The hood should click back into place easily and align itself with the nib and feeder.

 

Hopefully this guide will help other 45 owners. Good luck!

 

Cheers,

 

Chris

Edited September 1, 2010 by neocaligatio

[icardoth]

I just want to add a tip: The repair manual from Parker Argentina recommends to submerge the nib and hood in boiling water for 10 seconds after changing the nib. Skipping this step may produce ink flow problems.

[richardandtracy]

I have just added this thread to my list of 'Useful FPN threads'. Thanks.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[Ernst Bitterman]

It might be worth noting that the majority of 45s have a slip cap rather than a screw cap. "If your pen does not look like these, then it's not a Parker 45" is a good direction, but don't panic if there's a trim ring rather than threads at the back end of the section.

[neocaligatio]

Thanks for the additional info chaps - I forgot the threaded cap part! I have 3 45s and only this one has a threaded cap.

[icardoth]

Parker 45 with threaded cap? I've never seen one like that. But I do have a "New Slimfold", very similar to the 45 indeed.

[neocaligatio]

Are the nibs interchangeable? It certainly looks like a new slimfold!

 

The guide remains the same for both if that's the case..

[ldb2000]

According to Tony's site the New Slimfold was basically the same as a 45 except for the screw on cap , using the 45 nib and clip .

[icardoth]

Are the nibs interchangeable? It certainly looks like a new slimfold!

 

The guide remains the same for both if that's the case..

 

I just checked it, and yes, they are interchangeable.

[aditya.shevade]

I just want to add a tip: The repair manual from Parker Argentina recommends to submerge the nib and hood in boiling water for 10 seconds after changing the nib. Skipping this step may produce ink flow problems.

 

Boiling water?

[streeton]

I just want to add a tip: The repair manual from Parker Argentina recommends to submerge the nib and hood in boiling water for 10 seconds after changing the nib. Skipping this step may produce ink flow problems.

 

Boiling water?

 

I'll skip on that one thanks!!

[icardoth]

I just want to add a tip: The repair manual from Parker Argentina recommends to submerge the nib and hood in boiling water for 10 seconds after changing the nib. Skipping this step may produce ink flow problems.

 

Boiling water?

 

I'll skip on that one thanks!!

 

You choose. I have an original copy of the Parker Argentina Service Manual for models 21, 45, 51 and 61 from the '70s, and it clearly says it. Translated from Spanish: "If you changed the nib you must submerge the bottom part of the section in boiling water for about 10 seconds, up to the first three threads. This way a good contact between nib and feed is assured. Skipping this part may produce incorrect flow in the nib."

 

In fact, I tried myself this trick with excellent results.

[richardandtracy]

In which case, the Argentinian P61 shell material is MUCH better than the UK produced shell material. A UK P61 shell would start to distort or craze in that time.

However, a P51 would be unaffected by the treatment. Maybe the Argentinian P61 shells are acrylic rather than PS.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

 

 

 

[Chrontius]

I have a Parker 45 flighter I inherited in simply dreadful condition - the thing was obviously quite a beater.

• The stainless component and plastic component of the body had delaminated
  
• the end of the body had been blown out somehow - probably someone poking at it from the inside
  
• the silver barrel ring is not attached to anything
  
• the nib is missing the right half of its tipping material
  
• there was a dried out Sheaffer cartridge jammed into the barrel; it appeared to have been opened with a corkscrew.
  

 

It's still in sorry shape. I expect many of its ills can be corrected with superglue, however, but the barrel gem is gone forever, and the nib is a train wreck. Still, it's my only 14k nib; I'm half inclined to remove the left half of the iridium and grind an extra-fine italic point with my Dremel. "Stolen goods are never sold at a loss" and all. On the other hand, I can tell it was once beautiful, and I'd truly hate to wreck it.

 

Thanks to the excellent post by Neocaligatio, I have now broken my entire pen down into component parts, and can ultrasound the last of the ink crud off the feed. But what, dear forum, should I do about the irreparable damage to the nib? Send it to a nibmeister? Send it to a Dremel? Remove the tipping and make an italic, or have a new tip put on?

[neocaligatio]

Wow - sometimes I wonder if people go to the effort of trashing things on purpose... Sounds like you've got your work cut out!

[Chrontius]

Wow - sometimes I wonder if people go to the effort of trashing things on purpose... Sounds like you've got your work cut out!

I wonder the same thing, too. And yes, yes I do.

[aditya.shevade]

<randomComment>I love my 45...</randomComment>

[eli]

Thanks for the 'how-to', this is quite timely and it helped me with a pair of new-to-me 45's. Both have 14k nibs but one of these has a missing point. I was able to swap out the good nib to the pen I wanted to try first, using these directions, minus boiling water for the time-being.

 

Anyway, this leave me one nib short for the second pen, so, other than removing the point that is there and reshaping the nib, what can be reasonably done with a damaged nib like this? I've reshaped broken Esterbrook nibs into smooth writers before but gold nibs with missing points is something new to me.

 

Eli

[Chrontius]

I've been quoted $50-85 by Rick Binder to repair my nib in the same condition, Eli.

[eli]

Thanks for letting me know the repair cost. Considering I paid $5 and $9.50 respectively for these pens, I think I'll chance my hand at reshaping the damaged nib and keep an eye out for a replacement or parts pen.

 

Eli