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Showing results for tags 'vacumatic'.
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I bought a Vacumatic from someone on Ebay because the nib was too tempting to miss. It's a nice pen, and seems to be working, which is a surprise. I assumed it was unrestored, but it's also well polished (too well - the barrel markings are no longer visible). But both striped jewels are present, so I'm happy I think it's an oblique nib - happy to be corrected on this if it's not! Parker Vacumatic nib - oblique? by Robin Inkysloth, on Flickr Parker Vacumatic slender lockdown, grey by Robin Inkysloth, on Flickr
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My not-quite-mother-in-law asked me to identify this Parker pen she's had amongst her antiques. Problem is, I'm not really sure what it is. It's short. About 118mm, I think. I'm not sure if it's a sub junior, a debutante or something else. And I can't figure out what year it'd be. thoughts? The gold cardboard box in the photos might help, too... Thanks, all!
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I’ve been lurking for a while now but finally felt I had something worthwhile to post. I’ve been collecting pens (mostly Parkers) for a few years and recently decided to jump in a restore a few of them. I’ve restored a few of my Duofolds and Vac’s over the last year with the help of the generous contributions on this site as well as the many great pen resources on the web. I recently acquired a Parker Senior Duovac and had it disassemble and cleaned when I noticed the pump spring was heavily corroded and had separated. Dang! What to do now? A bit more searching turned up a few sites with replacement springs and pellet cups for sale and the most common recommendation seemed to be that the existing pellet cup usually had to be cut off of the filler plunger in order to install a new spring as it is generally very difficult to remove the cup without damaging either the cup or the plunger shaft. Seemed a waste to destroy a perfectly good cup so I decided to see if I could come up with a pellet cup extractor. The jig materials were some simple scrap from my wood shop – a piece of 2x4, a threaded eye bolt, the end of a drill bit and some copper sheet. I selected a drill bit with a diameter a few thousands smaller than the filler plunger diameter and used the bit to countersink a hole in the end of the eye bolt. I then cut a section off the shank of the same bit and inserted it into the drill hole to serve as the ram. I warmed the pellet cup up once mounted in the jig to 150 degrees for a few minutes monitored by a digital thermometer and then slowly turned the eye bolt and pushed the plunger shaft out the back of the pellet cup. No big issues except that one of the slot legs on the end of the plunger shaft was slightly bent over but I think that can be straightened with a little more heat with I reassemble. So, my rough little jig seems to have worked at least on this first attempt. Anyone else used something similar with good results? Is the pellet cup reattachment usually done with a dab of shellac? Thanks.
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I am an avid Vacumatic OS and Maxima collector, but far from being an expert. I usually differentiate an OS or Max by the length of the pen, diameter of the cap, and the larger nib (I.e 9 or 10 feather nib etching as opposed to the 7 or 8 feather). I was cleaning out a Brown OS and discovered that it has a 7-feather etching, but is the same size as the usual OS and Max Nibs. The pen has a made in USA print with a 45 date. Have I been wrong with one of my criterias? Is this just an anomaly with bad Parker QC? I have also come across nibs with 8-feathers on one side of the shaft and 9-feathers on the other. Any help would be appreciated.
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Some idea of why being practically the same pen, Major cost $ 8.75 and Standard only $ 7.50?
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My grandfather recently passed away, and one of the items that he left to me was a Parker Vacumatic. I have tried to figure out more about the pen from online articles and unofficial Parker collector sites, but so far have not had much luck. It seems that this particular pen is somewhat different than many of the most common subtypes. I was hoping that someone here might have the expertise to help me identify the when it was made, the subtype/style, and any other relevant information that could help me in appreciating this final gift from my grandfather. While I would never sell it, any insights you had regarding its value would also be greatly appreciated. I have uploaded several photos of the pen's various elements to this album: https://imgur.com/fpngallery/ne786kA Some of the features of this pen seem somewhat rare or abnormal: - the blue diamond on the clip is actually black (perhaps due to age?) - the band around the bottom of the cap is silver in color and comprised of fine horizontal lines (seems like a different design than most) - nib has an arrow etched on it, but is gold (not two-toned) Thank you in advance, and I look forward to any information you can provide!
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Has anyone else ordered something off the PenBBS Etsy store lately and had a bunch of pictures of the owner's cats included in the package? Because, uh
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Can I get some advice? Trying to decide between three pens on eBay. Both sellers have good repuations, and I have had very good experinces with the person offering the second two pens. -Buy it now: Vintage Parker Vacumatic Azure blue, fountain pen 14 KT Parker nib. $85 plus $5 shipping -Buy it now or make an offer: Parker English Duofold Red AE, restored bladder, GFT 14 KT Parker nib. $64 plus $7.25 shipping. Have had very satisfactory purchases with this seller. I do have several English Duofolds, am partial to them, but have none in red. -Buy it now or make an offer: Sheaffer Touch Down filler Fountain Pen, burgundy, GFT 14 KT #5 nib. $41 plus $7.25 shipping. Same seller as above. I have no TD -I like writers, and am less of a collector than a user. I feel sure I can replace the bladder. Which are good or reasonable buys? What are good offers? How are Sheaffer TD nibs as a writing experience? Should I look around? All advice welcome! Thank you!
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Hi everyone. A few months ago I received a Parker 51 Vacumatic as a graduation gift from a family friend, and it's since become one of my favorite writers and the centerpiece of my EDC. However, I ran into an issue yesterday with the filler unit. When I'm depressing it, it feels as though it's grinding or like the spring is having some kind of issue, and, most peculiar of all, a small quantity of ink comes out onto the plunger knob when I bring the plunger back out. The ink still fills fully and holds ink, but could the diaphragm have begun failing, or could this be an issue with the entire unit itself? In that vein, for repair work, would it be more economical for me to just send it to someone for repairs, or to try and do the repair myself? Thank you!
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Hi! I'm thinking about buying a Parker Vacumatic from an online aution. But despite my feeble attempts at learning more about Vacumatics, I couldn't come up with an appropriate value for this piece. The seller only provided the 3 pictures below - I don't know the dimensions, nor usability of the pen. The clip is sprung and there is a shadow on the left side of the nib that made me think that maybe it's damaged. The price is now at around 20€ and will maybe go up. The question is: Do you think it's worth the current price tag and maybe a bit more? Thank you for your thoughts. https://imgur.com/a/F0B744f
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Who are FPN's resident Parker Vacumatic experts? I'm in the market for one and would like to learn more about what I should look for.
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'autograph' On The Barrel Of A Parker Vacumatic (Year Late 1930's Or Early 1940's)
FauzAhmad posted a topic in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop
Good day everyone! I picked up this Parker Vacumatic some time ago. It has some sort of engraving on its barrel. It appears to be someone autograph. I do not know if it is done by the person after buying it or if this is was a special order. Any idea what it could be?
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Would Noodler's Black Be Safe To Use In A Parker 51 Vacumatic?
Vindiction posted a topic in Inky Thoughts
I recently acquired a Parker 51 Vacumatic and, up to this point, I've been using Parker Quink Black in it. However, Quink Black is, in my experience, a very dry ink that isn't very water resistant either, so I was curious if I could switch to Noodler's black. I know the ink would require me to flush the pen more often (how frequently?), but I'm more concerned if it will cause any damage to the filling system, specifically to the rubber diaphragm. -
It's a little hard to make out in the photo, but I have found a Parker Vacumatic with an extra row in the barrel imprint area. It reminds me of the different font used for pricing on the older Sheaffer Balances but obviously this is a Parker and not a Sheaffer. (Those imprints never had letters in them anyway.) The extra imprint says, "2S1" Does anyone know what it means? It's very clearly an S and not a 5 in hand. It's clear enough to be read without magnification too. For more information about the pen itself, it is a Parker Vacumatic Major in [Laminated] Azure Pearl with a plastic plunger system and a date code of 5 (so 1945). It has a chevron band and a blue diamond clip. Nothing about this pen seems out of place with the exception of the extra imprint. It is, as they say, a mystery. Please help me solve the case.
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Greetings Guys, Below is a link to a full set of pictures and I have downloaded overview shots to this post for general reference. Detailed photos are here https://imgur.com/a/eTGOAEG Looking for some ID help, specifically dating with regards to these pens. I believe the big duo fold and the jr are both from the early to mid twenties based upon what I see on Tony's site. I believe the Vacumatic is a 3rd Gen Laminated Golden Brown with a Maxima nib from sometime between '42 and '48, and the new one is a 1998 Centennial. Am I on the right track or am I missing important clues? I am a long time fountain pen collector and user but a noob to some of this older stuff. With the exception of the Centennial, these were all part of a shoe box I found in my Grandfather's work bench. Also, you will see that the nib on the Jr is damaged and of course the bladder needs to be replaced. Is the nib repairable and if so, to whom would you have it sent for the work?
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Hello, I recently purchased on the eBay, a Parker 51 vacumatic from 1945 American made. I soaked it, cleaned it up and it fills properly. It writes well in the beginning a nice slightly wet fine line. However, after about 3 or 4 minutes of writing the pen starts writing extremely dry. I mean the ink barley comes out. When I squeeze the filler, the ink flows normally. I need your advice on how to fix this issue. Do I need to open the hood and see what is going on? Please advise or should I send it for restoration to an expert. It feels well and does not leak. Thanks.
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Hello all, I took my first jump into vintage pens at the Triangle Pen Show with a user-grade Parker Vacumatic - 1945 Green Emerald Major. It's a fascinating pen and I am very much enjoying it, except I'm a little stunned at just how WET this pen is. After dipping and filling it at the show after purchase, the seemingly fine nib wrote a line closer to a western M (at least to me) than a fine. I prefer finer lines, and I had Deb Kinney grind it down to a western EF, and it seemed true to size initially, but after filling it with Iroshizuku Tsuki-Yo at home, it has gotten gradually wetter and wider, and is putting down a prodigiously wet line of ink. I also recall feeling like the nib had some tooth when I tested it at the show, but now it is almost completely smooth, which I'm guessing is due to the lubrication from how much ink it's putting out. I've gotten to the point of wiping the feed and nib before writing with it to help it write a bit drier. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the bold line it writes, but it's a bit too wet and wide for my preferences, though I could live with it. I want to use it as a journaling pen but with the way it writes now it would be more suited as a correspondence pen since I write a bit smaller in my journal. I want to ask you all if this is just a normal characteristic of a Vacumatic, and if not, is there anything I should be concerned about? Is Iroshizuku ink a poor pairing for a Vacumatic or should I be concerned about the components?
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Wing Sung 601 Vac: Easy To Clean And Maintain Or Pita?
rollerboy posted a topic in China, Korea and Others (Far East, Asia)
Two questions: 1. How do you flush and clean ink from a pen with this sort of filler? I use a pen for a few weeks then clean it and put it away for months before it sees use again. I'm concerned this filler isn't appropriate for that usage pattern. 2. Longevity of diaphragm. Any estimates on that? What's ages a diaphragm most: pumps, inks, or simply time. -
This is a prototype at the moment for a pen that will be made in very small quantities. 10 (ten) The pen is all hand made, it was born out of an experiment, making a pen with an overlay and ink window, personally I like the syringe type, but in this case, an overlay made more clear the need for a longer body and a small blind cap and a big ink reservoir, therefore I thought why not to make a vacumatic type of pen, but, we do not have diaphragms, and they complicate the construction of the pen, the solution was to replace what in a parker would be a latex diaphragm by the same type of pistons we use in slim pens like the vulcain and calame. One member of the forum asked me why not to make a vacumatic, but the diaphragm is something I dont like, since latex dries out quickly, it decomposes quickly and gets eaten by some inks,.......to make it short, you move a piston instead. The breath tube is made of inox built in the carbon fiber feed which is 6mm (nobody makes those, except us) and comes from another pen that's been in the catalog that uses them, therefore the whole unit can be easily taken away for cleaning. The whole pen can be dismantled by taken away the two screws, that removes the piston unit and the overlay everything at once. So you can clean it.
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So a few weeks ago I got a beautiful Green Senior Maxima Parker Vacumatic. It writes beautifully. But I am really into flex pens for my spencerian and the nib on this pen did not flex much. So I have been on the hunt for a flex nib that would fit or another pen like this that would flex. Today I got one!! Its not as pretty and mostly looks black. It flexes from a fine to a BBBB Which is wonderful. BUT......around a medium to B line it starts shooting ink. No blobs but on Claire Fontaine Paper the BB to BBBB takes about 5 min to dry. I have an assortment of inks (none promoted to be "fast drying" inks) and they all behave about the same. When I write with my Watermans, Conklins, or eversharps they do not take this long to dry. At normal writing pressure the latest ink (Waterman intense black) dries in <5sec. The tines are set well. Its when I open the tines and pull back the nib from the feed that the flow happens. Today I swapped nibs between the two but it seemed to make no difference. I am looking at getting faster drying inks. I guess I could live with it and just carry a blotter? Is there anything I can do to the feed to slow down the flow? Other ideas?
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Parker Vacumatic (Faceted!), I Hadn't Get Any Information About It.
JorgeLpzLmg posted a topic in Fountain & Dip Pens - First Stop
Hi!! Two days ago I bougth at Mexico city (where I live) a faceted fountain pen, wich looks as a Parker Vacumatic oversize. I was searching in the web in orden to confirm if it is an authentic Parker, but I didn't get any information or images about faceted Parkers. The pen description is: Barrel engraved: "Parker Vacumatic USA" (the "V" is engraved on the "R") Long with cap: 13.5 centimeters (5 1/4") Barrel diameter: 1.6 centimeters (5/8") Color: Borgoña Faceted barrel and cap Apparently, the original nib was replaced with a "Harley Davidson" nib (!!!). Can you help me to confirm if it is an authentic Parker? If it's an authentic pen, what is the correct nib for it? I'm attaching some pictures. Thanks! Jorge.
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I was surfing around, looking for a nice Parker fountain pen for a reasonable price (I really love Sonnets and Duofolds too, but they are too expensive for my budget unfortunately). I ended up finding I found two IM's which I really like and I'm debating a bit over whether choosing this one in case I got a new Parker fountain pen (I have 45 and Jotter pencils and Jotter pens so far). (Also looked at Vector and Premier, but I like IM the best so far.) I'm curious for your opinions about it, like how practical and comfortable it is, if it's good for longer writing and maybe some not-so-professional calligraphic writing (for example for Christmas greetings) and so on. I attach two pictures of the ones I like the most so far The blue one is a Parker IM metal fountain pen and the green one says Parker IM Premium Vacumatic Emerald Pearl CT.
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Will A Parker Vacumatic Maxima Nib Fit On A Parker Major?
sundragon posted a topic in Of Nibs & Tines
Hello, Can we swap the nibs or is one larger than the other? Also, is there some online site that lists nib sizes/pens? Thank you in advance, S~ -
Hi!! Some days ago I bougth at Mexico city (where I live) a faceted fountain pen, wich looks as a Parker Vacumatic oversize. I was searching in the web in orden to confirm if it is an authentic Parker, but I didn't get any information or images about faceted Parkers. The pen description is: Barrel engraved: "Parker Vacumatic USA" (the "V" is engraved on the "R") Long with cap: 13.5 centimeters (5 1/4") Barrel diameter: 1.6 centimeters (5/8") Color: Borgoña Faceted barrel and cap Apparently, the original nib was replaced with a "Harley Davidson" nib (!!!). Some members in the First Stop forum had gave me very interesting information, wich says the pen it's not a genuine Parker. Some people says it's an italian pen. Other people says he has similar pens, but are diferente in the part of the barrel that screw in the cap. Someone more says the engraved is fancy, so it can't be an italian pen. Can somebody in this Parker forum help me whit some aditional information? I'm attaching some pictures. Thanks! Jorge.
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Well, the original design as I got tons of mails for this pen, its available finally, although its a very difficult pen to do so it takes time. The system has been tested over 6 months now, the first VAC are shipping by the end of novemeber (the carbon fiber version) A video will be posted soon with the pen in action. A really different pen, even for our standards. https://www.venvstas.com/shamash enjoy.
