Parker Vector, Unsung Hero?

[Al-Nasser]

I have been searching high and low, near and far for exciting pens to add to my collection, and I have seens reviews left and right about well known brands to new startup brands. But every now and then, a question pops up, what about the Parker Vector? A classic (to my standards at least) that has been there for a very long time, and I wonder why is it not a typical recommendation for a starting pen at the very least? It is as sturdy and as good as any of the other beginner pens out there, and maybe better...

 

I love the Parker Vector for what it is, an elegant simple pen, be it a rollerball, ballpoint or a fountain pen. It can be you EDC to school or work, and you wont sweat it if you lost it or so...

 

So once again, is the Vector an unsung hero? Share your opinions, whether yes or no, and let the friendly debate begin..

[Mercian]

I used Vector RBs through High School and University, and I have two Vector FPs (one of which is the first fountain pen that I ever bought).
I would use mine more often, but for the fact that they are a little but too narrow for my ageing hands to find them comfortable for long writing sessions.

 

I agree with you - the Vector is inexpensive, and they write reliably.
The ones with Stainless Steel caps & bodies are very robust, and yet they are still lightweight. The ones with plastic bodies are available in many colours, and have been sold with many different designs/logos/graphics printed on to them.

Parker cartridges are proprietary, but they have a large capacity and are widely available.
I think that they make an excellent pen, in particular for students.

They can also be bought in ‘calligraphy’ sets that have italic nibs of different widths and also, I believe, can be found with oblique nibs for writing Arabic or Hebrew.

They are not at all ‘flashy’, they’re just a good tool for the job of writing.

[jchch1950]

One of the positive facts of the Parker Vector is that they are sell in many different stores . Sometimes when you are looking for an emergency writing instrument or that you forgot your pen(s) home or in the office.

[basterma]

I tend to tell recommend pens I actually have. My Vectors always had the cap give way after a while, so I stopped buying them.

[Mercian]

My Vectors always had the cap give way after a while, so I stopped buying them.

My Vector RBs had plastic bodies. Both cracked at the threads when I accidentally over-tightened them.

My first Vector FP is also plastic, and I am worried about that happening to it - it has high sentimental value as it is my first FP.

 

I have no such worry about my Stainless Steel Vector.

Its body, cap, grip section, and nib are all made of steel. I expect that it will survive for longer than me!

[Sakal77]

Hi all, Vector was my first fountain pen (cca 20 years ago), it's gone now (I lost it), few years ago I brought another one, one level up, Stainless Steel

[NumberSix]

I have two Vectors on the way to me. One is a modern one, purchased from ESS alongside a bottle of Registrar's Ink. The other is a NOS one from the 90s, still in the blister pack.

[inkstainedruth]

My first "good" pen was a Vector, replacing a couple of Parker Reflexes where the rubber on the grip disintegrated. Wasn't sure I would like the Vector at first because it had a fine nib (the Reflexes had both been mediums) until I saw how much further a cartridge went (I didn't know about converters back then).

The pen saw daily use for my morning pages journal. When I accidentally left the pen and then current journal volume at my in-laws' place in CT (it will now be almost 8-1/2 years now), I didn't get the pen back for a month (including sitting in the bottom of my husband's car in 20°F Massachusetts weather. By then I had gotten accustomed to doing the journal entries with a fountain pen and using a ballpoint just wasn't the same. When I got the pen back, it started right up the next day....

Yeah, there's a crack in the threading, but that doesn't have seemed to affect the writing (although I've gotten other pens since then, so that pen gets babied. One of these days I'll get around to putting the translucent barrel from a Vector rollerball on the pen (apparently the cobalt blue color was unusual). But it was a little workhorse. As have been all my Vectors (including the one from the calligraphy set, although I haven't tried most of the nib units).

I wouldn't hesitate to give a Vector to someone as a starter pen (although I'd spring for the slim twist style converter over the slide type). They're inexpensive, come in a huge array of colors and barrel designs, and, well, just work. Most of mine are UK production, except for one of the re-issued French production ones from a couple of years ago (purple) and a couple of NOS US production models (both from the "Geometric" line.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[NumberSix]

My first "good" pen was a Vector, replacing a couple of Parker Reflexes where the rubber on the grip disintegrated.

 

Recently, I saw some NOS Reflexes on ebay and thought about ordering because they're cheap and also unique-looking for a modern Parker. But I found your comments from some other thread about how the rubber disintegrates and decided to pass.

 

I did order the 90s red Vector because of your enthusiasm, though.

[Olya]

I have a few Vectors and they are good pens.

 

The issues I have with them is the metal grip, the step between body and grip section, and the thinness section. I can live with that, but it makes them less than ideal pens to me. For beginners such a thin section can be detrimental.

 

As child I'd grip pens too hard and a slim pen is worse for that, as it leads to more pain.

 

The Pelikano (Up) and Kakuno for example make for better beginner pens than the Vector.

 

I wish they hadn't discontinued the Frontier, it would have made for a better line-up to offer in the beginner's/cheap section the Jotter and the Frontier, so people had a choice between thin and thicker grip sections. Instead it's the Jotter and Vector and there isn't much of a difference between them. The Jotter is imo superior to the Vector, it has a better grip section (ie plastic) and the section is nicer, no step-down.

The only improvements the Frontier needed was to ditch the rubber coating on the grip section and fix the issue of the cap loosening over time. Don't know if there were dry-out issues, mine doesn't.

 

So the Vector is a classic for sure and a good writer as well (which doesn't suffer from dry-out issues like Parker's more expensive offer), but I'd always recommend other pens over this one (if staying with Parker the Jotter, the Pelikano (Up), Kakuno, even the Safari, though the Pelikano (Up) and Kakuno are imo best).

[alexwi]

Vectors are great pens. Well balanced, kind on the eye, and reliable writers.

 

The few that I've used felt like pencils, down to the sound they made as I wrote, which I found weird for a fountain pen, but not disagreeable at all.

 

I have a Vector FP section in a RB body with a crack in the barrel (typical of them). There's such a wide range of designs for rollerballs, that I ended up doing a transplant. My other vector is a stainless steel model which I got for about $5 at a closeout sale about 2 years ago and haven't gotten around to inking it yet.

 

They write consistently well, but don't pike my interest too much for some reason.

 

I also have a ballpoint and I must say that it's extremely comfortable to write with, as the section's has good girth. Some, like mine, have a plastic section with a "waffle" texture, similar to the ciselle, but with larger "boxes" and that makes quite a difference when it comes to gripping.

 

Alex

[inkstainedruth]

 

Recently, I saw some NOS Reflexes on ebay and thought about ordering because they're cheap and also unique-looking for a modern Parker. But I found your comments from some other thread about how the rubber disintegrates and decided to pass.

 

I did order the 90s red Vector because of your enthusiasm, though.

 

Oh I saw that a red one sold. That was you?

I watch a lot of pens, including Vectors, on the Bay of Evil. Some of them are cool designs, but too pricy for what they are, and some are being sold by a seller I won't patronize due to getting screwed by them a few years ago (Ironically, getting what was supposed to be a Vector set as a graduation present for my husband's niece when she was valedictorian of her high school class).

I bought a friend a Looney Toons Taz pen a few years ago, and now am sorry I wasn't able to get one for me as well (and if they made a "Fiona" pen to go with the other ones in the "Shrek" movie tie-in series I'd buy one in a heartbeat, just for the amusement factor, and to go along with the "Puss in Boots" one I got a couple of years ago.

But some of the prices are crazy.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[NumberSix]

 

Oh I saw that a red one sold. That was you?

Might have been!

 

Edited May 28, 2020 by NumberSix

[Mercian]

I wish they hadn't discontinued the Frontier...

 

The only improvements the Frontier needed was to ditch the rubber coating on the grip section and fix the issue of the cap loosening over time. Don't know if there were dry-out issues, mine doesn't.

The Frontier is now made under licence in India, by Luxor.

 

I have one plastic-bodied UK Frontier from 2005, and two metal-bodied Luxor Frontiers from 2015.

The Luxor pens have tighter caps (ok, they’re much newer), but they did ditch the rubber coating on the grip section.

 

I bought one of my Luxor Frontiers from an Indian seller via eBay, and the other from a UK seller of Indian heritage, who was obviously importing them in bulk from India. Each cost me £10 in 2015. MSRP in India was, at that time, about £5 - but my pens did have to be shipped from India to the UK.

My Luxor Frontiers are, imo, better-made than my 2005 UK Frontier.

My Luxor Frontiers both F nibs. Each came in point-of-sale packaging that included a slide-converter and a tin in which one can carry the pen plus a couple of spare cartridges. This makes these pens a fantastic option as a gift for a school or university student.

My only gripe is that my all-stainless-steel Luxor Frontier does not post as securely as my Luxor Frontier that has metal body & cap in black pvd(?) finish.

Edited May 28, 2020 by Mercian

[alexwi]

The Luxor pens have tighter caps (ok, they’re much newer), but they did ditch the rubber coating on the grip section.

 

 

I can't imagine many inventors more hated than whoever came up with the rubberized plastic idea back in the 90's.

 

The textured finish can be removed from most plastic with alcohol and rubbing. It's worth a shot.

 

Alex

[Olya]

The Frontier is now made under licence in India, by Luxor.

 

I have one plastic-bodied UK Frontier from 2005, and two metal-bodied Luxor Frontiers from 2015.

The Luxor pens have tighter caps (ok, they’re much newer), but they did ditch the rubber coating on the grip section.

 

I bought one of my Luxor Frontiers from an Indian seller via eBay, and the other from a UK seller of Indian heritage, who was obviously importing them in bulk from India. Each cost me £10 in 2015. MSRP in India was, at that time, about £5 - but my pens did have to be shipped from India to the UK.

My Luxor Frontiers are, imo, better-made than my 2005 UK Frontier.

My Luxor Frontiers both F nibs. Each came in point-of-sale packaging that included a slide-converter and a tin in which one can carry the pen plus a couple of spare cartridges. This makes these pens a fantastic option as a gift for a school or university student.

My only gripe is that my all-stainless-steel Luxor Frontier does not post as securely as my Luxor Frontier that has metal body & cap in black pvd(?) finish.

Excellent to hear, I guess I'll put the Luxor Frontier back on the "to buy" list...

[bayindirh]

Parker always amazes me with its capabilities. Quink and Vector are so cheap but they're both wonderful things. I don't always use it since it's a bit too wet and broad my daily writings but, it's an amazing pen and hits way higher of its height.

[inkstainedruth]

Might have been!

 

 

Nope, I was thinking of a solid bright red one (as opposed to Burgundy) that just sold. I may or may not have been watching this one too....

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[CS388]

A Vector was my most used fountain pen, back in the day - before I became more obsessive interested in FPs.

 

Excellent functionality and unfussy, simple design.

 

Still got a soft spot for them

[thx1138]

I really like the translucent red and blue vectors, I picked up a NOS box of each from an auction site a few years ago as I liked them so much.