Parker
Pens and Ephemera

Some pens are just difficult to define. Our Depression-era Parker looks a lot like a Parker Challenger in a demi size. However, it is the Parker Thrift Time pen. We restored this vintage pen with a new ink sac. A little of the nickel-plated trim is worn away, and there are some bite marks on the blind cap. Yet, the marble design helps to hide the wear. You will write a nice extra-fine line with its 14k gold nib. We don't find the line to be scratchy, but it isn't buttery smooth, either. A slender pen that measures 12.2cm capped.

A shiny vintage pen can brighten anybody's day, and we think this Parker Deluxe Challenger Jr. might brighten your's. We love the vibrant green and black marble design. This pen has been fully restored with a new ink sac. There are no cracks or deep scratches, but there is significant brassing, a little wear and a couple bite marks on the blind tail cap. Nice crisp imprint. You will write a nice fine to fine-medium line with its 14k gold nib. It is on the shorter and slender side. Click the headline for close-ups. 11.8cm capped.

If golfing and vintage pens are your passions, we have the ideal desk base for you! This is a Parker Duofold desk set designed to hold two fountain pens. It has the bronze image of a golfer in some very 1920s' looking golfing regalia. How could anyone look so earnest in those pants? Nevertheless, he is a rugged handsome man. A man of business and industry. Personally, we think the paper clip tray is cleverly positioned as a divot from his mighty swing. The two Duofold trumpets appear to be in good condition, as is the green marble (?) base. A price sticker that is likely original is under the base reading that it is a Parker set that originally cost $53.50. No model I.D. number. Sorry, the pens are long gone. This is about a foot long and 8 inches high. It weighs about 5 pounds and will likely cost a little extra to ship than our site can figure out how to ship. Please ask about shipping rates.

As a luxury pen, the Parker Sonnet often gets overlooked. However, we dare anyone not to fall in love with the solid sterling silver Parker Sonnet Fougere. Feathered herringbone is the best way to describe the pattern in the silver. Classically elegant, the silver on this pen doesn't show a trace of wear, denting or scratching. Unfortunately, there is a ring of wear around the gold-filled cap band, as if it were rolling around inside a desk for a while. Otherwise, the pen is quite stunning. It comes with its original boxes and converter. You will write a smooth fine line from a high angle of attack on the paper and a scratchier medium with a lower angle of attack. Click the headline for a close-up of the two-tone 18k gold nib. 13.3cm capped.

Easily one of our favorite vintage pen designs of all time: the Parker Duofold Geometric! Who doesn't want a pen covered in flying toothbrushes?! Fully restored and ready for action, the fountain pen has a new ink sac. No cracks in the cap or barrel but significant brassing on the trim. You'll also find some wear from use and that the barrel is discolored a couple shades darker than the cap. You'll write a nearly buttery smooth fine line with the 14k gold nib. Cracks won't effect the performance of the nib, but there is a short sideways crack on each side of the nib just above where it enters the section. Click the headline for close ups. The matching pencil shows brassing and wear, but it is in good working order with spare 1.1mm leads.

Parker mastered marketing during the Great Depression. Instead of reducing the price of flagship Vacumatics and Duofolds, Parker Thrift Time pens were essentially Parker Duofolds with bargain-basement pricing. Barely even advertised, these pens were actually decent sellers at stationary and pen shops and helped keep Parker afloat during the darkest days of the Depression. On the collector market, they can be a little difficult to come by. Here is a fully restored green marble Parker Thrift Time with a still-working grey-marble pencil. Click the headline for close ups.

It seems a misnomer that Parker Duofold Jr. pencils are called juniors. They are about the same length as the seniors, just a little thinner. There's only one little dimple in the golden tail topper. The rest of the vintage pencil shows a little wear from use and brassing. The tail-twist mechanism works great, advancing and retracting the 1.1mm lead. There's a spare lead but no eraser under the tail topper. 13cm.

Finding "clean" lapis blue in vintage writing instruments is difficult in our modern age. The white flecks are nearly perfect in the blue barrel. It has a nice, deep, crisp imprint, too. There are no significant dents or scratches. A little brassing can be found. The pen works well. You can easily advance or retract the 1.1mm lead with a twist of the tail cap. Remove the golden tail topper to reveal the remains of the hardened eraser with spare leads below it. 13cm capped.