I was thinking in buying a Parker Sonnet. I have seen some good prices for an Ocean Blue with chrome trim and 18k WG nib.

But I have seen, also, some bad commets here in the forums,

What is wrong with them?.

By the way, I found today, and won a auction, for a (cheap) NOS Slimfold with a M 14c gold nib. I hope I will receive it in a few days.

So, having the Slimfold, Should I insist in buying the Sonnet?

Appreciate any comment,

Julio

There is nothing wrong with Sonnets. Some people, unfortunately, generalize their experience with one individual pen to all pens of the same make and model. And we never hear the whole story. How much did they use the pen? Did they try more than one ink in it? Did they do the simple minimum maintenance that all pens need (but few get).

If you get a lot of negative responses, remember that you asked for negatives. This might be the only positive response you get.

I like my Sonnets. They are comfortable to write with, and they are an attractive design.

Buy your Sonnet and enjoy it. Flush it with a weak ammonia solution and then with water, before first use to clear any oil or junk out of the converter and the nib. If the nib needs adjustment, get it adjusted. It's a simple mechanical problem, and one shared by many brands of pen. No big deal. Just do it and get busy using the pen.

Here's another positive note on the Sonnet: a Sonnet was the second fountain pen that I purchased (after cutting my teeth on an Osmiroid). The Sonnet is still in my pen-holder and sees regular service. It has never given me any trouble beyond the usual care that any pen would require. Use yours and enjoy!

Although you don't mention where you plan to buy your pen, your note about ebay suggests a common problem with Sonnets--the counterfeiting.

http://www.stylophilesonline.com/07-06/07sonn.htm

I've tried 3 Sonnets. They are pretty and quite comfortable to hold, but do not work properly: ink dries out, problems starting, some skipping. If you would like to buy mine and play around or send to a nibmeister, you are welcome to them. They are indeed attractive pens and have been inked only a few times each.

QM2

Thank you everybody.

Julio

Julio,
Just saw this topic and wanted to add to it as I have two Sonnets and I find them slightly different (to be expected for all sorts of reasons). My Verdigris flows and writes just right for me, using Waterman green ink which is a favourite of mine (I use it for correcting scripts and books). Although I'm used to larger pens such as the Duofold Centennial this is very comfortable to hold and use. My other Sonnet is a Ruby Red and used with Waterman red it has been slightly more hesitant, sometimes skipping. But knowing how good the green one is I'm not put off: a bit more flushing, maybe a change of ink, and simply running the pen in are needed first.

FWIW even my favourite and smoothest pen, a Pelikan Souverän M800 (they are renowned for smooth nibs and are run in before leaving the factory), took a while to come on song - some residual oils etc no doubt. It takes a little while to get used to even the best pens.

Let us know how you get on!

I had a bad experience with my Sonnet out of the box but Parker fixed it for me. It wrote well afterwords but the experience left me not enjoying the pen so I sold it.

That been said the weight and feel of the pen was excellent. I would think about buying another again but only if I had it on good word that it wrote well.

I have a red Sonnet with 18k nib and have had a very good experience with it. I did notice with the last fill (Waterman Red) that, if the pen were not used regularly, the pen would experience hard starting. But it was almost out of ink at the time, also, so other issues were at play.

I wonder if some of the 18k Sonnets have experienced excessive force on their nibs, causing a separation from the feed and resulting ink starvation?

It is true to say that some Sonnets don't write that well out of the box. However, most of the problems relate to manufacturing oils in the pens which is easily flushed out. The nibs do need a bit of writing in, and maybe a bit of tweaking, but once they write well, they write VERY well.

They do dry out if left for a few days, but a quick flush or a refill fixes that problem, or if you are lucky, resting the nib on a bit of soft tissue to pull the ink through also works if the converter/cartridge is full.

The biggest downfall is that there are a LOT of fakes about and I sometimes wonder how many of the really bad tales about Sonnets are not about the Parker pens at all, but some poor fake.

Jim

I have two Sonnets, both now stay in their boxes, I have used several inks with them and always had problems.

I have never had a problem with any other pen, at any price, from a £1 pen bought at a supermarket (just to try) to a 149.

I expect a pen to behave and write perfectly, first time, everytime.

Older Parkers behave well, my Sonnets dont.

Perhaps its all about expectations.

Conversely, I have two Sonnets, both of which have performed perfectly straight out of their boxes and have continued to perform perfectly for several years now.

I love the design and performance of my ruby Sonnet...when it likes the ink I put in it. Very temperamental pen when it comes to ink. It's really a shame when you pay $100 bucks one and you have to baby it. That's (Potty Mouth) in my book. I have hope that the new '08 Sonnets have fixed this problem because I'd really like one of the blue and silver Sonnets.

I really appreciate everyone comment, I will wait to receive my Slimfold (I hope by weekend), and rethinking of a Sonnet, I know there are a lot of fakes, but I usually buy from a respectable dealer.

Julio

I've found the same as a lot of people - they are hard to get started if they have been left a while. Once the ink is flowing they are excellent but a bit too small for me. What I don't understand is the nib is basically the same design size and shape as the Frontier and that never suffers from the hard to start problem - and I have tried a lot of them

Hi Julio,

I've got 3 Sonnets and am very happy with all of them. Mind you, I like broad nibs so that the ink flow is good. The weight and feel of the pen is better than most. Good luck with your purchase!

Soki

Im currently using a laque black with chrome trim Sonnet FP, BP and Pencil set at work on a daily basis.

the FP writes beautifully, but does dry fast if you dont keep it capped.

on all of these 3 pens the chrome trim has tarnished or developed black spots. some buff off some dont. this seems to be due to the leather case i keep them in.

the BP is a replacement for one i lost.

I also have a marbled blue Sonnet FP and BP. the FP wrote too dry originally and i had to do an ink flow increase and sctached the nib a little. writes beautifully now though. the BP i used daily through 3 years of notetaking at uni. the mechanism is stiff nowadays. the refill lasted 2 years!

also, i had a 14K Diamonite G BP that looked like the gold plate was wearing though, i gave it to a friend and got another one which seems to be ok. I also had a matching pencil that developed pits all over which i sent back to parker and they kept it and told me to pick a new pen.

i also have an old sterling silver ciesle BP that i bought off a lady at work who didnt really know what it was. the laquer over the silver is peeling off in places and tarnish has set in underneath some of the remaining laquer which means it cant be polished.

so all in all, ive had 10 Sonnets and problems with 8 of them and bad luck with a lot of them!

i really love them though. ive never really sat down and thought about how many ive had and whats been wrong with them.

not the best of records i suppose but theyre great to write with and look good. they have always been good daily writers for me. im still a fan.

I have only one Sonnet. It did not write very well out of the box, but after some nib tweaking by The Honorable Mr. Binder, my Sonnet works just fine. I do intend to purchase more. I want a Ruby Red one, and a black one and a Silver Tartan and a...

I second this comment and some others above. My ruby Sonnet is much happier without the Waterman red ink and is now flowing well with W's Havana. Also it needed a bit more running in and now I experience no problems whatsoever with either of my Sonnets. The nibs are a lot more flexible than with the Duofolds and Pelikan Souveraen 800 - that could be an advantage or a drawback depending on your preference.

I don't doubt that if I send my Sonnets to Binder, the problems will be fixed and they will become great writers.

However, I think that I am just too emotionally biased against the Sonnets now to be able to like them -- to even want to send them for adjustment. For me, there is a real sense of betrayal associated with these pens, because my experience with them was the first negative experience I had with fountain pens. For me, the Parker Sonnet basically represents the first time I was introduced to the concept that a new, shiny, attractive fountain pen may be defective out of the box... 3 times in a row.

I think for many people this is so, because the Sonnet is a natural "next step" after the lower end Parkers, such as the Vectors that some of us started on. Hence the strong resentment many express against this pen.

I have five Sonnet FPs and could not be happier.

My first one, an Ocean Blue ST, got lost at a reenactment in 2005 - or so I thought. Two weeks later, my daughter found it in our driveway. ("Hey, Dad, uh, didn't you say you lost a blue pen?") It bore all of the hallmarks of having been rained on and run over. Luckily, the driveway is gravel, so the case did not get crushed too badly, but it was plenty scratched up.

I pulled it apart, and found no damage inside! I tossed the cartridge, field-stripped the pen, cleaned it, put in a new cartridge in, and (drumroll, please!) it wrote just as well as the day I got it.

It is in use to this day, some three years later.

I have two Parker Sonnets which I am very happy with. When I got them home and took them out of the box they worked beautifully. Before reading this thread I did not realize that they evoked such differing emotions in people.

Yes... Sonnet angst.

My 3 Sonnets serve me well and honestly. Parker Sonnet is a very good and beautiful fountain pen.

I think so too. The only bad thing I have to say about the Sonnet is the exaggerated ventilation in the cap. Even if you write with the pen on an almost daily basis the nib seems to dry quickly, making it a dry starter. I've plugged the cap with candle wax and haven't had a problem since with any of my Sonnets. It's a beautiful pen, constructed with longevity in mind (no loose cap like the ones on the Frontier thanks to a section holder ring in metal that doesn't wear easily).

Regards
Undersköterskan

I just received my first Parker Sonnet today. I've read a lot of the issues and problems that others have encountered. I picked it up on ebay, its a new inexpensive stainless and gold sonnet with the steel nib and I'm pleased to say it writes very nice out of the box.. I'm using a cartridge with Parker blue. I don't think this pen will turn me into a modern Parker fan but I am pleased.