Parker Duofold True Blue

[lewis]

I have a modern Green Check Centennial Duofold and I think it's a great pen, I love the way it feels in the hand, and more importantly, on the paper. I've managed to collect some pennies over the past few months and as soon as I got the green light from my wife I went on the hunt. Duofolds were high up my wish list along with a few others. I recently saw a review of the DNA and Lucky 8 and those pens are just amazing. However something drew me to the True Blue. Anyway, I found an auction on the Bay from a trusted seller and decided to give it a go. To my amazement, no-one wanted to out bid me at just £206 (c USD330), so I won the auction at what I consider a steal. Anyway, 2 days later, the pen has arrived.

 

I don't consider myself an expert so forgive me if I'm unable to offer technical knowledge. What I can offer though is my thoughts and first experience of this magnificent pen.

 

First Impressions

The True Blue came in a huge box - certainly huge for a pen. 24cm x 20cm. The box itself is stunning and it only served to increase the excitement. All that blue! Wow! In the box was the pen, a limited edition card, a bottle of penman ink and some paperwork. This is a really impressive box and surpassed my expectations. It's the nicest case that any of my pens have come in.

 

 

Appearance

The pen itself is typical in size of a Duofold Centennial. The colour however is just WOW. The finish on it is exceptionally highly polished and it reminds me of some of the strawberry-cream sweets I used to get as a child!

 

Being a Parker, it's a really well made pen and the main differences compared to my Green Check Duofold other than the colour I can see are the 3 silver bands around the cap - I believe this is usually just 2, and the flat top cap.

 

Nib

This has come with a Medium nib and to write with it is similar to my other Duofold. Although, it some how feels a little bit more precise, perhaps a little firmer. I'm sure this is only because my Duofold is well used. It's single tone 'silver' and features a different design. I would have perhaps liked the words 'true blue' to feature somewhere. It is a very nice nib and writes very smoothly. I've filled it with Quink and the flow is perfect - I wouldn't expect too much less! I did briefly dip it in the Penman Ink that accompanied the pen. That ink is BLACK! I felt that I just had to have blue in this True Blue!

 

Cost / Value

As I mentioned, I consider this a steal at £206. It is the same price that I paid for my M800. Whilst the nib on the M800 is wonderful, the pen itself doesn't feel as well made as this Duofold and certainly doesn't have the presence in my hand, or on my desk. At full retail price, I have seen this at around £550. I wouldn't have paid that myself, and so I guess this is very subjective. It's a great pen so I guess it comes down to what one is willing to pay.

 

Overall

I'm delighted with this pen. It has all the idiosyncrasies that make Parker Duofolds so great and an appearance that will be hard to match by other pens. It's sure going to attract a lot of attention and become a talking point. It writes great and the display case is simply amazing. I'm so glad I've got this pen.

 

I have taken some photographs, which, don't really do it justice. I've attached one, the rest can be viewed on my Flickr page

 

I hope you all enjoy.

[scribbler999]

Very nice - congrats. I have just started looking at the Duofolds with a plan to buy - this model looks lovely. Nice deal too!

[lewis]

Very nice - congrats. I have just started looking at the Duofolds with a plan to buy - this model looks lovely. Nice deal too!

 

I have a small collection now, including a Pelikan, 2 Duofolds, a Caran d'Ache, 2 Cross and 2 Waterman. They all offer something different. The Duofold is what I consider a real traditional fountain pen. It has a very firm nib, nowhere near the spring of a Pelikan, but it makes a great writing experience. You have to apply no pressure at all to write.

 

JML 'Pen Seller From France' on eBay sells Parker and there are many Duofolds on his page. I bought my Check one from him. I'd really recommend having a look on there. You can get them at exceptionally competitive prices and his service is great. You wont be disappointed with a Duofold.

 

Lewis

[Brian]

Well done Lewis. You've paid a bargain price for a silk purse. Very nice pen. Hope you enjoy it for a long time to come.

[Glenn-SC]

+1

 

I have this pen and I too am delighted with it.

 

(Too bad the originals didn't age well!)

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j95/glenn-sc/ParkerTrueBlues.jpg

[scribbler999]

Thanks Lewis - I'll check out the ebay store you mention. I like stiffer nibs - my best writing pen is in fact a Lamy Al Star, my MB 149 is prob next. At the softer, end of the scale in my collection is a Lamy accent with gold nib (too soft really) and a Dunhill AD2000 carbon fibre which is a joy to hold but not best writer in my hands.

[toomanypelikans]

I have a modern Green Check Centennial Duofold and I think it's a great pen, I love the way it feels in the hand, and more importantly, on the paper. I've managed to collect some pennies over the past few months and as soon as I got the green light from my wife I went on the hunt. Duofolds were high up my wish list along with a few others. I recently saw a review of the DNA and Lucky 8 and those pens are just amazing. However something drew me to the True Blue. Anyway, I found an auction on the Bay from a trusted seller and decided to give it a go. To my amazement, no-one wanted to out bid me at just £206 (c USD330), so I won the auction at what I consider a steal. Anyway, 2 days later, the pen has arrived.

 

I don't consider myself an expert so forgive me if I'm unable to offer technical knowledge. What I can offer though is my thoughts and first experience of this magnificent pen.

 

First Impressions

The True Blue came in a huge box - certainly huge for a pen. 24cm x 20cm. The box itself is stunning and it only served to increase the excitement. All that blue! Wow! In the box was the pen, a limited edition card, a bottle of penman ink and some paperwork. This is a really impressive box and surpassed my expectations. It's the nicest case that any of my pens have come in.

 

 

Appearance

The pen itself is typical in size of a Duofold Centennial. The colour however is just WOW. The finish on it is exceptionally highly polished and it reminds me of some of the strawberry-cream sweets I used to get as a child!

 

Being a Parker, it's a really well made pen and the main differences compared to my Green Check Duofold other than the colour I can see are the 3 silver bands around the cap - I believe this is usually just 2, and the flat top cap.

 

Nib

This has come with a Medium nib and to write with it is similar to my other Duofold. Although, it some how feels a little bit more precise, perhaps a little firmer. I'm sure this is only because my Duofold is well used. It's single tone 'silver' and features a different design. I would have perhaps liked the words 'true blue' to feature somewhere. It is a very nice nib and writes very smoothly. I've filled it with Quink and the flow is perfect - I wouldn't expect too much less! I did briefly dip it in the Penman Ink that accompanied the pen. That ink is BLACK! I felt that I just had to have blue in this True Blue!

 

Cost / Value

As I mentioned, I consider this a steal at £206. It is the same price that I paid for my M800. Whilst the nib on the M800 is wonderful, the pen itself doesn't feel as well made as this Duofold and certainly doesn't have the presence in my hand, or on my desk. At full retail price, I have seen this at around £550. I wouldn't have paid that myself, and so I guess this is very subjective. It's a great pen so I guess it comes down to what one is willing to pay.

 

Overall

I'm delighted with this pen. It has all the idiosyncrasies that make Parker Duofolds so great and an appearance that will be hard to match by other pens. It's sure going to attract a lot of attention and become a talking point. It writes great and the display case is simply amazing. I'm so glad I've got this pen.

 

I have taken some photographs, which, don't really do it justice. I've attached one, the rest can be viewed on my Flickr page

 

I hope you all enjoy.

I was bidding on that one as well just for fun. 206 was a great price. Well done.

[lewis]

I have a modern Green Check Centennial Duofold and I think it's a great pen, I love the way it feels in the hand, and more importantly, on the paper. I've managed to collect some pennies over the past few months and as soon as I got the green light from my wife I went on the hunt. Duofolds were high up my wish list along with a few others. I recently saw a review of the DNA and Lucky 8 and those pens are just amazing. However something drew me to the True Blue. Anyway, I found an auction on the Bay from a trusted seller and decided to give it a go. To my amazement, no-one wanted to out bid me at just £206 (c USD330), so I won the auction at what I consider a steal. Anyway, 2 days later, the pen has arrived.

 

I don't consider myself an expert so forgive me if I'm unable to offer technical knowledge. What I can offer though is my thoughts and first experience of this magnificent pen.

 

First Impressions

The True Blue came in a huge box - certainly huge for a pen. 24cm x 20cm. The box itself is stunning and it only served to increase the excitement. All that blue! Wow! In the box was the pen, a limited edition card, a bottle of penman ink and some paperwork. This is a really impressive box and surpassed my expectations. It's the nicest case that any of my pens have come in.

 

 

Appearance

The pen itself is typical in size of a Duofold Centennial. The colour however is just WOW. The finish on it is exceptionally highly polished and it reminds me of some of the strawberry-cream sweets I used to get as a child!

 

Being a Parker, it's a really well made pen and the main differences compared to my Green Check Duofold other than the colour I can see are the 3 silver bands around the cap - I believe this is usually just 2, and the flat top cap.

 

Nib

This has come with a Medium nib and to write with it is similar to my other Duofold. Although, it some how feels a little bit more precise, perhaps a little firmer. I'm sure this is only because my Duofold is well used. It's single tone 'silver' and features a different design. I would have perhaps liked the words 'true blue' to feature somewhere. It is a very nice nib and writes very smoothly. I've filled it with Quink and the flow is perfect - I wouldn't expect too much less! I did briefly dip it in the Penman Ink that accompanied the pen. That ink is BLACK! I felt that I just had to have blue in this True Blue!

 

Cost / Value

As I mentioned, I consider this a steal at £206. It is the same price that I paid for my M800. Whilst the nib on the M800 is wonderful, the pen itself doesn't feel as well made as this Duofold and certainly doesn't have the presence in my hand, or on my desk. At full retail price, I have seen this at around £550. I wouldn't have paid that myself, and so I guess this is very subjective. It's a great pen so I guess it comes down to what one is willing to pay.

 

Overall

I'm delighted with this pen. It has all the idiosyncrasies that make Parker Duofolds so great and an appearance that will be hard to match by other pens. It's sure going to attract a lot of attention and become a talking point. It writes great and the display case is simply amazing. I'm so glad I've got this pen.

 

I have taken some photographs, which, don't really do it justice. I've attached one, the rest can be viewed on my Flickr page

 

I hope you all enjoy.

I was bidding on that one as well just for fun. 206 was a great price. Well done.

 

so it was you who drove the price up . It is a great pen and I thought it was a great price. I'm just glad that someone else didn't turn the screw because I'm not sure if I'd have bailed, or ended up going the whole hog!

 

[lewis]

Thanks Lewis - I'll check out the ebay store you mention. I like stiffer nibs - my best writing pen is in fact a Lamy Al Star, my MB 149 is prob next. At the softer, end of the scale in my collection is a Lamy accent with gold nib (too soft really) and a Dunhill AD2000 carbon fibre which is a joy to hold but not best writer in my hands.

 

I got mine from PilotFish who I've used before and had no problems with. JML generally has a wider selection, and whilst you have to wait a little bit longer for delivery, the service is great.

 

I really like Dunhill pens. I saw a great deal at Hong Kong airport last summer and I was really tempted. It was a Sidecar and looked and felt great. I love the fact that you rate the Lamy Al Star higher than the 149. I suppose it just shows how we get sucked in to the aesthetics!

 

Cheers.

[scribbler999]

I have a Dunhill AD2000 ballpoint in carbon fibre that I am thinking of selling - it is beautifully made and the CF is stunning.

 

I'll keep the AD2000 FP and also have an AD1800 ballpoint - both in CF.

[breaker]

nice review and excellent pics!

[ArchiMark]

Thanks for great review and pics, Lewis!

 

Definitely unique pen!

 

 

I've started collecting some Duofold Centennials lately and very happy with them....

[falarcon]

+1

 

I have this pen and I too am delighted with it.

 

(Too bad the originals didn't age well!)

http://i78.photobucket.com/albums/j95/glenn-sc/ParkerTrueBlues.jpg

 

But they really try to capture the original color. Here is a picture of the old and new ones, the barrel of my old one is in much better shape than the cap, in fact I first found the body without a cap about 15 years ago, but you can see the original color.

 

[Toolattack]

Bit late to the party, but I really like this pen too!

I bought mine from Penhome, who have always looked after me.

Nice review and images.