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Yet Another "help Me Pick A Pen" Thread: Parker Vs Visconti


TheRealMikeDr

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So - I was all set to purchase a new Parker Duofold Centennial - but now I'm waffling on the idea.

 

The Centennial can be had new for round abouts $460 clams. I like the looks of the pen, I like the history behind it, but I'm having a hard time thinking that it's not grossly over-priced. A C/C pen (I don't really mind that - easy to clean and whatnot) for $460???? They claim it's hand finished and whatnot - but it doesn't look "special" in any pictures and I'm concerned about some hefty buyers remorse.

 

Alternatively the Visconti Homo Sapiens pen has now caught my eye. It's a bit more money but it's made out of REAL LAVA (or something like that - they say anyways) and would be pretty unique looking/feeling in that regard. Plus you get a 23K gold nib and a vacuum fill mechanism (which some claim is problematic) which is what I expect at that price point.

 

But - the Home Sapien has some reviews that claim issues with leaking etc.

 

Hmpf.

 

 

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The visconti nib is 23K Palladium not gold. Just in case it matters. The body contains some lava rock from Mt. Etna in Sicily but it is not just made of porous lava rock.

 

To me this Visconti is the mre interesting pen, including the cap lockign system and the ability to put on your own little personlzation onto the cap top. But the quality control has been an issue for me with my Visconti pens.

 

The Parker is a more classic shape and comes in plenty of colors. Nothing wrong with them, just not my cup of tea currently.

If you want less blah, blah, blah and more pictures, follow me on Instagram!

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The visconti nib is 23K Palladium not gold. Just in case it matters. The body contains some lava rock from Mt. Etna in Sicily but it is not just made of porous lava rock.

 

To me this Visconti is the mre interesting pen, including the cap lockign system and the ability to put on your own little personlzation onto the cap top. But the quality control has been an issue for me with my Visconti pens.

 

The Parker is a more classic shape and comes in plenty of colors. Nothing wrong with them, just not my cup of tea currently.

 

Ah - thanks - I mis-read the marketing blurb on the Visconti nib.

 

re: Yes - the Visconti's currently have a rep for QC issues - which causes me some minor concern at that price point. That said I tend to have real good luck with pens so that would not be a deal breaker in the end. I'm also thinking about a "basic" Starry Night" or Rembrandt version but while they look nice in photos I'm wondering if they look as sharp in person - being a basic resin pen. I may do that as a test run for the Visconti.

 

Re Duofold - yes - they are certainly more "classic" while the Homo Sapiens is more modern and cool I suppose.

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I'd go for Visconti all the way. My Rembrandt is far more exciting (and gets more comments) than my Sonnet.

The Rembrandt nib is beautiful and lays down a nice line - and it's not like Parker are immune from making duds.

 

I'd "save" some money and go for the Rembrandt, and then you can also get a Lamy 2k which will save you precisely nothing. But you get two nice pens for the price of one.

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I would go for the Visconti... Everything I have that has been manufactured in the last quarter from Visconti has been excellent. My older Visconti had a broad nib that needed a bit of work... had a touch of baby's bottom.... but most of the broads I have picked up from other manufacturers have not been up to my taste either. The Medium and the 1.3mm Stub I have from them are excellent. I do love the material on the Homosapian.

 

Look at the Operas as well, some of them might be in your price range, and I find the squared circle, or whatever they call it, very ergonomic. Nothing wrong with the Duofold... it's on my list to get as well...

 

My new Desert Opera:

IMG_20160715_165325.jpg

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I'd go for Visconti all the way. My Rembrandt is far more exciting (and gets more comments) than my Sonnet.

The Rembrandt nib is beautiful and lays down a nice line - and it's not like Parker are immune from making duds.

 

I'd "save" some money and go for the Rembrandt, and then you can also get a Lamy 2k which will save you precisely nothing. But you get two nice pens for the price of one.

 

Thanks! I have an L2K already (really like it!) but I've also had my eye on the Edison Collier Burnished Gold so I could do a Rembrandt and a Burnished gold and save some monies!

 

Trouble with that is I would still, at some point, have to get a Duofold and or Homo Sapiens so in the end it's simply delaying the inevitable.

 

Plus my wife no longer believes me when a package gets delivered and I tell her it's for the neighbor and they left it on our doorstep by mistake - multiple packages means life in the danger zone!

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See which one you can find for a better price right now, in the nib size you want.... and then the choice is made up for you. You have time to get the other one. Neither is going away anytime soon.

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Every time I use my Visconti HS I think to myself "Why don't I use this pen more?" I do not think that when I write with my Parker Duofold. This is not to say the Duofold is not a good pen. It is. But the Visconti HS is a GREAT pen.

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I'll chime in toward the Visconti HS as well. While Visconti does have some QC issues, the HS is one of my favorite pens, period. The nib is incredible, the heft is wonderful, the material is terriffic (and does wick moisture off your hands as you write, which is terriffic), it holds a lot of ink, the vacuum mechanism has a shut-off valve for flying.. I can't get enough of it. Oh, and have I mentioned that it looks amazing?

 

I enjoy the Rembrandt plenty and you'll be happy either way, but the HS and its insane level of uniqueness just hits me in all the right places.

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I have both the Duofold Centennial (Black) and the Homo Sapiens (Bronze), coincidentally both inked right now, a rare event because I almost never use the Homo Sapiens. But my son adores the looks of that pen and he is at home now, so I decided to ink it up. My personal experience made me have the following opinion about these pens.

 

Duofold - classic looks (if understated), very reliable, superb balance and excellent nib. Easy to clean too. A pen that I'll keep until the end, and I'll probably get some other colors too.

 

Homo Sapiens - killer looks, excellent balance, excellent nib (a slight edge over the Duofold's nib, but not by much, IMO). That's where the good stuff ends: extremely unreliable filling system (to the point I never use it with an ink I may need to actually use for more than a page), a pain to clean and very, very poor finish (the threads inside the cap look like something made with a knife and without much care. Everyone that sees it comments that, despite being hidden, it is not what you would expect for the price). Also, it is the only pen I have in which the section threads make it extremely uncomfortable to use. So, probably I'll put it in the drawer and never use it again until my son comes home for Christmas, when I'll have forgotten why I don't use it.

 

So, it seems that I'm the only one that would vote for the Duofold. But, to be honest, the HS looks so good that I think people will buy it regardless of all problems: I knew of all potential problems and I still bought it :(.

By the way, with a little patience both pens can be had for much less than the figures you mentioned.

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... the vacuum mechanism has a shut-off valve for flying...

I may be mistaken, but I don't think the regular editions have the shut off valve, at least not the Bronze Age.

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I may be mistaken, but I don't think the regular editions have the shut off valve, at least not the Bronze Age.

 

My understanding was that the plunger in the Power Filler sealed off when screwed down all the day, and had to be re-opened for ink to flow. Please correct me if I'm wrong! I'd hate to find that I'd been going all this time misunderstanding how they built their Power Filler as opposed to a more standard vac.

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My understanding was that the plunger in the Power Filler sealed off when screwed down all the day, and had to be re-opened for ink to flow. Please correct me if I'm wrong! I'd hate to find that I'd been going all this time misunderstanding how they built their Power Filler as opposed to a more standard vac.

 

The normal powerfiller... the one on the Opera Masters, the one on special edition demonstrator HomoSapains, etc, has the secondary chamber that can be closed off, etc. The Lava edition powerfiller does not, it is a standard vac filler. The non-demo pens that have a dual chamber (some of the divinas) all have an ink window so you can see when the secondary is getting low... does that make sense?

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The normal powerfiller... the one on the Opera Masters, the one on special edition demonstrator HomoSapains, etc, has the secondary chamber that can be closed off, etc. The Lava edition powerfiller does not, it is a standard vac filler. The non-demo pens that have a dual chamber (some of the divinas) all have an ink window so you can see when the secondary is getting low... does that make sense?

That was my understanding too, but I'm no expert.

Thanks for clarifying.

Edited by Lam1
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I would go for the Visconti despite the quality control issues. The Visconti is a little bit different, whereas the Parker Duofold rates much higher on the "meh" meter

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Thanks for that!

 

It's showing as $349 for me (still a decent price) but it also shows as a "GT" model??? What's the difference between the Centennial and the Centennial GT as the GT models seem to have lower prices (on Ebay as well)????

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I'd go with the Parker. And you can buy them all day long for between $250 and $300 on ebay (special versions excepted)

 

Thanks for that - I'd love to see a link for a new Lapis Lazuli Centennial with a Fine nib for $300 or less!

 

I would go for the Visconti despite the quality control issues. The Visconti is a little bit different, whereas the Parker Duofold rates much higher on the "meh" meter

 

I like the classic looks of the Duofold - and the long history of the pen makes it interesting to me - but otherwise I agree with you on the Visconti. It's got a unique modern cool kind of vibe to it - at least from the pictures.

 

Sadly I can't find one in a fine nib from my favorite Italian eBay seller (they only have the medium nib???) so full retail direct from a US vendor may be my safest route which makes it a fairly costly pen!

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I like the classic looks of the Duofold - and the long history of the pen makes it interesting to me - but otherwise I agree with you on the Visconti. It's got a unique modern cool kind of vibe to it - at least from the pictures.

 

 

Classic looks tend to be ten a penny, but maybe if you don't have a pen that has classic looks then it may be a better option at this time, especially as some members have mentioned about getting it at decent price.

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