What Does This Mean On My Parker 25?

[pgmrdan]

PARKER MADE IN ENGLAND QI

 

Is the QI a date code? What does it mean?

[JulesSilvan]

Yes, it's a date code, made in 1980 according to this site: http://parkerpens.net/codekey.html

[pgmrdan]

Excellent! Thank you.

 

That narrows down when I bought it.

[Drone]

Go to Richard Binder's "Parker’s Date Coding Systems" page here:

 

http://www.richardspens.com/ref/design/pkr_dates.htm

 

I think Richard's reference goes a bit deeper into the details of Parker's coding systems.

[Drone]

I'm no expert here, but let me venture a guess: The Parker 25 was made starting in 1975. Second system date codes were introduced starting in 1980. So your QI Parker 25 was likely manufactured in the third-quarter of 1980 or 1990. But the 25 was discontinued in 1989. So your English 25 is dated third-quarter 1980.

But could it be from 1990? The parkerpens 25 reference page here:

http://parkerpens.net/parker25.html

says this:

"The Parker "25" was still featured in the 1989 catalogue but was not depicted in the 1990 catalogue. Examples in collectors hands do however exist with date codes as late as the third quarter of 1994, maybe even as late as 1999, which suggests that production continued, or possibly that stock was being rolled out with new date codes."

Nah, I'll bet on 1980.

Man, it's a slow day here. I need to find something more productive to do than hang around the FPN dating Parker 25's... Oh well, at least I learned something.

Edited November 5, 2014 by Drone

[pgmrdan]

1980 has to be correct. I remembered buying it around 1980 +/- so it must have been 1980 - 1982. I bought it new from a shop in downtown St. Louis while walking around during my lunch break one day.

 

Thanks for the help folks!