A few days ago, VPC member Christopher sent me a photo and a great write-up for our pen club's blog about a new acquisition (in his words: "...an addition which I am quite pleased with and using this week in my pen round up" ) -- his vintage Parker '21 Deluxe' fountain pen:
(photo courtesy of Christopher ~ please click on image to enlarge)
Christopher writes:
"As much as I have been drawn to the Parker 51 over the years, I do remember fellow students at my prep school using the Parker 21, a pen that seemed to appear in the classroom after Christmas or birthdays. I also remember the 21 being sold at the Woodward pen counter, and even in the early 1950s and through to the mid 1960s at Birks. But I think in more current times it is a pen which has been somewhat discounted and a bit ignored by collectors in favor of the Parker 51. Still, I truly believe that the Parker 21 is worth looking at and, as a fine quality pen, considered. Plus and regarding the 21, the different models seem almost limitless. It is with that attitude that I very quickly moved this Parker 21 Deluxe into my vintage pen collection and, may I add, without hesitation.
First off, there is the lovely almost forest green barrel colour and the fact that, in following the 51, this pen has the Parker dependable and easy-to-use Aerometric filler... a pen filler that Kenneth Parker, son of George Parker the company’s founder, had a hand in developing. The Parker Aerometric filler was designed to offset the pen leaking when airborne. And better still, on each and every Parker Aerometric steel filler sleeve are the filling instructions, plain and simple. Then, moving on up the pen to its business end, there is a metal clutch to hold the cap on the barrel without threads and, above that, the famous Parker hooded section. Underneath this hooded grip is a collector, which was designed to keep the feed and nib always ready with enough ink to write immediately on use. The feed is tiny, but sure does the job and, better still, a very special Parker designed 8 alloy Parker nib that was years in the making. The capability of this nib to applying ink to paper is equally impressive.
But I have saved the best for last, because the Parker 21 Deluxe cap is, in its own right, both beautiful and unique. The main part of this cap is steel but equipped with fine raised vertical lines making the finish almost look brushed. Imprinted at the bottom over these raised lines is the company branding along with the country of origin and, below that, a plain steel banding. Moving on up to the top of the cap, there is another thinner steel band, separating the main body of the cap from the domed 14K gold filled clip screw. The clip in this case also reflects the 21 Mark II model and is referred to as the Parker 21 ‘Ridged’ clip, finished in 14K gold filled to match the cap screw. When you put all this great stuff together you have the Parker 21 Deluxe Mark II in all its glory."
Many thanks to Christopher for sharing his new find with us, and shining a spotlight on an underrated vintage Parker fountain pen model!
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