Sold As A Slimfold But Has No 10 Nib?

January 30, 2016

Hello everyone! I'm hoping someone can clarify for me.

Last night, I made a Best Offer on two pens on eBay being sold together. One was a Parker 25 which didn't massively interest me (til I read the reviews which made me think I might like this pen even if it looks a bit like a 1980s' Eastern European car)... What I was after was a black Slimfold. Recently I got a blue Slimfold and it might be a boring looking pen, but the nib is way and above my favourite so I decided to get a Slimfold in each of the colours.

Just before I made the Offer I looked more closely at the predictably blurry pictures and realised the one being sold as a 'Slimfold' is probably some other kind of Duofold, as the nib doesn't say "5" but "10". Didn't put me off as I love that Parker nib so much. Now I've won the auction, the Bay won't let me pull up the photos to double check so I will have to wait til it comes and can photo it for yous then, but... a quick research tells me it is probably a Junior. Is that right?

My blue Slimfold has the engraved ring, so is presumably an earlier one. And I have been having no luck so far getting the other three colours with the same engraved ring. This one has a plain ring that is lower on the cap so I'm assuming it is later 1960s? Can anyone tell me if a No 10 is definitely a Junior, and if so, what the nib is like? (It looks like a standard, F or M nib very hard to tell from the blurry photos, but it's not an italic, sadly, which I would really love!)

I paid £14 for both pens - they look seriously unloved but from what I can see, the nibs look OK. I've lost auctions on a number of Slimfolds lately and the prices seem to be creeping up, often to above £14 so the way I see it, I have got the Parker 25 for free! Not sure what a Junior would go for. I like small pens, because I have pathetically tiny hands. But am guessing the Junior will not be a massive step up in size..?

Edited January 30, 2016 by LadyPenelope

January 30, 2016

Yes, 10 is definitely a Junior. Good nib, somewhat wet and juicy but smooth as silk most times. Have a look at http://parkercollector.com/ukduofold.html for more details.

January 30, 2016

10 is indeed a Junior and, rest assured, while it isn't as tiny as your Slimfold, it is still a pretty small pen.

January 30, 2016

The pen looks much larger in pictures because the nib is larger and the back end is large and it is longer but the difference in the section diameter is not all that much.

January 30, 2016

Oh thanks, both! That clarifies. I was hesitating whether to bid at all because it didn't have the engraved cap ring, but when I clocked the "10" on the nib, I thought it might be a good price for it. I like a wet nib and a small pen, so this should do the job!

I wonder what you'd pay nowadays for a 14K nib - these pens are probably good bargains right now but in the few months I've been looking on eBay, the prices seem to be creeping up!

January 31, 2016

I remember the listing and their condition didn't seem too bad, couple of fins missing on the Junior feed but shouldn't affect performance, and after a clean up both should be nice enough. And you got them for a good price even with postage on top. The cap on the Junior is the later type as you noticed, and the pli-glass sac was still pretty clear. If you like your Slimfold then I expect you'll like this Junior: nib performance is comparable across all the Aerometric Duofolds, and the Junior isn't so much thicker than the Slimfold at the section for a lover of small pens, it's bigger difference is its extra length. As a comment on the comparative length, I use virtually all my pens unposted and my Junior is no exception, but I feel my Slimfold is more comfortable posted, though I don't have small hands.

You realise though that now you have two of the Aerometric Duofold range, you'll have to carry on and get them all?

January 31, 2016

I remember the listing and their condition didn't seem too bad, couple of fins missing on the Junior feed but shouldn't affect performance, and after a clean up both should be nice enough. And you got them for a good price even with postage on top. The cap on the Junior is the later type as you noticed, and the pli-glass sac was still pretty clear. If you like your Slimfold then I expect you'll like this Junior: nib performance is comparable across all the Aerometric Duofolds, and the Junior isn't so much thicker than the Slimfold at the section for a lover of small pens, it's bigger difference is its extra length. As a comment on the comparative length, I use virtually all my pens unposted and my Junior is no exception, but I feel my Slimfold is more comfortable posted, though I don't have small hands.

You realise though that now you have two of the Aerometric Duofold range, you'll have to carry on and get them all?

Yes, I've already resigned myself to that - well, at the cheaper and smaller end of the range. I'd definitely want one with a more interesting nib - and can see myself gradually acquiring the other 3 colour Slimfolds. I wasn't prepared for how much I'd like the nibs and even if they're not hugely sought after at the moment, they look to be a bit dearer than they were a couple of years back from what I see online!

Well spotted re. the fins - I missed that. They weren't the clearest of photos but still much better than some I've seen, includign one pen advertised with a 'faulty' nib but only one photo of the pen and that with the cap firmly in place!

January 31, 2016

Yes, ebay can be a bit of a gauntlet to run, and you sometimes have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince, but part of the fun is in the finding - and if it's not then better buy from well-known reputable dealers!
Keep looking and you should find nibs beyond just mediums in time. I think I've seen more of these on the bigger models such as Standards than I have on Slimfolds, but then I don't tend to look at too many Slimfolds. And I seem to see obliques more often than straight italics.

February 1, 2016

sometimes have to kiss a lot of frogs to find a prince,

Where is the 'like' button?

February 2, 2016

Like indeed! It's worth a punt, I guess - and I've kissed a few toads, let alone frogs, in my time.

February 6, 2016

The Junior and Victory are the same size and both have number 10 nibs.

February 6, 2016

I'd love to see pictures of your Slimfolds when you get them. I also love the Slimfold (I have two). I like the Parker 17, too. You might take a look at it. It's tinier than the Slimfold, but mine lays down a beautiful line. It's quite juicy, if you are into that.

February 6, 2016

I'd love to see pictures of your Slimfolds when you get them. I also love the Slimfold (I have two). I like the Parker 17, too. You might take a look at it. It's tinier than the Slimfold, but mine lays down a beautiful line. It's quite juicy, if you are into that.

Parker 17 tinier than the slimfold? Not so. Yours might be P17 lady.