Do any Parkers have flexible nibs?

[Emver]

I've always preferred medium nibs, but I've just started to get interested in experimenting a little with italic, stub or even flexible nibs.  So I've been looking through my pen collection in the hope of finding one with a flexible nib.  I realise that gold nibs might me more likely to be flexible, and most of my older pens do have gold nibs.

 

I came across a couple of old Conway Stewarts which seem to have fairly flexible nibs, but they both need new ink sacs and other work before they will be useable pens again.  Then I came across an unassuming small black Parker with a 14k 585 gold nib. I struggle to read barrel imprints these days, but from its small nib and 122mm length (cap in place), I think it's probably a Slimfold or perhaps a Lady from the late 50s or early 60s.  Anyway, it writes beautifully and the nib has a reasonable amount of flex.  So I'm wondering if any other models of Parker have even more flex?  Any suggestions?

 

[bunnspecial]

I'm not sure if anyone can point to any one particular model and say "yes, always", but I have three what I'd call decently flexible Parkers in my collection:

 

1. A 24 1/2 Jack Knife from probably the late teens

 

2. A Late 20s "Permanite" Duofold Senior

 

3. An Oversize Vacumatic from the 30s

 

The old nibs fitted to Lucky Curve feeds seem to turn up in flex with some frequency IME.

 

I consider the Vac nib more of an outlier, and I have a virtually identical OS of similar age with no flex. Still, though, I have a bunch of Vacs, and some have at least a hint of spring in them but others are quite stiff.

[mitto]

I have two made in Canada first generation (lockdown filler) vacumatics that have superb flexible nibs. 

 

Also, I have some 1940s-1960s English NS, AF and Aerometric Duofolds with pretty good flexy nibs. 

[bsenn]

I agree with Khan on the Canadian Vacumatics. There seems to be a percentage of those with flexible nibs.

 

Brian

 

[brokenclay]

I have a 1940s Canadian Duovac Engenue with a flexible stub nib.

[mizgeorge]

I have a some very nice Parker semiflex nibs - their original hosts have long since perished, but they live on in other pens. I think one came from a Canadian Vac, I know at least one of the others was from a smaller English Duofold. 

[PithyProlix]

Is it a reasonable to think that no (roughly) post-WW2 Parkers have flexible nibs? 

[mizgeorge]

33 minutes ago, PithyProlix said:

Is it a reasonable to think that no (roughly) post-WW2 Parkers have flexible nibs? 

I'd say at least one of my English ones was from the 50s. It's not hugely flexible, but certainly very springy with a decent amount of variation. 

[bunnspecial]

22 minutes ago, mizgeorge said:

I'd say at least one of my English ones was from the 50s. It's not hugely flexible, but certainly very springy with a decent amount of variation. 

 

Both of my English squeeze-filling Duofolds(I learned not too terribly long ago that they aren't truly "aeromatics" as they lack the side hole in the breather tube) have nibs that have some degree of flex. One is only slightly flexible(M to maybe a skinny B), while the other will spread from a fine to maybe a B or B+ with moderate pressure.

[VacNut]

Flexibility is subjective, but I find that Canadian Vac OS nibs tend to be more flexible than american nibs. I have discovered 3-4 two-tone American Vac OS/Max nibs that are “flexible” but no where near the flexibility of A Older Duofold or Lucky Curve nib. I wouldn’t expect to use any vac nib for traditional calligraphy. I am always open to see the contrary, though.

[bunnspecial]

Since it's cold and snowy today, I decided to go through and check flex on my Parkers. There were a couple I'd let dry with ink(shame on me) and didn't make it, but they were nothing out of the ordinary.

 

I also missed inking one I'd pulled and was too lazy to go back and do it...I should since it's a fairly scarce oblique nib that has a bit of flex. I bought two of these obliques as loose nibs, fit a slightly flexible one to an Emerald Junior(2nd gen) and had Ron fit the stiff one to a silver pearl Major. Even though they're both 40s nibs, I like the size of the older 3 band standard better and I'm tempted to go back and fit one of these nibs to one of those...not going to do it on my burgundy Vacuum Filler or my really nice Burgundy Standard, though.

 

In any case, here's the range from not at all flexible to what I'd call fairly flexible. I actually saved the Big Red for last since I seemed to remember a lot of flex in it, but hadn't used it for a while. Turns out the black OS Vac is quite a bit more flexible.

 

That particular OS is a very lovely nib-it's just stiff enough that I can write with it without flexing other than on my typical T crosses, but it will open up a lot without too much pressure. If I want to flex it, it takes some finesse for it to not be an "all or nothing" nib.

 

BTW, because, why not, all but the English Duofold are vintage Quink Permanent Royal Blue from a big 4 oz. art deco bottle...

 

[Emver]

Thank you for all your contributions to this topic, and especially to Bunnspecial for taking the time to test your pens and show those photos.  I liked your comment  "That particular OS is a very lovely nib-it's just stiff enough that I can write with it without flexing other than on my typical T crosses, but it will open up a lot without too much pressure. If I want to flex it, it takes some finesse for it to not be an "all or nothing" nib".  That sums up the kind of nib I'm looking for - something capable of producing pronounced line variation when required, but also capable of producing normal writing.

 

Has anybody tried Kaigelu "Long Knife Grinding" nibs? Sorry to mention Chinese pens on this forum but some of them really are nice, and the Kaigelu 316 is one of my favourites.  I've just discovered these Long Knife Grinding nibs which appear to be a more flexible version of the standard size 6 nib, so I'm just wondering if anybody here has tried one?  I had considered trying a Zebra G type nib but they look to be just too flexible, and being untipped they are likely to be scratchy and unreliable. So I'm hoping that the Kaigelu LKG might be a relatively cheap solution.

[bunnspecial]

6 hours ago, Emver said:

Thank you for all your contributions to this topic, and especially to Bunnspecial for taking the time to test your pens and show those photos.  I liked your comment  "That particular OS is a very lovely nib-it's just stiff enough that I can write with it without flexing other than on my typical T crosses, but it will open up a lot without too much pressure. If I want to flex it, it takes some finesse for it to not be an "all or nothing" nib".  That sums up the kind of nib I'm looking for - something capable of producing pronounced line variation when required, but also capable of producing normal writing.

 

 

I always like answering questions like this because it makes me get out pens I may not have used in a while to demonstrate them, and may have forgotten the exact nature of them. I knew this particular Vac was the "good" one but I was also going through and checking before I inked to try and get a representative sample. Needless to say also I didn't check 51s, 61s, or any of my modern Parkers.

 

With that Vac, however, don't go out and buy one expecting to get a nib like that. Oversize Vacs are not inexpensive pens, and most are going to be like the first I showed or maybe have a bit of spring like the second.

 

I bought the very flexible one from a pen dealer on Ebay and the nib was honestly a surprise because they didn't mention it. It was also claimed as "restored" and I think did have a new diaphragm, but there were some serious issues with how the nib and feed were set and it did not write reliably(generally not more than a couple of stokes right after filling) when I first got it. I messed with it and got it going but it was never really "right" until I knocked the nib out and actually got everything set properly. Now it's a lovely writer, and even though I noticed the flex when I first got it, it took me a little while to have a pen that would write when flexed. BTW, as a frame of reference, I'd consider this similar to if not more flexible than the 50s German nibs that some hold in such reverence here.

 

Don't count on buying a random Vac on Ebay and getting a nib like this, though. The serious Vac folks could probably give you better numbers of how likely you are to find one, but I don't think I'd be stretching to to say chances are not great. Also, if the seller had realized and advertised just how flexible it was, I suspect it would have easily been double what I did pay.

[KBeezie]

On 1/16/2022 at 2:27 PM, bunnspecial said:

I bought the very flexible one from a pen dealer on Ebay and the nib was honestly a surprise because they didn't mention it. It was also claimed as "restored" and I think did have a new diaphragm, but there were some serious issues with how the nib and feed were set and it did not write reliably(generally not more than a couple of stokes right after filling) when I first got it. I messed with it and got it going but it was never really "right" until I knocked the nib out and actually got everything set properly. Now it's a lovely writer, and even though I noticed the flex when I first got it, it took me a little while to have a pen that would write when flexed. BTW, as a frame of reference, I'd consider this similar to if not more flexible than the 50s German nibs that some hold in such reverence here.

Too many of the Ebay sellers are just sac-n-shine type of sellers. They don't do much more than that. I'll usually get a 'restored' pen on eBay if it's enough of a deal or if I can offer it down lower, with the intention that I'm going to go over it and tune/correct some things, which I've had to do numerous times with eBay sales. 

 

I probably would have kept most my vacumatics if any of them were at least a semi-flex or springy, but all the ones I've had were firm nails and not a huge fan of that except in certain cases. I only have one vac currently, an azure 3rd gen junior with a 2nd gen blind cap, that I don't use because while the nib is a smooth wet fine, it's very rigid. 

[fpupulin]

Parker Duofold streamlined, made in Canada, EF nib, semi-flexible.