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sexta-feira, 18 de fevereiro de 2011

To DAVID ISAACSON ( about your article: NITTY GRITTY : a survey of Parker pens from the 1930's , 2011 STYLUS pen annual , P.P. 146-152 )


Dearest David: when a common friend told me about your article, I couldn't rest my mind until I had the chance to read it! After I read it, and even though I do consider you an “expert” in old fountain pens namely Parker Vacumatic, I felt a deep emptyness, as if I had been invited to an elaborate meal by a “grand chef de cuisine” and had only been given an “amuse bouche”!
In the legend of the Diamond Medal and Webster brands (page 148) you say: “Hard fought knowledge now presented casually!” Where did you get that information? As you know, independently of owning the pens (and we don't own anything! We're only its curators while we live!) one of the great pleasures that we collectors have, is finding out what's beyond them – if it's either a brand, a manufacturer, or a single pen that has caught our attention due to an inscription: a name, a monogram, a dedicatory, a coat of arms , etc.
This way, my dear David, I invite you to share with us on my blog, all the information that you have by now, and where you found it. I give you several examples:

  1. At a given point you afirm: information about the Parker-Sears mid 1930's connection has been elucidated to a large degree during the last decade...hard fought knowledge now presented casually! How and where did you find this large degree information?
  2. Badge engineering is not a new phenomenom. These pens (diamond and webster) were made by Parker for Sears and were re badged under the diamond medal and webster labels! From what date? Bruce Webster wrote in his pencyclopedia that:

“(National Pen Products) a prolific pen manufacturer of medium to high grade fountain pens. National pen company used many different names. It has been said if you ordered 100 pens they would put any name you wanted on them. I believe they also bought up other pen companies for their names and/or machinery. They probably made more oversize flattop pens than any other company. In 1934 they owned the trademarks Lincoln, Gold Medal and Gold Crown (and probably more). They probably originated from the CE Barrett company which was at that adress in the 1920's. Gold bond was one of their higher quality pens. Gold medal was possibly sold to Parker or made pens with Parker patents later in the late 30's. The Lincoln pens were earlier than most of the other pens they produced and came in hard rubber. The good service oversize flattops were also made by them.”

He also said that: “Diamond Medal Fountain Pens were sold by Sears Roebuck. In the 1920's and partiallyinto the 30's they were made by National Pen Products of Chicago. They were not offered in any stores except Sears and National Pen Products was not able to sell these pens on their own. They were high quality lever fill pens in the 1920's and the early 1930's. They offered a full range of mens and ladies pens and even combos. They used top grade celluloid, good quality gold filled trim and 14k gold nibs. Since they were made by National Pen Products, you will find similar pens under other names such as Lincoln, Gold Medal and Gold Bond. Around 1936 they began having Parker Pen make some of their pens. These pens are a cross between the Vacumatic and Challenger lines having Vacumatic barrels, caps and fillers and Challenger style clips and clip retainers. See the listing on National Pen Products for more info”.

About Webster Fountain Pens: “there seems to have been 2 uses of the Webster name. There was a line of eyedropper fill pens sold by the Webster Pen Co 37-39 Maiden Lane NYC. This Webster seems to have been in business from 1903.1920. They made a pen called Daniel Webster. I believe that this company went bankrupt and the name was revived by Sears Roebuck on a line of fountain pens they sold in their catalogues in the 1920's and 30's.”

  1. Parker also produced some “Good Service” label pens for Sears, as well as the Fifth Avenue by Safford, a very low-priced line pen related to the Parkette line for Woolworths. The fifth Avenue pens I have may or may not have some similarities with the Parkette and I published in this blog 3 of them without any similarities! The resemblance of either the materials, or the shape of a few pens are not a strong enough argument to affirm that they have been manufactured by the same company! I give you the example of the Diamond Medal and the Monroe's with “stepped ends” and that have not relation among them whatsoever. Actually, John Roede himself, says in the article about the eclipse published in Pen World volume 19, #7, september 2006 that: “Monroe's gold design patent for stepped ends on barrel and cap worked wonders in the sales arena, jusging by the number of imitations/copies it spanned. Perhaps Klein and Gold could have kept the company going (Eclipse) if they had collected Royalties on every stepped end pen produced prior to 1944, when the patent expired. It is obvious that any patent is only as good as the owner's willingness to defend it from poachers. It's doubtful that Eclipse even had the finantial or intestinal strenght to go after those who infringed!

This way dear David, I invite you to share with the rest of us all the information that you posess, so that we can all take the conclusions that you did. Concluding, after this “amuse bouche”, please give us the rest of the meal!

A big hug from your friend:

Luiz Leite
 An earlier Vacumatic called in those day as VACUUM FILLER. This small model is hard to find.
 Detail of the imprint , a little faint.
 Detail of the section and the two tone gold nib
 Detail of cap's top
 A marbled black and burgundy DIAMOND MEDAL
 Detail of the clip-
 Detail of barrel's imprint
 Detail of the two tone gold nib similar to  Duofold  nibs fitted in  some of those parkers
 A streamlined Dufold junior Parker and the Diamond Medal
 Detail of the clips
 Detail of the Parker nib. Compare with the Diamond nib.
 Detail of the barrel's imprint of the Parker Duofold junior pen
 A GOLD MEDAL pen also in black and burgundy with a lever filler system.
 Detail of the clip
 Detail of the barrel's imprint
 Two PARKETTE ZEPHYR
 Detail of barrel's imprint
 Detail of the barrel's imprint

 Details of the two gold nibs fitted in both Parkettes Zephyr
 An IMPERIAL VACUMATIC and a WEBSTER with silver cap and gold filled clip
 Compare sections of both pens with threads on barrel's ends .
 Three more DIAMOND MEDAL pens in pen pencil combination
 Detail of the clips
 Detail of  stepped end cap's tops
 Now, one DIAMOND MEDAL and two MONROE's, one pen pencil combination and the other just a fountain pen. Look to the similarities.
 DIAMOND MEDAL pens were made by NATIONAL PEN PRODUCTS  located in CHICAGO. MONROE PENS were made by ECLIPSE located in NY and in CANADA. More, the stepped end has been created by MONROE GOLD who worked for ECLIPSE PEN COMPANY . The similarities are NOT ENOUGH to conclude for any link between the two companies.

 From left to right: A CONWAY STEWART DURO # 2 , a PARKER DUOFOLD, an OXFORD PEN, a DIAMOND MEDAL and  another PARKER DUOFOLD.
 Detail of the barrel's imprint on the OXFORD pen " Oxford everdurable junior " ( not connected with Wahl Eversharp )
 Detail of the OXFORD gold nib
 Detail of the barrel's imprint ( faint ) on the CONWAY STEWART pen
 Detail of the CONWAY STEWART DURO  gol nib
 Again , detail of the two tone DIAMOND MEDAL nib.

 Detail of the barrel's imprint on the first Parker Duofold pen  ( made in CANADA )

 Two Brithish PAKER VICTORY, one GOLD MEDAL and two PARKER CHALLENGER in different sizes.
 Details of the clips.
 Details of the PARKER VICTORY  barrel's imprint .

 Details of the PARKER CHALLENGER barrel's imprint on one of those pens ( made in CANADA )
 Detail's of the PARKER CHALLENGER gold nib ( Canada version ) .
 Detail's of the PAKER CHALLENGER barrel's imprint on the USA model

 Details of the PARKER CHALLENGER gold nib, USA version.
 Three PARKER DUOFOLD STREAMLINED ( a senior and two junor , one with and another one without clip ) , a British CROXLEY pen and a STEPHENS # 76 ( another British pen )
 Details of the clips.
STEPHEN'S barrel imprint

 STEPHENS clip
 STEPHEN'S gold nib
 Detail of the very ART DECO CROXLEY'S clip
 Same ART DECO aspect of the lever.
 CROXLEY'S barrel imprint
 Original CROXLEY'S gold nib engraved:  A DICKINSON PRODUCT.
 Detail of the PARKER DUOFOLD STEAMLINED SENIOR model gold nib, ( made in CANADA )
 Barrel´l imprint
 Barrel´s imprint on the second PAKER DUOFOLD STREAMLINED JUNIOR model, with clip ( made in USA )
 Details of the two tone gold nib on the same pen

 Barrel's imprint on the PARKER DUOFOLD STREAMLINED  model without clip
 Detail of the gold nib on the same pen.

 Two foam gren PARKER'S and a similar British made BURNHAM pen . Again , the similarities are not an argument to link two companies . The first PARKER , on the left  is " made in Canada " and the second one on the right is " made in USA ". See next photos.



A PARCO PARKER pen and four PARKETTES.
PARCO pen barrel's imprint
Details of the gold PARCO nib
Details of PARKETTE barrel's imprint
Two DIAMOND MEDAL pens, three PARKETTES and two called THRIFT TIME PARKERS
Details of clips and cap rings
One DIAMOND MEDAL, one PARKER CHALLENGER and a PARKER VACUMATIC junior
The DIAMOND PEN alone
The DIAMOND  MEDAL pen clip
The DIAMOND MEDAL gold nib
Six different PARKER CHALLENGER five of them  with the called " blade clip ".
Details of the clips
Barrel's imprints
Four PAKER CHALLENGER and two PARKER DUOFOLD called toothbrush model. One of the CHALLENGERS has the uncommun SWORD clip







Three photos of a very nice and  unsual Parker Royal Challenger desk set




Details of barrel's imprint on a PARKER DELUXE CHALLENGER
The same on the PARKER CHALLENGER with the SWORD CLIP
Barrel's imprints on the two PARKER DUOFOLD " toothbrush " models.
A PARKER TELEVISOR and two WEBSTER  pens
Detail of the clips
Detail of cap's bands


Details of the WEBSTER gold nibs. One of them is imprinted " made in CANADA ". This raises a question to David Isaacson .....according to what he wrote in his article.
Detail of the Parker TELEVISOR gold nib
Imprint on the barrel's of PARKER TELEVISOR pen
The same on the WEBSTER pen ( again made in CANADA ).
Two more DIAMOND MEDAL pens and a GOLDEN WEB vacumatic PARKER.
Details of the clips
Details of the DIAMOND MEDAL  two tone gold nibs
Details of the barrel´s imprint on the " SILVER WEB " DIAMOND MEDAL



Hi Luiz,

Thanks for writing. Nice blog pictures.

Please note... I CANNOT find the place to put comments on your blog.  I'm in airport on way home from Los Angeles Pen Show (had great time).

At least, I invite you to view our new Fountain Pen Board
http://www.fountainpenboard.com   DO join the group!

I have two threads exploring re-badged Parkers

This one is four pages
http://fountainpenboard.com/forum/index.php?/topic/179-pics-o-the-gold-brick-funky-parkers-from-the-thoities


Evidence for connection?

1) pen structure, features from Parker pens found on DM
2) Sears catalogue advertising that uses essentially exact Parker terms/jargon/verbiage/language

I do not have Parker memos proving connection, but circumstantial evidence is overwhelming.

Happy to post these points on your blog if you can tell me how to post there (I do not see text box).

regards : David