The Best Parker Fountain Pen?

[AreBeeBee]

I'm alternating between the 1945 1Q blue Vac and the 1946 2Q striped Duofold, with 1930s Washable Blue in the Duofold, and 1960s Perm. Blue Black in the Vac.

 

Basically, I use one of them for a day or three, then switch.

[pajaro]

How do you define "best?"

 

Works best? Lasts longest? Always works and never needs repair? You like best?

[pajaro]

"Best" is a very nebulous word! My favourite from Parker would be the Parker 50 Falcon because of it's sleek and fetching shape. I couldn't write with it though because it's too slim, but it's good in theory.

I don't much care for modern Parker's.

 

Now, this is very interesting, and I like these thoughts

[Dont_Flexme]

I would say all that I own: a vacumatc, 3 51s (1 vac and two areos- one with a stub nib), and a broad 45. Love them all but the fine nib 51 vac is what I use the most. The thing's a dream.

[mitto]

I am thrilled knowing how different tastes we all have and yet we all love pens and writing with them. I like any vintage pen of any brand that write flawlessly. But my main focuss of are vintage Parkers and my jems are my Parker 51s.

[surprise123]

You just stirred the calm waters of the Parker forum. People are going to say:

- Vacumatic

- 51

- Duofold

- UK Duofold

- Various button fillers Parker made

- Modern Duofold

- 45, 61, 75, etc. (And cartridge fillers)

- and many, many more fanboys and girls of Parker pens.

Edited October 29, 2018 by surprise123

[pajaro]

There you have it. If you have a pen that really works for you and that gives you a pleasant feeling, then that's the best.

[surprise123]

Better yet, if you have a pen that you stop noticing during use, THAT is a good pen. Most Parkers were made during a time where pens were tools, expected to function anytime, anywhere. If you stop noticing a pen in use, that means you could not find any flaws about it. That is a good pen.

[Aurora60]

I think the best Parker pen is the 51 . I have a Duofold that is just ok and a modern Parker Premium Luxury that is uncomfortable to write with and stays in my pen case to be admired only !

I love the 51

[Joane]

How do you define "best?"

 

Works best? Lasts longest? Always works and never needs repair? You like best?

I’ve given this some thought: robust, reliable, classic pen design, quality materials, easy to maintain, feels good in the hand and a precise free-flowing nib, preferably gold.

[pajaro]

Better yet, if you have a pen that you stop noticing during use, THAT is a good pen. Most Parkers were made during a time where pens were tools, expected to function anytime, anywhere. If you stop noticing a pen in use, that means you could not find any flaws about it. That is a good pen.

 

 

I’ve given this some thought: robust, reliable, classic pen design, quality materials, easy to maintain, feels good in the hand and a precise free-flowing nib, preferably gold.

 

These are well thought ideas. Combining them, I think you have a pretty good definition of best.

 

I know there are partisans of pens requiring periodic maintenance who would disagree. They have found something they like and I think they might view periodic resaccing or other maintenance as part of the culture of using fountain pens. I don't like to do maintenance on pens beyond flushing, but others might feel like they are being part of a tradition by the resaccing and replacing press bars and filler units and so on.

[TheDutchGuy]

The best pen is like the best guitar. It's the one that screams "pick me up!" whenever you walk by and never disappoints when you answer its call.

 

My experience with Parker is limited. I used them throughout my youth ('70's, '80s) and never liked them. I always struggled with getting a grip on those slippery metal sections and I dislike the look of that arrow clip. Never quite could shake the feeling that they're overpriced, even the cheaper ones.

 

However, today I received a fully restored 1955 Parker 51, boxed, with matching mechanical pencil. Now we're talking. _That's_ a pen.

[mitto]

Still have to find a Parker pen that looks and write better than the P51.

Edited November 5, 2018 by mitto

[AreBeeBee]

Better yet, if you have a pen that you stop noticing during use, THAT is a good pen. Most Parkers were made during a time where pens were tools, expected to function anytime, anywhere. If you stop noticing a pen in use, that means you could not find any flaws about it. That is a good pen.

 

I have to say this really nails it. For me, it's the Vac from early 1945 or the striped Duofold from a year later. For other people, it'll be something else.

 

But yeah. The pen you pick up and use without really noticing it — that's the best pen you got.

Edited November 6, 2018 by AreBeeBee

[pajaro]

I have to say this really nails it. For me, it's the Vac from early 1945 or the striped Duofold from a year later. For other people, it'll be something else.

 

But yeah. The pen you pick up and use without really noticing it — that's the best pen you got.

This criterion used by itself changes the whole game into something subjective. Everybody has their own best, and every Parker will be best for someone.

[Freddy]

This notion re Best Parker Fountain Pen is a Reductio ad Absurdum..but have fun with it.....

Please keep in mind that Surprise 123 is still in primary school..not yet secondary....

So cut him some slack.........Have fun and stay safe out there..........

Fred

[pajaro]

This notion re Best Parker Fountain Pen is a Reductio ad Absurdum..but have fun with it.....

Please keep in mind that Surprise 123 is still in primary school..not yet secondary....

So cut him some slack.........Have fun and stay safe out there..........

Fred

 

Part of anyone's education is how to combine logical criteria to narrow down the selection process. Learning how to combine selection criteria logically is important in fields like computer science. Leaving the criteria too loose yields Cartesian Products, damn near everything under the sun. If you combine search criteria you narrow the results. If you are looking for the best Parker pen, you should narrow the criteria enough to actually pick one, or you can leave it wide open so everybody gets to say their favorite is the best. You can make the criteria tightly focused, trying to pick the pen or pens that are objectively best, or leave the criteria looser so a greater number of pens meet the criteria. Depends on what you are trying to do. Does this make sense?

[sansenri]

Better yet, if you have a pen that you stop noticing during use, THAT is a good pen. Most Parkers were made during a time where pens were tools, expected to function anytime, anywhere. If you stop noticing a pen in use, that means you could not find any flaws about it. That is a good pen.

 

You have a very good point there. I am almost 100% sure you are right.

But there is a but.

Some pen makers (Parker included) have been clever enough to make exactly that pen you mention.

I just love the feel of a Parker Duofold Centennial, and my black/gold is one of those pens that disappear in use.

 

Problem is, my marbled versions feel exactly the same, but I can't help noticing them

[Glenn-SC]

If you stop noticing a pen in use, that means you could not find any flaws about it. That is a good pen.

I would disagree. Your criteria make it not a "good" pen, but "not a bad pen."

 

A "good" pen is one that makes you want to pick it up and use it, even when you have nothing to write, maybe even if it has a few flaws, but you really want to write with the pen.

 

I have bunches of "not bad" pens that I never use.

[sansenri]

I would like to defend surprise123's statement

I think he means when a pen is so good that it becomes a natural extension of your hand so much so that it's almost as if it were not there

 

too many pens are flashy and oh so elegant, but so uncomfortable to hold, or don't really write as you wanted...

 

but I also agree with Glenn-SC, there is just something more to that, that makes you prefer one pen to the other

there's magic sometimes