Parker Sonnet: Real Or Fake? [Picture Heavy!]

[jeremyzone]

Hey everyone,

 

Just getting into the fountain pen world! I recently bought a used Parker Sonnet off eBay.

 

I am curious if you guys think it is real or counterfeit?

 

Here are a couple of resources I found but none has reassured me completely

http://penhero.com/PenGallery/Parker/ParkerSonnetClones.htm

http://captainchang.com/pens/fakes.html

http://azfp.blogspot.com/2007/07/fake-sonnets.html

 

Specifically, a few questions I have about it:

1. It seems that the gold plating is coming off in some places, especially on the back of the nib, as seen in the pictures below. Is that normal for these pens? I've seen people say that it shouldn't do that but I believe that's refering to pens with solid gold nibs rather than the plated ones like this one.

2. Does Parker still date their pens? The cap reads "Parker Sonnet France IIIA". That date code seems to correlate to 1992 (? according to http://parkerpens.net/codekey.html) but the Sonnet was introduced in 1994 (per http://parkerpens.net/sonnet.html)

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9408_zps927c21bc.jpg

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9414_zps6dc96305.jpg

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9432_zps913ba44c.jpg

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9430_zpsd52f6dae.jpg

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9410_zpse272e245.jpg "Sonnet" text

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9417_zps3d4acd14.jpg Cap

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9421_zps24f61f0a.jpg Detail of section

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9449_zps1cd1244a.jpg Feed

 

http://i1303.photobucket.com/albums/ag155/jwwsector9/Parker%20Sonnet/IMG_9460_zps63ad8782.jpg Nib

 

[lisadan]

The date code is very suspicious since The Sonnet was introduced in 1994 and your model seems to have been introduced in 2003, according to http://parkerpens.net/sonnet.html

[jeremyzone]

The date code is very suspicious since The Sonnet was introduced in 1994 and your model seems to have been introduced in 2003, according to http://parkerpens.net/sonnet.html

Yes it is. I just did a little more research and found this post, which seems to indicate that Parker may have reused the same date codes more recently though? https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/index.php/topic/159700-parker-pen-date-codes/?p=2431094

[langere]

Alas, I am sure other people will chime in. I wish I were an expert on fakes, but I am not. One thing to keep in mind is that Sonnets are the most-faked fountain pens after Montblancs.

 

The way we might be able to help you is if you could tell us where the seller is located. If it is China or Malaysia, it is likely to be a fake. Does the seller have other fountain pens? Does he/she sell Montblancs as well? I would ask those kinds of questions.

 

Sorry I cannot be of more help, though I am sure others will be.

 

Erick

[jeremyzone]

Alas, I am sure other people will chime in. I wish I were an expert on fakes, but I am not. One thing to keep in mind is that Sonnets are the most-faked fountain pens after Montblancs.

 

The way we might be able to help you is if you could tell us where the seller is located. If it is China or Malaysia, it is likely to be a fake. Does the seller have other fountain pens? Does he/she sell Montblancs as well? I would ask those kinds of questions.

 

Sorry I cannot be of more help, though I am sure others will be.

 

Erick

Thank you for your thoughts. I consider the seller to be low risk. He's in LA and doesn't seem to have a suspicious history. He has sold a few other Sonnets but not a million copies of the same pen.

What I worry about more is that he probably picked it up at a swap meet or trade show of some sort (this is based on his profile page, which says "Hunting from swapmeet, online and different places") so the pen could have come from anywhere.

 

ETA: Forgot to add the ebay link! http://www.ebay.com/itm/Silver-Parker-Sonnet-France-Fauntain-Pen-M-Nib-/271637380896?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2047675.l2557&nma=true&si=S6uv5S3k%252FyJBf2mLhcHsDbT11pU%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

Edited October 28, 2014 by jeremyzone

[pajaro]

Date code IIIA: 1992. I suppose the pens were all made in 1994, in the day before the intro? Presumably the design preceded the intro, and the manufacturing to build up stock followed, all before the intro. The Refresh nib is presumably a replacement nib (cerca 2007). I do not recall seeing the nib size on the nib, though. It normally appears on the feed.

[Matlock]

Date code IIIA is 2012. The coding is QUALITYPEN and is reused every ten years. This pen is OK. Also is has the latest Parker logo which would match the year code.

Edited October 28, 2014 by Matlock

[richardandtracy]

Has the latest style cap lip ring too, correct for the 2010 refresh.

The rectangular holes are right for a GP nib. No claim the nib is gold, which is right.

French made: for the 2012 date is correct.

 

As far as I'm concerned the clincher for authenticity is the black button on top of the cap. It provides an air vent to the interior of the cap. None of the clones or fakes I have come across bother with this detail.

 

Regards,

 

Richard.

[jeremyzone]

Thanks everyone for the input! Glad that it is the real deal

[william2001]

I saw the exactly same pen in Staples.

I have the exactly same pen, except for the fact that mine is black.

-William S. Park

[RyanM]

That one looks fine. Although I recently believe I bought a fake parker pen. It was an IM Rollerball, but, as I have had many Parker Pens in the past, this one was not up to scratch. My Parker Rollerball Refills did not properly fit in it, as well as the cap kept falling off. The threads which connected the head to the body made a horrible screeching noise whenever I moved that part. As well as this, upon shaking the pen, you could hear all the parts moving around inside. I took the pen back, and was given a full refund, but am now wondering if I should have done something more...

As I had no real proof I was sold a fake, I am still wondering if I was just sold a dud.

Does your pen have any of these issues?

[lisadan]

I have Parker IM black GT fountain pen that I also wonder if it's fake. Parker cartridges and converters fit well, and it writes well, but the end part of the barrel is now loose (after short use). I have two other IMs, one exactly like this one, but the parts are not interchangeable.

[jeremyzone]

That one looks fine. Although I recently believe I bought a fake parker pen. It was an IM Rollerball, but, as I have had many Parker Pens in the past, this one was not up to scratch. My Parker Rollerball Refills did not properly fit in it, as well as the cap kept falling off. The threads which connected the head to the body made a horrible screeching noise whenever I moved that part. As well as this, upon shaking the pen, you could hear all the parts moving around inside. I took the pen back, and was given a full refund, but am now wondering if I should have done something more...

As I had no real proof I was sold a fake, I am still wondering if I was just sold a dud.

Does your pen have any of these issues?

My pen doesn't really have any of those issues. It came with a cartridge that fits, although I'm not sure if it's a Parker cartridge as it doesn't have any markings on it besides a number "25". No rattles when I shake it nor does it make any weird noises when unscrewing it. The cap sometimes falls off, but I chalk that up to me not posting it securely enough at times.