Parker 45 Colors

[Lady Onogaro]

I have a couple of questions.

The first is about Parker 45 colors.

I have a couple of Parker 45s with barrels in a dark green color, but when I compare them to each other, the greens do not look *quite* alike. Is this because the colors fade over time? Or would different lots or years likely have slightly different shades of green?

I am looking at Richard Binder's reference pages in comparing colors. He says that he does not have a complete listing of colors.

My second question has to do with the Flighter.

I have a Flighter with a short barrel. It does not have a black plastic tail piece, but I don't know that it is supposed to have one (I have seen pictures of some Flighters that do not have a black tail on the bottom of the barrel). Do you know if some were made this way, or whether it is more likely that the black tail piece was broken off (or chewed off and then broken off, as I have several plastic 45s that have the distinct signs of teeth).

Thanks for any help you can provide.

[migo984]

I have 45s that are supposedly the same barrel colour but are in fact slightly different. They were made in different countries (UK, USA, Mexico, Argentina), so I put it down to the manufacturing process. That doesn't necessarily preclude the colour variation from being due to fading though. Others will be better placed to answer that.

I also have 2 Flighters without the black plastic ends.

This site has a lot of info on Parker pens, including the 45.
http://parkerpens.net/parker45.html

[Jeph]

Don't forget France. But dammit, now I have to get one from Mexico!

And flighters came in every variation of barrel endcaps, gold, silver, black, colored and even wood. I think I might even have seen one without an endcap, meaning the barrel was full length like some of the basic ones. Come to think of it, I might actually have one of the latter. I won't be back to my pile o' pens until next week though. I hope that I remember to look after I get back.

[Spikey Mike]

Have a look here for all things Parker 45: https://parker45pens.wordpress.com/

Yes, the plastic colours can vary a little depending and can change a little over time although all in all they are much better then the earlier plastics!

Yes, from around 1979 onwards the Parker flighter was manufactured without a tail cap

[Jeph]

Yes, sorry I forgot to check. Here are 3, one with silver trim and a silver endcap from France, one with gold trim and a gold endcap from USA, and one with silver trim and no endcap from UK. The countries listed have no significance other than record keeping. I have one from Argentina also, but alas, no Mexico. I wonder if I need to get one from Australia as well?

19657

[Lady Onogaro]

Have a look here for all things Parker 45: https://parker45pens.wordpress.com/

Yes, the plastic colours can vary a little depending and can change a little over time although all in all they are much better then the earlier plastics!

Yes, from around 1979 onwards the Parker flighter was manufactured without a tail cap

Thank you for this. Mine does not have a tail cap but is shorter than my other Parkers. That's what makes me wonder if the tail cap is missing or if it was just made this way.

[Spikey Mike]

If it's shorter then the other 45s then yes, possibly the tail cap has been broken. Is there a hole or a plastic circle visible on the end of the barrel? A late cap less one should be squared off with a slight rim at the edge.

[Lady Onogaro]

I'm pretty convinced now that the tail cap has been broken. There is a hole at the bottom of the barrel, and now that I look at it with a lighted loupe, I can see some gouging in the plastic. It still writes well, and it had a converter and a gold nip with it (thought the cap tassie was also chewed up quite a bit), and I did not pay much for it, so it's not a complete loss. It's a user I can carry to work.