Duofold Centennial Time Frame

[Ted F]

Very nice pen!

The very first duofold centennials have a 14ct nib instead of a 18ct nib too.

The 14ct nibs are quite rare.

 

Lennard

 

If I had bought the pen when it was new back in 1988 I would have opted for the 18K nib just because it's more gold.

[Matlock]

Very nice pen!

The very first duofold centennials have a 14ct nib instead of a 18ct nib too.

The 14ct nibs are quite rare.

 

Lennard

Thats interesting, I have never heard that before. All my 1987 Centennials have 18ct nibs. Perhaps someone can shed some light on this as it is not mentioned in the Parker Duofold book.

[Matlock]

Further to my last post I notice that. on parkerpens.net. it says: "The nibs were were offered in four standard grades and 22 non-standard. Initially the customers had a choice between a 14K or 18K nib, but the 14K nibs were discontinued in March of 1989". So it shows I should do my homework. Has anyone got a picture of a 14ct nib on a Centennial?

Edited March 8, 2015 by Matlock

[Mr. Pink]

I do remember that when I bought mine I had a choice of 14K or 18K

[mitto]

Further to my last post I notice that. on parkerpens.net. it says: "The nibs were were offered in four standard grades and 22 non-standard. Initially the customers had a choice between a 14K or 18K nib, but the 14K nibs were discontinued in March of 1989". So it shows I should do my homework. Has anyone got a picture of a 14ct nib on a Centennial?

Hi, Matlock, you have already done your homework. You wouldn't have come back if in case u haven't. The learning process never ends in one's life. We learn new things each and every day. That is life. Edited March 9, 2015 by mitto

[Ted F]

I've always been curious about nib tips. For example, with the Duofold Centennial the parkerpens.net site mentions that the 14K and 18K nibs were tipped with iridium (ruthenium). If that is the part you write with what does gold add to the writing experience that other materials don't?

[AndrewC]

Think of the tipping as the tires, the rest of the material as shocks and suspension.

[Frank C]

I've always been curious about nib tips. For example, with the Duofold Centennial the parkerpens.net site mentions that the 14K and 18K nibs were tipped with iridium (ruthenium). If that is the part you write with what does gold add to the writing experience that other materials don't?

 

 

"Iridium is a chemical element with symbol Ir and atomic number 77. A very hard, brittle, silvery-white transition metal of the platinum group, iridium is generally credited with being the second densest element (after osmium) based on measured density, although calculations involving the space lattices of the elements show that iridium is denser, and is the most corrosion-resistant metal, even at temperatures as high as 2000 °C. Although only certain molten salts and halogens are corrosive to solid iridium, finely divided iridium dust is much more reactive and can be flammable."—From Wikipedia, downloaded 9 March 2015—

 

Nowadays, the term "Iridium" is used for the alloy used to tip fountain pens. This alloy often doesn't even contain Iridium, but tries to maintain the qualities of being hard and corrosion-resistant. Different companies use different proprietary formulas. The advantage of a hard metal is that it doesn't wear away easily as it is pushed or pulled along paper. The main part of the nib is usually stainless steel or a gold alloy. these metals are used because they are less likely to react to ink. This was more of an issue when inks were more reactive. In the past, some inks were very acidic or basic. The trend now is toward pH neutral ink.

 

Additionally, some people prefer the "feel" the different alloys give to a nib. As a rule, stainless steel nibs are stiffer, and gold more flexible. 14K gold is often considered to be "springier" than 18K. I once bought an Omas from John Mottishaw with a 14K nib modified for Spencerian handwriting. When Omas changed the alloy to 18K (probably a decision from the marketing department) Mr. Mottishaw discovered that he could no longer modify the nibs to write Spencerian. There are many other factors involved in "feel" including nib size and thickness.

 

Pages have been written on these subjects—just do a search on FPN—this is just a rough overview.

Edited March 9, 2015 by Frank C

[penmanila]

I've had a 14k nib on one of my Duofolds. I have quite a few modern (and vintage) Duofolds in both sizes, but my favorite among the moderns is the ca. 2000 Greenwich Centennial. Never did like the later streamlined versions, and prefer the chunkiness of the early ones.

[Dutchpen]

Hi,

 

Here are some pictures of the duofold centennial with 14k nib.

It's the second pen from the left in the tray.

 

The pen itself has a flat clip, flat bands on the cap and barrel.

The top is plain black (no emblems)

The backside of the cap says Parker, made in UK 1E

 

 

enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 25, 2015 by Dutchpen

[Ted F]

Of course, I think the pen is beautiful. It's exactly like mine, even the date code, except the nibs are different. That is a very impressive collection of Duofolds. Thank you for sharing.

[Dutchpen]

Of course, I think the pen is beautiful. It's exactly like mine, even the date code, except the nibs are different. That is a very impressive collection of Duofolds. Thank you for sharing.

Thank you. This is only a small part of all my duofolds. I will post a pic of them all together soon :-)