Thinnest Parker rollerball?

April 14, 2007

Howdy all,

Yes, I know, this isn't a fountain pen question. However, given the wealth of knowledge and experience in these forums, I figure it wouldn't hurt to ask a question about rollerballs, so here goes:

I have slowly been collecting Parker rollerballs, and currently have the Jotter, Vector and Frontier. The Frontier is a smidge too big for me to hold comfortably for long periods of time. I am looking at Sonnet rollerballs at the moment and wonder if anyone can tell me if the Sonnet is wider or slimmer than the Frontier? I don't have a store nearby to go check for myself, and I would certainly appreciate any information.

Thanks,

Scott

p.s. Oddly, I have a Pilot Knight rollerball and I like the grip, though it is also a wide one. Is the Sonnet grip radically different from the Frontier/Vector/Jotter?

April 14, 2007

Assuming that the grips are the same width between the Fountain pen and Rollerball variants of the pens...

The Sonnet grip and the Frontier grip are similar in width, though the Sonnet is about half a millimetre slimmer.

The Sonnet grip is comfortable to hold, and the main difference is simply the material. A Vector grip is plain metal. A Jotter grip is plastic. A Frontier grip is rubber. Sonnet grips are made of some kind of glossy resin material. Out of the three others, I daresay that the Jotter and Knight grip material feels most similar to the Sonnet grip material.

Here is a quick snap shot of the grips side by side

Vector, Jotter, Frontier, Sonnet, Knight

April 14, 2007

Thanks for the info and the snapshot!

I'll feel better getting a Sonnet now.

(I was thinking of going the FP route, as I also have a Jotter and Vector FP, but have heard such hit and miss QC on the Sonnets I figured I'd wait until I could stand to get a Sonnet then send it away for tweaking.)

Thanks again,

Scott

April 16, 2007

Sonnet fountain pens are quite nice - if you get a decent one

If you purchase one with a dodgey nib, Parker Sanford will happily replace it for you through warranty.

They are "soft" nibs, with springiness. I daresay, they are certainly the most interesting modern Parker, in terms of nib AND the wide variety of finishes. (Sure, Duofolds are great too, but the nibs are quite stiff, not soft )

April 18, 2007

Hi Scott, yes, I must admit that I like the Parker rollerball gels, especially the blue ink. But I am not so enthusiastic about the styling of the Parker pens into which the refills fit. Fortunately, I am finding a variety of non-Parker pens which take the Parker gel refills, or the ballpoint refills.

http://i132.photobucket.com/albums/q30/aldag/r0300138.jpg

The pen on the left is a Sailor with a threaded cap. It will take the Parker refill after shortening the refill slightly. The other two pens take a Parker refill directly and were obtained from AKIDeal.