Parker 50 Falcon Review

[rochester21]

At my previous review of a parker 180, someone manifested and interest in the upcoming parker 50 Falcon review. Therefore, i got 2 falcons in the "flighter" finish- one (almost)new, one old, in order to properly asses the quality of this model.

 

Appearance and construction 3.5/5. At a first glance, one could mistake the parker 50 with a parker 45 flighter, although the parker 50 is smaller. Then again, these flighter version all look basically the same. The brushed metal doesn`t look or feel luxurious in any way, but it`s very practical and good at masking scratches that occur during use. The top and bottom of the pen are plain looking, the top of the cap feature a small metal jewel surrounded by a black plastic ring, and the parker clip has lost the traditional indentations which made the clip resemble an actual arrow. Pretty dull design- until you take a look at the nib, which has a peculiar design. Not pretty, but interesting nonetheless. Although the section is metal, the threads are not, which is a bit strange.

The cap features a friction fit which snaps on securely with a click. Unfortunately, the second, more abused parker 50 that i have has a very loose cap, which leads me to believe that this system hasn`t been properly implemented on the parker 50. I really hate loose caps!

http://i40.tinypic.com/o8b50n.jpg

 

Size and weight 4.5/5. The parker 50 has a medium size(slightly bigger than a parker 75, and slightly smaller than a 45) and a medium weight. It`s 13 cm long closed, 14 cm posted, 0.9 cm diameter. It posts pretty well, and the balance both unposted and posted is actually quite good.

All-in-all, it rests and feels good in a medium sized hand- no problem here.

 

Nib and writing 4/5. As you might have noticed, the falcon gets its name from the nib which is actually an extension of the metal section. The medium nib is smooth, rather tolerant with the writing angles, and it presents a minimal drag. However, because the nib and the section are made from one piece of metal, the user can have a good feel of the writing surface. Some might like that, i`m not to fond of this. Ink flow is good, when i got the pen it had dried ink inside, i just filled the converter with water and the pen wrote almost perfectly from the beginning. It had a tendency to skip at the beginning of the first word, but it`s working fine now.

I should also mention the fact that the medium nib sometimes tends to write on the broader side, but this is typical of modern parker pens. Of course, the nib is hard like a nail, and i have zero issues with that, even if i like the feeling of a soft nib myself.

http://i40.tinypic.com/dqhoo5.jpg

 

 

Filling and final considerations 3.5/5. This pen uses standard parker converters and cartridges. I know that the original aerometric type converter offered with these pens isn`t very reliable, as the rubber used tends to shred after some years of use.

I got the falcon for 30 dollars boxed, and considering that the pen was almost unused i can say that this is a good price. I`m only concerned with the tendency of the cap to become loose after some years of use. I really don`t like that at a pen.

 

By the way, even if the overall size of the parker 50 is similar to that of a parker 180(first in the picture, no. 3 is a parker 45), the parker 50 definitely feels better in the hand, similar with the 45 in that respect.

http://i41.tinypic.com/2qv850z.jpg

Edited June 21, 2013 by rochester21

[RMN]

Thanks for the review. It's a lovely pen. I hope to come across one sometime.

 

Just out of curiosity: you say the third pen is a P45. Do you have more of these? If so, are all the clips the same?

 

I like your clip, My P45 has a clip just like on your P50.

 

D.ick

[rochester21]

Thank you for reading the review. This was, i think, the typical design for the last version of the Parker 45. The clip on my 1970s parker 45 is almost identical with the parker 180 clip- which makes sense, since the 180 was produced around the same time. I don`t have the other 45 with me, but maybe i`il write a comparative review of the two at some point. Anyway, these late variants are easy to find on ebay- http://www.ebay.com/itm/Parker-45-Stainless-Steel-Fountain-Pen-Gold-Trim-Fine-Point-54176-/370838310408?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5657af8e08

Edited June 20, 2013 by rochester21

[icardoth]

My two cents: If you thread the section in the barrel using too much force, you will get the feed removed from the nib/section unit. The feed and threads are a single piece, so you must be carefull not to ruin the pen.

[rochester21]

Thanks for the good tip- fortunately, i am gentle with my pens, but i know others are not.

[atypical]

Unfortunately, the second, more abused parker 50 that i have has a very loose cap, which leads me to believe that this system hasn`t been properly implemented on the parker 50.

After a while and through normal use, the retaining ring will be worn to such a degree that the cap does not stay on any more. Unfortunately, this renders the pen useless since it's apparently impossible to find new retaining rings.

[rochester21]

On the one i mentioned, the cap does still hold on, but still, it`s very loose. I did what i usually do in this type of situation, which is to place a small piece of duct tape inside the cap. Not a real fix, not elegant, but at least it works. Cheap too

Edited June 20, 2013 by rochester21

[richardandtracy]

Thanks for the review. Very interesting.

 

Richard

[rochester21]

You`re welcome.