1919 PARKER FOUNTAIN PEN CATALOG

1918 Parker pen catalog hardcover edition. Courtesy of Tsachi Mitsenmacher.
1918 Parker pen catalog. Paperback edition.

Mr. Geo. S. Parker invented, patented, and trade-marked what has proven to be the most practical, and most simple, and probably the best working pen yet produced. It was given the name of Parker “Lucky Curve™ because of the peculiar curve of the feed bar containing the ink channel. This “Lucky Curve” has done away with one of the chief annoyances of fountain pens—that of the ink leaking out and collecting on the finger grip when the pen is not in use.

In the Parker Pen the feed bar is curved so that it touches the inner wall of the ink reservoir. By means of this contact, all ink is drained out of the ink-channel, by capillary attraction, back into the ink reservoir, leaving a free passageway for the expanding air to escape. The air expands due to the heat from the body and must escape thru the ink channel. Obviously if the channel contains ink, this ink must be forced out, and it oozes out around the finger grip. This is the cause of so many inky fingers, and thus it can be seen that the Parker Lucky Curve made a really practical stride forward in scientifically overcoming the chiefs of all fountain pen evils.

In the thirty years that Parker Pens have been manufactured, various other refinements have been made. The Parker self-filling mechanism, elsewhere described, has certain features which are sure to appeal to everyone who is familiar with the rights and wrongs of fountain pen construction. In the barrel of the Parker Pen, for example, there are no slots or cuts, no levers or projections of any kind. The barrel is ink tight—safety sealed—a feature which no other self-filling pen has. The lever which squeezes the rubber ink sac comes out at the top of the barrel in the form of a button, covered by an ink-tight safety cap. To fill the pen, simply immerse the point in ink, press the button and release it, retain the pen in the ink for two or three seconds, and it is filled.

Parker Lucky Curve Safety-Sealed Self-filling Types. These pens can be furnished with Bakelite transparent barrel eyedropper filling at $1.00 extra.

Parker no. 25 ½. Photo courtesy of PBA Galleries, Berkeley, CA. (image ©Justin Benttinen)
No. 51 Parker Jack Knife Safety sealed self filler. Golg mounting in center of barrel with space for engraving name. Price $4.50. Courtesy of FiveStarPens.
Parker #14 silver mounting. Courtesy of Luiz Leite.
No. 32 S. Parker Jack Knife self-filler sterling silver. Price $8.00. Ring for attaching to chain.
Parker no. 70 collapsible. Covered with finest 18k. plate.
Parker #76 Jack Knife Safety trimmed with gold band. Courtesy of Rachel Agypt.
Parker pen no. 96. Silver mounting.
A Parker Black Giant inside its box case. Courtesy Tsachi Mitsenmacher.

The Parker Bakelite Transparent Pen. The advantage in having a fountain pen with a transparent barrel is chiefly that one can always see how much ink the pen contains, and that consequently there is no danger of being unexpectedly without ink.

The barrel is made of Bakelite which is a chemical composition resembling pure amber in many respects. It is not inflammable like celluloid; it is not brittle like glass; and it has no color. It is exceedingly tough like hard rubber and is not easily shattered. Bakelite is manufactured for many purposes—pipe stems, cigar holders, billiard balls, electrical insulators, etc.

 Soon after its invention The Parker Pen Company secured the sole rights to use it for the manufacture of fountain pen barrels. The public acceptance of this novelty is evidenced by the fact that there are at present several hundred thousand of them in daily use.

Practically every unmounted style of Parker Pen can be furnished with Bakelite barrel. Please remember that ink cannot be seen in a Bakelite self-filling pen on account of the ink sac, therefore, Bakelite barrels are non-self-filling unless otherwise specified. The price of the transparent barrel is $1,00 in addition to the price of the ordinary pen.

Parker Bakelite Jack-Knife no. 71 in plush hinged box. Was $6.00. Transparent barrel, gold crown and band on cap with a ring for chain or ribbon. (Courtesy of John Danza).
No. 9. Gold mounted. Price, $ 4.00. This Is a gentleman’s pen exclusively. It is by all odds the most handsome of the large sized fountains. An ample ink reservoir. Beautifully gold mounted. A superb pen in every way. Courtesy of Luiz Leite.

No. 33 L. $6,50. Gold filled mountings. Place for name or monogram.

No. 34 L. $5.50. Same as No. 33 with Sterling Silver mountings.

No: 42 1/2 L. $5.50. This pen is simple and elegant. Blank space for name or monogram on band.

No. 50 L.  $5.0. Barrel is perfectly plain, cap is crowned with white surrounded by white gold filled band. Can be furnished with chased barrel.

Parker pen no. 33 Gold and 34 Sterling Silver. Courtesy of Luiz Leite.

No. 48 L. $8.00. Plain 18-K gold filled. A plain rich pen that would please anyone with its rich simplicity.

No. 58 L. $12.00. In the gold-filled ornamentation of this pen is embodied the Awanyu Aztec Indian design. This is a good luck symbol, and it makes a very good-looking pen.

No. 61 L. $12.00. The barrel, cap and nozzle are entirely covered with 18- K gold. There is something about the plainness of this pen that makes it very pleasing to the eye.

Parker Awanyu "Aztec". Models #57, #58, #59, and #60.

The Parker Trench Pen.

This pen was designed primarily for the use of men in military service where liquid ink was at times difficult or impossible to obtain. The little receptacle at the end of the barrel contains enough ink tablets to make nearly a half pint of ink.

The advantage of having such a pen on a camping trip, or on shipboard, or on a train journey, or under innumerable other circumstances, where liquid ink is not easily obtainable, can be readily appreciated.

Unscrew the nozzle from the barrel, drop two of the tablets into the barrel and fill with water. The tablets immediately dissolve into an excellent writing fluid and the pen is ready to use. For further fillings one tablet will suffice as there is sufficient coloring matter left in the barrel from previous fillings. The tablets cost 10 c. for a box of thirty-six.

The Trench Pens cost: No. 20-$3.00; No. 23-$5.00; No. 24-$5.00; No. 25-$6.00

Parker #20 Trench Safety full length.
Parker Giant clip just punched blank. Tsachi Mitsenmacher.

The Parker Clip.

This is a clip that fills a long felt want. It grips the pocket firmly yet comes off easily without injuring the cloth of the pocket.

This clip is not attached with rivets and no cuts or holes are punched or cut into the cap. It fits like a washer between the outer and inner caps and is perfectly flush with the surface of the cap on all sides.

To attach it, simply unscrew the little safety cap, put the collar of the clip around the screw head, and screw the top down. It fits like a washer and positively cannot be lost.

Prices: German silver nickeled, $ .25;  Gold Plated $.75; Solid gold green $ 5.00.

This clip can be used only on Parker safety sealed pens. In ordering clip separately, it is necessary to give catalog number of pen as clips are made in different sizes to fit every size pen exactly.  

Styles of Holders.

Parker Pen holders, or barrels. vary in length, girth, finish, and ornamentation. Most numbers can be obtained in long, medium, or short lengths. The girth of the pens ranges from the small No. 20 to the huge Black Giant size. The finish of the barrel can be either plain or machine chased. A large choice of mounted pens is offered-ranging in price from $3.00 to $250. -many of which are illustrated in this book.

The No. 20 ½ L shows a regular slip cap pen. chased barrel, full length.

The No. 51 L shows a Jack-Knife Safety style, full length. plain barrel with signet band.

The No. 48 S shows a Jack-Knife Safety type, short length, gold mounted, with ring attachment.

The letters «L» or “S” after the pen number indicate a long or short length barrel. The fraction “½” after the pen number signifies that the barrel is machine chased, not plain rubber.

Postcard with Parker factory building completed December 1920