Parker 45 Restoration

[@randy25rhoads]

When I was a teenager, working at Staples as a cashier and with only a Pilot Varsity in my new collection, this really nice lady came in wondering if fountain pen ink could still be bought. We didn’t have any in the store at that time, but she started showing me her grandpa’s Sheaffer Sentinel Snorkel and asking how to fill it. The thing obviously didn’t work after 50 years in a drawer, but I knew how to at least work the snorkels tube. That apparently impressed her enough that she felt compelled to gift the pen to me. 😲 Still have it and cherish it as if it were MY grandpa’s pen.

[@fountainPENdulum]

What a fantastic story! & What a tremendous gift! Quite a step up from a Pilot Varsity! I've seen them demonstrated online but have never tried one before! It was a very innovative design and is very practical!

[@The_Ossifrage]

I do like the simplified single-piece metal body design, but I might be biased because I own a 1980 Flighter. It's currently equipped with a rare, slightly flexible white-gold X-fine nib, and running Diamine Sherwood Green ink. Mine runs very smoothly and comfortably, so it's possible that your nib tines are slightly misaligned (I had that issue with my original steel Medium nib). The design is timeless, robust, and extremely reliable, and I'm glad it was my first fountain pen. The only cons I'd say the 45 has are the nib has a very narrow working angle, so if you rotate your writing hand it might start skipping, and the plastic grip section can shrink and deform as it dehydrates with age. One of its major strengths is how cheap and widely available spare parts are because of how common and popular it was across the world, which makes this a great choice for a vintage pen beginner.

[@fountainPENdulum]

I like the sound of your softer nib! I prefer soft nibs with some bounce. This is a rigid nib. But because of that, it's a pen that I wouldn't worry too much about letting people in the Fountain Pen Community try out. I don't have inked often, but I'm happy to have it as part of my collection.

[@andrewdaydreamer5209]

I have 3 parker 45 pens. One is very smooth but the black finial has been snapped off. The other 2 pens are scratchy. I want to get a parker 51 next.

[@fountainPENdulum]

Would you be able to move the good nib over to one of the other Parker 45s?

[@mohammedshoeb4636]

How many turns to tighten for the convertor?

[@melissagodwin1594]

This is just fascinating. Would you mind sharing the details on your loupe? I got one from Amazon and while it works well enough, I have to have it literally sitting on whatever I’m looking at.

[@fountainPENdulum]

Thank you! Absolutely! I actually did a whole video on my loupe & Fountain Pens! 😅 Here is the link:kzbin.info/www/bejne/eaeckn6mdsx7e9Esi=dnaWPU1UpBAQftrs Hope it is helpful! :)

[@fountainPENdulum]

Sounds like the magnification isn't strong enough, mine is 10x which is recommended for general use with fountain pens. It's been a great start for me but now I want a stronger one now that I do some tuning on my nibs after taking a class on nib tuning:)

[@melissagodwin1594]

@@fountainPENdulumoh that’s great! Thank you!! I’m obviously new to your channel, but I will DEFINITELY be hanging around. 😁

[@melissagodwin1594]

@@fountainPENdulumoh wow. There is so much I still want to learn about pens, and a hands on experience like that would just be amazing.

[@fountainPENdulum]

@melissagodwin1594 Thank You! Much appreciated! :)

[@ironmic9244]

that is one interesting looking feed. Reminds me of Batman's costume. I would really like to know why it is like that and why is it not looking like the traditional fin feed. I want to know a little more about it. I think it's a fine, because the ink looks too light to be medium. It looks on the drier side. But I think that's Parker for you. I really don't get the black end piece. I guess it can work when you take the cap off, but most of the time the cap is on. Maybe there was a black jewel cap??? I have been trying to get some Parker Duofolds, and Vacmatics, but to no avail right now. I am very happy for you that you got the pen working and good for you figuring it out and restoring it.

[@fountainPENdulum]

Thanks! It was definitely a gratifying process, and I'm getting more comfortable disassembling the nib and feed units, which was previously daunting.

[@The_Ossifrage]

@@fountainPENdulum The 45 is certainly a very easy pen to disassemble and clean, not to mention the glut of spare parts in case you need replacements.

[@fountainPENdulum]

Yes, I was very surprised and impressed by the degree and ease of disassembly. Then, when I thought I needed to replace parts and did some research, I was very pleased to find parts readily available!

[@The_Ossifrage]

@@fountainPENdulum It's incredibly satisfying to have several different nibs that can all be quickly swapped into the same body. Currently I'm using an X-fine nib in mine, 10K white gold which was fun to hunt around for.

[@fountainPENdulum]

@The_Ossifrage That's a very good and interesting point! I find the nib on mine to be too broad. It would be interesting to try a finer nib. Where have you gotten your various nib sizes?

[@paulholbach3716]

The outer underside of the black hood indicates the size of the nib. F or M etc. Very tiny so use the magnifier.

[@fountainPENdulum]

Thank you! I'll check it out with my loupe

[@MisterBurtonshaw]

I'm pretty certain that is a Parker 45 Flighter CT. They were made between (1964?)1965 and 1969. The nib size should be identified from a letter on the outside bottom of the nib hood. Sadly, it can't be dated more accurately because Parker didn't use date codes on the pen top until either 1970 o 1979 I can't remember which.

[@fountainPENdulum]

That's a cool name! Thanks for the info. That makes it the oldest pen in my collection at this time!

[@MisterBurtonshaw]

@@fountainPENdulum cheers, if there is no letter on the nib shroud, it's a fine... just found that out.