Question About Parker Centennial

[Paul Raposo]

I picked up is a Parker Centennial 100th Anniversary USA set with the mahogany base--a full set. The pen is the maroon marble colour.

When I went to see the pen the owner had unscrewed the section from the brass sleeve which was still in the barrel. I got everything apart and flushed, but now I'm not sure how to seal the section back in the brass sleeve. It's snug but I'm concerned that it will unscrew again rather than staying inside the brass sleeve.

Any advice is greatly appreciated.

[gwgtaylor]

Didn't even know you could remove the black resin section from the metal part. Not sure. Posting pictures may help


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[Chrissy]

I assume it must be originally glued in, since it's never meant to come out. You may have been fortunate that the barrel didn't crack. Or maybe the barrel has slightly stretched.

If it was my pen, I would glue the sleeve into the barrel for peace of mind that it wouldn't come out again.

[Paul Raposo]

Didn't even know you could remove the black resin section from the metal part. Not sure. Posting pictures may help

Hi gwgtaylor. Yes, the section is threaded and screws into the brass sleeve. A lot of people passed the pen over because they thought it was broken.



I assume it must be originally glued in, since it's never meant to come out. You may have been fortunate that the barrel didn't crack. Or maybe the barrel has slightly stretched. If it was my pen, I would glue the sleeve into the barrel for peace of mind that it wouldn't come out again.

Hi Chrissy. I had thought the same, perhaps section sealant? Normally with a vintage pen I'd just go ahead and use Ron Zorn's section sealant but I wasn't sure with this pen.

I think because the pen sat unused for so long the barrel may have shrunk at the threads, but the brass sleeve unscrews easily so that's not it. This is my first modern Duofold, (well, at least from 1988) so not sure how to proceed.

[jar]

Hi gwgtaylor. Yes, the section is threaded and screws into the brass sleeve. A lot of people passed the pen over because they thought it was broken.



I assume it must be originally glued in, since it's never meant to come out. You may have been fortunate that the barrel didn't crack. Or maybe the barrel has slightly stretched. If it was my pen, I would glue the sleeve into the barrel for peace of mind that it wouldn't come out again.

Hi Chrissy. I had thought the same, perhaps section sealant? Normally with a vintage pen I'd just go ahead and use Ron Zorn's section sealant but I wasn't sure with this pen.

I think because the pen sat unused for so long the barrel may have shrunk at the threads, but the brass sleeve unscrews easily so that's not it. This is my first modern Duofold, (well, at least from 1988) so not sure how to proceed.

IIRC it is just like on the Cross Townsend and just screwed in with no sealant.

[Paul Raposo]

IIRC it is just like on the Cross Townsend and just screwed in with no sealant.

Hey jar, long time no talk :cheers:

When I got the pen home I noticed there was some white powder on a few threads so assumed there had been some kind of adhesive, but it could have been from the section being screwed into the brass threads.

[gwgtaylor]

If it's threaded i would shellac if. Easy.


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[Chrissy]

Shellac might work, and is easily removable.

[Paul Raposo]

If it's threaded i would shellac if. Easy.


Shellac might work, and is easily removable.

I had thought about shellac but worried if there would be issues. There shouldn't be but I want to try and keep this as close to factory condition as possible.

[Paul Raposo]

Can anyone suggest how to clean the cap? There's some dried ink in there. On the old Duofolds you just unscrew the inner cap but I'm not sure how these caps are put together.

[gwgtaylor]

Fill with water, cover with thumb, shake. Twist paper towel in to get moisture out.


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[gwgtaylor]

Centennial caps don't disassemble to my knowledge and what I described works so why bother taking it apart if you don't have to.


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[Paul Raposo]

Fill with water, cover with thumb, shake. Twist paper towel in to get moisture out.

Thanks for the info gwgtaylor :thumb:


Centennial caps don't disassemble to my knowledge and what I described works so why bother taking it apart if you don't have to.

I found a post on the other pen forum from Ron Zorn and apparently these do dissemble--there's 6 or 7 pieces altogether and they're held with "white glue" which might explain the white residue I found on the section threads. Not really sure what white glue is though, maybe from a hot glue gun?

[mhosea]

Probably "white glue" refers to something like Elmer's Glue.

[Paul Raposo]

Probably "white glue" refers to something like Elmer's Glue.

Interesting idea.

[mhosea]

Probably "white glue" refers to something like Elmer's Glue.

Interesting idea.

I wasn't aware that I had any "ideas" as such in this matter. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyvinyl_acetate

[Chrissy]

Shellac might work, and is easily removable.

I had thought about shellac but worried if there would be issues. There shouldn't be but I want to try and keep this as close to factory condition as possible.

Factory condition isn't that the brass sleeve stays in the barrel when the section is removed though. You may never find the exact adhesive that Parker originally used, so you may just have to use something that makes the pen stay as it should.

[gwgtaylor]

Shellac might work, and is easily removable.

I had thought about shellac but worried if there would be issues. There shouldn't be but I want to try and keep this as close to factory condition as possible.

And another option is to send it to Parker for service.

Gerald.


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[Paul Raposo]

I wasn't aware that I had any "ideas" as such in this matter.

Since you wrote "probably" I just figured you were making a guess. Yes it could be Elmer's type glue, but it also could not be.


Factory condition isn't that the brass sleeve stays in the barrel when the section is removed though. You may never find the exact adhesive that Parker originally used, so you may just have to use something that makes the pen stay as it should.

Quite true, but I'd like to make sure I can find the correct adhesive before going with shellac.


And another option is to send it to Parker for service.

Or just buying a new section/nib/feed combo on ebay.

[mhosea]

Since you wrote "probably" I just figured you were making a guess. Yes it could be Elmer's type glue, but it also could not be.


Anything is possible, but I doubt Ron would refer to "glue that is white" specifically as "white glue" for fear of implying that it was PVA (or the like) if that wasn't what he meant. I certainly would go out of my way to emphasize it because otherwise the implication is strong. Now, whether he's right or not that this is what Parker used--that's out of my domain.

[Paul Raposo]

Fair enough Mike.

[Paul Raposo]

I contacted Ron Zorn and he said he's not sure what Parkers white glue was. He feels that Elmer's glue isn't it and could be used on casein but would be too strong in this case, as would shellac. He suggested section sealant which is what I went with.

When I was cleaning the brass sleeve the dried glue was clear and was easily soluble with alcohol. Clear finish made me think some type of cyanoacrylate which is alcohol soluble, but who knows what it was.

I removed the feed and nib and gave the parts a good cleaning and got everything back together and now debating if I should ink it.

Thank you to everyone who helped me with this :thumb:

[gwgtaylor]

Why is there a debate? Why wouldn't you ink it?


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[Paul Raposo]

Why is there a debate? Why wouldn't you ink it?

Because then I'd have to flush it again. It sat for decades with dried ink and now it's all clean and shiny again.

[gwgtaylor]

Why is there a debate? Why wouldn't you ink it?

Because then I'd have to flush it again. It sat for decades with dried ink and now it's all clean and shiny again.

You don't have to flush it if you keep it inked and in constant rotation. That's a great pen--help it fulfil its destiny. :-)


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[mhosea]

I feel that way lots of times. I figure it's a temporary state of mind, not something that has to be decided, and just go with the flow. Eventually having it clean won't seem to matter, and I'll ink it then.

[Paul Raposo]

You don't have to flush it if you keep it inked and in constant rotation. That's a great pen--help it fulfil its destiny. :-)

That's a very good point gwgtaylor. Having a beautiful pen and just looking at it is actually pretty sad.


I feel that way lots of times. I figure it's a temporary state of mind, not something that has to be decided, and just go with the flow. Eventually having it clean won't seem to matter, and I'll ink it then.

Go with the flow, I see what you did there :applause:

I contacted the original owner with an offer who was polite but declined. After a couple of months he said he'd take the offer. When I went to see the pen I saw the issue with the section and bought it anyway.

I promised myself after I got it sorted out I'd ink it up but now I just want to look at it the way it is. Hopefully I'll get over that and use the pen for it's intended purpose.

[Barry Gabay]

Hi Paul, I had the same problem with a first-generation Centenniel section. Once when I went to unscrew it for a refill, the black plastic portion separated from the brass housing which remained in the barrel. I removed the brass part by putting a short dowl into it and screwed it out. Then I just screwed the parts back together without any sealant or glue. Hasn't come apart since. Good luck, Barry

[Paul Raposo]

Hi Paul, I had the same problem with a first-generation Centenniel section. Once when I went to unscrew it for a refill, the black plastic portion separated from the brass housing which remained in the barrel. I removed the brass part by putting a short dowl into it and screwed it out. Then I just screwed the parts back together without any sealant or glue. Hasn't come apart since. Good luck, Barry

Hi Barry. I'm certain that's what happened with this pen--after years of siting unused the brass sleeve got stuck in the barrel. I used a piece of rubber glove to unscrew the brass sleeve from the barrel.

The section being separated from the brass sleeve at least gave me the chance to disassemble everything and give it all a good cleaning. I actually found some fibrous material, like cotton, inside the ink channel.